Chapter 136: A Shared Alias

Chapter 136: A Shared Alias

Huh…

Fors froze for a second, nearly suspecting that she had seen wrong.

Immediately afterward, one thought after another uncontrollably surfaced in her mind:

Mr. World wants to take this mission? That makes sense. He is in Backlund.

But this is an investigation, not a murder. Dawn Dantes is miserable enough already. Let him go!

Eliminating the investigation target means the investigation succeeds, because there is no need to investigate anymore…

What should I do? Should I still take this mission? It is a full 500 pounds! I only need to repeat what I discovered earlier, and I can at least earn 200 pounds. But the competitor is Mr. World… perhaps it is cooperation, not competition?

Huh? Why would Mr. World be interested in this mission? What he is concerned about is actually the Baron Syndras frame-up case or Councilman Macht attack case?

When Fors finally grasped the essence of the problem, the Hanged Man Alger and the Hermit Cattleya had already turned their gazes toward the World Gehrman Sparrow. To them, whether it was the Baron Syndras frame-up case, the attack on Councilman Macht, or the wealthy merchant Dawn Dantes donating more than ten thousand pounds, none of these had originally been matters requiring particular concern. But the fact that Mr. Fool’s Blessed had taken the initiative to accept the investigation mission instantly made the problem appear extremely complicated, as if it concealed some important secret.

The Moon Emlyn had not thought that much, but he also sensed from this that this seemingly ordinary investigation mission was not so simple. He had originally planned to earn some pocket money and make up for the “wallet” that was about to lose 5,000 pounds of cash. Now, he suddenly did not want to speak.

Is Dawn Dantes truly not simple? Is there a huge problem with him, to the point that Mr. World is taking the initiative to investigate him? Or are those two cases more important and more critical than I imagined?

Justice Audrey’s heart stirred. Her eyes shifted slightly, using her advantage of position to record the reactions of every Tarot Club member in her mind.

Among them, only the Sun Derrick was outside the situation.

To him, was it not normal for everyone in the Tarot Club to help one another? If someone offered a task, and one had the ability and conditions to complete it, then choosing to accept it was completely normal, was it not?

Justice Audrey’s gaze then returned to the far end of the bronze long table. With hidden expectation, she asked, “Mr. World, do you wish to accept this mission?”

After returning to Backlund, she had collected news from the past few months at sea and had preliminarily confirmed that Mr. World was the mad adventurer Gehrman Sparrow. Toward this seemingly polite yet actually dangerous gentleman who had done many great deeds, she felt deep admiration. She even felt that her own romantic yearning for maritime adventures had faded considerably.

Klein had already thought of how to respond. After controlling the dummy World to raise his hand, he had simply waited for Miss Justice to ask. At this moment, he made Gehrman Sparrow’s expression solemn and his voice low.

“Dawn Dantes is an identity.”

After brief but repeated consideration, Klein decided to reveal part of the information and define Dawn Dantes as a shared alias used by his Blessed!

He believed that if he chose to conceal it this time, there would still be a risk of exposure later. This was because Dawn Dantes was about to enter Backlund’s upper society in depth and could at any time find clues regarding the Great Smog or other cases. In that case, it was very likely he would need Miss Justice to provide assistance from the side. At that point, this mid-Sequence Beyonder of the Spectator pathway would very probably notice something and discover that the World had deliberately concealed the truth before, while Mr. Fool had also not reminded her.

This would reduce her sense of belonging and might even cause her to doubt more things, triggering a crisis of trust toward the Fool.

Two members who did not know each other, were unaware of each other’s existence, yet still tacitly cooperated and pieced together the completion of an overall objective through specified tasks—this was something that sounded beautiful, but was, in reality, very difficult to pull off. Especially when the companion was a mid-Sequence Beyonder of the Spectator pathway, there was almost no chance of hiding it from her!

Therefore, most of the time, honesty was better, more effective, and more convenient than lying.

As for why he did not directly say that Dawn Dantes was Gehrman Sparrow, it was because Klein did not want the Tarot Club members to form the impression of “why is it him again?” or “why does only Mr. Fool’s Blessed Gehrman Sparrow ever appear?”

Dawn Dantes is just an identity?

Justice Audrey keenly read the hidden meaning behind those words and vaguely had some guesses.

Then she heard the World Gehrman Sparrow say simply, “An identity shared by me and my companions.

“I occasionally disguise myself as him.”

At this point, his emotionless gaze swept over the Magician.

A shared identity… occasionally disguises himself as him… That very miserable Dawn Dantes is Mr. World Gehrman Sparrow? That wealthy merchant with kidney or prostate problems is Mr. World Gehrman Sparrow?

