186 LOTM

Previously, Jasmine enjoyed the gazes from the men, but now, all that was left was anxiety and horror.

She hastened her footsteps again as though she was being chased by Feysacians.

Finally, before the men could get close to her, she rushed into the apartment and got rid of them.

Phew... The girl patted her chest and secretly decided to stay out less at night.

Only then did she realize that extraordinary beauty had its disadvantages.

After calming down, Jasmine went up the dimly-lit stairs to the third floor and returned home. She used the key she carried with her to open the door.

She carefully approached her parents' bed and used the moonlight to examine their faces.

Compared to when she left the house not too long ago, her parents' faces were rather ruddy. Their white hair and wrinkles had lessened significantly, and their snoring was almost non-existent.

Their health has really been restored... Jasmine couldn't help but smile, clearly relieved.

Sensing the commotion, her mother's eyelids twitched as she slowly opened her eyes.

Jasmine held her breath and restrained her smile, preparing to give her mother a surprise.

Her mother sat up and looked over, her expression suddenly becoming extremely terrified.

"Who are you?" asked the woman with a shrill voice as she shoved her husband forcefully.

Who am I? Jasmin was stunned by the question and didn't know how to answer the simple question.

At that moment, her father woke up as well. He looked at the beautiful girl in front of him with suspicion and vigilance.

"Get out! Otherwise, I'll call the police!" Jasmine's mother left the bed and picked up a candle stand beside her, using it as a weapon.

"We don't welcome burglars." Jasmine's father rather politely issued an order for Jasmine to leave.

He knew that he had to do his best not to pressure the burglar. Otherwise, it easily led to extreme responses from the other party.

If not for his wife and daughter, he wasn't too afraid of fighting the burglar. But now, his entire family was at stake.

Jasmine finally snapped out of her daze and hurriedly said, "Daddy, Mommy, I am..."

Before she could finish her sentence, her mother started to shove her repeatedly as she was pushed out of the room by her father.

No one cared about what she said. Under such circumstances, no one cared.

Thud!

The door to her apartment closed before her very eyes. It left her feeling lost and helpless.

She wanted to knock on the door and use the key she carried with her to prove her identity, but at that moment, she heard her mother shout to a patrolling police officer downstairs, "There's a burglar, a burglar!"

Burglar... Daddy and Mommy don't recognize me anymore... Will they think that I've murdered myself... Will the police believe the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine... Jasmine's heart tightened, and she subconsciously decided to leave the apartment first to avoid the police. She would then find her father and mother to explain to them carefully at dawn and use their common memories to convince them.

Tap. Tap. Tap. She bowed her head and, under the watchful gazes of her neighbors, walked down the stairs and rushed out of the building.

She ran all the way to a nearby alley and avoided the approaching police officer from the main street. Gasping for air, Jasmine stopped in her tracks. Tears uncontrollably rolled down her face and fell to the ground.

Suddenly, a hand reached over and covered her mouth, dragging her to a secluded corner of the alley.

"How much? I'll pay however much it costs..." A voice filled with drunkenness rang in Jasmine's ears. It was as if he had mistaken her for a prostitute and could no longer resist her allure.

Jasmine tried her best to struggle, alarmed, afraid, and desperate.

Just as she was about to break down, the drunkard released his hand.

"Miss, are you alright?" A hoarse male voice sounded.

Jasmine dashed away from the drunkard before turning around to see a police officer in a black-and-white checkered uniform.

"He... He..." As Jasmine spoke, she began to cry.

The policeman looked at her sympathetically and said, "We will take legal action on him. However, Miss, you'll need to return to the police station with me to record your statement."

Jasmine was in a state of extreme panic and extreme helplessness. She subconsciously nodded.

Not long after, she sat in the police station's testimony room nearby. Facing her was the same police officer and his colleague.

The policeman deliberated over his words and asked, "So you're telling me, he didn't ask you if you were a prostitute, and you didn't do anything that might come off as soliciting customers?"

He was worried that his words would hurt the beautiful girl in front of him.

Jasmine held a coffee cup and lowered her head to take a sip.

"Yes, I just reached the alley."

"Alright, let's end it here. Miss Jasmine, can you tell us where your house is? We will get someone to send you back." Another policeman tried to get in her good books.

Recalling his parents' reaction and the disgusting gazes, Jasmine couldn't help but shudder. She said in tears, "I had a quarrel with my parents and can't return home for the time being. Perhaps you can take me to the nearest hotel..."

At this point, she remembered that she was only left with a few pence. There was no way she could stay in a good hotel, and the cheap motels were practically dangerous to her.

The first policeman was taken aback.

"Okay."

On the way to the nearest hotel, the policeman hesitated several times before finally saying, "If, I mean if—you plan on becoming a street girl, you can come to me. There's no need for you to go through that much effort..."

Upon hearing this, Jasmine felt on the brink of mental collapse. It was just different from when she first saw her face after the fire.

This made her feel extremely insecure and she remained silent.

Fortunately, the police officer didn't force her and sent her to the entrance of the nearest hotel.

"There's no need to go in with me. I'll go by myself." Jasmine rejected the policeman's suggestion of sending her to her room.

After the police officer left, she quickly walked out of the hotel without completing the check-in procedures.

She wanted to go to the municipal square, to the place where the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine was to cancel her previous wish.

Such beauty was terrifying!

After taking a few steps, Jasmine removed the scarf around her shoulders and wrapped it around her face in layers, just like how she left her home that very night.

Back then, there were still burn scars on her face. Her missing nose and damaged lips made her look like a devil.

When she arrived at the municipal square on a trackless carriage, she entered the street once again and saw the brass Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.

Jasmine's heart immediately calmed down. She quickened her pace and arrived in front of the machine.

Then, she was at a loss. She didn't know how to cancel her last wish.

"Your first wish was a free trial, and it wasn't counted in the three wishes. So you have one more wish." Jasmine suddenly heard Mr. Merlin Hermes's voice.

She turned her head and saw that across the street, under the dim yellow light of the street lamp, the magician wearing a tall hat was looking calmly at her.

"Good, good." Jasmine hurriedly took out a copper penny and inserted it into the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.

"I hope my previous wish is canceled," she said with her eyes closed as she gripped the wrench and spun it.

Tak!

She heard the dull thud once again.

When she opened her eyes, she rushed to a nearby shop. She stopped in front of the glass window and removed the scarf wrapped around her face.

She saw herself again. She was no longer a pretty girl.

Jasmine instantly relaxed, and instinctively turned her head to look at the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine, but found that it had disappeared along with Mr. Merlin Hermes.

"Praise the Lady. Thank you, Mr. Hermes." Jasmine sincerely tapped her chest four times in a clockwise manner.

She used her last copper penny to head home on a trackless public carriage.

Along the way, no one gave up their seats to her.

When her figure vanished from the street, Klein appeared again, holding a silver mirror with ancient patterns.

"Great Master, why didn't you add the line that 'excessive greed will only turn something good into something bad' or 'wishes always have a price?' This will make the whole matter seem even more philosophical. It will be elevated into a fable." On the surface of the mirror, silver words appeared.

Klein smiled and said, "The biggest problem was that I couldn't use normal methods to satisfy her 'extremely, extremely, extremely beautiful' wish. Lie can only adjust her looks to a certain extent.

"Therefore, I had no choice but to use one of the effects of a Sealed Artifact that originated from a Demoness to 'Graft' it onto her. That resulted in her stunning beauty and terrifying charm. This made the surrounding men unable to resist her."

The Sealed Artifact belonged to Xio, a relic of Demoness Shermane.

Due to a problem with Xio's storage abilities, Shermane's Beyonder characteristic fused with the box containing it, becoming a Sealed Artifact with shockingly negative effects. This caused Xio's younger brother to look at the box strangely.

In order to resolve this problem, Xio made a wish for Mr. Fool to seal the item for her.

After saying that casually, Klein looked at the magic mirror.

"Arrodes, are you consoling me?"

"No, the main problem was that she's too greedy. If she only wanted to become beautiful and didn't add so many 'extremely's to the wish, then the result would've been pretty good." On the surface of the mirror, silver words quickly appeared.

"Indeed. That will be within the extent that can be achieved by Lie." Klein nodded and said to Arrodes, "Lie's adjustments can indeed be permanent, but it's a structure that is ultimately different from the original muscles, skin, and bone structure. After more than a decade, when she's gradually showing signs of age, the adjustments and the differences will slowly magnify, making her face appear rather strange and stiff. That can only be fixed periodically by becoming a Faceless."

Having said that, Klein smiled and shook his head.

"A lie is ultimately a lie."

Then, he walked towards the other end of the street and continued, "Besides, even if she really becomes beautiful, it's still uncertain whether she will lead a better life in the future. It's true that beauty allows her to obtain a lot of resources and allow her to marry a 'prince.' However, her personal upbringing, character, and knowledge are unlikely to support such a lifestyle.

