Chapter 4: Klein’s Speculation

Chapter 4: Klein’s Speculation

The Moon Emlyn was just as bewildered. “Redemption Rose,” “Angel of Fate,” “breaking the cycle”—all of it lay outside the scope of his knowledge. He felt that he could understand every single word, but when they were strung together, he had no idea what they meant.

Could it be that The Sun, who looks rather young, has just escaped the pursuit of an angel? Emlyn pieced together a guess from the small portion he could understand.

After The Sun Derrick finished thanking Mr. Fool, The Hanged Man shifted his posture slightly, turned somewhat toward him, and, starting from Miss Justice’s question, asked in an ordinary tone, “What exactly happened?”

Derrick did not conceal anything and answered frankly.

“Miss Justice, Mr. Hanged Man, Miss Magician, Mr. World, thank you for your concern, and thank you for the advice you gave me earlier. During the sixth exploration, I tried…”

He described, from beginning to end, the actions he had taken and the corresponding results. He especially emphasized the fact that the little boy, Jack, came from Emmat Harbor, as well as the details concerning the mural where “Redemption Rose” appeared.

Emmat Harbor… That strange little boy Jack really is from the Kingdom of Loen. In other words, the Land Abandoned by the Gods, where the City of Silver is located, is connected to the Northern and Southern Continents in some way. As long as the correct method and place are found, it should be possible to enter… Klein listened in a seemingly relaxed manner while forming a certain judgment in his heart.

Emmat Harbor lay east of Tingen City and was one of the most famous seaports in central Loen. Together with Pritz Harbor, one to the north and one to the south, it supported more than half of Backlund’s supply of goods.

“Spirit Medium” Madam Daly had once “settled” there, and Mr. Z of the Aurora Order seemed to be there as well… Klein recalled certain events from the past.

The same judgment appeared in the minds of The Hanged Man Alger, Justice Audrey, and The Magician Fors. Some felt pure excitement, while others felt curiosity mixed with worry, fearing that the darkness around the City of Silver—the darkness that seemed to devour everything—would continue to spread until it finally shrouded the Northern and Southern Continents and the Five Seas.

“The Chief told me that, through what happened earlier and the reminder I provided, he thought of certain contents recorded in ancient texts, whose truth could no longer be verified. Legend says that when ‘the Lord who created everything, the omniscient and omnipotent God’ watched over this land, He was surrounded by many angels. And among the angels, the leaders, the kings closest to the divine throne, numbered eight. Among them were the sons of God.” The Sun Derrick slowly spoke while recalling the words of “Demon Hunter” Colin. “He suspects that Amon is the ‘Angel of Time’ among the Kings of Angels, while the one depicted on the mural is the ‘Angel of Fate,’ Ouroboros the Tail Devourer.”

Eight Kings of Angels? The eight Kings of Angels closest to the Creator’s divine throne? Justice Audrey was inexplicably excited upon hearing this.

Unable to restrain her curiosity, she asked, “Mr. Sun, what are the titles and names of the other six Kings of Angels?”

“The Chief did not say, and I did not dare ask…” The Sun Derrick replied somewhat ashamedly.

I really want to know the answer… Audrey instinctively looked toward the seat of honor at the end of the long bronze table. With an eager gaze, she looked at Mr. Fool, who was concealed within the gray fog, hoping to obtain the corresponding answer.

She had already decided what price she was willing to pay for it.

Why are you looking at me… I don’t know either… Klein controlled the twitch at the corners of his mouth.

Of course, he was not completely without clues. He could barely guess the identities of two of them.

“The evil spirit in the underground ruins described the Medici family as one of the founders of Redemption Rose. And judging from that mural, the Angel of Fate Ouroboros was most likely one of the leaders of Redemption Rose. Their statuses were basically equivalent. In other words, the Medici family possessed a King of Angels, though it cannot be determined whether He has already fallen…

“The Medici family is suspected to control the Hunter pathway, which is also the Red Priest pathway. That King of Angels’ title should be Red Angel or Angel of War…

“Since the sons of God are Kings of Angels, and Amon is one of them as the Angel of Time, then there is no way Adam is not one too. But His title cannot be determined… As for the remaining four Kings of Angels, I cannot guess who they are… Perhaps one or more of them are within the Twilight Hermit Order…

“That is possible! The Twilight Hermit Order is hostile to the Fallen Creator, corresponding to Redemption Rose, which worships that evil god. Perhaps it truly originated from several of the Kings of Angels back then…

“Right, there is some indirect and not sufficiently strong proof. According to the City of Silver’s myths, the authority of the ancient god Ankewelt, the Dragon of Imagination, was reclaimed by that Creator. Logically speaking, it is not impossible that the Lord who created everything divided a portion of this authority among the Kings of Angels beside His divine throne. Meanwhile, the description and speculation in Roselle’s diary indicate that the Twilight Hermit Order may possess angelic-level power of the Spectator, that is, the Visionary pathway—or even higher. The two can correspond… Hermes is someone who lived through that portion of history…”

As thoughts flashed through his mind, Klein smiled faintly and said, “You will come into contact with them in the future.”

When I figure it out, I’ll sell the corresponding intelligence to all of you… he added inwardly.

Seeing that Mr. Fool had no intention of answering, Justice Audrey withdrew her gaze with a slight sense of disappointment and gestured for Little Sun to continue.

The Hanged Man Alger, meanwhile, had an audacious thought.

