Chapter Summaries

Cyril protected Owen from the Full Moon’s whispers by having him recite a name, then attended the Tarot Club gathering and asked for Roselle’s Diaries as Potion ingredients. The gathering began with Klein inviting the members to proceed, as Cyril prepared to share the Third Law of Beyonder Characteristics.

• Cyril’s Black Curtain blocked the Full Moon’s influence until it faded, and he reminded Owen to prepare ways to lower his spirituality and inspiration.
• Owen said he had grown indifferent to the God of Steam and Machinery after becoming a Beyonder, and reported that he expected to obtain the last Clown Potion ingredient that week.
• Cyril attended the Tarot Club gathering and asked Justice and the Hanged Man to give or sell him Roselle’s Diaries for his next Potion.
• Cyril explained that old diaries served as supplementary Potion ingredients, and Justice offered her collected diaries while the Hanged Man offered the ones he had submitted to the Fool.
• After reading the diary and listening to their conversation, the Fool told the Tarot Club members they could begin.

Cyril explained the Law of Beyonder Characteristics Convergence, prompting Klein to connect it to his own encounters and growing danger in Backlund. Klein then issued a mission to assassinate Intis ambassador Bakerland Jean Madan, and Audrey offered to try while Cyril shared intelligence about the target and revealed his next Sequence.

• Cyril explained that Beyonder Characteristics drew people and items from the same or similar Pathways toward one another, and Alger asked how the law affected Churches and secret organizations.
• Klein connected convergence to his encounters with the Diviner of the House Pathway and to his recent conflict with the Intis ambassador, then announced a mission to assassinate Bakerland Jean Madan.
• Cyril said he could provide intelligence but could not carry out the assassination at his current Sequence, and he described Madan’s role, personality, abilities, and security.
• Audrey offered to attempt the mission, and Cyril said he had only recently advanced to Sequence 7 and needed months before advancing again.
• Cyril explained that his next Sequence, Scribe, could record and reenact Beyonder Abilities he had seen, subject to prerequisites and limits on success.

At the Tarot Club, Cyril asked Derrick to search the City of Silver for materials needed for the Scribe potion and shared news about the Primordial Demoness and the Mirror World. Later, he offered a Shadow Ascetic Beyonder Characteristic at Mr. Eye of Wisdom’s gathering, where an apparent Aurora Order member showed interest in buying it.

• Cyril asked the Tarot Club for a complete Asman Brain and an Ancient Wraith’s cursed item, and Derrick promised to look for them in the City of Silver.
• Cyril told the Tarot Club that the Primordial Demoness had split to some extent, dangerous areas had appeared in the Mirror World, and Demonesses were plotting with the Loen Royal Family.
• Klein ended the Tarot Club gathering, while Audrey wondered whether Mr. Fate knew about Backlund’s intelligence activity and resolved to grow stronger.
• Cyril attended Mr. Eye of Wisdom’s gathering and offered to sell his Shadow Ascetic Beyonder Characteristic for 1,500 pounds.
• Mr. Eye of Wisdom offered 1,300 pounds, but a masked attendee offered 1,500 pounds or a barter and revealed greed and malice that made Cyril suspect the attendee belonged to the Aurora Order.

Cyril sold the Shadow Ascetic Beyonder Characteristic to a masked attendee for 1,300 pounds, then agreed to help an Apothecary deal with beasts in the sewers. Klein arrived at Old Man Eye of Wisdom’s gathering as the group prepared to notarize Cyril’s new contract.

• Cyril rejected a trade for two dangerous Mystical Items, but accepted a severed hand as a deposit and sold the Shadow Ascetic Beyonder Characteristic for 1,300 pounds.
• Klein arrived at the gathering, and Cyril recognized him while noticing his envy over the cash transaction.
• An Apothecary offered potions for help removing beasts from the sewers, explaining that the creatures had eaten his medicinal herbs.
• Cyril agreed to clear the sewers for extra compensation of up to thirty pounds if the danger exceeded the description.
• Old Man Eye of Wisdom began preparing a notarized contract and said the parties could sign with a code name or fingerprint.

Cyril watched the members leave the Eye of Wisdom’s gathering while investigating a cautious Shadow Ascetic and demonstrating his door-traveling ability. After returning to an empty hotel room, he realized someone had been following him and used divination to confirm the pursuer was still there.

• Cyril failed to sell his Hunter Beyonder Characteristic or learn how to deal with a Sequence 5 Beyonder, then tested how his Astrologer abilities had changed.
• Cyril saw Klein leave the gathering and waited outside for a suspected Aurora Order member, while Klein divined that the watcher was Cyril and kept his distance.
• A Gloomy Youth and a voice inside his stomach discussed avoiding Cyril because an item from the Angel of Fate had warned them about his hostility.
• Cyril used a door to travel to Bravehearts Bar, where Klein and Kaspars saw him arrive and depart through the same door.
• Cyril reached a nearby hotel room, addressed an unseen follower, and used a coin divination to confirm the person was still in the room.

