So Mr. Fool also has authority in the aspect of concealment... Leonard came to a realization as he understood why Old Man had specially mentioned the need for the blessings of concealment.
Without waiting for his reply, Klein added, "In addition, tell Pallez Zoroast that Amon might very well know that there's a Marauder pathway angel in the vicinity of Böklund Street."
This... Leonard's pupils dilated as he blurted out, "How would ‘He' know that?"
It's not convenient to tell you why... Klein mumbled inwardly before replying rather sternly, "It's not like I'm Amon."
"Which of ‘His' actions or words made you come to this conclusion?" Leonard asked subconsciously.
No, it's me who "told" "Him"... Klein chuckled as a response.
Indeed... Leonard nodded and said, "No problem. I'll inform Old Man of this."
He paused for a moment before asking, "Are you waiting for ‘Him' to give a detailed plan?"
Klein tersely acknowledged.
"When it comes to the knowledge of Amon and the Marauder pathway, few are better than ‘Him.""
Having said that, Klein, who had determined that Amon wouldn't come to Böklund Street any time soon, calmly added, "There's no need to be in a rush to respond. Give me the feedback at tomorrow's Tarot Gathering."
From the looks of it, things haven't reached a critical stage yet... Leonard figured out the most important information from Klein's words. He nodded slightly and said, "Alright, we will discuss this in detail at tomorrow's Tarot Gathering."
After settling this matter, Klein immediately got up and bowed in the direction of the "door of light."
"Mr. Fool, we are done."
Leonard stood up, but before he could do anything, his vision became a blur as the crimson stellar light inundated him.
When he snapped awake, he found himself in the sparse forest on the outskirts of North Borough.
"Is there anything you wish to tell me?" Pallez Zoroast's slightly-aged voice sounded.
Leonard cleared his throat and said, "Klein told me that he's a Blessed of Concealment. He can attempt to pray for help."
"Blessed of Concealment. Indeed..." Pallez sighed and said, "Tell him that as long as he can really gain the blessings of Concealment, I'm willing to provide help when it comes to dealing with Amon and finding all ‘His' avatars hiding in Backlund."
Leonard wasn't surprised by this answer as he chuckled.
"Old Man, you don't sound as weak as you make yourself out to be!"
Pallez Zoroast chuckled without a hint of anger in his tone.
"Didn't you read through Roselle's Quotes? I recall that there's a saying that a starving camel is still bigger than a horse."
"That will depend on the breed of horse and camel," Leonard retorted habitually before asking, "Old Man, how should we deal with Amon? Do you plan on using yourself as bait?"
"Ahem!" Pallez snapped back, "If that were the case, what we'll be facing will be Amon's actual body and not ‘His' avatars. When that happens, there's a high chance that it will instigate a deity's battle. I might still have a chance of escaping. As for you, perhaps you will return to Evernight's Tenebrous Heaven."
"..." Leonard could only reply with a chortle.
Pallez Zoroast continued, "Unlike the similar powers of other pathways, Amon's avatars can rapidly strengthen ‘Himself' by absorbing the Beyonder characteristics of the Marauder pathway, thereby splitting even more Worms of Time, allowing him to parasitize different creatures. As long as there's enough Beyonder characteristics, this process can keep happening..."
"I-isn't this like the spread of a plague?" Leonard felt a chill run down his back once again.
If one had enough Beyonder characteristics of the Marauder pathway, Amon's avatars could go from parasitizing one person to the entire city!
"Pretty much." Pallez Zoroast affirmed Leonard's guess and sighed. "To deal with Amon, this is the only way to take action. Using Marauder pathway Beyonder characteristics at the demigod level to bait ‘Him' out. As long as you successfully finish off one of his avatars, there are ways to seek out and eliminate the rest. However, Amon is a master of deceit. We need to be careful; otherwise, it might appear like we are baiting ‘Him,' but in actual fact, ‘He' is baiting you. On this matter, concealment is of utmost importance!"
"I understand." Leonard sighed and turned to ask, "How strong can Amon's avatar be?"
Pallez Zoroast fell silent for a few seconds as though in recollection. Finally, he said, "In theory, ‘His' strongest avatar can reach the equivalent of a Sequence 1, but it's almost impossible for ‘Him' to do so. This will make his mental state unstable and show signs of losing control.
"Typically, one of ‘His' avatars is a Worm of Time, each starting off as a weak Sequence 4. However, each possesses the trait of an angel capable of shattering Beyonder characteristics. By absorbing sufficient amounts of Marauder pathway Beyonder characteristics, such an avatar can reach a level equivalent to a Sequence 2. However, Amon seldom does so. ‘His' avatars will automatically fracture and create even more avatars.
"Furthermore, with the actual situation in Backlund, it's very difficult for ‘Him' to gather enough Beyonder characteristics that can raise ‘His' avatar to Sequence 2."
