Temperance

Risks? Audrey did not voice the question, but she leaned forward slightly, clearly eager to ask what those risks were.

"Hmm..." Lin Chuan counted on his fingers, listing them at an unhurried pace:

"Let me think of the possibilities. People selling drink recipes as potion formulas, people taking the money and running, people selling a formula only to turn around and betray the buyer, people using the sale of formulas as bait... These are all common risks in gray-market transactions, but they aren't the main one."

"As for the main risk, I imagine this gentleman might know something about it?" Lin Chuan did not turn toward Alger, but everyone present knew whom he meant.

Alger stiffened slightly at those words, trying to work out why Lin Chuan had suddenly singled him out.

Perhaps he saw through the probing I'd originally intended and is displeased with me? Why did His Excellency glance at me earlier? "Evil god"...

He speculated for a moment, but soon abandoned such pointless deliberation. Faced with an ancient, powerful, unknown being like this, if the other party was merely passing him the conversation, he only needed to pick it up.

Considering His Excellency's friendly attitude, perhaps he simply felt that having only two people talking might seem exclusionary, so he casually decided to bring someone else into the conversation, just like ordinary small talk...

This absurd conjecture flashed through Alger's mind, only for him to dismiss it himself. "Trust in the might of the gods, but not in their mercy." Though he had never heard this proverb from the Fourth Epoch, the reasoning behind it was universal.

Yet upon closer consideration, he actually found nothing wrong with the idea. He was merely a Sequence 8 Beyonder, someone who was not even valued by the Church. What could such an ancient being possibly want from him? Surely he was not even worth exploiting?

"...A chance meeting with another person is a blessing-a bond woven by fate..."

Alger suddenly recalled those strange words and decided to take up the topic. After all, however much he thought it over, he really had no choice in the matter. At least, that was how he saw it.

And so, from Audrey's perspective, the taciturn gentleman opposite her spent a moment lost in thought before continuing the conversation:

"That's right. For unaffiliated Beyonders, the biggest problem often isn't being unable to buy a potion formula. It's that even if they have a way to obtain one, they cannot verify its authenticity."

Audrey frowned slightly. "You mean... the seller might provide a fake formula?"

"A fake formula?" Alger's lips twitched with something like sympathy. "A fake formula would be getting off lightly. What you really need to fear is one that's half true and half false."

He went on to give examples:

"For instance, a Sequence 9 potion formula might list the correct main ingredients, but one of the supplementary ingredients has been replaced with something whose name is similar but whose properties are different. Or the quantities might have been altered. In another case, even the main ingredients might be only half correct..."

"Sometimes the seller is deliberately cheating you. There are all sorts of people out there, after all. Sometimes, though, even the seller doesn't know there's something wrong with the formula."

Audrey's brow furrowed even more tightly, and she instinctively asked, "Then what happens... after you drink it?"

Alger did not answer immediately, because, for some reason, Lin Chuan answered in his stead:

"If there's a mistake in a Sequence 9 formula, the mildest outcome is that the potion fails. You waste your money and ingredients and gain nothing."

"Of course, in many cases, it will be worse-mutation or even losing control, for example. Since it's only Sequence 9, however, the consequences generally won't be too severe. But even if the potion was made from an incorrect formula, you can no longer choose another pathway."

Audrey's face paled slightly. Her fingers, which had been resting on her knees, unconsciously clenched the fabric of her skirt, but she neither looked away nor interrupted.

She fell silent for a little while before confirming, "In other words, buying a formula isn't difficult in itself. The difficult part is confirming that the formula is untainted, complete, and safe."

"Correct," Alger replied succinctly, then added, "So for unaffiliated Beyonders, the most precious thing isn't potion ingredients or the formula itself. It's trustworthiness."

As he spoke, his gaze shifted subtly for an instant, passing Audrey's shoulder as though casually sweeping toward Lin Chuan and Klein-or as though he had looked at nothing at all.

Lin Chuan sat in his seat, watching with interest as events developed in the direction he wanted. At the same time, he realized that his participation seemed to have made today's Tarot Club gathering run a little long. He wondered whether Klein's spirituality could still hold out...

Moreover, not long after they left the gray fog, Dunn and Leonard would arrive to investigate the notebook and the suicide. Excessive depletion of spirituality would also give Klein a headache, making it easier for them to notice something amiss...

With that in mind, Lin Chuan secretly mobilized his spirituality and channeled it into Klein at the head of the long table. Having spent ten thousand years marinating above the gray fog himself, he could also see Klein's invisible connections to Sefirah Castle and the crimson stars. Although he lacked the authority to sever those connections and kick people out, replenishing some spirituality to prevent a disconnection halfway through the gathering was well within his abilities.

Meanwhile, Klein felt his headache ease, and maintaining the invisible connections with the crimson stars and the grayish-white fog became easier as well. He was surprised by this development, but when he caught Lin Chuan's gaze, he understood what had happened.

After hearing Alger's reply, Audrey pondered briefly, then suddenly asked:

"Then, if you had a formula in your possession, how would you verify its authenticity?"

Alger's eyebrows twitched. He did not know whether the girl was throwing the question back at him or had understood his hint. He remained silent for ten or so seconds. Only after seeing that Klein was still saying nothing, neither approving nor objecting, and that Lin Chuan had no intention of speaking either, did he carefully reply:

"I actually have two Sequence 9 potion formulas. I can guarantee their authenticity, and I'm willing to sell them to you, but there isn't any good way to verify them. Besides, you probably wouldn't trust my word alone."

He first turned his gaze toward Klein, who sat upright at the head of the table, then looked at Lin Chuan. The latter shook his head lightly, though it was unclear whether he had no intention of getting involved or simply did not care about such trivial matters.

Audrey noticed Alger's gaze. She half turned along with him, looking at Klein and then Lin Chuan. Just as she was about to make a request, she realized she had been overlooking a certain question all this time. That was terribly impolite, so she hurriedly asked:

"Your Excellencies, how should we address you?"

Alger nodded slightly, feeling a trace of appreciation for Audrey, and followed with a solemn question:

"Your Excellencies, how should we address you?"

Klein was taken aback for a moment, his fingers resting on the Bronze Long Table

beginning to tap lightly, but just then, he heard Lin Chuan's cheerful voice:

"Temperance."