Lord of the Mysteries

Backlund, Cherwood Borough.

As the crimson glow faded from her eyes, Fors saw the familiar desk and open notebook which she used to jot down her inspirations.

To her, this experience was no longer anything new, but it still evoked reverence from the bottom of her heart.

This was a power that didn’t belong to humans, something that even demigods were incapable of!

I’ll receive the stomach pouch of a Spirit Eater in two days. My Apprentice potion has already been digested… Finally, I’ll become a Trickmaster. I wonder what Beyonder powers I’ll receive… By advancing by my own abilities, Teacher will definitely place greater importance on me. Apart from potion formulas in the future, perhaps I might be provided with some Beyonder ingredients… How I look forward to that very much. I don’t even know the corresponding names of Sequence 6 and 5. I only know that Sequence 7 is Astrologer. After I become a Trickmaster, I’ll immediately write to Teacher… Fors felt like she was one step closer to ridding herself from the curse of the full moon.

At this moment, she heard the sound of hurried footsteps approaching. Finally, it turned into the slam of the door.

Xio is out again. She’s so busy. Fors sighed silently. If not for the 400 pounds debt that she owes Viscount Glaint, we would probably be vacationing at Desi Bay now.

After a long period of hard work, and thanks to the enhancement of her strength, certain tasks that were previously impossible for her to complete have become simple. Moreover, from time to time, Xio would receive small tasks that pay well from the golden-masked man. Xio has already raised her savings from 110 pounds to 320 pounds, leaving her with only 80 pounds left to pay off her debt.

In fact, I could spot her 80 pounds, but unfortunately, although she isn’t tall, she still has a lot of pride in her… Fors withdrew her thoughts and thought about the matter Mr. World had entrusted her.

As a doctor and a writer, she didn’t know much about radios or anything about the entire field of machinery. She didn’t usually pay attention to such information when reading the newspapers, so she didn’t know where she could buy the kind of transceiver The World wanted.

A department store? It probably doesn’t sell one… Ah right, Aville writes science fiction, so he should know a lot about such matters. Fors quickly found the right person to consult.

However, she immediately had a new problem. Was she to visit him directly, or was she to write him a letter of inquiry?

Glancing at the chair covered in a thick, soft blanket, and smelling the fragrance of coffee and tobacco emanating the room, she felt a warmth slowly creeping through her body. Bit by bit, her motivation to leave the house crumbled.

I’m not familiar with him, so I shouldn’t rashly pay him a visit. She sat down with a grunt and unfolded a piece of paper.

…

In the Berg household in the City of Silver.

Derrick opened his eyes and woke up from feigning sleep.

According to his original plan, he would’ve immediately held a sacrificial ritual to send out the stomach pouch of the Spirit Eater. However, the words of The Hanged Man reminded him to be more cautious and make more observations.

Uh… I’ll gather the ingredients Mr. Hanged Man require first, and then I’ll do the sacrificial ritual all at once… Derrick remained silent for a few seconds, then he attached his Axe of Hurricane to his body and headed for the steeple.

He first checked the items available for exchanging using merit points, but he wasn’t in a hurry to complete the transaction. He planned to go to the underground market to take a look once the lightning in the sky subsided.

Derrick went up to the third floor and headed straight for the library section that dealt with mythology and ancient classics, hungering for valuable information he hadn’t learned yet.

Suddenly, he saw a hard and yellowed book with a cover: “Giant King’s Court—Book of Blackrock, Hand-copied Edition.”

It’s a record passed down from the Giant King’s Court? I wonder if there’s anything related to the Kings of Angels… Derrick reached for the book, pulled it out, and saw that it was bound in a brown monster hide.

At that moment, on the upper level of the library, Colin Iliad was wearing a flaxen-colored linen shirt and a brown coat and standing there quietly, looking down.

His unkempt grizzled hair flailed in the breeze from the window, and his pale blue eyes were deep and reserved…

…

Wednesday, 12 January. 5:40 p.m.

The sky was dark and cloudy, with deep blue waves undulating across the sea.

The White Agate bobbed up and down in this storm, like a toy in the palm of a giant.

“This is the sea. No matter how powerful one is, one will appear insignificant in front of it.” Danitz stood by the window and enjoyed the scenery outside. “Fortunately, we’re almost at the City of Generosity.”

From the moment they left Bansy Harbor, the White Agate’s journey had been smooth-sailing. With the help of the wind, it reached a stable speed of 15 knots. Hence, even though they arrived at Tiana Port a little later than scheduled, they completed the entire journey half a day earlier.

That is to say, the White Agate, which was scheduled to arrive at the City of Generosity on the morning of the 13th, arrived on the evening of the 12th.

Hearing Danitz’s reflections, Klein just glanced up at him, then looked away and continued his contemplation.

