"Free? Free things cost the most!" Zhou Mingrui mutters to himself, resolving to decline any additional services. If you're so good, divine that I transmigrated! With this thought, he follows the red-and-yellow-faced woman into the dimly lit tent.
Inside, faint light reveals a table covered in paper cards. The pointy-hatted woman moves fluidly to the opposite side, lights a candle, and the flickering yellow light creates a mysterious atmosphere. Zhou Mingrui sits quietly, noticing familiar tarot cards like "The Magician," "The Emperor," "The Hanged Man," and "Temperance." Could Roselle have been a 'senior'? A fellow countryman? he wonders.
Before he can examine the cards further, the woman gathers them, shuffles the deck, and pushes it towards him. "Shuffle the cards first and cut the deck," she says in a low voice.
"Me? Shuffle?" Zhou Mingrui asks reflexively.
The paint on her face seems to shift as she smiles slightly. "Of course, everyone's destiny can only be unraveled by themselves. I only serve as a reader."
Zhou Mingrui eyes her warily. "This reading does not require additional fees, right?" Keyboard folklorist instincts kicking in!
The fortune-teller seems surprised before replying muffledly, "It's free."
Relieved, Zhou Mingrui pushes the revolver further into his pocket and calmly shuffles and cuts the deck. "It's done," he says, placing the cards in the center of the table.
The woman clasps the cards, studies them, and then asks, "I'm sorry, I forgot to ask, but what would you like to ask about?"
Remembering his tarot research from his past attempts at romance, Zhou Mingrui replies unhesitatingly, "Past, present, and future."
The fortune-teller nods, smiles, and says, "Then please reshuffle the deck. You can only truly get the cards you want if you know what you would like to ask about."
Were you fooling me? This petty? All I asked was if it was free! Zhou Mingrui's cheek twitches. He takes a deep breath, reshuffles, and cuts the deck again. "There won't be any problems this time, right?" he asks, placing the cards back.
"No problem." The woman picks the top card and places it to Zhou Mingrui's left. "This card symbolizes your past," she says, her voice lowering. She places the second card in front of him. "This card symbolizes your present." Then, she puts the third card to his right. "This card symbolizes the future." Raising her head, her grayish-blue eyes meet Zhou Mingrui's. "Alright, which card would you like to see first?"
"I'll have a look at the 'present' first," Zhou Mingrui decides.
The fortune-teller nods and flips the card directly in front of him. It depicts a colorfully dressed character with ragged headgear and a stick over his shoulder, a bindle hanging from it, and a puppy following behind. It is numbered "0."
"The Fool," the fortune-teller reads softly, her gaze fixed on Zhou Mingrui.
The Fool? The '0' card? A start? A fresh beginning? Zhou Mingrui, barely an amateur, makes a rough interpretation based on his limited knowledge.
Before the fortune-teller can speak, the tent flap is suddenly lifted, and blinding sunlight floods in, causing Zhou Mingrui to instinctively squint.
"Why are you impersonating me again! It's my job to handle the divination for people!" an angry woman's voice growls. "Return to your post quickly! You must remember that you're just an animal trainer!"
Zhou Mingrui's eyes adjust to see another woman who looks similar, also wearing a pointy hat and black dress with red and yellow face paint, but taller and slimmer.
The seated woman quickly stands up, disgruntled. "Don't mind this, it's just that I like doing this. But I have to say, my divination and interpretation can be really accurate sometimes. I'm serious..." She lifts her dress and hurries out of the tent.
"Sir, would you like me to interpret your cards for you?" the real fortune-teller asks Zhou Mingrui with a smile.
Zhou Mingrui's lips twitch. "Is it free?" he asks sincerely.
"...No," she replies.
"Then forget it." Zhou Mingrui withdraws his hands, puts them in his pockets, clutches his revolver and money, and stoops to exit the tent. Damn! I got a fortune-telling animal trainer! Isn't an animal trainer who doesn't want to be a fortune-teller just a bad clown?
Zhou Mingrui quickly puts the incident behind him. He buys a pound of mediocre mutton for seven pence and some vegetables for a total of 25 copper pennies (two soli and one pence). Poor Benson... He's spent the two soli he brought and had to use a penny from his pocket. He sighs and hurries home, eager to perform the luck enhancement ritual with the staple food.
