Above an endless expanse of gray-white mist, within the magnificent and imposing ancient palace, Caine didn't immediately proceed to divination. Instead, he responded to Aljer's sacrificial ritual of the "Emblem of the Pendulum," placing the staff—remarkably endowed with the extraordinary trait of the "Sea Singer"—before him. "The Sea's voice... that name feels strangely familiar. Let's just call it that. It's essentially a fully weakened version of the 'Staff of the Sea God,' lacking abilities like 'Lightning Storm' or 'Tsunami' that belong to half-divine powers. The drawbacks, however, are quite numerous." As Caine reflected on Aljer's description, he gently ran his fingers over the deep black staff head, inlaid with silver-white metal. Perhaps due to the naturally suppressive influence of this mysterious space above the gray mist, the extraordinary staff did not exhibit any signs of life, simply lying there as if it were no more than an ordinary, unremarkable piece of wood. Klein nodded slightly, murmuring silently: "For magical items, having a living quality is indeed quite troublesome. Yet from another perspective, it means they can communicate and interact. Recall how poorly the 'Dice of Probability' used to behave—didn't he become more cooperative after receiving an education? Moreover, one could simply hand it off to a servant, like Enzo, the 'Winner.' Though he no longer possesses passive luck, he consistently accumulates fortune for crucial moments. A slight release of his luck won't make any difference. Thus, regardless of being tripped, falling, or struck, he can smoothly evade such incidents without drawing attention." "Think about it—this little prank of the walking stick isn't entirely useless. If I encounter another 'Master of Secret Figures,' or a spirit plunderer or a cunning supernatural being, and lose the initiative, getting initially controlled so that my thoughts and actions grow sluggish, then relying solely on my own strength to break free might prove difficult. In such a case, a sudden tap from the uncooperative stick—or a stumble that sends me sprawling—would effectively lift me out of the predicament. 'Ah, indeed, well-utilized negative effects of magical items can be a great asset!' 'Of course, during regular combat, such pranks often introduce unnecessary risks. How to balance them, how to mitigate them—this will only be discovered through repeated experience and practice.' Regarding the negative effect of holders being struck by lightning during thunderstorms, Caine didn't mind at all. First, thunderstorms occur only occasionally—except in special regions—and are thus rarely a concern most of the time. Second, as a "seer," checking the daily weather forecast before heading out is a standard practice. Lastly, if a thunderstorm truly proves unavoidable, Caine can hand over his staff to the secret companion Enzo. In that case, even if lightning strikes "The Winner," it will be diverted by the nearby lightning rods. "Only hope I'm not the very rod being struck," Caine chuckled to himself, pondering the aspect that troubled him most among all the drawbacks: the extraordinary singing that occurs every six hours! This effect is random and affects both allies and enemies—effectively a powerful area-of-effect (AOE) attack. (Note 1) After careful consideration, Caine decided to communicate with the "Voice of the Sea" staff to reduce the frequency of the singing, or at least provide a warning before each performance. "I had an early lunch today, and by now, the 'rumbling hunger' should have been wailing by now..." Klein thoughtfully removed the human-skin glove from his left hand and set it aside in the empty space before the pile of clutter. Then, he picked up the deep-black staff inlaid with silver-white metal and placed it there as well. Next, he summoned a small amount of mysterious power from the ethereal space above the gray mist, creating a barrier that cut off all sound and visual input, allowing the 'rumbling hunger' and the 'Voice of the Sea' to be alone together. After completing these actions, Klein gently stroked his palm, materializing a sheet of paper and a pen, and wrote a divinatory statement: "I face danger during my reconnaissance of the outer regions of the city of Caldrón." He set down the dark red, round-bodied steel pen and then withdrew the spirit pendulum from his sleeve, holding it in his left hand and letting it hang just above the paper, barely touching it. After silently reciting the divinatory statement seven times, he opened his eyes to find the yellow crystal pendant still stationary—no movement at all. This meant the divination had failed. "The specific circumstances of Caldrun are a secret even to the entire spiritual realm, and divination lacks sufficient preparatory data. Moreover, Caldrun once served as a divine kingdom of the ancient gods, with residual resurrection arrangements still in place—these likewise interfere with divination." Kline folded his spirit wand, pondering. "I can only rely on the account of the 'red light'—the outer regions of Caldrun pose only moderate risk. Besides, I still have my secret companions. I'll send them first to assess whether the interior can shield against the gray mist. If it can, we'll proceed without further delay; if not, I'll enter personally." Kline quickly made up his mind, no longer hesitating, and waved his hand to dissolve the barrier he had previously established. Then, he observed that "the creeping hunger" had retreated to the edge of the clutter, propping itself up with three fingers, while his thumb and little finger rested against the *Grosel's Travels*, as though physically frail and nearly unable to stand. At the same time, a mouth opened in the palm of the staff, revealing two rows of ethereal, gleaming white teeth, continuously breathing. On the other side of the barrier, the deep black staff embedded with silver-white metal lay on the ground, occasionally twitching, and from its tip, small, slightly blue transparent bubbles bubbled up in a gurgle. "Well, now everything is quiet..." said Caine