Parting with Kaspars, Snow embarked on a tour of Backlund. Beyond connecting with Sharon, his main reason for meeting Kaspars, an ordinary man, was to cover for Klein.
By having Trissy steal the notebook and kill Sirius early, he'd prevented Dunn's condition from worsening. But this also meant Klein missed the Clown potion formula. Though Snow had hinted at having the formula during the Lanevus investigation, he worried Klein wouldn't find a plausible reason to approach him—
Surely, the dear Mr. Fool wouldn't pit his fully digested Seer prowess against Master Luo? Speaking of, Master Luo had already handed Klein formulas from Sequence 7 to 5; no need to burden him further.
Thus, Eye of Wisdom's extraordinary gathering became a fallback plan. Per his scheme, he'd likely leak the Clown formula to Mr. Fool at the next-but-one Tarot Club. But what if Justice and Hanged Man didn't bite?
Regardless, if Klein reached Backlund, the Brave Bar would be among the easiest Beyonder gatherings to find—alongside Mr. A's.
…
While Snow fretted over Mr. Fool, Mr. Fool was nursing a headache. Though he'd uncovered intel on Mr. Azik, it came from that mysterious female Beyonder, raising trap concerns. Also… Mr. Azik was off fishing for seals…
Per Azik's parting words, he'd return post-vacation in days. But with Tingen's tense climate, his arrival was uncertain.
Then there was another issue…
He'd fully digested his Seer potion.
Now, he regretted not securing the Clown formula from Mr. Devil. With Devil gone from Tingen, Klein had lost access to the next stage's potion.
Though he knew Devil was in Backlund, he lacked a reason to seek him out. Tingen's chaos fueled his urgent need to grow stronger.
Just before he and the Captain returned from Ramde Town, Tingen had suffered a horrifying blood sacrifice. Though the Punishers intervened, the ritual had begun. Even with all cultists killed on the spot, the luckiest affected civilians lost years of life.
"How do I get the Clown formula from Mr. Devil? Claim I have a favored one? No, too forced. It needs to be something he's interested in! What's that? Lanevus? Megose? If I knew where they were, I'd have reported them already!"
Amid summer cicadas, days ticked by. A week had passed since the eighth Tarot Club, and the clock neared 3 p.m.
…
"It's time." Glancing at the wall clock, Snow took a deep breath. At the last Tarot Club, he'd held back to avoid seeming forced. Today, he was determined to pass on the Clown formula!
As he pondered, crimson light surged like a tide, and Snow reappeared above the gray fog. To his left, a new male member joined.
"He's here!" Snow rejoiced that Little Sun hadn't vanished due to his butterfly effect, bolstering his confidence for today's plan. He didn't speak first, as the opening line belonged to Miss Justice!
Regrettably, Mr. Fool stole her spotlight, addressing the group calmly.
"This is our new member, codenamed 'Sun.'"
"This is Miss 'Justice,' Mr. 'Hanged Man,' and Mr. 'Devil.'"
Though Mr. Fool's intervention denied Snow Miss Justice's sweet, vibrant greeting, he held no grudge. He merely tweaked his prepared diary content.
"Mr. Fool, I've collected two more pages of Emperor Roselle's diary," Miss Justice said joyfully after a brief silence. Snow waited, holding back, anticipating a crucial detail.
New diaries?
Klein perked up, temporarily shelving his quest to pry the formula from Devil, chuckling softly.
"Very good, Miss Justice. What do you seek?"
Justice naturally requested the Mind Reader potion formula, and Little Sun chimed in aptly.
Snow stayed silent, waiting for the Fool's response.
He needed to confirm whether Mr. Fool had recklessly peered into the Eternal Blazing Sun's divine blood.
If he had, perfect. If not, Snow would have to risk nudging Klein toward that death-defying act.
Luckily, the Fool was still that bold-yet-cautious Fool. He effortlessly provided the Chanter formula, sealing a triangular trade. Snow, silent until now, finally spoke.
"Mr. Fool, I've memorized another page of Emperor Roselle's diary."
"Memorized? Mr. Devil's family must have a trove of 'Roselle' diaries!" Klein noted Justice manifesting her diary and asked,
"What do you want in return?"
"I seek a high-potency beyonder item—demon-hunting bullets or single-use charms, with power at Sequence 7 or above.
One diary page isn't worth that, but I have more diaries, just needing time to memorize.
Additionally, I have a batch of potion formulas but no distribution channels. I'd like to use other members' networks to sell them, offering 30% of the transaction as commission. I'd appreciate Mr. Fool's notarization."
"A batch…" Justice and Hanged Man were stunned by Devil's quantity, curious about his formulas. Klein, elated, hid his excitement, nodding lightly.
"Acceptable."
With a lighter heart, he began reading the diaries submitted by both members.
High-Sequence pathway swaps, a mysterious ancient organization, and mystical cards tied to divine pathways—Klein was thrilled. Not wanting to delay the members, he picked up Devil's diary without overthinking.
"As expected, the handwriting's so much neater… Pfft!"
Thanks to the gray fog's veil, the Fool's dignity didn't crumble entirely. What could rattle his composure? The diary's opening line:
"Yesterday's fling with that Secret Order ain't bad. Roselle, only bedding noble ladies? Weak!"
(End of Chapter)
Author's Note: On my theory about the Primordial:
Tearing source matter isn't random but follows a pattern. Otherwise, the Mother Goddess's split wouldn't neatly yield two pathways.
Given this, the Primordial's cycles of aggregation and separation at awakening are intriguing. As one of the three pillars, why was the Chaotic Sea untouched, Sefirah Castle spared, but the Mother Nest torn?
I'll hazard a bold guess: it was all the Primordial's design.
The Lord of the Mysteries system's foundation is chaotic. Could the Primordial be affected by this chaos? Did it seek to escape it?
If Roselle knew to fake death to expel excess characteristics, wouldn't the Primordial?
If this holds, what's the point of aggregation and separation?
The answer's clear: categorization and restructuring.
The Lord of the Mysteries world's authorities overlap. Similar powers sit in different pathways, tripping up ancient gods who assumed like powers could merge.
Yet many pathways, like Fate, are already purified, fully isolated.
Could the Primordial have deliberately shredded its powers, then reorganized them during aggregation?
Like a paper splashed with colors—sorting them is impossible. But tear it up, and you can group hues. The finer the tears, the cleaner the sorting.
So, with each split and reunion, does the Primordial's power grow more ordered?