Mystery: Lucky One

...I really want to scold him.

Alice gritted her teeth and came above the gray fog, but swallowed her words when she saw Klein, who was full of anxiety and worry.

Forget it, I won’t argue with him about this. He will know it sooner or later anyway… After comforting herself for a few words, Alice asked Klein:

"Well... first tell me what time it is?"

Klein was not too surprised by the expected question and quickly answered Alice's doubts about time:

"The 22nd, April 4nd, 22pm."

April 4… Alice went over it in her mind and realized that it was Friday, which meant that it was late on a Friday night outside.

"Has it been so long..." She shook her head, "But it is indeed much faster than walking here..."

Alice paused at this point, looked at Klein with a puzzled look, and explained:
“Something unexpected happened, I…I ran into Amon.

"But I escaped... Well, the good news is that I saw the Western Continent."

Klein stared at Alice so intently that even his breathing stopped. After a long while, he finally squeezed out a few words from his dry throat:
"Western Continent...?"

He already knew what the Western Continent represented, and also knew Alice's destination, but he obviously didn't expect that the news about the Western Continent would come so suddenly.

"I can't get in," Alice replied, supporting her chin with her hand, "The Western Continent is blocked by a gray fog..."

Her voice suddenly stopped, and she looked towards the gray fog around her with hesitation.

Klein followed her line of sight and also saw only a gray-white mist. He was stunned for a moment and asked Alice:

“Is it… this kind of fog?”

Alice pursed her lips and sighed, "Maybe, after all..."

She paused, but did not say the rest of the words - that was something that only an angel could know.

The Goddess of Night once told her that the Lord of Mysteries had sealed the seven source substances including the Key of Light in the Western Continent, and the Source Castle on Klein's body was the source substance belonging to the Lord of Mysteries.

So, maybe that solidified fog really came from here... huh? Wait.

Alice looked at Klein and frowned little by little.

——The main body of the "Key of Light" is most likely still in the Western Continent. If she wants to enter the Western Continent, she must open the seal of the fog, which means...

She needs a "Lord of Mysteries".

No, the seal left by the "Lord of Mysteries" can probably be removed by the "God" who is also a pillar. And... uh, forget about the one outside the earth.

But no matter what, it seems that letting Amon be the "Lord of Mysteries" is indeed not a good idea, but Klein...

Alice pursed her lips and changed the subject: "Have you found the clue to your Sequence 4 potion formula?"

Klein was stunned for a moment and did not answer her question immediately. Instead, he asked tentatively:
"I can't listen?"

"I guess so..." Alice pinched her brows, "I should find a way to come back. If you haven't found the clue to the potion formula yet... wait for me to go back and ask the goddess?"

This was no joke. The image left by the Goddess of Night was obviously not that of a naive and innocent person. In Alice's opinion, if the Goddess needed a "Lord of Mysteries", then there was a great possibility that He would have to become the "Lord of Mysteries".

No, maybe the “Fortune Teller”, “Thief” and “Apprentice” cannot avoid Her in their journey to becoming God... So, does the Goddess have the extraordinary characteristics that I lack?
This thought flashed through Alice's mind, and she kept it in mind before continuing:
"I remember that the Church of Evernight has captive mermaids? That should be prepared for the 'Fortune Teller' path?
"No, that's not right. I remember that the formula of the 'Joker' potion seemed to be found by you yourself... Doesn't the church know the subsequent potion formula of the 'Fortune Teller' path?
"That's not right. If they didn't know, why would the church keep mermaids in captivity? Could it be that the high-sequence Pathways of the Sleepless Ones also use mermaids? Or..."

Alice paused for more than ten seconds before she asked in a slightly hesitant tone:

"The Church, or rather the Goddess, does not want anyone to be promoted to a high-sequence in the 'Fortune Teller' path?"

——It is indeed possible.

Although according to the Goddess, the spirit of the "Lord of Mysteries" exists in the Beyonder characteristics, in theory, any Beyonder of the "Apprentice", "Thief" or "Fortune Teller" path is equally dangerous, but High Sequences are obviously more dangerous. In addition...

For the "Thief" path, the most dangerous one should be Amon, and for the "Apprentice" path, the most dangerous one is probably Mr. Men who utters the full moon whispers...

There shouldn’t be anyone at the top of the “Fortune Teller” path chasing after low-sequence people and calling for help, or treating Beyonder characteristics as snacks, right…?
However, this actually had nothing to do with Klein. After all, the Sefirah Castle was in Klein's body, which meant that he was destined to be one of the candidates for the Lord of Mysteries... Hmm? Wait.

Alice looked at the candidate for the "Lord of Mysteries" and said thoughtfully:

"Logically, investors should want to see the project progress and expected returns. Otherwise, if the project progress and expected returns do not meet expectations, will He, will He withdraw his investment...?"

Following Alice's spiritual metaphor, Klein pushed the option of "asking the goddess for help" back in time. He then frowned and looked at Alice, reminding her tactfully:
"You are the one most likely to be defunded, right?"

"No," Alice shook her head firmly, "I'm an investor."

Klein was speechless.

After a moment, he seemed to remember something and asked, "Wait a minute, what did the goddess invest in?"

Alice put her hands on her chin. After more than ten seconds, based on her own experience, she answered confidently:

"You haven't become a god yet."

"Huh?" Klein looked confused.

Alice did not continue to argue with Klein about this issue, but asked:

"So, any clues to your potion formula?"

“Oh, yes.” Klein suddenly remembered something. “My Sequence 4 is not called ‘Circus Master’ or ‘Circus’, but ‘Trickster’!”

"Trickster"? Not bad. It does sound much more advanced than "circus master" or "circus", but...

Alice frowned slightly and asked hesitantly, "...senior magician?"

