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Upon the Berserk Sea, just as the figure of Gehrman Sparrow disappeared, one after another black tentacle like a python used the seawater as a mirror surface to extend out from the mirror world, frantically slapping at the surroundings.
The icy seawater continuously petrified into gray-white and then cracked inch by inch, stretching out limbs and a head to turn into females of various sizes—females with very good looks.
Beneath the sea surface, a city hidden within the mirror world vaguely emerged, featuring buildings interwoven from pitch-black and rusty red, a ground stained with mottled blood stains, and countless figures moving around like the walking dead.
Within the illusory and abstract Astral World, Leyton stood at the edge of the divine kingdom, lowering his head to look down upon reality below, looking down upon the City of Calamity hidden within the mirror world.
It took advantage of the gap when other Sefirot tore through the gray fog barrier to reveal their power to open a passage to the mirror world, hiding itself within, and also utilized the problems upon the Primordial Demoness to incidentally contaminate Cheek of the mirror world, mastering a puppet of a true god level.
"Losing the mirror image, Cheek will sooner or later be completely corrupted and swallowed by the City of Calamity. The apex of the other pathway currently only features a single trinity-in-one Medici evil spirit, who likewise has long since been corrupted by the City of Calamity. These two pathways can be considered beyond saving."
"The best solution is to bundle them all up and throw them out of Earth, but currently it cannot be achieved yet."
Amidst his low-voiced self-muttering, sheets of brilliant starlight flew out from the void beside him, interweaving into an illusory door inscribed with numerous mysterious patterns, and Klein's figure emerged following it.
He stood beside Leyton, raising his head to gaze afar at the outer deities of the cosmos who were exerting their full strength to corrode the barrier, speaking with a tone that was slightly solemn:
"I glimpsed some future changes, not-too-good changes. The apocalypse seems to have moved forward again, related to the appearance of the City of Calamity."
Leyton nodded gently, confirming his words:
"Along with the reclamation of authorities and characteristics, it will increasingly draw close to the Destruction Day and the Calamity of Destruction. Whether its symbol or its own extremely unstable mental state, it will inevitably cause this world to whip up a terrifying calamity."
"And as far as this world is concerned, the greatest calamity is precisely the disappearance of the primordial barrier."
"Then why do you still have to...." Klein opened his mouth, yet swallowed the subsequent words back down. The answer was actually very obvious.
Leyton gave a light laugh: "Without Sefirot, the deities cannot take a step further, and cannot cope with the inevitably arriving apocalypse. Or, do you have the confidence of 1V10?"
"No..." Klein sighed and shook his head gently.
Leyton smiled and spread his hands: "Therefore, they must be let out, even if the apocalypse will move forward because of this."
"Restricting the majority of the Sefirot to the Forsaken Land of the Gods is already the best result. This can reduce their influence to the minimum. I cannot achieve catching whoever I want just because I want to use a certain sheet of Sefirah, unless you become the Lord of the Mysteries on the spot."
"I can only become the Celestial Worthy on the spot." Klein cracked a joke, paused a moment, and then continued to speak:
"I plan to enter Sefirah Castle to attempt truly mastering it, after which I will accommodate the authorities of Door and Error. During this period, my mastery over the outside world will not be too much."
Leyton first nodded, and then shook his head:
"Telling me is useless. The Astral World deities are busy tearing and pulling with those Sefirot, and I must remain on guard here."
"But they do not even have the time to listen to me speak." Klein gave a sigh, said no more, turned around and left the Astral World.
.....
After leaving the Astral World, Klein soon roamed to Backlund, after which he took another trip to Tingen, went to the Rorsted Archipelago on the sea, and went to the Southern Continent....
After looking around a circle at the traces and entanglements he left behind in this world, he returned anew into that ancient and magnificent palace above the gray fog.
Upon the edge of the table in front of him lay an ancient silver mirror with a bizarre pattern. Both sides of the mirror featured black gems decorating it as eyes, and water waves shook layer upon layer upon the mirror surface, materializing individual silver-white Loenese words:
"Great Master, are we about to start now?"
"No, wait a bit more. Before this there is still a temporary gathering. During the period of truly mastering Sefirah Castle and accommodating the authorities of Error and Door, my capability of mastery over the outside world will descend, and I need to arrange some matters in advance."
While Klein shook his head to speak, individual deep red glows rose up, rapidly condensing into individual blurry figures on both sides of the mottled long table.
The people whose figures appeared at the Tarot Club were all somewhat bewildered, not understanding why they were suddenly summoned by Mr. Fool.
Klein tapped the edge of the table twice with his finger, speaking with a calm tone:
"This is a temporary gathering, for the sake of arranging some matters."
Hearing that there was no problem with Mr. Fool's voice, Justice Audrey suddenly let out a breath of relief, after which she inquired somewhat curiously:
"What matters?"
