"Degenerate Creator... Degenerate..." "The Hangman" Alger chewed on the words of the fool, as if lost in thought.
But in his heart, what echoed was the other's relaxed, natural, and nonchalant attitude.
That was a level-headed, equal attitude!
If it weren't for the encounter during the previous ritual, Alger might have thought the fool was just bluffing, using the means of elevating himself to intimidate both himself and "Justice", but now, he would rather believe that even if the fool is not as real a Creator as the true one, he is close to that level.
It's dangerous... But also an opportunity... Alger murmured silently, and then with a hint of a smile, he said:
"Mr. Fool, your description is indeed more appropriate. According to our observations, all those who believe in the true Creator, not, the fallen Creator, the extraordinary ones, the proportion of those who lose control is far higher than the normal value, and the rest are mostly lunatics."
This point was also mentioned in the internal materials of the Night Watch... And the so-called "lunatics" don't mean losing their minds, but having extremely distorted worldviews... Klein remained in his sitting position and did not respond to "The Hangman's" words.
He was still considering how to appropriately ask about the Secret Order and the "Jester" potion, but he still couldn't find a way that fit his identity.
Unfortunately, here and on online dating platforms there are fundamental differences. Otherwise, I could create a small account and add myself in, specifically to ask questions that I'm not comfortable asking... Maybe one day, I'll learn a similar magic like mirroring, and try it, for example, having half of the members be my small account...
There are twenty-two chairs here, and there are twenty-two tarot cards, which is a perfect correspondence. But when I "wanted" to build a temple, I hadn't called myself "Fool" yet, nor had I thought of establishing a tarot society... Well, is this a symbol of the twenty-two sequential paths?
I wanted a temple, so the temple appeared. I wanted a "small account", would a "small account" appear... Seeing that the Fool, shrouded in the thick gray fog, didn't speak any more, "Justice" Audrey, half-exclaiming half-inquiringly, spoke up:
"It sounds terrifying, well, 'The Hangman' sir, could you elaborate on the various mysterious organizations and secret sects? I have difficulty accessing these in my daily life, and can only learn about them through you. I will pay for it, do you want anything?"
Well done! "Justice" lady, you are, to some extent, taking on the responsibility of my small account... So, "The Hangman" will definitely mention the Secret Order... You are the best comic relief! Klein's ears perked up, but he didn't let his emotions show even a bit through his expressions and actions.
Alger thought for a while and said:
"I need a sum of money, 1000 pounds, preferably unlinked banknotes, or newly mined gemstones, calculated based on the average monthly price of the Beckland jewelry trading market."
1000 pounds? This is a huge sum of cash, enough to buy a house in the upscale district of Tingen! Not everyone can come up with it all at once... The captain is probably earning this salary? Helierie's "death compensation" is only 300 pounds... "Justice" lady is a noble, but clearly she doesn't inherit the family estate, can only receive the corresponding annual pension income... Well,难怪 "The Hangman" said that gemstones could be used to offset... Klein is particularly sensitive to monetary figures, fortunately, there is a thick layer of gray fog surrounding him.
For a single lady or woman, 2000 pounds would allow her to live a decent life for a lifetime!
-- A stable annual pension income of around 100 pounds.
"1000 pounds?" Audrey exclaimed in surprise, and then replied cheerfully and pleasantly, "No problem, will it be sent to the previous address?"
Judging from "Justice" lady's tone, she thought it was cheap? Klein didn't shift his gaze.
Alger remained silent for over twenty seconds before saying: "Yes, it's the 'Warriors and the Sea' bar on Pelican Street in the White Rose District of Prizh Port. It's for the owner, Williams, and it's said to be for 'Captain'."
"OK." Audrey leaned back slightly, assuming the posture of an audience, and said, "Mr. Hangman, you can start now."
Alger looked at the Fool for a moment, pondered for a while, and slowly began to speak:
"We'll start with the Mosse Monastery. It was the earliest secretive organization. Of course, many people believe that the earliest secretive organization should be the Night Goddess Church, the Earth Mother Goddess Church, and the War God Church."
"These people must be members of the Storm Lord Church, the Eternal Sun Church, or the Knowledge and Wisdom God Church." Audrey retorted with a grumpy tone.
Was the Church of the Goddess the earliest secretive organization? Klein had never heard such a statement before.
In the fourth or third era, what exactly happened?
Alger smiled and said:
"These truths have long been buried in that ancient history. The only thing we can be certain of is that no one ever said that the Storm Lord Church, the Eternal Sun Church, or the Knowledge and Wisdom God Church were ever secretive organizations."
"OK, let's save time and get back to the main topic. The Mosse Monastery was originally formed by several humans who witnessed the desecrated stone tablets. They believed in an impersonal deity called the Hidden Sage."
