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Chapter Text

A Solar Eclipse!

Klein eyes widened, his black pupil absorbing both crimson red and bright orange, two colours, insoluble, distinct, yet seemingly mixing into one. The sky itself had an interesting hue, with some patches reflecting crimson, while others, bright orange, and in some spots, both colours seemingly casting their illumination in harmony.

This was a sight Klein, Amansies, or anyone in this world had never seen—a pure and baffling sight. The cogs in Klein's head were churning faster than ever, as he almost immediately asked a question, not to anyone but to himself. Is the Blood Moon caused by the Sanguine ancestor or the Great Mother?  

Klein had no answer to his question. He knew that even when the barrier was at its peak strength, the Primodial Moon could still bring about Crimson on this world to affect those that have taken over "Her" pathway. Yet, this didn't stray from the fact that the Sequence 0: Moon, also had the corresponding ability to "Herself". After all, if the Sun could shine its radiance on this world, then why couldn't the Moon, in a mystical sense, do the same?

Before Klein could make any further assumption, he noticed the crimson retreating, while the sun's bright brilliance took over the land once more. In a few unassuming moments, the world returned to its normal stature, while Klein and Amanises remained frozen in their spots, their gazes still fixed at the blue sky, at the brilliant sun.

"Is that a normal occurrence?" Amanises already knew Klein's answer upon asking this question. Having travelled for months with the man, she had picked up on a few skills, one of them being  able to discern some of Klein's emotional fluctuations. Previously, when the blood moon began to creep in, Amanises had immediately sensed the slight change from happy and calm to alert and now composed. She later sensed another fluctuation in his emotional state, specifically extreme surprise and bafflement, when the Solar Eclipse had occurred, enabling Amanises to credit this phenomena as abnormal, even to a long lived angel like him.

Klein didn't verbally answer but instead shook his head in No. Amanises exhaled a deep sigh, as she turned her head fully towards him, displaying a curious expression. Klein remained unbothered by her sharp but serene gaze, his head still fixed at the sky. He finally retracted his gaze and locked eyes while resting it on Amanises's.

A smile took shape on his face, as he tipped his top hat, and spoke calmly, "Shall we resume our walk to Tingen? The previous disturbance has already wasted quite a bit of our precious time." In the tone of charlatan, with hidden spite deep beneath his soft tone, Amanises felt as if the man in front of her was a professional clown, only lacking the extensive face paint, and cartoonish clothes.

Then, she remembered that Klein was indeed a professional clown. 

Still, his tone unnerves me sometimes… Carrying this thought, Amanises and Klein resumed their walk towards the city in silence. As they approached, Amanises felt the air becoming a bit heavy, which instantly attracted her attention to her surroundings. As a Sequence 2, Amanises could, to some extent, sense if some mystical ability had been applied in a wide range of areas, and currently she could sense the illusions.

Before she could question Klein, her surroundings shifted as a thick greyish white fog became visible to her. Klein chuckled while exempting her from his illusions. "You don't think I can just leave this town without any concealment? That would result in it being raided by the Mythical Races, or by other human factions." He then turned towards her and continued in a serious tone. "Despite travelling for months, walking across regions over regions, have we come across any Human settlement that wasn't abandoned and deserted?" 

"Exactly."

Amanises understood his implications and nodded in agreement. She then slightly tilted her head. "But wouldn't the Sefirah Castle's fog attract even more attention?" Klein nodded in agreement. "It would have attracted attention if it wasn't for the blinding grace of the Bright Sun." Amanises stopped walking, as her mouth slightly opened. Klein witnessing her shocked expression held back a laugh. "Grisha once took my help for 'something'..." 

Klein suddenly paused, as he raised his right hand, resting it on his tophat, his smile developing into a grin, as a cane seemingly appeared out of nowhere in his left hand. 

"I am a Fool, that believes in equal and equivalent exchange. If my assistance is taken in a matter, I will, of course, exact a corresponding price for it." 

Tipping his hat, the cane disappeared once more, while his posture returned to normal. "The price I exacted from Grisha was to watch over Tingen, and hide away the attraction that may be caused due to Sefirah Castle's fog, though it's only hidden away visually and convergence can still take its effects."

