Chapter 151: Two Forms of Parasitism

Chapter 151: Two Forms of Parasitism

After leaving the Sweet Lemon Bar, Klein returned directly to his hotel.

He was packing his luggage when the huge skeletal messenger suddenly appeared.

It had originally intended to pat Klein on the shoulder, but because it was nearly four meters tall, its head passed through the ceiling, causing the attempt to fail. In the end, it could only toss the letter forward before taking the initiative to collapse and disappear.

Mr. Azik has finally replied. It’s been almost a week… Has this messenger changed again? It feels a lot like the original one. It even gives the corresponding reminder… Klein caught the letter and unfolded it.

“I apologize for replying only today.

“Perhaps because the memories I recovered exceeded the limits my body could endure, I slept for several days before I could adapt.

“The matter you described does indeed match the traits of the Thief pathway. The corresponding Sequence 4 is called Parasite. From that level upward, they all possess Beyonder abilities related to parasitizing the bodies of others.

“As far as I know, parasitism has two forms.

“One is preliminary in nature. The Parasite uses the Host to conceal itself, extend its lifespan, and recover from injuries. It can see everything the Host sees and hear every sound the Host hears, but it cannot interfere with the Host’s thoughts or steal them. Therefore, if the Host wishes to communicate with the Parasite, the Host must actively speak aloud.

“The other is complete control. The spirit body of the Parasite and the Host are almost merged. It knows the Host’s thoughts, understands the Host’s intentions, and can proactively take control of the body.

“When facing the first kind of parasitism, one can remind the Host through dream invasion, subconscious conversation, and similar methods. There is no need to worry about being discovered, because the Parasite must rely on the Host’s senses in order to perceive its surroundings.

“In the second state, there is no way to bypass the Parasite and converse with the Host. However, there is still a chance to remove it: rely on the object of the Host’s faith. I find it difficult to describe this matter accurately. I can only tell you that when the Host opens their heart in prayer, the object of their faith can discover the existence of the Parasite and provide feedback through a certain ritual, completing the separation or removal.

“Of course, the prerequisite is that the Host themself does not know what will happen. Otherwise, the Parasite will inevitably become alert and stop it…”

Isn’t that exactly what happened to Little Sun back then? He prayed to me in a daze, and I saw the existence of Amon’s avatar. Then I concealed the purpose, taught him a secret deed ritual, and used it to purify the Parasite… Klein instantly gained a deeper understanding of that past incident.

“But right now, I have no way to confirm which state the Poet is in. Back in Tingen, he occasionally muttered to himself. That might have been a sign of the first form of parasitism. The problem is that several months have passed since then. That Parasite may already have achieved complete control.

“I must first confirm this matter before I can know what to do. Otherwise, blindly entering his dream will only reveal my objective to the Parasite in advance, making the problem more serious and even harder to solve…

“If it’s the second form of parasitism, the Poet believes in the Goddess. But the Goddess has tens of millions of believers. It’s unlikely She would specifically pay attention to a Red Glove who isn’t a Blessed or a Saint…

“I, The Fool, am different. Every prayer is checked. One-on-one service is often provided.

“This is what it means to be in the start-up phase…”

As Klein thought about it, he suddenly felt a little wistful.

He had originally planned to entrust The Moon, Emlyn, with secretly monitoring Leonard Mitchell to find out whether he often whispered to himself. But considering that the matter of the Fire Seed glove had already caused Emlyn to appear in Leonard’s—and that Parasite’s—sights, making him very likely an object of their vigilance and investigation, Klein rationally gave up the idea.

“Miss Magician is only Sequence 8, a Trickmaster. She doesn’t possess the ability to monitor an angel-level Parasite and a Red Glove from nearby…

“Miss Justice’s identity would be excellent cover, and she is also a believer of the Goddess. The problem is that she has returned to her family’s territory and won’t return to Backlund until June…

“Mr. Hanged Man and Madam Hermit are at sea. Little Sun can’t even connect with the outside world…

“The Tarot Club still has too few members. Their own subordinate forces are also insufficient. I can’t even find a suitable person to help me handle this matter.

“Among the people I know, Miss Sharron should be the best and most discreet at something like this, but I can’t contact her right now. Not even through Miss Magician or Emlyn… Sigh. I fled Backlund in such a hurry that I didn’t think through many follow-up matters…”

Klein raised a hand and rubbed his forehead. Remembering that Leonard was an elite Red Glove among the Nighthawks, with High-Sequence deacons and the Church watching over him, he judged that the Parasite would not dare cause anything too serious in the short term. Thus, he decided to set the issue aside for the time being and wait until he had a suitable helper.

Perhaps after I digest the potion, find the mermaids east of the Sonia Sea, complete my advancement, and return to Backlund, I can handle it personally… Experienced as he now was, Klein no longer hesitated and quickly made his decision.

…

Inside the Sweet Lemon Bar.

After anxiously dealing with two members of the Naturist Sect among his trusted subordinates, Bilt finally received a piece of good news.

