Chapter Twenty-One: Officially Meeting Klein

"Miss, what are you looking for?" An elderly man in formal attire appeared beside Audrey. His hair was already half white, but his green eyes remained sharp.

"Mr. Scott, I thought I would find Birdman's Eye here." Audrey waved the materials list in her hand at the old man and looked at him pitifully. "Sorry, I'm very curious about it..."

"Birdman's Eye..." The old man frowned slightly and recalled for a few seconds. "That material was taken by one of Young Master Hibert's guests last month. I haven't had time to update its status on the materials list yet. I'm very sorry to disappoint you."

"Taken..." Audrey wore a regretful expression. It seems there are no other Birdman's Eyes in the family treasury.

"Do you know who that guest was?" She wanted to try communicating with Hibert's guest and see whether she could pay him a gold pound to buy back the material. After all, as a Beyonder material, Birdman's Eye obviously could not only be consumed as the main ingredient for a potion.

"I don't know his identity. In fact, I only know that guest's name." Old Scott shook his head. "Mr. Hibert told me that if he gave his name, he could take Birdman's Eye from the family treasury."

Audrey was somewhat disappointed. That guest had clearly come for Birdman's Eye. She had already abandoned the idea of buying it back and instead decided to seek the Beyonder material through other channels.

Before leaving, Audrey casually asked, "What was that guest's name?"

"That guest called himself Rajaks, just as Young Master Hibert instructed. It's a name with a strong South Continent flavor." Scott escorted Audrey all the way to the warehouse door and answered calmly.

"The result of the divination isn't very good." Klein spread his hands toward the star chart before him and Gracis, who was sitting opposite him. His expression was solemn.

"You can see it yourself. Beneath the prosperity on the surface lie the Abyss and destruction. Without a doubt, I believe you should give up on this investment." Klein spoke with finality.

After the divination, Klein could determine to a certain extent that the man named Lanevus definitely had a problem.

Melvin, who had investigated Old Neil and seen that something was wrong with his fate, was looking for this man named Lanevus. He had even commissioned a Detective for that purpose!

Melvin was definitely a Beyonder. From this point alone, Lanevus, whom he had hired someone to investigate, was most likely no ordinary person either... Besides, the result of this divination was clearly not very good!

"..." Gracis fell silent. His mouth opened several times, only to close again. After a few minutes, he gave a bitter smile. "After I return home, I'll seriously consider it."

Hearing such an answer, Klein could only shake his head and sigh inwardly, experiencing the helplessness a "Seer" ought to feel: a "Seer" could only offer advice and could not make decisions for others.

It's hard to persuade someone determined to die... Bah, how can I curse someone like that? Perhaps Melvin is the evil Beyonder, while Lanevus is a conscientious entrepreneur, and Mr. Gracis might even benefit from it... Er, regardless of what the truth is, this investment is definitely very unstable. I hope he doesn't lose everything... Klein walked out of the Yellow Crystal Divination Room together with Gracis.

As soon as they left, Angelica came over and said softly to the two of them, "Mr. Moretti, Mr. Gracis, someone is here to see you for a divination." Her expression was somewhat strange.

Who? Klein curiously craned his neck toward the reception hall, and his smile immediately froze.

He saw the man he had encountered during yesterday's Dream Divination: Anna's fiancé, Joyce Myers. But that was not the important part. The important part was the person standing beside him.

The man wore a top hat, with long hair hanging down behind his head. He had refined, scholarly features and a pair of indifferent silver eyes. His skin was so pale that he looked like a corpse.

Melvin!

"Aha, Mr. Myers, the 'Seer' Mr. Moretti you were looking for has come out." He removed his top hat and smiled at Klein, winking. "And Mr. Gracis, the diviner I was waiting for, has also come out... Well then, see you later." The final sentence was directed at Klein.

Watching Melvin and Gracis enter another divination room, Klein forced down his grave expression and squeezed out a smile at Joyce Myers. "Sir, what would you like to have divined?"

"Ah, sorry, Mr. Gracis. I didn't come to see you for a divination... Although I will pay the divination fee." Smiling, Aster took out two pence and placed them on the table before Gracis before sitting opposite him.

"Sir, what can I do for you?" Gracis had just sensed the strange atmosphere between Aster and Klein, and for a moment, he was completely unable to make sense of it.

"I'd like to know about your recent investment. Have you decided to invest in Mr. Lanevus's steel factory?"

