AN: I will keep my promise whatever it takes... Rahhhh!! Cough! anyways, hope you enjoy.
A carriage rolled through the streets of Backlund on its way to Viscount Glaint's residence.
Inside sat Audrey, a stunningly beautiful young woman with smooth blonde hair and emerald green eyes. Her maid Annie sat right next to her. Audrey was lost in deep thought, trying to figure out how to handle the task Mr. Hanged Man had given her.
Right after returning from the Tarot Club, she contacted Kance and several of her other friends under the excuse of arranging a small party again. During their conversations, she casually steered the topic toward the admirals of the sea and asked whether anyone had heard about Vice Admiral Qilangos, all while secretly observing their expressions and body language through her Spectator abilities. Unfortunately, none of them knew anything about it.
After some time thinking, she came up with a plan. For that, she decided to get in touch with her good friend, Viscount Glaint. She had met with him earlier and asked him to find a way into a Beyonder gathering. Luckily, he came through and found contacts willing to help them get inside.
After reaching their destination, Audrey Hall left the carriage together with her personal maid Annie. They went up to the second floor and entered the bedroom that Viscount Glaint had prepared for her.
With Annie's help, Audrey slowly removed her glamorous dress. After that, she changed into a black hooded robe she had prepared beforehand.
She pulled up the hood and stood in front of the full-length mirror to examine herself.
Most of her face was hidden beneath the shadow of the hood, leaving only her beautiful lips exposed.
'A long black robe, a face concealed by shadows, an air of mystery… This is exactly the kind of outfit I always dreamed of wearing!' Audrey thought happily.
Still feeling worried, she added a blue boat-shaped soft hat beneath the hood. The fine checkered fishnet draped down and made her facial features even harder to distinguish.
"Not bad. This should be enough." Audrey slipped on a pair of leather ankle boots before turning toward Annie. "Wait for me here. No matter who comes, do not open the door."
Annie looked at her helplessly. "Then you must make sure you return within an hour."
"You should trust me. I've always kept my promises in the past." Audrey smiled and leaned closer to her maid. Following noble etiquette, she hugged Annie gently and kissed her cheek.
Then she quickly pulled up her hood again, turned around, and left the bedroom through a secret door.
She walked all the way downstairs and arrived at the side entrance of Viscount Glaint's residence where a carriage was already waiting for her.
Glaint stood within the shadows and looked at Audrey before complimenting her sincerely. "Dressed like this, you really are… as Emperor Roselle often described it… very cool."
"Thank you." Audrey lifted an imaginary skirt and gave an elegant curtsy.
The two of them entered the carriage and left the villa. About ten minutes later, they arrived in front of another house.
Outside the house, Audrey saw two figures waiting for them. Both were hiding themselves beneath black cloaks with their hoods pulled low.
"These are the two people I told you about. They agreed to bring us into a Beyonder gathering where we can find potion formulas." Glaint walked forward and introduced them to Audrey.
The two of them removed their hoods afterward and introduced themselves.
"I'm Fors Wall, and this is Xio Derecha. She's an excellent persuader and very capable when it comes to helping people obtain what they want," Fors said as she pointed toward the girl beside her.
Fors had wavy brown hair and light blue eyes that carried a natural sense of laziness. Her brown hair curled slightly around her shoulders.
Xio was noticeably shorter, at around 150 centimeters tall. Her facial features were soft and youthful, making her appear somewhat immature.
Even though her shoulder-length blonde hair looked messy and unkempt, and she wore a traditional knight training suit under her robes, she carried an indescribable dignity and a convincing charm.
Audrey hesitated for a moment instead of immediately responding. She quickly thought to herself, 'I can't do a curtsy here. That would immediately expose me as a noble lady…'
In the end, she only revealed a faint smile and greeted politely, "Miss Xio, can I trust you?"
At the side, Xio Derecha quietly analyzed Audrey as well.
'From the quality of her clothing and the way she stands and moves, she's definitely a noble. Most likely a high-ranking one at that,' Xio concluded inwardly instantly.
"You don't need to worry at all." Xio smiled and gestured reassuringly with her hand.
Just as she was about to follow Audrey and Viscount Glaint forward, a sudden metallic thud sounded out.
Audrey immediately turned toward the source of the noise and saw a triangular blade gleaming with a cold light lying beside Xio's leg.
The two girls exchanged looks and fell silent at the same time.
After nearly twenty seconds, Xio quickly squatted down, picked up the triangular blade, and hid it back on her body.
"We have to prevent accidents from happening. Some people lack rationality and can't be convinced easily," Xio explained with a serious expression.
