Chapter Summaries

Lorry awoke in a sewer in the world of Lord of the Mysteries and realized he had taken over the body of a Backlund pickpocket who had died after drinking a Potion. After discovering he had become a partially empowered Marauder, he prepared to leave, but two lights appeared in his vision as someone called out nearby.

• Lorry woke in a filthy sewer and suffered intense pain that brought fragments of his predecessor’s memories to the surface.
• Lorry recognized Backlund and the Pickpocket Gang in those memories and realized he had transmigrated into the world of Lord of the Mysteries.
• Lorry accepted his new identity and learned that his predecessor had been given a Potion by the gang boss before losing consciousness and dying.
• Lorry meditated and discovered that the Potion had granted him Stealing, Agile Hands, Exceptional Observation, improved physical abilities, and skill with short weapons.
• Lorry suspected the Potion was incomplete, called himself half a Marauder, and prepared to leave the sewer.
• Two blurry white lights appeared in Lorry’s vision, and someone shouted for him to come out.

After waking in a sewer near Backlund, Lorry used his predecessor’s memories and newly gained Beyonder abilities to find clothes and food while avoiding capture. He was caught stealing bread when a homeowner confronted him with a shotgun.

• Lorry hid from two sewer workers who doubled back to watch the outlet, then waited until they left before crawling out.
• Lorry headed toward a nearby village, where he stole clothes from an isolated house and escaped its barking black dog.
• Lorry resolved to repay the household for the clothes and searched another home for food.
• Lorry used Exceptional Observation to find the kitchen, took rye bread, and drank water before heading for the door.
• A homeowner watched Lorry from the bedroom with a double-barreled shotgun and held him at gunpoint.

Lorry spent the night in an old man's home after explaining his desperate circumstances, and the old man trusted him enough to offer food, shelter, and treatment for his wound. As Lorry considered his next steps, he resolved to avoid the pickpocket gang, seek identification, advance his Beyonder Pathway, and eventually approach Klein's Tarot Club.

• Lorry entered the old man's home and boiled water while observing the room and its signs of solitary living.
• The old man questioned Lorry at gunpoint, listened to his account, and treated the wound on his forehead.
• The old man offered Lorry a bed for the night, explaining that Lorry's untouched kettle and clear eyes convinced him to trust him.
• Lorry ate, washed, and settled into bed beneath the crimson moonlight.
• Lorry planned to avoid the Wanderers Mutual Aid Association, obtain identification, pursue a complete Marauder potion, and seek a place in Klein's Tarot Club.

Lorry decided to seek potion formulas through Beyonder gatherings rather than approach Klein or the Tarot Club, but he still had no idea how to earn money. While waiting to thank the old man who had sheltered him, Lorry cleaned the man's home and learned that the son in the framed photograph was alive and serving as an officer in East Balam.

• Lorry rejected joining the Tarot Club because he feared disrupting Klein's growth and ruled out the Wanderers Mutual Aid Association as too dangerous.
• He settled on attending Beyonder gatherings, especially those organized by Mr. A or Mr. 'Eye of Wisdom,' to look for a potion formula.
• Lorry woke to find the old man gone and a bowl of bean soup left for him, then decided to wait and thank his benefactor before returning to Backlund.
• While waiting, Lorry cleaned the courtyard home and grew hungry as the hours passed.
• The old man returned with rye bread and ham, ordered Lorry to wash his face, and told him that the son in the photograph was alive and serving as an officer in East Balam.

Lorry accepted the old man's offer to arrange legal proof of identity and spent two days clearing weeds from his farmland in exchange. After finishing the work and heading back, Lorry smelled blood near the old man's house and used Exceptional Observation to sense four clusters of light inside.

• The old man offered to arrange Lorry's proof of identity if Lorry repaid him and cleared weeds from his farmland.
• The old man explained that he believed a policeman's most important duty was guiding people toward goodness and giving them a chance to repent.
• The old man sent a letter to his former colleague, then led Lorry to the fields to begin clearing the weeds.
• Lorry worked alone in the fields for two days, and the old man told him that his proof of identity had been arranged.
• Lorry finished clearing the weeds and hurried back to the old man's house, where he smelled rust and used Exceptional Observation to sense four clusters of light inside.

