Lord of Mysteries: Starting As A Reader

Seeing the feather pen broken into several fragments, Klein picked up the notebook Miss Sharron had been using and flipped through its contents.

After a moment, he closed the notebook, his frown deepening. Sharron's entries merely arranged for the dream characters' actions; there was no mention of the "Primordial Moon."

"But just that level of 'arrangement' shouldn't have caused it to break," Klein muttered. Grabbing the shattered pen, he ended the "summoning" and returned to the gray fog.

While the pen's existence had yet to fully dissipate, Klein swiftly conjured pen and paper, writing a divination statement:

"The cause of the feather pen's breakage."

After reciting the phrase seven times, he leaned back with the parchment and the rapidly fading "0-08" in hand, slipping into a dream state.

In the hazy dreamscape, Klein witnessed Miss Sharron fainting, saw the moonlight flicker across the feather pen, watched it write words on the wall, break apart, and then the mysterious disappearance of the writing...

The dream quickly faded, and Klein awoke, his expression grim. His concern for Miss Sharron was compounded by the unsettling ease with which Linster had been defeated.

"This Dream Labyrinth Tower... may not just be a test for climbers. Its depths might seal a hidden entity... perhaps the Primordial Moon itself!

"Linster, as a follower of the Primordial Moon, likely triggered the sealed entity's awareness by offering his soul as a sacrifice under certain conditions.

"That entity probably never intended to help Linster with his revenge since Linster was already a part of the labyrinth. Corrupting him further held no value.

"The true targets were Sharron and me because only we had the chance to leave the labyrinth and aid its escape.

"The 'spawn of the evil god' ritual within this scenario served as an ideal conduit for a fragment of its power—subtle enough not to arouse suspicion.

"This is why we had relatively ample time to prepare; why Linster and the spawn's fusion remained incomplete.

"That entity likely wanted to pollute us covertly during the battle, then let us 'triumph' and naturally return to reality.

"Hah, its primary target was probably me... Too bad I was fighting in the form of the Hero Bandit Black Emperor, protected by the gray fog's power and the high rank of the Blasphemy Card. That setup must have exceeded its expectations, making it unable to corrupt me at the time.

"So, it turned to Miss Sharron, who was further from the battlefield... To avoid the labyrinth's possible monitoring, it had to make everything seem 'reasonable' and resorted to the power of '0-08' to orchestrate events.

"That misuse exposed its flaw... because the fake '0-08' in this scene couldn't bear the weight of its real power!

"Though Linster seemed to be the mastermind, he was just a pawn. The true orchestrator was likely the entity sealed in the labyrinth's depths."

Having sorted his thoughts, Klein began divinations to verify his theory.

A little over a minute later, he dispelled the conjured pendulum and sighed:

"My speculation seems mostly correct.

"The feather pen broke because it carried power beyond its level.

"Miss Sharron has indeed been polluted by 'real' power.

"The power leaking through the seal isn't strong but operates at a high level, making it hard to detect.

"Since the pollution is recent and shallow, I should be able to cleanse it using the gray fog's power..."

He paused briefly, then bitterly chuckled, muttering self-deprecatingly:

"But the real problem now is... how do I convince Miss Sharron to pray to a highly suspicious god and perform a secret ritual?

"Even though we're friends, I doubt we're at the point where she'd trust me with something that absurd...

"If she were in a desperate situation, that might work... but the pollution probably isn't easily noticeable. At least I didn't detect anything unusual from her unconscious state."

Scratching his chin, Klein was at a loss when inspiration suddenly struck.

Why hadn't he received a task completion prompt after defeating Linster and Ince?

By all logic, Linster, after taking that Solar Flame strike, couldn't possibly threaten Captain Dunn's life anymore.

The task "Thwart Ince Zangwill's plot and protect Dunn Smith from death" should have been completed by then!

Pondering this, Klein cautiously divined Linster's state, confirming that he no longer existed. He then turned his attention to the conjured task slip.

"Ince's plot... He's already dead, so the plot was naturally thwarted.

"Protect Captain Dunn from death... from death... wait! From death?!"