Leonard thought carefully for a moment before asking, ‘So, we will be facing a group of Amons. Amongst them, a majority have the strength of a weak Sequence 4, with a minority having the normal standards of a Sequence 4, while an extremely small minority reaches Sequence 3?"
"With Amon's style, it's likely the case. However, you have to remember that Amon is good at deceit," Pallez Zoroast warned. "In addition, based on the time since Amon's avatar arrived in Backlund, the number of Marauder pathway Beyonder characteristics ‘He' has gathered to date can't be too much. After all, this is Backlund. Also, if the situation isn't right, ‘His' avatars will use the strongest one as the center and automatically gather together to achieve an elevation in strength. The most important matter when dealing with Amon is to not let matters develop to this stage. Otherwise, there's no stopping Amon from escaping even if an angel of the Concealment domain arrives."
"It's truly difficult to deal with ‘Him." Besides, it's just an avatar ‘He' randomly threw out to develop themselves. As expected of a King of Angels..." After Leonard made a poignant sigh, he suddenly recalled Klein's reminder and hurriedly said, "The Angel of Time has apparently already locked onto a Marauder pathway demigod. Klein said that he encountered Amon while pursuing the demigod. Also, Amon seems to know that there might be a Marauder pathway angel hidden in the region around Böklund Street..."
Pallez Zoroast fell silent once again, remaining that way for a pretty long period of time.
After a while, with Leonard unable to stop himself from prodding for a response, "He" lamented with a sigh, "Why is your former colleague as troublesome as you?"
"What?" Leonard wore a blank look.
Palle Zoroast said in a peeved manner, "The reason why Amon knows that there's a Marauder pathway angel around Böklund Street is likely due to him!"
"Old Man, y-you have the ability to decrypt?" Leonard asked in puzzlement.
Pallez harrumphed.
"I was using my brain!
"Otherwise, why do you think there's the prefix of Böklund Street?"
... That's true. Anything that has to do with Böklund Street can't avoid Dwayne Dantès... Could it be some problem that fellow, Klein, created? Only then did Leonard come to a realization.
At this moment, Pallez sighed.
"Thankfully, he only said an angel and not my name. Otherwise, I suggest that we immediately leave Backlund.
"Tell him that there are currently two solutions:
"First, it's to seek out a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact of the Marauder pathway or find a demigod of the Marauder pathway. Using them, we design a trap. This entire process requires the blessings of Concealment. Furthermore, it needs to be natural, reasonable, normal, and in no way incur suspicion.
"Second, wait for Amon to enter Böklund Street. He might do a combination of ‘replacing someone's identity' and ‘infiltrating through the air.' Therefore, your former colleague needs to see through the grafting of fate or notice the abnormalities in the microbes. Otherwise, no matter what plans are employed, it will simply be feeding Amon."
Leonard's eyelid twitched when he heard that as he solemnly nodded.
"I'll discuss these matters with him tomorrow afternoon."
"Alright." Pallez Zoroast sighed and said, "Also, if all the Amon avatars in Backlund can be eliminated, most of the Worms of Time left behind will belong to
me."
As a form of replenishing himself? It's no wonder Old Man is willing to take the risk... Leonard asked in enlightenment, "Do those Worms of Time have the Beyonder characteristics of the Marauder pathway?"
"It might be the case in my hands, but not necessarily for others," Pallez explained simply. "The Worms of Time left when Amon's avatars die will indeed contain a sufficient amount of Beyonder characteristics in the beginning, but they will quickly deplete and return to the main body. The corresponding power is needed to prevent this phenomenon from happening." Leonard first nodded before asking in confusion, "Why was the Luck Siphon charms made from the Worms of Time so powerful?"
Pallez instantly scoffed.
"Have you forgotten what the essence of the charm
is?
"Its essence is the power obtained from a high-level existence. It then uses a material that can handle this power, as well as the powers obtained from the corresponding symbols, to stabilize it. The Worm of Time's role is to be a unique vessel. If the level is high enough, its essence is compatible, and there is sufficient spirituality, the requirements will be met."
"Therefore, the power of the Luck Siphon charm actually comes from Mr. Fool?" Leonard asked in thought.
Pallez Zoroast chuckled and said, "Yes, you can try praying to Amon as well and use ‘His' power to create Luck Siphon charms.
"Of course, the uniqueness of the vessel material will also affect the effects of the final product. In other words, different special materials will lead to different characteristics in power based on the response. Sigh, charms are a very profound and complicated piece of knowledge. It's not something that can be completely grasped by having some cursory education. You have to put more effort into
it."
Leonard immediately felt somewhat ashamed.
On Monday afternoon, using the powers of the mysterious space above the gray fog to check on Hazel's family to confirm that there weren't any problems in the meantime, Klein patiently waited for the convening of the Tarot Gathering.
Dark red beams shot up in the ancient palace before gradually calming down.
Without a pause, Audrey got up and bowed towards the end of the long mottled table.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Fool~"
