บท 55: First Meeting

After finalizing his honorable title, Klein recalled the events from his earlier visit to Blackthorn Security Company, where he performed a dream divination for Mr. Meyer.

With Old Neil's help, they'd almost entirely reconstructed the events of the Clover case.

However...

"Even though Mr. Meyer was cooperative, and Old Neil confirmed that the divination wasn't tampered with… something about the scene just doesn't feel right." Klein frowned, as if a vague sense of incongruity remained.

"What method can I use to reverify this?" Klein paced back and forth in his bedroom, reviewing the various divination techniques he'd learned.

One step, two steps, three steps—suddenly, he stopped, an idea forming in his mind.

"Suppose it's true that Mr. Meyer and the others spotting Tris's slip-up is suspicious, and I can't divine the truth due to my lower Sequence or some outside interference. In that case, what if I tried to divine it in a different environment, somewhere that's even more mysterious and elusive?" Klein's eyes brightened as he opened his drawer, taking out a silver knife.

Gathering his focus, he let his spirituality flow from the silver blade's tip, forming a wall that gradually sealed the room.

His plan was to perform the divination above the gray fog, in that mysterious realm!

---

Above the boundless, hazy gray fog, inside the grand ancient palace, Klein's figure sat at the head of the bronze table, with a parchment freshly "manifested" before him.

He picked up his fountain pen, carefully writing out the divination statement:

"Extraordinary factors influenced Joyce Meyer's discovery of Tris's mistake."

With his spirit sinking into a quiet, ethereal state, Klein held his pendulum in his hand, allowing the yellow crystal pendant to hang still.

He half-closed his eyes, murmuring the divination statement seven times to attune his spirituality to the spirit world that reigned above all.

Upon feeling the faint pull of the silver chain, Klein opened his eyes to look at the pendulum.

To his astonishment, the yellow crystal pendant was rotating in a clockwise direction!

This meant that Joyce was indeed guided by an extraordinary factor in his discovery of Tris's mistake! And this contradicted the results of his divination outside, where no trace of supernatural influence had appeared…

Such a powerful, inconspicuous force was both awe-inspiring and troubling. What could be the purpose of the person behind it? Were they merely seeking justice?

Klein set down the yellow crystal pendant and rubbed his brow, his expression a mixture of curiosity and intrigue.

After a moment's thought, he wrote another divination statement:

"The true reason why Joyce Meyer identified Tris as the culprit behind the incident."

Holding the parchment, he silently repeated the statement seven times before leaning back, closing his eyes as he drifted into a dream-like state above the gray fog.

Soon, he saw a vast, dreamlike world of gray-white mist, the fog gradually parting to reveal a passenger ship sailing across the sea.

The scene drew closer, moving down into the lowest deck of the ship.

Straining his gaze, Klein saw a young man in a uniform, wearing a tricorn hat and round-rimmed spectacles, pointing to a round-faced youth among a group that included Joyce and the captain. Without warning, the young man fired six shots in quick succession.

The round-faced youth tried to retreat into the shadows, but a short girl standing by the young man anticipated his move, shooting to block his escape, killing him on the spot.

Just then, the scene of the ship's cabin collapsed, disintegrating abruptly.

Back in the grand hall above the gray fog, Klein snapped upright, his heart racing wildly for no apparent reason.

"Phew… it felt like I glimpsed something terrifying…" He took two deep breaths to steady his nerves before reflecting on what he'd seen:

"There's no mistaking it; the round-faced youth was Tris. I've seen his photo… But why was he killed? Could I have been seeing a kind of illusion or dream? And if so, this illusion or dream must somehow affect reality, which would explain how Joyce and the captain suddenly noticed Tris's slip-up in real life!"

"It's also likely that Tris sensed something off in the illusion or dream, which led him to prematurely end the incident, leaving his potion incompletely 'digested.'"

"And the man and woman who killed Tris in the illusion are likely connected to the terrifying entity I nearly glimpsed at the end! Hmm, when the illusion shattered, they probably returned to that place, and my attempt to spy on it is what brought on that sense of dread."

With thoughts swirling, Klein gradually calmed down. Despite the strange place he had nearly glimpsed, he sensed that the man and woman who had slain Tris in the illusion were not villains. In fact, thanks to their actions, the Clover incident hadn't resulted in more casualties.

"They seemed almost like people from 'Inception'…" he mused.

---

While Klein was divining the truth behind the Clover incident, Ebner, aboard the Aarunheim on his return voyage, suddenly sensed his Pure White Eye activating on its own, conveying a message to him.

This kind of spontaneous activation had become rare since his promotion to Reader, only occurring in response to psychic attacks or curses.

Concerned, he concentrated on the information from his cheat's transmission and was taken aback.

"The Sefirah Castle is divining me?"

"Klein is investigating the truth behind the Clover incident?"

"But what does that have to do with me?"

Only now did Ebner belatedly realize that his actions in the seventh level of the Dream Labyrinth Tower had impacted reality.

"My previous attempt to analyze the gray fog must have established a link between the Pure White Eye and the Sefirah Castle. Because I subconsciously trust The Fool, I never rejected this link, so the Pure White Eye didn't block it. That's why Klein managed to divine some results based on that connection."

With the information from the Pure White Eye, Ebner pieced together the cause and effect. He immediately began mentally rejecting the connection, signaling the Pure White Eye to block it. While he did want to join the Tarot Club, he wasn't willing to make his prized cheat the basis of his connection with the Sefirah Castle.

If, in the future, the True Creator should awaken and compete with Klein for the position of the Fool, having the Pure White Eye as a hidden contingency would allow him to better assist Mr. Fool, wouldn't it?

Fortunately, this connection was relatively shallow, resulting from his previous analysis rather than any deeper link. Soon, he received confirmation from the Pure White Eye that the link had been blocked.

Exhaling deeply, Ebner took a moment to reflect:

"It seems I should join the Tarot Club soon… Klein rarely divines fellow Tarot members unless absolutely necessary; he prefers to exchange information instead."

The Sefirah Castle was incredibly powerful, and its divination capabilities were practically abnormal. Although Ebner had confidence in his cheat, he wasn't sure it could always block out the Seer's perception.

"It's clear that I need to enhance my strength as soon as possible… Based on what I've observed, the stronger I become, the more powerful the Pure White Eye becomes."

---

On the afternoon of July 10th, the Aarunheim finally returned to Damir Harbor. After bidding farewell to Miss Gwyn, Ebner and Xio returned to Mr. Gaston's academy.

Having shared numerous battles together, Ebner and Gaston had grown close, so he decided to ask for some materials from his collection to complete the sealing of the "Sword of Dawn."

Listening to Ebner's rather audacious request, Mr. Gaston could only shake his head with a wry smile. He wasn't stingy with the materials but cautioned, "Using rituals to invoke the powers of Knowledge or the Death domain for sealing typically isn't very effective. It might not be sufficient for that item."

You may not believe it, but the God of Knowledge seems to favor me a bit; the effects of my rituals have always been exceptionally strong. Although they might not surpass the Goddess's blessings, they should be more than adequate to seal a Sequence 6-level Beyonder item.

After a silent rebuttal, Ebner sincerely thanked Mr. Gaston for his advice, then set about gathering a large quantity of brass from his collection. He had a blacksmith forge it into a sword case.

Finally, he performed a ritual to imbue the brass case with the power of darkness and solemnly placed the "Sword of Dawn" within it.

With the sword safely sealed, Ebner and Xio purchased tickets to Enmat Harbor. Their commission was complete, and they had obtained the necessary potion ingredients—it was time to leave the island.

Their journey would continue.