"Yes, I can't rule out the possibility that she's good at studying, being capable of using all kinds of experience to fully enrich herself, and ultimately direct herself to possibly having a good life. However, that's a whole other story.

"Heh heh, miracles are only for a moment, but fate is often a long-lasting event."

In the conversation with Arrodes, Klein gradually vanished from the end of the street.

His understanding of Miracle Invoker had deepened again.

...

After returning to her family apartment, Jasmine didn't attempt to open the door. She used a lot of courage to knock on the door.

The door opened and her mother appeared in front of her.

"Oh, you're finally back." Her mother first heaved a sigh of relief, then asked in an abnormally horrified manner, "Y-your face?"

Jasmine forced a smile and said, "I've been cured, by a mister who's good at creating miracles.

"Mr. Fully Automatic Wishing Machine."

Just as her parents suspected that their daughter had been influenced by demons, a few policemen in black-and-white checkered uniforms walked up the stairs and came over.

Leading the policemen was a lady. She had light blue eyes and a smile that quietened others.

"Miss Jasmine, we have some questions for you," the lady said politely.

-x-X-x-

Jasmine felt that she should have been afraid, but she found it difficult to have much strong emotions facing the female police officer in front of her. She felt like her body and mind had unknowingly settled down after crying for a long time.

She looked at her parents who had a complicated expression and asked hesitantly, "Okay, what questions do you have?"

The female policeman with the rank of superintendent pointed at the door and said, "Let's talk inside."

She didn't get Jasmine's parents to leave. She only ordered the two police officers with her to guard by the door.

After closing the door, she pulled a crude round stool over and sat down without standing on ceremony, looking very relaxed.

This immediately made Jasmine and her parents less tense.

"You may call me Ma'am Grey." The officer introduced herself and pointed at another chair and the bed. "Have a seat."

When everyone in the room found their seats, she smiled at Jasmine and said, "I received a report saying that there were some incomprehensible things happening around you. For example, a male's desire for committing sexual assault had far exceeded normal standards. This doesn't mean that there are no bad people or criminals among them, but the ratio is too high, so high that it's strange."

At this point, she swept her gaze across Jasmine's face.

"From what I know, you were seriously injured during the fire and was permanently disfigured. But now, I can't tell any of that. What do you have to say about this?"

Jasmine's heart tensed up again. She didn't dare hide anything and said in a panic, "I went out tonight to the municipal square to attend the carnival. While I was passing by a particular street, I encountered a wandering magician who called himself Merlin Hermes. He said that he had invented a machine called 'the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.' All I had to do was insert a penny, softly state my wish, and turn the wrench, then my wish would be granted.

"He said that I was the first user, so I could experience it for free once. Th-then, I was restored to my original state, having all my injuries healed.

"Officer, that's what happened. You must believe me."

With that, she glanced at Mrs. Grey and her assistant before looking at her parents, trying to get their approval.

However, her parents clearly said:

"How is this possible?

"How can there be a machine that can automatically grant the wishes of others?

"How can there be something as good as granting a wish cost only a penny?

"Besides, the first user experienced it for free!"

Grey and her assistant didn't show any obvious expressions, making Jasmine unsure if they believed her or not.

"Continue." Seeing her pause, Grey nodded encouragingly.

Jasmine hurriedly mentioned how she returned home to get some coins before recounting in full how she wished for her parents to regain their health and how she wanted to become beautiful. Finally, she said, "I was indeed very beautiful. Even I couldn't move my eyes away. This made me experience a lot of kindness, but later on, the surrounding men started to frighten me...

"In addition, Daddy and Mommy didn't recognize me and chased me out of the house. I was scared, very scared. I returned to the machine and made a third wish. Yes, that Mr. Merlin Hermes said that the first wish was free, and wasn't part of the three wishes. In short, I returned to my original appearance and met you."

Upon hearing these words, Jasmine's parents instantly thought of the beautiful "burglar" from before.

Then, they realized that their bodies were indeed much healthier than before. Their vision had recovered and their arms had sufficient strength. Everything seemed different.

They began to believe Jasmine's description, but they felt even more terrified. It was as if they had encountered a demon, exactly the same as those stories in folklore.

Grey nodded gently.

"I've seen many matters that are beyond your imagination, but this is the first time I've heard of something like a Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.

"Compared to a wishing lamp or wishing pool in folklore, this is too modern."

After a pause, her expression turned serious.

"As an experienced law enforcer, I'll give you three suggestions.

"First, don't believe in such things again from now on. Under most circumstances, the easy granting of wishes brings about a huge disaster. There's nothing wrong with describing it as the temptation of demons."

Jasmine nodded heavily, indicating that she wouldn't dare to do it again—that final experience still left her feeling afraid.

"Secondly, go to the cathedral as soon as possible and repent to the bishop. Get him to purify you." Grey looked around and said, "Your entire family must go."

Seeing that Jasmine and her parents were about to say that they already had this in mind, Grey turned to Jasmine.

"My department still lacks some staff. You can consider joining us. This way, I can monitor your situation at any time and deal with any abnormalities in time. As for the salary, trust me, it's about the same as a civil servant."

The salary is about the same as a civil servant's... I can be protected... There's something that nice? Jasmine asked in disbelief, "What department is it?"

Grey smiled and said, "I'll give you an address. Come to my office tomorrow, and I'll fill you in on the details."

"...Alright." Jasmine was in a state of panic and unease. She would grab a life-saving straw the moment it appeared.

...

A week later, Jasmine officially joined the Nighthawks in Limon City and became a civilian staff member.

"Captain, the telegraph device has broken down," she said carefully as she knocked on Grey's door.

Grey put down the documents in her hand and rubbed her temples.

"Report this to the police station and let them handle it.

"Seriously, I could've gotten the help of the Machinery Hivemind in the past. It was done in a quick and effective way. Now, sigh..."

By the time Jasmine left, Grey picked up the documents and began to read them carefully.

This was a piece of information that the Nighthawks had gathered regarding the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.

After Jasmine, this happened more than once!

After flipping through the documents, Grey spread out a piece of paper, picked up a fountain pen, and began writing the official document for the Constant archbishop and the Holy Cathedral:

"There have been many supernatural incidents in the city in the past week. It involves a special machine called 'the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.' According to the intel, it was created by a wandering magician who calls himself Merlin Hermes, but we haven't ruled out other possibilities. At least, I think that Merlin might be an illusion created by this machine, so as to lure people into making wishes...

"This machine is of a brass color embedded with opaque glass. Its surface has gears, bearings, rivets, metal pipes, and other components exposed on its surface. It seems to be a product of modern industrialization...

"Case 1: A young girl who was disfigured by a fire, had met the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine at the municipal square... Her first wish was to revert back to her original appearance, and it was granted normally... Her second wish was to restore her parents' health, which was also granted normally... Her third wish was to become, extremely, extremely, extremely beautiful. Then, she no longer looked like herself, and she had an irresistible charm to the men around her...

"She claimed that she was the first user of Fully Automatic Wishing Machine, which allowed her to have one free wish. With that, she canceled her third wish...

"Case 2: A retired soldier who participated in the war to defend Limon was left with serious mental damage. He met the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine by the river... His first wish was to restore his mental state to a state before the war, and it was granted normally... His second wish was to become a little more handsome so as to reach the standards of the male models on magazine covers. He also had it granted normally... His third wish was to obtain 100,000 pounds and become a tycoon. Then, he caught the fancy of the owner of the Limon United Steel Company who wished to marry him—a lady with a wealth of nearly 200,000 pounds...

"This retired soldier didn't wish to accept her with her having a weight of more than two hundred pounds and her shorter-than-average height. Furthermore, she's a violent middle-aged woman. He prepared to leave Limon and head south. If there comes a day when he doesn't want to work hard anymore, he can easily obtain the rights to a wealth of 100,000 pounds... In a sense, his wish was granted, but he's unwilling to accept it...

"Case 3: ...

"Case 4: ...

"Case 5: A public school teacher met the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine near a Storm cathedral... Her first wish was to make herself look better, and not be ostracized by her students because of her looks or be spurned by her colleagues. This was granted normally... Her second wish was to obtain a better position, which was also granted. As her teaching standards were high enough and she was no longer restricted by her looks, she quickly became the most popular teacher among the students and began taking on the duties as vice principal...

"Her third wish was to have a husband with impeccable looks, family background, personality, and ability. Finally, she got a doll who could speak, move, and have a certain level of intelligence. It had living characteristics and looked rather handsome. It was carved by the best master and could have any personality one wanted. It was very capable in every aspect. Other than not being human, it really had no flaws...

"Case 6: ...

"...

"Summarizing these cases, we have obtained some preliminary guesses.

"The Fully Automatic Wishing Machine can appear anywhere in Limon. It's extremely random, and there's temporarily no discovered pattern for it...

"Most of the wishes that are made can be fulfilled normally. However, a small portion will be distorted, and the latter is basically concentrated on the third wish. Of course, it's also possible that the person will let themselves loose by the time they make the third wish and thus, make excessive demands...

