Lord of Mysteries: Starting As A Reader

After a brief silence, The Hanged Man Alger said,

"While investigating Vice Admiral of Ailment, I discovered someone she had dealings with... He might be connected to the colonial slave disappearance cases. Please keep an eye out for him.

"He calls himself Barren, has reddish-brown skin with obvious Southern Continent ethnic features, but someone once overheard him speaking with a Backlund accent.

"His third tooth on the left side is missing, though it might have been replaced.

"Furthermore, he has very nondescript facial features and an average height.

"If any of you can track him down, the reward won't be an issue—at least 100 pounds or equivalent valuables."

After speaking, Alger's gaze swept across Tower, World, and Judgement. Although he was reluctant to provoke Vice Admiral of Ailment, she was only involved in transportation, and both the upstream and downstream connections were worth investigating.

Judgement Xio carefully noted down the information, deciding to search for clues. She was currently quite short on money, and 100 pounds was already a significant sum.

Ebner, on the other hand, knew that this Barren would appear in the Blood Emperor's mausoleum in the northwest outskirts of Backlund during the Great Smog Incident before New Year. However, he had no idea where the man was currently, so he simply nodded, signaling he would keep an eye out without saying anything further.

Klein, however, sighed helplessly in his heart.

With such a vague description, even divination wouldn't be able to pinpoint his location, let alone searching for him in reality…

After a few seconds of silence, seeing no one else had any transactions or commissions to offer, the gathering naturally transitioned into the free exchange phase.

Maintaining his enigmatic demeanor, The Fool Klein controlled The World, making him speak in a gloomy, hoarse voice:

"While investigating the Sauron family, I came across an interesting rumor... It's said that a Sealed Artifact numbered 0-22 from the Sauron family suddenly became 'alive' over a hundred years ago. Through a series of schemes, it indirectly caused the downfall of this former Intis royal family and aided Roselle in securing power over Intis."

"0-22"? So the decline of the Sauron family originated from a '0' grade Sealed Artifact's conspiracy or some sort of negative effect? That's terrifying... But this is just a rumor 'World' picked up, it might not be entirely true. Hanged Man Alger was shocked but still kept a healthy dose of skepticism.

He investigated this? No, he must have read it in the diary… But why bring it up now? I remember submitting related content in last month's diary… Ebner felt puzzled but quickly hid his emotions under a layer of internal monologue.

Magician Fors, meanwhile, was stunned by the idea that World was investigating such an ancient family that had existed for thousands of years. Even if they had declined, they must still have deep foundations. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to make a resurgence in Roselle's later years.

I was right—the World is indeed an extremely powerful Beyonder! In the Tarot Club, he's probably one of the strongest under The Fool, maybe even stronger than Tower.

While Fors's thoughts drifted wildly, Justice Audrey couldn't hold back her curiosity and asked,

"What kind of artifact is it?"

Well asked, Miss Justice! Klein inwardly praised her sharpness while controlling The World, who crossed his hands under his chin and said in his usual hoarse voice:

"It's called the Calamity Seal. Its essence is the Sequence 1 characteristic of the Hunter pathway—Conqueror…"

He paused briefly before casually asking,

"Have any of you heard of it?"

"Hunter pathway's Sequence 1 is called Conqueror… Calamity Seal? Just from the name, you can tell its negative effects must be horrifying…"

Justice, Hanged Man, Magician, and Judgement all thought the same thing simultaneously.

Only Ebner furrowed his brows.

I distinctly remember that the diary I submitted didn't mention the name Calamity Seal. I only know about it because of the letter from Cullen…

Did Klein find another diary that wasn't in the original timeline? Or maybe today's diary submitted by Justice wasn't about Roselle's early 'funny anecdotes' like in the original…

However, since Klein brought up this topic himself, the Calamity Seal must have caught his attention. Could it really be hiding some deep secret?Unfortunately, with such little information, I can't deduce anything concrete…

While Ebner was deep in thought, he noticed The World's gaze turn toward him, as if expecting him to say something.

It seems I accidentally revealed a trace of confusion earlier, and The Fool must have noticed… Looks like I have to say something to cover up my reaction. Hmm, I can't reveal anything directly from the diary I submitted, but I can share what Cullen wrote in his letter… It's also a good chance to probe what exactly caught Klein's attention.

After thinking it through, Ebner spoke slowly:

"I've heard about this Sealed Artifact. It's said that Roselle greatly admired it during his time as Chancellor and would often carry it with him. Even after he became Caesar, he considered making it his Imperial Seal… Unfortunately…"

He deliberately trailed off, shaking his head in mock regret.

"What happened?" Magician Fors immediately picked up the thread, her curiosity piqued.

The others also leaned slightly forward, eager to hear more.

Excellent. Now it seems like you're 'asking' me for knowledge and insight, solving the problem for me.

Satisfied with this turn of events, Ebner continued,

"Unfortunately, after Roselle became Emperor, the Sealed Artifact mysteriously disappeared and was never seen again."

This was something Cullen had told him. Even though Cullen had fallen out of favor in Roselle's later years, he still knew such insider information.

"That's it?" Magician Fors looked disappointed. What a terrible story. I thought the artifact caused Roselle's downfall—now that would've been dramatic…

*At least let it disappear after Roselle's death; that would match my expectations. If I were writing this story, I'd turn it into an epic tale spanning several dynasties, titled 'The Cursed Artifact'.'

As Fors silently grumbled, Klein, seated at the head of the table, caught a different implication in Ebner's words.

Liu Bo disappeared suddenly? Did they have a falling out? Did Liu Bo oppose Roselle's imperial ambitions? No… After living so many lives, Liu Bo wouldn't oppose Roselle for something so simple. There must be a deeper reason I don't know about…

Or maybe Liu Bo got tired of being a Sealed Artifact and 'traveled' elsewhere…

While his thoughts swirled, Klein controlled The World to ask one more question:

"Do you know why it disappeared?"

It seems Klein is truly invested in the Calamity Seal. I remember it was formed after the Death Pathway god fell… Could this be related to Mr. Azik? Hmm, it's quite possible!

With his mind racing, Ebner shook his head regretfully and said,

"I don't know its whereabouts…"

(End of Chapter)