As a Seer who had only just stepped into the world of mysticism, Klein did not dare claim to know much, but he certainly knew considerably more than an ordinary person. He knew that the various forms of divination could be divided into three broad categories according to a particular criterion.
That criterion was the source of the "revelation"!
The first category included tarot, playing cards, pendulums, dowsing rods, dreams, and other such methods. These interpreted the results through "revelations" obtained when the querent's own spirituality communicated with the Spirit World. However, pendulums and dowsing rods placed high demands on spirituality, the Spirit Body, and the Astral Body. Anyone who was not a Beyonder could not obtain accurate, clear "revelations." Card divination, on the other hand, used fixed symbolic elements provided in advance to give expression even to the "revelations" ordinary people vaguely sensed. Dreams fell somewhere between the two.
The second category included numerology, astrology, and all the methods derived from them. The diviner calculated, deduced, and interpreted corresponding results from objective information supplied by the querent or changes in nature. The initiative lay with the diviner, not the querent.
The third category drew on a third-party power beyond the diviner and the querent. The saucer spirits and pen spirits Klein had known of in his previous life belonged to this category. Through certain rituals, they asked unknown, mysterious beings to provide answers directly. Although ordinary people were unlikely to succeed, if they happened to make contact with a malicious being, or one whose mere presence could cause a person to break down, tragedy would often result.
The Magic Mirror Divination Hynas Vincent had just mentioned belonged to this category-in mysticism, mirrors were gateways to the unknown, the uncanny, and the spiritual world. That was why Klein had stopped outside the conference room, intending to hear how this renowned diviner would explain it before deciding whether to inform the captain and pay a midnight visit to "read" the man's gas meter.
Of course, there was also a safe way to perform Magic Mirror Divination: pray to one of the seven orthodox deities for answers. Although ordinary people would find it extremely difficult to obtain a genuine "revelation," at least there would be no danger or lingering consequences.
The sort of Magic Mirror Divination strictly regulated by the Nighthawks, Mandated Punishers, and others sought help from evil gods or mysterious beings worshipped by certain organizations. Casually inventing one's own would not do either. A particular word or characteristic might attract attention from the unknown.
In this world of Beyonder powers, such divination always tended toward terrible outcomes. Klein even suspected that the original owner of his body, Welch, and Naya had performed a similar "Black Divination" based on the Antigonus Family's notebook.
By then, Hynas had also finished explaining the principles of Magic Mirror Divination to the five members and began describing the specific procedure:
"First, choose a suitable date and time according to the deity you believe in. You can determine this through the Astrology Handbook. For example, as we all know, Sunday symbolizes the Evernight Goddess and represents rest. The hours from two to three in the morning, nine to ten in the morning, four to five in the afternoon, and eleven at night to midnight are lunar hours, ruled by the Evernight Goddess. Thus, diviners who believe in the Evernight Goddess can perform Magic Mirror Divination during these periods on Sundays."
His fundamentals are quite solid... Concealed by the half-open conference room door, Klein nodded slightly.
It had to be said that, with the seven great Churches keeping one another in check, some mystical knowledge had indeed leaked out. The Astrology Handbook, for instance, provided the meanings of many symbols. Without potions or Beyonder powers, however, ordinary people could almost never achieve the effects they wanted.
"Next, carefully wipe the mirror clean. It must be a silver-backed mirror. Place it in the position in your home that symbolizes the moon..." Hynas demonstrated with the props in his hands.
No, what you need here is the Spirit Pendulum Method. First choose a spot, then silently repeat 'This place is suitable for Magic Mirror Divination' seven times and observe which way the pendant turns. Clockwise means correct; counterclockwise means incorrect... Of course, if you're praying to a malicious, unknown, mysterious being, the location isn't the key. What matters is whether He is interested... Klein corrected him silently.
At that moment, he felt rather like a teacher observing a lesson...
Unable to hear Klein's thoughts, Hynas Vincent detailed the preparations in his usual tone.
Once the members had finished taking notes, he continued:
"After bathing, make sure all the curtains are drawn and the door is shut and locked. Then light a candle and place it before the mirror. Pray devoutly to the deity you believe in. Keep your question as simple as possible and avoid complicated modifiers... After praying seven times, pick up your mirror and gently drop it onto the floor. You must be very gentle... Remember the pattern of the broken pieces. This is the revelation granted by the deity... I'll explain several of the main symbols in detail."
Phew, this is orthodox Magic Mirror Divination. Klein breathed a sigh of relief, slowly entered the conference room, and sat in his previous seat. He finished the little Southville coffee left in his cup in one gulp.