"The wishes it granted were mostly related to appearance, but it covered a wide scope. It was almost omnipotent...

"The frequency of its appearances is also irregular...

"This is a classic example of a mystical item that needs to be sealed. Furthermore, it clearly exceeds the grade of a Grade 2 Sealed Artifact. I hope the archbishop and high-ranking deacons will personally deal with it, or give an effective sealing method..."

...

On the steam locomotive out of Limon, Klein observed his digestion of the Miracle Invoker potion.

-x-X-x-

If I keep accumulating it bit by bit, it won't be long before I can respond to Moon City's prayers and cure their deformity, thus creating quite a miracle... In addition, I've also concluded the acting principles of a Miracle Invoker. It's only a matter of time before I digest it if I follow them. I might even finish within the year... Klein retracted his gaze from outside the window, raised his left arm, and controlled the monster puppet on his hand to entertain a child across him.

This made him look more like a wandering magician.

If he was willing, he could even use Life's Cane or the "Grafting" ability to imbue this sock puppet with living characteristics.

While entertaining the child, Klein's thoughts scattered as he considered where the marionette city needed to be "built" for the advancement ritual.

A marionette city needs sufficient interaction to develop a corresponding region in the spirit world. This means that it isn't enough to leave it in the Forsaken Land of the Gods. Ignoring the fact that it's sealed there, there's no way of directly connecting it to the spirit world. All I can do is rely on the little specialness it has. Even if there's no problem with it, it's difficult to create any interactivity with a place that lacks intelligent life...

If it's placed in the Northern and Southern Continent or the sea colonies, I have to be careful. Before the ritual is about to succeed, I definitely can't expose the fact that it's a marionette city. Otherwise, it will be affected, damaged, or even attacked by Zaratul, Amon, and my other enemies...

Yes, I have to give a sufficiently good reason for a marionette city to appear. Then, there won't be any abnormalities with the interaction between the traveling merchants and the surrounding humans. I have to make every marionette a living person. They have their past, present, and future. They follow their own trajectories of fate...

This means that a marionette city is extremely complicated. I need to split out many Worms of Spirit to deal with it. This also has the risk of losing control by doing so...

If they are husband and wife, they should act like husband and wife. When faced with something they are fond of, they should show joy. Perverts should be hated... This way, foreigners might hear embarrassing sounds while staying in the marionette city...

I'm still just an innocent child...

This is a large-scale reality show, or rather, a high-end version of "playing house." It has to be able to deceive the audience...

As Klein lampooned inwardly, he silently counted if he had enough marionettes.

Previously, he had gone to the Forsaken Land of the Gods several times and converted a large number of them. There were all kinds of monsters that might not have Beyonder characteristics. He also consciously controlled batches of rats, cockroaches, mosquitoes, and flies, hoping to make a more uncommon side of the city real enough.

I'm barely able to support a small city, so just a few more visits to the Forsaken Land of the Gods would do... Just as this thought flashed through Klein's mind, a scene suddenly appeared in front of him.

At the top of the Giant King's Court which was bathed in the light of dusk, the open door slowly and heavily closed.

This was like a pair of invisible hands closing the entrance to the Forsaken Land of the Gods.

This... Klein's eyes darkened as he vaguely guessed that this scene meant that the True Creator was about to seal off the Forsaken Land of the Gods again.

This was the prophetic power that came from his angel-level spiritual intuition and premonition for danger.

It was about to happen a few minutes or a few seconds later.

Did the True Creator capture Amon? Or has "He" already given up? "He" once again sealed off the Forsaken Land of the Gods. Does "He" not want others to enter again? Isn't this too petty? Klein mumbled inwardly, feeling a little disappointed.

Of course, he barely had enough marionettes. Even if he lacked them, he could make up for it at sea.

...

Backlund, Empress Borough.

Audrey had just changed her clothes and sent away her maidservants. Just as she was about to leave, she saw Susie walk in.

"What's the matter? You should be out on your stroll at this time?" As an experienced Spectator, Audrey immediately sensed that something was amiss.

During this period of time, she had been busy making use of the influence she had in a few foundations to help the workers, farmers, and injured veterans with their hardships. She had allowed them to wait for a new job opportunity or for their plantation's production in a new season. She had a lot less interaction with Susie than usual.

At the same time, Audrey was secretly guiding the workers of lower socioeconomic status from the various unions in Backlund to gather their strength together.

Her previous experiences made her understand that counting on the kindness of the upper class wasn't reliable or long-lasting. A single person appeared puny and powerless in the face of the government, nobles, and powerful merchants. Only by summoning the combined strength of a large number of civilians could a balance be formed.

The Loen Kingdom had unions in different industries a long time ago, but the upper echelons of these associations were easily bribed. Instead, they became effective weapons against ordinary workers.

Susie glanced at Audrey with a rather normal expression, but her mouth seemed to be out of control. It vibrated the air and let out a deep male voice.

"Miss Audrey, I'm the president of the Psychology Alchemists, Eric Drake. I wish to meet you and discuss with you about becoming a councilor of the Psychology Alchemists. I'm at the nearby park."

Having said that, Susie heaved a long sigh of relief and regained her original voice.

"Audrey, there's a strange guy looking for you. I... I can't remember what he looks like. H-he directly placed the words he wanted to say into my mind island!"

Audrey's pupils dilated slightly before immediately returning to normal. She calmly nodded and said, "Where is he at the park?"

As she spoke, Audrey secretly conjured a Virtual Persona and entered Susie's mind island through the sea of collective subconscious. She checked if it was still distorted by some external consciousness or knowledge.

"I don't remember... I was having my stroll," Susie said as she recalled.

Then, she wagged her tail slightly and said, "I don't think you should go. It's dangerous."

After confirming that Susie didn't have any latent problems with her Virtual Persona, Audrey exhaled and said, "It will be even more suspicious if I don't go. That way, danger will be unavoidable. It might even affect the rest of the people in the house."

Besides, this is also an opportunity. Just as Mr. Hanged Man said, since the end of the world is coming, all the hard work and attempts that will not bring disaster are meaningful... Audrey added inwardly before saying, "I will protect myself.

"Susie, did anything happen to you just now?"

Susie barked and said, "No.

"Audrey, are you really going?"

"Yes." Audrey gave a clear answer.

"Then can you bring me along? Just like before, I'm just a dog in their eyes," Susie mustered up her courage and said.

"No, there's no need. I'll be back very soon. Believe me, I'll be blessed by a deity," Audrey replied with a faint smile.

After comforting Susie, she used her Psychological Invisibility and left the luxurious villa like she usually did.

When she was far away, in a corner on the first floor, a servant who was cleaning suddenly bowed his head and softly said words that he had never learned before:

"The Fool that doesn't belong to this era..."

...

In the ancient palace above the fog.

The figure sitting in The Fool's seat naturally looked at the newly formed prayer light and realized that the believer was extremely unfamiliar.

It's identical to Miss Justice's home environment... I can suspect that it's a result of guidance created by a Virtual Persona's invasion of the mind island... Miss Justice used this method to avoid any surveillance and pray for blessings... The figure quickly came to a conclusion and transferred the corresponding situation to his true body.

A few seconds later, Klein entered Sefirah Castle and allowed the Worms of Spirit to burrow into his body.

Miss Justice is becoming more and more like a High-Sequence Spectator... Klein praised inwardly as he cast his gaze at the crimson star representing Justice.

...

In the park with a lake.

As soon as Audrey entered, she saw a large carriage drive over. The carriage driver was an ordinary middle-aged man wearing an old hat and a dark-colored jacket.

However, in Audrey's eyes, this carriage driver didn't exist because he didn't have a corresponding island of consciousness or mind.

In other words, the carriage driver was just an illusion, a fake, and the controller of the carriage was the horse itself.

A few seconds later, the large carriage stopped in front of Audrey. The door creaked open.

"Please come in." A deep male voice came from inside.

Audrey lifted the ends of her skirt slightly and boarded the carriage. She saw a man sitting on a black wheelchair.

His pale yellow eyebrows were long and his hair was neatly combed back. There were some wrinkles on his forehead, and his face was abnormally pale.

"Mr. Derlau? Aren't you already dead?" Audrey recognized the man in front of her and expressed her surprise perfectly.

"To a Spectator, death only represents the end of one's identity. In other theatrical plays, I'm still alive," the elderly gentleman who was sitting in a black wheelchair replied with a smile. "Apart from the former royal family's medical consultant, the former chancellor of Backlund Medical School, I'm also King of the Black Throne Barros Hopkins at sea. I'm the famous hermit, Eric Drake, etc.

"Then how should I address you?" Audrey asked politely as she watched the door close automatically from the corner of her eye.

The old gentleman stroked the wheels on both sides of his wheelchair and said, "You can call me Mr. President, or you can continue calling me Mr. Derlau."

He then pointed to the seat on the left side of the carriage.

"Have a seat. Let's head somewhere first before discussing you becoming a councilor of the Psychology Alchemists."