Convergence… Amanises swiftly noted the important detail, among various others. She didn't feel too good about Grisha watching over Tingen, but could understand Klein's reasoning, which led to Amanises acknowledging her powerlessness against this world. Phew… Before meeting Klein, I thought I was in a pretty good situation when it comes to strength… After all, I am a subsidiary god… But well, I can barely hold my own against the many threats of this world… Sequence 2 is rather weak.

Amanises lampooned and spited herself. Too Naive! I should have known better! She cursed herself while nodding at Klein. They both begin to walk again, while Klein reapplied Illusion to hide the grey fog from Amanises. Soon, they reached the town's entrance, prompting Klein to look at Amanises, the latter understood his implications, as Klein's appearance and clothes squirmed around before taking the shape of the wandering magician, Merlin Hermes's clothings. He then stopped concealing himself, only keeping the illusion up for Amanises, since a demonic wolf would startle the people.

They both walked in again, as Amanises took a step back letting the man walk forward towards the middle of the town. As he did so, the people around them, seemingly recognising him, wore shocked expressions but those were quickly replaced by bright smiles and amazement, intriguing Amanises. Soon, they reached the town's square, with the entire town eventually gathering around them, due to the news of Goddess' envoy having graced the town with his presence.

The Goddess Envoy, Merlin Hermes. 

Klein wasn't too surprised by this, for he had already expected an assumption like this to arise. On the other end, Amanises was very intrigued by the people's assumption of Klein, and thought to herself. Interesting… Would this viewpoint of people act as anchors for Klein too… Amanises paused in thought for a moment. Suddenly, Klein's previous statement rang back in her mind, prompting Amanises to furrow her gaze. He is a lot smarter than I imagined. Not only does he have my word in helping him obtain the Fool Uniqueness, any subsequent faith that will be derived from me, would allow him to gain a part of anchors due to being seen as my envoy… He essentially killed two birds with one stone!

Amanises looked back at the 'Goddess Envoy' that now stood in the middle of town, receiving glorified greetings, presents, and gazes from many people. 

"The Angel is here!" 

"Does the Goddess have an important message?"

"Give my newborn baby blessings!"

"Bless our marriage, oh thee gracious angel!"

"Can I not do work?"

"How many months has it been? Oh goddess, the baby is kicking!"

I am not even an Angel of Mother's pathway, what the fuck am i suppose to do with your pregnancy or marriage?!

Klein was somewhat overwhelmed by the crowd, earning a scoff from Amanises. He took a step back, maintaining his otherworldly angelic smile, and said in a serene voice, his tone resembling that of Amanises, "Now–Now, hold on..." Klein raised his hand in front of his chest, in a halting manner. Seeing this, the people visibly took a stance back, both respectfully and fearsome.

Klein put his hands back down, and cleared his throat, "I have come here today, not in the name of the Goddess, but for my personal respite." He paused, and discreetly turned his gaze towards a demonic wolf, standing not too far away from the crowd, observing him. He and Amanises had a talk about this, while on their ventures, and had both decided that…

"I wish to live here, in this town. More specifically, I wish to have a humble abode in this town, so as to overlook its developments with my own eyes, and to have a place I can call home, in this dark world." Klein's tone became solemn at the end. An act that earned him curious glances, as the people around him began to ponder about the Envoys' past.

Klein and Amanises had quickly run into a problem on their travels. 

They were essentially homeless. 

This was especially the case with Klein, whose real body had been inside Sefirah Castle ever since he had come to this era, having only used Historical Projection ever since to descend in the real world. Whereas, Amanises, whom had a home of her own, wasn't particularly keen on going there. They only had Sefirah Castle as a somewhat safe base of operation, but Klein considered it to be a dangerous notion, since prolonged exposure to Sefirah Castle will leave a mark on Amanises which may attract others attention. 

Hence, they unceremoniously decided to have a house in Tingen. It was unknown to the outside world, and their presence would prove adequate in case of danger looming over the town.

Shock and excitement plagued the crowd's mind, as they began to discuss among themselves on the Envoys' wish. Not long after, a man in his thirties with brown hair and a bun of the same colour, stepped forward, carrying the words of the people behind him. "We humbly accept your wish, but there is one problem. That is, there are no vacant buildings for you to live in.

"It will take us some time, but we will build a house for you.." The man explained the situation with a slightly scared yet firm tone. The crowd behind them held their breath as Klein began to chuckle upon hearing this notion. He looked at the man standing before him, his deep black eyes reflecting the man's visage, "That's not a problem. Come with me."