Back in his apartment, after the other tenants have left, Zhou Mingrui translates the incantations into ancient Feysac and Loen languages, planning to try the ritual again the next day in these languages if the original doesn't work. He struggles to translate it into the Hermes language due to his limited vocabulary.
Having prepared everything, he takes out the four loaves of rye bread and places one in each corner of the room: by the coal stove, at the bottom of the dressing mirror, on top of the cupboard, and on the study table.
Taking a deep breath, Zhou Mingrui stands in the center of the room and calms himself. He then takes a solemn step forward, moving counter-clockwise in a square.
With the first step, he whispers, "Blessings Stem From The Immortal Lord of Heaven and Earth."
The second step, he sincerely chants, "Blessings Stem From The Sky Lord of Heaven and Earth."
The third step, he breathes out, "Blessings Stem From The Exalted Thearch of Heaven and Earth."
The fourth step, he exhales and concentrates, "Blessings Stem From The Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth."
Returning to his starting point, Zhou Mingrui closes his eyes and waits, a mix of anticipation, unease, hope, and fear swirling within him. Could he make it back? Would there be any effect? Any unexpected situation? The unknown ahead is tinged with the crimson light of hope. His thoughts race, difficult to quiet.
Suddenly, the surrounding air seems to still, becoming thick and mysterious. A low whisper sounds beside his ears, sometimes real, sometimes sharp, sometimes imaginary, sometimes alluring, sometimes maniacal, sometimes crazy. He doesn't understand the murmuring, yet he's compelled to listen.
His head throbs with intense pain, like a steel rod being drilled into it. He feels like his head will explode, his thoughts a kaleidoscope of colors. He knows something is wrong and tries to open his eyes, but even this simple action is impossible. His body tightens, feeling like it could break apart. A self-mocking thought flashes: "If you didn't seek death, you wouldn't die..."
He can no longer bear it. Just as his mind is about to shatter, the murmuring fades, and his surroundings become eerily quiet. The atmosphere is erratic. Not only the atmosphere, but Zhou Mingrui feels the same erratic sensations within his own body.
He tries again to open his eyes, this time an extremely easy task. A gray fog appears before him – hazy, vague, and endless.
"What's with this situation?" Zhou Mingrui looks around and down, discovering he's floating at the edge of an endless fog. The fog flows like water, dotted with many crimson "stars," some enormous, others tiny, some hidden deep, others floating on the surface.
Looking at the seemingly holographic sight, Zhou Mingrui reaches out his right hand, half-confused, half-exploring, to touch a crimson "star" floating on the surface, trying to find a way out. When his hand touches it, a watermark suddenly appears within his body, agitating the stars into a "crimson" burst, like dreamlike burning flames.
Startled, Zhou Mingrui panics and retracts his hand, accidentally touching another crimson star. This star also bursts with splendid light. In turn, Zhou Mingrui feels his mind empty and his spirit dissipate.
...
In Backlund, the Loen Kingdom's capital, Audrey Hall sits before an antique dresser with a cracked bronze mirror.
"Mirror, mirror, awaken... In the name of the Hall family, I command you to awaken!" she chants various phrases, but the mirror remains unresponsive. After ten minutes, she gives up, pouting. "Father was indeed lying to me. He always tells me that this mirror was the treasure of the Roman Empire's Dark Emperor, and that it is an extraordinary item..." Her voice trails off. Suddenly, the bronze mirror glows with a crimson light, enveloping her completely.
...
In the Sonia Sea, a weathered three-masted sailboat navigates a storm. Alger Wilson stands on deck, his body swaying with the waves, easily maintaining balance. He wears a robe embroidered with lightning patterns and holds a quirky glass bottle containing swirling bubbles, frost turning to snow, and signs of wind. "We're still short on the Ghost Shark's blood..." Alger murmurs. At that moment, a crimson burst appears between the bottle and his palm, instantly engulfing his surroundings.
...
In the fog of gray mist, Audrey Hall regains her sight, horrified and confused. She sees the blurry figure of a man opposite her, equally bewildered. Immediately after, they both notice another mysterious person standing not far from them, shrouded in gray mist.
The "mysterious person" is Zhou Mingrui, equally dumbfounded.
"Sir, where is this?" Audrey and Alger are startled, falling silent before speaking in unison.
"What are you planning on doing?"