Lord of the Mysteries

Queen Mystic’s powers are all very fantastical—no, fairytale-like… Klein glanced at the fountain pen that was writing on its own. He took out a pen and paper from his pocket and wrote the incantation to summon his messenger. He also indicated that each letter delivery needed the payment of a gold coin.

Right on the heels of that, he handed the piece of paper to Bernadette and took the other party’s piece of paper. He quickly scanned through it.

“An invisible creature that roams the upper realms, a strange spiritual body that is friendly to humans, a messenger that belongs solely to Bernadette Gustav…”

There’s a certain difference between this and a standard incantation, but it’s essentially the same… Hmm, Queen Mystic must’ve deliberately changed it to this to prevent others from trying out the summoning incantation and using the connection between the messenger and the contractor to lock onto her… For me, it doesn’t matter. My messenger is an angel. Only “She” can threaten others, and no one can threaten “Her.” Even if “She” were to meet Zaratul, “She” should have the ability to protect “Herself and escape… Klein mumbled inwardly and shook the piece of paper, igniting a scarlet red flame.

As she looked at the piece of paper turning into dark ashes amidst the flames, Queen Mystic Bernadette said without emotion, “What are your thoughts regarding the preventing of George Ill’s matter?”

Having already made some considerations, Klein deliberately spoke slowly, “First, don’t be rash. Don’t take risks that we can’t bear. Don’t hurt the innocent.”

If not for the fact that Queen Mystic Bernadette had mentioned earlier that she hated wars and hated harming the innocent, Klein wouldn’t have said so directly to prevent exposing his weaknesses. He would’ve used a milder and more roundabout method to achieve his goal.

Upon hearing this, Bernadette nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

“Then, there are only three possibilities. One is to destroy the ritual at the critical moment and let George Ill’s advancement fail. The second is to attempt an assassination in advance so that ‘He’ won’t be able to hold the ritual.” Klein deliberately didn’t give his third idea as he first analyzed the viability of the first two possibilities. “Assassination has an extremely slim chance of success. George III, or should I say, the one who will become Black Emperor should be a Sequence 1, so it’s not someone we can deal with.

“Even if ‘He1 has yet to advance to Sequence 1, he will definitely have acted ahead of time. Once ‘He* completes the preparations for the ritual and consumes the potion, ‘He’ will be able to quickly digest it and build a foundation for the future.

“Of course, even if this situation has a very slim chance of happening, that person must be at least at the Sequence 2 level. Furthermore, the Augustus family definitely has no lack of Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts. Together with the protection bestowed to ‘Him,’ it’s impossible for us to succeed.”

Here, he changed the way he addressed George III from ‘him’ to “Him.”

After calmly listening to everything, Bernadette seemed to do an assessment.

“As long as we can create a good opportunity, a Sequence 2 can also be assassinated, but at least one of us will die, or perhaps both of us.”

What she meant was that the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact she wielded was sufficiently powerful, magical, and terrifying. However, if she wanted to fully utilize it, the price paid would be very high.

In that case, there really is a chance. That’s because I lied just now. If I really had to give it my all, I could still find Will Auceptin, Pallez Zoroast, and Miss Messenger to help me. I can let “Them” use the Yesterday Once More charm to recover “Their” normal states for a short period of time. The problem is that I don’t know how much of a price needs to be paid, or what kind of effects it would have on the situation. I also need to consider if it would end up involving Kings of Angels like Ouroboros and Amon…

It would be great if Mr. Azik woke up. With four angels and Queen Mystic’s Grade 0 Sealed Artifact, as long as we create an opportunity, we can even place our sights on a Sequence 1. Of course, the chances of failure are extremely high, since there’s no way to sustain it for long… Klein’s heart was stirred when he heard that, but he didn’t discuss it further.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t willing to be honest during the cooperation effort, nor was it that he didn’t trust Queen Mystic. Instead, Will Auceptin and Pallez Zoroast were being pursued, so once “Their” whereabouts were exposed, it was very likely that it would lead to “Their” deaths. This was something that Klein absolutely didn’t want to see happen.

He vaguely said, “If assassination attempt is the only solution left, I can invite at least two angels to help.”

This was referring to Death Consul Azik Eggers and Snake of Fate Will Auceptin who Bernadette already knew of. She could guess the latter through the drop of Mythical Creature’s blood.

Bernadette was extremely surprised.

“This is that entity’s will?”

Without the consent of The Fool, how could “His” Blessed seek the help of an angel?

“‘He’ has tacitly agreed to it,” Klein spoke the absolute truth.

Queen Mystic’s blue eyes turned darker. She didn’t say another word and only nodded slowly.

As for Klein, he brought the topic back on track.

