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Carrying a black iron mask, Klein was led by a waiter to a basement, where the dim, yellow candlelight on the coffee table illuminated the hooded, robed, and iron-masked participants on the surrounding sofas.
His steps paused slightly; the Clown's intuition made Klein feel an indescribable chill, but the sensation of being watched vanished in an instant.
His hand in his pocket instinctively tightened around Azik's Copper Whistle. Klein sat in the corner, his expression normal, and activated his Spirit Vision, pretending to casually look towards the depths of the basement, where there was a full-length mirror with intricate patterns.
"So strong! This should be the Gatekeeper of the gathering, but this chill feels a bit different from what Mr. Azik used to give me....."
His Spirit Vision found no abnormalities. As Klein pondered what Sequence that was, a familiar voice came from beside his ear:
"I want to buy the medullary crystal of 'Elven Spring.' Who has it?"
"I can pay with Gold Pounds or potions. If there are definite clues, that works too."
This… Klein looked in the direction of the voice, his eyes becoming somewhat strange. The figure in his mind gradually overlapped with the chubby man.
The owner of that herb store in Tingen? He left so hastily back then, so it turns out he came to Backlund…
Klein thought this to himself, about to ask what price this guy could offer. Although he didn't have it now, he could ask Mr. Hanged Man to look for it at sea.
"I have the medullary crystal of 'Elven Spring' in my possession, and I can give you an additional 300 pounds, as long as you agree to my previous request."
Glaint walked into the basement as if strolling in a leisurely garden. After nodding to the Eye of Wisdom, he sat opposite the plump Apothecary.
Having recognized the newcomer, after all, he was the only one at this gathering who had always wanted to trade for the Sequence 8 Beast Tamer potion formula. The not-too-fat but rather round Darkwill sighed and quickly shook his head:
"No!"
"I can only teach my students."
"Even if you give me more money, I cannot give you what you want."
Is this a rule of the Life School of Thought? Perhaps it was even sworn under the witness of some hidden existence…
Klein inexplicably recalled the gold coin Admiral Sol gave him in the herb store that day, and the 'Snake of Destiny' from his dream divination.
......
Backlund West Borough, Intis Republic Embassy in Loen.
The gaunt but charming Backlund took a sip of Aurmir wine, which looked like blood, and grimly put down the still-warm telegram in his hand, smashing the wine glass fiercely onto the expensive velvet carpet.
Flames seemed to flicker in his eyes as he coldly spat out two words:
"Useless!"
Ignoring his subordinates who were silent as cicadas in winter, Backlund walked directly towards the depths of the embassy. After entering a secret underground passage, flames rose around him, and he quickly rushed towards a certain direction.
A few minutes later, he stopped in a secret room with a distinctly Trier style. Looking at the middle-aged man in front of him, wearing a white wig, a dark black tailcoat, and a thick beard on his face, he said in a deep voice:
"That incompetent Meursault failed. This might quickly attract the attention of MI9, Rosago. Make the Zmanger Party and that meddling detective disappear from this world as soon as possible."
Silence fell in the secret room. Rosago did not immediately respond to the ambassador, muttering divination phrases in a low voice.
It was precisely because of this ambassador's eagerness for success that he suffered heavy losses, with almost all his subordinates dead or injured, forcing him to use the Zmanger Party, that group of incompetent and disruptive individuals.
To escape from MI9's trap, he even had to abandon several of his most valued Marionettes. This was his most embarrassing moment since becoming a Marionettist so many years ago.
Looking at the divination result, Rosago slowly said:
"My Marionettes are all lost, but the remaining rabble of the Zmanger Party are just ordinary people, not even qualified to become my Marionettes."
"I will help you kill those key individuals who know too much. As for that little detective...."
He paused, then continued cautiously:
"MI9 might be paying attention during this period. If he suddenly dies, it will definitely point to you."
"Let him live a few more days. I will find an opportunity to make him die reasonably..."
.....
After selling the Bard, Light Supplicant, and Solar High Priest potion formulas, along with Meursault's Hunter Beyonder characteristic, Klein gained a total of 2200 pounds.
Learning from the lesson of his battle with Meursault, Klein, lacking a weapon for combat, painfully bought the Sun Brooch from the Eye of Wisdom for 2000 pounds.
