It was deep into the night.
After eating, Klein washed the dishes, took a bath, and returned to his room.
...
The gray fog filled the air as the illusory crimson stars hung around him at varying distances. Klein sat inside the lofty palace.
He made a yellowish-brown goatskin appear before him, then lifted a pen to write his amended incantation for the summoning ritual.
"Light a candle to represent myself.
Use a spiritual wall to create a holy environment.
Drip a drop of Full Moon Essence Oil in the flame, Chamomile Pure Dew, Slumber Flower Powder, and other ingredients. (Note: There's no need to be too particular in this step because it's summoning oneself.).
Recite the incantation below.
I! (In ancient Hermes, Jotun, Dragonese, or Elfish. It must be a deep shout.
I summon in my name (Hermes),
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."
...
After scrutinizing it three times, Klein wrote a divination statement at the bottom: "There will be danger if the ritual above is carried out outside of this world."
Klein put down the pen and took out the silver chain. The topaz pendant hung above the goatskin steadily, only a slight distance above the divination statement. He reined in his thoughts and entered a Cogitation state.
"There will be danger if the ritual above is carried out outside of this world."
After reciting the statement seven times, Klein opened his eyes and looked at the topaz pendant, which was spinning counterclockwise.
That meant a negative outcome: there would be no danger.
"I can give it a try then." Klein made the items before him disappear and extended his spirituality to wrap around himself and simulated the sensation of falling.
When he returned to his bedroom, due to the fact that he had sealed the entire room with a spiritual wall, Klein immediately cleared his desk and put out a mint-scented candle right in the middle.
He pressed slightly on the candle wick, rubbing it with spirituality to cause friction and ignite the candle.
Under the flickering dim light, Klein dripped the corresponding essential oils, extracts, and herb powder onto the flame.
A soothing fragrance filled the air, and the room alternated between brightness and darkness. Taking two steps back, Klein looked at the candle that represented himself and shouted in Jotun, "I!"
Then, he switched to Hermes, "I summon in my name:
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."
Just as he finished speaking, he sensed the wavering candlelight suddenly dance vigorously and produce a vortex with the surrounding fragrance. It absorbed his spirituality at an insane rate.
"Slumber flower, a herb that belongs to the red moon, please bestow your powers to my incantation..." Klein endured the discomfort brought about from having his spirituality drained as he finished reciting the incantation.
Then, he saw the candlelight stop wavering. It was tainted with a gray luster, which extended to about the size of a palm.
"I didn't summon anything... Oh right, perhaps I'll need to respond to it above the gray fog."
He took four steps counterclockwise before arriving above the gray fog again and saw that there was a rippling light above the seat of honor at the ancient table.
It stemmed from the strange symbol at the back of the corresponding chair that was made up of a pupil-less eye, representing secrecy, and the contorted lines represented change.
Klein extended his hand to reach for it and heard, "I! I summon in my name, 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." Then, he saw surging spirituality combined with a rippling light that formed into an illusory yet shapeless door.
The door shook, and Klein felt inspired and strongly willed to push it open.
Almost instantly, the boundless fog and lofty palace were drawn forward.
There were a few barely noticeable ripples that surged towards the illusory yet shapeless door. But no matter how much Klein pushed it, the door wouldn't open.
"The Door of Summoning has yet to take shape?" Klein creased his eyebrows. He had casually named the door like this.
"Hmm, I'm lacking spirituality, so I can't form a complete Door of Summoning. When I advance to Sequence 8 Clown and pass through the initial dangerous stage, I can give it another try. Maybe it won't be a problem by then..."
This experiment was the first time that he received some sort of response from the mysterious space above the gray fog, other than the incident where he divined about Eternal Blazing Sun.
There will come a day when I'll understand all the secrets here!
...
Klein made a rapid descent and blew out the candle after returning to his bedroom. He ended the ritual and cleaned up his study desk before he removed the spiritual wall.
A gust of wind suddenly blew as he yawned. He collapsed into the bed, covered himself with a blanket, and quickly fell asleep.
In the hazy dream that followed, Klein woke up abruptly and realized that he was sitting in the living room of his home and was holding the Tingen City Honest Paper.
Don't tell me Captain is here again. He looked outside the oriel window.
With a creak, the door opened, and Dunn walked in and sat on the single-seat sofa as he looked at Klein.
In order to not expose that he knew that it was a dream, he pretended to not be affected by it and continued to read the newspaper.
One minute, two minutes, five minutes. He lifted his head to look at Dunn, who sat opposite him.
Five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes. Klein flipped through the newspaper back and forth multiple times, looking at Dunn from the corner of his eyes.
Klein couldn't sit in peace. He folded the newspaper and went to the kitchen and started wiping the dining table and coffee table.
Under such a quiet and constant gaze, Klein wiped all the furniture and cleaned his room. He was so exhausted in his dream.
Klein had no idea how much time had passed until he finally saw Dunn stand up and walk through the door.
...
Backlund, West Backlund, Philip's Department Store.
Philip's was one of the top-end department stores in the Loen Kingdom, only open to nobles and wealthy people.
There were always luxurious carriages parked outside with different emblems printed on them. Not only was it a safe place for shopping, but it also became a popular social venue due to the strict restriction on members.
Audrey brought her maidservant, Annie, and her golden retriever, Susie, and under the ushering of an eagerly attentive attendant, she got off the carriage and walked through the entrance.
Along the way, she saw daughters of viscounts, countesses, or maidens with parents of high social status.
She maintained her elegance, greeted them all gracefully, and communicated with different nobles on different topics. For instance, when she faced a particular countess, she would compliment the fittings of the countess's dress, and when she greeted a particular baroness, she would praise the outstanding performance of the baroness's husband in the House of Lords.
Audrey hadn't been good at that previously; she was too stubborn and too arrogant. But now, she didn't even need to put in much effort to respond perfectly.
In a Spectator's eyes, most of the emotions and thoughts of the female nobles were written on their faces.
Arriving at the second floor, Audrey turned into a shop that sold ready-made dresses.
The attendant in the shop was a petite maiden. She wore a black and white dress and had shoulder-length blond hair. She was the Arbiter Xio Derecha.
Audrey gave Susie a look. The dog understood what her owner meant and ran to another counter.
The maidservant Annie went after Susie to try to bring her back.
Well done! Audrey complimented inwardly and walked next to Xio Derecha, pretending to look at the variety of dresses.
"Why did you arrange to meet me here?" Xio inquired with a whisper while she loudly introduced the dresses.
"Where's the original attendant?" Audrey asked.
Xio looked around and said, "I convinced her. She was happy to rest for the morning."
Audrey looked at the different-styled dresses while she took out a piece of neatly folded paper from her lamb leather handbag and secretly passed it to Xio.
"Rear Admiral Hurricane, Qilangos, has snuck into Backlund. This is his portrait. I hope you can find him for me. Oh, and don't alert him."
Xio received the piece of paper and unfolded it. She saw that it was a lifelike portrait of a man in his thirties that had a uniquely broad chin.
I was once constantly praised by my art teacher... Audrey stole a glance at Xio and added, "The Kingdom offers a reward of ten thousand pounds for Qilangos. If he were to be arrested, even the person that only provided clues would definitely be awarded a few hundred pounds."