Repeating those words several times, Klein's eyes lit up as he realized something crucial:

The Captain wasn't a god or an angel—he was mortal and destined to die eventually!

If interpreted literally, the task was fundamentally impossible to complete!

In normal circumstances, the Dream Labyrinth Tower wouldn't do something like this... but if it detected a "prisoner" trying to "escape," employing some "extraordinary" measures wouldn't be surprising! Temporarily twisting the rules? That's well within its capabilities...

After figuring everything out, Klein didn't panic. After all, he had the mysterious space above the gray fog as his trump card. Forcing himself to wake up and leave the Dream Labyrinth Tower was entirely possible.

"This isn't necessarily a bad thing... I can use this as a way to convince Miss Sharron to pray to The Fool!"

With this thought flashing through his mind, Klein immediately formulated a plan, carefully crafting his words before simulating a sense of descent to return to the dream scenario.

By the time he reached Sharron's side, the doll-like lady had just regained consciousness. Her demeanor and posture were as impeccable as always, though a trace of confusion lingered in her blue eyes.

Seeing Klein running toward her, her first words were:

"This scene itself is Linster's true trap."

No, he didn't have that capability. The scene's anomalies were a product of the labyrinth's struggle with another entity. Klein kept this thought to himself but nodded on the surface. "This task itself was a trap."

Sharron remained silent for nearly a minute before calmly stating, "If our bodies die in reality, we'll be trapped here forever."

After a brief pause, she added, "I haven't found a solution."

Miss Sharron is scared, huh? Klein carefully adjusted his tone and said, "Actually, I have an idea..."

Sharron suddenly turned toward him, her gaze coming alive with movement. Her voice remained cold, but it couldn't hide a glimmer of hope:

"What idea?"

Klein didn't answer directly but instead asked, "Do you remember what I told you before we entered this scene?"

Sharron recalled seriously for a second and repeated his words:

"If we fall into a desperate situation, can you trust me unconditionally just once?"

"Exactly that... Do you trust me?" Klein locked eyes with Sharron's blue gaze, asking earnestly.

Sharron stared back at him for a long moment before nodding. "I trust you." She then asked, "What do you want me to do?"

Clearly, she had already guessed some of his intentions.

"Recite the name of a 'great being' and perform a ritual to seek its aid," Klein said without flinching.

"Who?" Sharron asked calmly, showing no surprise.

"The Fool, who does not belong to this era... a benevolent deity." Klein watched her closely as he spoke.

"The Fool... The sworn enemy of the True Creator?" Sharron nodded slightly, her voice steady. "No wonder you didn't go mad back then."

Although the battle at the Aurora Order base had only been a few days ago, some details had inevitably leaked out. The Fool's name had become known to many factions, and even Sharron had heard about it during a gathering.

The fact that the Hero Bandit Black Emperor was a follower of the Fool was no longer a secret. Thus, Sharron wasn't surprised to hear Klein mention that name.

Miss, you remember the "Blasphemous Speech" charm incident, huh? That experience was indeed unforgettable... Klein silently griped before asking seriously again, "What's your decision?"

Sharron gazed at him with her blue eyes and nodded:

"I have no other choice...

"And I trust you!"

Hearing this, Klein let out a relieved breath, a smile forming on his lips.

....

After Miss Sharron followed Klein's guidance and completed the ritual, Klein hurried back to the gray fog, activating the newly appeared crimson star.

What he saw left him utterly stunned.

In the hazy image, Sharron was barely discernible, but her body was entwined with a slender blood-red figure.

The figure's body was twisted, though its head remained eerily human...

That wasn't the most shocking part—Klein had seen stranger things on "The Sun," even from Amon.

What truly stunned him was the figure's face.

Chestnut-colored wavy hair, blue eyes, a high nose bridge, thin lips, and two impeccably groomed mustaches...

The appearance was identical to the image on the Black Emperor card in Klein's hand!

Huang Roselle Gustav Tao?!

This pollution came from him?! Could he be the Primordial Moon?!

(End of Chapter)