"Relax, Azik. I've said I won't harm my own kind. This time, I just need to discuss some private matters with Klein." Alaric said with a smile, pausing before adding, "Matters concerning transmigration and the Lord of Mysteries."
At those words, Azik looked puzzled, but Klein, who'd been meowing incessantly since Azik's arrival, fell silent.
The sudden change made Azik glance at the cat.
Alaric, too, looked at Klein, smiling. "So, want to have a chat, Klein?"
"…You really want to talk about this?" Klein meowed, then froze, realizing he could speak human words again.
Alaric nodded. "I'll tell you the truth about transmigration and the scripts surrounding you."
Klein hesitated. His initial instinct had been to plead, Save me, Mr. Azik! But now, Alaric's offer was too tempting to resist.
After a few seconds, Klein looked at Azik. "Mr. Azik, let me talk with Mr. Lucifer."
"…Alright. I'll come for you after." Azik said, nodding after confirming Klein's sincerity.
"Once we're done, I'll have him write to you." Alaric said, smiling.
Azik left, respecting that the conversation between the two transmigrators wasn't for his ears.
Alaric carried Klein into his Backlund safehouse, setting him on a coffee table. He poured Klein a glass of goat's milk, then brewed himself coffee. After a sip, he said, "Though it's not our first meeting, let me introduce myself: Lucifer. My former name's a secret. Call me Lucifer... or maybe… Grandmaster?"
The "Grandmaster" jab came from Jack's connection... teacher's teacher, fair enough.
"Klein Moretti, formerly Zhou Mingrui. Just call me Klein." Klein the cat replied.
"I thought you'd prefer... " Alaric sipped his coffee, smirking playfully with a mock-serious tone, "Mr. Fool!"
Klein's fur bristled... not from shock, but sheer embarrassment. His hind legs twitched, as if trying to claw out a mansion's worth of shame.
"You really knew!" Klein managed, voice strained.
"It's no secret to me." Alaric said, grinning at Klein's puffed-up fur. He'd turned Klein into a cat for this exact reason... human Klein was too composed, but cat Klein's reactions were delightfully raw.
"…Was it your book that told you?" Klein asked, recalling Azik's mention, his gaze drifting to the thick tome by Alaric's side.
"I did learn about you from a book." Alaric said, neither confirming nor denying, just smiling.
Lord of Mysteries was a book, after all.
Unaware of Lord of Mysteries, Klein took it as confirmation, his amber cat eyes glinting with curiosity.
Alaric didn't clarify, setting down his coffee. "Not going to ask me anything? I thought you'd be dying to know."
Klein hesitated. He was desperate for the truth about transmigration, but now, face-to-face with it, he felt unmoored. He feared hearing an answer he couldn't bear... that he could never return to his old home.
Alaric waited patiently, watching Klein.
Why bring Klein here to discuss transmigration? Simple. Alaric had disrupted the original plot, costing Klein his chance to leave the Nighthawks and the仇恨 driving him. To ensure the future Lord of Mysteries' rise, Alaric felt obliged to make amends.
He wouldn't keep Klein long... just a few days, sharing select truths about transmigration, the apocalypse, and Sefirah Castle, then setting him free.
Whether Klein returned to the Nighthawks or left was his choice. Even if Klein opted to be a salted fish in Tingen, Alaric didn't care. Adam, the Evernight Goddess, and others weren't pushovers... the Lord of Mysteries would emerge without Alaric's meddling. If not Klein, there was always Bethel as a backup.
Though Bethel was still far from escaping the Mother Goddess of Depravity's grip, Alaric trusted his skills to free him before the apocalypse.
The rest could wait until the apocalypse arrived.
Having survived one apocalypse, Alaric was unfazed.
If Klein truly abandoned the Lord of Mysteries' path, Alaric, for their bond, would look out for him, ensuring Amon and the like didn't ruin him.
"We're good friends, after all…" Alaric mused, admitting he had a soft spot for Klein, willing to give him a choice.
Unaware of Alaric's thoughts, Klein steeled himself and met Alaric's gaze. "Mr. Lucifer, can we go back?"
Alaric looked into Klein's amber cat eyes, foreseeing his despair but shaking his head. "We can't go back. No transmigrator can return to the past."
The truth was cruel, but better short, sharp pain than prolonged delusion. Alaric knew the truth couldn't stay hidden forever. Rather than letting Klein drown in false hope, it was better to rip the bandage off now, letting him grieve and move toward a new future in this world... whether as the Lord of Mysteries or not.
Klein's pupils constricted. He'd suspected this, but confirmation brought inevitable sorrow and despair.
He couldn't go back.
He'd never see his parents again.
***
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