Lorry discovered that members of the Wanderers Mutual Aid Association had attacked the old man to find him, and resolved to rescue him. He crept into the house and prepared to seize the old man's shotgun while two enforcers searched the bedroom.

• Lorry used Exceptional Observation to detect four people inside the old man's house and recognized the smell of blood.
• Lorry overheard two enforcers say that Glowa was questioning the old man and that they had come to capture Lorry.
• Lorry realized Old Jack had exposed his whereabouts and felt guilty that the old man had been hurt because of him.
• Lorry learned that Glowa was a brutal enforcer and chose not to flee, despite his fear.
• Lorry entered the courtyard, saw blood beneath the kitchen door, and spotted two enforcers searching the bedroom.
• Lorry approached the distracted enforcers and focused on the double-barreled shotgun lying on the table.

Lorry fought off Glowa after killing two thugs who had entered the house, then used his agility and a crescent knife to sever Glowa’s hand. He turned to strike at Glowa’s throat.

• Lorry surprised and killed two thugs in the bedroom, first with a stove and then with a Double-Barreled Shotgun.
• Glowa burst through the kitchen door, revealed that he had tortured the old man for information, and charged Lorry.
• Lorry shot Glowa in the chest, but Glowa remained on his feet and smashed the shotgun apart with a punch.
• Lorry dodged Glowa’s attacks in the storeroom, then used a crescent knife to sever his wrist.
• Lorry turned and thrust the knife toward Glowa’s throat.

Lorry killed Glowa in the storeroom, then found the old man dead in the kitchen and vowed to punish everyone who had ordered the murder. After cleaning the old man’s body, Lorry gathered valuables from the attackers and discovered a strange spiritual object on Glowa as he prepared to flee.

• Lorry used the cramped storeroom, his Half-Moon Scimitar, and his knowledge of the room to kill Glowa.
• Lorry found the old man dead in the kitchen, mourned him, and vowed to go after the people who had given the orders.
• Lorry cleaned the old man’s body and placed him on his son’s bed, leaving the villagers and police to find him.
• Lorry took the thugs’ money pouches and searched Glowa, finding hardened leather armor, a heavy money pouch, and a Bird-Beak Mask.
• Lorry’s spirituality led him to a dark green, translucent sac-like object with faint spiritual fluctuations on Glowa’s chest.

After killing Glowa and taking his Beyonder Characteristic and Bird's Beak, Lorry reached Backlund and planned his next steps. When he went to the police station to seek Sergeant Gana's help with identification, a clerk recognized him as a wanted criminal from Koyar Village.

• Lorry hid near the old man's home until police officers arrived, then escaped with Glowa's Beyonder Characteristic.
• In Backlund, Lorry counted his money, planned to get identification and investigate the Wanderers Mutual Aid Association, and decided to seek a Beyonder gathering to learn how to store or sell Glowa's Characteristic.
• Lorry assessed the Bird's Beak's tracking ability and its risk of permanently destroying the wearer's sense of smell if worn for more than three hours.
• Lorry went to the police station to find Sergeant Gana and was directed to office 16.
• The clerk checked a wanted notice, recognized Lorry from Koyar Village, and called for help.

After a woman identified Lorry at the police station, he escaped and learned the police were circulating wanted notices with his face. He disguised himself, avoided capture at the inn, and went to rent a house from Miles, whose friend had left Backlund after a manuscript was plagiarized.

• A woman recognized Lorry at the police station, so he fled from the pursuing policemen and escaped into an alley.
• Lorry realized he was wanted, disguised himself, and returned to the inn to retrieve his belongings before the police arrived.
• A hotel attendant recognized Lorry on a wanted notice and alerted Chief Vaughn, but Lorry had already left.
• Lorry took a carriage to Iris Street and met Miles, who showed him the house next door for rent.
• Miles explained that the house belonged to a writer who was leaving Backlund after a thief plagiarized his manuscript, and offered it for twenty soli a week with a three-month minimum lease.

