As a "Fortune Teller" who had just stepped into the door of mysticism, Klein didn't dare claim to know a lot, but he certainly knew much more than the average person. He was well aware that all kinds of divination methods could be divided into three major categories based on a certain criterion.
And this criterion was the source of the "omen"!
The first type of divination included Tarot, playing cards, pendulums, dowsing rods, and dreams. It relied on the "omen" obtained through the communication between the questioner's own spirituality and the spiritual world. The pendulum and rod methods required a very high level of spirituality, the spirit body, and the astral body, making it impossible for non-Beyonders to receive accurate and obvious "omens." Card divination, on the other hand, provided fixed symbolic elements in advance, allowing even ordinary people to manifest the faint "omen" they touched. Dreams fell somewhere in between.
The second type included numerology, astrology, and all their derivatives. The diviner used objective information provided by the questioner or natural changes to calculate, deduce, and interpret the corresponding results. The initiative lay not with the questioner, but with the diviner.
The third type of divination relied on a third party besides the diviner and the questioner. The planchette and spirit writing that Klein knew from his past life fell into this category. Through specific rituals, unknown and mysterious beings were asked to give direct answers. Although it was highly unlikely for ordinary people to succeed, if by some chance they communicated with a malevolent being or one whose mere touch could drive people mad, it often led to tragedy.
Hynas Vansant's "Mirror Divination" belonged to this method. In mysticism, a mirror is a door to the unknown, the bizarre, and the spiritual world. That was why Klein stopped outside the conference room, intending to hear what this famous diviner would say about it before deciding whether to inform the Captain and "copy" the man's gas meter in the middle of the night.
Of course, there was a safe way to conduct "Mirror Divination," which was to pray to the seven orthodox gods for answers. Even though it was extremely difficult for ordinary people to receive a true "omen," at least there was no danger or side effects.
The kind of "Mirror Divination" strictly controlled by the Nighthawks and the Punishers involved beseeching the evil gods or mysterious entities worshipped by certain organizations. Additionally, one couldn't just make up a name or ritual on a whim; some specific word or characteristic might attract unknown attention.
In this world with extraordinary powers, such divination always tended to develop towards extremely bad outcomes. Klein even suspected that the original owner of his body, together with Welch and Naya, had conducted a similar "black divination" using the notes of the Antigonus family.
At this moment, Hynas had also finished explaining the principles of mirror divination to the five members and began to describe the specific process:
"First, according to the deity you believe in, choose a suitable date and time. This can be determined through the 'Astrology Manual.' For example, we all know that Sunday is the symbol of the Evernight Goddess, a day of rest. The hours of the Moon are from 2 to 3 am, 9 to 10 am, 4 to 5 pm, and 11 pm to midnight, ruled by the Evernight Goddess. Therefore, diviners who believe in the Evernight Goddess can perform 'Mirror Divination' during these times on a Sunday."
"His foundations are quite solid..." Klein nodded slightly, peeking through the half-closed door of the conference room.
It had to be said that in the situation where the seven major churches were checking each other, some mystical knowledge had indeed leaked out. The 'Astrology Manual' provided many symbolic meanings, but without potions and extraordinary powers, ordinary people could almost never achieve the desired effect.
"Second, we carefully wipe the mirror. It must be a silvered mirror. Place it in a position in the home that symbolizes the moon..." Hynas demonstrated with his tools.
No, what's needed at this point is the "pendulum method." First, choose a spot, silently recite "this place is suitable for mirror divination" seven times, then look at the direction the pendant swings. Clockwise means correct, counterclockwise means wrong... Of course, if you are praying to a malicious, unknown, or mysterious entity, the location isn't the key point. What matters is whether It is interested or not... Klein silently corrected him.
At this moment, he felt like a teacher sitting in on a class...
Hynas Vansant couldn't hear Klein's inner thoughts and went on to detail the preparations in a normal tone.
After the members finished writing their notes, he continued explaining:
"After completing your bath, make sure all the curtains are drawn and the door is locked. Then, light a candle and place it in front of the mirror. Sincerely pray to the deity you believe in. Keep your question simple, don't use complicated modifiers... After praying seven times, take your mirror and gently drop it on the floor. It must be very gentle... Remember the shape of the cracks. This is the deity's omen. I'll briefly explain several major symbolic meanings."
"Phew, this is orthodox 'Mirror Divination.'" Klein breathed a sigh of relief, walked slowly into the conference room, sat down in his previous spot, and downed the remaining Southwell coffee in one gulp.
"Orthodox" meant that one could indeed receive an omen, but it was basically impossible to interpret it correctly.
For a Beyonder, however, if they received a response at this step, they could directly see certain images in the mirror and obtain relatively clear information!
Because there were many symbols formed after the shattering, Hynas talked for a long time. Even after Edward Steve returned to the conference room after performing a divination for someone, he still hadn't finished.
Klein didn't ask Edward what or how he divined for the client. This was an unwritten rule among diviners. As someone playing the role of a "Fortune Teller," he naturally had to strictly abide by it, unless the other party brought it up first.
"I've noticed that many times our interpretations are too vague, seemingly catering to different needs so that different people can find a description that fits them." Edward took a sip of his Ceylon black tea and sighed softly. "For example, 'You will encounter many twists and turns, too many calamities, but you will eventually see the dawn.' Heh, no one knows when that dawn will come. Another example: 'This journey of yours will not be too smooth, but you will definitely arrive alive.' Hey, dead people can't come to refute me."
Since he hadn't heard it from the beginning, he missed Hynas's "Mirror Divination lesson."
"Survivorship bias," Klein added with a smile.
Survivorship bias roughly means that many statistics are often derived only from the living, the survivors, ignoring the deceased, resulting in a significant deviation.
"Yes, Emperor Roselle is truly a philosopher." Edward exclaimed in admiration.