Divination Club

A few more days passed. With still no sign of trouble, Lorne grew bolder and decided to go out for a walk.

"Divination Club. I never thought Tingen would have a place like this." Lorne studied the sign in front of him.

The receptionist at his hotel had recommended this place after he chatted with her about divination.

To his surprise, she had been very interested in the subject. She had talked to him at length and enthusiastically recommended the Divination Club.

"Trust me, the Fortune Tellers there are all very good. You definitely won't be disappointed."

Recalling the receptionist's words, Lorne pushed open the club's door.

The club occupied the second floor, and a beautiful lady handled reception.

Her light brown hair was pinned up. She looked Lorne over and smiled. "Sir, would you like a divination, or are you here to join our club?"

"Join?" Lorne asked, puzzled.

The lady with her light brown hair piled high replied smoothly, "Yes, join us and become a member of the club."

"What are the requirements?"

"You need to fill out your personal details and pay an annual membership fee. It's five pounds for the first year, then one pound each year after that."

"Unlike political or business clubs that require a recommendation from an existing member, our membership requirements are very relaxed."

So anyone can join as long as they pay? But five pounds is a little steep for an annual fee! Besides, I'm only here to flee... ahem... travel. I won't be staying in this city for long.

Lorne had no intention of joining, but he still wanted to know what benefits the club offered its members, so he asked, "Are there any membership benefits?"

"Of course. Members can use our meeting room and all our divination rooms."

"They can also enjoy the coffee and tea we provide free of charge."

"All the newspapers and magazines in our club are free to read."

"You can also buy various divination tools and materials at cost. Every month, we invite a famous Fortune Teller to give a lecture and answer questions."

"Most importantly, you can find a group of friends who share your interests."

That sounds pretty good. I'm even a little tempted, but I don't have the money... Feeling rather embarrassed, Lorne changed the subject. "What if I only want a divination?"

The beautiful lady showed no impatience at all. Maintaining her polite smile, she said, "There's no fixed price. Our members are free to perform divinations for guests and set their own fees. We only take a percentage."

"You can look through this booklet. It contains introductions and prices for the members willing to offer divinations." As she spoke, she handed Lorne a booklet.

Then she invited Lorne to sit on the sofa in the reception room and pointed to the booklet as she introduced the members currently at the club.

Hanass Vincent, a renowned diviner in Tingen and the club's resident instructor, was skilled in various methods of divination. His fee was four soli per session.

John Richard, a Fortune Teller with extensive experience and a longtime member of the club, charged two soli per session.

..."

The receptionist introduced several Fortune Tellers in succession, ranging from seasoned practitioners to beginners. Their prices likewise ranged from four soli to a few pence.

Why not try the cheapest one first? With money tight, Lorne did not want to spend too much.

No, my life is on the line here. The cheap ones don't have enough experience. If their divination is wrong and I believe it, won't I be in serious trouble? Lorne abandoned his initial plan to pick the cheapest Fortune Teller.

I might as well splurge on the most expensive one. Just this once. Lorne gritted his teeth and made his choice.

"I'd like Mr. Vincent to perform my divination."

"Certainly. Please follow me." The beautiful lady stood and led Lorne through the door beside the reception room.

Beyond it was a fairly short corridor. The room at the far end appeared to be a meeting room, with faint sounds of pages turning and a light aroma of coffee drifting out.

After a few steps, the receptionist motioned for Lorne to stop. Then she walked briskly ahead and called softly, "Mr. Vincent, someone is here for a divination."

"All right, I'll be right there," came a middle-aged man's voice.

"The Amethyst Room again?"

"Yes."

Lorne was then led into the so-called Amethyst Room, where he met a middle-aged man wearing a black, old-fashioned robe that gave him an air of mystery and solemnity.

"Hello, I'm Hanass Vincent."

Lorne greeted him, then explained what he wanted.

"Well, I'd like a divination to find out whether I'll be in any danger in the near future."

"Could you be more specific? What sort of danger?" Hanass asked.

"Hmm... The thing is, I accidentally offended someone and fled to Tingen. I'd like to know whether they'll take revenge on me." Lorne decided to reveal part of the truth. He knew that doing so would make the divination more accurate.

"All right, I understand. What method of divination would you like?"

"Dream Divination," Lorne said. He had always been curious about what Dream Divination actually was.

"Could you give me your date of birth?"

After a moment's thought, Lorne gave him the original owner of his body's birth date.

Hanass nodded and said, "Would you mind stepping outside? Dream Divination is best performed alone in a room."

"Ah, well... all right." Lorne said nothing more and turned to leave the room.

There was nothing he could do. He knew nothing about it, after all.

A few minutes later, he heard Hanass calling him. He reentered the Amethyst Room and found Hanass Vincent looking rather unwell.

"I'm sorry, sir. There seems to have been a problem with the Dream Divination. Could you choose another method?"

"Well... I'll take a Tarot Cards divination, then." Lorne chose a method he was more familiar with.

Hanass pushed the neatly stacked Tarot Cards across the black tabletop toward Lorne. "Carefully recall what happened and the question you want answered, then shuffle and cut the deck."

After going over everything in his mind, Lorne picked up the Tarot Cards, shuffled them, and cut the deck.

Once he finished, Hanass said from across the table, "In a moment, draw two cards at random. The first represents the current state of the situation, and the second represents its eventual outcome."

As he spoke, he spread the entire deck across the table.

Following his instructions, Lorne gently drew two cards.

Hanass turned over the first card.

It was the upright Tarot Card, the Devil.

The card gave Lorne a fright. Even someone who knew nothing about divination could tell it was no good omen.

Then Hanass turned over the other card.

Lorne leaned closer to look and saw the reversed Tarot Card, the Fool.