Chapter 813 Psychologist Audrey
"Is this... the world in the mirror?"
Looking at the dark passage that kept passing by, Audrey, with Angel's arms around her chest, opened her eyes wide, looked around excitedly, and muttered to herself.
The last outsider Angel brought into the mirror world was Elaine, the captain of the "Red-haired Girl", but as soon as the latter entered this mysterious world, she struggled and twisted like an uneasy quail.
Audrey, a "newbie" who had hardly left Backlund and had always been under protection, showed a rare high spirit.
Angel was so surprised that he secretly took a detour, which extended the journey to Dolton Street, which was only a few hundred meters away from 160 Böklund Street and could be reached in the blink of an eye, to several minutes.
"This place is similar to the spirit world, but it's not part of the same continuous world," she explained as she slowly led him through the passage. "Compared to the dangerous and vast spirit world, the passages in the mirror world only lead to different mirror planes. Therefore, such spectacular views can only be seen in the city. In the suburbs and on the sea, there are only a few passages, and even fewer people can enter here. As far as I know, only high-ranking witches and those who use certain magical items to activate the mirror passages can come here... Of course, there are also 'mirror people' who are born in the mirror world."
"It's a little different from the way Mr. World took me from the student aid fund office to his home just now... but I prefer this feeling of walking through a quiet corridor. It reminds me of some strange and magnificent dreams."
Audrey sighed, her arms slightly open, allowing Angel's hands, which were stretched out to her armpits, to support her more easily. Her emerald eyes looked at the "mirror exits" at the ends of different passages, some bright, some dim, and she suddenly said:
"If only the 'audience' pathway had a similar ability, I could sneak out of the house in the dead of night, just like... just like Hazel."
In the process of comforting the frightened girl just now, she inevitably learned some of her thoughts and memories, and learned that the congressman's daughter, who usually didn't like socializing but was actually full of adventurous spirit, had a similar "inner world" to herself.
It seems this noble girl possesses a strong sense of adventure, but this is consistent with her carefree behavior when she first arrived at the Tarot Club and asked to buy potions. Other cautious nobles might have simply feigned obedience, but in reality, they wouldn't dare to approach me or the Hanged Man in the gray fog, let alone the mysterious Mr. Fool...
Angel pondered for a moment and said comfortingly:
"Yes, the 'King of the Black Throne' possesses some kind of fast-moving technique. I think it's related to 'dreams'... Isn't your next sequence 'Dream Walker'? Perhaps you can gain similar abilities."
"The King of the Black Throne, that's... one of the Pirate Kings?"
As expected, Audrey had long forgotten about this demigod "audience" whose existence could be ignored. Even with Angel's reminder, she only had a vague memory of him. But before the two could continue their conversation, this short journey in the mirror ended.
As the surface of an unbroken mirror in the basement of 25 Dalton Street began to move like ripples, two figures appeared beside the mirror.
Slowly walking out of Angel's arms, Audrey looked around and found that she was in a dark and damp basement. There was almost no other decoration except mirrors of different sizes and directions. It was only illuminated by a dim gas lamp, making this place look like the perfect place to kill people and hide bodies in crime novels.
Fortunately, the person beside me was Miss Queen, who knew everything about the Tarot Club. If it were anyone else, a weak "audience" wouldn't be able to handle it, not to mention that I wasn't wearing the "Star Ring Forehead Ornament" or the "Lucky Hairpin"... She secretly glanced at Angel beside her, quickly cleared her mind, and asked in a probing manner:
"What about those people who have the aftereffects of being 'parasitized'? Are they upstairs?"
Based on the hypnotic process of the "patients" of the Dantes and Macht families, Audrey subconsciously thought that this time she was going to solve the problem of master and servant in a certain family, even though this basement was rather simple, which meant that the living quarters above were unlikely to accommodate more than two dozen people.
"No, they are scattered all over the street. There are residents, pedestrians and workers. Some have even left the street, but they haven't gone far."