Audrey nodded lightly and replied in a clear voice, "I believe you…"
"These are tools used to help certain bastards calm down and speak properly," Fors Wall added while glancing toward the lawn beside them.
The four of them stopped talking afterward and walked a few more steps forward. Xio raised her hand and knocked on the wooden door with three long knocks followed by two short ones.
The door creaked open slowly.
Using her Spectator abilities almost instinctively, Audrey calmly observed the room inside.
There were many people scattered around the room in a disorderly manner. Some wore hoods while others hid themselves behind masks. A few simply exposed their faces openly without caring at all.
Almost immediately, Audrey noticed a man in black robes seated alone on a single-seat sofa.
He wore a hood as well, leaving his face hidden beneath layers of shadow.
Even though he remained silent, he gave off the feeling that he occupied a commanding position within the gathering.
'He's extremely confident… but his gaze is disgusting. It moves across my body like slippery tentacles trying to tear away my clothes…' Audrey judged calmly while suppressing the goosebumps rising on her skin.
Fors lowered her voice and introduced him.
"That's Mr. A, a powerful Beyonder and the leader of this secret gathering."
'Mr. A? That sounds more like the codename of a criminal than some mysterious powerhouse… He can't even compare to Mr. Fool. No, only gods or demigods are qualified to be compared to Mr. Fool…' Audrey instinctively felt a sense of superiority while thinking about the mysterious existence above the gray fog.
Maintaining her calm appearance, she quietly asked Fors and Xio, "Are there any stories about this man?"
Hearing the question, Xio briefly spoke about several rumors and speculations surrounding Mr. A's feats.
As they spoke, the group entered the room completely. The guards standing nearby immediately shut the door behind them.
After adjusting to the light of the gas lamps inside the room, Audrey noticed two blackboards standing near the front hall with several lines of text written across them.
At that moment, Fors, who held an unlit cigarette between her fingers, whispered softly, "Those are the requests left by the members of the gathering. Many people here don't want others to know exactly what they possess. Otherwise, they could easily become targets for greedy individuals. Because of that, they anonymously write down what they want, what they are selling, and the approximate prices on the blackboards."
Audrey nodded lightly.
Rather than observing the people in the gathering further, she shifted her attention toward the words written on the left blackboard.
She quickly noticed that many Beyonder ingredients were being sold at surprisingly cheap prices. For a brief moment, she almost felt the urge to buy everything listed there, but she restrained herself.
Xio leaned closer and whispered into her ear, "Do you see anything you want?"
Audrey maintained her composure and answered reservedly, "For now, I'm interested in Emperor Roselle's notebooks. I admire him greatly, and I believe the strange symbols and literature he created contain a mysterious power. We simply haven't discovered the correct method to decipher them yet."
The moment she finished speaking, a young man in a white shirt seated nearby suddenly stood up excitedly.
"Yes! Exactly! I've finally met someone who shares the same opinion as me!"
He quickly continued, "I'm the one selling the three pages of the notebook. I can sell them to you right now!"
Audrey was briefly stunned before revealing a polite smile.
"Then please allow me to express my gratitude."
She took out two ten-pound notes and handed them to the man before receiving the three pages of Emperor Roselle's diary in exchange.
Of course, nobody present knew they were actually pages from Roselle's diary, so people generally referred to them as pages from his notebook instead.
After receiving them, Audrey casually flipped through the pages and quickly confirmed that the handwriting matched the previous pages she had encountered before.
A moment later, one of Mr. A's facilitators walked over to Audrey's group and said in a low voice, "You may write your requests on a piece of paper and hand them to me. Or you can wait until the break later and write whatever you wish to sell on the blackboard in the small room."
Audrey lowered her head and glanced at the paper in her hand for a moment.
Beside her, Fors Wall took a light sniff from her unlit cigarette while cautiously surveying the surroundings.
"Have you decided which Sequence 9 formula you want?" Fors asked softly.
Audrey pretended to think carefully before replying, "Spectator. I want to become a Spectator. And I also want the advancement formula for Spectator, Telepathist."
She had already considered the matter carefully.
In the future, she could likely have frequent contact with Fors and Xio Derecha. Eventually, they might realize she was already a Beyonder and identify her pathway through observation. Instead of risking unnecessary suspicion later, she decided to reveal this information naturally now while completely concealing the existence of the Tarot Club.
At the side, Viscount Glaint also decided to search for the Apothecary potion formula.
After making their decisions, Audrey and the others wrote their requests on slips of paper and handed them to the facilitator. They watched as he moved throughout the gathering, collecting more notes from the other participants.
