951 Drawing A Card

By the time Leonard reacted, he saw numerous towering stone pillars, as well as a towering palace that looked like a giant's residence above the endless grayish-white fog that was being propped up by these stone pillars.

His green eyes wore a blank look. After a second, Leonard found himself sitting on a high-back chair beside a long mottled bronze table at some point in time. Beside him and opposite him were high-back chairs that exuded solemnity.

And at the end of the long mottled table, where the seat of honor was, a figure was shrouded in thick gray fog. The figure was leaning into his seat leisurely, as though he was overlooking everything.

When this figure appeared in Leonard's eyes, he felt as though he was on a liner, seeing a bottomless abyss whose boundaries were nowhere to be seen. It also felt like he had left the city and was on the outskirts, looking up to see lofty mountains that tore through the clouds.

Instantly, many thoughts flashed through Leonard's mind. He had a rough guess as to what he was experiencing. As a Beyonder of the Church, a believer who knew that deities truly exist, he wasn't able to resist his feelings. He subconsciously wished to leave his seat and prostrate before the existence before him.

The might of a deity was boundless!

Just as Leonard stood up, he was pressed down by an invisible force. A slow and calm voice resonated in his ears:

"There's no need for such trouble.

"You can call me Mr. Fool."

The Fool… Indeed… Leonard's fear of the unknown had settled immediately. Although he was still worried about what would happen next, he wasn't that perturbed any longer. He didn't sit uneasily with a dry mouth and parched lips.

He got up halfway, pressed his hand to his chest, and bowed.

"Honorable Mr. Fool, why did you summon me here?"

As an experienced Nighthawk and a Red Glove who had participated in major cases, Leonard knew how dangerous it was to establish a connection with a secret existence. He knew that he had slid down the edge of the abyss and had no chance of redemption.

At that moment when he decided to chant The Fool's honorific name, he was able to foresee his tragic end. But for revenge, he had made the choice regardless.

However, everyone had the instinct to survive. Recalling how Klein Moretti, who believed in The Fool, was still alive and had even become a demigod, Leonard couldn't help but hold out some hope and expectations.

At this moment, he heard the fog-enshrouded Fool chuckle.

"Since you prayed to me for help, then based on the principle of equivalent exchange, you definitely need to pay the price."

Leonard's body trembled as he bowed his head lower.

"What is it you wish?"

After a brief pause, The Fool's voice sounded again:

"There's no rush. Perhaps there will be something that requires you to provide help to certain people.

"Have a seat."

Leonard slowly calmed himself down and sat. He looked around and asked, "He… Klein Moretti… has been here like me?"

The Fool's said with a calm tone, "In a different manner."

Different manner… Indeed, Klein didn't enter because he chanted the honorific name. He had been introduced by that Death Consul named Azik Eggers before becoming one of Mr. Fool's faithful… Leonard couldn't help but survey the area, and he discovered that there were a total of twenty-two high-back chairs around the long mottled table.

It corresponds to the twenty-two Beyonder pathways. There are also twenty-two tarot cards… The Fool… Just as Leonard came up with a theory, he heard Mr. Fool chuckle.

"Other than you, there are other living beings that have been pulled in here for various reasons.

"They earnestly wished for me to convene a gathering to carry out the exchange of information and the transaction of materials and formulas. They also help each other. This allows them to rapidly advance, eventually becoming High-Sequence Beyonders."

This is a little different from the secret organization represented by tarot cards I had imagined. It's rather loosely organized… What motives does Mr. Fool have to agree to such a request? After coming to the ancient palace above the gray fog, Leonard felt high-strung, causing his thought processes to be a lot more agile than usual. He came up with all kinds of questions.

After successfully achieving revenge, he had been feeling low-spirited and empty for a moment, as though he had lost his goal in life. However, he quickly pulled himself together. This was because Daly's death told him that he wasn't strong enough. To reduce the number of casualties of his companions in future missions and so as to not lack the ability to save them, he needed to reach Sequence 4 at the very least. He needed to become a demigod.

Therefore, The Fool's words had stirred his heart. He felt that it was an opportunity. Meanwhile, he also believed that by joining the gathering, he could deeply understand the situation of the secret organization. It helped in maximally averting the danger that resulted from establishing contact with The Fool.

After some deliberation, Leonard asked, "Klein Moretti is also a regular member of this gathering?

"Does he have a seat here?"

The Fool replied without much concern, "Yes."

Leonard fell silent for a second as he asked, "Honorable Mr. Fool, can I join this regular gathering?"

