F*ck... At that instant, Klein, who heard the elder's reply, had vulgarities resound in his mind. Apart from that, no other thoughts appeared.
Zaratul—the leader of the Secret Order, a descendant of the Fourth Epoch's Solomon Empire aristocracy, the former owner of the Antigonus family's notebook, and the Beyonder guide for Emperor Roselle. "He" was a true High-Sequence Beyonder of the Seer pathway, a Miracle Invoker who was a secret existence about two centuries ago. "He" was believed by Arrodes to have lost control, turning from an angel into a monster during "His" attempt to advance to Sequence 1, Attendant of Mysteries!
No matter which description was used, "He" was a heavyweight that the present Klein was unable to resist. He had the feeling of shock that a figure from history textbooks had jumped out of it and walked in front of him, alive. He also felt the air around him appear to congeal as they piled on top of him, crushing his body and stifling his breathing.
Klein had once imagined that perhaps all his encounters, including his transmigration, had stemmed from Zaratul's setup, and he suspected that "He" would be akin to the final boss he would encounter in games. And now, he had met him—ahead of time.
I'm only a Sequence 5! Klein couldn't help but shout out inwardly as he suspected if the person opposite him was the real Zaratul.
Zaratul is a last name. It represents an aristocratic family in the Fourth Epoch's Solomon Empire. In theory, there should be many Zaratuls over two thousand years of history... Perhaps the one in Roselle's diary is the grandfather, father, brother, or son of that Secret Order's leader... Also, he mentioned that he has been dead for years, while Arrodes and Will Auceptin have testified that the Secret Order's leader, Zaratul, is still alive. He has just lost control and turned into a monster, turning extremely crazy... Klein tried to convince himself that the situation might not be as terrible as he imagined. This quickly calmed him down as he began to carefully contemplate.
The Beyonder powers that this Zaratul showcased doesn't seem like much, but all of them exceed the realm of normalcy. It's even more so for those that's related to history and fate... He's definitely not only a Bizarro Sorcerer. He might even be a Sequence 3 or Sequence 2. And this pathway's angels are few to begin with...
This place is intricately tied with the Nation of the Evernight which disappeared from the main peak of the Hornacis mountain range, and it produces the ravings that reach the ears of Low- and Mid-Sequence Beyonders of the Seer pathway... Back then, the Secret Order's leader, Zaratul, had fewer appearances after he obtained the Antigonus family's notebook via Emperor Roselle. It's unknown what "He" was plotting. Does this mean that I can believe "He" had come to the main peak of the Hornacis mountain range to seek out the treasure left behind by the Antigonus family based on the notebook and obtained the corresponding potion formula and ingredients of Sequence 1 Attendant of Mysteries?
In the world of mysticism, repeated coincidences usually imply problems and a confirmation...
If it is that Zaratul, could it be that splitting "himself" to store "Himself" inside the foggy town is the reason that caused "His" ultimate loss of control?
As for being "long dead," there's an even more reasonable explanation. The Secret Order leader, Zaratul, had said so "Himself": What is a miracle? A miracle is to be resurrected from the dead!
And "He" was already a Miracle Invoker!
As Klein's mind churned, the hoary elder who claimed to be Zaratul chuckled.
"From your reaction, you seem to know me?"
Klein quickly probed, "I've heard of this last name.
"I once met Queen Mystic and learned of the Secret Order from her, and also know of its leader."
The elder nodded gently without giving any confirmation or denial. He smiled and vaguely asked, "What other help do you need?"
Help... Klein recalled the Beyonder powers he had showcased and said after some hesitation, "Are you able to summon a fish from the outside world from this concealed world's history? It's okay if it has already been turned into food."
From his point of view, it wasn't an impossibility. After all, most people that entered the town had come from Sonia Sea's easternmost front, the ruins of the battle of gods. Perhaps some fish that had been reared there had been brought in. They could be used to be stored as food and also used to observe the changes in the environment. There could also be explorers who vanished from not being able to sleep in time when night came after eating their fill of fish. It wasn't unreasonable that fish meat could be found in the history of the foggy town.
Zaratul raised his head and looked at Klein. He didn't immediately give him an answer.
After a few seconds, he leveled his gaze and said indistinctly, "Yes."
Just as he said that, a blob made up of ground-fish meat appeared in Admiral of Blood Senor's hands.
"It can only be maintained for forty-five minutes. Once it's over, it's as though one has never eaten it before," Zaratul added.
That actually worked... Klein increasingly found the High-Sequence Beyonder powers of the Seer pathway to really be bizarre and terrifying.
He had planned on saying that he didn't need any help, but considering how Zaratul was well-known to be deceitful, with everything he said and did being questionable, he felt that he needed to make some preparations.
