Klein unhurriedly introduced the two new members to the Tarot Club's veterans, then presented the veterans to the newcomers.
Two new members?
Justice Audrey's first reaction was delight. As one of the Tarot Club's founding members, she felt a stronger sense of belonging than even the Fool himself, and she was eager to see the group grow.
Seeing new members join, Audrey warmly greeted them before slipping into her Spectator state to observe the pair.
Mr. Sun appeared young, visibly nervous, and a bit awkward, giving off the vibe of a lone wolf. Her gaze then shifted to Mr. Emperor, and she froze.
There was no helping it... Mr. Emperor's features felt strikingly familiar, instantly reminding her of Mr. Jack, whom she'd met recently.
So Mr. Jack really was pulled into the Tarot Club by Mr. Fool… Audrey's initial reaction was joy. Having personally facilitated this, she felt a surge of accomplishment.
But then, a realization hit her, and she inwardly groaned.
Not only were Jack's traits distinctive, but so were hers. Jack had seen her in reality, and he, too, seemed skilled at observation.
Sure enough, the next moment, Audrey caught Mr. Emperor studying her with a thoughtful, puzzled expression that quickly turned to one of realization.
Looks like Mr. Jack recognized me. Well, with Mr. Fool here, it shouldn't be a problem. And Jack's a good person… Audrey reassured herself, feeling no real panic.
She genuinely trusted the Fool and sincerely believed Jack wasn't a bad person.
Their interaction didn't escape the notice of The Hanged Man Alger, who frowned.
Justice knows the new member, Emperor?
Truthfully, this discovery sparked a twinge of unease in Alger. Ambitious and cunning, he was keen on climbing the ranks within the Tarot Club and didn't want Justice forming an alliance with a new member, which could threaten his position.
But after closely observing Mr. Emperor, Alger relaxed. The new member's body language suggested a certain simplicity, a lack of wariness... someone easy to manipulate.
Alaric, naturally, could guess what Audrey and Alger were thinking but didn't care. He focused on embodying Jack's persona, greeting everyone with curiosity and enthusiasm, eagerly awaiting the Tarot Club's usual proceedings.
As expected, Justice Audrey raised her hand, announcing she'd collected four pages of Roselle's Diary.
This was more than in the original story, a change owed to Alaric. Over time, he'd discreetly arranged for Mr. A to sell several Transmigration Diaries. While not all would reach the Tarot Club, some inevitably would.
The Fool, Klein, was thrilled with the haul and asked Audrey what she wanted in exchange. She sought the Sequence 7 Psychiatrist potion formula.
This was beyond Klein's current capabilities, but thankfully, The Sun, Derrick, stepped in, offering to provide the Psychiatrist formula in exchange for a Sun pathway formula.
Audrey didn't have a Sun pathway formula, but Klein, fortunately, did... thanks to his reckless divination of the Eternal Blazing Sun.
Thus, a three-way trade was smoothly completed: Klein provided Derrick with the Sun pathway formula, Audrey paid Klein's favored one in gold pounds, and Derrick supplied Audrey with the Psychiatrist formula.
Everyone was satisfied.
Klein began reading the day's diaries. The first two pages were unmistakably Roselle's, detailing adjacent sequence swaps and his attendance at a mysterious ancient organization's gathering to view the Blasphemy Slate. It left Klein frustrated, feeling like the story had been cut off mid-chapter.
Come on, Emperor, if you're going to mention it, at least name the organization!
Klein grumbled inwardly before turning to the next page. His gaze sharpened. The date clearly wasn't Roselle's, suggesting it belonged to a transmigrator from the Zoroast family.
The diary read:
[August 25, clear.
Today, Amon suddenly taught me about the history of the Fourth Epoch's Tudor Dynasty, which surprised me. Apparently, the Blood Emperor Tudor was a mad god. Amon said he helped Tudor ascend to Red Priest, which seems to be the Sequence 0 of the Hunter pathway.
Oddly, Amon's expression while recounting this was strange... neither happy nor sad. I almost felt like he was nostalgic.
Does a being like him feel nostalgia? Was he close to Tudor?]
The diary was a bombshell, its information overwhelming Klein, though he was careful not to show it.
He quickly adjusted, his mind racing:
Gods are Sequence 0? That aligns with the sequence pathways. So the legendary God pathways are just sequence pathways, meaning every pathway's peak can lead to godhood?
The Blood Emperor Tudor was a Sequence 0? Is that why the Primordial Demoness bore his child? Does that mean the War of the Four Emperors was a clash between four Sequence 0s?
Amon helped Tudor become a god, no wonder he was the Duke of Amon in the Tudor Empire…
Ideas flooded Klein's mind. While noting these secrets, he couldn't help but feel puzzled.
Last time, wasn't Zoroast plotting to escape? He wrote about his escape plans and was wary of Amon. How did he suddenly start learning history from Amon? Is that really okay?
Klein was perplexed. This was his third encounter with a Zoroast diary. At the previous Tarot Club, he'd read a few pages from the same transmigrator, mostly complaints about being caught by Amon and plans to escape.
Yet, in such a short time, Zoroast's wariness toward Amon seemed to have faded significantly.
***
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