The destruction of the ritual might be relatively simple, but it has to be done at the most critical moment. Otherwise, it will only be delaying George Ill’s apotheosis. ‘He’ has already received the tacit consent of the deities, so ‘He’ isn’t concerned about that. Even if the mausoleum is destroyed, it wouldn’t take long for ‘Him’ to rebuild it.

“And it being destroyed at the critical moment will cause ‘Him’ to fail at the advancement and lose control to become a monster. No deity would allow such a creature to roam the world freely. A deity’s descent will definitely happen to kill it off. The problem is that, with a King of Angels’s reminder and help, George III won’t take it lightly. ‘He’ will definitely arrange for the most secure protective measures. The difficulty might only be lower than directly killing ‘Him.’

“This requires us to gather intelligence as soon as possible and find an incisive angle to be used.

“And be it the first line of thought or the second line of thought, it’s best that you advance to Sequence 2 in advance and become a Sage.”

Bernadette nodded slightly to show that she understood.

She then said, “What about the third line of thought?”

Klein was silent for a few seconds before saying, “If the ritual was successful back then and the emperor had already advanced to Sequence 0, then ‘He’ would still have a chance to revive. As long as we could find the arrangements left behind by the emperor before George Ill’s apotheosis and allow ‘Him’ to return, the plot of George III will fail.”

He didn’t use the word “him” to refer to Roselle as Bernadette did, to avoid exposing his identity.

Queen Mystic’s eyes clearly flickered before they turned dark and reserved.

She opened her mouth slightly and said, “I’ll hand over selected diary entries to Cattleya.”

Klein didn’t discuss the matter deeply. Instead, he smiled and said, “Actually, there’s still a fourth line of thought.”

Bernadette’s eyebrows twitched as she expressed her doubts.

“That’s to do nothing. Let George III hold the ritual and attempt to become a god while we wait for ‘Him’ to fail.” Klein gave a self-deprecating laugh. “The higher the Sequence is, the greater the chance of failure.”

This was actually the truth. Even if there was the “script” written by Amon’s brother with the road to success completely paved, and even if George III had perfectly digested the previous potions, the odds of “Him” successfully advancing to become a god didn’t exceed fifty percent.

Of course, what Klein said was just a self-deprecating remark.

Queen Mystic didn’t immediately respond. She looked seriously at Gehrman Sparrow for a few seconds before saying, “The feeling you give off to me now is different from the previous few meetings.”

“I’m taking advice from my psychiatrist.” Klein smiled, describing himself as a very serious mental patient.

Without another word, Bernadette retracted her gaze and looked at the fountain pen lying on the table.

“Then, let’s gather the corresponding information and maintain communication through letters.”

At this point, she paused for a moment before speaking again. Her gaze remained unchanged.

“Actually, I’m wondering if he might’ve already been resurrected. It’s just that he’s still finding his past self… I’m not sure what details the Black Emperor’s resurrection entails. I wonder if he really chose to be the Black Emperor in the end…”

Bernadette’s voice gradually became ethereal and carried an indescribable feeling.

As Klein listened, he suddenly understood what Queen Mystic was thinking or expecting.

She suspected that The Fool was the resurrected Roselle, suspecting that the emperor had fooled every one in the past. In fact, he had never thought of switching to the Black Emperor pathway. Instead, he had chosen another path. As such, he needed to find himself by seeking out his past diary pages and Cards of Blasphemy.

Unfortunately, I’m just Uncle Zhou from next door… Klein originally wanted to say something cheeky, but his emotions gradually turned staid, making it difficult for him to force himself to relax.

Without saying anything, he stood up, bowed, put on his hat, and left the room.

After closing the door to the Golden Theater room and taking two steps forward, he suddenly heard a tranquil and melodious tune.

This melody was ethereal and carried with it a faint sense of melancholy.

After pausing for a few seconds, Klein turned towards the hall and left with Flaming Jump.

City of Silver, a team gathered at the city gate and was about to set off.

This was the team that was headed for Afternoon Town to prepare the exploration of the Giant King’s Court.

Derrick Berg was standing in the middle and was the second shortest person. In his hand was a bronze cross with sharp spikes.

To his sides were Joshua and Haim. They were prepared to receive the Unshadowed Crucifix at any time to prevent Derrick’s Beyonder characteristic from being purged.

This Sealed Artifact required three people to take turns to resist the negative effects.

As he looked down at the Creator’s relic, he suddenly felt someone looking at him. He subconsciously looked up and saw that it was a member of the six-member council, Shepherd Elder Lovia.

The woman, who was shortest in the group, had long silver and slightly curled hair. She was looking at the ancient, mottled Unshadowed Crucifix with her pale gray eyes. Her gaze seemed to be blazing hot.

Upon sensing Derrick’s gaze, this Shepherd Elder’s lips twitched, revealing an indescribable smile.

“This is the Lord’s item.”

For some reason, Derrick shivered. Then, he heard the Chief, Colin Iliad, say, “Let’s set off.”