At that moment, the first thought that popped into Klein's mind was:
Zaratul was indeed plotting something!
Immediately afterwards, he was very grateful that he had obtained the correct " Door Opening " symbol from the Antigonus Family Notebook beforehand, which gave him confidence and prevented him from panicking.
Zaratul sent the quill and inkwell back into history, raised his head, glanced at " Gehrman Sparrow " and " Witch of Despair " Panatiya, and sighed:
"All conditions are met; you may proceed to open the ' Door of Escape '."
At this point, his gaze settled on " Gehrman Sparrow's" face, and he chuckled:
Don't forget to take my urn.
As soon as he finished speaking, his entire body suddenly cracked into countless tiny specks of light, spreading outwards and merging into the void, as if it had long since decayed and turned to ash.
Where he sat, there was a tin-white jar with a simple, unremarkable pattern on its surface.
Klein gestured for " Gehrman Sparrow " to step forward, bend down, and pick up the tin can. It felt heavy and didn't seem like a fake.
He opened the jar with the parchment in his hand and saw that it was full of grayish-white dust and particles, without a single sparkle of light.
"Is it really just ordinary ashes? Then who cremated Zaratul? Did he cremate himself?" After closing the lid, Gehrman Sparrow casually took a lump of flesh from his pocket with the parchment in his hand, stuffed it into his mouth, and swallowed it.
The " Witch of Despair," Panatiya, noticed his behavior, her eyes narrowing as she swept over him, as if asking, "What do you want to do?"
Klein quickly stuffed the meatball into the Marionette's mouth, deliberately adjusting his breathing:
I'm a little nervous.
I wonder if this ' Door Opening ' symbol is useful.
Panatiya had confirmed that the other person had eaten ordinary fish, though it looked rather disgusting. In her semi-mad state, she lacked the patience to examine it further, so she looked away at the urn containing ashes and, without speaking, smiled:
If it's not useful, we can share it.
"I only use one spoonful a day, and it lasts a long time."
This Witch's mental state is really not normal... Klein sighed inwardly, stepped past the eraser Angel statue that resembled the " Mother of the Sky," and walked to the wall behind it.
Then, he turned to the side, pointed to the dent, and said to " Witch of Despair " Panatiya:
"Insert that obsidian slab."
Panatiya smiled brightly but said coldly:
"Show me that ' Door Opening ' symbol first."
There's no need to be so wary of me. If I really wanted to harm you, I would have abandoned the Marionette right now, and you wouldn't have had time to escape this church. You would definitely be suspended. Then, I could leisurely enter, pick up the obsidian slab, and " Door Opening " to leave... However, the symbol that Zaratul gave me is really problematic. I still need to find someone to share the blame... Klein's thoughts shifted, and he had " Gehrman Sparrow " raise his palm, pat his stomach, and open his mouth.
A blurry mass of flesh and blood gushed out rapidly, piling up continuously until it transformed into Mr. A, who was as beautiful as a woman.
Upon seeing this, " Gehrman Sparrow " shook the parchment and unfolded it.
The special symbol, along with the " Bizarro Sorcerer's " Potion recipe, caught the eye of both " Witch of Despair " Panatiya and Mr. A.
Panatiya's eyes flickered slightly, and she suddenly smiled sweetly:
"Go Door Opening, you go out first."
She was certain that " Gehrman Sparrow " was still helping her Manipulation the " Spirit Body Threads," so she had plenty of time to wait.
As she spoke, she tossed the ugly Puppet, stained with blood and tangled in its hair, to the other person.
She was also afraid of something unexpected happening... Klein let " Gehrman Sparrow " take the Puppet while watching " Witch of Despair " step forward and place the obsidian slab into the recess.
The two fit together perfectly, with not a single unnecessary element.
The wall quickly emitted light and gradually became transparent, revealing the stone slabs paving the outside, the wall with holes, and the clouds Levitation in the air.
As the " Witch of Despair " Panatiya stepped aside, " Gehrman Sparrow " handed the Puppet, parchment, and urn to his left hand, extended his right palm, and formed a pen with his fingers to draw the vertical eye composed of many Concealment symbols on the transparent wall.
During this process, Klein was quite hesitant, unsure whether to Zaratul symbol or the Antigonus Family.
Although he had just suspected Zaratul of having ulterior motives and conspiracies, after calming down, he realized that he had underestimated this important figure. If Zaratul's sole purpose was to harm himself and everyone here, he could achieve his goal by not mentioning Door Opening and patiently waiting.
Furthermore, since Klein's Gray Fog aura was completely shielded in this Foggy Town, he couldn't think of any possibility that Zaratul was targeting him.
Therefore, his final judgment was that Zaratul's ultimate goal was to coax people into " Door Opening," which would allow Him to gain something or get rid of something. As for whether there was any danger after " Door Opening," it was not His concern. If the matter of dumping the ashes was real and important, then it should be relatively safe after going out; otherwise, it would be full of danger.
