"So Mr. Fool also has authority over Secrecy..." Leonard suddenly understood why the old man had specifically mentioned the blessing of Secrecy.
Before he could reply, Klein added:
"Also, tell Pallez Zoroaster that
"This..." Leonard's pupils contracted, and he blurted out, "How could He know?"
That's not convenient to tell you... Klein muttered inwardly, then said quite seriously, "I'm not Amon."
"You deduced it from His actions and words?" Leonard subconsciously asked back.
No, I 'told' Him... Klein chuckled without answering.
So that's it... Leonard nodded to himself and said, "No problem, I'll pass it on to the old man."
He paused and then asked, "Do you want to wait for Him to give a specific plan?"
Klein replied "Mm," and added, "When it comes to understanding Amon and the Thief pathway, no one is better than Him."
Having said that, having deduced that Amon wouldn't visit Birkeland Street for a while, he calmly added, "No need to rush for an answer; give me feedback at the Tarot gathering tomorrow."
So it's not too urgent... Leonard interpreted the key information from Klein's words and nodded slightly. "Fine, we'll discuss the details at the Tarot gathering tomorrow."
With that settled, Klein immediately stood up and bowed toward the Light Door. "Mr. Fool, we're done."
Leonard had just stood up, but before he could do anything, his vision went blurry as surging deep red starlight completely enveloped him.
When he came to, he was back in the sparse woods on the outskirts of the northern district.
"Do you have any message for me?" The somewhat aged voice of Pallez Zoroaster sounded.
Leonard cleared his throat. "Klein told me he is a Blessed of Secrecy and can try to pray for help."
"A Blessed of Secrecy, I see..." Pallez sighed. "Tell him that if he truly can obtain the blessing of Secrecy, I am willing to help in dealing with Amon and finding all His doppelgangers hidden in
Leonard was not surprised and gave a "Hey" of amusement. "Old man, you're not as weak as you claimed!"
Pallez Zoroaster laughed good-naturedly. "Haven't you flipped through Roselle's Quotations? I recall a saying there: 'A starved camel is bigger than a horse.'"
"That depends on the breeds of the horse and camel," Leonard rebutted out of habit, then turned serious. "Old man, how should we deal with Amon? Are you planning to use yourself as bait?"
"Cough!" Pallez replied with some annoyance. "If you do that, you'll face Amon's true body, not a doppelganger, and it could easily spark a divine war. I might have a chance to escape, but you might not even be able to return to the eternal dark kingdom of the Goddess."
Leonard could only respond with an awkward laugh.
Pallez Zoroaster continued, "Unlike the similar abilities of other
"This, isn't this like the spread of a plague?" Leonard's spine chilled again. "If there are enough Thief pathway Beyonder characteristics, Amon's doppelgangers could develop from parasitizing one person to parasitizing everyone in the entire city!"
"More or less," Pallez Zoroaster confirmed Leonard's guess with a sigh. "To deal with Amon, we have to start from there: use a demigod-level Thief pathway Beyonder characteristic to lure Him out. As long as we can successfully take out one doppelganger, we can trace and eliminate the rest. However, Amon is a master of deception, so we must be very careful; otherwise, it might seem like you're fishing Him, but in reality, He's fishing you. In this matter, secrecy is crucial!"
"I understand." Leonard let out a small sigh and then asked, "How strong can Amon's doppelganger be at its strongest?"
Pallez Zoroaster was silent for several seconds as if remembering, then said, "In theory, His strongest doppelganger could reach Sequence 1, but He almost never does that, as it would destabilize His mental state and lead to losing control.
"Generally, one of His doppelgangers is a single 'Time Worm', initially with the strength of a weak Sequence 4, but possessing angelic properties such as crushing Beyonder characteristics. After fully absorbing Beyonder characteristics of the Thief pathway, such a doppelganger can reach Sequence 2 rank. However, Amon rarely does that; His doppelgangers actively split to create more doppelgangers."