Amidst his thoughts, Klein decided to appear a little greedy to lower Zaratul's appraisal of him and believe that he could easily lead him to do his bidding.
After letting his marionette put away the fish meat, his eyes rolled a little as he indiscernibly drew a breath and said, "I still need the Bizarro Sorcerer potion formula."
Zaratul didn't change his posture as he fell silent for a few seconds. He then said with a chuckle, "No problem. As long as you trust that I'll give you a real formula.
"After you return with the obsidian rock, I'll hand over both the Bizarro Sorcerer potion formula and the symbol needed for opening the door to you.
"Sigh, that isn't something that I need to care about. All that matters is that you scatter my ashes back into the river in my hometown."
After Klein listened in silence, he couldn't help but ask, "You have a very high level. The ashes you leave behind will contaminate the river and create countless monsters."
Zaratul laughed upon hearing that.
"Very meticulous.
"However, there's nothing special about my ashes. I've lost them long ago."
As he spoke, he looked up again and glanced at the peak of the ancient cathedral.
He's hinting that his Beyonder characteristics and body's specialness had been absorbed by the "magnet" above? Klein pondered over Zaratul's meaning as he pressed on matters regarding his Beyonder pathway.
"What's the Sequence 3 potion name after Bizarro Sorcerer?"
Zaratul's beard moved slightly as he said, "Scholar of Yore."
Scholar of Yore... Although it sounds like a relic that's already dead and dug out from a tome, Zaratul has repeatedly mentioned history. The corresponding Beyonder powers are fascinating... Klein thought in glee as he asked again, "Then what's the corresponding Sequence 0?"
Zaratul lifted his head again and glanced at him. Finally, he chuckled and said, "You will likely know when you ‘open the door' to escape."
I hate people like you, saying things midway, often just smiling without giving an answer... Klein immediately understood the feeling Emperor Roselle once had as he turned his gaze to the statue beside him and asked, "Who is this?"
Zaratul's head didn't turn as he said in a muffled manner, "‘She' is a descendant of an ancient god."
A descendant of an ancient god. A descendant of Annihilation Demonic Wolf Flegrea? This ancient god seems to wield the authority of Evernight... "His" descendant established the Nation of the Evernight? Before Klein could ask a question, he heard Zaratul chuckle and say, "‘She' also has a brother that you wouldn't be unfamiliar with."
"Who is it?" Klein tried hard to recall who, but he couldn't find an answer.
Zaratul chuckled.
"‘He' gave ‘Himself' a new last name.
"Antigonus."
Antigonus... Nation of the Evernight... Hornacis... Flegrea... Klein's eyes lit up slightly as he pieced together the fragmented pieces of information.
It's very easy to understand the Church of Evernight destroying the Nation of the Evernight, as it's a battle of authorities. However, to completely eradicate the Antigonus family for having inherited the Seer Beyonder paths of the divine doesn't make sense. There's no need to go that far. After all, the pathways that can be interchanged with the Sleepless pathway are the Death and Giant pathways.
Furthermore, Klein was still puzzled to this day. Why would the Antigonus family place their treasure on the main peak of the Hornacis mountain range? Why did they trust the people of the Nation of the Evernight that much?
Now, he finally understood something.
Just as Klein was about to ask more questions, he suddenly saw the crimson moonlight shining in from the cathedral's windows brighten. It drew out shadows of the corpses hanging in midair.
The crimson moon has turned clear! Klein's heart tightened. Without any additional thoughts, he followed his emergency plans by raising his right hand. Snapping his fingers, he lit a candle by the wall that was a distance away from him.
At the same time, he got Senor to possess him as he leaped out, somersaulting in the process before arriving at the wall closest to the outside.
And this time, the entire cathedral had turned abnormally silent. There were no longer any resounding ravings.
Klein's spiritual intuition didn't give him any indication of danger, but he could tell from the shadows on the ground that the corpses hanging in midair had turned towards the flame!
Without any hesitation, Klein pressed his left palm down, passing through a wall and arriving outside the cathedral. Then, without even daring to even raise his head, he borrowed the driving force of a Wraith to tumble and run towards the nearest building. The distance from wall to wall was only about ten meters.
During this process, he didn't hear the beast-like growls nor detect the loitering figures. However, his back felt like it was being pierced by a sea of glares!
In just a second, Klein had appeared outside the building. Pressing down with his palms, he passed through the wall.
Then, he snapped his fingers and remotely used Flame Controlling to ignite a candle inside the cathedral.
After a brief moment of silence and anxiety, the feeling of being stared at vanished. Beyond the tightly-drawn curtains, figures began to appear as they began loitering.
