Above the Grey Mist.
There was still some time before the official start of the Tarot Club meeting. Klein arrived early to prepare for the upcoming gathering.
"Sigh—" He let out a soft sigh, then skillfully materialized the dummy, "World."
"Praise the Sun!"
The moment the "World"'s figure solidified, a line completely contrary to his gloomy demeanor, full of enthusiasm and vigor, uncontrollably burst out of his mouth, the sound echoing in the empty palace.
"Ugh—" Even though he had heard it many times, Klein's mouth still twitched, and his face was covered in black lines.
"Praise the Sun—Praise the Su—Pra—"
As time passed, the "Sun" aura on "World" gradually weakened, and the enthusiastic praise finally subsided.
This "World" dummy was created using the Beyonder characteristic left behind by Rosago. Because Klein had purified the target using a "Sun Flame" Talisman, the characteristic left behind carried a strong "Sun flavor."
He clearly remembered that the first time "World" attended the Tarot Club, Miss "Justice" was politely greeting him, only for "World" to suddenly shout "Praise the Sun" uncontrollably.
That scene startled "Hanged Man" Alger and delighted the little "Sun," Derrick. Even Miss "Justice," a "Spectator," froze on the spot. The situation was as awkward as could be.
It made everyone think that "World" was also a mole lurking in the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, making him colleagues with "Hanged Man" from the Storm Church—
He spent a great deal of effort, even resorting to using the dignity of "The Fool," to explain that "World" was acting this way because he was influenced by a Mystical Item from the Sun domain, and was genuinely not a mole.
After experiencing that public humiliation, he learned his lesson. Before every meeting, he would release "World" ahead of time to air him out and consume the excess "Solar Energy" on him, preventing him from suddenly "acting up" during the gathering.
"Time is almost up—" Klein calculated the time and muttered to himself.
Moments later, several blurry figures appeared one after another beside the Long Bronze Table.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Fool."
"Recently, Backlund's stock market experienced a severe Financial Crisis."
"Many nobles and company owners suffered heavy losses."
"There was even a Viscount who, unable to accept the reality of losing all his property and land, jumped from the top of a tall tower—"
"Justice" Audrey was vividly sharing the recent news happening in Backlund, the primary focus of which was this intense stock market turmoil.
"Something like this actually happened in Backlund—" "Hanged Man" Alger nodded thoughtfully, but since he was at sea and had no habit of buying stocks, he was mostly listening to it as a piece of intelligence.
Meanwhile, the little "Sun," Derrick, was completely lost, as if listening to a heavenly book. He didn't even know what a "Stock" was, and could only listen blankly, treating it as Miss "Justice" narrating a strange and fantastic story set in a distant world.
As for the remaining two—
"The Fool" Klein, sitting at the head of the table, was tightly controlling his expression. As one of the instigators of this storm, he was immensely grateful that the "Clown" Potion had granted him the ability to perfectly control his facial muscles.
And "Magician" Fors on the other side could barely hide the awkwardness on her face. She had lost all the royalties from her previous book. Hearing Miss "Justice" vividly narrate this event, besides anger, she felt a profound sense of shame that her own embarrassing history was being publicly broadcasted.
"There was also a major Financial Fraud Case involving a Southern Continent Mining Company that implicated a wide range of people," Audrey continued, sharing the news. "The entire Kingdom is offering a reward for one of the main culprits, Rastig—"
Hiss—
Klein drew a sharp breath, almost losing his composure.
Stop talking, young lady, I had no choice—he muttered silently in his heart.
"Not long ago, the Kingdom issued an Arrest Warrant for his arrest, with a bounty reaching 30,000 Pounds—"
H-how much? Klein was slightly stunned, almost thinking he had misheard.
Thirty thousand Pounds?! I'm actually worth 30,000 Pounds!
Although I was the one who came forward to trick those nobles into buying stocks, the actual operations were carried out by the professionals in the Society's Finance Department!