Soon afterward, the facilitator shuffled the papers thoroughly before passing them to another person responsible for writing the information onto the blackboards.
"I need the formulas for the Spectator and Telepathist potions. Price negotiable face-to-face…"
The facilitator loudly repeated every request three times after it was written onto the blackboard. If anyone was interested, they could request a private room, where facilitators would oversee the transaction.
After waiting for quite a while, neither Audrey nor Glaint received any response regarding their requests.
Both of them felt somewhat disappointed.
At that moment, the facilitator who had been announcing requests suddenly paused. He walked toward the black-robed Mr. A seated in the middle of the gathering and whispered something into his ear.
Mr. A immediately raised his head as he listened. He then took the slip of paper and carefully read its contents. Afterward, his hidden gaze slowly swept across the gathering as though trying to determine who had written it.
Then everyone heard his deep voice echo throughout the room.
"Everyone, please give me your attention for a moment. A well-wisher wishes to share some information."
The noisy gathering instantly quieted down.
"Vice Admiral Hurricane, Qilangos, has secretly entered Backlund."
The entire gathering fell silent.
"It is said that Qilangos possesses a Sealed Artifact capable of consuming the souls of other Beyonders and using their powers. Because of this, he possesses the ability to transform into anyone…" Mr. A continued listing Qilangos's various abilities and the dangers he represented.
Suddenly, the expression beneath Mr. A's hood twisted slightly.
His voice boomed throughout the hall. "To see our Lord's blessed artifact in the hands of such a blasphemous person… The Aurora Order will hunt him down and reclaim our Lord's sacred artifact."
The entire Beyonder gathering immediately erupted into discussion.
'Playing the role of a mastermind behind the scenes really is satisfying…' Audrey thought with hidden giddiness.
The anonymous note about Vice Admiral Qilangos had naturally been written by her.
When she handed over her request earlier, she had secretly included another slip of paper containing all the information she knew about Qilangos.
This was the plan Audrey came up with after careful deliberation.
She clearly understood that she lacked the experience and ability necessary to locate Qilangos herself. Since that was the case, it was better to let others search for him instead.
Furthermore, she had no intention of personally meeting anyone claiming to possess information about Qilangos's whereabouts.
What if that person was actually Qilangos in disguise?
Revealing his existence within this gathering served several purposes at once.
Once Qilangos realized his arrival in Backlund had been exposed, he would likely become anxious and attempt to complete whatever objective he had in haste. As Emperor Roselle once said: haste makes waste.
Another possibility was that Qilangos would instead become cautious and go into hiding temporarily while waiting for attention to die down.
Either outcome benefited Audrey.
The more chaos or time Qilangos created, the easier it would become for the official Beyonders to discover traces of him.
…
Fors Wall quietly observed the increasingly noisy gathering before turning toward Audrey and Viscount Glaint.
"I think it would be better if we left now," she said in a low voice.
Xio Derecha nodded in agreement beside her. "People become irrational once greed is involved."
Audrey lightly nodded beneath her hood.
She had already noticed several participants whispering intensely among themselves while others quietly slipped away from the gathering. Even Mr. A's facilitators appeared more vigilant than before.
The four quickly moved toward the exit while the discussions behind them grew louder and louder.
Soon, they completely left the gathering.
Viscount Glaint had already arranged for a carriage to wait nearby. The four quickly boarded it and left the area.
Inside the carriage, the atmosphere became much more relaxed than before.
Fors leaned back comfortably and looked toward Audrey.
"You were surprisingly calm for your first gathering."
Audrey replied modestly, "I was actually very nervous."
But inwardly, Audrey thought with subtle pride, 'How could I possibly feel nervous? This gathering was nothing compared to the Tarot Club.'
"That didn't show at all," Xio said honestly. "Most newcomers either speak too much or stay so tense that they look suspicious. You handled yourself quite naturally."
Audrey silently accepted the compliment while feeling a little pleased inwardly.
The carriage continued moving through the streets of Backlund beneath the dim glow of the gas lamps.
After some time, they finally returned to Viscount Glaint's mansion.
Once the carriage stopped, Audrey stepped down together with the others.
Fors stretched slightly before saying, "Since we've safely completed the trip, Xio and I will head back now."
Xio also gave a small nod. "If you want to join another gathering in the future for potion formulas, Viscount Glaint knows how to contact us."
"Thank you for tonight," Audrey said sincerely.
Fors smiled faintly. "You already paid for the introduction. This was simply business."
After exchanging farewells, Fors and Xio quickly disappeared into the Backlund night together.