“History before the Cataclysm is no longer verifiable. At the end of the Third Epoch and the beginning of the Fourth, there were only six orthodox deities. Adding Amon and the Tail Devourer makes exactly eight, does it not? Did They obtain benefits from the Creator’s passing and successfully advance to Sequence 0?”

For a moment, Alger felt that his own thought was a blasphemous act worthy of being burned at the stake. Yet at the same time, he felt an irrepressible excitement. Only with great difficulty did he calm himself and focus on listening to Little Sun’s story.

As for all of this, The Moon Emlyn could only respond with a blank expression.

Although the Blood Clan had a long history and long lives, and knew a great deal about the history before the Cataclysm, that knowledge was concentrated on the era before the Ancestor fell asleep, and did not involve the so-called Kings of Angels.

When The Sun Derrick recounted the details of how City of Silver Chief Colin had broken the cycle of fate, Klein was thinking of something else.

“It can largely be confirmed that Ouroboros the Tail Devourer is Sequence 1 of the Monster pathway, the Snake of Mercury. Do all Kings of Angels correspond to the level of Sequence 1?

“Could that Angel of Fate be the Snake of Mercury who was pursuing Will Auceptin? If so, it means that the True Creator’s forces in Backlund were definitely not limited to Mr. A and his subordinates. It is only because the struggle between the two Snakes of Mercury over the Sequence 0 position occupied all of the Tail Devourer’s energy, leaving Him no room to attend to other matters…

“Of course, I cannot rule out the possibility that Will Auceptin is Ouroboros. But the probability is not high. Redemption Rose has many demigods, perhaps even angels. It would not make sense for the Tail Devourer to restart His life while relying on an ordinary person without any protection.

“There is also another possibility: neither of the two Snakes of Mercury in Backlund is the Angel of Fate, and the latter remains active in the Land Abandoned by the Gods. In that case, we have gathered three Snakes of Mercury.”

After recounting how he escaped the predicament, The Sun Derrick once again expressed his gratitude. Even hearing about that repeated cycle for a second time still made Justice Audrey and the others feel chills in their bones and their hair stand on end, both curious and afraid.

This has already surpassed my understanding of Beyonder powers. It is all thanks to Mr. Fool’s help! Audrey praised the master of the Tarot Club sincerely in her heart, feeling herself filled with confidence.

The Hanged Man Alger and the others thought similarly. They all believed that the experience of the repeating cycle approached a divine miracle, something only a deity could break. Fortunately, the master of the Tarot Club was a deity. Mr. Fool was a deity!

At this moment, The Sun Derrick looked across the table and said sincerely, “Miss Magician, because some unexpected situations occurred on our way back to the City of Silver, although they have all been resolved, they delayed our speed. We were unable to return to the City of Silver in time, so you will need to wait another one or two days for your Spirit Eater’s stomach pouch. Mm, I feel that the surveillance on me is already gone.”

“No problem. I can wait. I have prepared enough pounds.” The Magician Fors let out a breath of relief.

She had already sold the mirror dragon’s eyes to Miss Justice and received one thousand pounds in cash.

After she informed her teacher Dorian of the concrete result, her honesty earned praise and reward. Dorian told her that the reason he had set the price at eight hundred pounds was because he had already taken into account a “service fee” of around one hundred pounds for her. As a result, the extra two hundred pounds belonged to her as an additional gain. In other words, she had earned three hundred pounds from this transaction. Together with her original savings, she now had six hundred and fifty pounds, enough to purchase the Spirit Eater’s stomach pouch.

Because of this matter, Dorian trusted her quite a bit more and revealed a good deal of information about materials.

I will need at least two weeks to digest the excess potion. There is no need to rush… Fors looked diagonally across the table and said, “Mr. Hanged Man, there is news regarding the eye of the Dragon-Eyed Sea Eagle you need. Two thousand two hundred pounds.”

The guide price Dorian gave was two thousand pounds. Fors was, on one hand, leaving room for bargaining, and on the other hand, hoping to earn a little more.

Two thousand two hundred pounds… The Hanged Man Alger could not help but frown.

After purchasing the Wind-blessed potion formula, his financial situation was no longer optimistic. Although he still had some private stock, it was either useful to him or had long failed to find a buyer.

Whew. He secretly exhaled and said without changing expression, “Very good. But I need some time to gather the funds. Also, your price is too high. I have many channels through which I can obtain it more cheaply. One thousand nine hundred pounds. That is the highest price I can accept.”

“No. Two thousand pounds. That is the bottom line!” The Magician Fors responded without the slightest hesitation.

She feared that if she quoted too high a price, the other party would abandon the transaction.

Alger immediately nodded.

“Deal!”

This… Fors was momentarily stunned.

The Moon Emlyn, listening from the side, witnessed a transaction being concluded. After thinking for a moment, he asked with some eagerness, “Everyone, does anyone know how the Blood Clan can increase their strength without relying on gifts from their elders?”

The moment he finished speaking, he felt gazes turn toward him one after another.

Blood Clan? Is that the legendary vampire? Justice Audrey’s eyes brightened as she examined Mr. Moon.

As a novelist, The Magician Fors naturally harbored all kinds of beautiful or bizarre fantasies about the Blood Clan. Her eyes likewise shone brightly.

Blood Clan? The Hanged Man Alger was first taken aback, then his brows relaxed.

A vampire hiding in the depths of darkness, covered in pus, moving like the wind? The Sun Derrick could not help but turn sideways to size up Emlyn.

Blood Clan? The World gave a normal and necessary reaction only after a one-second delay.