“You’re saying Admiral Amyrius set sail back to Bayam today?” he asked, rising with a cigar in hand.

His deputy, Sotos, nodded lightly.

“Half an hour ago, his fleet left the harbor and sailed toward the Rorsted Archipelago.”

“Phew…” Bilt let out an undisguised breath of relief, confirming that His Excellency the Admiral had not blamed him.

When he thought about how Gehrman Sparrow, that substitute, had in less than four days “caused” heavy losses among the general’s guards, “caused” His Excellency the Admiral’s younger brother to be removed from the office of Governor-General, “caused” the secretary to suffer injuries, and “caused” his mistress to die tragically inside the villa, he could not help doubting himself and his own ability to handle matters.

Although not all those events were necessarily Gehrman Sparrow’s fault, their concentrated outbreak still made people feel that the problem lay with that crazy adventurer—or at least that he was unlucky enough. And as the person who had recommended and hired him, Bilt believed he would be unable to escape responsibility and would inevitably suffer Admiral Amyrius’s punishment.

“His Excellency truly is a demigod. He wasn’t blinded by anger. Praise the Lord. May the storm be with us.” Bilt clenched his right fist and struck his left breast.

Just then, one of the subordinates he had sent out hurried back.

“Boss, Gehrman Sparrow has disappeared!” the subordinate reported in an urgent tone.

Bilt frowned slightly.

“Disappeared?”

“Yes! After checking out, he carried his suitcase around a few streets, and then he vanished!” the subordinate answered truthfully.

It really is difficult to monitor an adventurer who can become anyone… Bilt sighed.

“Leave it.

“There’s no need to look for him anymore.”

…

After being targeted by the Mother Tree of Desire once, Klein cautiously changed his appearance, identity, and place of residence to prevent anyone else from keeping an eye on him.

And with the gains from acting as Admiral Amyrius, he decided to digest the potion as soon as possible through practice.

Taking a carriage to the Olavi Medical Rescue Foundation, Klein entered the place once more.

The person in charge of registration was still Madam Juanna. She looked up at him and said, “You wish to volunteer?”

“Yes.” Klein nodded seriously.

Juanna took out a form and asked with practiced ease, “Name.”

Klein smiled and replied, “Sinbad Volent.”

…

East Chester County in April was pleasant, full of lush grass and trees, its scenery beautiful. It was the perfect season for hunting.

Audrey wore a fitted black riding outfit and a protective helmet. Together with her chestnut mare, she pursued a pheasant with bright plumage.

With a swoosh, she fired an arrow and struck the prey with precision.

Now that she was a Psychiatrist, her physical constitution had clearly improved. Coupled with the shooting education she had received since childhood, she was presently rather capable with both guns and bows.

A golden figure pounced out swiftly and bit down on the lifeless prey. It was none other than the large dog, Susie.

“Pleasure working with you.” Audrey’s lips curled upward, her smile bright as she high-fived Susie through the air.

At that moment, the noble youths surrounding her gathered around, some praising her hunting skills, others praising her training of her hound.

Audrey felt rather ashamed at the latter praise.

She had never trained Susie at all!

The noble youths soon scattered again, continuing to surround and intercept prey. The low-ranking pastor of the Church of Evernight, Madam Smine, then drew closer and lowered her voice as she said to Audrey, “The final task. Complete it, and you can obtain the Hypnotist formula.”

Finally… Audrey’s green eyes brightened, and she silently nodded.

Frankly, if she were still the delicate and inexperienced noble girl she had once been, she would long ago have lost patience with two months of contribution accumulation and begun asking to buy the Hypnotist potion formula in the Tarot Club.

But the Audrey of now understood very clearly that accumulating contributions was itself part of integrating into the Psychology Alchemists, earning greater trust, and laying a firm foundation for obtaining higher-Sequence potion formulas in the future. Thus, she patiently carried out those tasks, whether they were interesting or dull.

Of course, Audrey had not wasted those two months either. She had continued listening to the words of noble youths and personal maids, guiding them to speak of the troubles in their hearts and helping them overcome negative mental states, competently acting as a Psychiatrist.

In the process, she discovered that, without realizing it, through listening, observation, and guidance, she had grasped the personality flaws and habitual patterns of thought of those around her. She believed that if she wished to deal with any one of them, she could make them suffer—or even collapse—without leaving the slightest trace. She could also guide them into unknowingly helping her achieve her own goals.

I have to admit, that’s actually a little frightening. It’s like a monster from myth that controls the mind… As she recalled this, Audrey could not help sighing inwardly.

Somewhat unaccustomed to riding, Smine carefully looked around and said, “Associate Professor Michelle of Stoen University is a collector. We hope you can buy from him a notebook from the period of the Twenty Years’ War.”

The Twenty Years’ War referred to the war between the Loen Kingdom and the Feysac Empire from 621 to 642 of the Fifth Epoch. Loen had lost, surrendering the Ancient Elven Island—Sunya Island.