Mr. Fool, who had been rich for less than two minutes, wiped the sweat from his forehead and placed the Sun Brooch in a cigarette case, isolating it with a simple Wall of Spirituality.
Knowing that he had been somewhat ostentatious tonight, Klein dared not stay long and left the gathering early. After retrieving his firearm and bullets from Kaspars, Klein took a long detour before returning to 15 Minsk Street.
After simply tidying up the damaged furniture, Klein, weary from combat, spiritualism, and interrogation, lay on the bed. What he didn't notice was a dark shadow wriggling from the gap at the bottom of the door!
A slender, iron-black threadworm burrowed in, its central part arching high and then flattening, continuously cycling forward towards the bed.
Its movements were very stiff, as if broken down into slow-motion frames, giving it a bizarre feel.
This iron-black threadworm wriggled to the bedside, leaving a quickly evaporating trail of mucus. Its head suddenly lifted, the central part rising high, with only its tail supporting its body.
At this moment, it looked like a human!
After observing for a while, the iron-black threadworm changed direction, crawling up the clothes hanger and disappearing into the inner pocket of a coat.
-----------------
Nikifell City. Sunlight streamed into the room through stained glass. Susie wagged her tail boredly, looking at the four ladies on the sofa.
"Miss Daly, I can feel the pain in your heart, but no matter what happened, I hope you can deal with it rationally. If it weren't for Fors, you might have lost that leg."
Her golden hair was casually tied up, and her emerald eyes gazed at Daly, whose right leg was bandaged. Audrey spoke in a soothing tone. As a Telepathist, she could feel the grief in Daly's heart.
Xio poked her friend, who was still staring at Susie. Feeling a sharp pain in her waist, Fors quickly came back to her senses, scratched her head, and responded cautiously:
"Miss Audrey, you flatter me. It was just that my ability happened to come in handy in that situation. It was largely thanks to Miss Daly that we could deal with that Monster."
Daly's eyes were somewhat dim. Ever since more detailed information came back from internal church channels, learning that the culprit, Ince Zangwill, had likely already advanced to a Demigod, her burning desire for revenge was like cold water poured over it.
She dared not return to Loen, dared not return to Tingen, and even more so dared not see that person's tombstone. She had been numbing herself with high-intensity missions until today, when she was severely wounded by a Monster that had absorbed a large amount of residual spirituality from the Highland Resistance after a Gatekeeper's demise.
Audrey looked at the silent Daly, feeling a bit troubled for a moment. Just then, she was surprised to find that Fors and Xio opposite her simultaneously stiffened, as if mice had encountered a cat, not daring to look at her at all.
Just as the surprise arose in her heart, Audrey felt a warm breath brush past her ear, followed by a moist sensation on her cheek:
"Beautiful Miss Hall, long time no see!"
"Did you miss me?"
The teasing voice echoed in her ear. Audrey trembled all over, a blush rapidly spreading from her fair neck to her cheeks, her ears as if painted with rouge, delicate and alluring.
Sniffing the girl's fragrance and looking at Audrey, who was lowering her head in shyness or pique, Aaron's face flashed with a mischievous smile, and he gently kissed her reddened earlobe.
No longer able to maintain her Spectator state, her previously taut body instantly softened. Suppressing those somewhat mischievous hands, Audrey had just turned her head when her lips felt moisture, and the words she had intended to say immediately turned into meaningless gasps.
Fors's eyes were wide open, almost sparkling. The little soul within her seemed to be screaming:
"Oh my goodness! What did I just see?"
"Prince and princess, hero and beauty....."
Although she was also secretly peeking, Xio was not as exaggerated as Fors. Seeing the blush on Fors's face, who was thinking about something, Xio suspiciously poked her hard.
Fors, who was in the midst of conceiving some indescribable events that might happen next in her mind, suddenly snapped back to reality. Given the awkward situation, she dared not speak, only signaling with her eyes:
"Xio, what are you doing? Don't interrupt my train of thought."
Understanding her friend's look, Xio pointed at Aaron exasperatedly, then made a throat-slitting gesture across her neck, also responding with her eyes:
"Be careful not to see too much, or you'll be silenced!"
Fors shivered, silently lowered her head, and slowly shuffled towards the door, not daring to make a sound.
Daly, who had been lowering her head, felt the fluctuations in the Spirit World and the powerful aura emerging from it. She raised her somewhat pale face, looked at the embracing couple, a glimmer of longing flashing in her eyes, then gradually dimming.