Cyril encountered Sharron, who offered him a chance to enter a higher-level Beyonder gathering, then answered Trissy’s prayer in the Mirror World and revealed that 0-08 had ensnared her. The chapter ended as Trissy asked what she could do for Cyril.

• Sharron returned Cyril’s divination coin and explained that she had followed him because his ability made her uneasy.
• Cyril asked about higher-level Beyonder gatherings, and Sharron offered to recommend him and gave him a green seed as a test.
• Cyril used repeated Door Opening to evade anyone following him and return to his bedroom.
• Cyril answered Trissy’s prayer and explained that Ince Zangwill and the Quill of Alzuhod were influencing her thoughts and actions.
• Trissy offered her body, soul, and faith in exchange for help, but Cyril said he wanted none of them, prompting her to ask what she could do for him.

Cyril warned Trissy that she could not escape Backlund yet, then withdrew from the Mirror World after sensing the Primordial Demoness watching him. He answered House’s prayer, directed him to remain in the Church of Steam and investigate Backlund’s serial murders, and left House with a warning about the Devil’s danger-sensing ability.

• Cyril told Trissy to do what she wanted but said she could not leave Backlund because the time had not come, then severed their connection when he sensed a gaze in the Mirror World.
• Cyril sensed that the Primordial Demoness had noticed him and decided not to enter the Mirror World again for a while.
• House prayed to Cyril for permission to leave the Church of Steam, but Cyril ordered him to stay and work his way into its upper ranks.
• Cyril created a Tarot deck, gave House the Devil card, and told him that a Devil Dog was behind Backlund’s serial murders and that the killings were part of an advancement ritual.
• Cyril warned House that a Devil could sense imminent fatal danger, then ended the communication as House decided to return early to work on the murder case.

Cyril sensed that guiding people could help digest his Astrologer potion, then agreed to act as Klein’s bodyguard while Klein tried to draw out the people watching him. After checking for danger at Klein’s home, Cyril explained that the Monster Pathway received vague revelations directly from fate and had no adjacent pathway.

• Cyril inferred that an Astrologer could digest the potion by guiding others and decided to ask Klein for advice.
• Mr. Fool relayed Klein’s request for Cyril to meet him that evening at Bravehearts Bar.
• Klein hired Cyril to act as his bodyguard and handed him Peacemaker, while Cyril agreed to retrieve the gun and leave if the danger exceeded his abilities.
• Klein asked Cyril to stay with him as an assistant for the next few days, and Cyril followed him to 15 Minsk Street.
• Cyril used astrology to check for danger and told Klein that hidden watchers were present but posed no immediate threat.
• Cyril explained that Monster Pathway Beyonders received vague revelations directly from fate and that their pathway had no adjacent pathway.

Klein and Cyril tracked a cheating husband to an exclusive club, then returned to Bravehearts Bar, where Maric offered Klein the protection of a Sequence 5 woman for 1,000 pounds. Klein considered the offer but lacked the money to accept it immediately.

• Klein and Cyril watched the Coim Company and followed their target to a guarded club in Hillston Borough.
• Cyril advised Klein to tell Mrs. Mary about the club so she could help him gain entry and provide more evidence.
• Cyril made Holy Silver Bullets while Klein stayed home, then they returned to Bravehearts Bar to maintain Klein's cover.
• Maric told Klein that his Sequence 5 friend was willing to protect him for 1,000 pounds over three days.
• Klein said he needed time to consider the offer and raise the money.

Klein joined the Quelaag Club with Mrs. Mary’s help, but a Spirit World Creature pursuing Cyril attacked them. Cyril fled the club and continued trying to escape the creature, while Klein left to seek money for another bodyguard.

• Mrs. Mary introduced Klein to Talim and Doctor Aaron, who recommended him for membership in the Quelaag Club, while Cyril entered the club unnoticed.
• Klein completed his application and told Cyril that Mrs. Mary had paid his membership costs and given him an extra commission.
• Klein felt a warning of imminent danger, and Cyril used his Crystal Ball to interfere with the attacker’s divination and Spirituality.
• A tentacled creature attacked Cyril outside the club, and Cyril escaped inside long enough to tell Klein that his own trouble had caught up with him before fleeing.
• Klein left to seek money from Miss Justice and hire Maric’s friend as a bodyguard.
• Cyril tried to evade the pursuing shadow with Door Opening and silver bullets, but the creature kept advancing, so he unleashed a powerful white light.

