After a while, Crestet Cesimir sighed. "We can start by investigating the others first. If none of them have any issues…"
"Yes, that is indeed a good idea."
Klein also agreed with this course of action. Rather than risking an investigation into the unfathomable Earl Hastur Campbell, it was better to use the process of elimination.
When all possibilities had been ruled out, then whatever remained would inevitably be the truth.
As evening approached, a sea breeze carrying the smell of salt and fish drifted through the harbor. The sky had dimmed, and a mass of ink-dark clouds was steadily advancing.
A heavy rain was coming.
Klein gazed at the seagulls struggling to fly near the distant shoreline. Pressed down by the black clouds, they flew so low they nearly skimmed the surface of the sea.
For no reason at all, he suddenly felt cold. Perhaps he still wasn't used to the ever-changing weather by the coast.
Back in the room, Crestet Cesimir and Klein discussed things for a while and split the list of names in half, each taking responsibility for their own investigations.
That night, when it was time to sleep, Klein felt uneasy. After thinking for a moment, he got up and went to the bathroom, took four steps backward, and entered above the gray fog.
Only after arriving there did the sensation of being watched finally disappear.
Someone hidden in the darkness was watching him and Crestet Cesimir. There was no doubt about it.
Could it be someone sent by Earl Hastur Campbell?
After thinking for two or three seconds, Klein decided to perform a divination.
"The Red Gloves squad's encounter is related to Earl Hastur Campbell."
The pendulum failed to provide the revelation Klein wanted. It swayed slightly, as though trapped in a swamp.
More accurately, it seemed tightly adhered to something, as if even moving at all was an impossible luxury.
Klein watched for a long while before changing the divination statement: "008 is in Earl Hastur Campbell's possession!"
This time, the divination still yielded no useful information.
Any divination involving Hastur failed to produce a meaningful answer.
Back when he divined about 008, although the process had been obscure and difficult, he could at least obtain a few hints.
Did this prove that the secrets hidden within Hastur were even more terrifying than 008?
Klein tried making such a comparison, and the more he thought about it, the more frightening the young earl seemed. He was hiding himself far too deeply.
At that moment, seated at the bronze long table, Klein once again sensed that peering gaze.
The gaze seemed to descend from somewhere unimaginably distant… from the starry sky itself!
Klein's heart trembled violently. Instinctively, he raised his head and looked toward the sky concealed by the gray fog.
That peering gaze seemed capable of penetrating the barrier of gray fog and landing directly upon him.
Faintly, Klein saw within the starry sky hidden behind the mist a blurry, unobservable figure overlooking him.
"Fool."
That light, drifting word pierced through the concealment of the gray fog and exploded throughout the entire space like thunder.
Klein's scalp instantly went numb. He hurriedly withdrew his gaze and tried to use the power of the gray fog to sever the connection.
Fortunately, the violently surging gray fog shattered the prying gaze.
The place returned to its usual calm, but Klein's heart remained suspended in fear, pounding violently like boiling water inside a steam boiler.
Only after a long while, once he confirmed there was nothing abnormal, did he gradually relax.
He had never expected that merely performing two divinations related to Earl Hastur Campbell would result in such a terrifying encounter.
That blurry, unobservable figure, not only could Its gaze penetrate the gray fog, but It could also recognize the Fool's identity. It was undoubtedly an ancient existence.
Could It be the ancient god worshipped by Earl Hastur Campbell?
His repeated divinations had attracted Its attention, causing It to cast Its gaze upon him and thereby expose his identity.
There was also another possibility.
Perhaps It had long known of the Fool's existence, and this time It had come merely to reveal the Fool's identity as a warning.
Klein's mind raced rapidly, considering every possibility. But in the end, they remained only guesses, impossible to verify.
One thing, however, was certain, he could no longer perform divinations related to Earl Hastur Campbell, lest another accident occur.
Klein could not help recalling how, during the daytime, Earl Hastur Campbell had tried to lure him into working in South Weal County with a high salary.
Could it be that at that time, he had already seen through the fact that Klein was a believer of the Fool?
Probably not.
Klein had always been extremely cautious. They had only met a few times, how could Hastur possibly see through the identity he had hidden so carefully?
He had never even prayed to the Fool before. Klein thought about many things, but in the end, he felt he was overthinking it.
Maybe the recent pressure had simply been too much. Before leaving above the gray fog, Klein once again looked up at the sky concealed by the gray fog.
