805 Meeting Up (1/2)

Inside the building of the Relic Search and Preservation Foundation, Audrey, whose thoughts were undergoing an upheaval, blinked. She took note of her body language and expressions as she drew a crimson moon on her chest in a half-genuine manner. She said with a sigh, ”What a tragedy. I hope that their spirits can rest in peace.”

The reason she had guessed that the archaeological team had comprised of members of the Psychology Alchemists was that she had previously received a mission to help the organization obtain a notebook related to the Twenty Year War from Associate Professor Michele. And this notebook belonged to the knight from Hartlarkh Village, Lindelira.

Back then, Audrey had made a request to Mr. Fool and relied on magic mirror divination to determine the origins of the notebook. She discovered that it was deeply connected to the village that worshiped dragons. As she knew ahead of time that there was a mind dragon hiding within the sea of collective subconscious, she ultimately chose to hand over the notebook to the Psychology Alchemists in consideration of her lacking Sequence and strength.

That also meant that the Psychology Alchemists had quite a significant chance of locking onto Hartlarkh Village through the notebook before heading over to find their target.

Another factor that Audrey used in her judgment was the strange mental illness that the archaeological team suffered. It had spread like a plague, causing the people to go mad in batches.

In the real world, there was a probability that mental illnesses were hereditary, but it was almost impossible to be contagious. But in the mysterious world, in the world of the mind and consciousness, chaos and madness could be spread to others through spirit channeling, dreams, and the subconscious!

And hidden in Hartlarkh Village was a mind dragon that had lived for years!

The Psychology Alchemists had found Hartlarkh Village through the notebook, and the threatened mind dragon used this ingenious method to spread mental corruption? ”He” might've achieved this through the sea of collective subconscious… The Beyonder world sure is dangerous. This small team must've been formed by a selection of Beyonders, but they ended their lives in such a simple and ridiculous manner… As Audrey thought about it, she was glad that she had made a sufficiently rational decision. She hadn't willfully used the knight's notebook to explore Hartlarkh Village. Otherwise, there would probably have been an addition name to the list of members who went mad.

Thanks to Mr. Fool. Thanks to the other members of the Tarot Club. Thanks to Qilangos who previously infiltrated in disguise. They allowed me to still recognize the hidden dangers despite my lack of actual experience in the domain of mysticism. It made me sufficiently cautious… Audrey silently thought in gratitude.

At that moment, her recalling her performance when she first joined the Tarot Club had made her wish to bury her head in her pillows to roar at herself:

Audrey, you were that naive and immature back then!

Thankfully, you met Mr. Fool. If it were any other secret existence, you would've long gone mad or turned into a monster!

Mr. Fool is such a nice man! No, such a nice orthodox god!

By the side, Associate Professor Michele noticed that Audrey had been silent. He said with a heavy nod, ”Yes, it truly is a tragedy that strikes one with fear.

”I only wish that the government has already handled the matter and prevented the contagious mental illness from becoming a plague.”

Don't worry, unless that mind dragon loses control and plans to challenge the three Churches, there won't be any more victims of that mental illness… Audrey replied silently.

From her point of view, the official Beyonders had already taken on the case. After all, a contagious mental illness was definitely going to be under the purview of the official Beyonders.

Therefore, the dragon coat of arms in the glass case must've been determined to be fine before being donated to the foundation. The police department didn't have such authority!

While Audrey felt pity for the archaeological team who were suspected to be Psychology Alchemists members, as though she had experienced the tragedy for herself, she was curious if the mind dragon remained in the vicinity of Hartlarkh Village.

To hide in the sea of collective subconscious with one's actual body would probably make it difficult to be discovered… However, the three Churches have a long history. In the Fourth Epoch or even earlier, they must've had bouts with mind dragons, so perhaps they have the corresponding records about it… Besides, the Psychology Alchemists is in control of the Spectator pathway and has the existence of High-Sequence Beyonders. Their comprehension of the sea of collective subconscious can't be much weaker than the mind dragon's. After suffering a terrible failure due to the lack of information, they will definitely send a very powerful team… Hmm, although that mind dragon was stronger than what the Psychology Alchemists expected, it probably wouldn't stay there to be discovered. It should've left… Audrey made an inference based on what she knew.

She didn't have any thoughts of visiting Hartlarkh Village to figure out the truth, because she long knew that the present her lacked the strength to deal with the mind dragon.

Her only intentions were to mention the matter at the next Tarot Club, and see if the other members could provide any feedback or any valuable knowledge. For example, it might be that the mind dragon had entered the sea of collective subconscious because of the local worship of dragons, or it could be that the mind dragon's inhabitation of the sea of collective subconscious caused the villagers to dream of it; thus, being subconsciously influenced and having the tradition of worshiping the dragon.

…

On Friday afternoon, Klein received the invitation list for the ball tomorrow. He began to seriously memorize the topics he needed to discuss with different guests.

When meeting Member of Parliament Macht, I need to make remarks about the recent good air in Backlund, and make a few jokes about the Loen Kingdom Imperial Science Institute… As Klein memorized each line, he suddenly heard stacked illusory pleas.

A man… Based on how long it's been, it's most likely Mr. Hanged Man… In thought, Klein put down the piece of paper in his hand and gulped down a mouthful of black tea before leaving the half-open room with the big balcony to head for the master bedroom's bathroom.