Lorry rented No. 64 from Miles and decided to pursue writing after considering his limited options and finances. He planned to seek a private detective and a Beyonder gathering, then began drafting a book inspired by Roselle.

• Lorry agreed to pay three months' rent for Miles's friend and signed a contract with him.
• Miles learned that Lorry, using the alias Raven, was an aspiring writer and offered to help him make connections.
• After Miles left, Lorry recognized him as Fors, the Tarot Club's Miss Magician.
• Lorry cleaned the house and weighed his plans, deciding to budget for a private detective and seek a Beyonder gathering at the Bravehearts Bar.
• Lorry went to the study and began writing a book about Roselle's efforts to restore his family's fortunes.

Lorry finished a sample of his novel “Young Roselle” and sought a publisher while hiring a detective to investigate One-Eyed Cyril. The chapter ended with Lorry heading to the Bravehearts Bar.

• Lorry completed twenty-one pages of “Young Roselle,” planning to show the manuscript to an underground publisher before writing more.
• Lorry asked Miles to arrange a meeting with someone from an underground publishing house and recommended a detective.
• Lorry hired Detective Stuart to track One-Eyed Cyril’s daily movements for five pounds, paying two pounds in advance.
• Lorry left Detective Stuart’s home and took a carriage to the Bravehearts Bar.

Lorry visited Bravehearts Bar seeking a way to defend himself and met Kaspars Kanlyning, who agreed to introduce him to someone interested in mysticism. The next evening, Kaspars led Lorry to a dark house, where Lorry was allowed to enter.

• Lorry asked the bartender at Bravehearts Bar who could help him buy something for self-defense, and the bartender named Kaspars Kanlyning.
• That evening, Lorry met Kaspars in billiard room six and asked to learn about mysticism; Kaspars told him to return the next day and bring three pounds.
• A powerful presence in the billiard room triggered Lorry's spiritual warnings, and a woman in a black court dress reassured Kaspars that Lorry meant no harm.
• Lorry worried about his dwindling money and considered selling Glowa's Beyonder characteristic and the Bird's Beak.
• The next evening, Kaspars had Lorry wear an iron mask and led him to a dark house, where he exchanged a password and let Lorry go inside.

Lorry attended Mr. Eye of Wisdom's Beyonder gathering, sold Glowa's Beyonder characteristic, and bought introductory mysticism notes. He arranged for the Apothecary to try making an anesthetic medicine as the gathering continued.

• Mr. Eye of Wisdom invited Lorry to speak first, and Lorry asked for basic, verified mysticism knowledge.
• Mr. Eye of Wisdom offered Lorry his introductory mysticism notebook for fifty pounds, while the Apothecary mocked Lorry's request and his unknown supernatural object.
• A woman in the corner outbid Mr. Eye of Wisdom and bought Lorry's object for three hundred and sixty pounds, and Lorry paid fifty pounds for the notebook.
• The Apothecary asked whether anyone had marrow crystals from the Spring of Elves, then offered medicines for sale.
• Lorry asked the Apothecary to find an anesthetic medicine, preferably a gas, and agreed to pay one pound up front for research and another if the Apothecary succeeded.
• The woman who bought Lorry's object announced that she wanted to sell a weapon with Beyonder effects.

Lorry bought the Serrated Dagger at a gathering and paid Eye of Wisdom to identify Glowa as a Sailor. After returning home, he resolved to pursue the truth about Cyril and studied his occult notes; the next morning, someone rang his doorbell before he could visit Miles.

• A woman offered the Serrated Dagger for 200 pounds, and Lorry bought it after the other participants showed little interest.
• Lorry asked Eye of Wisdom which pathway the entity belonged to, and Eye of Wisdom identified it as a Sequence 9 Sailor of the Church of the Lord of Storms.
• Lorry took precautions on his way home, then wondered why Glowa could withstand a shotgun and why Cyril had a Sequence 9 Beyonder working for him.
• Lorry resolved to uncover the real culprit, reviewed his purchases and Eye of Wisdom's notes, and planned to learn the Soundproofing ritual.
• The next morning, Lorry prepared to visit Miles, but his doorbell rang.

