Above the Gray Fog, the ancient temple-like building stands quietly.
Klein, who had noticed something unusual through a series of coincidences, entered this mysterious space after lunch in an attempt to confirm a certain suspicion in his mind.
He picked up the manifested round-bellied fountain pen, paused for two seconds, and then wrote:
"I've once again become embroiled in a series of coincidences created by the Sealed Artifact '0-08'."
Setting down the dark red pen, Klein gripped the silver chain in his left hand and methodically began the Divination.
Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at the pendulum that was so close to him.
The citrine pendant remained stationary and did not rotate.
This indicates that the Divination has failed!
Perhaps the conditions were insufficient to perform Divination, or perhaps "0-08" put up a resistance... Both scenarios would lead to similar results... Klein then changed his statements, pointing to different targets, but all the Divination ultimately failed.
He tapped the edge of the weathered long table lightly with his fingers, hesitating whether to go to the Red Rose Manor the day after tomorrow.
If it's truly not a force like "0-08" or someone with similar power orchestrating these events, then my sudden escape would certainly arouse Prince Edessak's suspicion. No, an escape might not even succeed; Prince Edessak's men live right next door... Of course, as " Faceless," finding an opportunity to escape while I'm out would be quite simple, but is it necessary to go to this extent?
Tomorrow or the day after, I'll honestly pay my respects to Prince Edessak, complete the task normally, and then I can "leave" Backlund unnoticed. And a prince like him probably won't expect a wild, Beyonder me to accomplish anything too difficult...
If there really is Sealed Artifact or Demigod similar to "0-08" influencing recent events, then judging from my experience, I should just be a supporting character who has stumbled onto the stage and hasn't received enough attention yet. In this case, running away is tantamount to telling the other party that I've noticed "your" existence! I have a big problem!
Therefore, relying solely on the Faceless's abilities might not be enough to escape the gaze that has locked onto the individual...
The best approach is to calmly go to the Red Rose Manor, exit the stage through the most normal procedures, take a dignified bow, and fade from the "sight" that seems to have come from nowhere...
Taking both factors into consideration, Klein ultimately decided to pretend he hadn't discovered anything, hand over the mission according to the pre-arranged plan, and "leave" Backlund.
A fire was burning in the open-air camp, where someone was always on duty.
Derrick Berg leaned against a stone pillar, sleeping soundly as he recovered his strength.
Just then, he dreamed of boundless gray-white mist, of an ancient chair at the very center and highest point, and of an indifferent figure sitting in the chair, looking down on everything.
"' The Fool '..." Derrick chanted the name in his mind.
Immediately afterwards, he heard the voice of the " The Fool ":
"Preparing for the party".
" The Fool," Mr. Derrick replied silently, counting his heartbeats.
His eyes remained closed, as if everything that had just happened was merely an interlude in a dream.
There was still plenty of time before departure, enough to attend the Tarot Gathering... he thought with considerable relief.
He had originally thought that he would miss this gathering because he had joined the exploration team.
After 1,000 heartbeats, Derrick waited a little longer before feeling himself enter the silent and peaceful temple.
He had just opened his eyes when a series of scenes flashed through his mind, as if an external force had instantly re-injected all his lost memories into his head.
The scenes include: collapsed city walls; white and blue buildings; a temple of the " Fallen Creator " similar in style to City of Silver; murals depicting the Apocalypse and the " Fallen Creator " resisting the six evil gods and protecting the surviving humans; beautiful yet dangerous "mushrooms"; Jack, a strangely shaped boy with pale yellow hair whose origins are unknown.
This scene was repeated over and over again, a total of five times, but each time there were some differences in the details:
The first time, outside the Temple of the Fallen Creator, all the animal-skin lanterns went out, nearly causing a tragedy. The second time, someone lost control and almost swallowed a "mushroom," but Chief Colin stopped him in time. The third time, the little boy Jack recounted that he and his father were searching for the Creator's sanctuary in the boundless ocean when they encountered a massive Storm. The fourth time, Joshua was severely injured by the unexpectedly transformed little boy Jack. The fifth time, the temple completely collapsed, blocking the exit to the underground area.
Each time, it ends with " Demon Hunter " Colin killing the little boy Jack, and begins with resting at the camp and preparing to enter the ruined city, forming a continuous cycle.
We've explored the temple five times... We're living in this experience forever, with no way to truly end it! The more Derrick tries to understand his suddenly acquired memories, the more terrified and chilled he becomes.
Sitting on the other side of the bronze table, " Justice " Audrey intended to greet " The Fool " and the others cheerfully and lightly as usual, but a glance around revealed that Little " The Sun " was in a strange mood, and she immediately asked:
"Mr. ' The Sun,' what happened? The expedition to explore the real, uh, the Fallen Creator's Temple isn't going well?"
