Fog Sea, La Cha Island.
With the help of the pre-set Spirit World coordinates, Aaron directly teleported to this secluded island and found Audrey in the magnificent castle made purely of emerald.
Audrey, who was deep within her own consciousness island, familiarizing herself with and attempting to control the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact refined from the Card of Blasphemy and the Discerner characteristic, keenly sensed the changes in the real world and quickly returned to consciousness.
After confirming Audrey's state, Aaron smiled and teased:
"Your Manipulator potion should be almost completely digested. Once you advance to Dream Weaver, you will be able to truly wield the authority of that Grade 0 Sealed Artifact. By then, you will be a major figure in the mysterious world."
Audrey's cheeks flushed slightly, but she quickly composed herself and spoke in a seeking tone:
"I just received a commission from Mr. World. He wants to ask me to go to Mr. Fool's Divine Kingdom to help him with a deep hypnosis session. Hmm, he also emphasized that it carries a certain degree of danger."
So impatient… Meeting those emerald eyes, Aaron smiled, having somewhat anticipated Klein's urgency:
"This was my suggestion to him, and also an opportunity for you to completely digest the last bit of the potion."
Aaron briefly explained the situation, and Audrey's eyes became even brighter. Compared to digesting the potion, understanding the truth of the Cosmos and even the Apocalypse held greater appeal for her, even if she would forget the relevant memories after leaving Mr. Fool's Divine Kingdom.
With a heart full of anticipation, Audrey no longer hesitated and responded to Mr. World's commission in her mind. Almost the next second, crimson light engulfed her consciousness.
Above the gray fog, Audrey appeared at the side of the bronze long table. Unlike the regular Monday gathering, this time, she did not see Mr. Fool shrouded in gray fog, but instead saw Mr. World, whose figure was obscured by swirling mist, at the lower end of the bronze long table.
A slight smile appeared on Audrey's lips. She knew that Mr. World's true identity was Klein Moretti, the former Nighthawks who was nominally deceased. This peculiar sense of familiarity also made her drop many of the courtesies she usually adhered to, and she spoke in a light tone:
"Good morning, Mr. World. Shall we start the hypnosis now?"
The "Placate" unique to a demigod of the Mind domain swept over like a gentle, invisible breeze. The heat and agitation in Klein's heart, as he sat at the very end of the bronze long table, suddenly vanished. He took a deep breath and remotely handed the demigod's parchment, which recorded many secrets, to Audrey, responding in a low voice:
"Before we begin, you can first understand these. This is also your reward."
Audrey nodded and took the demigod's parchment without refusing, reading it intently. After only a few seconds, her expression suddenly changed, completely losing her earlier composure. After a long moment, she looked up, somewhat at a loss, as if she wanted to say something but didn't know where to begin.
Klein was not surprised by Audrey's reaction. He took a deep breath, a wry smile on his lips.
After obtaining the materials for the Hound of Fulgrim in the Spirit World last night, he returned to Sefirah Castle and learned of those secrets that would incur terrible consequences just by being understood.
Even though he felt powerless in the face of that cruel truth, having gone through so much, he wouldn't truly despair:
"These are the things I need you to hypnotize me about, ensuring I only recall them within Mr. Fool's Divine Kingdom. If you are ready, we can begin."
The Primordial One's barrier, the Outer Deities, the truth of the Apocalypse… Audrey pursed her lips and used several "Pacifications" on herself before settling the tumultuous thoughts in her heart. She quickly adjusted her state, and one Virtual Persona after another emerged within her Mind Island.
These Virtual Personas intertwined, forming an illusory net that infiltrated Audrey's own Mind Island and Klein's Mind Island below, transforming into a subconscious that would only be triggered under specific rules.
Just as the hypnotic suggestion was completed, Audrey finally received feedback that her potion was completely digested, but her mood remained heavy.
Resisting the instinct to resist the psychological cue with the help of Sefirah Castle, Klein looked at Audrey, who had stopped moving and whose expression could not hide her worry. He remained silent for a moment before comforting her:
"The gods in the Astral World and those new gods who have revived or even ascended to the peak in this epoch will not remain indifferent. We do our best and leave the rest to fate. We only need to do our part."
At this point, even though he was feeling down, Klein's expression was still a bit strange.
Based on the secrets he now understood and the unique sense of déjà vu he had when he saw the "Lord of Order" before, he was almost certain that the "Lord of Order," like himself, the "The Fool," was merely an impostor pretending to be an ancient existence.
As soon as he thought of Aaron always using alt accounts to impersonate his dependents like this, Klein's mouth twitched slightly. He took a deep breath to suppress the urge to cover his face, then immediately sent off the silent Audrey.
Slowly rising from the very end of the bronze long table, Klein came to the bronze high-backed chair exclusive to the "The Fool," leaned back, and summoned all the materials for the Scholar of Yore from the pile of sundries.
Even though he had learned many secrets, and would forget those overly dangerous pieces of knowledge in reality due to psychological cue, this would not negate the benefits for his advanced acting as a Scholar of Yore.
Looking at the dark red, liquid-like and mist-like potion in front of him, Klein expressionlessly grabbed it, and his figure disappeared with it.
-----------------
Audrey opened her eyes somewhat blankly and saw Aaron, who had been watching over her. She subconsciously recalled her memories from above the gray fog, only to find that those memories had been sealed deep within her consciousness island.
"It's not too late to understand those things when you truly possess the Angelic rank."
Seeing that nothing unexpected had happened, Aaron withdrew the embryonic form of his Divine Kingdom that had enveloped the entire La Cha Island, and continued in a gentle tone:
"I can feel that your potion has been completely digested. If there are no issues, I can take you to Hartlarkh Village in East Chester County now."
"The Mind Labyrinth there has been slowly collapsing irreversibly. The sooner you go, the greater the help for your advancement ritual. Coincidentally, I also want to meet Hermes again."
An Angel… Audrey nodded slightly, not feeling that it was so out of reach. She linked her arm with Aaron's and said softly:
"Although I have forgotten some things, I can still sense the emotions remaining in my consciousness island. I want to become stronger as soon as possible, at least so I won't be a burden to you."
Aaron ruffled her smooth golden hair and hummed in acknowledgment. Azure starlight then surged from the Star Crown, engulfing both their figures.