I work hard as a Detective normally, and only earn a few pennies a year!
In that instant, a ridiculous impulse even rose in Klein's heart: "Should I turn myself in for the reward?"
After the news sharing segment concluded, Audrey subtly observed everyone's reactions.
Mr. "Hanged Man" was, as usual, taking every opportunity to gather information. Meanwhile, Mr. "Sun" looked completely clueless, suggesting that the City of Silver lacked knowledge related to finance.
As for Fors—honestly, Fors's emotions were overly complex. Audrey saw indignation, guilt, and shame in her reaction.
Could Fors have also invested in the stock market and lost money?
Audrey shook her head, deciding not to pry into her friend's privacy. The only thing that concerned her was the other party's attitude toward Mr.
Fool.
Fors's attitude toward Mr. "Fool" was the same as before: filled with underlying fear, a trace of barely noticeable anger, and—a faint disdain she couldn't understand?
Audrey could barely understand the fear and anger, but she absolutely could not comprehend the disdain. Mr. "Fool" was such a great, benevolent, and unfathomable existence; why would Fors look down on him?
—
On the other side, "Magician" Fors felt completely uneasy. This feeling hadn't stopped since she was pulled into this strange space. Especially when Mr. "Fool's" profound gaze fell upon her, she would subconsciously clench her legs, feeling an urge to cover her body.
Damn it! Stop looking at me!
The reason Fors had this strange reaction stemmed from an incident that happened a long time ago. It occurred shortly after she, Xio, and "Scott" became acquainted.
That day, the three of them were researching Full Moon Whispers together. Midway through, Xio suddenly asked "Scott" for information about the Evil God they had encountered during an Exorcism.
She remembered Lorne's words vividly.
"I'm not sure about the specific details of the Evil God Xio provoked."
"But I—ahem, I heard that Evil God really likes peeping on people while they bathe—"
"You must be extra careful.
1
Just as the Tarot Club meeting was about to end, Klein, controlling "World," applied to "The Fool" for a private conversation with Miss "Justice."
"I'm sorry, Mr. 'World,' I failed your trust."
As soon as the conversation began, Audrey apologized with a dejected expression. "World" had subtly warned her that the stock market might have problems, but she failed to prevent the storm from happening or help more people, leaving her feeling guilty.
Seriously, why didn't Father tell me about these things? Also, he seems very happy lately.
Thinking of Earl Hall's joyful expression every time he returned home recently—an expression completely different from the other frantic nobles—Audrey was confused. She vaguely guessed something but still dared not believe it.
"It's alright, this isn't your fault—" "World" replied in a hoarse voice. Klein hadn't actually expected Miss "Justice" to be able to change the overall situation, so he wasn't disappointed. After comforting her a few words, he cut to the chase.
"I have something I'd like to entrust to you."
"What is it? Anything I can do." Audrey immediately cheered up.
"Help me save someone."
"Save someone?" Audrey was slightly startled.
"Yes," "World's" voice was deep and certain. "That person is called James Scott."
Ah?!
Four more days passed.
Lorne stayed in the Detention Room for another four days.
During this period, Ted brought a Business Lawyer well-known in Backlund to see him. Reportedly, the Lawyer charged by the minute.
This made Lorne, who was currently financially strained, feel uneasy. He didn't have much spare money to waste on legal fees, and deep down, he didn't believe that matters involving the Beyonder world and upper-class power struggles could be solved simply by legal statutes.
The result was exactly as he predicted. When the Lawyer negotiated with the Punishers disguised as police officers, he spoke eloquently, citing legal statutes and procedural irregularities, but the Punishers overpowered him with sheer force, and the Lawyer ultimately returned disappointed, covered in bruises.
"Sigh—when can I finally leave?" Lorne sighed.
Clang!
Just then, the heavy iron door of the Detention Room was opened. A Police Officer stood at the entrance, his face expressionless, and announced in a businesslike manner: "James Scott, your Bail Application has been approved. You may leave."
"5