Divination Club

On July 7, warm sunlight spilled over the streets of Tingen, drawing wisps of moisture from the ground where they had settled during the night.

Nimrod changed into a well-tailored suit, tucked the Monocle into his inner pocket, and walked openly through the streets, looking every inch an elegant gentleman.

Nimrod remembered that when Klein had first become a Nighthawk, he had deliberately joined a divination club to act as a "Seer"-a club near the home of Welch, the original Klein's classmate who had died in the Antigonus Notebook incident.

Nimrod could not quite remember where the Divination Club was, but fortunately, Hanass Vincent, one of its well-known members, was an instructor there.

Both Aurora Order members involved in the Antigonus Notebook incident had submitted accounts of their experiences to Mr. Z in letters, as proof of their devotion to the True Creator. Nimrod had already read both letters himself.

At that moment, the countdown on the back of Nimrod's hand was still ticking steadily, second by second. Over the next few days, he needed to improve his strength as much as possible to face the more blatant dangers of the world of Circle of Inevitability.

That meant things like digesting his potion and acquiring Beyonder items.

Although the Aurora Order offered generous rewards, Nimrod's contributions were still limited. Even a Blessed could not receive gifts from the higher-ups without a reason.

And after Amon had looted the treasury of his branch of the Aurora Order, their financial situation was... rather strained.

-Although Nimrod still had no idea why Amon, who had never appeared in Tingen City in the original story, had sent an avatar here, the implications of the Celestial Worthy's earlier words suggested that this might be an effect of his own symbolism as an "error" from beyond this world.

So obtaining money was another reason Nimrod wanted to get in touch with Klein-of course, there was no need to misunderstand. Nimrod knew that the current state of Klein's wallet was rather painful to behold, so he had no intention of using Klein to digest his "Marauder" potion.

What he really hoped to connect with was Miss Justice of the Tarot Club... or rather, her gold pounds. As an Oracle of the Aurora Order, he had enough connections, with Mr. Z's assistance, to quickly gather materials related to Beyonders. What he lacked now was a buyer.

As it happened, Miss Justice and Mr. Hanged Man of the Tarot Club both had considerable financial means and a substantial demand for Beyonder materials.

-Nimrod was absolutely not making snide remarks in his head about a certain Poor God.

With these thoughts in mind, Nimrod slowly climbed to the second floor, crossed the hall, and arrived at the Divination Club's reception desk.

The Divination Club's receptionist was a beautiful lady. Seeing Nimrod's proper attire and the air of wealth about him, she approached him with a smile and asked:

"Sir, would you like a divination, or would you like to join our club?"

Nimrod calmly glanced at the beautiful lady with eyes as black as a raven's feathers.

"I'd like to join your club-heh, a friend of mine is a member here."

"Hmm... joining us doesn't require a recommendation from a full member. You only need to fill out your details and pay the annual membership fee," the beautiful lady explained with practiced ease.

"Still, it's even better if you have a friend among our members. May I ask your friend's name?"

Nimrod thought for a moment. As he took out his bulging leather wallet, he dredged up the Loenese pronunciation of his subordinate's name from his memory. "Hanass Vincent."

He remembered that the club's annual fee was five pounds. The reason he remembered it so clearly was that membership in this club cost as much as the Intis ambassador.

"...Huh?"

The beautiful lady was visibly taken aback. She had never expected to hear this gentleman mention the name of their club's instructor-a diviner famous throughout Tingen City!

However, she quickly composed herself. When the gentleman handed her a banknote bearing Henry Augustus's portrait-five pounds-she hurriedly accepted it with both hands and carefully put it away.

"You'll also need to fill out your details, and I'll issue you a receipt-as you know, this is our standard procedure."

"Of course." Nimrod took a form out of his coat and, under the beautiful lady's bewildered gaze, swiftly filled it out before pushing it slightly toward her.

"Here you are."

The beautiful lady silently accepted the form from Nimrod and confirmed that it was indeed the information form their club used for members-but she had not given this guest one yet. How had he obtained it?

She managed to come up with an explanation-Perhaps Mr. Vincent had already shown it to him-before speaking politely.

"Welcome to the Tingen City Divination Club, Mr. Nimrod Emonsal. I'm Angelica Barehart..."

After briefly introducing herself and explaining the matters related to membership, Angelica handed Nimrod a specially made membership cufflink. Maintaining her polite smile, she said:

"You seem to be on very good terms with Mr. Vincent. I imagine you must be an excellent diviner as well?"

"I'm only passable. After all, I can't really be considered a true 'Seer,'" Nimrod replied softly as he followed Angelica, who was showing him the way. "Speaking of which, I remember Hanass came to the club today. Where is he now?"

"Hmm... he's explaining the finer points of Astrological Divination in the meeting room right now. Would you like me to let Mr. Vincent know you're here?" Angelica considered her words before asking. Nimrod, however, shook his head and answered in a rather friendly tone:

"No need. Let's not interrupt the other diviners' enthusiasm for learning divination. I'll just find a seat in the meeting room and listen in-I'll speak with him privately once he's finished."

The corners of Nimrod's mouth lifted slightly. "I imagine I might even give him a surprise..."

Of course, whether it would be a pleasant surprise or a nasty shock remained to be seen.

For Hanass Vincent, seeing his immediate superior sitting in his usual workplace and watching him just after he had made a mess of things... would probably be more of a shock.