Klein said, as he turned around and began to walk away to a certain direction. The crowd was stunned for a moment, before quickly began to follow after him, with the man with brown hair at the most front. 

In just a few moments, Klein alongside the crowd reached the periphery of the town. Looking over at an untouched grassy land, Klein lifted his silver inlaid cane, while resting his hand on his magician top hat, as he announced to nature in a calm tone, "I Wish for a simple humble abode." Klein made a wish. In the next second, he granted his own wish, creating an extremely small scale Miracle. Instantly the land in front of him flattened, as a building not too big, arose from the ground, settling itself on the land. It was made out of wood stone and cobble, with a beautiful sizable garden in the back. Witnessing such a spectacle, the crowd was instantly shaken, as some instinctively began to pray to the Goddess of Misfortune while others, too stunned to do anything.

It was a miracle! An entire building had appeared out of thin air!

The man standing in front of the crowd wore a look of shock and amazement, as he took a step back and casted his gaze on the wandering magician. Of course! He is the Goddess Envoy! He can cast miracles! He clapped his hands, and began to recite the Honorific Name of the Goddess of Misfortune.

Cheers of pure awe and shock sounded through the environment, as the Miracle Invoker received countless praises, while the Goddess of Misfortune, countless prayers. Said Goddess overlooked the spectacle with mixed feelings, and the house with bafflement and cheekiness. Klein you…  

The house that had been created through the power of miracles, was in fact, Amanises own house. Or at least, it was a 1-to-1 replica of her house back in the demonic wolf settlement. Same exterior, same garden with the exception of Moon flowers and vanilla extract. It was also the same size as her house. He definitely used the blueprint of my house to make this one… Oh Klein, you never fail to surprise me.

Amanises chuckled. She then overlooked the cheering and happy crowd upfront, and felt her gaze becoming weary, while her smile became a bit warmer. There's a significant difference from last time… This is nice. Even if I keep track of their condition from prayers, witnessing these emotions in person brings out a different feeling…

At that moment, Amanises felt her humanity ever so slightly strengthening, prompting her to smile brighter, and shake her head.

…

"The interior is different."

This was the first thing that came to her attention, upon stepping inside. Amanises house was mostly empty, with the bottom floor messy, and crowded with books and notes written by her as well as some records she had kept throughout her research of this world. While upstairs was her bedroom.

Research… It had been quite a while since I bothered doing that. More specifically ever since she had met Klein. Amanises life had taken a turn for better or for worse. She had gained a friend in this unfamiliar dangerous world, but that friend of hers, had brought more trouble than imaginable in her life. Haha, I suppose a price is always exacted for what fate bestows.

Thinking that, Amansies turned her attention back towards the house. The bottom floor was divided into two sections, one compromising a kitchen, and the other, a living room of sorts, with cozy couches, a chimney, and cupboards to house stationery. The upstairs had two rooms, one being Amanises's and the other belonging to Klein. Amanises was instantly reminded of Victorian-Era England houses, and felt the vibe to be quite similar.

Now that I think about it, Klein's clothing also resembles that of an Etiquette Gentleman from the Victorian-Era… Seems like he may have been a fan of that time. Amanises walked towards a couch and sat down, while Klein directly entered the kitchen. Amanises loudly heard some sharp metal bumping and crockery crashing coming from the Kitchen. Soon, Klein emerged from the kitchen, holding a tray that had two porcelain cups of warm tea. 

"You really like tea, huh?" Amanises teased as Klein poured a cup of tea in a dish and slid it over to her, while summoning some modern day snacks. "It's not that I adore tea—it's more like a fresh cup of tea is worth savouring." Klein replied as he took a sip, influencing Amanises to do so as well.

"I suppose I can agree with that. Now, back to the topic…" Amanises tone developed from soft to serious at the end, as she straightened her posture. "What was with the Solar Eclipse earlier?" Klein sighed, looking over at her, and shrugged his shoulders.

"If I were to be honest with you, I don't know. This was the first time I had seen an Eclipse in this… World, so I naturally have no idea over its implications." Klein honestly answered. Indeed. Amanises furrowed her gaze, and remained silent. She took a few sips of her tea, before asking Klein in a flat tone.

"What is exactly the Crimson Moon?"