"It will certainly exceed your expectations."
Julian quickly recovered and turned to Oakley with a smile:
"Councilman, as Miss Barrehart said, Mr. Vincent is busy at the moment. I can help ease your concerns as well.
"If you aren't satisfied with my divination, you can consult Mr. Vincent afterward-but I believe you won't need to wait that long."
Although Councilman Oakley was still somewhat hesitant at first, he eventually nodded at Julian's words:
"We can give it a try."
"Miss Barrehart, please prepare our best divination room."
Julian smiled and gestured for Oakley to proceed:
"Please come with me, Your Excellency."
Under Angelica's guidance, the two entered a spacious divination room clearly intended for distinguished guests.
A chandelier made of clear crystal hung from the ceiling. The beech table was impeccably tidy, with everything needed for divination laid out on it.
After serving them freshly ground coffee, Angelica left the divination room.
"Sir, sorry for the trouble, but please step outside as well."
Julian turned to Oakley's attendant as he spoke.
"But..."
The attendant, who looked like a butler, hesitated. Oakley spoke to Julian rather curtly:
"Mr. Albrecht, was it?
"I'm your client, so I believe I can decide who stays here.
"After all, this is our first meeting. I'd feel more at ease with someone I trust beside me."
"Of course, if that's what you wish."
Julian wasn't offended. He merely smiled faintly:
"But I wonder if you've heard something Emperor Roselle once said: 'The fewer outsiders who know a family's dirty laundry, the better.'
"Although you may trust this gentleman a great deal, in my view, certain subjects... would be better discussed without him present, for his own sake."
Oakley's entire body jolted at those words.
The way he looked at Julian changed noticeably, and even his breathing grew heavier!
"Miller, step outside and guard the door."
Oakley turned to the butler and gave the order.
"Yes, Viscount."
The middle-aged butler named Miller nodded gently, then backed out of the room with great deference. He closed the door with both hands and stationed himself outside.
"Mr. Albrecht, what exactly did you mean by the 'family's dirty laundry' you mentioned just now?"
Oakley now addressed him respectfully, his manner considerably more serious.
"You came for a divination because of problems with your health, didn't you?"
Julian smiled. Everything was developing exactly as he had expected:
"Your sleep has been getting worse, you often suffer from migraines and ringing in your ears, and both your physical condition and mental state have deteriorated. Most importantly, you've begun losing weight rapidly, and even the doctors can't find the cause?"
"That's right. It seems you truly are a capable fortune-teller."
Oakley's gaze grew eager:
"I came here to ask exactly what's happening to my body."
He then began recounting his experience: about three months earlier, the viscount and Conservative Party councilman had begun suffering from nervous exhaustion, headaches, and a loss of appetite. Before long, his weight had also started plummeting. He had lost twenty kilograms in just one month.
This had terrified Oakley. His doctors had suspected diabetes, as well as exposure to certain toxic substances, but further examinations had ruled out all these possibilities.
Considering the stringent security at his estate, Oakley vaguely suspected that someone close to him might have done something to him. But without evidence, he couldn't casually accuse anyone.
Only after listening carefully to everything did Julian take a deep breath:
"Naturally, ordinary doctors can't identify the problem. They understand medicine, but know very little about mysticism."
"Mysticism?"
Oakley's expression changed abruptly:
"You mean..."
"Someone is using evil means to curse you."
Julian nodded, confirming Oakley's suspicion.
When Oakley had entered the Divination Club earlier, Julian had noticed not only the various incongruities caused by his drastic weight loss, but also a distinct grayish-brown blotch staining the aura around him.
Like a burrowing worm, that blotch was slowly eating away at Oakley's mental strength and spirituality, disrupting the balance of energy in his body.
Moreover, that grayish-brown stain hadn't originated inside Oakley's body. It came from an external source-something Julian could tell from where it clung to his aura.
Oakley's pupils contracted at those words, panic showing in his eyes:
"A curse?
"Wait, from what you said earlier, someone close to me cast this curse? How can you be certain?"
Julian could hear that the viscount was still unwilling to believe it, so he raised his index and middle fingers and tapped the corner of his eye:
"My eyes are different from those of ordinary people. Not only can I discern someone's temperament, fortune, and health from their appearance, I can also see certain unusual conditions.
"The curse that's invisible to you is visible to me... In my eyes, each has its own color.
"Ever since I saw you this afternoon, the power of this curse has been slowly weakening... Let me guess: after you go out for a walk and spend some time in the sun, your condition improves, but once you return home, it quickly worsens again?"
"That's right."
Oakley paused, then suddenly understood:
"You mean..."
"Yes. Although the curse works gradually and imperceptibly, its source is in your home.
"The farther you are from home, the weaker the curse becomes. It only 'refreshes' when you return."
With that, Julian took out an amethyst pendulum.
He had seized this pendulum from Gavin Kennedy. Since its design and appearance were quite appealing, Julian had kept it.
Although a four-color seer wasn't as skilled at divination as a Seer, basic divination was still possible.
With most of the information already established, he only needed to determine whether the source of the curse had a physical form to support his judgment.
Soon, the amethyst pendulum began swinging clockwise in broad, rapid circles.
That meant "yes," and emphatically so.
Julian nodded slightly, then put the pendulum away:
"Your Excellency, around the time before you fell ill, did anyone send anything or any gifts to your home?"
"Gifts?"
Oakley thought for a moment, then said in disbelief:
"My eldest son, Jennings, gave me an antique clock from the early Fifth Epoch..."
As he spoke, his entire body suddenly began trembling. Incredulous, he said:
"Could he really have gone this far for the sake of those factory owners' interests?"