Chapter 113 Destiny and Gift
When Angel walked out of the Silver Crown Restaurant, the last ray of sunlight had fallen into the western horizon, and the crimson moonlight replaced the dim yellow of the sky.
Melissa and Benson had already said goodbye to Klein and left early. It seemed they were scheduled to attend mass at St. Selina Church early this weekend and needed to prepare in advance.
Before leaving, Melissa made a face at Klein, causing a hint of discomfort to appear on his face.
Mr. Azik seemed to want to say something to Klein, but when he saw the Moretti siblings leaving quickly, he lowered his head in thought for a moment. Then he remembered that he had to rush back to Hoy University to pick up an important book, so he actually stopped a hired carriage and left.
Only Angel and Klein were left staring at each other.
"Shall we...go straight back now?"
After staring at each other for a while, Klein spoke hesitantly.
"Well, let's just walk back. It's not far anyway."
Angel looked at the roadside. Mr. Azik had just called away the last hired carriage nearby, and their residence was at the other end of Daffodil Street, not far away.
The two walked side by side along the street, illuminated by dim kerosene lamps.
"Thank you for coming today."
Amid the rhythmic sound of leather shoes hitting the ground, Klein suddenly turned his head and spoke.
"Hmm? Didn't I promise you before? And before, I had something to do on Monday afternoon, so I asked you to postpone the housewarming party. And then again, because I had to go to Enmat Port..."
Angel counted the times he had missed dinner parties.
"Monday afternoon...that's because..."
Klein was at a loss as to what to do. He turned his eyes away, stammering, his voice gradually becoming smaller.
"By the way, when I returned to the box just now, I heard you and Mr. Azik discussing something."
As if to conceal his inner thoughts, Klein abruptly changed the subject.
"Yes, he said..."
Angel paused for a moment, thinking of Azik's serious expression when he mentioned the "disharmony of fate," and finally decided to tell Klein about the conversation between the two in the box.
"Did he tell you that too?"
Klein asked in surprise, even stopping and turning to face Angel.
Seeing the other party nod again to confirm, he continued in a reminiscent tone:
"Two weeks ago, I went to Hoy University to see my advisor, Professor Quentin, to borrow a much-needed book, and I met Mr. Azik. He noticed a sense of 'fate discord' in me, but didn't elaborate."
"It wasn't until this Monday that I went to ask him and got a more detailed answer."
Klein gave a wry smile.
"Rather than an answer, it's more like... he directly admitted that he was a Beyonder and saw through my identity."
How come I'm not surprised at all?
Recalling the calm demeanor of the bronze-skinned university lecturer Azik Eggers when he directly pointed out that he was a Beyonder in the Silver Crown Restaurant just now, Angel suddenly felt a little panic and a strong curiosity.
"Did he tell me what path and sequence he was in?"
"No, he said he had forgotten."
"Forgot? But judging by the gentleman's speech and behavior, he doesn't seem like someone who has forgotten even his own identity."
Klein shook his head and began to walk slowly again, with Angel following behind him.
"He still remembers his name and basic knowledge, but most of his memories before adulthood have been lost. He said it was like he had forgotten the past after a good night's sleep and became a completely new person."
This is very similar to how I lost a whole day's worth of memories after being influenced by that unidentified High-Sequence Beyonder...
The more Angel listened, the more he felt that Mr. Azik's experience was similar to his own. He even considered the possibility of bringing him to the "Tarot Club" and using Mr. Fool's power to restore his memory.
"Could it be that the memory was tampered with or hidden by other Beyonders? From what I understand, the Audience pathway has this capability."
She asked the same question she had asked herself at the Tarot Club.
"'Audience' path? I'm afraid it would require a very high sequence to have an impact on him."
Klein seemed to have thought of something funny. The corners of his mouth twitched, rising several times before being forced down by his trembling facial muscles.
"I tried to confirm it through divination. Mr. Azik is very likely a High-Sequence Beyonder of some kind. I'm afraid there aren't many people in the entire kingdom who could tamper with his memory."
"He once asked me to search for clues in the Nighthawks' records. He himself has vaguely recalled some memories, but unfortunately he hasn't been able to piece them together into a complete clue."
"He could clearly see the inconsistency in our fates, but he couldn't solve his own problems..."
Angel also sighed with a regretful tone.
"By the way, regarding the inconsistency of fate that Mr. Azik mentioned, have you found any clues?"
Thinking of the key issue in today's conversation with Azik, she didn't bother to lament the fate of others and hurriedly asked Klein.
"The only clue at the moment is a building with dark red chimneys. I suspect this is where the person behind the scenes who influenced our fate is hiding. But Tingen City is too big, and there are too many red chimneys. I can only hire detectives to search. Perhaps this will waste too much time, allowing that person, or those people, to notice and move away in advance."
Angel didn't hold out much hope at first, but she didn't expect Klein to have already started investigating. This gave her a new understanding of the "fortune teller's" ability to act.
"I'll keep an eye on it, too. Maybe I'll find a few more detective agencies to speed up the process."
She decided to find a private detective to place a commission early tomorrow morning. Perhaps the detective agency that helped Mrs. Green locate her lost ring would be a good choice. It seemed to be called... Jules Detective Agency?
While they were thinking, the two had returned to the other end of Narcissus Street near Iron Cross Street, to the door of No. 6 Narcissus Street.
It seemed as if he had just realized that they had talked too much about Azik and "fate." Klein looked melancholy, but he still took off his hat like a gentleman, bowed, and said goodbye to Angel.
"See you tomorrow, Angel."
"Wait a moment."
Angel called out to Klein, who had already turned around and was about to go home.
"This is for you. Thank you for the amulet you gave me last time."
She took out a gold chain from her pocket. At the end of the chain extended a slender tip, holding a crystal clear amethyst. The crystal was precisely cut into an octahedron, short at the top and long at the bottom, about the size of a thumb, reflecting a psychedelic light under the gas lamps on the roadside.
"Last time you were injured, I noticed that the citrine pendant was also damaged. From now on, use this new one to continue fortune-telling for us."
Crane's brown eyes widened in surprise.
"Thanks……"
After a long silence, he murmured a thank you, took the amethyst pendant, unbuttoned the cuff of his left hand in front of Angel, took off the cracked topaz pendant, and wrapped the gold chain back to its original position.
"Yeah, that's appropriate."
Seeing the golden chain replacing the original silver chain, Angel's lips curled up into a smile.
"See you tomorrow, fortune teller."
After saying goodbye to Klein, who was still standing there, she walked up the steps in front of the door, took out her key, and prepared to open the door.
"Soon I won't be a 'fortune teller' anymore..."
Klein's slightly excited voice came from behind her.
"...I plan to submit a special application next month. My contributions have almost reached the level where I can apply for a Sequence 8 potion. Moreover, I have completely digested the 'Diviner' potion."
"Digestion? Have you also mastered the 'acting method'?"
Angel turned to look at Klein, who was lowered. The latter held his head high, his eyes burning with flames beneath his top hat.
"Yes, I will...I will catch up with you as soon as possible."
After saying this, Klein solemnly straightened the wrinkles on his dress before turning and leaving.
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