Audrey nodded slightly and calmly sat down.

Without hiding anything, she cast her gaze out of the window and was surprised to find that in the blink of an eye, the park had turned into an unfamiliar city, one that was shrouded in darkness.

The city was filled with extremely mysterious and beautiful buildings that gave off a dark feeling. There were gentlemen wearing top hats and trench coats, as well as women in complicated and dark dresses.

As Audrey swept her gaze, she saw a gentleman with short black hair beside a carriage, revealing sharp canine fangs in his mouth.

This was a werewolf.

-x-X-x-

"What is this place?" Audrey asked without much change in her expression, as though she was asking about the location of the ball tonight.

Pauli Derlau, who claimed to be the president of the Psychology Alchemists, cast his gaze out the window as well. He smiled and said, "This is the city in everyone's heart.

"It's present wherever there are people."

Audrey nodded in thought.

"In other words, you can enter this place from any corner of human society?"

Derlau stroked his wheelchair and said, "That's right."

He didn't explain further and instead pointed at the pedestrians outside the carriage.

"Everything here has a corresponding psychological symbol; they are called 'Bestial Desire.'"

Bestial Desire... Audrey repeated the word silently. As she maintained her dignified posture, she cast her gaze even further.

Among the pedestrians, there were werewolves, as well as walking upright bears. There were cats with lazy expressions, and there was a strange man with a face of a spotted spider, a huge mouse with red eyes, a python with its tongue sticking out, and a canine creature that studied every creature that passed it by with eyes filled with the desire to mate...

They were either wearing a top hat and trench coat or an exquisite and complicated long dark dress, doing their best to imitate humans in every detail, but they were unable to truly resemble a human.

The carriage traveled through the darkness of the night, traveling between pedestrians and all kinds of Gothic buildings. Soon, they arrived at a cathedral in the middle of the city.

The cathedral was more than eighty meters tall, propped up thanks to the numerous black columns. Each pillar was embedded with a certain number of skulls. Some of them came from humans, while others came from different creatures. However, their empty eye sockets were tilted downwards, as though they were observing at every living creature that entered the cathedral.

Just like most buildings here, every detail in the cathedral could be said to be exquisite, but they formed the elements that leaned towards nightmare, horror, terror, and mystery.

After getting off the carriage, Audrey saw a grand but empty hall through the main door.

In the depths of the hall stood a huge cross. Curled around the cross was a grayish-white dragon statue.

Unlike ordinary cathedrals, there were no pews for believers to pray, nor were there places for candle stands. However, in front of the dragon statue, there was a small long table. On both sides of the long table were five seats, and the seats at both ends were empty.

Pauli Derlau wheeled himself to the end of the long table where the seat of honor was. Then, he pointed to his left.

"Please take a seat."

Audrey slowly followed behind him. She looked around and casually pulled out a chair before sitting down.

She wasn't too close to the president of the Psychology Alchemists, nor was she too far away. She perfectly showed her vigilance and didn't show any signs of guilt.

Pauli Derlau raised his hands and clasped them together before placing them on the surface of the long table.

"Miss Audrey, I have something to ask you."

"Please speak." Audrey turned her head slightly and responded with her green eyes.

Derlau nodded slightly and said, "I would like to know how you advanced to Sequence 4 Manipulator. Where did you get your potion formula and Beyonder characteristic?"

Audrey replied frankly, "It was from a deal.

"A client wished to receive the help of a Spectator demigod, and had paid the Manipulator potion formula and Beyonder characteristic as an advance."

Derlau immediately laughed.

"That actually happened? These generous conditions resemble a father finding an excuse to give his daughter a present.

"Can you tell me exactly what kind of help you provided?"

"Kill another demigod. In this matter, control of one's mind was rather crucial." Audrey simply explained.

Her attitude was very calm, as if she was talking about the homework given to her by a teacher.

Derlau's long and fluffy eyebrows twitched as he said, "And you succeeded?"

"The results are obvious enough." Audrey gave an answer rather tactfully.

Derlau sized her up and realized that the noble girl on his left was a Manipulator who could kill other demigods.

Audrey read his thoughts and added, "I was just one of the participants."

Derlau nodded and said, "Do you know where the client's Manipulator potion formula and Beyonder characteristic came from?"

"He didn't tell me straight with regards to this question." Audrey gave an answer with a sentence she had long planned out.

"He? Can you tell me who he is?" Derlau asked after some deliberation.

Audrey had been guarding against the other party's Virtual Persona from infiltrating her mind island. However, she had yet to notice anything abnormal since the beginning.

This made her suspect that the other party didn't need to infiltrate her mind. All he needed to do was observe the fluctuations of the surrounding sea of collective subconscious to understand her true thoughts.

She didn't make any attempts to hide and calmly replied,

"This concerns an agreement between us. I believe honoring one's promise is a moral standard that the entire world approves of. And in mysticism, this comes into play at a deeper level."

Having said that, Audrey took the initiative to say, "If you can't really trust me because of my inability to mention this, I'm willing to accept this.

"I can only remain an ordinary member and use my contributions in exchange for the psychological research materials that are available to me."

Derlau smiled when he heard that.

"Everyone has their own secrets. This is very normal. What I need to assess is whether your secret will affect the safety of the entire Psychology Alchemists."

He looked deeply at Audrey and said, "Then can you tell me how you got to know such a client?"

"I remember that I once reported that, before joining the Psychology Alchemists, I'd already come into contact with some people in a mysticism circle and got to know a few Beyonders," Audrey said a truth that couldn't be any truer.

As for what the real logical order to the answer was, it was another matter.

Furthermore, the matter regarding Hvin Rambis's "disappearance" which stemmed from the investigation of Fors and Xio was something both parties had never talked about but had definitely acknowledged.

Derlau retracted his hands from the table and placed them by his chest.

"There's another thing I would like to ask: when was the last time you met Hvin Rambis?"

Audrey frowned slightly and said, "I remember that I've been asked before."

After Hvin Rambis's death, she didn't immediately cut off any contact with the Psychology Alchemists. She continued to maintain a certain connection with the upper echelons through Hilbert, Stephen, and Escalante. Only when the war reached Backlund did she realize that she couldn't contact the members of the Psychology Alchemists cell for various reasons.

"I need to confirm it in person," Derlau said calmly.

Audrey nodded gently and said, "The last time I met Hvin Rambis was in Viscount Glaint's mansion. At that time, I hypnotized my two Beyonder friends I knew, as per his instructions, and asked them why they were investigating Viscount Stratford and who the mastermind behind this was.

At that time, Councillor Hvin Rambis was nearby, ensuring that nothing went wrong with the hypnotism. After he received the answer, he quickly left.

"After that day, I never saw him again."

As she answered, Audrey was still guarding against the invasion of her mind island. However, it was calm there, and nothing happened.

This didn't make Audrey feel relaxed. Instead, she became even more wary. She didn't even dare to think about anything related to Mr. Fool and The World Gehrman Sparrow.

She was only certain of one thing: As long as she was exposed to danger, Mr. Fool would definitely provide her with protection.

"It's identical to your previous answer." Derlau nodded slowly.

He then looked into Audrey's green eyes and said frankly, "I can't use mysticism methods to trace the origins of the Beyonder characteristic in your body. This means that the person who provided it has an unimaginable existence behind him."

Audrey nodded slightly but forcefully, expressing that she agreed with his assessment.

"I can't force you to not cooperate with other Beyonders or make deals. It's unrealistic. I just hope that you can promise not to reveal anything about the Psychology Alchemists to anyone. At the very least, when you wish to entrust certain missions to others, you have to package them and hide the secrets," Derlau said calmly as he retracted his gaze.

Audrey replied without hesitation, "I promise not to tell any living creature that isn't qualified to know about matters regarding the Psychology Alchemists."

She took the initiative to amplify the concept all the way to that of a living being to make up for any loopholes in her promise.

As soon as she finished speaking, she felt her thoughts surface from her mind island.

These thoughts intertwined, turning into an illusory net that seeped into Audrey's mind island, turning into her subconscious.

As this "restriction net" came from Audrey's spirituality, she would be incapable of removing it even if she became an angel. She would lose the intention of talking about the Psychology Alchemists when she faced non-members of the Psychology Alchemists or people who didn't qualify to know about them.

And she wouldn't realize this.

He didn't invade my spiritual island. Just my words alone made the promise turn something substantial... While Audrey was alarmed, her expression didn't show.

Of course, she didn't completely restrain herself, as being surprised by such means was an instinctive reaction from a Manipulator.

Based on this point, she suspected that either there was something wrong with this city that existed in the heart, or that Derlau, the Psychology Alchemists president, wasn't just at the level of a saint.

Seeing Audrey make her promise, Derlau pointed at the long table in satisfaction and said, "From now on, you are a councilor of the Psychology Alchemists.

"You can choose a persona mask as your codename."

As he spoke, seven grayish-white masks appeared on the long table. They were rather illusory and abnormally cold. Five of them were placed in front of the corresponding seats, as though they already had a master.

