Fors couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Jack, do you know how to lift this curse?"
"I'm sorry, I haven't found anything in the texts about that." Alaric shook his head, then hesitated. "But I could do a divination for you. It might give us some clues."
Fors glanced at Xio, who nodded slightly. "That'd be great, Mr. Jack. How can I thank you?" Fors said.
"Let's talk gratitude after the divination. Honestly, I'm not confident I'll find anything." Alaric said with a wave of his hand.
Instead of parting at the designated spot after the carriage stopped, the trio found a nearby café and booked a private room.
Once ready, Alaric set up his astrolabe and began divining for Fors. He'd prepared for a failed attempt, intending only to plant the Fool as a lead for her to pave his way to the Tarot Club. To his surprise, he actually divined something.
"…The Fool and the Door? That shouldn't be possible. Divining entities of that level should be blocked. Could the Nyarlathotep fragment in me be negating the interference?" Alaric mused silently, then looked at Fors's tense expression and said honestly, "The divination suggests resolving your issue involves the Fool and the Door."
"The Fool? The Door?" Fors's smile was puzzled, tinged with surprise.
Xio gave Alaric a suspicious look. "You're not trying to trick us into digging for Fool-related clues, are you?"
Her suspicion was fair... the result seemed too convenient.
Alaric's expression cooled as he packed away the astrolabe. "I've no reason to lie about this. If you don't trust my divination, fine. Just don't ask me to divine for you again."
Fors and Xio exchanged glances. Fors quickly said, "Sorry, Mr. Jack, we didn't mean to doubt you. Xio didn't mean it... she's just blunt."
"I'm sorry, I spoke without thinking. Don't be upset." Xio added hastily.
Though they weren't fully convinced, it was their only lead. Neither wanted to offend Alaric, the sole source of this clue.
If he was right, this could be Fors's only shot at breaking her curse.
Besides, Alaric had no reason to deceive them. He'd already commissioned them to investigate the Fool, and with money on the table, they'd do their best regardless.
Alaric's expression softened. He rubbed his temples. "Alright, I forgive you. I get your reaction... this result surprised me too."
"But if this Fool can help resolve your curse, Miss Doctor, it might ease my mind. An entity capable of breaking curses is probably not an evil god." Alaric said, flashing a relieved smile before frowning. "I'm just not sure what 'the Door' means…"
He put on a thoughtful look, then said, "I think I read something in old texts about the Abraham family being tied to a 'Door,' but I don't recall details. I'll check my family's records later... maybe I'll find something."
"Thank you, Mr. Jack. I really appreciate it." Fors said earnestly. If her curse could be lifted, Alaric would have played a huge role.
Fors also formed an initial impression of him: likely from a fallen ancient Beyonder family, kind, and helpful... a friend worth keeping.
"No need for thanks. Just let me know if you find anything about the Fool. I'm getting more curious about this entity." Alaric said with a smile.
"No need to call me Miss Doctor. Just Fors." She replied quickly. Initially cautious, using "Doctor" As an alias, Fors now trusted Alaric enough to share her real name after these events.
"Fors? As in Miss Fors Wall, author of Storm Mountain Villa?" Alaric said, feigning surprise.
"You've read my novel?" Fors blinked.
"Of course! It's a great story." Alaric nodded. He wasn't lying... out of curiosity, he'd made time to read Storm Mountain Villa recently.
Fors's skill as a bestselling author was evident; the novel was genuinely good.
Sensing his sincere praise, Fors felt the thrill of meeting a fan.
They chatted briefly about her book before Alaric casually suggested, "Ever thought about writing a sea adventure? Maybe a cool, dashing adventurer and a pirate queen? I've always wanted to read something like that."
Fors's imagination sparked, conjuring a dramatic, bittersweet love-hate tale of an adventurer and a pirate queen. "That's a great idea for a story… but I've already got a theme for my next book, so I'm not planning to write that yet." She said.
It was a lie. Her procrastination was flaring... she loved brainstorming but wasn't ready to write.
Alaric could tell she was dodging work but didn't mind. It was just a passing comment. "That's a shame." He said with a slight sigh.
Glancing at his pocket watch, he added, "It's getting late, and I have things to do. Let's catch up later."
Xio and Fors had no objections.
The trio parted ways. Alaric returned to his Backlund safehouse, made some arrangements, and boarded a steam train to Tingen with a pre-bought ticket.
Having "borrowed" Mr. A's power, Alaric planned to meet Leonard and Old Man Pallez as a Zoroast descendant next.
***
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