The Mysterious Mr. Fool

Odys understood at that moment why he had appeared here!

The space he could enter, the one containing infinite knowledge, had somehow reacted with the Roselle Memorial Exhibition and Klein's Sefirah Castle.

After Klein's spirit body left, that reaction had, for some reason, eventually formed a gray sphere the size of a palm.

Only then did Odys realize that it had probably been an invitation and a pass.

Under the influence of that sphere on his spirit body, he had arrived in the Spirit World while unconsciously asleep, arriving outside Sefirah Castle.

But...

Odys felt rather helpless. "At least give me a complete pass, brother! Fine if I can't get in, but don't let dogs out to bite me, okay?"

"Open the door! Your dogs are about to bite someone!" he shouted as he searched for a way to climb over the wall.

Fortunately, Fogen's Hounds seemed to sense some trace of Sefirah Castle's aura on Odys's spirit body, so they remained somewhat wary and did not attack immediately.

But Odys could feel their hostility growing stronger. They might pounce on him and tear him apart at any moment.

And the towering walls around him did not even have a crack between the bricks. Besides, this was a castle derived from Sefirah; it was not something he could simply climb over.

Knock, knock, knock~

"Open the door!" Odys wondered whether he should expose some dirt on the Fool to win himself a slim chance of survival.

Awoo~

A high-pitched howl rang out, as though it were the signal to attack. More than a dozen black figures rushed toward him, pouncing at Odys.

His face filled with terror as he pressed himself tightly against the gate. Odys was only Sequence 9; naturally, he was no match for these Fogen's Hounds.

Creak~

At that moment, the gate opened a crack just wide enough for one person to enter.

The Fogen's Hounds that had nearly reached him immediately lay flat on the ground in submission.

Odys seized the opportunity and slipped into the castle.

Creak~

The castle gate closed on its own again.

Odys let out a sigh of relief. He knew the Fool would not simply stand by and watch him die.

But just as his heart settled, the Gray Fog drifting ahead of him made Odys suddenly think of something else. "Could Sefirah Castle's aura corrupt me?"

But then he thought: Since Klein had let him in, he would certainly protect him from corruption. Otherwise, he would have lost control and turned into a Monster just from glancing at Sefirah Castle outside earlier.

At that moment, the Gray Fog before him churned and dispersed, revealing an enormous hall that seemed built for Giants.

In the middle of the hall stood a mottled Bronze Long Table. Along both sides, as well as at the head and foot of the table, were high-backed chairs engraved with Occult Symbols.

At the far end of the hall, seated at the head of the Bronze Long Table, was a vague figure that seemed mysterious and powerful.

Odys was briefly stunned. He remembered seeing a courtyard inside the gate from outside, so why had he entered directly into a hall?

But he quickly came to his senses and bowed. "Great and mysterious existence, did you summon me here?"

He had to say that first, lest the Fool ask, "How did you get here?"

If this had been a truly secret existence, it would probably still have asked that question even if Odys said this. But the Fool was currently little more than an empty facade. He had to maintain his airs no matter what, so he naturally would not ask such a question lightly.

When the time came, Odys could simply muddle through a few replies and ask the other party to send him away.

The Fool, Klein, spoke in a deep voice. "What were you doing at the Royal Museum tonight?"

Klein behind the Gray Fog truly found it strange. He had been sleeping soundly when he was awakened by knocking.

After waking up, he realized that someone was actually knocking on the door to the space Above the Gray Fog!

When Klein arrived Above the Gray Fog, he was even more surprised. Someone was indeed knocking urgently outside, and his gaze had just passed through the gate to see Odys.

This black-haired young man, whose face was obscured by the Gray Fog, gave Klein a very familiar first impression.

So he swiftly used Dream Divination and Recall to determine where he had seen this young man before. The resulting image was the Roselle Memorial Exhibition.

This put Klein on high alert. Fortunately, Above the Gray Fog was his world, so he had nothing to fear. He saved Odys and prepared to ask whether this young man was connected to the mysterious and terrifyingly powerful lady he had encountered that night.

Odys glanced at the Fool in surprise, then lowered his head as though he had understood something.

His series of actions was not an act. He truly was somewhat surprised that the Fool knew where he had been that night, but then he remembered that divination was the Fool's specialty. The Fool must have divined some information, which was why Odys had seemed to understand.

But from Mr. Fool's perspective, Odys's expression seemed to show that he had first been surprised by his words, then apparently realized that such a mysterious and great existence would naturally know his whereabouts.

Thinking of this, Klein behind the Gray Fog could not help curling his lips slightly, feeling as though he had him firmly in hand.

Odys paused before answering, "Great existence, I appeared there under coercion."

He knew he had to tell the truth about this, because the Fool had the ability to determine whether someone was lying.

Just as Odys had expected, Klein's hand beneath the Bronze Long Table was divining whether Odys was lying.

After receiving the conclusion that the young man was telling the truth, Klein asked, "Who coerced you?"

"A mysterious and powerful lady."

Klein slowly nodded, realizing that the young man before him was someone by that mysterious lady's side. "Why did she coerce you?"

"I have achieved a certain degree of success in researching Beyonder Weapons, which drew that lady's attention. She wanted to coerce me into conducting some transactions."

Odys's words were highly deceptive. Bernadette's main purpose had actually been to keep him from falling into that mysterious organization's hands. But Bernadette was indeed very interested in those research results and had intended to trade with him, so speaking only part of the truth would not be exposed.

Klein behind the Gray Fog asked again, "Did you... did you carry out a transaction?"

He had originally wanted to ask, "Are you an Artisan? What exactly is your research?" But he felt that a great existence should not be interested in such matters, so he simply shifted the focus to the mysterious lady.

After all, the mysterious lady's strength was obvious to all. It was perfectly normal for a mysterious existence like the Fool to take an interest in a High-Sequence Beyonder.

Odys answered truthfully, "We did."

Klein gave an "Mm," as though he had fallen into deep thought.

He opened Spirit Vision and could only tell that Odys was Sequence 9, not which Pathway this young man belonged to.

But regardless, it was extremely unusual for a Sequence 9 to be capable of crafting Beyonder Weapons.

Lacking stable channels himself, Klein developed the idea of further assessing him. He asked, "Do you want the ability to deal with her?"

Odys was slightly stunned, then immediately said, "No."

Klein had originally thought this young man would say yes. Then he could issue a few tasks and use the opportunity to observe him. Not only would he gain a free assistant, but he could also obtain more detailed information about him and clues about that mysterious lady.

But when the other party said no, Klein could not help nodding. He liked that answer very much.

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