Chapter 60: The Fool doesn't want to get jumped

Friday, September 7th. Artiros Street, Warehouse 7, 11:30 am.

Klein wore darker robes than usual and had added a bit of makeup to change his appearance. He looked at the man in front of him with an emotionless face.

Harvey Wayne smiled at the look he was receiving, his eyes sparkling mischievously as he led the detective through the empty warehouse. 

"Why the long face? I told you we're simply going to a place where we can talk more comfortably." 

"I thought we were going straight to the party." 

"The party is at 1 o'clock in the afternoon. It's still a long way off." The man replied with a chuckle.

"May I know why you made me come then?" Klein let out a little annoyance, asking a little harder than he meant to.

Realizing his mistake, he tried to rectify himself, but the man's amused response stopped him.

"Because it's an Aurora Order party, I thought you might like a little time to prepare~"

'What?!' Barely swallowing that shout, the clown looked dazedly at the man who had stopped walking.

"..."

"..."

After a few seconds in silence, he was the first to break it, "Is that a good idea?"

"Of course! Why?" Harvey answered quickly, not even passing a second. His eyes shone a bit more.

"..."

Klein had many, many reasons to not participate in a gathering organized by the Aurora Order.

That organization follows an Evil God. He already had a confrontation against it. He didn't want to associate with a group of lunatics... 

But the most important reason why he didn't want to participate is because he technically killed the son of their God!

Klein was sure that Chariot knew his true identity. If not for his recognition of him as the Blessed of the Fool in their first encounter, it would be because the Scarlet Monarch revealed it to him. It was also very likely that he knew the details of what had happened in Tingen.

For all that, he was surprised that the man was willing to enter the lion's den.

'Wouldn't going in there serve me on a silver platter?' While he didn't say it, how he looked at him couldn't have been more obvious.

Chariot smiled mysteriously and winked mischievously. "It may not look like it, but this gathering is one of the safest we can participate in."

That said, the man turned and continued to a door at the back of the warehouse, leaving behind a perturbed Klein.

Recovering, the man quickly sped toward the door where the man disappeared.

'What the fuck does that mean?! Explain yourself, Chariot!

'Don't think you can just escape after saying that!'

Opening it, the man was about to step inside when he froze.

'I'm going to be jumped?'

His muscles tensed, and the desire to use the slumber charm in his pocket to escape was immense, but he suppressed it.

'This is what I get for not asking if it would be just the two of us...' 

Chariot, in his true appearance, was a few meters from the detective. His fiery red hair was tied in a high ponytail, leaving two loose parts to frame his face. 

The handsome man sat in a simple wooden chair, his legs crossed, his cheek resting on his palm. 

At his right side stood the same white-haired woman he had seen a few days ago in his office. Her gaze was still disinterested, but Klein could sense that there was a little more attention on them.

Finally, a few steps to the side of them were a man and a woman, the latter seated. The woman was blonde and wore dark robes and a curtained hat, barely revealing her face, but he could still sense she was looking at him. 

Klein would have thought she was a doll if he had not seen the rise and fall of her chest.

The man appeared older, with pale skin and eyes that barely contained malicious intent. The clown would have already thought he wanted to attack him if it weren't for his bored expression.

"Let me introduce you." Smiling, Adryan pointed to the white-haired woman. "The beautiful woman next to me is Flora. You've already met her. Outside, use the name Abigail when addressing her."

"The one who looks like a doll is Madam Sharon, while the one who looks like a rabid dog is Maric. Don't let those scary eyes deceive you; he is actually a puppy."

After introducing the gothic duo - and ignoring the look Maric was giving him - the redhead laughed and winked at the detective.

"They're all part of my team. Treat them well, yes?"

Klein looked at the group in front of him, keeping his eyes on each member for no more than six seconds.

'Team of a Demigod... None should be below Sequence 6... Powerhouses surround me...' The man had to fight to not try to swallow.

This was the second time such a strong team had surrounded him, the first being when he met the Crestet Cesimir team.

'If they wanted to, they could kill me without me being able to do anything...' 

Knowing that he could not show weakness in front of such a group, Klein controlled his body and showed no reaction other than a subtle nod.

"..."

"..."

"..."

'Why isn't he saying anything?' Pursing his lips a little, the clown discreetly glanced at the rest, and to his surprise, the duo on the left was looking at Chariot.

For her part, Flora had only one hand clenching her brow in exasperation. 

"Well?" 

Chariot's sudden words snapped him out of his trance, and Klein returned his attention to the smiling man.

"Excuse me?"

"You have yet to introduce yourself to my group. It is bad manners not to do so when we gladly prepare to receive you." 

'This guy loves to get on my nerves.' Feeling like a vein wanted to burst in his brain and give him an aneurysm, Klein could only sigh internally to calm himself.

After a few seconds of consideration, he decided to return the coin.

"I'm Detective Sherlock Moriarty; it's a pleasure."

If Chariot was willing to show the trust he had in showing him his true appearance, then Klein knew he couldn't stand by and let him show off alone.

