Chapter 324: Imagined and Real "Adorer"

Empress Borough, Earl Hall's home, dining room.

As per usual tradition, Audrey was saying grace with her father, mother,

and elder brother before dinner.

"Praise the Goddess!" She tapped her chest in four spots in a clockwise

manner to end the prayer.

However, before she finished speaking, her vision was covered by a thick

gray fog. A distant figure that seemed to be looking down at everyone

and everything opened his mouth with dominance.

"That was a Card of Blasphemy made by Roselle."

Mr. Fool... Card of Blasphemy? Audrey, who finally received a

response, was joyful at first, but then she fell into a daze. She

couldn't understand what the so-called Card of Blasphemy referred to.

However, she quickly made a guess. She had always known that Emperor

Roselle had made a secret deck of cards representing some unknown force

which had twenty-two cards in total. It was believed to have been

referenced from tarot cards.

Furthermore, she had also heard from The Hanged Man that the secret to

the deck of cards was that they hid the paths of the divine, the path to

becoming a god!

*So it's called a Card of Blasphemy... It corresponds to the Blasphemy

Slate... This is definitely a treasure of the highest level in the

mysterious world!*

The paths of the divine!

*It's no wonder that Mr. Fool's Blessed had to ask for help. He wanted

to ensure that the card was the real one before taking action. It was to

prevent a mistake from happening. Instead of getting the right target,

it might end up informing the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery

that a particular bookmark hides a Card of Blasphemy.*

I wonder if he succeeded...

*The Beyonders from the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery haven't

come to make any routine inquiries. Perhaps, he's still making

plans...*

As her body trembled faintly, Audrey once again saw a figure praying

inside the thick fog, an extremely blurry figure.

He was saying respectfully, "The Great Fool, please convey my gratitude

to the authenticator. This allowed my operation to go smoothly.

"For that, I'm willing to raise the reward to 3,000 pounds which can be

deducted from the 5,000 pounds that haven't been paid yet. This is the

share that the other party deserves."

*He succeeded? He succeeded just like that? But when I looked at the

front pages of those newspapers, there was no news of the theft at the

exhibition. It was all news of the twelfth victim of the serial

murder... Raising the reward to 3,000 pounds implies that Mr. Fool's

Blessed had indeed succeeded in retrieving the bookmark containing the

Card of Blasphemy without anyone noticing! How cool! Although the term

invented by Emperor Roselle may not be elegant, reserved, or in line

with my identity as a noble identity, it's the only impression that I

feel right now!*

*Our Tarot Club now has a complete path of the divine in its

control!*

It should be a complete one, right?

I wonder which one it is.

But regardless, this represents the path to becoming a god!

*Under the glory of Mr. Fool, we will one day become the most powerful

hidden faction in the world!*

I wonder if the other bookmarks hide Cards of Blasphemy...

Audrey controlled her excitement as she felt longing and pride. She

allowed the dining maid to help her spread out a napkin before her gaze

shifted to Earl Hall, who habitually read the newspapers while having

breakfast.

"Father, is there anything worth paying attention to today?"

Earl Hall sighed and said, "That devil has killed another innocent

person. It's the 12th case. She's a fashion designer who had just become

famous. She had only been a street girl a few times due to her desperate

need for money, but she ended up encountering such a terrible situation.

"Thankfully, there was an eyewitness. The person witnessed the devil at

the crime scene. Heh, he was really scared out of his wits. He

constantly shouted on the streets 'murder' and 'save me.' Heh heh. I

have to say that his cries for help did bring acceptable results. The

devil didn't chase after him.

"As a result, the police have locked onto the suspect and are hunting

him down."

Audrey drew the crimson moon on her chest once again and said, "May

their operation succeed.

"Father, from what you just said, it sure was a horrible but funny

scene.

"I hope that eyewitness won't have nightmares because of it."

*And on the same night, Mr. Fool's Blessed took one of the Cards of

Blasphemy from the heavily protected museum without alerting

anyone...* Audrey added wistfully in her mind and filled in some

of the details herself.

Royal Museum, in the restored study.

"Are you sure that only two bookmarks were stolen?" the Machinery

Hivemind squad's Captain Max Livermore asked his team members.

As he spoke, he stole a glance at the important figure standing in front

of the desk with his back facing him.

It was an old man wearing a white clerical robe and a clerical cap. He

was the head of the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery for the

Backlund diocese. He was a member of the Divine Council, Archbishop

Horamick Haydn.

This important figure wasn't only a clergyman, but he was also a very

famous scientist, a distinguished professor of physics at Backlund

University.

"Yes, only two bookmarks were stolen," The team member being questioned

answered with certainty.

Max nodded slightly and looked at Horamick Hayden. After some thought,

he deliberated and asked, "Your Grace, after the closing of the museum

yesterday evening, some aristocratic children came to visit. They had

touched parts of the exhibited items, including one of the two bookmarks

that were stolen. Do I need to get them to cooperate with the

investigation?"

