"What do I need?" Cattleya, The Hermit, chuckled inwardly, sensing the subtle probe hidden in The Hanged Man's normal question.
Where there is a need, there is a clue!
Not to mention that I've already obtained the potion formula for Sequence 4 Mysticologist of the Mystery Pryer pathway and am accumulating contributions for one of its main ingredients. Even if I hadn't, I wouldn't lack for the corresponding channels, and more than one... Cattleya's thoughts drifted as she recalled the "Sea God Scepter" in Mr. Fool's hand, and she said with a smile:
"I need a demigod-level Sealed Artifact, one whose negative effects are relatively bearable."
In that instant, Alger, The Hanged Man, nearly blurted out telling her not to be ridiculous.
Even the Church of Storms doesn't acquire a similar item even once in several years, let alone a Mid-Sequence Beyonder!
If there really was a demigod-level item with relatively bearable negative effects, why wouldn't I keep it for myself? Alger understood that The Hermit was using a sarcastic method to respond to his probe, but unlike most of his colleagues, he didn't fly into a rage. He took a slow breath and said:
"I'll keep an eye out.
"But Madam, you should be well aware that just an effective lead on such an item might be worth the potion formula for an 'Ocean Songster'."
...Very deep, not easy to anger, this is quite different from the general style of the Church of Storms... Could my first observation conclusion be wrong, was he really disguised as a priest of Storms back then? No, I mustn't think like that. This might be because the gaze of Mr. Fool prevented him from getting angry, or maybe he is just an outlier in the Church of Storms. Such people aren't too many, but certainly not too few... Cattleya, The Hermit, wasn't greedy. She didn't make a second probe. She nodded and said:
"I know."
As the conversation between the two ended, surprisingly no one in the transaction segment made any further demands. Part of the members, mainly Audrey Justice and Fors The Magician, had already scheduled the items they wanted, so they didn't need to buy anything this week. Another part, limited by their economic situation or personal circumstances, chose not to make any advance purchases. This included Emlyn The Moon, who was full of desire for the Viscount vampire's inheritance, and Miss Magician, who wanted a mystical item.
Indeed, as everyone gradually leaves the Low Sequence and their advancement slows down, the frequency of trades has dropped sharply. Before, there were roughly one or two trades a week. Now, it might be one every two or three weeks. In the future, it might be once every three or four months... Klein The Fool didn't know whether this situation was good or bad. He nodded lightly, indicating that everyone could communicate freely.
Audrey Justice immediately looked at Derrick The Sun, waiting for him to tell them about the developments in the City of Silver.
Derrick did not disappoint her "expectations." Before anyone else could speak, he said sincerely:
"Reverend Lovia has been released. I met her in the library."
Lovia the Shepherd has been released? The entire team she led was contaminated by the "True Creator" through flesh and blood. How could she have no problems? What was the Six-member Council of the City of Silver thinking? Klein originally wanted to express his doubts with words like, "If Lovia is fine, I'll twist my head off and give it to the True Creator to kick around." But considering that curses and oaths involving deities might have bad consequences, he wisely changed his mind.
Of course, this was Above the Gray Fog, so such caution might not be necessary... he sighed inwardly.
"Reverend Lovia has been released? The 'Shepherd'?" Audrey Justice recalled what that name represented after a brief thought.
Back then, Little Sun used the incident of the Blasphemer Amon's possession, with the help of Mr. Fool, to expose that the entire exploration team had been contaminated by the "True Creator." The leader of that exploration team was Lovia, and her "Shepherd" path just so happened to be within the "Secret Supplicant" pathway corresponding to the "True Creator"!
"Yes." Derrick The Sun nodded sincerely, taking the opportunity to glance at The Hanged Man beside him.
Alger thought for a moment, then unexpectedly asked instead:
"Has your Chief already returned to the City of Silver?"
"Why did Mr. Hanged Man suddenly ask about this... Ah, that's right. To release such an important figure, the other members of the Six-member Council couldn't have made a decision without waiting for the Chief to return...
"If the Chief hasn't returned, and they made a decision early, it means the situation is more serious than imagined, so serious that they couldn't wait for the Chief... If the Chief has already returned, then there is a high probability that releasing Lovia is related to the results of his expedition. Because, according to Little Sun, this was the City of Silver's only expedition recently...
"Ah, why didn't I think of this earlier? Audrey, you are still inexperienced..." Audrey Justice thought, half self-criticizing and half consoling herself.
"Mm, not long ago." Derrick The Sun was somewhat surprised by Mr. Hanged Man's accurate guess.
At this time, Fors The Magician, who had been listening quietly, suddenly had an idea based on the material she had learned earlier.
"Mr. Sun, could it be a situation like this?
"Your Chief took the exploration team and that little boy Jack to find the path that leads to the outside world. It turned out that it must be done with the power of the 'True Creator'. Hehe, this is not a lie I fabricated, but a reasoning based on facts. Little Jack's father belongs to the 'Aurora Order'. They came to your place following the sanctuary of the 'True Creator.'
"Thus, for the sake of the entire City of Silver, your Chief, after returning, decided to release 'Shepherd' Lovia."