When you encounter one or two coincidences, you find them curious. When three or four pile up, you start questioning your luck. But when your entire world seems woven from coincidences, you simply grow numb.
Klein was in that state now. Bombarded with countless coincidences, he'd long since stopped being surprised by them. He deftly brushed off Leonard, finished his day's work, and sought out Alaric to share the news he'd received.
"An angel? For real?" Alaric blinked, unfazed by Klein's intel. He'd already suspected the Evernight Goddess's stance toward him boiled down to either observation or appeasement. From this, it seemed she leaned toward the former.
It wasn't surprising. If the Evernight Goddess hadn't shared information with the Creator's faction, it made sense she'd opt to observe an enigma like him.
Or rather, her "leave Him be" Attitude carried a hint of appeasement alongside observation.
Having gauged the Goddess's intentions, Alaric put on a puzzled expression and said, "Don't they say angels have big wings? I didn't see any on the old man!"
"You never asked Mr. Lucifer about His Sequence?" Klein asked, both curious and exasperated.
"I did, but he said low-Sequence folks don't need to know much and brushed me off." Alaric shrugged, as if to say the fault wasn't his.
After all, he wasn't an angel. Perhaps the Evernight Goddess's "Him" referred to him as an Outer Deity.
Reflecting on Mr. Lucifer's personality, Klein nodded in understanding. After a moment, he asked, "Did your teacher ever mention anything about Leonard?"
"Leonard? Who's that?" Alaric looked at him, puzzled.
"My colleague, also a Nighthawk." Klein thought for a second and gave a brief description of Leonard's appearance. It wasn't something he needed to hide from Alaric, who could easily find out if he wanted.
"Oh, that fool!" Alaric's face lit up with realization.
Now it was Klein's turn to be confused. Sure, he sometimes thought Leonard wasn't the sharpest, but… fool? Where did that come from?
Alaric chuckled and explained, "My teacher did mention someone matching your description. When I asked if our family's ancestor was still alive, he said the ancestor was hosted in a fool's body. I asked what kind of fool, and his description matched the guy you just described."
He paused, as if something clicked, and looked at Klein. "Wait, does that mean the ancestor is currently hosted in your colleague?"
"..."
What a bombshell!
And why was it another Zoroast? He felt like he was drowning in Zoroasts.
For a moment, Klein was at a loss for words. His mind drifted to his second meeting with Leonard, when that fool... er, Leonard... had spouted chuunibyou nonsense about "the wheels of history" And "two protagonists meeting." Klein had chalked it up to Leonard being dramatic, but it turned out he was literally carrying an old ancestor around.
What an old-fashioned protagonist setup!
"Not just him, though. My own setup screams protagonist... reincarnation, gray fog cheat code, probably watched by multiple big shots behind the scenes…" Klein grumbled internally. He thought of the amnesiac Mr. Azik, then glanced at Alaric, and couldn't help but sigh, "Tingen is just too full of talent!"
Look at this tiny city, overflowing with protagonist archetypes.
Even high-Sequence beings, possibly angels, were piling up. Klein could almost count them on one hand: Mr. Azik, the mysterious figure who took Azik's son's skull, Mr. Lucifer, and the old ancestor in Leonard.
One more high-Sequence, and they'd have a full set of five.
"They say high-Sequence beings are rare, but I'm starting to think they're everywhere." Klein muttered to himself, a sense of urgency creeping in.
A small, ordinary city with this many high-Sequence beings? By any narrative trope, something big was bound to happen to justify this lineup.
Turning to Alaric, Klein asked, "Do you know anything about your ancestor?"
"Probably a decent guy?" Alaric said, his expression turning thoughtful. "My teacher once said Pallez, the Zoroast family's ancestor, was a rare conscience in the Marauder pathway. Though, I got the sense my teacher didn't like him much... maybe some personal grudge."
Noticing Klein's concern, he added reassuringly, "So your colleague is probably fine. This might even be an opportunity for him."
Klein's eyelid twitched. His preconceptions about the Marauder pathway deepened, but he let out a relieved breath.
Though he hadn't known Leonard long, he genuinely didn't want him to end up as some high-Sequence being's snack or to suffer the same fate as the Zoroast in the diary.
For now, it seemed Leonard's ancestor was likely a decent sort.
…
"Achoo!"
"Old man, why do you keep sneezing? Got a cold?" Leonard asked, intrigued.
Pallez chuckled. "Instead of worrying about my health, you should be more concerned about your colleague."
"Klein?" Leonard froze, suddenly nervous. "What's wrong with him?"
"He…" Pallez paused, as if lost in thought, then said, "He's fine."
"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Leonard snapped, but Pallez was clearly done talking. No matter how much Leonard pressed, he got nothing.
Frustrated, Leonard gave up and shifted topics. "That Mr. Helel is probably the Lucifer Alaric mentioned, right? The descriptions match."
"Possibly." Pallez replied noncommittally.
Leonard didn't mind and continued, "So Alaric wasn't lying. The Lord of Chaos might actually be allied with the Goddess." His expression turned crestfallen.
If that was true, then everything Alaric had said might be true.
"Kid, I told you the affairs of true gods aren't so simple. Finally believe me?" Pallez's voice carried a hint of sarcasm before turning earnest. "Trust in the power of the gods, but never in their kindness. That's my only advice."
***
Every 100 Power Stones and 5 Reviews will earn you a Bonus Chapter.
And if you want to read up to 50 chapters ahead, don't hesitate to visit our patron: pat reon . com / XElenea (remove space)