Angel replied as he sensed the approximate location of the "disease seed".
Ever since she finalized the plan to use Audrey's hypnosis to make the victims pray to the gods in order to expel the "Worm of Time", she had no intention of finding these parasitized people one by one and hypnotizing them in person. That would not only be inefficient, but would also easily attract the attention of others and even provoke the Beyonders of the Storm or Steam Churches.
Ms. Arianna expressed the goddess's intention, which was obviously for us to keep a low profile. She even agreed that victims of other faiths could pray to the goddess for help. If I caused a big fuss, it would probably not meet the gods' expectations... She muttered, activating the mirrors with her eyes, making them show different scenes in the rippling water.
There's an old man in a carriage, his head bowed as he reads a newspaper, his right hand constantly adjusting his glasses. There's a woman enjoying the afternoon sun at home, squinting her right eye. There's a worker who's finished his work, sitting on the street to rest, rubbing his eye sockets nervously...
As victims were located one by one, the mirrors beside them were activated, and the originally dark basement was gradually filled with light from different angles, as bright as the outdoors with direct sunlight.
Audrey opened her mouth in surprise as she watched the different scenes unfold. She looked at the witch beside her who was displaying a magical scene, and after a moment she spoke:
"Are these the 'patients'? Can I give them direct suggestions through the mirror?"
There was uncertainty in her words.
Suggestion and hypnosis are essentially about the "audience" manipulating the target's mind, modifying their consciousness, influencing their subconscious, and making the target behave contrary to their true will. Although it does not have to be done face to face, Audrey always starts suggestion and hypnosis through face-to-face conversations. She has never tried to influence the target through objects, let alone standing in front of a mirror and "remotely hypnotizing" the target who is nowhere to be found!
This is an ability not found in the knowledge provided by the potion, and it presents a brand new challenge...
"I haven't tried it either, but this method should be feasible," Angel said truthfully. "The mirror can transmit my power to any location, as long as it's within the range of the mirror I can lock onto... Fortunately, it's not yet evening, so even those who left Dalton Street in a carriage are still nearby."
As she spoke, she turned her head to look at Audrey and said sincerely:
"If you find it difficult, I can take you to each target and hypnotize them one by one, just like I did just now. However, I hope to complete all the suggestion in this secret and simple way to avoid exposure... It depends on your will, Audrey."
It's up to me... Audrey's heartbeat quickened. After a moment, she nodded firmly as if she had made up her mind, clenched her fists, and replied:
“I want to give it a try!”
During the morning's "joint operation," she had single-handedly hypnotized a Sequence 5 vampire viscount, allowing him to enter the Earth Mother's church. As a "first battle," it was considered perfect, but just a few hours later, she learned that the "Queen," "The World," and the "Blasphemer" Amon's clone in Backlund had engaged in a fierce battle. The resulting damage alone nearly caused a Beyonder girl to lose control, affecting countless innocent passersby.
This made her still yearn for the splendor of the extraordinary world and look forward to the adventures and chances in life, but on the other hand, she also developed a fear of the cruel nature of this mysterious world.
If one day, I fell into despair like Miss Hazel, and my family was hurt because of my wrong choices, would I be able to protect them... Audrey looked at the mirrors in front of her that showed the lives of people from different levels. She felt a deep peace from the bottom of her heart for their ordinary lives, but she was also worried because their daily lives were disrupted.
So she wanted to "give it a try" and take a brave step to gain greater power.
With a snap, she stepped out and came to the center of the basement, her eyes firm and her expression calm.
It seemed that Miss Justice had made great progress since joining the Tarot Club, both in the sequence of potions and in the changes in her character... Angel thought with satisfaction, waving his hands and letting invisible spider silk pull mirrors in front of Audrey. They were neatly fixed together in rows and columns like display windows, allowing her to see all the "targets" without having to turn her body.