Klein looked at her expressionlessly.

Alice was silent for two seconds, then remembered that she still had to rely on Klein to deliver food. She considered and tried to apologize:

"Okay, it's my fault. It's definitely not as simple as being an advanced magician. After all, Sequence 4 requires a combination of the previous abilities, so you are at least an advanced magician plus an advanced clown plus an advanced puppeteer plus..."

She gradually closed her mouth as Klein's expression became more and more interesting, and finally asked hesitantly, "How about... after you get the potion formula and know the ability of the 'Strange Mage', we can discuss this issue again?"

It was a proposal that everyone welcomed, and Klein voted in favor.

But at the same time, they had nothing else to say. After staring at each other in silence for more than ten seconds, Klein asked tentatively:

"Would you like some ice cream?"

Alice had just answered yes, but then she quickly remembered that she had nothing on her - at least no spiritual materials to perform the ceremony of asking for the blessing.

She pinched her brows and replied with a slight headache:
"I'm afraid I'll have to wait a while... I don't have any spiritual materials on me, and I'm in a human city. There seems to be something wrong with this city...

"Anyway, I probably won't be able to set up the ceremony for a while, and then again... even if I asked for it, you wouldn't be able to buy ice cream at this time, right?"

This is true. Klein realized this and gave up his previous idea. He reminded Alice:
"If you want to eat, remember to eat during the day when you pray, not in the middle of the night."

"I don't know when it will be daytime outside..." Alice complained quietly, and suddenly remembered her previous thoughts, "Oh, speaking of which..."

She looked at Klein and said to him with a slightly strange expression:

"You know what? My current situation is very suitable for missionary work in a sense...

"Can I spread your name in the 'Forsaken Land', Mr. Great Fool?"

"?" Klein looked at Alice with wide eyes. He suddenly had a bad feeling. "Can I refuse?"

"Okay," Alice nodded, "but I don't necessarily think I'll listen."

Klein stared at Alice for a long time, sighed at her smiling eyes, and reminded her:
“…Let them be alright and don’t pray.

"Well, you know how to package this sentence, right?"

Alice nodded, patted her chest and said:

"Don't worry, Mr. Fool, I won't let anyone disturb your sleep!

"I am enough for this kind of thing!"

Klein looked at Alice expressionlessly again and asked coldly:
“Why don’t you just spread your own beliefs?”

"I would like to..." Alice curled her lips, "But I can't stay in the 'Forsaken Land' forever. If I run away, won't I be unable to respond to their prayers?"

Therefore, spreading the faith of the "Fool" is of course the best solution - don't ask, the only answer is that she is the angel under the Fool's seat.

Alice glanced at Klein and added:
“It’s just… it sounds weird for a god to call me a fool.

"So, you were lucky to meet Mr. Hanged Man and Ms. Justice instead of someone who asked you in person why you called yourself a fool..."

"No one would ask this question except you!" Klein shouted angrily, "No one would suddenly ask this question when they are not sure of the enemy and I are not sure of the other party's strength!"

Alice lowered her head silently.

Their conversation ended here. After realizing that they had nothing more to say to each other, they each returned to the real world from above the gray fog.

Alice opened her eyes again. The room was as empty as before she entered the gray fog. The spiritual barrier had not been touched. She was still in the secret room.

Alice did not try to go out, but sat on the bed, frowning and muttering:

"Even if fusion is inevitable in the end, it's better to be fully prepared to face everything than to rush forward, right?
"After all, the 'Fortune Teller' path is not the 'Fate' path. If it is the 'Fate' path, then maybe timing is really the most important thing, and everything else is fake...

"The 'Fortune Teller' approach seems to focus more on prior preparation... That's right, after all, it's a performance, and a minute on stage takes ten years of hard work off stage!

"...Could it be that the 'Trickster' is really a high-level magician?"

Alice shrank her neck and stopped dwelling on the idea. After thinking for a moment, she lay down on the bed and closed her eyes.

...so bright.

Alice frowned unhappily and sat up in bed.

"I should turn off the lights when I go to bed..." She muttered, took off "Apollo" from her body, thought for a moment, threw it under the bed, and locked the light underneath.

"Done!" Alice clapped her hands and lay back on the bed.

Her original intention was actually to try to see if she could continue with her previous dream - what if?
However, regrettably, this idea ultimately ended in failure. Alice woke up in a daze after an unknown amount of time, and the room was still pitch black.

I...sleep some more?
She looked at the dark room, and after a moment of confusion, this idea popped into her mind.

Alice closed her eyes again, then opened them again, sat up from the bed, patted her cheeks with her hands, shook her head and said:

"No, no, I'm not here to sleep..."

After waking up for a while, Alice crawled under the bed and took out "Apollo".

After putting on "Apollo" and untying the spiritual barrier, Alice realized that it was not only her who blocked the secret room, but there seemed to be other forces as well. She was stunned for a moment and realized that this might be an isolation area similar to the one mentioned by the little "Sun".

"Is there a similar place in Moon City..." She muttered, deciding to be polite and not try to break the door.

"Hey, is anyone there?" she yelled. "Let me out!"

Why does it sound like he was arrested?
Alice looked down at her toes in deep thought. Her voice must have been heard, because more than ten minutes later, someone opened the door of her room.

"Please follow me." The man said to her.

Alice tilted her head. The person who opened the door for her lowered his head. She couldn't see what he looked like, but she knew that his voice was probably very young.

After the young man said that, he turned around and began to lead the way. Alice thought about it and followed him.

After circling a few times, they returned to the ground along the stairs. Alice realized that she might have been underground. She looked around curiously, especially behind her.

It was a black tower, and the surrounding scenery was a little unfamiliar, but the architectural style was similar to what I saw yesterday - this should still be Moon City. (End of this chapter)