Mystery: When the Fool Meets the Masked Fool

Chapter 331 Leonard: There are five people... Klein...

Longzel sat in his chair, gazing westward toward Backlund, his homeland.

Every journey has an end, and travelers eventually return home.

Klein looked away and stopped looking at Long Ze'er.

My hometown...

"And what about you guys?" Klein looked at the others. "You can't all stay here with me, can you?"

“There are probably some elven ruins in the Sea of ​​Sunia. I’ll probably go for a stroll on the sea,” Shatas said. She then looked at Mobert.

"Hmm...I want to go to Backlund to see the old man..."

“I don’t think an angel would die in just a few days,” Shatas interrupted Mobert.

"Um, those ruins too..."

“But the things in the ruins might just happen to be emptied out within a few days,” Shatas interrupted Mobert again.

Mobert wanted to say something, but seeing the look in Xia Tas's eyes, he could only helplessly raise his hands: "Okay, okay."

“Strange, I remember the mythical creature form of the Thief wasn’t a turtle,” Padmon whispered to Klein.

Snowman paused for a few seconds, then asked Klein, "Does faith in the Creator of Everything still exist?"

Klein nodded: "Now that place is called the Forsaken Land, near the Giants' Court."

After saying that, Klein added, "But now it has been basically replaced by other faiths, and only a few people believe in the Lord who created everything."

Snowman paused for a few seconds, then asked, "Could you give me directions?"

Klein thought for a moment: "Grossell should know."

“Of course.” Grosser nodded, looking in one direction: “I can feel the call from over there.”

Klein wanted to send them directly to the Forsaken Land, but the Realm Anchor didn't belong to him. He could use it himself, but transporting people was...

Padmon poked Klein and pointed at the phone screen.

The sow prince said, "I'll take them there."

Klein shook his head with a smile: "He really knows everything."

Padma cat agreed: "It's just like... the hemorrhoids in Merlin's drum."

Huh? What kind of outrageous metaphor is this?

"You mean the roundworms in your stomach, right..."

The inn door was pushed open, and Serres poked his head in: "Going to the Forsaken Land? I happen to be going that way."

"You actually dare to come back!" Mobert immediately jumped up and down.

"It's okay, you can't beat me anyway." Serres waved his hand.

Mobert immediately prepared to steal from Serres, but in the blink of an eye, he was stripped down to only his underwear.

Serres casually tossed Mobert's clothes to the disgusted Shatas, then walked up to Grosser and Snowman: "I'm going there anyway, can I give you a ride?"

Snowman nodded, and Grosser scratched the back of his head sheepishly: "Then I'll have to trouble you."

However, he glanced at the gate, which was not even as tall as him sitting down, and began to struggle.

"Simple."

Serres reached out and placed his hands on Grosser and Snowman's arms. The next second, the three of them vanished.

"Wow, this guy is amazing!" Mobert muttered to himself, looking in the direction Serres had left.

Shatas disdainfully tossed the clothes back to Mobert, said goodbye to Klein and the others, and turned to leave the room. Mobert quickly dressed and followed her. Afterwards, Longzel also said goodbye and left.

A few minutes later, only Klein and Padmon remained in the room. Klein looked at the Spirit Insect in his hand, lost in thought.

"Brother Ke, what are you thinking about?" Pado asked.

“I was thinking…” Klein replied while recreating a Candy Knight in Merlin Hermes’s appearance, “I was thinking, would creating a sufficiently realistic clone with personality, a story, and experiences count as playing the role of the Puppet Master in advance?”

"Hmm... I guess so?" Padmon wasn't sure either, since the original story didn't say anything about it.

A hole appeared in the Candy Knight's chest, and Klein placed the Spirit Worm and a split, one-thousandth of the "Dominion Core" inside. After thinking for a moment, he separated out another paper figure of the same harmony to serve as a medium for another kind of power.

The cave entrance closed, and Merlin Hermes, the clone, opened his calm and gentle eyes.

"It seems I've created a clone that's even stronger than myself," Klein pondered.

“It’s alright, it’s normal to be weaker than me,” Merlin Hermes said with a seemingly gentle smile.

Klein was starting to regret putting the Dominion Core into his hands.

…………

Three days later, on Olavi Island.

Klein reverted to his appearance as Gehrman Sparrow and, instead of rushing to seek an opportunity for the promotion ceremony, wandered through the port cities of various islands as a traveler, seeking brief moments of relaxation in his tense and unhurried life.

The city is mainly populated by new immigrants from Ruen, and its food style is not much different from that of the kingdom's east coast. The difference is that it has fresh and rare fruits and a variety of seafood, which is quite unique.

Klein held his phone, walking and checking the messages in the group chat.

At that moment, he received a private message.

The message was sent from Leonard's account.

Klein paused.

Has what was bound to happen finally arrived...?

Klein had guessed this day would come after Serres said Leonard had dug up his own grave.

Leonard: "There are five players, but three costs."

Leonard: "Klein...do you think that by changing your face and taking on a different identity, everything from the past can be wiped clean? You...you haven't even experienced [death]..."

Klein put away his phone and pretended to be dead, ignoring the fact that he had read the message but not replied.

Playing dead... that's still being dead.

Savings are used to survey the city, recording the scenery and experiences of the journey.

This area is rich in natural resources and is located at a key point in the safe shipping lanes, so people here live relatively well. Even farmers in the suburbs can save up some money through their orchards.

This is not to say that there are no poor or lower classes in Olavi. It's just that this class was mainly composed of former slaves. However, the Loen Council had already passed a law abolishing slavery.

After swallowing the juicy and sweet fruit he had bought from the roadside, Klein glanced at the darkening sky, turned the corner, and entered a bar called "Sweet Lemon."

Klein has now gotten into the habit of checking out the taverns when he goes to a place.

What if it happens to be a branch of "The End of the World"?

This is one of the most famous gathering places for adventurers in Oravi.
Klein planned to gather the remaining two auxiliary materials for "Master of Mysteries" here: the more common Dragonwood bark and the golden spring water of Sonia.

By this time, the bar was quite lively. Around the boxing ring, many people were holding glasses and cheering loudly, while around the tables, people who seemed to be adventurers were whispering various rumors.

Klein suddenly heard someone calling his name and looked in the direction of the voice.

“I am Gehrman Sparrow. You should know who I am. I have obtained a treasure map and need to hire some helpers. It’s not that I’m afraid, but I can’t carry that much treasure by myself.”

A green-eyed man in his thirties, holding a half-full glass of strong liquor, spoke to two men and two women in the corner, who were either merchants or adventurers.

(End of this chapter)