"The remaining two persona masks are Wrath and Pride," Derlau introduced. "They come from the Holy Bible of the Creator from the Third Epoch."

Audrey thought for a second before reaching out her hand to the mask that didn't contain any anger.

"I choose Pride."

Derlau looked at her and chuckled.

"That was the choice Hvin Rambis made back then."

-x-X-x-

Audrey's right hand paused for a moment before returning to normal. She picked up the mask known as Pride.

"A 50% chance isn't low," she replied to Pauli Derlau simply.

This was to say that picking the mask that Hvin Rambis had worn before wasn't a surprising coincidence.

With that said, Audrey wore the cold gray mask on her face.

Almost instantly, she felt that she had an additional Virtual Persona that had appeared in her mind island.

This didn't stem from the outside world, but rather, a magnification of what she knew to the extremes.

"They received very little education. They have to make the right choice under my guidance.

"Not everyone has enough intelligence. On the contrary, most people are very stupid.

"Those workers are impulsive and irrational. They are easily enticed by tiny perks and have no foresight. Only with me thinking for them, guiding them, and making decisions for them can they be saved.

"They are worthy of pity, but they aren't worth communicating with.

"..."

These thoughts echoed in Audrey's mind, almost making her believe that this was the truth. After all, this was partial feedback she had received from her previous observation and experience. It wasn't something that had been fabricated out of thin air.

With a sweep of her gaze, Audrey saw herself from the smooth surface of the long table.

On the cold gray mask, her eyes moved upwards, fixing it to her forehead as though she could only see things high above without a care about anything else. It was funny, strange, and secretly horrifying.

Audrey fell silent. A few seconds later, she said in a deep voice, "Is this Pride?"

If it wasn't for the fact that she had long escaped her misconceptions through the exchange between Mr. World, Mr. Hanged Man, and Ma'am Hermit, she might've been truly affected by Pride's persona.

As for what would happen after being affected, she couldn't tell.

"You recovered much faster than I expected. It looks like you haven't lost yourself in the experience of manipulating others," Derlau said approvingly.

Audrey replied thoughtfully, "Mr. Hvin Rambis has always appeared a little proud..."

Derlau clasped his hands at his chest and said, "You could tell?"

"Only occasionally. Some details," Audrey replied in two short sentences.

Derlaua sighed and shook his head with a smile.

"This mask's influence on Hvin Rambis was worse than I expected. Besides, he usually put on a very good disguise.

"Under this premise, I don't find it strange that he has gone missing. His arrogance will make it impossible for him to see the path beneath his feet. It will make him look down on Beyonders who are weaker than him, and this will often bring great danger."

Audrey resisted the urge to recall Hvin Rambis's death, and asked in deliberation, "These seven personalities can amplify the corresponding knowledge and emotions to help us realize our own problems, so that we can deal with them directly. At the same time, they will also bring some negative effects, and unknowingly change its wearer's personality?"

Derlau nodded slightly.

"In the mind domain, it's very difficult to obtain external help that's pure and without danger. One has to have enough internal strength to avoid the corresponding negative effects.

"You have walked the right path for you to realize this."

Audrey was just about to take the opportunity to discuss some questions about the mind domain when she suddenly saw a mask on the table disappear.

She subconsciously turned her head and looked at the entrance of the cathedral. She saw a figure walk in through the door.

This figure was wearing a three-piece formal wear suit, and he had a half top hat in his hand. He wore the mask that had disappeared earlier on.

The mouth on the mask was opened wide until it reached close to the ears. Its mouth remained open, as if it wanted to swallow everything that its eyes could see.

"This is one of the councilors of the Psychology Alchemists, Mr. Gluttony." Derlau did the introductions.

Following that, the remaining councilors of the Psychology Alchemists arrived one after another. They were Mr. Lust, Ma'am Greed, Miss Sloth, and Mr. Envy.

As a senior Spectator, Audrey was the first to notice the difference in their masks:

Greed was similar to a Gluttony. His mouth reached his earlobes, but it wasn't open. Furthermore, his eyes were closed.

Lust was similar to Pride, but its eyes were different from ordinary people. They had sunk to the middle of their noses, as though they were looking at people from the bottom.

Envy's eyes, ears, nose, and mouth were slightly slanted, and had a gloomy temperament.

Sloth's eyes were tightly shut, and its mouth naturally drooped, giving off the feeling that the wearer was sleeping.

Seeing all the councilors present, Derlau smiled and said, "Let's wait for another friend. He will be the seventh councilor. Heh, eighth, I forgot to count myself."

Just as he said that, a figure entered the cathedral's main door.

This figure wore a shirt, vest, a black trench coat, and a half top hat. At a glance, he was a rather fashionable gentleman.

However, after some observations, Audrey realized that there was a huge rabbit under the human clothes. Its eyes were bright red and its fur was snow-white.

The rabbit walked inside, one step at a time, and stopped at the side of the long table. It happened to be beside Audrey.

"Unfortunately, you only have one choice." Derlau smiled as he pointed at the Wrath mask on the table.

The rabbit let out a male human voice:

"I've always been very gentle. It's a good opportunity for me to experience wrath."

As it spoke, it picked up the persona mask and wore it on its face.

The mask's eyes were wide and its mouth was wide open, as though an angry roar would shout out at any moment.

After Mr. Wrath sat down beside Audrey, Derlau clapped his hands and said, "I formally introduce the two councilors who will be joining our council.

"This is Miss Pride. This is Mr. Wrath. They are both demigods and have deep attainments in the domain of the mind.

"In addition, Miss Pride will be in charge of the greater Backlund area of the Loen Kingdom."

Upon saying that, Derlau looked at Audrey and said, "You might not be aware, but we are rooted in the masses of psychologists, psychiatrists, and the corresponding aficionados. Our strength is mainly concentrated in large cities and not small cities and villages. Therefore, every councilor is responsible for a city and the surrounding area."

Then, Derlau continued, "Mr. Wrath is in charge of the Lenburg capital, Azshara;

"Mr. Lust is in charge of the Intis capital, Trier;

"Ma'am Greed is in charge of the Feysac capital, St. Millom;

"Miss Sloth is in charge of the Feynapotter capital, Feynapotter City.

"Mr. Envy is in charge of the Intis Republic's Tilisi City;

"Mr. Gluttony is in charge of the Loen Kingdom's Constant City."

After the introduction, Derlau added, "Our Psychology Alchemists' mission is exploration, discovery, and research. We do not care about affecting the scope, member numbers, resources, etc. Therefore, we do not have any councilors in the Fog Sea, the Berserk Sea, the Sonia Sea, and the Southern Continent. Of course, there will often be members who go out to the sea to explore the ruins of the Southern Continent in search of ancient history. Heh heh, I forgot that I'm the King of the Black Throne on the Five Seas."

St. Millom, Constant, Tilisi... Nearly half of the councilors of the Psychology Alchemists are in the Midseashire region... Audrey acutely sensed a problem.

She came from a noble family, and had received good education since she was young. She was no stranger to the geographical location of every city in the Northern Continent. She knew that Feysac's St. Millom, Loen's Constant, and Intis's Tilisi were big coastal cities of Midseashire.

Although they couldn't compare to the three major cities of Backlund, Trier, and Feynapotter City, each of them was quite large. Furthermore, there were many medium-sized cities around them. This made the Midseashire coast become the most vibrant economic zone in the Northern Continent, an area with the biggest population.

Under such circumstances, it wasn't too surprising that the focus of the Psychology Alchemists was placed on Midseashire. Audrey generally didn't think that the Psychology Alchemists weren't too interested in expansion.

After the councilors got to know each other, Derlau turned his head and said to Audrey, "Miss Pride, due to the war, Backlund's Psychology Alchemists suffered great losses. We have lost contact with many of the members. I will give you a specific list in the future. You will be in charge of confirming the whereabouts of the members and then organize them again.

"In this process, I suggest that you don't use your real image and name to finish the tasks. Create a virtual identity to complete them. Hvin Rambis didn't do well in this aspect. I think he's a little too proud."

Audrey nodded slightly and agreed.

Derlau retracted his gaze and said, "The second thing to discuss today is the whereabouts of the mind dragon in East Chester County of the Loen Kingdom.

"The dragon worshiping customs of the Hartlarkh village haven't been weakened in the past two years. I suspect that the mind dragon is still influencing it in some way. Perhaps we can use it to find its whereabouts.

"Who is willing to handle this matter?"

After raising the question, he recalled that the newly joined Miss Pride and Mr. Wrath didn't have enough knowledge of the corresponding situation. He simply explained the explorations the Psychology Alchemists had previously done, as well as the problems that his entire archaeological team members encountered.

Audrey had actually participated in some matters in the early stages. Now that she had a suitable reason to intervene, she couldn't help but feel her heart palpitate.

It wasn't that she really wanted to hunt the mind dragon, but rather, she wanted to communicate with it and grasp more knowledge and secrets of the mind domain.