Susie, however, didn't care about any of this. She wagged her tail and circled Aaron and Audrey. Only after realizing that neither of them was paying attention to her did she lie down on the carpet, feeling a bit wronged.
Looking at Audrey's emotional colors, Aaron felt the warmth from his palm and said teasingly:
"Alright, there are still outsiders here."
Upon hearing this, Audrey trembled all over and let out a soft gasp, but she didn't release her right hand. She merely used her free left hand to pick up Susie, who had come close to her leg, and buried her blushing face in the soft golden fur.
Rubbing Susie's head, Aaron held Audrey's right hand and sat beside her, looking at Fors and Xio, who were frozen by the door, and Daly, who had lowered her head again:
"While the chaos in the Southern Continent is dangerous, it also means opportunities. The speed of advancement here is far beyond what Loen can offer. I hope you can seize the opportunity."
"Also, Ince Zangwill has indeed advanced to a Demigod. The Church of Evernight will assign an Archbishop to lead a team of elite Red Gloves to hunt this traitor. If you are interested, I can write a letter of recommendation for you, but the premise is that you need to recover from your injuries first."
Daly suddenly looked up, her lips tightly pressed, her voice somewhat hoarse:
"Thank you for your help!"
Waving his hand, Aaron watched as Fors and Xio helped Daly away, one on each side. He then turned his head to meet the emerald eyes hidden in the golden fur.
Even though she had become a Telepathist and could control her emotions well, in terms of thick skin, the novice her was clearly no match for the seasoned Aaron. She was the first to give in, stammering:
"You, you're finally back....."
Seeing that there were no outsiders left, Susie, who had quietly climbed onto their laps from the floor, happily said:
"Yes, yes, you're finally back. A few days ago, Audrey still...."
Susie hadn't finished speaking when a blushing Audrey covered her mouth. Looking at Aaron, a hint of slyness flashed in her eyes. Rubbing Susie's head, the corners of her mouth curled up:
"Let me calculate how long a certain busy person hasn't come to see me. We are, after all...."
Just as she was about to continue with "engaged," she saw Aaron's slightly teasing gaze. Audrey, her cheeks feeling warm, didn't utter the rest of the sentence. She gave a soft hum and added:
"I'm angry now. I'll give you a chance to think about how to compensate me."
Looking at Audrey, who, despite turning her head away, still peeked at him from time to time, Aaron smiled and raised his hand. An Necklace of Secrets that seemed to be composed of brilliant stars appeared, and he personally put it on Audrey.
Touching her glabella, Aaron transmitted the abilities and negative effects of this Demigod-level Mystical Item to Audrey. After he advanced to Sequence 3 and completely controlled the Nation of Disorder, he no longer worried about being sensed.
The "Concealment" provided by the Necklace of Secrets was useless to him, and its other abilities could be replaced by the historical void images of the "Crown of Stars," with even stronger effects.
Audrey had already advanced to Sequence 8, and her spiritual strength was barely enough to activate this Demigod Sealed Artifact, which was sufficient to deal with most dangers.
"I'm sorry I can't always be by your side. If you truly encounter an irresistible danger, don't hesitate. Directly open the Door of Exile. The corresponding Spirit World coordinate is an absolutely safe place."
Looking at Audrey, whose eyes were sparkling, Aaron seemed to think of something, and the corners of his mouth curled up:
"I remember you once wanted to be an adventurer. Today, I'll accompany you to find a treasure, one that originated from Roselle centuries ago."
Roselle? Treasure?
Audrey's eyes widened suddenly, and she darted towards the door, leaving only her melodious voice echoing:
"Give me 5 minutes, I'm going to change!"
She said 5 minutes, but in reality, it wasn't even 3 minutes. Looking at Audrey, who was dressed somewhat like a pirate, Aaron's mouth twitched, almost laughing out loud.
"Hmm, I think you could discuss the difference between a female pirate's and a female adventurer's attire with Huang Beibei."
Looking at herself in the mirror, Audrey subconsciously asked:
"Huang Beibei, what a strange name. Who is she?"
"A friend I met at sea. Alright, don't dwell on that question, we can set off to find the treasure...."
Realizing he had said something wrong, Aaron explained awkwardly. As his spirituality spread, a portal, as if condensed from starlight, appeared.
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