"Orthodox" meant that one could indeed receive a revelation, but had practically no way of actually interpreting it.
At this stage, however, a Beyonder who received a response could see certain images directly in the mirror and obtain relatively clear information!
Since the broken pieces could form many symbols, Hynas spoke for a long time. Even after Edward Steve had finished performing a divination for someone and returned to the conference room, he had yet to wrap up.
Klein did not ask Edward what he had divined or which method he had used. This was an unwritten rule among diviners, and as someone acting as a Seer, he naturally had to observe it strictly unless the other party brought it up himself.
"I find that our interpretations are often far too vague. They seem to cater to different needs, allowing different people to find descriptions that fit them," Edward sighed quietly after taking a sip of Sibe black tea. "For example, you will encounter many setbacks and suffer many hardships, but eventually see the light of dawn. Heh heh, no one knows when that dawn will come. Or, your journey will not be particularly smooth, but you will certainly arrive alive. Heh, the dead won't come back to contradict me."
Since he had not listened from the beginning, he paid no attention to Hynas's "Magic Mirror Divination lesson."
"Survivorship bias," Klein added with a smile.
Roughly speaking, survivorship bias meant that many statistics drew only on those still alive, the survivors, while overlooking the dead, resulting in a clear bias.
"Yes, Emperor Roselle truly was a philosopher," Edward exclaimed in admiration.
"..." Klein raised his empty coffee cup and pretended to take a sip.
Throughout the afternoon, the members immersed themselves in astrological charts and Magic Mirror Divination, occasionally coming over to discuss them with Klein and Edward.
At such times, Klein fulfilled his duties as an unofficial member of the Nighthawks team, doing his best to steer them away from lines of thought that might involve Beyonder powers or danger.
However, he failed to accomplish what he most wanted to do. Several querents came and went, but none chose him to perform their divination.
Perhaps next time I should take the initiative to "welcome" them with a few lines like "Misfortune surrounds you," "You will soon suffer a calamity," or "Nothing will go smoothly for you"? No, that doesn't sound like a Seer anymore... At these thoughts, Klein could not help shaking his head in self-mockery.
He picked up his cane, stood, and took his leave.
At half past five, Edward Steve put on his coat and was about to leave the Divination Club when he suddenly spotted a familiar figure.
"Good afternoon, Glacis. Long time no see." He greeted him with a smile. His friend, who shared his hobby, was wearing his customary formal suit with a black bow tie, and a monocle hung from his breast pocket.
Then he noticed that the man's complexion looked quite poor. Even his soft, pale yellow hair showed signs of drying out.
"Good afternoon, Edward... Cough, cough." Holding his hat, Glacis suddenly pressed a fist to his mouth and coughed several times.
Edward asked with concern:
"You seem to be ill?"
"A very serious illness. It even developed into pneumonia earlier. If my wife hadn't happened to meet a skilled apothecary who gave me some miraculous medicine, I'm afraid you would have had to visit the cemetery to see me." Glacis's tone was filled with lingering fear and relief.
"Lord, I can hardly believe it. You were so healthy before. Look at you, just look at you, you're so weak now! I remember performing a divination for you last week, and there was no indication that you would fall seriously ill." Edward shifted his cane and exclaimed in surprise.
"My own divination gave the same result as yours. Perhaps we still don't qualify as competent diviners. And, and..." Glacis suddenly recalled what had happened on Monday, and his expression grew exceptionally grave.
Just then, the pretty Angelica approached and greeted them with a gentle smile.
After they exchanged greetings, she first asked after Glacis's health and offered some advice before casually mentioning:
"Mr. Glacis, that Mr. Moretti who came to you for a divination last time has joined the club as well."
"The one who came to me for a divination last time?" Glacis's eyes instantly lit up. "Lord, where is he?"
"He has already left." Neither Angelica nor Edward could understand Glacis's unusual reaction.
Glacis paced a couple of steps in excitement and said:
"If I'm not at the club the next time he comes, please make sure to ask him when he'll be coming again!"
"Glacis, what's going on? Did that Mr. Klein Moretti do something to you?" Edward asked in confusion.
Glacis raised his arm, met Edward's and Angelica's inquisitive gazes, and answered fervently:
"He is a very, very, very miraculous..."
Bringing his arm down, Glacis, who had used "very" three times in his description, declared in a ringing voice:
"Doctor!"
P.S. Second update-please vote with your recommendation tickets.