Lord of Mysteries: Starting As A Reader

As thoughts whirled, Ebner shielded the senses of those around them, then directly asked Lion Leon, "What do you know about Roselle's 'Men in Black'?"

"You mean the organization mainly composed of Beyonders from the Marauder and Assassin pathways?"

"I don't know too much about them… I only know they were led by Edwards… and often engaged in unsavory dealings…"

"Of course, they were much better than the 'Great Tomb' organization led by that fellow Yaldabaoth…

"The latter is much more notorious!"

Lion Leon snorted, clearly having a low opinion of both organizations under Roselle.

Marauder and Assassin… These two pathways are indeed excellent for intelligence and espionage! And since they were led by Edwards, they shouldn't be a threat to Edwina… Ebner nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "Were there high-Sequence Beyonders in the 'Men in Black'?"

"Of course there were before. Roselle even used a captured Amon clone to create an item equivalent to a Grade '0' Sealed Artifact and placed it in the 'Men in Black' headquarters." Leon replied casually.

Amon's clone… Sealed Artifact… Did Amon target Roselle's Marauder organization, only to get caught when he went to steal a bite?

While pondering, Ebner briefly explained the situation to Lion and asked him to look after Fors and the others. Then, he took Chesi, who was controlled by the Magic Mirror, and passed through the train wall, flying at full speed towards Tosk City relying on his Flying Cloak.

.....

Tosk City is located outside a valley at the border of Loen and Intis. It is a well-known trade port city in Intis, thus its economy is quite prosperous.

This city was the birthplace of the Surrey family. Originally, both its economy and politics were controlled by the Surrey family, but in the past decade or so, as the Surrey family's influence entered the high ranks of the Republic and they moved to Trier, the city's "authority" gradually shifted into the hands of the Varian family.

The Varian family was also nobility from the Solomon Dynasty, and even more powerful than the Delien and Fryers families at that time.

Unfortunately, after Roselle came to power, such "former dynasty" nobles naturally became primary targets for suppression, and the higher their noble status, the more thoroughly they were purged.

Thus, the Varian family failed to seize significant benefits from the events leading to the overthrow of the Augustus Dynasty, becoming a third or fourth-rate power, even having to dabble in the "underworld"…

It wasn't until the Surrey family left Tosk that they seized the opportunity to legitimate themselves and rise.

But even so, this family still has intricate ties with the local gangs in the area… such as the "Man In Black" organization hidden in the "Rat Way"… Of course, many people call it the "Thieves' Guild" – because its current function is very similar to the "Thieves' Guilds" depicted in some of Roselle's novels.

—The "Rat Way" is what residents call Tosk's sewer network, and also implicitly refers to the "rats" who hide in the sewers, engaging in illicit activities.

At this moment, in the office of the Varian Winery, a woman in her thirties, dressed luxuriously, was questioning another man.

They were Lister and his wife Denise, the current heads of the Varian family.

Lister, who had just celebrated his thirtieth birthday, looked at his wife, who was constantly pounding the table, and a ruthless glint flickered in his eyes before quickly disappearing. He feigned helplessness and said, "Dear, it's not as serious as you think…"

"What do you mean, 'not as serious as I think'? When you sold out the 'Thieves' Guild' to that playboy from Trier, did you not consider the consequences?"

"Heh, I know he's from the Delien family, the Prime Minister's son… But we're not obligated to help him find a runaway woman! What's more, that woman is connected to the 'Thieves' Guild'!"

"You know, our Varian family managed to control such an important port city, completely bypassing the administrative officials appointed by Trier, all thanks to the support of various local forces…"

"But now that this has happened, how do you expect them to view us?"

"They'll only think that if you could sell out the 'Thieves' Guild,' you'll sell them out sooner or later too!"

"Besides, do you think the 'Thieves' Guild' is easy to provoke? Once they take action, several counties in northeastern Intis will fall into chaos!

