21)Posturing

Above the gray fog, gigantic stone columns held up a majestic divine hall. Three dark red blobs extended out into faint human figures by the side of the ancient mottled bronze table.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Fool." enriched with a blurry effect, Audrey greeted Mr.Fool with a bow and giggled, "It is unfortunate that there is no wine here; otherwise, we could have a toast to your successful trial."

She was referring to the ritualistic magic Klein had suggested last week.

"You are more powerful than we imagined," Alger Wilson praised as well.

"Holy Fool, we praise Thy Name;

Lord of all things mysterious, we bow before Thee!"

Edessak praised zealously as he inwardly laughed his ass off.

Klein who was surrounded by the thick fog as usual. He pressed down with his right arm and spoke with his normal tone, replying as though it was natural."Great, this means that we are on the path of excellence. If you have any matters to tend to that leave you unable to attend the gathering on Mondays, conduct the ritual and inform me. All you have to do is change the line in the incantation 'I pray for a good dream' with the reason."

"I was away from land this week and haven't found any new pages." Alger placed his right hand near his chest and bowed in apology.

"Me too Mr.Fool I'm currently out of Backlund so I'm unable to gather pages." Edessak added.

"Mr. Fool, I obtained another page of Emperor Roselle's diary. I believe I still owe you one page."Audrey happily chirped.

Miss Justice produced the page, and after Mr.Fool reading session, Klein spoke "Sorry for the wait."

"It is our honor." Audrey was still shocked, forgetting that she was a Spectator. She then looked at Hanged Man and Emperor as organized her words, "Where can I find the Psychology Alchemists?"

Edessak and Alger shook their head in disapproval and Alger spoke "Miss Justice, firstly, I don't have a clue. Secondly, I don't think there's any rush in seeking out the Psychology Alchemists. What you should focus on now is completely digesting the Spectator potion." Audrey nodded her head in disappointment and confessed, "All I want is to have plenty of time to prepare so that I can approach them more naturally. Alright, then when can I digest the Spectator potion and stop acting? Is there a standard that indicates when I can? I'm almost at the point where I no longer feel frustrated, nor do I hear the constant murmuring anymore." Alger thought for a while and the explained, "If you don't use the acting method, the typical rule of thumb is to wait three years and confirm that you no longer feel restless or receive any auditory or visual illusions. There is one simple test to determine when you can. That method is to exhaust your body to its limit. If you still don't hear any maniacal murmurings or see any strange things at that point, that would mean that you're ready to advance.With regards to the acting method, I have also just come into contact with it. It feels good, so I don't think it'll take three years.", Audrey felt that his answer wasn't very useful. Edessak looked at Audrey and cleared his throat as spoke in a deep voice, "For Low-Sequence Beyonders, as long as you strictly stick to acting, you should be able to digest the medicine in a few months. It's even possible to do it in a month. As I was born as Half Arbiter, I ended consuming my Sequence 9 potion in a week. As you go up in your pathway, the longer it takes to digest your potion. Certain potions are more complicated like Sequence 6 Judge and require great understanding of law, so even the most talented beyonders would end up taking a year to consume the potion. Miss Justice your pathway has Sequence 7 Psychiatrist which requires you to help people with mental issues so if you would like to digest quickly in future, you start studying psychology."

"One month… Great! Thank you, Prin-Mr. Emperor!" Audrey exclaimed while brimming with joy. Alger who heard this, speculated 'So Mr.Emperor is a prince and Miss Justice knowns him in reality. Augustus Family huh?'

Even Klein thought inwardly 'Miss Justice should be pretty high in the social circles of Backlund if she personally knows a prince.'

Audrey thought as she asked, "Mr. Fool, have you considered adding more members?"

Klein leaned back casually. He had long prepared an answer, "This started as a trial, so I didn't spend much time thinking about extending our meetings.But now, as a regular gathering, we must choose our members carefully. Secrecy is our motto."

Audrey nodded gently and said, "That is to say that we have to follow a process of observation, recommendation, and testing process. Yes, a process!!!"

"You can interpret it that way," Klein asserted.

In his mind he was speculating about how he could inquire about the Secret Order and the Clown potion. 'How can I ask questions in a way that befits my status?' Klein was placed in a difficult spot. At that moment, realizing that Justice temporarily had nothing else to say, Mr.Hanged Man took the endeavor to speak, "I've heard that a Listener from the Aurora Order is searching for traces of the True Creator, which is the holy residence they advocate."

"True Creator?" Audrey asked, puzzled.

"It is an ancient entity worshiped by numerous secret organisations and cults. They believe that the Creator hasn't completely perished. The Core he left behind is the True Creator." Edessak added. "Since the Fifth Epoch, the True Creator has appeared in many aspects, such as The Hanged Giant or the Eye behind the Shadow Curtains. Huh, numerous people even believe that Emperor Roselle referenced the imagery of the True Creator when he was creating the tarot cards; hence, there exists the card of The Hanged Man." At this point, Edessak looked at Klein and said, "Mr. Fool, there's nothing with what I said, right?" and thought inwardly 'I should give Klein some opportunity to posture or he might end up losing his unfathomable image.'

'Is he trying to probe for my views on the True Creator?' Klein who unaware of Edessak's magnanimous heart and thought about the bloody man on the cross that the Captain saw in Hanass Vincent's dream and immediately had an idea, 'Doesn't both the hanging and the shadows imply evil connotations?', Therefore, he chuckled and said, "I am more inclined to call him, the Fallen Creator."

Edessak sighed inwardly and thought, 'Ignorance is truly bliss, my man just dissed a True God as a Sequence 9 ant. And he isn't even aware what he said was actually the real truth...huh.'