Lorry arranged to submit his Young Roselle manuscript through Miles’s underground publishing contact and studied the soundproofing ritual, only to discover that its incantation required learning Hermes. The next morning, he set out to meet Detective Stuart.

• Miles told Lorry that an underground publisher would consider a sample and warned him not to let anyone see the manuscript before publication.
• Miles gave Lorry an address for submitting his manuscript and advised him to provide anonymous bank account details.
• Lorry sent the Young Roselle manuscript to the publisher and opened an anonymous account at Backlund Bank.
• Lorry studied the soundproofing ritual and learned that he needed to recite its incantation in Hermes, so he began studying the language instead of attempting the ritual.
• After struggling to learn Hermes late into the night, Lorry left for his scheduled meeting with Detective Stuart.

Lorry learned that Cyril’s Wanderers Mutual Aid Association had ties to a noble, forcing Detective Stuart to abandon the investigation. Determined to continue alone, Lorry planned how to prepare and found a coded notice for an Eye of Wisdom gathering in the Backlund Morning Post.

• Detective Stuart showed Lorry surveillance reports tracing Cyril to the Quelaag Club and a suspected noble residence, then refused to continue despite Lorry offering more money.
• Lorry paid Stuart for the findings, took the documents, and learned that other private detectives would also fear challenging Cyril and his noble backing.
• Stuart sent his maid Lola on leave so he could take his family away from Backlund for safety.
• Lorry decided to investigate Cyril himself and considered seeking help at a Beyonder gathering, improving his Hermes and Ritual Magic, and acquiring firearms.
• Lorry found an Ernst Trading Company advertisement in the Backlund Morning Post and recognized it as a coded notice for an Eye of Wisdom gathering.

Lorry joined the Sugar Shooting Club and discovered that the physical improvements from the Marauder Potion made him a remarkably quick learner. After practicing and enjoying afternoon tea, he was stopped by police because a dog smelled gunpowder on him.

• Lorry attended a shooting lesson at the Sugar Shooting Club, where Wendy praised his rapid progress and offered him a break.
• Lorry enjoyed complimentary Desi-style desserts and sweet iced tea while thinking about Klein and the Tarot Club meeting.
• Lorry returned to the range, practiced until evening, and left the club after declining Wendy's invitation to dinner.
• Two police officers and a barking police dog stopped Lorry, suspecting he carried an illegal firearm, and he raised his hands and explained that he was a shooting club member.

Lorry attended Mr. Eye of Wisdom’s gathering and paid Black Snake ten pounds for access to a larger Beyonder gathering. At Mr. A’s gathering, Lorry sensed Mr. A’s dangerous attention, then submitted a request to buy a Mystical Item that could change his appearance.

• Lorry cleared up a misunderstanding with the police, then continued practicing shooting and studying Hermes.
• At Mr. Eye of Wisdom’s gathering, Lorry asked for ways to find other Beyonder gatherings, and Black Snake offered him an invitation for ten pounds.
• Lorry bought a specially made revolver and ammunition from Kaspars, then mastered the Hermes incantation passage.
• Lorry followed Black Snake’s directions to Mr. A’s gathering, where his spirituality warned him after Mr. A looked at him.
• Lorry recovered from the encounter and submitted a written request to buy a Mystical Item that could change his appearance.

Lorry attended Mr. A's gathering and found a possible way to obtain the appearance-changing Mystical Item False Face by offering his Bird's Beak and money. A hooded woman showed strong interest in the Bird's Beak, and Lorry began discussing its details with her.

• Lorry browsed the gathering's offers but found no Mystical Item that could change his appearance.
• Mr. A offered Lorry the False Face, a mask that could perfectly imitate someone's appearance but would fuse with its wearer if used for more than half an hour without being soaked in water.
• Lorry offered the Bird's Beak in exchange for the False Face and 300 pounds, but Mr. A declined and had the item's information posted on the blackboard.
• An attendant brought Lorry to a private room to meet a hooded woman interested in the Bird's Beak.
• Lorry explained the Bird's Beak, and the woman's eyes brightened as her breathing grew heavier.