...
Audrey returned to the Hall family residence at around ten that night.
After removing her hooded robe and returning to her room, she was just about to ask her maidservants to prepare hot water for a bath when her thoughts drifted back to everything that had happened inside the Beyonder gathering.
She sat quietly on the edge of her bed and carefully reviewed the reactions she had observed after Mr. A announced the information about Vice Admiral Qilangos.
Using her Spectator abilities, Audrey had quietly analyzed many of their expressions, movements, and instinctive responses during the commotion.
After some thought, she arrived at a rough deduction.
Several participants were likely ordinary professionals in public society. Doctors, lawyers, merchants, and people with similar occupations.
Still, what interested her the most was Mr. A's reaction.
Audrey slowly recalled the scene in her mind.
The moment he heard about the Sealed Artifact, his emotions had clearly fluctuated so intensely that even a Sequence 9 like her could detect it.
Truthfully, she had not expected such a volatile reaction. Her original intention had simply been to make the Beyonders at the gathering more vigilant while stirring a bit of greed among them.
Audrey lightly frowned.
'What did he mean by his Lord's sacred artifact? Why did he mention the Aurora Order? How is that artifact connected to him?'
She could not fully understand it.
After thinking quietly for a while, Audrey decided to contact Mr. Hanged Man and inform him about tonight's events.
Since the mission regarding Qilangos had originally come from him, it was only natural to share the results.
She quickly dismissed the maidservants waiting nearby and locked the door to her bedroom.
Then Audrey skillfully began arranging the ritual altar she had grown increasingly familiar with.
She lit three candles one after another.
The crimson candlelight softly illuminated the room, causing the shadows on the walls to sway gently.
After completing the preparations, Audrey took a few steps backward and knelt sincerely before the altar.
In a soft voice, she began praying toward the mysterious existence above the gray fog.
"The Fool that doesn't belong to this era…"
"The mysterious ruler above the gray fog…"
"The King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck…"
As she finished reciting the honorific name of The Fool, Audrey lowered her head respectfully and asked to establish contact with The Hanged Man through the ritual.
Audrey waited quietly for about a minute.
Then her vision was consumed by a tide of crimson light.
When she blinked again, she found herself seated above the endless gray fog.
The ancient bronze table stood silently before her while the mysterious fog drifted endlessly around the vast space, concealing everything in an eternal haze.
At the opposite end of the long table sat the silhouette of another figure.
Although the gray fog obscured his appearance, Audrey still immediately recognized him.
"Mr. Hanged Man?" she asked with slight surprise.
At the same time, she instinctively glanced toward the seat at the head of the bronze table.
The position belonging to Mr. Fool remained empty.
Audrey paused briefly before understanding.
Mr. Fool was likely allowing the two of them to converse privately this time.
Across from her, Alger Wilson gave a small nod.
"Good evening, Miss Justice."
"Good evening, Mr. Hanged Man," Audrey replied politely.
Although this mysterious world above the gray fog still filled her with awe, she had gradually become accustomed to it after participating in multiple Tarot Gatherings.
At that moment, Alger looked toward her and calmly asked, "Miss Justice, did something happen regarding Vice Admiral Qilangos?"
Audrey lightly nodded.
"Yes. I attended a Beyonder gathering tonight and intentionally spread information related to Qilangos and the Sealed Artifact."
As she spoke, Audrey briefly organized her thoughts before carefully recounting everything that had happened during the gathering, including the participants' reactions and Mr. A's unusual emotional fluctuation after hearing about the sealed artifact in Qilungos' hands.
Mr. Hanged Man remained silent for several seconds after hearing her explanation.
Finally, Alger slowly spoke. "You did well by informing me immediately."
Audrey instantly became more attentive.
Alger lightly tapped the edge of the bronze table with his fingers before speaking in a low voice.
"The Aurora Order has five Saints and twenty-two Oracles. These Oracles use the alphabet as their code names, such as Mr. A or Mr. X," Alger continued calmly. "They are all Beyonders. The weakest among them are Sequence 7, while the strongest can reach Sequence 5."
As he spoke, his tone remained steady and composed.
"They are highly adept at concealing themselves. Even the Churches find it difficult to track them down completely. Should an Oracle die, a new Oracle will quickly take their place."
After hearing the explanation, Audrey quietly ruminated over the information she had just learned.
Then she said thoughtfully, "They really are a terrorist organization."
Alger gave a slight nod.
"The Aurora Order is hostile toward the Church of Storms, the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, and the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Because of this, members of those Churches understand the Aurora Order better than most other organizations."