"It's a steel company." Gracis instinctively corrected Aster's wording. He leaned slightly against the back of his chair, his expression turning wary. "Before answering your question, I believe you should first introduce yourself and explain the source of your information."

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. Haha, you can call me Melvin." Aster patted his pocket, stood up, and took half a candle from the cabinet in the divination room. With a flick of his finger, he ignited the candle, making its flame burn blue. He placed it on the table and sat back down. "It's a little dark in here, so I lit a candle... Mr. Gracis, may I ask, do you... believe in fate?"

What a strange trick. He can light a candle just by rubbing it with his finger? Magic? And what does believing in fate mean... Could he be saying that fate told him this?

With some doubt and irritation at being brushed off, Gracis looked at the candle flame, then at Aster's silver eyes.

Then he discovered that the colors around him were growing increasingly dense and distorted. Specks of gray-white began spreading from the blue candle flame, expanding outward.

In the end, the only thing remaining in Gracis's unfocused eyes was a pair of indifferent silver eyes.

"Where is Lanevus now?" Aster forcibly channeled spirits as he took a small bottle of fragrance from his pocket and waved it beneath Gracis's nose.

"He lives in Room 201 of the Rose Hotel at No. 4 Olsna Street..." Gracis answered drowsily.

This was one application of Spirit Channeling. Upon reaching Sequence 7, a Spirit Medium could forcibly channel the spirit of a living person without ritual materials or tools—but most Spirit Mediums would not do so. Forcible Spirit Channeling without any protection harmed both parties, and the information obtained would also be more limited.

Aster was forcibly channeling Gracis's spirit at this moment. Since his name had already been registered with the Nighthawks, there was no need for him to hide his abilities any longer. At most, Klein in the room next door would notice that something was wrong. Besides, normal Spirit Channeling required the target to relax both body and mind. Aster had seen Gracis's rejection and distrust of him, so he had directly chosen forcible Spirit Channeling: he had no time to raise the favorability of a minor NPC.

"Does he have a fiancée?" Aster did not pursue the previous question. Gracis had not answered it directly and had only stated Lanevus's residence, which meant he also did not know where Lanevus would appear now.

"I don't know..." Gracis answered blankly.

He doesn't even know that... Aster was somewhat helpless. "When was the last time you saw Lanevus?"

"The day before yesterday... July seventh..." An expression of pain gradually appeared on Gracis's face. It was a side effect of the forcible Spirit Channeling.

"...Sleep." After uttering a single word, Aster used his hand to close Gracis's eyelids. Gracis slumped over the table and fell into a deep sleep. Perhaps when he woke up, he would panic and report the matter to the police or take some other extreme action, but Aster did not particularly care.

He already had another plan for concealing himself.

"Are you two finished with your divination?" Aster shifted his gaze to the doorway. The door to the divination room had already been opened, and Klein was standing there. His expression was grave, and one hand was inserted inside his formal attire. A distinct bulge could be seen beneath his armpit from outside. Clearly, it was a revolver.

"I sensed a strange fluctuation. What did you do to Mr. Gracis?" Klein did not dare enter the divination room, nor did he wish to come into contact with the Melvin whose stance was unclear. But he had no choice. After the other party had just implied "see you later," he did not dare flee recklessly. What if Melvin came out, discovered that he had run, and went on a killing spree?

Although Klein felt that the other party might not do such a thing, he was unwilling to take the risk.

"Forcible Spirit Channeling. I asked about Lanevus's whereabouts." Aster did not conceal his intentions and directly stated his goal. He was ultimately not an experienced Spirit Medium, much less a Sequence 7 Psychiatrist of the Spectator Pathway. He could not make Gracis forget the questions he had just asked. If Klein wanted to know what he had been investigating, he could simply ask Gracis after he woke up.

He shrugged, stood up, and went to the cabinet to pull out a chair and place it beside the table. "It's obvious that you're very nervous and quite wary of me. So let's change the way we talk... You ask me one question, and I'll ask you one question. How does that sound?"

"You can ask, but I may not answer." After a moment of silence, Klein finally sat down. Melvin's answer just now had clearly indicated that he possessed the ability of forcible Spirit Channeling. With that alone, Klein knew that he was absolutely no match for Melvin. If Melvin truly harbored malicious intentions, Klein would not be able to escape even if he tried.

Since that was the case, it would be better to first comply with his wishes and play this question-and-answer game. During the process, he could also gather a great deal of information.