"This was described as a deity, but it was more close to a concept, a natural law, such as everything is number, and the Hidden Sage is the embodiment of the number, such as knowledge supremacy, the Hidden Sage is knowledge itself. So, the early Mosse Monastery was a very respected organization, and it had good relations with all the major churches."
"The members of this organization used asceticism to counteract the influence of the residual magic and strictly kept secrets, adhering to morality and discipline, believing that people would constantly reincarnate after death..."
"The sequence 9 they mastered is called 'The Secret Seeker'... The term 'Witch' also originated from this organization."
Audrey savored the description of "Hangman" and asked sharply:
"You say the early Mosse Monastery was a very respected organization. Don't they not be now?"
Alger gave a barely visible nod and said:
"Yes, they have degenerated into an evil organization."
"Why? I think their philosophy is good and normal." Audrey expressed her doubts.
This was also Klein's doubt. The information he could access through his confidentiality level did not record the reason for the decline of the Mosse Monastery.
Alger looked at the profound and silent Fool again, and said with a "hum" sound:
"The real reason, I don't know. Perhaps this has been completely covered by the dust of history, but I know a terrifying explanation."
"In that explanation, the main reason for the decline of the Mosse Monastery was the deity they believed in, which was called 'The Hidden Sage', alive!"
"He became a personified evil god!"
"Alive? How... how could he be alive?" Audrey asked in an unimaginable and incomprehensible tone.
She unconsciously left the "audience" state.
Just like a ghost story... and that 'ghost' was a deity... Klein's heart also felt a fierce wind and waves.
"Sorry, no one knows the answer." Alger wanted to casually say "Perhaps the Fool Mr. knows it" but he forcibly suppressed this impulse.
Because he had already tried on the dangerous edge once today.
In Chapter 7 of Chapter 5 of "The Book of Storms", Alger remembered this sentence clearly:
"Do not test the gods!"
Audrey controlled her emotions and did not ask any more, indicating to continue.
Klein maintained his sitting posture and remained silent, confirming the content of "Hangman's" narration with his own knowledge.
When it was over, he found there were four points that he needed to pay attention to: "1. The witch sect was also known as the witch family in the Quaternary period. At that time, their members were few, and they relied on bloodline reproduction to survive. Moreover, they would kill the fathers of their children and abandon the male infants. Therefore, all the members were female. Of course, this is according to Algie's account. Whether it is true or false cannot be verified at present."
"2. The faith in death's spirit sect and the rose school that likes bloody sacrifices both originated in the southern continent. After the colonial era arrived, they were almost annihilated by the Seven Gods Church, but they also spread to the northern continent."
"3. The psychological alchemy society is currently similar to the early Mosha Monastic Society. They believe in non-personalized existence and think that the human spirit can evolve everything."
"4. The secret society is the organization with the lowest activity frequency among all the secret organizations. Therefore, it is the least understood by others. Every time they appear, it seems that they are only chasing something or searching for something."
What are they chasing? What are they searching for? Klein suddenly thought of the diary he had just read: The leader of the secret society, Chalatu, collaborated with Rosel, with the aim of obtaining an artifact of the Antigonus family.
And this time they appeared, their purpose was to retrieve the lost notes, the notes of the Antigonus family... Klein's eyes narrowed slightly, and he felt as if he had grasped the core elements of the secret society's actions:
They are chasing the items left by the Antigonus family!
Klein restrained the urge to tap the edge of the table and had a flurry of thoughts in his mind:
Well, they are searching for the remnants of the Antigonus family?
To obtain the "clown" potion formula from the secret society, should one start from this aspect?
They exchanged information with each other for a while, and Klein announced that this gathering was over.
"Follow your will." Audrey and Algie both stood up simultaneously.
Cutting the connection, watching their figures disintegrate and disappear, Klein rubbed his eyebrows, trying to imagine a "small horn" emerging.
His thought just fell, and he saw a figure appear at the bottom of the bronze long table. That figure was wearing a black tailcoat and a semi-high silk hat, with a dull expression and clumsy movements. Even though there was an illusionary gray fog covering it, it was clearly showing its abnormality.
No way... Klein conducted multiple experiments again, sighed, and gave up the idea of creating a "small horn".
He tried other things as well, and continued sitting on the gray fog, sitting at the main seat of the bronze long table, considering Audrey's previous words, curiously looking at those illusory, deep red stars.
After a moment of silence, Klein began to contact those stars by responding to requests instead of establishing a connection.
In the midst of peace and silence, he did not receive any information from the dozen or so deep red stars nearby.
Only by establishing a connection and pulling people into the gray fog could one "respond"? Klein nodded thoughtfully, feeling somewhat disappointed.
He did not want to go against others' will and forcibly pull the other party into this mysterious space.
Well... Klein began to prepare to leave, but involuntarily came into contact with a virtual star nearby.
Just then, he suddenly felt a faint, imperceptible "request" in the deep red!