However, she wasn't in a hurry to raise her hand. As a councilor participating in the council for the first time, she would rather miss an opportunity than be eager to showcase herself.

"This is Loen's matter. It's not suitable for us to interfere." Mr. Lust surveyed the area and said, "Unless Miss Pride and Mr. Gluttony don't have the time for it."

Audrey waited for a few more seconds. Seeing that the Gluttony didn't say anything, she looked at Derlau and said, "I will try to investigate, but I need more detailed information."

-x-X-x-

Seeing that Audrey was willing to attempt the investigation mission, Derlau nodded and said, "I'll give you the detailed information later, but I have to warn you that this matter is rather dangerous. You must not be careless."

Upon saying that, Derlau paused for a moment and said, "If you encounter an accident, and you can't solve it by relying on yourself. You can try to say a name. This will bring you salvation."

"What name?" Audrey asked as she had a guess in mind.

Derlau's expression immediately turned solemn.

"It comes from the Holy Bible of the Third Epoch's Creator. It involves the highest mystery of the mind domain, and it has a close relationship with something of the Psychology Alchemists.

"It's 'Adam.'"

Adam... Audrey didn't find it surprising at all, but she showed her puzzlement on the surface, as though she didn't know what this name meant.

Derlau didn't explain and instead said, "As a councilor, you should be in charge of a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact. However, you and Wrath have just joined the ranks, so there must be an observation period first. Besides, the former committee member of the Backlund region, Hvin Rambis, has lost a rather important Sealed Artifact. We are considering whether we should change the usage method of Sealed Artifacts and allow usage only via an application.

"In other words, all the Sealed Artifacts will be kept in this mind city. You usually won't hold onto them, and can only use them temporarily after an application for particular incidents."

The woman in charge of Feysac's capital's St. Millom immediately shook her head.

"There is a very serious flaw in this method. That is that we are unable to deal with any sudden accidents. Be it enemies or monsters, once we encounter them, we will not have the time to apply and retrieve the Sealed Artifact.

"I believe that the current method is good enough. Everyone wields a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact to deal with accidents. When there's a need, we can apply for other items."

Derlau laughed and said, "This was indeed better in the past. But now, you don't have to worry.

"As long as you have the chance to resist an accident, then you can directly enter this mind city to avoid the enemy and obtain the item.

"If there's no chance, just as I said, reciting the name 'Adam' will do."

You said "Adam" twice. That entity is probably already watching. No, "He" might have been watching from the very beginning... Audrey's heart almost beat faster when she heard that.

"Then how do we enter without your invitation?" Mr. Envy asked as he nodded.

Derlau pointed at his face and said, "From this council meeting forth, you can take your persona mask out of this city.

"No matter where you are, as long as there are at least two humans around you, yes, other than you, you will be able to wear the corresponding persona mask and enter the city.

"And these seven masks are illusory. They are closely connected to what you know, and there's no need to store them in a special way. With just a thought, you will be able to take them out of the sea of collective subconscious."

At that moment, the man, who was wearing the Gluttony mask and exuded a feeling that he was lost in indulgence, thought for a while and said, "Will bringing the persona mask out of this city affect our mental state and true personality?"

"There will be some effects that need attention. But I believe that you are all experts in the mind domain. You have the ability to resolve problems in this aspect," Derlau said frankly.

Audrey was a little worried that these seven persona masks had something to do with Adam, but she didn't dare think about it in the mind city. She forced herself to rein in her thoughts and replied to what Derlau had said before, "I can accept the two safekeeping methods of the Grade 1 Sealed Artifact. I'll patiently wait for the probationary period to end."

"Miss, you aren't proud," Miss Sloth, who looked like she was sleeping, commented with a smile.

After discussing the mind dragon in East Chester County, the other five councilors began introducing things that were worth paying attention to in their respective areas as an exchange of information.

During this process, Mr. Gluttony, who seemed to be capable of eating an entire cow at any moment and wore ten rings, said, "The Constant region hasn't been peaceful recently. There have been many miracles happening one after another.

"First, Constant City was rebuilt overnight. Second, Belltaine City's citizens collectively lost their memories of a certain period of time. Third, a powerful archmage who grants the wishes of others for pleasure has been wandering the eastern shore of the Midseashire. He's called Merlin Hermes. Related to this, there's an item known as the 'Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.'

"Other than that, I also noticed something strange. Many rats, cockroaches, and crows in Constant City have lost their souls, days after the city was miraculously restored."

"Why were you able to sense this problem?" Mr. Lust looked up at Gluttony from the bottom.

Gluttony gulped and said, "I've been researching the mind problems of ordinary creatures recently. Rats, cockroaches, and crows are my experimental subjects."

The councilors immediately started discussing the direction of this research before the meeting officially entered the third stage.

Their academic exchange enriched Audrey's knowledge quite a bit. She listened very seriously and would occasionally share her thoughts and insights.

"Alright, this conference will end here." After a while, Derlau clapped his hands.

Audrey subconsciously wanted to stand up and lead the other councilors into bowing and bidding farewell. However, she quickly came to her senses and continued sitting there, being the penultimate person to stand up.

Before leaving, she asked curiously, "Mr. President, does this city have a name?"

"Yes." Derlau laughed. "The Garden of Eden."

Garden of Eden... Audrey saw that the other councillors were walking towards the door and asked thoughtfully, "There are many cathedrals here. They should represent a faith. Uh, I wonder which existence the 'residents' here believe in?"

Derlau nodded and replied solemnly, "The omnipotent and omniscient Creator."

...

Garden of Eden... The omnipotent and omniscient Creator... If this wasn't created by Adam, I'll write my name backward! Above the gray fog, inside the ancient palace, Klein looked at the crimson star representing Miss Justice and silently muttered to himself.

In addition, to recite "Adam" when faced with danger as a response would indicate a problem without concealing anything.

Ever since Miss Justice entered the Garden of Eden, the true vision provided by Sefirah Castle had been suppressed. Klein could only use Audrey's point of view to observe the surroundings, just like how Queen Mystic Bernadette's fixed viewpoint back on the primitive island. To a certain extent, this also showed the status of the mind city, Garden of Eden.

Klein gently tapped the edge of the long mottled table and conjured a pen and paper to write his thoughts.

This wasn't something he couldn't analyze based on his own thinking. Instead, when facing an existence like Adam, he needed to repeatedly ponder and analyze the details. Thus, the words that formed on the paper helped him to read them back and forth so as to notice and make up any missing details.

"Basic premise; Adam has already advanced to Sequence 0 using the full-scale war from before. By becoming a true god, 'He' can be known as a Visionary.

"Miss Justice happened to become a Sequence 4 Manipulator after Hvin Rambis's death. She may be able to convince others, but she can't convince Adam.

"What does Adam want? Setting up a Sequence 4 saint doesn't match 'His' identity as a Visionary unless 'He' has another ploy up 'His' sleeves...

"His real target is the mind dragon, or is it me who's backing Miss Justice?

"Care and vigilance must be enhanced on this matter. We must not be careless.

"In the Garden of Eden, the cathedral that the Psychology Alchemists councilors were using is similar to Adam's corpse cathedral. However, it's only a little similar. The stone columns on its exterior are inlaid with several skulls. There is no corresponding layout inside, and the color is dark-black and very gloomy. What does this mean?

"What does that grayish-white dragon coiling around the huge cross symbolize? The first step in resurrecting the Creator has been successful?

"Uh, Adam is already a Visionary. If 'His' father or the original Creator returns, 'He' would be the first one to be unlucky. 'He' is willing to sacrifice 'Himself'? This is the meaning of being 'zealous'?

"That rabbit is suspected to be Hermes... However, as an angel of the Spectator pathway, it doesn't make sense for 'Him' to not be able to remove Miss Messenger's transformation curse after so long, especially since 'He' has a Visionary who can provide help... Hmm, did Hermes do it on purpose?

"Yes, the president of the Psychology Alchemists, Derlau, mentioned that to the Spectator, death only represented the end of one's identity. He can still participate in other theatrical plays in other aspects as another identity...

"By combining them together, does this mean that once the Spectator pathway reaches Sequence 3 or Sequence 2, they can separate the identities they once held and make them become living people? And even if these identities were to die, it wouldn't lead to the deaths of their real bodies?

"It does look like the preamble to becoming a Visionary...

"Hmm, the rabbit that Hermes turned into after being cursed was separated as an identity which later directly participated in the Psychology Alchemists? What does 'He' want to do? Back then, when the Twilight Hermit Order communicated, 'He' was sitting beside the Emperor..."

After Klein was done writing, he put down his fountain pen and carefully read the contents a few times, his heart clouded with mystery and puzzlement.

In the end, he could only decide to continue observing and be vigilant.

And at this moment, Audrey had already taken the carriage she used, exited the Garden of Eden, and returned to the park in Empress Borough with the man-made lake.

She wasn't in a rush to pray to Mr. Fool, hoping that there would be a better way to seal the Pride mask. She returned to her luxurious villa as though nothing had happened.

