Help? Klein silently repeated the word, feeling somewhat at a loss.
Back when Sharon accepted the commission to protect him for three days, although the main reason was the golden pound notes, an expert of Sequence 5 being willing to take on such a task was a low-probability event in itself. It could happen by chance, but couldn't be forced. Besides, at that time Klein was in a state of frantic self-rescue, unwilling to let go of any straw. Being able to get the help of such a powerful Beyonder, even if motivated by money, he still felt some gratitude.
However, it stopped there. He wouldn't rashly intervene in a dangerous event without knowing the details and circumstances, and without measuring his own strength and situation, just for her.
Klein's original thought was that the mystical knowledge from Little Sun could basically be confirmed as from before the Great Eruption. The ancient gods who held authority at that time seemed not to overlap with the current seven gods and evil gods. The entire mystical system must have been vastly different from the current one. Therefore, even if he knew the detailed content, he dared not try it rashly. He needed indirect confirmation to know which could still be used and which had become ineffective.
It was like the previous sacrificial ritual. Klein had already figured out the specific procedures from Sun, but still waited for Mr. Azik's reply before daring to experiment, to avoid any unexpected changes.
As for The Hanged Man, he belonged to the level of a bishop of the Church of Storms or a squad leader. The mystical knowledge he had or could obtain would be no less, but the problem was that it would be too orthodox, too much involving the domain of the Lord of Storms, and not necessarily suitable for Klein—not all rituals could be completed by praying to oneself, and praying to oneself also required considering the spiritual burden he could bear.
Based on these factors, Klein turned his gaze to former members of a secret organization, Sharon and Maric. The mystical knowledge they knew was often more suitable for independent Beyonders and included a lot of unorthodox, bizarre, yet effective content.
Of course, this didn't mean he would give up acquiring related knowledge from Sun and The Hanged Man. One portion from ancient remains, one orthodox, one secret and unorthodox—together they would make comprehensive and deeper mystical knowledge!
And this was what Klein craved.
He never forgot that his ultimate goal was to return to Earth. Therefore, the more mystical knowledge, the better, the more comprehensive, the better, the deeper, the better!
Of course, the prerequisite for pursuing this goal was to kill Ince Zangwill and successfully avenge the captain and himself... Klein looked at Sharon and Maric and, with a slight curl of his lips, said:
"I must know exactly what help you need from me before I can consider whether to agree."
"I will not and cannot take my life lightly."
Sharon, wearing a small black soft hat, lightly nodded, acknowledging Klein's words.
Maric, sitting on the other side, leaned forward, clenched his fist to his mouth and said:
"We originally belonged to a rather ancient secret organization."
"I guessed as much..." Klein maintained a serious and solemn expression.
"That organization was formed at the beginning of the Fifth Epoch, after the storms of the Frenzied Sea separated the Northern and Southern Continents, and was formed on the Southern Continent in the Highland Kingdom and the Pars Kingdom. However, that's just its formation; the origins of this organization can even be traced back to before the Fourth Epoch, before the Great Eruption," the pale-faced Maric continued.
"I know that too. The 'Rose School of Thought'... its earliest origins can be traced to the King of the Otherworld..." Klein adopted a listening posture.
Maric scratched his somewhat messy hair and said:
"This organization believes in an evil god, believing that magic is the science and art of changing things through one's own will, and for this, a religious ritual system needs to be established, including order and law. Mm, before the invasion of the Northern Continent countries, they were an orthodox organization alongside the Church of Death in the Pars River Valley and on the Star Plateau."
"At the same time, they believe that one's will mainly originates from various desires, and when combined with the power of Beyonders, unbelievable things can be accomplished."
"Because of these beliefs, they retain ancient and bloody primitive sacrificial traditions, including flaying people, using humans as pillars, using children's skulls as ritual objects, and fanatically releasing various desires among the mass of believers."
"We could neither accept those cruel things nor their handling of desires, so we took the opportunity to escape that organization."
"A problem with handling desires?" Klein knew the Rose School of Thought was notorious for bloody sacrifices, so the former didn't really interest him.
Sharon, with pale blonde hair and a black court dress, replied in an ethereal and unreal voice:
"Their method is indulgence and burning."
"Our philosophy is suppression and moderation."
"I see..." Klein suddenly thought of the description of the 'Prisoner' sequence: the body is the prison of the mind, the world is the prison of the body, madness is bound, desires are suppressed.
If the Rose School of Thought indeed controls the 'Prisoner' path, the Mutant path, then Miss Sharon's ideology clearly aligns more with the needs of acting. Why can't other members see this? It shouldn't be... He frowned slightly.
Seeing his reaction and thinking he didn't understand, Maric explained in a hoarse, deep voice:
"They are influenced by that evil god, believing that indulging desires helps to enhance one's will, and collective indulgence can affect each other, adding frenzy, and raising the state to its peak."
"Our view is just the opposite: desires must be constantly suppressed inside, like underground fire and magma, only erupting at a critical moment to produce tremendous power."
In simple terms, it's the difference between the system of lust and the system of asceticism... The influence of that evil god somewhat contradicts the requirements of the path itself... Something feels off... Klein thoughtfully changed the subject and asked:
"So you escaped to Backlund, and now they've come after you?"
"Was the deceased in the alley involved in this?"
"We didn't involve him; he got involved on his own because of other things," Maric refuted the latter guess, confirming the former.