The focal point of these mirrors is exactly where Audrey is standing. If Angel is illuminated by multiple mirrors at the same time during a battle, it will be enough for Angel to launch a powerful curse through the mirrors, focusing on the enemy, producing an effect far better than that of a single mirror. But now, she wants to do the opposite and let Audrey, who is at the focus, use "hypnosis" to reversely affect all the targets in the mirrors.
After doing all this, she nodded to Audrey and stepped back to make room for the "stage" in the center of the room.
Then the dragon hatchling stepped out of its comfort zone.
…
"There are a total of 12 Time Worms. It seems that not every infected person will spit out the worms. Perhaps some have been sucked away... They may like wearing monocles in the future, but after all, there will be nothing left of Amon in their bodies..."
Angel said with satisfaction as he counted the curled up translucent bugs in front of him.
She was not only satisfied with today's gains, but also pleased that "Justice" Audrey was brave enough to try a new combination of extraordinary abilities.
Although the latter looked exhausted, having been subjected to large-scale hypnosis transmitted through the mirror and the complex manipulation of his mind and body, which had consumed most of his physical and spiritual strength, a satisfied smile still appeared on his sweaty face.
"If 'hypnosis' and 'suggestion' can be transmitted through mirrors, what about other abilities? Like nightmares..."
She shifted her gaze from the Time Worm to Angel, who had a normal expression after controlling more than ten mirrors at the same time, and seemed to feel no pressure at all. In her heart, she lamented the gap between the Middle-Sequence Beyonders and Demigods.
In terms of physical strength alone, I have no ability to fight back... This thought suddenly popped up in her mind.
"It should be able to achieve a similar effect... But today I'm only targeting ordinary people. I was able to manipulate multiple mirrors so they didn't notice. If I were facing Beyonders of the same sequence, the slightest changes in the mirrors would definitely arouse their vigilance. Therefore, when facing Beyonders, I still have to perform 'meticulous' operations one by one."
Angel explained, picking up a Time Worm between his fingers and separating it from the rest of the spoils.
"Ordinary people... my parents, and Hibbert, they're all ordinary people. Facing the Beyonders' covert manipulation, I'm afraid they're powerless to fight back..."
Audrey's excited expression slowly faded, and she spoke in a slightly confused tone.
But she soon laughed again and continued to herself:
"Fortunately, today's several 'actions' have allowed me to fully understand my inner self. At least it has made me less 'naive' and helped me know the direction I should move forward."
Angel also smiled and pointed at the lone "Time Worm" and said:
"This will serve as your 'reward' for your actions today. I will craft it into a demigod-level talisman. Used properly, it can pose a certain threat to high-sequence Beyonders, and may even kill them... If you continue on the path of transcendence, sooner or later, you will face such a threat alone."
"A spell that can kill a demigod..." Audrey muttered, her emerald eyes flashing with an inexplicable brilliance. "Mr. World also just promised to give me a Luck Stealer spell. It seems your personalities and behaviors are very similar... Is this why you two got together?"
Without waiting for Angel's answer, she continued with a sly tone:
"But from my observation, when Mr. World was first promoted, that is, after he returned to Backlund from the Southern Continent, he was actually very confused and bewildered. This is my professional judgment as a 'psychologist'... Of course, he seemed to recover quickly, covering up the scars in his heart by trying to 'get more involved in the present life'. But I think this method can only delay the outbreak of the problem, not solve it.
"However, whenever he appears with you, the sadness hidden under the mask is significantly improved, which makes me more certain that only you, Miss Queen, can heal the pain in his heart.
"So... I think you should find an opportunity to have a good talk with him, dispel his inner confusion, and allow him to recover from his trauma. This is the advice of a psychiatrist, and also... the blessing of your friend."
After saying that, Audrey turned her head away from Angel, and looked at the mirror wall that was still neatly arranged in an arc, reflecting her figure.
Blessings…Thank you, Audrey.
Angel's mouth corners rose slightly, and he hugged her again from behind and expressed his gratitude.
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