in quiet satisfaction. As soon as he finished speaking, the "Sea's Voice" staff suddenly rose up, as though held by someone, jumping upward and downward toward Caine, passing over the "Fool's" chair, and then moving to the other side, where the five fingers of "Crawling Hunger" moved like feet, struggling to keep up, and finally, with a soft thud, collapsed halfway. Klein watched in silence, then sighed deeply. "After fusing with Mr. A, the 'craving motion' seems to have acquired a sense of life—yet your intelligence is surprisingly low. You've even managed to pasture the 'Wind-Attuned' beings, who can fly short distances, yet you still use your fingers as feet to chase after them..." He then turned to the 'Sea's Voice' staff hiding beside him. "You're not a Sequence 5 from the 'Seafarer' path, are you? To be able to only hop on one leg is rather underwhelming for a magical artifact. Honestly, is this merely the kind of life-giving trait one would expect from a newborn? No—some fetuses far outshine you in intelligence!" After offering a few gentle rebukes, Klein sighed and, to his own amusement, added, "I'm not exactly a devil, either." As he spoke, both the gloves and the staff, which had previously shown some movement, suddenly froze, silent and still. His subsequent words were instantly choked back, and he had to reach out, gently taking the 'Sea's Voice' staff, and begin a sincere, earnest conversation with the other. After friendly and sincere discussions, the deep-black staff, adorned with silver-white metal, indicates through frequent, quick vibrations that it will sing as little as possible going forward. Should it feel compelled to sing, it will promptly notify the host in advance, using methods such as a gentle tremor or lifting itself a few centimeters. At the same time, it proposes a request through singing: the staff must never be held using the hand that bears the "creeping hunger." Of course, if the host insists on doing so, the staff neither objects nor resists—it is quite willing to accept. "Better than the 'creeping hunger,' not so stubborn," said Kline. He then summoned the "creeping hunger" with a wave and placed it upon his left palm. After glancing at the "portal of summoning" established during the previous ritual, Kline began to consider which items to bring on his initial exploration of the city of Caldrón. The two spectral duplicates are indispensable—they can serve as bait, scout ahead, act as test subjects to verify for traps, and allow the "Master of Spectral Duplicates" to avoid performing many hazardous maneuvers. They must be brought along. With them, Enzo’s "Ring of Blood" and Ludewil’s "Harris Longsword" are also essential and cannot be overlooked. Additionally, Klein intends for Enzo to carry the "Staff of the Sea’s Voice." As for himself, Klein plans to arrive in the form of a spirit. Should anything go awry, he can immediately terminate the summoning and return to the Gray Mist. Thus, the choice of which "attire" to wear becomes a matter of consideration. "The Azk Copper Horn? No—that is linked to the deceased god behind him, and Caldrun City belongs to the ancient dead gods. There’s a significant likelihood of a severe anomaly, triggering dangerous disturbances within the core region. Between the "Black Emperor" and the "Despot"—which one should be chosen?" Well, this time we're operating within the spirit realm—both of the secret figures are essentially deceased, so they're not afraid of having their blood drawn. After all, Ludewell himself is half-spirit, half-human, and has very little blood to begin with. Enzo's blood is only valuable in the sense that it keeps him human-like on a daily basis; this can be restored later through the 'Blood' ring. That means I can take the 'God of the Sea' staff to Caldrun! "It's deep within the spirit realm, far from the waters of the Rosted Isles, so I won't be disturbed by the prayers of the faithful. The only issue is that I'll become irritable, easily angered, and prone to overheating—this is precisely the worst thing for exploration. However, this is easily manageable: simply hand the staff over to Enzo or Ludewell. Moreover, the 'Dominator' holds a high rank and can exert a certain level of restraint on the 'God of the Sea' staff, helping to temper my fiery temperament. "With the 'Dominator' card and the 'Sea God's Staff' combination, I'm effectively half a Sequence 4—this is the most effective way to mitigate risk. Even if I join Miss Sharon, I can still pair them this way, ensuring she remains in a wraith, or even a malevolent spirit, state without any issues! As for the corresponding extraordinary trait aggregation law, I don't need to worry too much. If Caldrón can shield the gray mist, I'll simply step outside and return—no one will be able to lock onto or catch up with me, since the spirit realm isn't the stronghold of the 'Mariner' path. Should Caldrón fail to shield the mist, and if a high-sequence member from the Storm Church is indeed drawn in, then we can actually leverage that situation..." As his thoughts flowed, Caine suddenly reached out, lifting the 'Dominator' card from the bronze long table and letting it drift into his palm. Then, he integrated this 'Defiled Card' into his soul. In an instant, an atmosphere of extreme dignity and terror radiated from the position of the "Fool." A deep triple crown materialized silently atop Caine's head, and his garments transformed into religious robes. This appearance resembled that of the Pope in Caine's previous viewing of *Saint Seiya*, though in a deep blue nearly black hue. A gust of wind stirred, and the robes of the Pope surged outward as Caine raised his right hand, palm outstretched, catching the white bone scepter that drifted toward him. At the tip of the scepter, individual gems suddenly burst forth with sharp, vivid glimmers—either emerald-blue or silvery-white—fanning out in lightning-like arcs around the seated "Tyrant." The "Sea's Word" scepter snapped to the ground, now resting beside Caine, who held the scepter in his hands and wore the robes of a Pope.