In other words, there is a 50% chance that Zaratul's " Door Opening " symbol is correct and will not bring any danger.
On the other hand, the Antigonus Family Notebook are not so "good." From the images Klein saw through Divination above the Gray Fog, from some information revealed in Zaratul's words, and from the fact that Zaratul has gone out of control and gone mad, Klein can preliminarily judge that the Antigonus Family treasure on the main peak of the Hornacis Mountain Range is likely a trap with extremely delicious bait. Therefore, it is worth discussing whether the complex pattern provided in the notes has any hidden problems.
Left is a tiger, right is a wolf, a choice between two extremes... Also, the Antigonus Family symbol is for entering the treasure, not for leaving... As Klein pondered, his drawing continued, and he was about to reach the final, slightly different part.
At that moment, he glanced at Panatiya and noticed that the Witch's eyes were bright and her lips were smiling, giving off a feeling of impulsiveness and eagerness.
If she were in a normal state, as a "veteran Instigator," she should be able to control her expression... Moreover, she had just seen the " Door Opening " symbol... Klein's heart stirred, and he instructed the Marionette to follow the one given by Zaratul in the final part.
Soon, the complex vertical eye was drawn.
Pure rays of light then enveloped it, traveling along the patterns before finally converging.
In the bright light, a phantom-like double door, full of Concealment, appeared on the wall and slowly opened to the rear as " Gehrman Sparrow " pushed it open.
Behind the door were the ancient stone slabs and broken walls we had just seen; everything was quiet and there was nothing unusual about it.
Just then, the figure of " Witch of Despair " Panatiya suddenly shattered, turning into pieces of shards.
At the same time, the radiant woman in the Pure White robe appeared before " Gehrman Sparrow " and stepped through the " Door of Escape ".
In her hand, there was an ugly Puppet, its surface smeared with flesh and blood, its neck wrapped with strands of hair.
As for the one in " Gehrman Sparrow's " hand, it suddenly degenerated into a shard of glass.
In the art of " Mirror Illusion," the " Witch of Despair " far surpasses Klein.
Panatiya rushed through the gate, then half-turned around, revealing a smile of madness and mockery to " Gehrman Sparrow." Black flames erupted from her palm, instantly igniting the Puppet.
At that moment, it seemed as if she was saying, "Despair! When hope arrives, sink into the deepest despair!"
Klein discovered that this time the curse could not be transferred or shared using the " Paper Figurine Substitute "!
Panatiya immediately turned around, preparing to hurry away from this Foggy Town and the ancient church, fearing that something unexpected might happen.
Suddenly, her gaze froze.
Her body shattered one after another, turning into mirror after mirror, yet she could not leave the " Door of Escape " for more than 10 meters.
In just a second or two, Panatiya let out a sharp scream, and invisible thin threads and thick black hair rolled back and wrapped around her, while the outside was covered with black flames and solid ice, layer upon layer.
Suddenly, all of this crumbled. A clear, deep sense of despair and regret filled the eyes of " Witch of Despair " Panatiya.
Her expression quickly became blank, as if Invisible Hand was lifting her by the neck, raising her into the air and suspending her there. Her eyes rolled back little by little, but her appearance remained bright and beautiful.
On the other side of the " Door of Escape," " Gehrman Sparrow's " body was already engulfed in black flames, melting like a candle. Meanwhile, Mr. A, who was about to fly into the Door of Light, inexplicably vomited and spat out one bright mushroom after another. More mushrooms sprouted densely on his body like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.
Before " Gehrman Sparrow " had completely disappeared from sight, the image behind the Door of Light zoomed in, revealing an empty hall.
No, it wasn't empty at all; many more corpses hung in mid-air. They were old and young, men and women, dressed in elaborate, or ornate, or ancient, or casual attire.
These corpses, along with the hanged men inside the church, floated up simultaneously. They were densely packed, moving back and forth, as if performing a grand opera, an opera that accurately reflected all the ecology and details of a small town!
Klein saw that behind these suspended figures, a transparent, slippery tentacle appeared, with intricate and Concealment patterns that seemed capable of driving people mad.
These countless tentacles all extended into the depths of the hall, where there stood an ancient, enormous stone chair, its surface inlaid with dull gold and gemstones.
This... Klein tensed up and without hesitation closed his eyes, severing his connection with the Marionette!
The images he had seen during the Divination earlier then surfaced in his mind:
Countless transparent maggots huddled together, sitting on that enormous chair, slowly wriggling and growing wildly, spreading out almost invisible tentacles.
In the final scene of the Marionette's visual freeze, a tarot card lies quietly at the bottom of the ancient chair.
Its surface also depicts Roselle, the emperor wearing a magnificent headdress and colorful clothes, carrying a cane with luggage, seemingly about to embark on a long journey.
His expression was full of anticipation, with a small dog beside him, and words outlined in glittering stars at the top corner:
Sequence 0: The Fool!
P. S.: Update first, revise later. Both chapters for today are now complete. Please vote with my monthly tickets!