Lynn naturally noticed Cattleya's confusion. As the automatic follower of The Fool, he smiled at her and said, "What's the matter, Cattleya? Are you interested in The Fool?"
Cattleya's expression froze. As a Beyonder from the Mystery Pryer Pathway with extensive knowledge of mysticism, she was well aware of the consequences of worshipping a heretical god. She almost instinctively wanted to decline the sermon.
However, the person speaking was a senior of Bernadette, and considering the outrageous feats he had just performed, along with the evident support of the Lord of Storms, Cattleya hesitated for a moment before cautiously asking, "Mr. Gabriel, could you introduce me to this Fool you speak of?"
"Of course, no problem!" Lynn nodded and then nudged Klein with his elbow, urging him, "But I've already preached recently, so this precious opportunity should go to you, Gehrman! Come on, you're The Fool's most favored follower, you should properly extol His greatness and mercy."
Klein's expression stiffened for a moment. He had to exert all his Clown-level control over his expression to avoid showing any flaws. He glanced at Lynn, who blinked innocently back at him, but Klein knew he was just waiting to enjoy the show.
This made Klein's fist tighten, but facing the gazes of several people, he could only cough lightly, doing his best to suppress his embarrassment. In a solemn tone, he said, "The Fool resides above the spirit world..."
The lines were almost a verbatim copy of Lynn's previous sermon.
Of course, Klein could refuse to preach, but that wouldn't align with his identity as The Fool's follower. Considering that Cattleya would most likely join the Tarot Club in the future and come into contact with his 'World' persona, Klein thought it would be best to maintain consistency in this setup.
'But it is so embarrassing... No, I must stay calm. Right now, I'm not The Fool; I'm Gehrman Sparrow, The Fool's follower... 'Klein recited to himself, and as he continued, he suddenly felt a sense of detachment from his current identity, as if watching himself deliver these mortifying lines from a third-person perspective.
However, Klein knew that his spirit body had not left his body. He had merely achieved a mental transformation, fully treating Gehrman Sparrow as a persona he had crafted, a mask he was now wearing.
At the same time, he gained a bit of insight: one of the principles of acting as a Faceless might be to do things his original identity would never do.
'But I've already digested the Faceless potion…' Klein muttered internally. He finally finished delivering the sermon. Now in his detached state, he even managed a fanatical smile after finishing, saying to Cattleya, "Ms. Cattleya, I see destiny in you. You are fated to be connected with my Lord. Perhaps one day, I will see you at the Council of the Gods."
The Council of the Gods naturally referred to the Tarot Club. If it were in front of others, Klein wouldn't have brought it up, but with those present, there was no need to hide. Lynn didn't need explaining, Danitz didn't have the courage, and Cattleya was destined to become a Tarot Club member. As for The Fool, he was more casual here.
As for Frank... The Fool was considering whether to eventually invite Frank into the Tarot Club as well. It wasn't for any specific reason, mainly because the man was a genius. Klein was slightly worried about Cattleya's ability to keep him in check.
'Perhaps bringing him under The Fool's watch would be the safest option?' Klein pondered this. Unlike in the original timeline, where he had been isolated and hesitant about bringing any higher-ranked Tarot members on board, Mr Fool now had significantly more confidence. He was even considering expanding the Tarot Club. After all, there were currently only seven members, and one of them was fake.
However, the club couldn't be expanded too freely. The Tarot Club's main cards were limited to 22, but if you included the Minor Arcana, there would be 78 spots. Klein was contemplating recruiting some members of lesser status under the Minor Arcana, or perhaps letting main members like Miss Justice develop their own recruits under them.
As The Fool considered the future of the Tarot Club, he noticed Cattleya was stunned.
She was indeed taken aback. She looked at Klein with a mix of suspicion and uncertainty, unsure if his words were genuine or merely a persuasive part of the sermon. Before she could make up her mind, Gabriel laughed softly beside her.
That laugh instantly brought Cattleya back to full attention. It wasn't without reason—since meeting Gabriel, every action he had taken had pushed her nerves to the limit, and she had developed a conditioned response.
"Although spoiling surprises isn't ideal, Gehrman wasn't lying, Cattleya. You are indeed connected to The Fool," Lynn said, smiling as he exchanged a glance with Klein. He then pointed towards the astrolabe at Cattleya's waist with a grin, "That astrolabe of yours is the best proof."
Cattleya instinctively lowered her head to look at the astrolabe she had carried for a long time, and in an instant, she understood. "This astrolabe... is related to The Fool?"
"It certainly is," Lynn nodded. "But it's only a ticket. Your connection with The Fool starts here, but it's far from everything."
Lynn looked at Cattleya, as though he could see her future in the original story. His eyes curved into a smile. "Take good care of it. One day, it might save your life."
Hearing this, Cattleya instinctively tightened her grip on the astrolabe at her waist.
Having said his piece, Lynn quickly lost interest in the topic. He turned to Klein and said, "Now, let's head to the Church of the Storms. Which cathedral in the City of Generosity is it?"
"The Storm Church in Bayam is the Cathedral of the Waves," Klein replied, glancing at his chaotic companion. "The Cardinal of the Waves should be Seafarer Jahn Kottman, a Sequence 3 Beyonder."
"Yes, Seafarer Slowman, that guy who's always late!" Lynn laughed, as if suddenly recalling something. "But it's not surprising, since he's one of Lord of Storm's people. It would be strange if he wasn't late."
'Slowman? What kind of strange description is that...' Klein muttered internally, realizing that Lynn probably knew something about Jahn future that led him to speak this way.
Though Klein wasn't sure why Lynn kept saying the Lord of Storms' people were constantly late.
Seeing that no one got his joke, Lynn seemed a bit deflated but still said, "Let's go to the Cathedral of the Waves first and meet Archbishop Jahn to discuss how to deal with Sea God Kalvetua. Afterward, Gehrman and Danitz, you two will come with me to the rebel camp. We need to get the coordinates of where the Sea God is hiding; otherwise, they can't do anything."
(End of Chapter)
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