Lord of Mysteries

Chapter 36 A Simple Question

As Audrey recalled her father and brother's conversation about the situation, she began to elaborate:

"They believe that the current government structure is too chaotic. Every time there is a change of party after an election, a new group of people are replaced from top to bottom, making things a mess and extremely inefficient. This not only caused the defeat in the war, but also caused great inconvenience to the people."

Klein knew very well that, because there was no reference point, the Kingdom of Rune had not yet evolved a civil service examination system, and the party-based governance model was still in its early stages. Therefore, after winning an election, many so-called administrative positions would be awarded to members and supporters.

Hmm, it's surprising that Emperor Roselle didn't invent such a system in Intis, which is completely out of character for him... Could it be that he shifted his focus elsewhere later on?

Upon hearing this, Alger, the "Hanged Man," chuckled and interjected:

"They think? They're really slow to feel anything. Maybe they won't feel the itch for a year after being bitten by a black mosquito."

Black mosquitoes are a type of creature found in the southern part of the Kingdom of Rune, known for their potent venom that makes people want to scratch their skin raw.

Audrey covered her mouth with her hand, ignoring the "Hanged Man's" sarcasm, and dropped the bombshell:

"Unfortunately, they haven't found a good alternative to this system yet."

Klein listened quietly, sensing that the conversation had entered his area of expertise, and smiled slightly:

"This is a simple question."

The Great Foodie Empire, and the UK, which learned from it, both have very successful and advanced experiences.

"Simple?" Audrey asked, slightly surprised.

Although her tutoring classes did not include politics, she often listened to her father, brother, and others' discussions, so she still had enough knowledge in such areas.

Klein seemed to have returned to the old forum, and calmly smiled:

"The exam, like a college entrance exam, is an exam open to the public. It can be divided into two or three rounds to select the elite in the most objective way."

"But..." Audrey vaguely knew what kind of opposition this would bring.

Without giving her a chance to organize her thoughts, Klein continued:

"After that, these elites will be used to fill administrative positions in the cabinet, county government, city government, and various towns, that is, positions where they directly do the work, such as senior cabinet secretaries."

"The different requirements for different positions can be assessed separately and differently in the second or third round. Professional matters should be left to professionals."

"And the political positions of ministers, county executives, and mayors are left to the winning parties in the elections; this is the pie they are entitled to."

Alger, who seemed uninterested in the question, unconsciously turned his head to listen attentively, while Audrey frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.

"Don't rush to replace everyone at once, or the cabinet and all levels of government will be paralyzed. We can hold exams every year or every three years to gradually replace everyone. After that, we can determine the number of positions based on the expansion of the kingdom and the vacancies caused by the resignation or aging of government employees." Klein fully demonstrated his keyboard politician skills and concluded by spreading his hands, "This design can bring the kingdom's insightful elites into the government to the greatest extent possible, and no matter which party comes to power or who the ministers are, the civil servants can keep the kingdom running at a basic and relatively efficient pace."

Of course, a side effect is the birth of bureaucracy, an immortal demon.

Audrey asked, pondering the question:

"So, even if those ministers turned into curly-haired baboons, it wouldn't have much of an impact?"

"No," Alger interjected, "I believe the curly-haired baboon is a better choice than the current minister."

He paused for a moment and then added:

"After all, curly-haired baboons only need to eat, sleep, and mate; they won't come up with stupid ideas or stick to mindless plans."

"Mr. Hanged Man," it sounds like you have a not-so-good boss... Klein, sitting at the head of the table, shook his head with a smile.

Audrey pondered Mr. Fool's description for a long while before exclaiming in astonishment:

"This sounds like it might actually work..."

"A very simple, yet very effective method!"

She looked at Klein and exclaimed in sincere admiration:

"Mr. Fool, you must be an elder with rich life experience and outstanding wisdom!"

...Klein's lips twitched slightly. He glanced at "The Hanged Man" and "Justice," and after a few seconds of silence, said:

That's all for today's gathering.

If Miss Justice can influence her relatives and push this matter to happen, I will guide Benson in advance so that he has the opportunity to become a "civil servant".

Thinking about it carefully, Benson is indeed quite suitable for this line of work.

However, "Justice" probably won't do it on her own initiative, because if she did, I could find out from "The Hanged Man" which nobleman made the suggestion and we could basically guess her true identity.

Of course, she could take a roundabout approach and use a more discreet method.

"As you wish," Audrey and Alger said simultaneously, rising to their feet.

Klein leaned back slightly, severing the connection, and saw the illusory and blurry figures of "Justice" and "The Hanged Man" quickly shatter and dissipate.

Above the gray fog, in the magnificent hall that resembled the abode of a god, only he remained, sitting quietly at the head of the long bronze table.

Klein did not fall directly into the gray fog and leave this place as he had done before, because as an extraordinary being, he still had enough energy.

