In the deserted alley, the environment grew increasingly dark, and a cold wind blew in gusts. Although it wasn't a blade that could cut one's face, it seemed to possess a magical quality, slowly and resolutely seeping into one's clothes.
Klein, disguised as Gehrman Sparrow, adjusted his top hat and saw the " Magician " lady, wearing a dark scarf and a thick wool coat, carrying a heavy-looking suitcase, cautiously walking into the alley.
--In the Kingdom of Loen, influenced by the Church of Evernight, many garments that were once considered to belong only to men now have women's versions. Just as in Intis, upper-class ladies often ride horses sideways with special saddles, this is not the case in Loen, where ladies have their own equestrian attire.
Klein pulled his left hand, adorned with the " Creeping Hunger " badge, from his pocket, stretched out his fingers, and said:
"Have you prepared a draft?"
Fors suddenly felt a cold wind blowing into his neck and instinctively shrank back, saying:
"It can be serialized for at least two weeks."
"I've already handed it over to the newspaper editor."
Before Gehrman Sparrow could ask again, she quickly added:
"I brought a pen, ink, and manuscript paper."
Klein nodded slightly, took two steps forward, and reached out to grab Miss " Magician's" shoulder.
Fors immediately focused her attention, her eyes reflecting a phantom book that was slowly turning its pages.
Her surroundings suddenly became vibrant and colorful, with reds becoming redder, blacks becoming blacker, and browns becoming browner, all layered together in a mesmerizing way.
Fors had fully adapted to this state, successfully " Record " this " Travel," and carefully observed the scenery along the way, "imprinting" the strange and indescribable Spirit World creatures into his mind.
After a few breaths, everything went black before her eyes. She felt a cold she had never experienced before, and her body couldn't help but tremble slightly.
Fors instinctively used magic to illuminate his surroundings, looked around, and found himself in a wooden cabin; "The World," Gehrman Sparrow, had vanished without a trace.
Where is this place...? Fors looked towards the window, only to see something thickly pressed down there, preventing any light from shining in.
This made her even more puzzled. She went to the door, stretched out her right hand, and pulled the door open.
With a creaking sound, she saw snow, snow piled up so high it blocked the exit.
"..." Fors stood there, stunned, the reminder from Gehrman Sparrow echoing in her mind:
"Keep warm..."
In just a minute or two, Klein had already gone out to sea, Placate his " Creeping Hunger " with the prey he had chosen beforehand, and returned to his rented room in Backlund to wait for " Mystery Queen " Bernadette and Miss Sharron to investigate the unusual situation.
In fact, given Klein's style, he would have personally handled this matter and conducted additional investigations to confirm as much as possible that the Witch Trissy had no plan to help Mr. "The Door" escape. However, considering that Zaratul was already in Backlund, he decided to be cautious and abandoned his plan to go out for a stroll.
Under the influence of the Law of Beyonder Characteristics Convergence, he felt that if he wandered around Backlund, he would eventually run into Zaratul, or even Amon.
Sigh, I had already figured out how to disguise myself: buy a bicycle, get a uniform, and ride around different neighborhoods as a postman... that way I'd be least likely to arouse suspicion... Klein took a sip of the "Gulu Tree Sap" he brought back from the sea, leaned back in his chair, and let the Marionette Enuni and Qonas massage his shoulders and legs respectively.
" The Forsaken Land of the Gods," Afternoon Town's camp.
After opening his eyes, Derrick Berg immediately stood up, Door Opening, went outside, walked around the campfire, and went to the chief's room.
He suppressed his excitement, took a deep breath, and gently knocked on the thick wooden door.
"Please come in." Amidst the knocking, Colin Iliad's deep voice rang out.
Derrick turned the handle, pushed the door open, and, glancing at Colin, the " Demon Hunter " with gray hair and old scars on his face, blurted out:
"Your Excellency, I have discovered some peculiar mushrooms; they are edible!"
Colin Iliad paused for a moment, then slowly began to speak:
"Mushroom?"
Hearing the doubt in the chief's words, Derrick instantly recalled a type of mushroom he had once seen:
Those creatures, from the abandoned temple of the " Fallen Creator," were exceptionally brightly colored and appetizing, but were inherently extremely dangerous.
His mood calmed down considerably, and he nodded with a soft "hmm."
"Yes, mushrooms, different kinds of mushrooms, they can devour the flesh and blood of Monster to grow and reproduce..."
Derrick described in detail the unique features of those mushrooms and carefully explained what milk, beef, fish, and flour were.
Finally, he emphasized that the mushrooms must be fully cooked before eating, and that it is important to distinguish between varieties that accumulate toxins.