Cyril escaped a Spirit World Creature only to stumble into a three-way Beyonder battle, where the Judge’s rules prevented him from leaving and Adam failed to answer his call. He fled through a hidden cellar, where an old man reacted to him in terror just as the Seven Lights of the Spirit World descended.

• Cyril used an Escape Trick and Door Opening to flee a Spirit World Creature, then appeared in a hall where three groups of Beyonders faced off.
• A Judge’s declarations exposed hidden Undead and prohibited ambushes, damage, escape, and Door Opening; two Faceless Beyonders were exposed, and one was killed by a Dawn Knight.
• Cyril failed to contact Adam and fought off attackers by dodging paper knives and gunfire, using a Black Curtain, fog, and wind to cover his escape.
• Cyril used Divination and Door Opening to break into a hidden, mystically isolated cellar beneath the floor.
• A scrawny old man asked Cyril which side he was on, then recoiled in terror as the Seven Lights of the Spirit World descended around Cyril.

Cyril spoke with “Yellow Light” Venithan, who warned him that Fate was both his greatest enemy and ally and that the world might turn against him once his existence was exposed. After Venithan disappeared, Cyril returned to the battle site, gathered abandoned valuables and Mystical Items, and sensed someone approaching.

• “Yellow Light” Venithan explained that he had appeared because Turani von Hermosuin was the incarnation of “Orange Light” Hilarion, whose mission in the world was unfinished.
• Venithan tried to Prophecy Cyril’s future and warned him to beware of Fate, then explained that Cyril’s existence had been concealed and its eventual exposure could bring the malice of the world.
• Venithan vanished, and Cyril returned to the basement, where Turani von Hermosuin had disappeared and the door had been smashed open.
• Cyril used divination to check for danger, returned to the battle hall, and found that the victor had cleaned up evidence and left incomplete corpses behind.
• Cyril found cash, pistols, a valuable-looking necklace, a black mask, and a ring among the remains, then sensed approaching footsteps and Spirituality warning him of danger.

Cyril escaped a Spirit World Creature by fleeing to Harvest Cathedral, where he confessed his predicament and offered to bring potential believers to the Mother Goddess. That night, Klein was warned by a police sergeant to watch out for strangers, then suddenly became mentally and physically sluggish.

• Cyril used Mental Piercing and Whip of Affliction against a rat-headed octopus creature, then fled through Door Opening when he could not kill it.
• Cyril appeared at Harvest Cathedral and honestly told Father Utravsky and Emlyn that a Spirit World Creature was pursuing him.
• Cyril offered to send people seeking help to the cathedral so they could hear the Mother Goddess's teachings, and Father Utravsky let him stay until the danger passed.
• Klein considered contacting Cyril, then answered the door when the police sergeant who had questioned him about Meursault arrived.
• The sergeant warned Klein to beware of strangers that night and the next day, and Klein suddenly felt his thoughts and movements grow sluggish.

Klein and Sharron fought Rosago after he trapped them with his Spirit Body Threads, while Cyril supported them from outside. Klein killed Rosago with a barrage of gunfire, but a writhing mass of flesh emerged from the void and resisted their attacks.

• Rosago used his abilities to paralyze Klein and Sharron, but Cyril shot him and broke his control over their Spirit Body Threads.
• Sharron attacked Rosago with a Wraith Shriek and attempted to possess him, while Cyril's Holy Silver Bullets injured both of them and disrupted her assault.
• Klein used a True Creator talisman to break Rosago's control, then emptied his revolver into Rosago and killed him.
• A bloody, tentacled mass fell out of the void after Rosago's death, and Cyril fired his Holy Silver Bullets at it without managing to destroy it.
• Cyril asked Klein if he had any ideas for dealing with the still-writhing pieces of flesh.

Klein used a dangerous charm to kill Rosago and incapacitate Sharron, while Cyrin Gray arrived during the fight and dealt with the Spirit World Creature pursuing him. After Sharron destroyed the creature’s remaining flesh and questioned Klein about the charm, she advised him to find a real Psychiatrist.

• Klein used Slumber Charms to quiet the flesh and put Sharron to sleep, then asked Cyrin why he had come.
• Cyrin explained that he had led the Spirit World Creature pursuing him into the battle and left Klein to handle the scene.
• In Empress Borough, 0-08 wrote a script arranging Cyrin’s arrival, the creature’s defeat, and his eventual forgetfulness of the Quill of Alzuhod.
• Klein recovered after a ritual and found Sharron still asleep, with the creature’s flesh remaining on the floor.
• Sharron woke, destroyed the creature’s flesh with ice shards, and asked Klein what charm he had used.
• Klein claimed a black ear had transformed into the charm, and Sharron judged his explanation before telling him to find a real Psychiatrist.

