The Secret Master

"An idiot not of this era... The mysterious master above the gray fog... The yellow and black king who holds good fortune..." Audrey Holmes murmured these three descriptions, and suddenly a storm of emotions surged within her, making it impossible for her to maintain the state of an "audience member" any longer. As a lover of the occult, before being pulled into this gray fog, although she had never formally come into contact with extraordinary powers, she would still exchange the information she had, whether true or false, with like-minded noble friends at private gatherings. She would also learn the Hermetic language used in rituals and try some of the rituals described by others. None of those rituals had any effect, but they did give Audrey a certain understanding of the standardized incantations. So, she clearly knew what the three-part description the Fool mentioned represented in other rituals: It represented, it pointed to, the seven gods who looked down upon the entire world! It was almost equivalent to "The Crimson Lord, the Hidden Mother, the Queen of Calamity and Fear"! Was Mr. Fool the unknown, hidden, and powerful being like a god that Glayndt and the others had mentioned? Was he the dangerous source that had to be carefully avoided in rituals? Audrey quickly recalled her friends' sighs when they wanted to try some strange rituals but didn't dare, and for a moment, she couldn't speak. Alger Wilson, who knew more and understood more than her, trembled from the bottom of his heart: "If the ritual magic designed by the Fool can really point to him and let him receive our requests, then, then we must address him as 'He', the third-person honorific used to describe gods and similar beings..." "How lucky, how wise! I've always been very cooperative and haven't done anything stupid. Even when I was testing, it was within the normal range..." "Perhaps he is some ancient, hidden, and terrifying existence, just not appearing before us in his original form and true name... The Primordial Witch, the Hidden Sage, or the true creator worshipped by several mysterious sects?" Alger knew that the Fool he was seeing now might not be his true form. The other party might not even have a gender or be a humanoid creature. Klein held his forehead with one hand and tapped the edge of the bronze long table with the other, keenly sensing the changes in "The Hanged Man" and "Justice". But he pretended nothing had happened and maintained the appearance that everything was as expected, continuing to speak on his own: "I pray for your help." "I pray for your favor." "I pray for you to let me have a good dream." "Deep-sleep flower, the herb of the red moon, please pass on your power to my incantation." "Golden citron, the herb of the sun, please pass on your power to my incantation." ... He described the incantation of another format word by word, and at the end, he smiled and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, have you remembered it?" "Ah..." Audrey gasped softly and quickly covered her mouth, beginning to recall carefully. Relying on the "audience's" powerful memory, she quickly finished recording and repeated it out loud to confirm. Alger, on the other hand, behaved much more normally. No matter what he was thinking, the pen in his hand never stopped. After confirming Audrey's record, Klein smiled slightly and said, "If this attempt is successful, we can slightly modify the incantation next time to achieve the purpose we want." "By Wednesday at the latest, I hope you can find some free time to complete this ritual." He planned to enter here again on Thursday night to confirm whether the ritual magic was effective. —The reason why he didn't let "The Hanged Man" and "Justice" directly pray for "absence" was that Klein was worried that it would be impossible to distinguish whether they really wanted to "take a leave" or it was the result of the ritual magic. Then, should he pull them or not? "As you wish." Audrey and Alger suppressed their emotions and replied respectfully. "According to The Hanged Man's last suggestion, after the main business, it's the casual chat stage. Who will start first?" Klein made a gesture of invitation. Audrey thought for a moment and said, "Mr. Fool, the suggestions you gave last time about examination screening and separation of official and private affairs have been recognized by many parliamentarians. Maybe, it really has the possibility of becoming reality. Of course, with the efficiency of the kingdom's government, the plan won't appear until at least half a year later." She wasn't worried that "The Hanged Man" would trace her identity based on this matter because she only casually guided them a couple of times and let those proud ladies think it was their brilliant minds that came up with the idea, making them eager to show off to their husbands, fathers, and brothers. At that moment, Audrey felt like she saw a flock of peacocks spreading their tails. She believed that those ladies would constantly remind themselves that the honor belonged to them and completely forget her role, arguing with each other about who was the first to propose it. And using this ingenious way to change the situation of the kingdom gave Audrey a strange sense of achievement, as if she had found a way for "The Audience" to influence the plot of the drama. "I hope so." "The Hanged Man" Alger replied sarcastically. He paused for a few seconds, looked at the Fool at the top of the bronze long table, and chose