The more he played the part of Gehrman Sparrow, and the more he had to force himself to behave in accordance with his persona, the more deeply he realized what kind of person he was. When faced with different situations, he realized that the choices he really wanted to make were different from Gehrman Sparrow’s.

For example, he would’ve responded to Danitz by idly chatting with him about the weather at sea and the disasters caused by those terrible storms, but Gehrman Sparrow wouldn’t. He had to be cold and reserved.

The more there are such differences, the more I recognize myself. Klein sighed inwardly.

This was something he hadn’t experienced when he moved about with his identity as the private detective, Sherlock Moriarty. Back then, he didn’t have to disguise his personality and had just been himself.

I feel like I’ve digested my potion a little… However, Gehrman Sparrow has traits that are similar to myself. At the very least, when choosing to disembark and entering Bansy Harbor to save the others, I overlapped with this identity of mine, and there was no difference… Of course, it could also be said that I was adding a certain kind of persona into the mix. Beneath Gehrman Sparrow’s gentleness and madness, he has a kind, brave, and compassionate heart that values relationships. Heh heh, I can’t boast about myself. If I had known earlier that Bansy was Binsy, I-I would’ve most likely been terrified… Not necessarily. At the very least, the danger which was divined was within an acceptable range… Klein thought, summing things up as he engaged in self-deprecation.

This made him more aware of a problem; although playing the role of a purely fictional person could help him digest the potion, he needed to replace an existing identity to speed up and improve his progress. He needed to gain the affirmation of people from the other person’s interpersonal relationships, feel the corresponding emotions of joy, anger, sadness, and immersing himself in them, but not getting obsessed.

Become anyone, but ultimately become yourself in the end? And get feedback from the people involved? Klein looked at the pale yellow carpet, his mind racing.

Seeing Gehrman Sparrow without a response, Danitz spread his hands helplessly, feeling bored out of his mind.

This crazy guy is good in every way other than making me do what servants do. There’s only one thing, he doesn’t like to talk. There’s a communication barrier with him. If this goes on, I’ll definitely go crazy…. Fortunately, I’m finally at Bayam. I can finally be free! Danitz felt that he would sooner or later develop a habit of talking to himself when faced with a similar silence.

After a while he saw Gehrman Sparrow look up, smile, and say, “You can tell me about the pirate point of contacts in Bayam.”

… Dogshit! It’s better if you don’t say anything! Danitz’s expression twisted.

Woosh!

At 6:15 p.m., just before the storm arrived, the White Agate docked smoothly and arrived at the capital of the Rorsted Archipelago, Bayam, the City of Generosity.

It was also known as the Spice Archipelago, and it was home to a variety of exotic spices, with the plantations of these produce being mainstays of the economy.

The Blue Mountain Island, where Bayam was located, occupied more than half of the archipelago which was mostly covered in forest. It had gold, silver, copper, coal, iron, and other minerals, as well as a plentiful variety of fruits due to the particularly fertile land. For these reasons, the first batch of colonists named the seaside city they built the “City of Generosity.” They believed it was a land of treasure promised by the gods, where it flowed with milk and honey.

Klein picked up his suitcase which Danitz packed, and he left Room 312, entering the corridor that led to the deck.

Without any surprises, he met Donna’s family, Cleves, and others.

The two siblings were still a little afraid of Klein after the fright he gave them. They hid behind their parents and bodyguards and didn’t dare to speak, appearing like deflated balloons.

Klein nodded slightly as a form of greeting.

At this moment, Urdi Branch hesitated for a second and then took a half step forward.

“Mr. Sparrow, will you be staying in Bayam?

“If I wish to hire—no, request for your help, how can I contact you?”

He’s indeed a businessman with a spirit of adventure. Even if he’s afraid, he still wishes to befriend someone with Beyonder powers… Klein thought for a moment.

“What newspapers are in circulation over here?”

“The Sonia Morning Post and the News Report are popular in the archipelago,” Urdi said without any thought.

“Put an advertisement in the Sonia Morning Post for three days in a row asking to buy Damir’s special cured meat, and leave an address. I’ll go look for you, and if I don’t show up three days later, it means I’m at sea again.” Klein was careful to give a one-way method of contact.

“Alright.” Urdi exhaled and smiled.

Cleves and the others expressed their gratitude once again and left the cabin in an orderly manner.

Noticing the gangway in sight, Donna suddenly slowed her pace and stepped back next to Klein, raised her face, and bit her lip.

“Uncle Sparrow, s-since that kind of power definitely brings about threats and madness, w-why did you choose to have it?”

She had thought about this question for a long time before finally mustering the courage to ask.

Klein was startled, and he instinctively formed a smile.

“For my dream.”

Then he lowered his voice and said two words, “And… protect.”

Protect… Donna mumbled the word in a slightly lost voice, picked up her pace, and caught up with her parents.

After watching the Branch family leave the White Agate, Klein retracted his gaze and said to Danitz, “You’re free.”

Ah? For a moment, Danitz wasn’t used to it.