Cyril received Klein’s report and joined an impromptu Twilight Hermit Order gathering, where the members discussed another attempt to assassinate Duke Negan. Adam revealed the Abyss Card as the meeting ended on the proposed use of the Demon Potion formula to recruit a Desire Apostle.

• Cyril learned that Klein’s bodyguard had killed the Spirit World Creature and that Rosago had been killed, then received Klein’s request for two Beyonder ingredients.
• Cyril arrived at the Bone Church for the gathering, where a woman announced that Qilingus’s assassination of Duke Negan had failed.
• Hermes identified Gallienus Aigris to Cyril and warned him that Adam’s special interest in him had drawn attention.
• Baros Hopkins proposed using a Beria Family Desire Apostle in Backlund to assassinate Duke Negan and offering him the Demon Potion formula as payment.
• Adam agreed to Baros Hopkins’s proposal and revealed the Abyss Card, marked Sequence 0: Abyss.

At a Twilight Hermit Order gathering, Baros Hopkins discussed Duke Negan’s planned assassination, George III’s cooperation, and a possible lead on the third Hand of Order characteristic. After the others departed, Adam explained to Cyril why he had missed his call and offered Evernight’s compensation: a chance to seek answers about Cyril’s abnormal Fate.

• Baros Hopkins agreed to use the Card of Blasphemy to tempt a Desire Apostle into targeting Duke Negan, and agreed to pass along George III’s offer to the Psychology Alchemists.
• Baros Hopkins identified the Ghost Empire as a possible hiding place for the third Hand of Order characteristic and suggested using the Judgment Card to locate it.
• After the gathering ended, Adam told Cyril that Evernight had concealed his voice and kept him away from the Fool because his presence had shifted events unfavorably.
• Adam explained that Cheek’s curse on Cyril had failed, and that he had influenced 0-08 to cooperate with Cyril by making it fear the future.
• Adam said Evernight’s compensation was for Cyril to consult Herabergen’s church or Ouroboros about his unusual Fate, then advised him to trust his intuition or seek Fate-related things.

Cyril decided to transfer his sewer-beast commission because Little Thomas was staying with him, and asked Mr. Fool to pass it to his Blessed in Backlund. Klein received the prayer and prepared to divine the commission’s danger.

• Haven brought Little Thomas to stay with Cyril while Beth and Vaughn moved to Midseashire, and warned Cyril against getting involved with dangerous organizations like the Aurora Order.
• Cyril received a 52-pound manuscript payment from the Cuckoo Newspaper and found that the editor praised his work and wanted another manuscript.
• After Haven and Little Thomas both refused to take care of the child, Cyril decided to transfer his commission to clear beasts from the East District sewers and use it to contact the Apothecary and the Life School of Thought.
• Cyril prayed to Mr. Fool, asking him to offer the commission to his Blessed in Backlund and warning that his divination about the sewer beasts had failed.
• Klein received Cyril’s prayer above the Gray Fog and prepared to divine the commission’s danger level.

Klein accepted Cyril’s commission to investigate a sewer, with Sharron accompanying him as his bodyguard. After discovering that a creature corrupted by the True Creator lurked below, they tried to retreat, but it began approaching and Sharron attacked it.

• Klein accepted Cyril’s commission after sending him a request for a letter to explain Sharron’s help.
• Cyril took Little Thomas to a cake shop while Haven gave them spending money.
• Klein received a letter and silver pistol, and Sharron agreed to protect him for three days.
• Klein entered the sewer near the Tussock River after failing to meet the cautious Apothecary who had commissioned the job.
• Sharron identified the presence below as a corrupted creature, so Klein decided to abandon the commission and report it to the authorities.
• As a horde of shrieking rats and a pounding creature approached, Sharron unleashed a Shriek and sent a phantom skull into the darkness.

Klein and Sharron cleared nearby mutated creatures from a sewer, though the corruption causing them remained. Back at home, Cyril helped Owen take a Potion, then used an Astrologer’s ability to conceal Owen’s surging Spirituality as he connected with Mr. Door.

• Sharron sensed an attack in the sewer, and Klein dodged as shadowy limbs surged from beneath him.
• Sharron summoned undead creatures that drove out and destroyed the nearby corrupted monsters, then explained that more could appear because their source remained.
• Klein decided to leave and anonymously report the sewer danger, then prayed to Mr. Fool to relay his findings and asked to borrow the Peacemaker.
• Cyril agreed to let Klein keep the Peacemaker, and Owen arrived with the final Potion ingredients and said he was ready to advance.
• Cyril took Owen to the attic, sealed it with a Wall of Spirituality, and watched him drink the Potion and connect to Mr. Door.
• Cyril conjured and shattered a Crystal Ball, concealing Owen’s spilling Spirituality and weakening his spiritual intuition.