Upon hearing the words of the patches of shadow, a figure instantly appeared in Klein's mind: It was an old man in a plain white robe embroidered with brass threads. His hair was completely white, neatly combed, and he had a pair of striking grayish-green eyes.
He claimed to be a clergyman of the Church of Knowledge, responsible for affairs in
At the time, he had suddenly visited Dwayne Dantès, claiming that his prophecy had foretold that he would fall into a very troublesome predicament and that someone he met during that period would help him solve the problem.
Klein thought for a moment and slowly spoke: "Luca Brest?"
"Yes, it's me! You actually remember me!" the patches of shadow from different parts of the illusory bookshelves answered hurriedly, their voices overlapping.
Their voices were no longer uniform, overlapping and echoing incessantly, causing Klein, who was separated by his puppet, to experience a slight ringing in his ears and a certain dizziness in his head.
This wasn't a normal sound; it contained a certain tendency towards losing control or mental pollution... Those illusory bookshelves themselves were a manifestation... Just as this thought flashed through Klein's mind, he heard the shadows, which sometimes curled up and sometimes stretched out, speak at the same time: "Sorry, I got too excited just now. I couldn't control myself."
Hidden in the shadows outside the mansion, Klein manipulated the puppet
The shadows all sighed in unison: "The Feynapotter military's 'Arbiter' Bellacos and High Priestess Martina of the
"You're also a Demigod. You should know that once you take on a Mythical Creature form, it's not easy to return to normal. I was also affected by the maddening tendencies and almost lost control. Fortunately, I was once a 'Secret Arts Master' and mastered many strange yet effective secret techniques. So, at the critical moment, I performed a certain self-seal, ending up like this.
"This can only last for a while. The madness continues to erode me. I have already contacted the Holy See. Help will arrive soon, but I don't know if I can hold on until then.
"I was just thinking that this must be the very troublesome predicament foretold by the prophecy, and wondering if the person who could help me solve this problem would appear. What a delight that you came. This proves that both my prophecy and my interpretation were correct. It has done my mental state a lot of good..."
*What a Demigod obsessed with whether his prophecy succeeds... If I turned around and left right now, would your mental state completely collapse and you lose control on the spot?* Klein mentally complained, then turned his thoughts to the crucial information revealed by Luca Brest: The Feynapotter military and the Church of the Earth Mother have started their operation!
Klein then made the puppet Qonas Kilgor take out a gold coin, flick it into the air with a *zing*, and catch it.
In his understanding, the clergy of the Seven
Furthermore, the impression brought by the "Iceberg Admiral" and the great detective Icendrhas Stanton gave Klein a decent feeling towards the Church of Knowledge. He felt that aside from their habitual discrimination against those with low IQs and those who didn't like to study, there weren't many major flaws in their conduct or style.
"This is probably why they can't grow strong and are stuck in a few small countries..." Klein muttered without looking at the result of the coin toss. "How do you need my help?"
"..." The shadows, which had been somewhat excited, fell silent. After a few seconds, they said, "I don't know either..."
Klein looked at them, and they looked at Klein. For a moment, they were at a loss for words.
*Maybe I should suggest turning you into my puppet?* Klein mentally complained after nearly ten seconds.
His thoughts then raced, and he began to consider how to solve Luca Brest's problem of being unable to revert from his Mythical Creature form.
Frankly speaking, the reason he was helping so earnestly, aside from his good impression of the Church of Knowledge and Luca Brest, was driven by some profit motives.
First, there was the presence of the
From the tone and words of the Red Angel's evil spirit, Klein could make a preliminary judgment: compared to the Fourth Epoch, the current seven gods' attitude towards the appearance of the Black Emperor has changed drastically. Their reaction is no longer as intense, leaning more towards tacit approval, even if it's not the candidate they had in mind.
Under such circumstances, if Emperor Roselle were to return, the ones who would truly oppose him would probably only be the
However, this opposition wouldn't be too strong. As long as Roselle was mentally stable, having shed the pollution and madness, there was a possibility of acceptance. After all, the Black Emperor pathway has no issue of interchangeability with the Sun and Savant pathways; there is no direct conflict of interest.
As for the original grievances, they aren't too serious from a divine perspective. Of course, this is just Klein's speculation from an ancient historical and mystical standpoint. Based on his understanding, aside from the God of Craftsmen, the other six gods were hostile to each other during the First
Even gods of adjacent pathways can coexist peacefully to a certain extent. As long as Roselle can truly be resurrected, the animosity between him, the Eternal Blazing Sun, and the God of Steam and Machinery might be resolved.