Reining in his increasingly wandering thoughts, Roselle briefly examined the silver-white paper, a characteristic manifestation of the Hand of Order, and tossed it to Leyton, saying, "Help me forge it into a Mystical Item, preferably a device that can be directly installed onto this mechanical puppet."
"That's extra," Leyton said expressionlessly as he took it, not giving Roselle a chance to reply. He continued, "Feysac has attacked Backlund. It's foreseeable that George III will use this opportunity to declare war on Feysac, further escalating the conflict."
"Being a Black Emperor isn't that easy," Roselle sneered, then eagerly pressed, "Speaking of which, when do you actually plan to help me revive?"
Leyton answered without hesitation, "Of course, when I go to war with Steam. You are my most successful secret weapon."
"You want me to stab Him in the back at the most critical moment?" Roselle retorted, then shook his head, "That won't be easy. The Black Emperor's revival causes a huge stir. Even if we speed it up, it can't be completed in an instant."
"So, you intend to use my revival to force Him into a fight with you? Are you confident?"
"I also can't be sure what choice Steam will make. Before it actually happens, everything is uncertain. If He and Eternal Blazing Sun exchange opponents, that would be interesting."
Leyton shook his head, responding calmly.
As he spoke, he disintegrated the silver-white paper in his hand, turning it into countless pale gold light particles that floated through the air, outlining words composed of strange symbols, as if compiling a strict and precise law.
Upon reaching a certain limit, these golden, strange words surged like water, slowly flowing into the mechanical puppet body of Roselle.
Following closely behind were brilliant Stars, one after another, which intertwined to form the pattern of a pair of eyes, slowly projecting onto Roselle's body before disappearing.
Having completed all of this, Leyton calmly stated, "This is only temporarily effective. It requires regular strengthening of the seal and replacement of parts. This mechanical puppet body of yours, and your mental state, are insufficient to bear a Hand of Order characteristic, especially with a Genie nearby."
"Genie? Heh... So that guy is indeed related to the Justiciar Pathway?"
After a pause, Roselle added, "I've long felt that the aura around that guy was somewhat familiar, but the effect of the wishing lamp is to fulfill others' wishes, which is quite intriguing."
"Although the Black Emperor's ability to distort and chaos rules can achieve similar things to a certain extent, the act of wishing always makes one think of a Miracle Invoker."
"Heh, I seem to understand something."
"Since you understand, stay away from that lamp. Be careful not to be unknowingly corrupted again."
Admonishing Roselle, Leyton turned to leave the Dawn.
"Wait a moment, there's something I need to give you," Roselle called out, stopping Leyton.
He turned back, somewhat curious, to look at Roselle, and saw the other party directly raise his hand and pull a golden box from the void—a box Leyton was somewhat familiar with, as Bernadette had previously used it to contain the pale death.
Under his gaze, Roselle opened the golden box and took out a silver-white mask, adorned with white feathers on its sides, handing it to Leyton and saying, "Honestly, your aesthetic sense isn't great. But since you helped me obtain a Hand of Order characteristic, as a reward, this mask is yours. It won't be long before the one currently advancing to Death Consul can progress towards the Pale Emperor."
"Of course, the treaty he agreed to earlier is still valid."
Leyton nodded, took the silver-white mask, and casually said, "I had Bernadette pick up some people for me from Backlund. At her speed, she should be arriving here soon. You'd best leave the Dawn first to avoid a direct confrontation with the wishing lamp, otherwise that Genie will think I deceived him, and it'll be difficult to cooperate with Him in the future."
As his voice faded, his body instantly blurred, disintegrating into streams of information that shot out of the Dawn through windows, walls, and the ceiling.
On the street outside Oleston Port's dock, a seabird conspicuously flew over Leyton's head. Its right eye had a very noticeable black eye-ring.
"This guy, instead of preparing his own ritual, is actively participating in battlefields everywhere. I wonder what he's scheming."
Muttering to himself, Leyton turned and walked towards the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom on the other side of the square.
Above the boundless grey-white mist, within the magnificent, ancient palace that resembled a dwelling of gods, Leyton, Klein, and Azik sat in their respective chairs, discussing the war in hushed tones.
