Mystery: The Last Shepherd

Chapter 293 Appeasement and Fear

"The identity of this demon is now clear for the time being."

"Another question is," Ikonser said weakly. "Who was the Extraordinary who killed him?"

Judging from his tone, it seems he also intends to ask Arrodes a question.

"."

The other members of Mechanical Heart looked at each other, then suddenly became busy. They began to examine the scene and check for traces, appearing serious yet guilty, none of them daring to look up and meet the eyes of their captain.

"These guys."

Iconsel muttered helplessly and slumped onto the table. "I'll have to do it myself, but I need to rest for a bit."

"What a peculiar mirror!"

Klein couldn't help but say.

"You can ask it questions too, we don't mind."

Ikonser said tremblingly, burying his head in his arms as he slowly recovered. His tone was somewhat self-deprecating, like someone who had fallen into a mud pit inviting someone nearby to come down and play.

"Then, shall I give it a try?"

Isengard, holding his pipe, said with great interest.

He seemed quite confident in himself, and indeed, Isengard called himself the "Eye of Wisdom," perhaps because he had already mastered a considerable amount of occult knowledge to dare to call himself that.

"Go ahead. However, the requirement is that someone must be present when you use it."

Iconsel didn't care at all.

"Does one have to let others see what it's like to be struck by lightning? This mirror has a really twisted sense of humor. Sherlock, please be a spectator."

Isengard spoke to Klein, then reached out his right hand and stroked the mirror three times. A strange sight appeared once more: the room seemed to fill with a misty vapor, and the mirror's surface shimmered with an unusual sheen.

"Your Excellency Arodes, I would like to know, where does my hope for promotion lie?"

"Isenger asked the question."

The light on the mirror shifted, eventually revealing a bustling city. The city's buildings were mostly blue-domed, a stark contrast to the pointed-roof architecture of Backlund.

"Lönnberg?"

When Eisinger saw the image in the mirror, he said with surprise but not unexpectedness.

Lenburg, a small country nestled between the Kingdom of Loen and the Kingdom of Feneport, seems to be a fitting place for Isengard's title by worshipping a god of wisdom.

Klein's heart stirred slightly.

At the same time, the mirror surface quickly changed, forming bloody text just like before:
"Based on the principle of reciprocity, you will answer one question for me."

"Please ask your question."

Eisinger said with great confidence.

The mirror surface changed rapidly, eventually creating the following problem:
Do you have a crush on a woman much younger than you, simply because you are captivated by her wisdom and beauty?
Eisinger's smile froze.

Ah this
Klein felt incredibly embarrassed and could only lower his head, pretending not to have seen the description above.

He had initially thought the mirror would only ask questions about mysticism, but its questions were far more intriguing, specifically targeting people's weaknesses. In Isengard's case, whether he answered or not, his behavior already spoke volumes!
Isengard stared blankly at the line of text. Just when Klein thought he would choose not to answer, he smiled with a complicated expression and said, "That's right, but I understand social common sense and personal morality even better."

After saying these words, his shoulders slumped slightly.

"Answer correct." Blood-red words appeared on the mirror, letting him off the hook.

"."

The atmosphere in the room became somewhat awkward, and Klein didn't know what to say. It was Isengard who spoke up first, smiling as he said, "Sherlock, may I go upstairs to the bedroom? Maybe I can find some new clues."

He just wants to escape for a while.
"Please feel free to do so."

Klein nodded and watched Isengard leave.

Ikonser was still slumped over the table, panting. The other members of the Mechanical Heart were unwilling to come closer, leaving only the mirror lying quietly.

It's really dangerous and could kill someone.
Klein thought to himself, and pushed it away with his fingers, trying to get it further away from him.

However, just as he touched the edge of the silver mirror and felt its slightly cold metallic texture, the mirror suddenly trembled twice, and then a line of white words quickly appeared on it:

"Your faithful and humble servant Arodes is at your service!"

The eagerness and ingratiation in his words were practically overflowing through the mirror.

what?
Klein couldn't help but feel a little bewildered.

He first stepped back off the table, then subtly looked around, only relaxing slightly after realizing that no one else had noticed what had just happened.

Isn't this mirror supposed to be troublesome? How come it's become a simp when it comes to me?

Klein was both curious and confused.

However, he quickly connected these events with his own unique circumstances.

His gray mist, his relationship with the spirit world
In other words, this mirror might have sensed the gray mist aura emanating from me?
Just as various speculations were surging in Klein's mind, he suddenly saw an arm appear in the void and touch the silver mirror as well.

No, it didn't appear suddenly. The owner of that hand was already there, but he and everyone else there just happened to ignore him, as if he didn't exist.

—Luze, who had been observing coldly the whole time, also reached out and touched the mirror after Klein touched it.

"Wow—"

Sure enough, he heard the sound of the ocean currents within his body grow louder, as if it were seeping through his fingers and onto the mirror's surface. The moisture seemed somewhat similar to the hazy luster the mirror had just displayed.

"Clang!"

The mirror shook violently, and the flattering words that had been written on it to Klein vanished in an instant. A moment later, a line of pale, trembling text appeared:

"Great Lord, your insignificant and ignorant servant failed to perceive your presence. Please forgive my incompetence!"

Fear was palpable in his words.

Ok?
Lu Ze frowned.

How come this is different from what I just said to Klein?

He was so ingratiating with Klein, but he seemed so afraid of me?
If I had to describe it, it's like having your own pet dog, beaming with joy because of being fed and petted by a neighbor, only to turn around and see its owner coldly staring at it with a stick in hand—that's the kind of guilt and fear I feel.

"Don't throw it away."

Ikonser looked up and said to Klein, "It is, for the sake of it, a precious sealed artifact."

Klein paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Sorry."

He had, of course, seen what had just happened, and was equally astonished by the mirror's reaction. He couldn't help but wonder: if he had gained the mirror's favor because of the aura of the gray mist, then what was it about Lu Ze that made the mirror so fearful?
(End of this chapter)