Audrey silently listened.
"Most of their Beyonders are likely from the Secret Suppliant pathway," Alger continued. "If Sun's deduction is correct, then Creeping Hunger may once have belonged to the Aurora Order.
"And if that is truly the case, they would likely do anything necessary to reclaim it."
Audrey hesitated briefly before speaking.
"I'm sorry if the artifact was something you needed."
From the beginning, she had assumed Mr. Hanged Man's goal involved obtaining the Sealed Artifact.
However, Alger slowly shook his head.
"It's alright." His voice became colder than before.
"I do not need the Sealed Artifact. I simply want Qilangos dead."
Audrey instinctively looked toward him.
Even through the concealment of the gray fog, she could faintly sense the deep hostility hidden beneath his calm tone.
'Mr. Hanged Man seems to have really bad blood with Qilangos,' Audrey silently thought.
"Hm… this might also force Qilangos to act hastily and do whatever he came here for…" Alger nodded slightly in satisfaction before calmly saying, "Anyways, good job."
Audrey smiled faintly at the compliment before deciding to bring up the other reason she had contacted him.
"Mr. Hanged Man, there is another matter I wished to discuss." She paused briefly before continuing, "I have already gathered all the supplementary ingredients for the next potion formula. I only lack the complete pituitary gland of a Rainbow Salamander."
Her tone became slightly more serious.
"If I still cannot locate Qilangos, I will pay you four hundred pounds during the next gathering. What do you think?"
"Alright," Alger replied without much hesitation. "I will send it to you after returning from here."
He agreed surprisingly easily.
In Alger's view, if Miss Justice successfully advanced to a higher Sequence, her ability to observe and detect abnormalities would improve significantly. The chances of discovering Qilangos, even if he was disguised, would naturally increase as well.
There was no reason for him to refuse.
Audrey immediately felt delighted inwardly.
She secretly did a small fist pump beside her chair.
Soon, the two exchanged farewells.
"Praise The Fool."
"Praise The Fool."
The endless gray fog rapidly faded away.
Audrey blinked once before finding herself back inside her bedroom once more.
The crimson candlelight still flickered gently upon the altar while the quiet night beyond the windows remained unchanged.
After returning to reality, Audrey found herself completely unable to sit calmly on the edge of her bed anymore.
She occasionally flipped through the books near her bedside before placing them down absentmindedly moments later.
From time to time, she would walk toward the mirror and stare at her own reflection with slightly unfocused eyes.
Her heart was filled with anticipation.
She was waiting for the completion of Mr. Hanged Man's sacrificial ritual.
Audrey carefully controlled her emotions while silently reminding herself to remain composed.
Still, even she could not suppress the growing excitement in her heart.
After some time passed, Audrey suddenly sensed something.
The ritualistic flames upon the altar swayed violently.
Then, the illusory door slowly opened once again.
Beyond it appeared a scene even more illusory and mysterious than the cosmos itself.
The sight instantly caused Audrey to feel a strange sense of intoxication in both body and mind.
Soon afterward, she noticed something lying atop the altar.
It was a soft object with lustrous colors flowing across its surface while countless ridges covered it.
"The Rainbow Salamander's pituitary gland!"
Audrey's eyes immediately lit up with joy.
For a brief moment, she nearly stepped forward and grabbed it directly.
However, the etiquette ingrained deeply within her restrained the impulse.
She first lowered her head respectfully and sincerely praised Mr. Fool once more.
Only after completing the ritual properly did Audrey hurriedly walk forward.
She carefully examined the Beyonder ingredient repeatedly, inspecting it no fewer than five times before finally confirming there were no problems.
Audrey immediately began preparing the potion.
She had already completed the acting method digestion long ago. There was no longer any need to delay her advancement.
A few minutes later, a bottle of liquid appeared in her hand.
The potion contained constantly shifting lusters that seemed capable of illuminating the deepest corners of a person's heart.
Audrey took a slow breath.
Then, with confidence and anticipation, she raised the bottle and drank the Telepathist potion in one gulp.
The cold liquid rapidly flowed into her body.
Soon, an invisible yet familiar transformation began.
Audrey calmly endured the integration process between herself and the Beyonder characteristics, successfully advancing without much difficulty.
Her surroundings suddenly appeared far clearer than before.
Whether it was her perception, spirituality, or mental sensitivity, every aspect experienced an obvious increase.
Even the faint movements of shadows and candlelight seemed more vivid within her senses.
Audrey immediately entered a state of Cogitation with practiced familiarity, restraining the dissipating spirituality and stabilizing her condition after the advancement.
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