Fors was sitting on her sofa, lazing around as she thought about the plot of her next novel.
Suddenly, murmurs appeared in her mind. Fors frowned, the look on her face becoming more and more painful.
'Strange… it shouldn't…'
It shouldn't be time for the Full Moon yet.
With difficulty, her gaze turned to the side, finally settling on the window.
'Ah.'
The moon, with should have been turning redder and redder, was the same as always.
Bam!
She fell off the couch, her body writhing as she struggled.
The voice in her ears was also familiar, but the pain far stronger than before.
It wasn't the Blood Moon either.
This voice—she recognized it all too well.
Her pupils constricted.
Nonetheless, she tried.
"The Fool… who… doesn't…"
Fors finished reciting the honorific name, yet there was no answer.
Miss Magician pulled out a clump of her hair, but the pain did nothing to ease the explosive sensation in her head or to calm the urge to end her life with a knife.
Despite her failure, Fors didn't give up and recited the honorific name again.
However, she already sensed it wouldn't work.
These weren't Mr. Door's ravings.
As she repeatedly chanted, Fors's suffering didn't abate, and instead grew more intense.
Bam!
She tumbled around violently, toppling the coffee table and sweeping the books on it to the ground.
"Mr. Fool…"
Unable to endure it any further, Fors frantically used her nails to scratch the wooden leg of the coffee table, creating one deep scratch after another along with jarring screeching sounds.
"Save me, save me…"
These ravings were from Mr. Fool.
Her fingernails broke, her hair growing abnormally long.
The moment she felt that she would lose control that very night and become a monster, the pain abruptly ceased.
"Ha, ha…"
Fors sat there, out of breath as she recovered from the shock.
Mr. Fool had lost control for a brief moment.
This was the first time this had happened.
"Ha, ha…"
After a while, she raised her head with difficulty.
Although her fingernails were still broken, her hair and body had returned to normal.
The whispers had also completely ceased.
Fors met her own gaze in the mirror.
Her hands were still trembling.
Despite being safe, she couldn't shake off that feeling.
Maybe, it wouldn't be Mr. Door that kills her.
There may come a day she loses control due to the Fool's ravings instead of the Full Moon.
***
A mix of gratitude and ominous premonition—that was what Leonard felt toward the Fool.
After all, despite being an evil god—no, an unknown existence—that existence had still helped him get revenge on Ince Zangwill.
He had to repay the Fool.
Moreover, having helped Miss Justice set up a charity, he knew that the Fool wasn't evil.
The Fool was generous and benevolent.
He was just in an unstable mental state right now.
"Mr. Star, I would like to request your help."
Leonard knew it wasn't really a request. The god had given him the Beyonder characteristics in advance, and Leonard hadn't accumulated enough contributions.
"I will do my best."
It was time to repay his debt.
Yet, he hadn't been fully prepared to hear what came next.
"I need you to sacrifice Beyonders from the three Pathways… Seer, Marauder, and Apprentice. The higher the Sequence, the better."
Leonard paused.
"…Why?"
"I need it to get better."
Really?
Leonard was then sent back to the real world.
If it was necessary to assist the Fool, then he would do it.
After all, he had been greatly helped by that existence.
Although these Pathways were a little rare…
Next, Leonard hunted down the Secret Order to fulfill the Fool's request. Being members of a secret organization, they wouldn't be innocent people.
He also chased clues of Beyonders from the Marauder Pathway. With such abilities, they often committed theft.
Finding wild Beyonders of the Apprentice Pathway was harder. However, wild Beyonders were inherently a danger for themselves and others around them.
Aren't you rationalizing the fact of sacrificing people to an evil god?
Standing in front of the sacrificial altar, Leonard looked down at the dead bodies.
He had managed to find Beyonders from the Mysteries Pathways and sacrificed them. They weren't good people either.
Pallez had also been silent for a while now.
With this sacrifice, the Fool should be able to get better. They would continue to help people with the charity, and the problem would pass.
Yet, something in the back of his mind…
'Protect people…'
Why did it feel so wrong?
A living sacrifice. Wasn't he no different from these evil god believers?
His heart clenched, his fists trembling.
He didn't know why he felt that way.
He had clearly acted rationally.
If the Fool were indeed an evil god…
The Fool was a benevolent existence.
Then the justification for his current actions would disappear.
Having worked as an official Beyonder for so long, Leonard Mitchell had solid morals and beliefs.
He was an upright man who followed his convictions and fought against bad guys.
Learning he had gone against these beliefs may lead to his mental state collapsing.
Pallez still did not say anything.
This was the price of revenge.
Watching the sacrificial ritual being conducted from above, the Fool regained a little clarity.
Holding His forehead, He sighed.
His thoughts were confused.
'Why did I ask for this?'
He must have been crazy to ask for something like that…
Actually, He could guess why. It was probably due to the desire for convergence. The 'clarity' He had regained right now was also due to the divinity contained in the Beyonder characteristics, which made Him indifferent to the sacrifice being held.
The Fool coldly looked down on the real world.
The truth was, He objectively did not need the sacrifice of these Beyonder characteristics.
It was like a prank born out of the mischievousness brought by the potions.
The Fool rubbed His temple.
'Isn't this getting worse…'
After all, it would only reinforce His divinity, not anchor His increasingly unstable humanity.
The Fool sighed once more.
He was acting more and more irrationally.
'Let's put these characteristics aside for now.'