The Magician Fors felt as if she had been struck by lightning, her entire body stiffening at once.

Amid the numbness in her mind, she inexplicably felt a wave of lingering fear. Instinctively, she felt that what Xio had casually said before made great sense:

When a person’s butler, servant, neighbors, and surrounding environment all had problems, the probability that the person himself was completely normal was not very high!

No, no. It was not that Dawn Dantes’s neighborhood and the butler he hired just happened to hide secrets. It was because they hid secrets that they were chosen by Dawn Dantes—by Gehrman Sparrow! The pitiful, miserable ones are not Dawn Dantes, but the Beyonder-related things around him! I was wrong. I should not have told Xio to say, “May the Goddess bless him.” To Mr. World Gehrman Sparrow, that sounds more like a curse…

Fors suddenly shivered. She was extraordinarily thankful that she had not suggested, in the message, that Dawn Dantes go see a doctor for his kidney or prostate problems.

Otherwise, she suspected she would already be unable to attend this Tarot Gathering—or that she would attend in the form of a Beyonder characteristic and be sold by the World to the other members.

Under normal circumstances, Mr. World should not know that I am the Magician, but at that time, I had Leymano’s Travels with me… He has used that magic book and even added demigod-level Beyonder abilities to it! He must have secretly observed me, remembered my appearance, and evaluated my value…

The lingering fear in Fors’s heart surged like a sea, filling her expression with bitterness.

At that moment, she saw Mr. World coldly sweep a glance over her, and her regret instantly increased into very deep regret.

Fortunately, fortunately I did not rush to answer just now. I did not say out loud my impression of Dawn Dantes…

After Fors gradually recovered from her frightened state, she could not help thinking of another problem:

During the previous bodyguard mission, were we protecting Dawn Dantes, or was Dawn Dantes protecting us… Should I return the money to Gehrman Sparrow?

This… In certain moments, Dawn Dantes equals Mr. World…

Justice Audrey was first startled, then felt that all the doubts in her heart had been resolved:

Fors indeed knew Dawn Dantes, but she did not know that he was Mr. World. Her obviously frightened reaction just now proved this point.

The reason Dawn Dantes showed more surprise than amazement when he saw me was that he recognized the Lie necklace. Although this mystical item has already changed form, it originally came from a Beyonder characteristic provided by Mr. World. Perhaps it has some kind of induction with this mad adventurer. After all, Gehrman Sparrow can disguise himself as anyone and possesses the ability to adjust his face!

Although I only asked Mr. Hanged Man about what to do if an animal consumed a potion, I later often gathered materials in two sets. Mr. World may have guessed from this that there was another Spectator by my side. That was why he guarded against Susie, who was hiding in the dark and observing the hall… Others might not suspect animals, but Mr. World is richly experienced and must have encountered extraordinary creatures. It is very normal for him to be wary in this area.

In other words, Dawn Dantes—no, Mr. World Gehrman Sparrow—already knew at the time that I was Justice, but he chose not to make contact or communicate. Mm, there was no problem with the way he handled it. In that situation, unless he spoke directly, it would have been very difficult for me to guess and believe it. And to speak of matters related to the Tarot Club inside Saint Samuel Cathedral… That— that would be far too crazy!

After a brief moment of surprise and shock, most of Audrey’s emotions quickly settled back down, leaving only excitement.

Aside from the Magician Fors, whom she had introduced into the club, this was the first time she had met another Tarot Club member in reality!

“There is a feeling as though history is being written in this moment! Mm, Mr. World, as well as Mr. Fool’s other Blessed—uh, they should also count as World—why did they create the identity of Dawn Dantes? What exactly are they trying to do?

“The Baron Syndras frame-up case, the attack on Councilman Macht, their donation to establish an educational assistance fund—these truly are more complicated and important than I expected… Why does it suddenly feel like the kingdom’s upper levels are beginning to grow unstable? I felt this once during Prince Edessak’s death and the Great Smog incident. Today, that feeling has become even stronger…

“Now that I know of the identity Dawn Dantes, perhaps I can participate and cooperate from the side, lowering the risk that Father and Mother will be affected, and lowering the risk that innocent people will die…”

As countless thoughts rose within her, Justice Audrey quickly made a decision. She would agree to her father’s suggestion and join the Loen Charity Educational Assistance Fund. Then she muttered inwardly:

The charity fund established by the Tarot Club’s Mr. World being joined by the Tarot Club’s Justice—isn’t that very reasonable?

At that moment, the Hanged Man Alger and the Hermit Cattleya were not especially shocked that Dawn Dantes was the World or part of the collective identity of Mr. Fool’s Blessed. The thought flashing most through their minds was:

Something major is going to happen in Backlund!