There was still nothing unusual, and only then did he truly breathe a sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, within the Hall of Stars, Hastur sat high upon his seat, still observing the stars tonight.
When Klein performed the two divinations on him, Hastur had been inside the Hall of Stars.
Ordinary divinations could never disturb him, but Klein, divining atop Sefirah Castle and repeatedly probing matters related to him, had finally triggered a subtle reaction from the Hall of Stars.
Hastur's gaze naturally followed the disturbance. Upon seeing that it was a gray, fog-covered world, he guessed that the person who had alerted him tonight was Klein, from above the gray fog.
To verify his guess, he deliberately spoke the Fool's honorific name.
Watching the gray fog suddenly churn violently, he immediately knew he had guessed correctly.
Klein was hidden within the depths of the gray fog!
Unfortunately, Klein's connection to the Hall of Stars was extremely weak. Hastur could not pull him into the Hall of Stars for a meeting.
Moreover, with Sefirah Castle's instinctive defenses still active, he currently had no way to break into Sefirah Castle directly and bind Klein away with the Chains of Order.
"I hope Mr. Fool can sleep well tonight."
"Should I send him a dream?"
After thinking about it, Hastur decided not to further disturb Klein, who had already suffered an enormous shock.
…
Early in the morning, Crestet Cesimir had already washed up and was preparing to go out for breakfast. Passing by Klein's room and noticing no sign of movement inside, he tried knocking on the door.
After waiting outside for a while, the door finally opened from within.
The Klein who appeared before him had messy hair, dark circles under his eyes, and looked mentally exhausted.
Crestet Cesimir asked curiously, "Klein, don't tell me you had a nightmare last night?"
"Something like that." Klein forced a smile.
Last night, he had almost been unable to sleep at all, afraid that the blurry figure might suddenly appear in his dreams.
Fortunately, he hadn't dreamed at all.
Of course, he couldn't tell Crestet Cesimir any of this.
Changing the subject, he asked, "Mr. Crestet Cesimir, have you ever felt like someone was watching you?"
Crestet Cesimir's expression turned serious. "Right now?"
"No, yesterday." Klein shook his head. He no longer felt watched now. It had only happened while wandering through the streets yesterday.
"It seems someone has already begun paying attention to us." Crestet Cesimir added, "I'm planning to go get something to eat. What would you like? I can bring some back for you."
"No need for the trouble. I'll wash up and come along."
"What you need right now is rest. Sometimes having overly strong intuition isn't a good thing."
"…" Faced with this misunderstanding, Klein did not bother explaining. He truly did feel mentally exhausted and needed rest.
"There's no need to be so nervous. Our mission in Puning Harbor is basically complete already. We just need to do our best with the remaining work. Trust that the Goddess will continue guiding our path."
Crestet Cesimir tapped four points across his chest with his right hand, sketching a crimson moon, and Klein followed in praising the Goddess.
At this moment, Klein was far more sincere than usual. In the past, his praises for the Goddess had always been somewhat perfunctory and insincere.
Now, however, he truly hoped the Goddess could protect him.
…
Upon the distant sea, the gradually awakening Mr. A calmly gazed into the distance.
Even though the horizon where sea and sky met was shrouded in dense black clouds, with lightning endlessly roaring and twisting within them, such slightly awe-inspiring natural scenery could no longer stir even the slightest ripple in his heart.
"So this is the world as seen through the Lord's eyes?"
Mr. A could not help imagining himself from the Lord's perspective. The moment he did, his previously calm state of mind was instantly shattered.
Anything related to the Lord could easily shake his resolve and will.
Mr. A did not think this was a bad thing. On the contrary, it was proof of his devout faith in the Lord.
This ship had already deviated from its course and was heading toward unknown seas. Should he inform the Lord?
Perhaps the great Lord had already noticed everything long ago.
Thinking that the Lord was presently aboard the same ship as him, Mr. A's mood relaxed and brightened once more.
But when a familiar figure appeared at the far end of sea and sky, his entire body began trembling slightly, and a voice escaped his throat.
"Lord Ouroboros!"
The angel seated beside the Lord, the true Angel of Fate who attended the Lord directly, had actually appeared here!
Had He come to welcome the Lord's return?
Mr. A quickly pulled himself together. Hurriedly straightening his clothes and back, he suppressed the trembling in his heart and tried his best to appear calm and unconcerned.
He had already prepared the first sentence he would say:
"Lord Ouroboros, I shall escort the Lord back to His divine kingdom."