Without a doubt, Mr. Door was a good person with a normal moral compass. So, despite his wariness toward Lucifer, this unknown entity, after Lucifer genuinely helped suppress some of the Outer God's corruption, Mr. Door's favor toward him rose honestly to nearly thirty points.
Evah was confident that once Mr. Door fully confirmed he bore no malice toward Earth, that favor would likely climb even higher without any extra effort on his part.
But regardless, as an Angel King just a step from godhood, Mr. Door's near-thirty favor granted Evah access to the Traveler ability he'd been coveting, allowing him to finally use the coveted teleportation power.
"I officially declare Mr. Door one of my favorite angels," Evah said solemnly, then, without a hint of guilt, patted his chest. "Of course, I won't deny my heart's a bit like a durian—prickly and full of compartments."
"Hahaha…"
After amusing himself, Evah eagerly tested the Traveler ability, teleporting to Backlund to place his prepared letter at the agreed-upon spot.
He then zipped around with the Traveler ability for a bit, satisfying his curiosity, before returning to Tingen to start the day's studies.
As evening approached, Evah paused his studies and took a trackless carriage to Daffodil Street.
Given Jack Jones's personality, how could he not visit Klein, a fellow Tarot Club provisional member, after joining? It was all about staying true to his persona.
Plus, Evah really wanted to mess with Mr. Fool in person.
So that night, when Klein returned home after handling an unnatural death on Lower Street with Leonard, exhausted from a supernatural battle, he found not just his brother Benson and sister Melissa at home, but an extra guest.
"Evening, Klein! You're finally back!" Evah greeted enthusiastically.
"Good evening, Teacher Jack," Klein replied, not overly surprised. He'd figured Jack's personality would drive him to visit after joining the Tarot Club, so he returned the greeting with a smile.
"Mr. Jack's been waiting for you for quite a while. I didn't expect you'd be back so late tonight," Benson said, looking at Klein with no trace of blame, only concern. "Seems a hefty salary always comes with a price."
"Everything in this world comes at a cost if you want to gain something," Klein said, shrugging off his coat. His stomach growled audibly.
It was no surprise—caught up in the sudden supernatural incident, Klein hadn't eaten dinner yet.
"Here, I knew you'd be starving after working late. Got you a midnight snack—surprised?" Evah said, as if he'd anticipated it, handing Klein a box containing a Desi pie.
"Thanks," Klein said, accepting the pie with a smile.
Melissa, working on her homework nearby, looked up and pointed to the kitchen. "Klein, I left some food for you in there too."
And so, Klein, who'd expected to go to bed hungry, was instantly stuffed like a contented cat by his family and friend.
After eating, Klein led Luo Lin to his room and asked casually, "What brings you here today?"
Then he caught Jack giving him an accusatory look, which made Mr. Fool feel a tiny pang of guilt. He coughed lightly. "Something wrong?"
"Klein, you knew Mr. Fool wasn't an evil god, didn't you?" Evah said, dramatically producing a pair of glasses to perch on his nose, striking a detective pose. "No wonder you were so confident reassuring me before, telling me to stop digging into Mr. Fool. Hmph, you were already a Tarot Club provisional member back then, weren't you?"
Mr. Jack, has it occurred to you that The Fool told you not to tell anyone about the Tarot Club? Klein thought, exasperated. But he understood why Jack was so blunt—since Klein was a "provisional member" in Jack's mind, he wasn't "other people."
Klein quickly formulated a response, his face apologetic. "Sorry, Teacher. I only recently became a provisional member by chance. Since Mr. Fool didn't want others to know, I didn't tell you. I'm really sorry—can you forgive me?"
"Depends on your sincerity," Evah said, tilting his chin up smugly.
"What kind of sincerity are you looking for, Teacher?" Klein asked, going along with it.
Evah put on a thoughtful expression, then his eyes lit up. "I want you to meow like a cat."
Klein's cat impression was a Lord of Mysteries classic, so of course Evah had to check it off the list.
"Huh?" Klein blinked, clearly not expecting that.
"No good? Or were you lying to me after all?" Evah said, adopting a "my son's rebellion breaks my heart" expression.
"Ahem, it's not impossible…" Though a bit embarrassed, Klein was, after all, someone who could play The Fool without blinking. After a quick mental prep, he said, "Meow!"
It came out a bit too forceful, sounding hoarse.
"Yikes, are you a feral tiger?" Evah gasped exaggeratedly.
Klein shot him an exasperated eye-roll, coughed to clear his throat, and said flatly, "Meow~"
This one was much more normal.
"Shame there's no phone…" Evah muttered regretfully, but he quickly perked up, nodding. "Alright, that'll do!"
Then he adopted a puzzled look, turning to Klein. "But, Klein, if you knew Mr. Fool was a good god, why'd you…?"
He was clearly referring to Klein's freakout over the "Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings."
"Mr. Fool might be a good god…" Klein said, glancing at Luo Lin, his expression turning serious. "But what if the Celestial Worthy isn't Mr. Fool?"
"Huh?" Evah blinked, feigning confusion, then acted like it clicked. "So, the one messing with your fate was the Celestial Worthy, not Mr. Fool, right?"
"Maybe," Klein said, not giving a straight answer. His life was a tangled mess—Mr. Azik had said multiple entities had meddled with his fate, and who knew who all was involved?
"I see," Evah said, stroking his chin for a few seconds before looking at Klein. "Then, can't we ask Mr. Fool for help? His honorific name is so similar to the Celestial Worthy—maybe they know each other?"
(End of Chapter)