Lord of Mysteries: Starting As A Reader

Speaking of which, Klein originally came to Symeem Island after incidentally hearing in Bayam's "Azure Wind" hotel that someone had found "Red-haired" Helene and intended to use her to make a deal with Tracy on Symeem Island, preparing to "hunt" the Vice Admiral of Ailment.

With the "Burial Blade" and the "Creeping Hunger" gloves, he was confident he could defeat that pirate general on land.

But to his surprise, immediately after disembarking, he was inexplicably targeted by a high-Sequence powerhouse, forcing him to borrow a washroom at the Church of the Earth Mother.

When he emerged from the church and hurried to the "deal" location, he found it was actually a trap targeting the Vice Admiral of Ailment, and the person who set this trap was Tracy's mother… a Demoness of Affliction.

If it were merely internal conflict among demonesses, it would be fine, but that Demoness of Affliction clearly had no intention of sparing the ordinary people in the hospital where they were "connecting," intending to transport them all away and sell them as sacrifices… This left Klein unable to stand by!

However, that Demoness of Affliction herself was powerful and had several mid-Sequence subordinates.

No matter how confident Klein was in his own strength, he dared not directly attack… So he summoned his "spirit body" and had it accommodate the "Demoness" card. Using the "invisibility" effect unique to demonesses, he quietly infiltrated the hospital, rescuing Tracy, who had only avoided a terrible fate by "freezing" herself with a Sealed Artifact.

—According to her mother, she would only be offered to that great being after being "educated" into obedience.

Afterward, although their cooperation wasn't seamless, they barely managed to withstand the attacks of the Demoness of Affliction and her subordinates, dragging the fight until the arrival of the "Nighthawks" team—which Klein had, of course, reported beforehand.

The Demoness of Affliction ultimately had no choice but to retreat, no longer caring about the ordinary people, and Tracy was also taken by Klein to his safe house, temporarily evading the "Nighthawks'" search.

In fact, letting the "Demoness" spirit body dissipate directly, without exposing Gehrman, would have been the best choice.

But Klein still needed to inquire about the Death Requiem documents from Tracy. Gehrman was merely an alias, and exposing his use of the "Demoness" spirit body would better reflect his "mad" persona. Therefore, considering both role-playing and practical aspects, Klein still chose to meet with Tracy and presented his demands.

Although Vice Admiral of Ailment Tracy had very low moral integrity, she was indeed someone who remembered kindness. Otherwise, she wouldn't have risked warning Prince Edessak after recovering from her injuries. Thus, she readily agreed to Klein's request.

"But what did she mean by that last remark? That she preferred the appearance of my spirit body? The statue that somewhat resembled the Original Demoness, also bearing some resemblance to Trissy? Tsk, did this 'Vice Admiral of Ailment' maintain her original orientation after becoming a 'Witch'?"

"Fortunately, the transmigrator you met was me, someone with some integrity, the gentlemanly me beneath the mask of the mad Gehrman Sparrow… the real me… Zhou Mingrui!"

"If it had been Huang Tao or Liu Bo, you would probably have been completely consumed by them, using that image."

Above the gray fog, Klein reviewed what had just happened. Finally, amidst his thoughts, he turned his gaze to two Beyonder characteristics.

These were the spoils of his battle, coming from a "Witch" and a Demoness of Pleasure, respectively. Tracy naturally contributed to this, but she voluntarily gave them up.

After "divining" with their not-yet-fully dissipated spirits, Klein habitually tapped the edge of the ancient bronze long table with his fingers, pondering:

"There's no problem; they were merely acting on orders to attack Tracy. The real issue might be her 'mother'…"

"But that's none of my business. As long as she finds those documents, we'll be even."

"However, the Great Emperor's card does have some influence… Although it's not significant enough to overturn my decisions, it will slightly 'amplify' my 'favorability' towards demonesses…"

"Of course, the premise for 'amplification' is that there must be 'favorability'… For example, the two demonesses I just killed are not subject to 'amplification'."

"And towards pirate generals like the Vice Admiral of Ailment, whose sins are lighter compared to other great pirates, there's a bit more 'tolerance'… After all, her greatest misdeed, transporting slaves, was also done under orders, not of her own accord."

After analyzing his own psychology, Klein clarified the extent of the card's influence on him and found it to be within an acceptable range, so he breathed a sigh of relief.

However, he still decided to use this "Blasphemy Card" as little as possible.

After returning to reality from above the gray fog, Klein1 dispelled the "Spirituality Wall" in his hotel room. After resting for a while and recovering his mental strength, he got up and went downstairs, ready to address his dinner.

The entire first floor, apart from the counter, was cluttered with many tables, their surfaces slightly greasy. In a corner, a fireplace blazed, radiating light and heat.

The Rorsted Archipelago is located in the southern part, where the lowest winter temperature is around 10 degrees Celsius, but for the locals, this is still cold weather requiring a fire.

Klein casually found a seat. Since he had already eaten a meal in the afternoon, he only ordered a local specialty roast meat and bay leaf mushroom soup, without a main course.