-x-X-x-

Susie was sitting by the door, waiting for Audrey to return.

At that moment, the golden retriever immediately went up to her as soon as she saw her approach. She even gave a rather talented showcase of her acting by barking and wagging her tail.

She didn't ask on the spot; instead, she kept accompanying Audrey back to her bedroom before asking in concern, "Is it over?"

Audrey tersely acknowledged, indicating that there was no problem.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" Susie pressed.

"Not yet." Audrey shook her head slightly.

Due to Susie's concern, she instinctively recalled her previous experience, but to her surprise, she realized that she couldn't recall the image and name of the Psychology Alchemists president. To recall even the information that she had learned from The World Gehrman Sparrow, she had to focus quite a bit.

To be frank, in front of Beyonders below the demigod level, she could do similar feats as a Manipulator. However, to influence a saint in the mind domain and make it impossible for them to sense it was almost impossible unless the other party was hypnotized, unconscious, or enslaved.

That gentleman's level is probably higher than I expected... Audrey controlled her emotions and calmly made a certain judgment.

She gave Susie a look and got the golden retriever to stand guard outside the door. In her mind, she outlined the character mask that represented Pride.

Just as she was thinking about this, she felt a slight fluctuation in the sea of collective subconscious around her.

With just a thought, Audrey reached out her left hand and grabbed it. She took out an abnormally cold, illusory grayish-white mask.

As long as I seriously think about it, will this Pride mask come to my side? Or should I say that it has already existed in my subconscious and has been following me? As Audrey carefully examined her mind island, she signaled with a thought that made the Pride mask vanish.

The ice-cold, illusory grayish-white mask quickly turned transparent and melted into the surrounding sea of collective subconscious.

Audrey still couldn't determine where this Pride mask had gone. Why did it appear in such a timely manner each time?

This made her increasingly wary. She decided to pray to Mr. Fool and make the wish of sealing the mask.

Just as she was thinking of doing a few more experiments to obtain more knowledge from Pride, she saw the sea of collective subconscious begin to resonate without using her Manipulator Beyonder powers.

A beam of light came from afar as it grew larger and more obvious. Finally, it turned into an illusory letter.

This letter stopped in front of Audrey's mind island as though it was searching for a path to complete the "delivery."

Audrey naturally wouldn't let any foreign object enter her mind world. She hurriedly reached out her left hand and touched the illusory letter.

Seeing that her fingers were about to touch the surface of the letter, Audrey suddenly stopped.

Her experience and intelligence told her at the same time:

Don't touch anything in the mysticism world rashly. This was especially so for the mind domain. Otherwise, it would easily lead to corruption and produce mental problems!

With this in mind, Audrey produced a Virtual Persona and put on the black long-veiled glove, Hand of Horror.

After making the necessary preparations, she reached out to grab the illusory letter and watched as it peeled away its outer layer and flipped over one page at a time.

This was all the information related to the mind dragon in East Chester County.

To use the sea of collective subconscious to transmit information... The higher-ups of the Spectator pathway are truly amazing... As a Manipulator, Audrey had been trying her best to maintain her initial yearning towards the mysticism world. It was a pure and innocent pursuit of "dreams" and "magic."

This was one of the ways to prevent herself from losing herself in the "Manipulating" experience of things, and not be assimilated by the sea of collective subconscious.

After flipping through all the information, Audrey let the illusory letter melt into the sea of collective subconscious.

She was still in no hurry to pray to Mr. Fool. According to her previous arrangements, she went out to be busy over other things.

At dusk, before the banquet at home began, she found some time to quickly make a prayer in her bedroom and make a wish.

In the next second, Audrey saw the grayish-white Pride appear from the sea of collective subconscious in front of her. The illusory feeling slowly vanished as a tiny amount of metallic luster flashed.

For some reason, this persona mask had a certain substantial feel to it as though it was bordering between illusory and realism.

This meant that it was isolated from Audrey's mind island in a physical sense.

Of course, it also lost the ability to return to the sea of collective subconscious.

Audrey held Pride and attempted to remove Lie that had turned into an emerald necklace, overlapping the two together.

Just as she had expected, the half-illusory, half-real Pride embedded itself into Lie, turning into a blob of patterns that roughly looked like a human face.

In the future, I'll use this method to carry it with me. I won't allow the persona mask to have any contact with my mind or body until I need to use it... Audrey's mind raced as she sincerely thanked Mr. Fool.

She then left for the banquet hall.

Along the way, she met her father, Earl Hall.

"Good news." Earl Hall laughed.

Audrey didn't hide her surprise.

"Alfred's coming back?"

This was her other brother.

"You actually guessed it?" Earl Hall said in surprise, "In the next half of the year, he will return to Backlund as a general."

Half a year... Susie is already a Dreamwalker... Audrey thought for a moment and asked, "Father, when are we returning to East Chester County?"

As the war had just ended and there were many things in the kingdom that needed to be done, the nobles didn't return to their respective fiefs during New Year's. They remained in Backlund all this time. It was already the end of February.

Earl Hall nodded and said, "About April."

...

In the ancient palace above the fog.

Mind Mail... Be careful of viruses, don't click on them without thought... As Klein sighed, he threw the curtain that represented the Attendant of Mysteries Beyonder characteristic back into the junk pile, allowing it to cover all the items there.

He had just fulfilled Miss Justice's wish using the "Grafting" ability he named. He connected the illusory concept of the persona mask to an ordinary metal mask, and he gave the Worms of Spirit, who were on duty at Sefirah Castle, an order to recharge the powers from time to time to prolong the "Grafting" effect.

From the description of Mr. Gluttony from the Psychology Alchemists, Zaratul seems to have found Constant City. I have to be even more careful... Klein tapped the edge of the long mottled table with his finger, causing Worms of Spirit to appear from his body.

His figure vanished from Sefirah Castle.

...

Winter County, Amantha mountain range, Cathedral of Serenity.

Leonard obtained a document from the Pope.

This was the first thing he was responsible for after becoming a high-ranking deacon.

After returning to his room, Leonard leisurely leaned back and placed his feet on the desk. Then, he opened the document in his hand and began reading.

A wandering magician, Merlin Hermes, grants the wishes of others for pleasure... The newly rebuilt Constant City... Fully Automatic Wishing Machine... Sequence 4 of the Seer pathway is Bizarro Sorcerer, Sequence 3 is Scholar of Yore, and Sequence 2 is Miracle Invoker...

Leonard read until he suddenly fell silent.

After a few seconds, he suppressed his voice and asked, "Old Man, how many angels of the Seer pathway are active across the land?"

Pallez Zoroast scoffed.

"This is acting. There should only be one Miracle Invoker who still needs to act.

"You should know who I'm talking about."

Leonard looked at the information in his hand again and mumbled, "He's having quite a good time..."

He had already decided that the main purpose of this mission was to act as a Nightwatcher and digest his potion. He could also travel in passing. As for handling the matter, what mattered was to find a reasonable explanation.

After flipping through the thick documents in boredom, Leonard retracted his feet and stood up.

He was going to retrieve a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact that a high-ranking deacon like him could own.

To other saints of the Church of Evernight, this was quite a headache. This was because the negative effects of Sealed Artifacts weren't easily endured. It was even more so when one needed to carry them for a long period of time. However, if one chose a Holy Artifact that was more compatible with him, there would be a problem of powers overlapping.

As for Leonard, he didn't need to worry about this problem. As long as the Sealed Artifact he was interested in had a living characteristic, he could get Old Man's help. By parasitizing it with a Worm of Time, it significantly reduced the negative effects of the Sealed Artifact, making it as obedient as the Word of the Sea.

Therefore, the main thing to choose is its powers... Leonard whistled and walked out of the room.

...

Monday afternoon, in the ancient palace above the gray fog.

Dark red beams shot out, materializing into different figures.

Derrick hadn't needed to count his heartbeat for a long time. All he needed to do was take a look at the wall clock and calculate the time difference with Backlund to know how much longer before the Tarot Gathering happened. At that moment, he stood up with Miss Justice and the other members of the Tarot Club. He bowed to the end of the long bronze table and said, "Good afternoon, Mr. Fool."

After taking their seats and paying their respects, Emlyn glanced left and right and said, "I want to know if there's something special about the Planter and the Moon pathways compared to the other pathways?"

After raising the question, he didn't hide it and instead added frankly, "I recently learned that the internal system of the Church of Earth is different from other normal systems. It's split into two categories—Favored and Blessed..."

After Emlyn finished his simple description, Alger, Cattleya, Leonard, and company looked at each other, unable to provide a reasonable explanation.

Of course, every member present, including Derrick, could tell that the internal system of the Church of Earth was abnormal.

At this moment, they heard a soft sigh.

This sigh seemed to come from an era more ancient than ancient. It came from Mr. Fool, who sat at the end of the long mottled table.

-x-X-x-

The Fool Klein slowly surveyed the area. He didn't provide an explanation to everyone as they had expected. Instead, he reined in his sigh and asked with a smile, "Where do you think the twenty-two Beyonder pathways originate from?"

