Chapter 15 Tarot Divination
[He is divining you.]
[He is divining your origin, but unfortunately his rank is insufficient; even adding "Sefirah Castle" isn't enough.]
The Heavenly Venerable suddenly spoke, showing no concealment of his regret:
[What a pity. If more of my spirit occupied this body, I could reincarnate within him now—would I still need to be imprisoned in you?]
Ning Lu gave no answer to the Heavenly Venerable's words, but after stopping his knocking, he spoke toward the interior of the door:
May I come in? I hope I'm not disturbing you.
What does he want to come in for… Klein's mind suddenly floated several guesses, yet he forced composure, and after confirming he could roll and leap out of the second‑floor window, he said:
"Please, come in."
He had just confirmed his distance from the window, confident that he could spring out the moment he sensed hostility—but then his role as a "Seer" would be lost!
Hearing Klein's words, Ning Lu gently pushed the door open, scanned the room in a glance, noticed Klein's suppressed tension, and said softly:
"Excuse my bold visit, Mr. Moretti—my friend and I chatted briefly and discovered that, besides me, someone else had joined the Divination Club today, so I thought I'd come meet you."
"After all, I feel this is a 'fate'‑guided encounter."
"'Fate's guidance'? Diviners do believe that… So does he truly just want to get to know me? Klein felt a moment of puzzlement, struggling to adapt to the young man's thought pattern:
"It's indeed a coincidence, um… just as Emperor Roselle once said, 'Fate often leads the obedient' (Note 1). For a Seer, we must revere fate."
"Seer"… a faint smile appeared on Ning Lu's face:
"Speaking of Emperor Roselle, he is truly an interesting figure—since fate brings us together, could you perform a divination for me?"
"Me? But you know I only joined the club today; do you trust my divination level?"
Klein listened to Ning Lu and couldn't help but grin—suddenly hearing words about fate made him picture this seemingly Beyonder youth as Leonard.
"You did just join the club," Ning Lu kept his smile, "but I trust a 'Seer's' ability. Don't be nervous, friend; I can see you're playing the role of a 'Seer,' not that I just saw you divining me."
Klein: "?"
How grudging… No, did he see me divining him? After hearing Ning Lu, Klein's expression slipped; he forced a nervous laugh, his tone tinged with awkwardness:
"I didn't mean to… I'm just curious."
Ning Lu gave Klein a look and waved his hand:
"It's fine, I don't mind. Many Seers are like that—both riddlers and cats doomed by curiosity. Yet divination requires caution, friend; if a volatile or mentally unstable Beyonder discovers you divining him, he might already be rushing toward you now."
"So, will you divinate for me? I've never seen a living 'Seer.'"
Ning Lu stared at Klein, his mind already forming the script he'd use: having just quoted Roselle's "maxim," he could make Klein think he was a fellow countryman… and he'd also used the Loen‑translated Earth terms.
Unlike many protagonists who claw their way out of orphanages, Zhou Mingrui's family was harmonious before the transmigration; despite the risk of corporate downsizing, his future was still bright.
Thus, Klein inherently trusted the label "fellow countryman."
Looking at this "Beyonder Senior," Klein still harbored some wariness, but his attitude gradually softened unconsciously. He sat behind the table, faced Ning Lu, and quickly fell into the mood:
"Alright, then—what would you like to divinate? With what method?"
"Divine what… the past, present, and future—using the classic tarot spread."
Ning Lu smiled and said:
"Since Roselle was mentioned, let's use tarot cards. I've heard Roselle Gustav created this divination tool."
"Seems you know a fair bit about tarot," Klein observed the closed door and the youth's calm demeanor, relaxing slightly: "By the way, I still don't know your name."
"Ning Lu."
Ning Lu deliberately paused, a pause that could lend a hint of awkwardness, perhaps allowing Klein to spot something subtle:
"Ah, Ning Lu Emonsal—haha, sorry, I'm not used to people calling me by my full name; just call me Ning Lu."
Klein neither confirmed nor denied, deftly shuffling his tarot cards, and casually said to Ning Lu:
"Many think it's just a game, but some believe the tarot cards 'invented' by Roselle contain mysterious secrets."
After saying that, Klein let out a light laugh. Yet he saw a brief odd expression on Ning Lu's face, which vanished quickly as he hesitated and said:
"Hmm… Roselle did indeed 'invent' many things."
Was his expression odd because of my tone? Klein entertained the thought but didn't pursue it, and by then he had already laid out the cards:
"Please, Mr. Ning Lu—draw three cards at will, and after they're revealed I'll interpret them for you."
"Very well." Ning Lu nodded lightly, drew a card from the spread, "This is the 'Past.'"
Klein reached out and turned over the card before Ning Lu, his gaze slightly focused:
"Reversed 'Lovers'—huh, not a very good card."
The reversed Lovers can sometimes signify "deception."
"Oh, I was indeed that kind of person in the past, but that's irrelevant." Ning Lu said casually; after all, he was cursing the Amon split‑self that had possessed his body, which essentially amounts to cursing Amon.
"Let's look at the 'Present' and 'Future'—those are the important parts."
"You're right." Facing this clearly knowledgeable Beyonder, Klein made no demand for interpretation, merely watching Ning Lu draw two more cards:
"This is the 'Present'… and this is the 'Future.'"
Before them, two cards lay open: the 'Present' depicted an upright "Devil," while the 'Future' showed an inverted "Devil."
Klein stared at the drawn cards, then slowly uttered a precise, resonant:
"Ah?"