his words carefully, saying, "In the past few decades, the activity frequency of various secret organizations has been on the rise, and even several new, large-scale, and somewhat extraordinary organizations have emerged." Are you trying to probe the reason from me? I haven't even started to look into the information of "illegal organizations" yet... Klein just smiled and didn't comment on "The Hanged Man's" news. Instead, he said ambiguously, "Some ancient powers are awakening." Such as the power represented by the Antigonus family's notes... "Is that so..." Alger muttered softly, as if he had thought of something. Klein's gaze swept over "The Hanged Man" and "Justice", and he said with a smile, "If there's nothing else to share, then today's gathering is over." "As you wish." Audrey and Alger stood up simultaneously. Klein's fingers moved, cutting off the connection with the deep red star, and watched the two figures disappear in the grand hall. He stood up, turned to his own high-backed chair, which was the top seat at the bronze long table, and looked at the constellation symbol there. The brilliant stars formed a strange symbol, a symbol that was beyond the scope of Klein's current knowledge of the occult. He carefully examined it for a while and recognized the symbol of secrecy, the "Eye Without Pupils", and the symbol of change, the "Twisted Line". Each of them was missing a part and overlapped with each other, forming a new symbol. "Incomplete secrecy, incomplete change... What does that mean when combined?" Klein frowned and muttered to himself, unable to come up with an answer for the moment. He withdrew his gaze and walked around the grand and ancient temple, not missing a single corner. "I just thought of it casually back then and only gave a rough concept. I didn't describe the shapes of the palace, the long table, and the chairs in detail... So what are their appearances based on? The optimal choice? The initial model? Or a reflection of reality?" Klein looked around and suddenly thought of a question he had overlooked before. Sighing, he said to himself, "As a keyboard warrior, I really lack experience and sharpness in many things, which makes me realize things too late..." With such self-reflection, Klein carefully inspected the area above the gray fog and around the temple, but found no other creatures or any other strange phenomena. As for the distant, seemingly boundless illusory place, he didn't dare to venture deeper for fear of getting lost there completely. "Phew, this place is indeed full of mystery... I wonder if there will be any new changes when I become stronger..." Klein sighed and expanded his spirituality, enveloping himself and simulating the feeling of a rapid descent. Everything passed by in a flash, and various illusions shattered. He pierced through the grayish-white fog and saw the real world, seeing his desk, curtains, and coat rack in his bedroom. ...... Bakeland, Queens. Audrey saw the oil painting hanging on the wall and felt the softness of the velvet pillow. She didn't get up immediately, but carefully relived today's party, as if watching a reenacted play. "When Mr. Fool said to try that ritual and gave descriptive incantations like 'Mysterious Ruler', 'Yellow and Black King', etc., his tone had a certain confidence... confidence..." Audrey, who was analyzing silently, suddenly took a deep breath, her body slightly trembling. Forget it. Since I can't fight back, I won't think about it... Mr. Fool has always been very kind and should be an orderly existence... Audrey's mood quickly improved, thinking about her role and the slight backlash of the potion. She hummed a cheerful tune, got out of the big bed, and walked towards the door, actively adjusting her state and transforming into an "audience". Opening the door, she saw the passing maid across the hall, saw the calluses on her hands, the sunspots on her face, and many similar details, which allowed her to infer quite a few things. Just then, Audrey suddenly had a premonition and quickly turned her head to look at the dark corner away from the balcony. She saw the golden retriever Susie squatting there, quietly observing her, just as she had observed the maid. Oh, goddess... Audrey's mouth twitched, wanting to cover her face and let out a long sigh. ...... In the captain's quarters, heavily guarded on the Sunita Sea, Alger woke up and found that nothing had changed around him, as if nothing had happened at all. He sighed and muttered to himself, "An ancient being?" ...... Klein, free from the ritual, drew the curtains aside, took out his notebook and began to write again. He recalled the contents of a few of Emperor Roselle's diaries and, through such records, strengthened his impression to avoid forgetting in the future. After finishing, he read it over and over again, but in the end, he tore up the notes he had memorized and burned them completely. If I do this once a week, I should be able to remember the key points... But as time goes by, the task will become more and more arduous... It's a pity that for now, there's no better way. I haven't studied cryptography... Klein gathered his thoughts, moved his neck, and was about to leave for the divination club. — "Diviner" has different standards in different people's minds, and no one can say that others are definitely wrong. Therefore, Klein wasn't sure what kind of "diviner" would best meet the requirements of the "elixir", and could only correct and determine through repeated practices!