Colin Iliad listened quietly without showing any emotional fluctuation, then thought for a moment and said:
"What other dangers or precautions do they pose?"
"Uh..." Derrick's face suddenly flushed slightly, "I'll go and study it some more."
After saying that, without waiting for the chief to speak, he turned around, opened the door, and ran out.
Back in his room, he took a breath, sat down, and began to pray to Mr. The Fool, asking Him to convey the question he had just asked to Mr. World.
Above the Gray Fog, Klein sat in the high-backed chair belonging to " The Fool," tapping his index finger lightly on the armrest, and muttered to himself:
What other dangers are there?
"Although Frank's imagination, action and creativity made me feel a little intimidated, he was still just a Sequence 5 ' Druid '. How dangerous could the mushrooms he made be? With City of Silver's many years of experience in the dark environment, he could easily deal with those mushrooms."
The terrifying anomalies such as the ' Future ' ship producing milk and the pirate head growing watermelons within the Ruins of the Gods' Battle are due to the lingering aura and divine power of the Earth Mother in that area. The real 'culprit' is a deity, not Frank...
"Hiss, if the creation of the ' Forsaken Land of the Gods ' is related to the fall of the ' Ancient The Sun God ' due to betrayal, then the great war at that time would not only have left behind the forces of ' Evernight,' ' Concealment,' ' Depravity,' and ' Storm.' Perhaps some areas there still have the influence of ' The Sun ' and 'earth'..."
"This..."
Klein for a moment, then materialized "The World" —Gehrman Sparrow —and instructed him to tell the truth:
"... If they encounter the divine power of the 'Earth' realm, those mushrooms might undergo unknown mutations..."
Having received a response, Derrick once again rushed out of his room and ran to the chief's door.
This time, the door opened naturally without him knocking.
Derrick glanced back at his teammates by the campfire, went into the room, and casually closed the heavy wooden door.
"The divine power of the 'Earth' realm may have caused those mushrooms to undergo unknown mutations," he stated frankly, without explaining how he had come to this conclusion.
" The Demon Hunter " Colin's expression remained unchanged as he repeated the key phrase in a low voice:
"The divine power of the 'Earth Realm'..."
His voice lowered, and he finally fell silent, speaking only after about ten seconds:
"After we get back, we can designate an area for planting and see how it goes."
"So, what is the price?"
Derrick immediately responded:
" The Potion recipe of the ' Ancient Alchemist '."
Colin Iliad nodded slowly:
"This must be approved by the ' Council of Six,' and I will push for it as soon as I return to the city."
Their exploration team was scheduled to return to City of Silver in the next two days. This was because, after the previous expedition, the survivors and those who had lost loved ones needed time to adjust their mental state. Secondly, the camp had limited food supplies, and Blackface Grass could not be grown in the area around the Afternoon Town, so they had to rely on hunting Monster to supplement their food supply. Therefore, one of the exploration team's responsibilities was to transport safe food, and they had to rotate the supplies every now and then.
"Yes, Your Excellency." Derrick replied without urging him.
He was already used to this procedure.
After he left the room, Colin Iliad went to the window and looked at the campfire in the center of the camp.
The flame burned quietly, casting a dim, yellowish light across the entire camp in the deep darkness, roasting a disgusting Vampire covered in pus.
Several days later, Klein received feedback from " Mystery Queen " Bernadette, Patrick Bryan of the Spirituality Religion, and Miss Sharron, confirming that there had been no unusual movement of materials or personnel in Backlund recently.
So it seems that the Witch Trissy only intends to speak with Mr. "Door" for now... and this seems to be their first contact... In any case, I still have to warn you beforehand that this requires considerable skill; the more you say, the greater the chance of making a mistake, and you can't reveal your trump card... Klein thought for a while, found the strand of hair from the deceased provided by Miss " Magician," unfolded the paper, and began to write:
"... This is the material you need, a strand of hair from a descendant of the Abraham Family... The provider has a request: to help inquire about a problem—how can they break free from the curse they are under..."
"... Finally, a word of caution: watch out for Mr. 'Door'."
Klein folded the letter, tucked the lock of hair inside, took out his Adventurer Harmonica, brought it to his lips, and blew on it.
After a brief silence, Reinette Tinekerr emerged from the void carrying four brightly colored heads.
"Give this letter to that fool who got tempted," Klein instructed as he handed over the letter.
As soon as he finished speaking, a thought struck him, and he quickly added another question:
Can you locate him?
"Okay..." one of Reinette Tinekerr's heads answered the question first, then bit the letter.
Klein's eyes narrowed slightly.
P. S.: I had to go out this morning, so I'll update this first and then revise it later. I'll fill in the draft tonight.