This was one of the three most important questions in mysticism, with no consensus for the answer. Every school of thought had its own theory; no one could convince anyone.

Cattleya deliberated for a moment before replying, "The essence of the world is knowledge, and the essence of knowledge is data. Humans are data, and the Beyonder characteristics of the twenty-two pathways are data. All things are a form of data, and this is how it was born."

She had offered the Moses Ascetic Order's theory, but that was not her own point of view.

"The seven Churches believe that the Beyonder characteristic originated from the original Creator. 'He' transformed into all things, including the deities, humans, sea, land, and Beyonder characteristics," Leonard briefly explained. "Of course, this is an explanation given to deacons and above. The official Beyonders below Sequence 6 don't need to know so much."

Then, he glanced at Emlyn and said, "The Life School of Thought believes that the world is split into three levels. The material world, the world of the spirit, and the world of absolute rationality. Beyonder characteristics are the projections of certain things from the world of absolute rationality into the material world and world of the spirit. Therefore, characteristics can't be destroyed. It only reassembles."

From the looks of it, the world of absolute rationality that the Life School of Thought promotes might be referring to the river of fate... The Fool Klein thought of Will Auceptin, but he remained silent and didn't interrupt the conversation between the members of the Tarot Club.

Emlyn returned a glance at The Star and said, "As one of the rulers of the Second Epoch, us Sanguine believe that Beyonder characteristics do come from the original Creator. Then, the various characteristics accumulated and produced the ancient gods. The ancient gods then created different races."

This was the Sanguine's explanation for the First Epoch, and Emlyn already had some doubts about it. After all, he had encountered many secrets thanks to the Tarot Club.

Alger nodded slightly.

"Although there are many explanations for the origins of a Beyonder characteristic, most of them point to the original Creator. The orthodox Churches, Aurora Order, and the City of Silver share such a belief."

"In other words, Beyonder characteristics originating from the original Creator is quite the prevalent understanding?" Audrey asked thoughtfully.

The Psychology Alchemists mainly studied the mind world and the sea of collective subconscious. They lacked complete theories regarding the origins of the Beyonder characteristics.

"Roughly." Alger didn't conceal his views.

At this moment, The Fool Klein sighed and said, "Not all of them."

He didn't proceed on to give a long story, but gave a rather vague answer.

Not all of them... Mr. Fool means that Beyonder characteristics indeed originate from the original Creator, but not all of them. A small number of them are special cases? Is this the reason for the specialness of the Planter and Moon pathway? Alger instantly thought of a lot and grasped the essence of the problem.

As it had nothing to do with her, Fors continued listening leisurely. At this moment, she asked curiously, "Honorable Mr. Fool, your meaning seems to be that most Beyonder characteristics originated from the original Creator, and the two pathways such as Planter and Moon are an exception. Then where did they come from?"

The Fool Klein said simply, "The Cosmos."

Cosmos... Emlyn was alarmed when he heard that. He realized that the matter might be more serious than he had imagined.

The Tarot Club had already shared the danger of the underground corruption and the cosmos. All of the members knew that these two concepts led to corruption simply from understanding it.

When Audrey, Cattleya, and company looked at each other, The Fool Klein maintained his hint of a sigh and added, "Not just these two."

He and the Seven Lights had always maintained their contact and had already confirmed that six of the Beyonders of the twenty-two Beyonder pathways belonged to Outer Deities.

"Honorable Mr. Fool, what other pathways come from the cosmos?" Audrey habitually raised her hand and asked curiously and warily.

The Fool Klein replied succinctly, "Prisoner, Criminal, Lawyer, and Arbiter."

The first two came from the Mother Tree of Desire, and the latter two, along with the Nation of Disorder, came from the Son of Chaos.

Chaos gave birth to order, and order came with its own shadow.

Arbiter... Fors turned her head in surprise and glanced at Xio.

She had just thought that this matter had nothing to do with her. She could only watch and not worry about it. Who knew that the trouble was right at her doorstep?

Xio frowned slightly and looked at the end of the long bronze table.

"Honorable Mr. Fool, I usually don't sense any abnormalities, nor have I received any divine epiphanies. Uh, other than those from you."

The Fool Klein smiled and said, "The Arbiter and Lawyer are relatively better."

According to his understanding, the influence the Son of Chaos had on both the Arbiter and the Lawyer pathway wasn't deep. It was incomparable to the Mother Goddess of Depravity's influence on the Moon and Planter pathways, and the Mother Tree of Desire's influence on the Criminal and Prisoner pathways. This Outer Deity had gone silent, as though "He" had disappeared.

Fors and Xio secretly heaved a sigh of relief. At the same time, they became more wary of the future.

With Mr. Fool not explaining further, Emlyn composed himself and said, "The uniqueness of the Planter and Moon pathway comes from the cosmos. The divine epiphanies I sensed are likely a form of corruption?"

Alger looked at Mr. Fool at the end of the long, mottled table. Seeing that "He" had no intention of speaking, he nodded and said, "Probably so."

This is a test for me... Emlyn sighed and said,

"I've already grasped the names of the High-Sequence potions of the Planter and Moon pathway. I'm somewhat puzzled about two of them."

After becoming a Sanguine Earl and a high-ranking deacon of the Church of Earth, he obtained the corresponding clearance to access plenty of information that he had never been able to.

Seeing the other members of the Tarot Club look over, The World Gehrman Sparrow raised his hand to pinch his chin. Emlyn thought and said, "The Moon pathway is as follows: Sequence 3—High Summoner; Sequence 2—Life-Giver; Sequence 1—Beauty Goddess. The Planter pathway is as follows: Sequence 3—Pallbearer; Sequence 2—Desolate Matriarch; Sequence 1—Naturewalker.

"What I don't understand is that the names of the two potions—Beauty Goddess and Desolate Matriarch—have certain gender inclinations. What are your thoughts on this?"

"..." For a moment, no one from the Tarot Club spoke. They looked at each other and thought of a possibility.

A few seconds later, Audrey controlled her gaze and said in deliberation, "I remember that Sequence 7 of the Assassin pathway is called Witch. Assassins who consume this potion become Witches."

...This is a test for me... Emlyn's lips moved slightly, unable to say a word.

When he learned the name of the potions, he already had a certain premonition, but he wasn't willing to accept it. He hoped that he could obtain another explanation from the Tarot Club.

Don't worry. You have a low chance of becoming an angel. Even if you can, you won't have the chance to be a Beauty Goddess... Klein mumbled inwardly, but he didn't say any words of "comfort."

Everyone fell silent. Leonard coughed and took the initiative to say, "I'll share some matters."

He spoke at a moderate pace regarding Merlin Hermes, the rebuilding of Constant City overnight, and the Fully Automatic Wishing Machine.

As he spoke, he shot a glance at The World Klein.

The corners of Klein's mouth twitched as he made The World Gehrman Sparrow look ahead.

"I'll be leaving the eastern coast of Midseashire soon."

Eh... These were all done by Mr. World? Can he already create such miracles? As expected of an angel, a "Him"... Audrey recalled the information the Psychology Alchemists councilor, Mr. Gluttony, had shared. She was both surprised and impressed.

She didn't use her Spectator's powers to conceal her reaction. This was because everyone had expressed the same emotions, except for Mr. Star, who clearly knew about it.

Merlin Hermes... Wandering magician... Fors noted the name deep down and secretly decided to distance herself from this name whenever she heard it in the future.

This didn't mean that she was still afraid of Gehrman Sparrow, but she knew something:

It definitely wasn't safe around Gehrman Sparrow. Something would always be happening in some way or another.

Of course, an instinctive sense of fear was inevitable. It was just like how a seed of "fear" sown when one was young would remain even when one became an adult.

Granting wishes for pleasure... Fully Automatic Wishing Machine... Is this The World Gehrman Sparrow's "acting"? Alger and Cattleya had similar thoughts simultaneously flashing through their minds. Then, they thought of something:

Ever since some time ago, Mr. Fool had made everyone pray to "Him" in the form of a wish before granting them.

"He" is helping The World digest the potion, or is it that "He" and The World are from the same pathway? After "He" awoke, "He" also exhibits similar characteristics? Little Sun said before that Mr. Fool's actions were a miracle, allowing the city's residents to directly move from the Forsaken Land of the Gods to outside Bayam City... With the fact that The World Gehrman Sparrow is still acting, this shouldn't be something he can do... Alger nodded indiscernibly as he made a guess about the pathway Mr. Fool was in.

About to leave the eastern coast of Midseashire? Then my investigation will be even easier. I can just come up with a simple conclusion. At most, I can just directly report that Gehrman Sparrow has become a Miracle Invoker and is acting... Anyway, the people who should know are already aware... Leonard mumbled silently and didn't ask further.

At this moment, The World Gehrman Sparrow looked around and asked, "What do you know about the King of the Black Throne, Barros Hopkins?"