The reason he ended the "Tarot Meeting" early was because he learned the "Night Watcher's" true attitude towards the Antigonus family notes. He decided that he should pretend to be seriously searching for them instead of just lying down and going to sleep, otherwise Dunn Smith and the others would suspect that he had done something at home.

And today's harvest was quite substantial.

Klein sat in the high-backed chair at the head of the bronze table, his arms resting on the armrests, his fingers interlaced as he calmly surveyed the boundless gray fog. He felt that the place was empty and silent, as if no one had set foot there for thousands of years.

As he established the connection and "summoned" the projections of "Justice" and the "Hanged Man," he keenly noticed something.

That is, as an extraordinary being, I have the capacity to touch another "Crimson Star"!

"So, it means I can 'summon' another one?" Klein recalled the feeling and muttered to himself with almost certainty.

However, he hadn't impulsively tried it before because he didn't know what the new recruits would be like, or what their attitudes would be. After all, not everyone could integrate so quickly with the unique personalities of "Justice" and "The Hanged Man," and each would get what they needed. They seemed willing to keep it a secret. If he recruited someone like Dunn Smith, his newly established "mysterious organization" would immediately be exposed to the "watchful eye of the Church."

As the big boss of an "evil" organization, his future is uncertain.

Klein knew that this gray fog was very special and understood that it was not something that an extraordinary being like Dunn Smith could "crack". But the problem was that since there was extraordinary power involved, the existence of gods had to be considered.

Klein currently cautiously believes that the seven orthodox gods truly exist. Of course, he is more inclined to believe that these gods are simply stronger and more powerful than the higher-sequence beings, and are subject to some kind of strict limitation. At least since the Fifth Age, apart from a few oracles, they have not performed any deeds.

"Heh, forcing people to come is not a good thing either. Nobody wants to get dragged into a mysterious incident for no reason... Let's wait and see later..." Klein sighed and stood up.

He unleashed his spirituality, sensing the existence of his body, and then began to mimic the heavy feeling of a rapid descent.

The light and shadow before his eyes immediately changed, the gray fog and crimson instantly disappeared, and Klein seemed to have pierced through an endless film of water, finally seeing the real world and the dimness filling the room.

This time, he was fully conscious and fully experienced the process.

"Strange... The gray mist and the spirit world are still a bit different..." Klein moved his hands and feet, feeling the reality of flesh and blood.

He pondered this for a while, then shook his head, walked to his desk, and reached out to pull the curtains closed.

brush!

The curtains were pulled back, and sunlight streamed in, filling the room with light.

Looking out the bulging window at the street and the passersby, Klein took a breath and muttered to himself:

"Time to get out to work."

"How should I play the role of a 'fortune teller'?"

"This can't be rushed... I only know how to use spiritual vision for now..."

…………

Backlund, Queens.

Audrey Hall saw herself in the mirror, her cheeks flushed with excitement and her eyes so bright that it was almost unbearable to look directly at her.

She didn't have time to examine these details; she quickly recalled what had happened before, then picked up her jewel-encrusted pen and began writing the recipe for the potion, "The Audience," on the exquisite parchment:

"80 ml of pure water, 5 drops of colchicine extract, 13 grams of ox-tooth peony powder, 7 petals of fairy flower, a pair of adult mandarin fish eyes, and 35 ml of ram-horned blackfish blood."

Whew… Audrey breathed a sigh of relief, looked at it several times, and finally confirmed that it was correct.

She felt the urge to dance again, but told herself to be reserved.

After thinking for a moment, she began writing the names of various chemicals around the potion recipe, disguising this page as a complex and chaotic collection of scientific knowledge.

"Hmm, unless someone is consciously reading carefully, a casual glance won't notice the details I hid... Great!" Audrey praised herself, then turned her thoughts to obtaining the materials:

"Let's search the family's treasure vaults first, and if we can't find the parts we need, we'll try to trade them with other people..."

"If we still can't gather enough, we'll have to ask the Fool and the Hanged Man for help at the next gathering... But what will we offer as payment?"

After thinking for a while, Audrey closed the notebook, placed it on the small bookshelf in her bedroom, and then walked briskly to the door and opened it.

A large golden retriever was sitting obediently outside.

Audrey's lips curled up, revealing a radiant smile as bright as the sun:

"Susie, you did a great job!"

"In newspaper serial stories, the detective always has a capable assistant. I think the real 'audience' also needs a big dog following behind them."

…………

In the basement, where only a few candlelight flickered, Alger Wilson raised his palm and examined it carefully.

After a long while, he sighed:

"Still so amazing, I can't grasp the details at all..."

Even with thorough preparation, I still couldn't figure out how the "Fool" completed the "summoning"...

His gaze shifted downwards, landing on the parchment scrolls on the long table.

At the top of that tan-colored area, a line of Hermes script was written in dark blue ink:

7. Navigator.