Klein leaned his body backward slightly, resting against the back of the chair, speaking with a tone that carried not too many fluctuations:
"In order to cope with the apocalypse that has moved forward, I must go to do some matters. This will cause my capability of mastery over the outside world to descend, making it impossible to discover and handle some existing problems in a timely manner. I need you to act as my eyes to find and handle these problems."
"If the problems exceed the scope of your capabilities, you can pray to me to seek help, only that the responses might carry some delay, as I am unable to spare too much focus to attend to the outside world."
"The subsequent Tarot Club will still convene normally, only that it will lack some people, and I will no longer act as the witness."
...After all, without me pulling historical projections and manipulating marionettes, even if they wished to appear here, they couldn't achieve it.
...This... Thoughts within Justice Audrey's mind could not resist churning. Before Mr. Fool spoke, she had already noticed that today's Tarot Club lacked three members, which were precisely The World, Mr. Tower, and The Emperor.
Hesitating for a moment, Audrey still asked her own doubt:
"Do Mr. Tower and Mr. World have other tasks?"
Sitting straight at the absolute head seat, Klein nodded gently: "It can be understood that way."
Justice Audrey nodded, with individual thoughts floating in her mind... It can be understood that way, then that means it is not completely correct. It really makes one curious. However, words like these from Mr. Fool also indicate that they have not encountered danger, and are merely unable to get away due to their respective reasons and tasks.
The Star Leonard subsequently raised a question: "Will The World be in danger?"
Klein looked at Leonard whose expression was obviously somewhat worried, saying with a smile:
"Perhaps he will, perhaps he won't. This depends on whether the trouble you encounter can be solved by him."
"I understand."
Leonard nodded gently, no longer inquiring.... Mr. Fool's meaning is that in the future, the help we pray to Him for will all be handed over to Klein to complete. Is this precisely the price he has to pay for the Door pathway characteristic upon his body?
Hermit Cattleya associated it with the problem of Frank from before, which was precisely solved by The World coming over after delaying for a bit. Within her mind, some ideas vaguely took shape:
....Mr. Fool was doing this kind of matter previously, only because of the reason that the apocalypse suddenly moved forward, He must speed up the progress. Therefore, He will have no time to attend to reality, which is precisely why there is this temporary gathering.... And the reason for the apocalypse moving forward should be related to Frank's encounter, related to the Brood Hive in the mouth of The World.
Amidst her floating thoughts, she tilted her body to look toward the absolute head seat of the mottled long table, bowing slightly as she said:
"Mr. Fool, what matters do we need to do, and how should we act?"
Klein raised his head slightly, thinking as he said:
"Spread my name more extensively, search for those hidden beliefs germinating all over the world, and strike them down."
"Pay attention to clues related to the Primordial Demoness and Medici, be careful of the mirror world, and search for those people, or organizations, that propagate calamity, but do not disturb them. This is related to the apocalypse moving forward again, and is considerably dangerous."
"Pay attention to whether there are Beyonders around you displaying unusual changes, especially the several pathways of Moon, Mother, Demoness, and Hunter."
Pausing slightly, he tilted his head to look at Magician Fors, instructing separately:
"Try your best not to enter the mirror world. If it cannot be avoided, pray to me in advance. Remember to relay the same words to the Abraham family."
"No problem." Magician Fors nodded repeatedly.
Silencing for two seconds, she could not resist inquiring: "Has some problem occurred in the mirror world?"
Hermit Cattleya looked around a circle, and seeing that no one spoke, she then answered this question:
"Previously, through the glass windows on the ship and some items capable of reflecting light, I glimpsed firelight—firelight that spreads calamity."
"Some dangerous thing seems to have appeared in the mirror world, and it has occupied the entire mirror world."
"City of Calamity." Klein at the absolute head seat of the mottled long table reminded with a phrase, after which he fell into silence, no longer making more explanations.
....City of Calamity? Is this a thing similar to Brood Hive? It seems the reason for the apocalypse moving forward in the mouth of Mr. Fool is also because of it.... Cattleya furrowed her brow slightly, with guesses within her mind continuously surfacing, but because of lacking information, they could never take shape.
"Everyone, I have a question."
The Moon Emlyn raised his hand. Seeing that everyone cast their gazes over, he organized his language and said:
"I don't know if you noticed it, but not long ago, a blood moon rose in the east."
"At the same time that blood moon rose, I saw some things and heard some voices. The voices of many people echoed by my ear, using a language that does not belong to the Northern and Southern Continents, shouting a name loudly: Merciful Earth Mother."
"I almost lost myself in these voices; it was the Mother Goddess who helped me."
Speaking up to here, Emlyn was obviously somewhat excited, and his tone grew a bit thicker. Relaxing slightly, he then continued to say:
"I inquired with other Sanguine and Beyonders of the Planter pathway within the Church of the Earth, and they also saw scenes similar to mine and heard similar voices."
"Do you have any understanding, or guesses, regarding this?"