While waiting, he quietly scanned the diners in the restaurant, his gaze instinctively falling on a lady.

This lady had simply tied-up black hair and a pair of very distinctive grayish-blue eyes. She was quite pleasant to look at, but her spirit seemed a bit wilted, as if she was very frustrated.

She was Leticia Dolera, who had returned empty-handed from the elven ruins, though Klein didn't recognize her.

There are fresh mud stains on this lady's leather boots… Just returned from the jungle? Heh, what an adventurer… Klein made a preliminary judgment based on some clues.

He had heard before that many adventurers would1 venture deep into the virgin forests on colonial islands, searching for abandoned and forgotten pagan temples or altars. Those places often held ancient offerings of gold and jewels, which were later buried in unknown, forgotten places for various reasons. The bars on every island were full of legends of someone returning from a jungle adventure laden with riches and becoming wealthy overnight.

Those places might have evil spirits lingering… It's better to hunt pirates; at least you can get relevant information beforehand… Klein withdrew his gaze and focused on waiting for his food.

The Seven Churches categorized various deities from the colonial indigenous faiths as evil spirits, but Klein believed that some of them should be natural spirits.

After a while, the specialty roast meat was served. It was cut into many small pieces, skewered on wooden sticks, coated with a reddish-brown sauce, and emitted a rich, alluring aroma.

It's a bit like kebabs from my previous life… In Loen, they roast large chunks of meat, which the chef then carves after cooking… This method here allows for more flavor infusion… Klein picked up a skewer, bit off a piece of meat, and felt the juice slightly overflow, tasting savory with a hint of sweetness.

It's my type! He nodded with satisfaction.

Klein was quite satisfied with this meal, even sampling the local "Gulu Tree Sap," a specialty drink that tasted like lemonade with sugar and milk.

Returning to his room, having been awake all night hunting, he washed up early, extinguished the fireplace, and burrowed into bed.

However, in the middle of the night, Klein's spirituality was suddenly touched by something. His pleasant dream immediately broke, and as he opened his eyes, his hand gripped the hilt of the "Burial Blade."

At that moment, the candles in the room suddenly lit themselves, and a lady with silver hair and blood-red eyes, whose face was indistinct, sat in a chair in the room, smiling at him.

In Symeem Island at midnight, the temperature was around eight or nine degrees Celsius, which felt cold.

But colder than that was Klein's heart. The opponent was so composed; perhaps his spiritual warning was deliberately triggered… That suggested this lady, who had been watching him since the dock, was far more powerful than he imagined.

The only good news was that the other party was likely not here to deal with him; otherwise, he would already be waiting for "resurrection."

"No need to be so guarded, I mean no harm." The lady smiled and said, "You can call me 'Yalolan'."

Yalolan?! Liu Bo's "friend" from his lifetime as a Blood Kin Duke, Rein… Hmm, it seems like the kind of friend with whom he sired children.

Klein's heart stirred, but outwardly, he used his "Clown" ability to control his expression, maintaining his "Gehrman"-esque solemnity.

However, his momentary emotional fluctuation was still caught by Madam Yalolan. She narrowed her eyes and asked, "You seem to have heard of me?"

Upon being asked, Klein considered for a moment, then nodded, "I know something about you and Duke Rhine…"

Like having children.

"You are indeed the one 'He' prophesied… Don't misunderstand, I'm not talking about Rein, but Alvin Abraham… You should know something about 'them,' right?" Yalolan asked pointedly.

Although he understood what she meant, Klein didn't answer. The other party was a "Pillar" of the "Moses Ascetic Order," and due to Old Neil, he had strong opinions about this organization and the "Hidden Sage" behind it. Even if the Yalolan in front of him had had an affair with Liu Bo, he didn't trust her much.

Moreover, after learning from Arrodes that the name "Liu Bo" itself might carry some "contamination," he was even less likely to casually utter his fellow countryman's name.

This was also being responsible for Madam Yalolan.

"What a cautious little fellow!" Madam Yalolan first sighed, then continued, "If you're wary of me because of the 'Hidden Sage,' there's no need. Although I am a high-ranking member of the 'Moses Ascetic Order,' I am also one of only two 'Pillars' who still adhere to the original doctrines… You should also know that before the 'Hidden Sage' revived, the 'Moses Ascetic Order' was not an evil organization."

At this point, she paused, skipped the topic, and then spoke of other things:

"I came to see you because I want to tell you some information, give you a reminder, and then entrust you with a task.

"The information is about 'Sea God' Kalvetua; he is about to fall. If you can find his divine kingdom, you might gain considerable benefits.

"Also, certain characteristics about you are not a secret in the eyes of a few special, high-level spiritual world creatures. Anyone who has had close contact with you can discover this… And Beyonders like me, who have abilities and authority in the domain of fate, can also discover this to varying degrees, of course, the premise is close contact… So, my reminder to you is, when adventuring on the sea, try to control yourself and not let lust dominate your mind… Hmm, but the demoness who left this evening is fine…

"Finally, the entrustment… I hope you will hand this Book of Calamity to him."