Tarot Cards

"Agreed."

Arthur tapped the table lightly, and the card in Mr. Red Grail's hand slid toward him.

The card had a blue border, and its face depicted the sandy beach of an island, with a single coconut tree in the center bearing two coconuts—one large and one small.

The back was engraved with a chalice, beneath which an intangible force shrouded something, obscuring it from view.

Tarot cards, a card game that rose to prominence during the Age of Great Voyages, were all the rage among pirates and sailors.

This particular tarot card lacked a number and differed from the standard decks.

Arthur had seen tarot cards in taverns before; most were inscribed with geographical landmarks, ships, or the portraits of kings.

Interpretation?

The phrasing Mr. Red Grail used was to "interpret" this card—what exactly did it represent?

Tossing the tarot card into [Research], lines of mist appeared before Arthur's eyes, twisting and turning to form a string of text.

The text was composed in the language of the Sea Folk, and even for the parts he hadn't encountered before, the meaning was conveyed directly into his mind through the form of the mist.

Tarot Card: Location Card.

A special type of transcendent card, a natural product born from the collision between the Old Continent and the New Continent.

It symbolizes a specific location on the Mist Sea.

After [Researching] the card, Arthur flipped it over, and the area previously veiled by transcendent power was revealed.

[Twin Coconuts of White Sand Island]

This tarot card represented a location on White Sand Island.

He suddenly thought of [Explore] and tossed the card into it, causing a dark region to emerge in his mind.

Within this dark region, a faint glimmer of light ignited: White Sand Island in the Mist Sea.

Arthur cast his gaze upon White Sand Island, seeing the coconut tree from the image standing lonely on the white beach at the edge of the island.

"The Twin Coconuts of White Sand Island, a main ingredient for Sequence 7 of the Scholar Path."

Upon receiving this information, Arthur felt a slight jolt; the regions recorded in these tarot cards nurtured the main ingredients for path sequence potions.

Withdrawing his focus from White Sand Island, Arthur sent the tarot card back to Mr. Red Grail.

Edmond Tide looked at the returned card, and a line of text had appeared on the back: Twin Coconuts of White Sand Island.

This tarot card had been deciphered!

"A special location in the Mist Sea, which nurtures the main ingredient for a sequence potion."

Arthur briefly described the card's contents, adding in a relaxed tone:

"You may seek out more tarot cards; they contain natural sequence knowledge."

Captain Edmond asked in a deep voice: "Mr. Mansus, may I ask which path's ingredient this tarot card records?"

"The main ingredient for Sequence 7 of the Scholar Path."

In Arthur's mind, a pitch-black sea appeared, with a straight line pointing toward a glimmer of light, starting from his current position and ending at the waters of White Sand Island.

To him, the tarot card was equivalent to a special nautical chart.

A main ingredient for Sequence 7 of the Scholar Path—this really saved him a lot of effort; he had obtained the whereabouts of a main ingredient just like that.

Arena listened from the side, stunned—the tarot cards contained information?!

For their Stuart Family, the scarcity of materials for their transcendent sequences had always been a headache.

As a great family passed down from the Era of Light, the Stuart Family did not lack much knowledge regarding the dark transcendent sequences.

It was precisely because of the scarcity of high-sequence materials that they had gradually fallen into deficiency, always attempting to find equivalent substitutes.

She was currently a Sequence 7 [Silver Moon Swordmaster]; if she could gather the potion for Sequence 6 of the Darkness Path, she would have a high probability of stepping into Sequence 6 as a [Star-Gazing Warlock].

While collecting main ingredients, she would also have to pay attention to collecting tarot cards.

"Many thanks, Mr. Mansus," Edmond Tide said, then began to ponder his next plan.

He needed to find a scholar proficient in the language of the Sea Folk and locate the beginning of the map within the Mermaid Book—a peculiar island.

Seeing that the two had no other business, the Society of Hours drew to a close.

Arthur tapped the table twice, drawing their attention back to the Society of Hours, and said in a cautionary tone:

"The Black Devil Order will be very active recently and may take action. Miss Moth, you must be careful."

Arena was startled by Mr. Mansus's words.

The Black Devil Order was planning an operation? The question was, how did Mr. Mansus know?

Divination? Precognition?

Or had he already recovered a portion of his power, making contact with the ancient groups that worshipped Him, and now possessed "ears and eyes" in reality?

"May I ask, Mr. Mansus, do you mean that the Black Devil Order will take action within the Tudor Dynasty?"

Arthur pondered for a moment before giving an ambiguous answer:

"Both islands are possibilities."

Combining this with her own situation, Arena realized that the Black Devil Order might be active on both Blue Bay Island and Rhine Island.

Mr. Mansus isn't completely ignorant of reality?!

A sense of crisis rose in her heart; at this Society of Hours meeting, she felt her usefulness was... not exactly significant.

Edmond Tide glanced at Arena, noting that her status was likely that of a noble from the Old Continent.

He suddenly spoke up: "I require a large amount of supplies for a long-distance exploration in the Mist Sea. Can Miss Moth provide them?"

Arena asked: "How many people are on your ship?"

"About thirty."

"Very well. I will have someone arrange six months' worth of supplies, with half the value provided in gold coins. Tell me, how should I contact Mr. Red Grail?"

Edmond Tide deliberated for a moment before saying: "You can send the goods to the beginning of the Grand Route. There is a Battleaxe Tavern there."

"Give the items to the barmaid at the Battleaxe Tavern and tell her they are supplies prepared for [Fish Scale]."

Fish Scale. Arena chewed on the codename; it was certainly plain and unadorned.

"No problem."

With the second transaction concluded, Arthur nodded in satisfaction and tapped the Secret Sect Long Table.

"Meeting adjourned."

Thick fog shrouded the long table, and the Pure White Gate opened a sliver. The souls of the two individuals twisted and flew out through the gap.

Arena opened her eyes on her ship. The Black Devil Order intends to take action on Blue Bay Island?

"When you are focused on your prey, someone else may be watching you. This credit should be handed over to our own people."

She immediately sent someone to contact the nearest Church of Night cathedral to secretly relay this information.

"It seems I will have the opportunity to acquire the main ingredients for the Scholar Path; Arthur will need them in the future."

Arena toyed with the Scholar Potion as her ship sailed toward Blue Bay Island.

The next day.

After waking up, Arthur took the Fear Musket and the Janna Fish Bone, then roused the still-sleepy Mickey.

"Mickey, it's time for us to return to Blue Bay Island!"

"Yes! Captain!"

Upon returning to Blue Bay Island, Arthur went straight to their usual spot to visit Arena.

He ordered Mickey to gather everyone, instructing them to return to the Great White Shark after eating lunch at noon.

With the Sequence 9 potion of the Scholar Path, he was finally about to step into the realm of the extraordinary and become a true Sequence holder.