" The Sun " Derrick, as if grasping at a glimmer of hope, quickly recounted the events in general terms, concluding with:
"After the little boy was eliminated by His Excellency the Chief, we all closed our eyes and then woke up in the camp outside the city, ready to begin a new exploration, with no memory of the previous one."
This process was repeated five times, with only slight differences in the details.
"If Mr. The Fool hadn't reminded me, I wouldn't even have known that I'd been living the same repetitive life all this time."
He naturally assumed that the extra memories he had gained after arriving above the Gray Fog stemmed from Mr. The Fool's reminder, so he stood up and solemnly bowed to the blurry figure sitting at the head of the bronze table.
I only understand what happened after hearing your description... " The Fool " Klein still a bit dazed.
He maintained his original posture, nodding slightly in response.
Without understanding the reasons behind the problem, those in positions of authority cannot easily express their opinions or speak rashly... Klein secretly reviewed the knowledge he had acquired in his previous life as a keyboard warrior.
Seeing Mr. The Fool's deep, still well, " The Sun " Derrick felt much more at ease, thinking that things could eventually be resolved.
He then turned to " The Hanged Man," "The World," " Justice," and " The Magician," and asked earnestly:
Do you know the root of the problem? How can it be solved?
The enthusiastic " Justice " Audrey instinctively wanted to answer, but found herself completely clueless, unable even to guess.
" The Magician " Fors in a similar situation to her.
Klein possessed extensive knowledge originating from Earth and had read many novels that focused on the same day. He initially wanted to Manipulation the "world" to offer his ideas and Spirit Intuition everyone to think, but after careful consideration, he chose to keep a low profile and prepare to observe first.
After listening to the description of the " The Sun," Alger, the " The Hanged Man," remained silent for a long time before carefully speaking:
"I can only think of two possibilities. One is that you encountered Nightmare or hallucination-like ability that is beyond the level of Demigod or demigod. After you regain your memories with the help of Mr. The Fool, you should be able to immediately sense that something is wrong as soon as you return to the real world. In that case, the problem will be easy to solve."
"Secondly, at a certain point, you are forced or voluntarily entered a peculiar space or state where time maintains a certain degree of flow, but is fixed within a certain range, cycling and continuing in balance, which is relatively static."
"In this situation, there aren't many ways to end the cycle. Either an external force forcibly breaks the balance, or the key point that connects the time Distortion is found."
Did an external force forcibly break that balance? Upon hearing this, " Justice " Audrey, " Magician " Fors, and " The Sun " Derrick all subconsciously glanced at the calm and leisurely " The Fool " at the head of the bronze table.
No, I can't always ask Mr. The Fool for help... He didn't speak directly; he probably wanted to test my ability to handle these kinds of things... Derrick realized something and thought for a moment before saying:
"Mr. ' The Hanged Man,' let's assume the latter scenario first. What do you think is the key point in connecting the time Distortion?"
Before the " The Hanged Man " could answer, " Justice " Audrey guessed with great interest:
"That little boy, Jack?"
"When facing him, you can't deal with him by killing him?"
Alger, the " The Hanged Man," nodded:
"That's possible."
He considered it for a moment, then hesitated before saying:
" The Sun's description of Jack and his father reminded me of something."
He then looked at Miss " Justice ":
"Didn't I mention that I once chased an Aurora Order ' Listener ' at sea, whose goal was to find the sanctuary of the ' True Creator '?"
Audrey thought carefully, then said uncertainly:
"It seems there is such a thing."
" The Hanged Man," Alger immediately said in a deep voice:
"That ' Listener ' also had his child with him, and the child's age was very close to that of Jack as described by ' The Sun '."
"You mean, that Jack came from your world to the vicinity of City of Silver?" " The Sun " Derrick asked in surprise.
After a brief moment of reflection, he felt a strange sense of joy.
This means that the area where City of Silver is located has not been completely sealed off, and there is still a chance to connect with the normal world where " The Hanged Man " and " Justice " reside!
"I can only say it's possible." The Hanged Man couldn't give a definite answer.
He thought for a moment and suggested:
"You could try mentioning the Sonia Sea, the Kingdom of Loen, and the port city to the little boy Jack. Maybe you'll get a different reaction. Of course, try to avoid mentioning the chief of your City of Silver."
"Also, the key point isn't necessarily with the little boy Jack. We need to consider other possibilities. Describe the specifics, such as the details of the mural, and perhaps we can discover something useful."
At this point, Alger began to look forward to the intelligence he could obtain.