"I know about that." Horamick's hands naturally drooped down as he

turned around and said in a calm tone, "I've already confirmed that

those aristocratic children are not related to the thief who stole the

bookmarks, so there's no need to get them to cooperate with the

investigation."

"Yes, Your Grace." Max himself didn't think there was anything wrong

with the aristocratic children, not to mention that Archbishop Haydn had

enough mysticism knowledge and Beyonder techniques to confirm it.

Horamick's gentle and benevolent face didn't show the slightest trace of

anger. He looked around and said, "There was more than one person here

last night, at least two of them. They were divided into two opposing

groups.

"One of them might even be of a higher Sequence than me, while the other

had somehow escaped mysteriously.

"Although I'm unable to reconstruct the entire scene, there are still

some things that I can 'see.'

"This matter is more complicated than we thought."

At this point, he sighed.

"I also know why they wanted to steal the bookmarks.

"We've been tricked by Roselle for more than 150 years..."

*Giving up 3,000 pounds sure does hurt. I've saved up for so long and

yet, I have less than 1,000 pounds... However, the Card of Blasphemy is

a priceless treasure that cannot be exchanged, even with money. The

contribution Miss Justice had made in this matter is definitely worth

the price...*

*Thankfully, I could deduct it from what she owes me, lightening my

burden. If I ever meet Mr. Azik in the future, I'll pay him the 15,000

pounds that belong to the "Blessed" with a High-Sequence Beyonder

formula... I wonder what the other Cards of Blasphemy were disguised to

look like. According to the personality of the Emperor, they should all

be rather surprising...* After Klein finished his reply and

looked out the palace at the sea of gray fog, he silently sighed.

As a precaution, he temporarily left his Black Emperor card above the

gray fog, on the surface of the long bronze table facing the seat of The

Fool. He did so for Azik's copper whistle as well.

When he returned to the real world, he held a ritual again and summoned

himself to throw the Master Key, a Sealed Artifact which was an

amalgamation of getting lost and having bad luck, above the gray fog.

Although it didn't seem to have huge negative effects, it was enough to

cause one to encounter life-threatening situations. He planned not to

use it unless necessary.

*The Master Key is just a relic of an unlucky fellow who had just

advanced to Sequence 9. Yet, it has a negative influence that even a

Mid-Sequence Beyonder is unable to weaken... It seems like there's an

additional factor in the reason why the Apprentice lost control, which

led to something abnormal...*

*Now that I think about it, my previous decision was correct. To explore

32 Verdi Street south of the bridge, I need to be careful and be

prepared.... Yes, I need to be aware of something. A Sealed Artifact's

effects might not be completely related to the owner's Sequence. I have

to consider multiple factors, such as whether or not it has been

contaminated by an evil god...*

Klein took a bath with the water that had already turned cold before

walking out of the bathroom, refreshed. He went downstairs to enjoy the

corn pancakes he had bought on his way back. They were delights of the

Feynapotter Kingdom's Highlands---crispy, fragrant, and sweet.

After he had eaten his fill, he went through his experiences from last

night to see if he had left any clues behind.

*Even with the Master Key, if I'm not a Beyonder, it's impossible for me

to escape from the hands of a Devil. Back then, the mysterious and

powerful lady must've determined that I wasn't an ordinary private

detective. I also didn't have any intention of hiding that

point.*

*By not capturing me, this implies that she's either an official

Beyonder who is friendly to wild Beyonders, or she's not a member of the

three Churches or the military. Yes, I'm more inclined with the latter

point. The former point would most likely have her confiscate the Master

Key. Sigh, back then, I was almost on the brink of despair. I thought I

would be detained in the underground prison of the Church of the God of

Steam and Machinery like ordinary Beyonders. I even began considering my

prison break. Who would've known that she would just leave.*

*Which organization is she from? Or is she wild? No, for wild Beyonders

to reach her level of power, they must have an organization of their

own.*

*That Devil dog would definitely use its Beyonder powers to erase clues

related to itself, and that naturally includes me. In the field of

mysticism, there is no way to separate them, and that lady probably

can't be exposed as well. From the looks of it, the clues that I left

behind while escaping had most likely have been interfered

with.*

*As for what happened in the museum, they will be searching for a

special spirit body, a strange existence, and what has that got to do

with me, Sherlock Moriarty?* Klein mocked himself as his heart

grew calmer.

Of course, he had dared to return home because he had divined it in

advance. It was just like he was unafraid that the museum contained

traps that he found completely unsolvable.

*Phew, this matter has come to an end... What should I do today?

Practice my Beyonder powers and go to the Quelaag Club to scrounge a

meal in passing? Well, I don't know if the Nighthawks and Mandated

Punishers have identified the murderer or not. Why don't I write another

letter to Isengard Stanton and give myself a hint?* As his

thoughts raced, Klein heard someone from outside approach before

leaving.

Another letter? He opened the door in puzzlement, and indeed,

he saw a letter lying in his mailbox.

The letter was from Isengard Stanton.