"And most importantly, even though you're my husband and have taken the Varian surname, becoming the family's head… why didn't you consult me beforehand on such an important matter?"

Looking at his furious wife, Lister didn't answer directly. Instead, he deflected, "Weren't you busy competing with other wine brands then? I thought it would be bad to disturb you… Besides, it's just a woman. I thought that as long as he made the request, the 'Thieves' Guild' wouldn't refuse him… They might even use this to build a connection with him and perhaps even thank me afterwards…"

"Nonsense! Is your brain full of crap? How could the 'Thieves' Guild' save a stranger for no reason? That woman must have a connection with them… And given their unity, they won't hand her over!" Madam Denise slammed the table again upon hearing this.

What do you know, you foolish woman? That playboy might be a good-for-nothing, but his butler might be a demigod!

That's a half-human, half-god existence. How dare I defy him? Let alone me, even if the Varian family and all the forces in Tosk City combined, they'd be nothing in front of a demigod!

Of course, you don't need to know this… Perhaps when this matter is successfully concluded, with that gentleman's support, I'll no longer have to bow to you and can truly take charge of the Varian family…

Lister mused inwardly, but outwardly, he seemed lost for words, stammering.

After her outburst, Madam Denise glared at her husband, ignoring him. She simply tossed out, "I'm going to the 'Thieves' Guild' to explain this," then put on her hat, donned her coat, and left the room.

As a former great noble, even in decline, the Varian family still had some foundation. Therefore, compared to flattering a playboy, Madam Denise valued their standing more.

This foolish woman cannot be allowed to ruin that lord's plans! On the other side, Lister watched his wife's retreating figure, unable to hide the malice in his eyes any longer.

After a brief thought, he called over a trusted subordinate and ordered him to send people to intercept Denise, preferably alive… If not, to kill her on sight.

"That way, I can claim credit from that lord afterwards… And you'll get your share of benefits too!" Lister outwardly painted a rosy picture for his subordinate, but inwardly, he had already condemned him to death, waiting only for him to finish the task before silencing him.

But just then, a mocking voice sounded in his ear: "Benefits? I'll show you a treasure right now."

Lister and his subordinate were startled. They instinctively looked towards the source of the voice and saw a mirror with a gaping maw, its sharp teeth snapping at them.

The subordinate was a Sequence 8 Provoker, and Lister himself was just an ordinary person. Facing such a scene, they had no power to resist and were swallowed by the mirror.

The man-eating mirror was naturally Ebner's Magic Mirror. Controlling Chesi, who was holding its main body, it even took out a handkerchief to wipe the "mirror surface."

Ebner was there because he needed a guide to enter the "Rat Way."

Although Edwina had drawn a route map using "secret art," after a personal inspection, Ebner discovered that Tosk's sewer system was not so simple. It seemed to have been specially designed by a high-Sequence Beyonder, and in many places, it used the "distortion" or "magnification" effects of the Black Emperor pathway, making it easy to get lost without a guide, or even never get out…

This was likely the work of Emperor Roselle himself!

If he were to use the Pure White Eye to decipher it, it wouldn't be impossible, though it would take some time… However, Ebner feared that Edwina might not be able to wait that long. So, he found the Varian family's winery, which had the qualifications and methods to summon a "guide" in the "Rat Way," but he unexpectedly encountered this marital quarrel.

—The knowledge about the "Rat Way" and the Varian family came from the book formed by the soul of the Mirror Demon Herta. After all, he had lived for nearly a hundred years and had a property in Tosk, so he was quite familiar with the situation there.

As expected of a Spiritual Book worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, the knowledge it contains is truly valuable!

After the Magic Mirror displayed some scenes from Lister's soul, Ebner collected his thoughts and watched…

Soon, his gaze was drawn to an old man wearing a monocle, who was the butler of the Delien family's playboy.

"Is that Amon?"

"Hmm… Leon said earlier that Roselle turned a captured Amon clone into a Sealed Artifact and gave it to the 'Men in Black'…"

"Aggregation effect?"