Within the grand and majestic palace, the mottled bronze long table and twenty-two high-backed chairs, each bearing a unique symbol, stood in silence, unchanged through the ages.
Ebner sat upon his designated high-backed chair, attentively listening to Mr. World's account of the underground ruins beneath Williams Street.
Klein's description doesn't differ much from what was written in the original work. He didn't deliberately hide the dangers involved…
And him telling me all this—was it in hopes that I'd take interest and willingly join them to handle that Baron Pound?
Should I go along with his performance and agree?
Hmm… From a safety standpoint, it does seem acceptable…
In the original, the "Red Angel" wraith did indeed possess that baron, but it all ended without real danger—he only tempted Klein and Sharon verbally, asking them to help break his seal.
And Sauron Einhorn Medici, who had lost his body and Beyonder characteristics—even if he had once been the King of Angels—at most had the strength of a demigod. In the original, he couldn't even be sure of stopping Klein after he'd just become a Trickmaster.
Let alone now, when the seal is still in place—he's probably even weaker. If I focus on escaping, he shouldn't be able to stop me…
Secondly, what benefits could exploring that ruin bring me?
Actually, quite a few… Giuseppe Castiya, who lived for a long time with Lilith's avatar, Lady Lamia—or rather, the later "Mr. Felipe"—likely died in those ruins before being possessed by the transmigrator brought by the Pure White Eye…
And the newly-born "Mr. Felipe" successfully left the ruins carrying the "Cursed Tudor Emblem"… So he most likely had contact with the Red Angel during that time…
Maybe I can ask Medici about that senior transmigrator?
Also, I wonder how much he knows about the Duke who authored the Feast of Blood…
As thoughts flashed through his mind, Ebner intentionally revealed a glimmer of curiosity in his expression and said with measured words:
"You're inviting me to go with you and explore that ruin again?"
Originally, Klein and Sharon had no such plan. They only wanted to scare Baron Pound a little and make him behave.
But with "Tower" joining, the objective naturally shifted…
"If we can purify that wraith, then re-exploring the ruins is only natural," said Mr. World hoarsely.
Purify the wraith? You probably don't even know its true nature… then again, Klein really doesn't know right now…
Ebner grumbled inwardly, but outwardly, he appeared deep in thought for a moment before asking, "When do you plan to move?"
"Friday night," Klein replied.
"I'll need to think about it. I'll give you an answer tomorrow," said Ebner.
He had just used his "Prophecy" ability for the day—otherwise, he wouldn't need that long.
"Alright." Klein nodded.
Once Ebner's figure faded, Klein turned to the long-silent Miss Sharon and asked, "Do you think Mr. Tower will agree?"
"Like when you usually go to the washroom," Sharon responded calmly.
The washroom? So, this depends on Mr. Tower returning to 'divine,' 'prophesy,' or 'consult,' huh…
Still, Miss Temperance… not every time I go to the washroom is an excuse, you know…
Klein muttered internally, then solemnly expressed thanks to Mr. Fool before allowing Sharon to return to the real world. He then forwarded the report just received from Miss Justice to the Hanged Man.
…
7,000 pounds? Or an equivalent-value mystical item?Still in the port city of Bayam, capital of the Rorsted Archipelago, the "Hanged Man" Alger Wilson felt like someone had smashed him on the head when he heard that number.
His current savings were just under 4,000 pounds. If he liquidated everything he owned, maybe he could just barely gather the amount.
Unfortunately, that wasn't realistic. After all, even with the formula in hand, he would still need to spend money gathering materials. And without a weapon or usable item, how was he supposed to rob others or "enforce justice"?
After all, most ordinary pirates weren't actually wealthy. They were used to spending whatever they got as soon as they got it—hard liquor, roast meat, prostitutes, cannabis, and gambling drained their purses dry.
Only pirate crews with Beyonders truly had any real spoils!
Thinking this, Alger pulled out a mask from the inner pocket of his clothes. It looked like it was made of gold.
The mask bore roughly carved facial features, arranged in a way that resembled the appearance of primitive people from ancient jungles.
After hesitating for a long moment, Alger put it away again. He planned to bring it to the Beyonder gathering at the Amyris Leaf Bar to trade it for a powerful mystical weapon…
Then, he would hunt down a pirate with a bounty of over 3,000 pounds!
Now that he had become Wind-Blessed, he had the strength to do it!I just have to be careful to conceal my identity… After all, the Church doesn't know I've reached Sequence 6 yet…
.....
Lightning gradually faded, and darkness returned to rule the land.
Sun Derrick followed Silver City's exploration team on a journey that was neither too long nor too short, with scattered battles, until they finally reached their destination.
—A city that had fallen into ruin.
Derrick still remembered Mr. Tower's request, and while carefully maintaining formation, he examined the houses lining both sides of the street.
Most had collapsed, with only a few barely holding up. Their surfaces were all weathered and covered in the dust of time.
The white-and-blue color scheme and the spire-style architecture, different from those of Silver City, had all dulled to gray, making it difficult to imagine what they once looked like.
This… this place shows signs everywhere that it's different from Silver City… Is this what Mr. Tower meant by a different civilization?
No… Mr. Tower said I'd be able to recognize the traces of that civilization at a glance… Even though this place is different from Silver City, I can still roughly tell what these buildings were used for…
As Derrick's thoughts drifted, Demon Hunter Colin swept a glance around, his expression stern. He pointed ahead and said, "Stay focused! Also, the rest of the area has been cleared. Our target—the temple—is at the very center of the city."
Snapping back to attention, Derrick gripped his Storm Axe tightly and followed the Chief toward the temple's underground.
Along the way, they saw murals depicting the Fallen Creator resisting evil gods and protecting the remaining humans after the apocalypse. They saw clusters of mushroom-like, mouthwatering beauties. They saw black crucifixes and upside-down statues of the Fallen Creator.
What shocked them most, though, was that on the altar before the statue… there was a child, around seven or eight years old!
Beside the child's hand lay a palm-sized bronze book, its surface revealing gears and intricate mechanisms.
One glance was all it took for Derrick to guess—that must be the foreign artifact Mr. Tower had tasked him to find.
At that moment, the Chief had already questioned the child, learning his name was Jack, and that he had come looking for the sanctuary of the Lord.
But the child suddenly noticed Derrick's gaze, turned around, and murmured like in a trance, "I picked this up on the way. Do you want it? I can give it to you, but you have to bring me something to eat. I'm so hungry! So hungry! So hungry!"
As he spoke, he suddenly tossed the book toward Derrick—at the same time, his mouth split open, stretching all the way to his ears. Neatly aligned, bone-white teeth showed, with sticky saliva oozing out.
In the same instant, he lunged at Derrick—so fast that a blurry afterimage was left behind in place.
Derrick instinctively caught the gear-laden book, and before he could react further, he saw the Chief draw his sword with a flash…
Then, he suddenly jolted awake, as if from a deep sleep, finding himself before a quietly burning campfire, with teammates diligently standing guard around the camp.
Seated cross-legged beside a broken pillar, Demon Hunter Colin opened his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Depart after fifty lightning strikes."
Hearing this, Derrick couldn't suppress a wave of nervousness—thinking of the approaching city-state, the temple of the Fallen Creator, and Mr. Tower's commission.
Even as he followed the Chief across the shattered city walls into the eerie temple, he failed to notice that a bronze book with exposed gears and mechanisms had somehow appeared in his pocket.
(End of Chapter)