Clapping his hands, Adryan jumped up from his seat and walked to his side. With more familiarity than Klein was comfortable with, the redhead draped his arm over his shoulder and pulled him to him.

'Are you forgetting how big you are?!' The detective thought, somewhat embarrassed. The difference in height and size between them causing his cheek to collide directly with the man's prominent chest.

Klein also noted, somewhat surprised, how soft they were and how nice his body smelled.

'It's like two pillows...' Upon realizing what his mind had said, the clown wanted to put another bullet in there.

"He's a good friend, so take good care of him." With that said, Adryan released the detective from his grip, but not before patting him on the back.

'Chariot is a lot more playful than I thought...' Somewhat out of sorts, Klein adjusted his laurel and looked flatly at the rest, noting how the white-haired woman was looking directly at him.

"Well! With introductions made. Why don't we discuss how we'll attend the gathering?" Laughing a little, the red-haired man raised his voice a little.

"While it will be safe enough. The last thing we want is to draw attention to ourselves. That will only cause problems.

"So our priority will be to be as common as possible."

"It would be best if we went in separate groups instead of together. That way, we can gather ingredients and materials without attracting too much attention." Adryan laughed softly as he looked at Klein. Sure, you'll give us the money for the ingredients you want. 

"Since we are in the same place, we won't charge any fees. Aren't I very good?

"Is there a specific material you're looking for?"

Klein nodded internally in agreement with the man's words.

Earlier, he was worried that gathering the Magician's ingredients might attract the attention of the Secret Order and even the Aurora Order. To avoid that, he had planned to gather materials at various Beyonder gatherings, but his worries seemed misplaced.

He was about to mention the same idea as Chariot but didn't know how to do so comfortably.

'Having smart partners is the best thing. You don't have to worry about always being the brains when the guy next to you can think.' Klein sighed internally in relief but couldn't help but look at the redhead with suspicion.

While he said he wouldn't charge a fee, he didn't say he wouldn't ask for anything in return.

'With this guy, you must always read between the lines...' With that in mind, the clown wasted no time making his request.

"I'm searching for the true root of a Mist Treant and all the spinal fluid of a Dark Patterned Black Panther. Pick one; I'll take the other." 

Adryan nodded and, after a moment's thought, said, "I'll take the root." He then turned to his group.

"You guys aren't looking for anything for us to keep an eye open for?"

"Just some ingredients for talismans and rituals. We can get those ourselves." Sharon replied in a serene voice.

They did not need materials at the moment; they were only attending this gathering to fulfill their leader's mission and obtain a possible network of resources.

One could say it's more of an exploration on their part.

Adryan heard that and quickly responded, noting the opportunity he had there: "If you're going for ingredients, then pick this up for me. At least 50 milliliters of the blood of the Blind Goat; try to get more of it along with your materials. Also, 20 grams of White Stag hair. And at least four claws of the white raven.

"Considering the party it is, they should be easy to obtain." 

"Understood." Saron nodded slightly, almost ignoringly.

Seeing that the last ingredients he needed for Serena were dealt with. Adryan made another request.

"I want Charlotte to read that book you obtained. Can I borrow it for him to use?"

When they completed the First Floor of the Tower and the woman obtained the talisman-making book, Adryan immediately thought of Charlotte.

Of course, he couldn't just take something from Sharon without more. While they were on the same team, who would like it if they just grabbed your stuff and gave it to someone else without your permission?

The most logical way to deal with this was, clearly, to ask for it like any good child.

He also waited at least a week before asking for it, this would increase the odds of him borrowing it since by that point, it was very certain that the doll had already read it in its entirety.

Sharron didn't rush her response; she just closed her eyes and seemed to fall asleep.

"We will lend the book. But in return, the first 10 talismans he makes will be ours." 

"Reasonable." The price was much cheaper than he thought, but the red-haired man didn't think anything of it.

'Is she really not a doll?' Klein didn't know whether to believe Chariot that the one standing in front of him was a human being and not a doll.

Nodding softly, Adryan turned his attention to his companion, who shook her head - something that didn't surprise him.

Next Sunday was the Hermits of Fate meeting, where there were sure to be things she was more interested in obtaining.

'Of course, where she would also have more authority. After all, she is one of the only 3 demigods in the Jacob family.' Praising his companion's thriftiness, Adryan couldn't help but frown a little at that.

Flora had been missing for several years without showing any signs of life. What would her family's aptitude towards her be like?

'Flora may be suppressed, but in theory, she's still a Demigod. No self-respecting ancient family - let alone one in as bad a state as Jacob's - would close the door on her.'

Adryan was sure they would have their suspicions and conduct their tests, but he wasn't worried about that. He would deal with it...

Seeing that no one else was saying anything, the distribution of the groups was quickly made.

According to Maric and Sharron, going alone would draw some attention, so a partner was necessary. For obvious reasons, Adryan and Klein would be in different groups - there would be no point in different people buying the ingredients when they were in the same group.

Adryan and Flora will be the first group to enter the gathering, followed by Maric, Sharon, and Klein 10 minutes later.

With the order ready and after changing his appearance again with Creeping Hunger, the group of 5 left warehouse 7 in the direction of the gathering.