"Feynapotter has also joined the war. Earth Mother ultimately chose to help the God of Combat. Lenberg, Masin, Segal, and other places have all been attacked by Feynapotter."
"Things happened so fast, so fast that one almost ignores the war between Intis and the Southern Continent."
Klein spoke of the information he had gathered with a sigh, his expression quite complex.
Azik nodded with little expression, explaining in response to Klein's words, "Earth Mother and the God of Combat are Mother and son. Although They sometimes don't appear to be that familiar or in sync, this is normal for gods, especially since Earth Mother also controls the Mother Pathway."
As his voice faded, he turned his head to Leyton and asked sincerely, "I have largely stabilized my state. Does the war between the Southern Continent and Intis require any additional assistance?"
Leyton shook his head and said, "Not for now. Intis's army is blocked at the coastline. Without the assistance of the Church of the Lord of Storms, it will be difficult for them to land."
Klein cleared his throat and looked at Azik with a composed expression, saying, "Mr. Azik, I might need some assistance later, but you don't necessarily need to be there in person. By then, I should have advanced to Sequence 3 Scholar of Yore, and I can summon your historical projection."
Relying on his previous gains in the Specter Empire, he had already sacrificed to the Evernight Goddess to obtain two Transformed Hearts of the Demonic Wolves of Fog.
I probably understand the term 'wolf-killer' now. Even for an orthodox church, Sequence 3 level potion materials are quite precious. The Goddess gave me two portions directly without any questions or hesitation, even though I exchanged them for equivalent items. However, the church doesn't have much demand for items from the Justiciar Pathway.
As his thoughts drifted, he heard Azik's reply: "No problem. At that time, I will seek the help of Concealment to awaken my self-consciousness in the historical projection."
The three then continued to discuss the war for a while. Klein checked his pocket watch, and when it reached 3 PM, he pulled up all the Tarot Club members through the connection of the crimson Stars.
Crimson light rose, quickly solidifying into blurred figures on both sides of the bronze long table.
As the crimson light rose, Leyton and Azik's figures also blurred in succession, and the gloomy, restrained figure of The World appeared at the very bottom of the mottled long table.
Justice Audrey was still the first to rise, curtsying to The Fool at the head of the table, "Good afternoon, Mr. Fool."
The sudden outbreak of war in Loen prevented her from being as relaxed and cheerful as before. Her greeting remained respectful but seemed much more subdued.
Everyone rose to bow, nodded to each other, and then took their seats. Everyone noticed that Mr. Death, who had not attended the Tarot Club for a long time, had appeared today.
Mr. Death's state seemed different from before, mainly in a change of temperament, becoming more austere and more like a noble, aloof superior. Justice Audrey instinctively interpreted this in her mind.
Is there a new person? But he's acting too calmly, not at all like a newcomer. Star Leonard wondered curiously in his mind. Equally curious was Judgement Xio, because Fors had not introduced Mr. Death to her due to her long absence from the Tarot Club.
The Fool Klein looked around and, seeing that no one had Roselle diary or anything else to present first, directly said, "You may begin."
As soon as he finished speaking, Magician Fors, who had been somewhat uneasy since the beginning, raised her hand, as if having made a great decision, and said, "Everyone, I have a commission. It's relatively dangerous, involving a demigod, and there might even be the gaze of a great existence."
"You want to hunt a demigod from which church or Hidden organization?"
"Aurora Order or Theosophy Order? Or the Tamara family? Only they have Apprentice Pathway demigods."
Chariot Anderson responded almost without pause. He was somewhat interested in Miss Magician's task, but more out of curiosity than a desire to take on the mission. An Apprentice Pathway demigod who comes and goes freely—he couldn't even touch their shadow.
Magician Fors was slightly stunned. She hadn't expected Mr. Chariot to guess her intended commission so easily.
She let out a helpless laugh, then continued, "Aurora Order, which is now the New Church in the Southern Continent. My target for the commission is Saint of Secrets Botis."
As she spoke, she cautiously glanced at Leyton, somewhat afraid that after the Tarot Club ended, this powerful and rather mysterious Mr. Tower would appear directly before her.