Inside the building of the Relic Search and Preservation Foundation, Audrey, whose thoughts were undergoing an upheaval, blinked. She took note of her body language and expressions as she drew a crimson moon on her chest in a half-genuine manner. She said with a sigh, “What a tragedy. I hope that their spirits can rest in peace.”
The reason she had guessed that the archaeological team had comprised of members of the Psychology Alchemists was that she had previously received a mission to help the organization obtain a notebook related to the Twenty Year War from Associate Professor Michele. And this notebook belonged to the knight from Hartlarkh Village, Lindelira.
Back then, Audrey had made a request to Mr. Fool and relied on magic mirror divination to determine the origins of the notebook. She discovered that it was deeply connected to the village that worshiped dragons. As she knew ahead of time that there was a mind dragon hiding within the sea of collective subconscious, she ultimately chose to hand over the notebook to the Psychology Alchemists in consideration of her lacking Sequence and strength.
That also meant that the Psychology Alchemists had quite a significant chance of locking onto Hartlarkh Village through the notebook before heading over to find their target.
Another factor that Audrey used in her judgment was the strange mental illness that the archaeological team suffered. It had spread like a plague, causing the people to go mad in batches.
In the real world, there was a probability that mental illnesses were hereditary, but it was almost impossible to be contagious. But in the mysterious world, in the world of the mind and consciousness, chaos and madness could be spread to others through spirit channeling, dreams, and the subconscious!
And hidden in Hartlarkh Village was a mind dragon that had lived for years!
At that moment, her recalling her performance when she first joined the Tarot Club had made her wish to bury her head in her pillows to roar at herself:
By the side, Associate Professor Michele noticed that Audrey had been silent. He said with a heavy nod, “Yes, it truly is a tragedy that strikes one with fear.
“I only wish that the government has already handled the matter and prevented the contagious mental illness from becoming a plague.”
From her point of view, the official Beyonders had already taken on the case. After all, a contagious mental illness was definitely going to be under the purview of the official Beyonders.
Therefore, the dragon coat of arms in the glass case must’ve been determined to be fine before being donated to the foundation. The police department didn’t have such authority!
While Audrey felt pity for the archaeological team who were suspected to be Psychology Alchemists members, as though she had experienced the tragedy for herself, she was curious if the mind dragon remained in the vicinity of Hartlarkh Village.
She didn’t have any thoughts of visiting Hartlarkh Village to figure out the truth, because she long knew that the present her lacked the strength to deal with the mind dragon.
Her only intentions were to mention the matter at the next Tarot Club, and see if the other members could provide any feedback or any valuable knowledge. For example, it might be that the mind dragon had entered the sea of collective subconscious because of the local worship of dragons, or it could be that the mind dragon’s inhabitation of the sea of collective subconscious caused the villagers to dream of it; thus, being subconsciously influenced and having the tradition of worshiping the dragon.
…
On Friday afternoon, Klein received the invitation list for the ball tomorrow. He began to seriously memorize the topics he needed to discuss with different guests.
He took four steps counterclockwise and went above the gray fog, and he discovered that it was indeed The Hanged Man.
This man had requested the honorable Fool to inform The World that he had arrived at the capital of the Rorsted Archipelago, City of Generosity, Bayam. He could head for the primitive island in two days after he replenished his supplies.
He wanted The World to begin preparations so that they could meet in time. He also indicated that if he lacked the means to head for the primitive, he could arrange for The World to secretly board the Blue Avenger.
“You should have freedom of movement in Bayam. Meet at the cemetery outside the city at midnight today.
“Before that, replenish your stores.”
…
Bayam, in an inn.
Alger frowned slightly after hearing The World Gehrman Sparrow’s words.
He did have freedom of movement in the City of Generosity. This was because the sailors were eager to head to places like the Red Theater. They were definitely not returning tonight, and after waking up in the day, it was almost certain that they would head to a casino to gamble to let themselves loose. It was to vent the repression and misery that resulted from drifting out at sea for extended periods of time.
That also meant that even if Alger disappeared for a night and a day, no one would discover it.
With these doubts in mind, he found his contact with the Resistance and replenished his Storm charms that were made with tin.
When it was eleven at night, Alger secretly left his inn and headed out of the city under the shadows.
He wasn’t worried that the sailors would discover his disappearance because he too had physical needs. It was possible that he was sleeping in a lady’s bed in the Red Theater and was unwilling to return. And there were many such brothels in Bayam, with many prostitutes in existence. It was impossible to say that there was something wrong with him because he wasn’t at the Red Theater.
Once he left Bayam, Alger walked on a narrow road where horse carriages couldn’t pass as he headed for the mountainside of the mountain range beside the sea.
Suddenly, his gaze froze as he noticed something.
Under the crimson moonlight’s illumination, the mountain that originally existed had vanished!
And the area underneath, such as the piled stones, vegetation, and terrain, changed almost completely!
He suddenly understood why the Church of Storms had placed great importance on Gehrman Sparrow, and why he had a bounty worth as much as fifty thousand pounds!
In the undamaged cemetery up ahead, a cold wind blew across it and towards Alger in the silent night. It made him tremble involuntarily.
At that moment, Alger’s heart stirred as he turned his head to look right.
Underneath a giant tree, a figure quickly outlined itself in the shade.
This figure had his hand on his top hat while he slowly looked up, revealing a thin face and cut features. The emotionless dark brown eyes were none other than Gehrman Sparrow’s.