Shrouded in the gray fog, The Fool said with a smile, "Sure.

"But when you return, remember to mention this to Pallez Zoroast about it. Do not attempt to hide it from 'Him.'"

"Him"… Old Man really is an angel! It's no wonder the Luck Siphon charm is so magical… Although Leonard had already expected this, he still couldn't help but be alarmed after receiving confirmation from Mr. Fool.

He hesitated for a moment and said, "Why must I tell Pallez Zoroast?"

Although he had a good relationship with Pallez Zoroast and had established a certain level of trust, he still felt wary. The reason why he had made the request to join Mr. Fool's secret gathering was to balance the latent danger of the ancient Parasite.

He then heard Mr. Fool reply with a smile, "Many a time, striking fear is a lot more useful than conflict."

Striking fear is a lot more useful than conflict… That's right, forcefully creating a balance might agitate Old Man. Regardless, the final battlefield will be in my body, and it would be extremely disadvantageous to me. By striking fear into "Him," I can get "Him" to recognize the situation. Even if "He" has ill intent, "He" will think of another solution and take another path… Leonard bowed his head in enlightenment.

"Honorable Mr. Fool, I have no more questions."

At the end of the long bronze table, The Fool conjured a deck of tarot cards and lifted up his hand and pointed at them.

"They have each selected a tarot card to represent their code name. You can also choose one.

"The deck has the cards of their respective owners taken away."

They do use tarot cards are as their code names… Leonard exhaled and couldn't help but ask again, "Which card is Klein Moretti?"

"The World," The Fool said casually. "It's him, and also not him."

What does that mean… Leonard didn't dare to ask further. He extended his right hand and pulled out a card from the deck of tarot cards.

Flipping it over, he saw a goddess pouring holy water, with stars littering the background.

The Star card!

This didn't match Leonard's taste, but since he had already completed the ritual under Mr. Fool's watch, he could only accept it.

"Return. The gathering happens every Monday at three in the afternoon, Backlund time." Shrouded in the gray fog, The Fool raised his hand and made Leonard, who was rushing to bow, vanish from the ancient palace.

The Fool Klein chuckled as he flipped all the tarot cards.

All of them had the same picture with the same sky-filled stars.

All of them were The Star cards!

After laughing for a while, Klein cast his gaze to the crimson star that represented Leonard.

While attempting to pull the poet above the gray fog, he had made some careful observation and had discovered that there was a blob of light hiding in Leonard Mitchell's body. It seemed to be made of countless ringed worms, hidden deep inside his Soul Body.

This made Klein confirm that Pallez Zoroast had only parasitized Leonard at a preliminary stage. "He" didn't control Leonard's Body of Heart and Mind, Astral Projection, Ether Body, and physical body. And after advancing to become a demigod, Klein had gained a deeper control over the mysterious space above the gray fog, allowing him to pull in anyone he wanted, without targeting the soul. He could make a selection.

Therefore, Klein decided to not touch Leonard's Soul Body, and only pulled his Astral Projection above the gray fog. This avoided agitating Pallez Zoroast or end up bringing "Him" into the mysterious space. Of course, it was almost certain that the Sequence 1 angel of the Marauder pathway would notice it.

And the ability to enter the dreams of others stemmed from the Astral Projection of Beyonders of the Evernight pathway, so it didn't affect Leonard's ability to do what he was good at in this mysterious space.

Let's hope that he can escape from Pallez Zoroast's parasitizing bit by bit… Klein suddenly sighed.

The reason why he made Leonard join the tarot club was because he wished to help this former teammate grow stronger, allowing him to escape the claws of Pallez Zoroast.

If that Marauder pathway angel didn't have any ill intent, he could get Leonard to help "Him" hide from Amon and aid "His" recovery. This would speed up "His" switching of parasitic targets.

Retracting in his gaze, Klein thought for a moment. He threw the Hunter pathway's Sequence 6 Conspirer potion formula to the point of light representing Danitz. He then instructed him to leave the Southern Continent and return to the Golden Dream.

…

Black Hunting Spider's composite eye, sphinx's brain… Danitz recalled the content he had just "seen" in a daze as he stood up in delight.

He planned to immediately bid farewell to Anderson and leave the dangerous Southern Continent.

After coming to the door of the Fog Sea's Strongest Hunter, he knocked on the wooden door, only to see it open.

Anderson hadn't locked the door!

Danitz was puzzled as he cast his gaze inside and saw Anderson holding a knife and sliding it against his abdomen.