Mystery: When the Fool Meets the Masked Fool

Chapter 11: Star Opening the Treasure Chest
As the sun set, Klein Moretti left Blackthorn Security. With a huge sum of 12 pounds in his pocket, Klein appeared in high spirits.

Since he had no change to take the public carriage, the newly rich Mr. K decided to engage in revenge consumption. He went to a roadside clothing store to buy the cheapest walking stick, and used this as change to break up the large amount of gold pounds.

"This is truly a problem only rich people have." Klein, who was used to being poor, thought so.

"That makes perfect sense. Otherwise, how would wealthy people who only carry large amounts of cash ride on public carriages?" Klein knew that most wealthy people had their own private carriages, but that didn't stop him from imagining the "meat porridge" of another world.

Klein, secretly making up a few words about rich people, turned into a "Wilker Clothing Store."

The layout of the clothing store was very similar to the one he had visited before he traveled through time. There was a row of formal suits against the wall on the left, shirts, trousers, vests, ties and other items in the middle, and pairs of leather shoes and boots placed in glass cabinets on the right.

The store wasn't crowded, with only a few customers. Therefore, as soon as Klein entered, a waiter in a white shirt and red vest came forward to greet him. There wasn't the typical novel scene where the protagonist enters a store and the waiter gives him a dismissive look.

Of course, this might also be because, while Klein's attire wasn't formal, it was certainly decent. At least he wasn't like the male protagonists in early urban romance novels, dressed like a beggar and groping around in other people's shops.

After understanding Klein's needs, the waiter with a professional smile took Klein to the corner where the cane was placed.

At that moment, a man and a woman were talking to each other. Although they looked like adults, Klein had a feeling that they were two children who hadn't even graduated from grammar school.

Because they were far away, and both of them were deliberately lowering their voices to avoid disturbing others, Klein couldn't hear what they were saying. He could only see the boy gesturing with his hands, while the girl was holding a cane and waving it occasionally, as if she were playing golf, a game invented by Emperor Roselle.

These are Xing and Ceris, who had originally acted separately but were brought together again because of the "Law of Aggregation of Abstract Things".

The "Law of Aggregation of Abstract Things" is a hypothesis proposed by the great god of joy, Aha.

That is, when two or more abstract things with different ways of thinking exist in a crowd, they will attract each other and produce a clustering reaction. When two or more abstract things cluster together, there is a certain probability that one of them will evolve into the King of Ideas.

"I think we should get another jeep," Xing suggested.

Ceres immediately understood what Xing was thinking: "This is a cane. There's a difference between a cane and a crutch."

"What does it matter? They all look the same anyway. Who says a cane can't be used as a crutch?"

"But there are no jeeps here either, only carriages." Serris's words were undoubtedly a heavy blow, shattering Xing's fantasy.

Is it reasonable for the Cane Star People to not have Jeep Monsters? Of course it's unreasonable! It's just as unimaginable as the Super Beasts feeling pain.

[Hey, I have an idea. Maybe we can name the horse that pulls the carriage Jeep.]

"Hey, you are really a talented person." Serris suddenly realized and was overjoyed.

Great! He can also drive a Jeep to create...

No, Serris realized the cane was in Xing's hand. Xing was the Cane Alien, so he was the one who got hurt!
[Hey, that's what I want to see! Rushing towards the jeep!]

"No, I don't understand!"

"What's that expression of yours? What's that look in your eyes? What's that tear of yours? Come towards the jeep!" Xing also came to join in the fun.

…………

As for why these two people had spawned in this shop, Xing, who had been passing by the shop a few minutes ago, had said so, and pulled out a tattered box from behind the shelf where the canes were kept in the corner. Inside was a rather plain cane.

This looks like a failed product that was discarded before it could be decorated.

But is this right?

[Are you willing to admit it? Going against the grain is a failure. Do you accept this outcome?]

"I don't admit it." Xing's answer was sonorous and resounding.

【Yes! That's it! 】

【This is a rough stone with infinite possibilities, waiting for your personal carving.】

【Take it with you, embark on your journey, use your future experiences as a chisel, use your future achievements as embellishments, and carve it into the most shining gem.】

Xing held the cane in her arms and said that this was the first piece of equipment she had opened from the treasure chest since she came here. It was the "worn sword" obtained by the hero when he left the novice village.

Ceres thought this made sense, and bought the "worn sword" for 1 soli and 5 pence under the complicated look of the waiter.

Xing couldn't let it go and decided to name it "Edgeless Sword".

[This is simply the meaning of travel. Maybe you can dye your hair yellow.]

…………

After paying, Ceris and Xing passed by Klein, who was trying out his cane. Klein glanced up, his eyes immediately drawn to the mask hanging from Ceris's waist, visible beneath his windbreaker. It was almost identical to the one pictured on the flyer for the "World's End" tavern.

"The Masked Fool"

This word flashed through Klein's mind, causing his eyes to move slightly in thought.

Klein had some suspicions about Mr. Devil's identity, suspecting he might be connected to the mask. Now, seeing Serris's mask and comparing his figure to the Mr. Devil he'd seen above the gray fog, Klein felt more and more that the man walking further and further away was most likely Mr. Devil.

Although Klein would not take the initiative to inquire about the identities of the Tarot Club members, if a member appeared before him, Klein would not deliberately avoid thinking about it.

"Sir, please calm down and relax. We can still discuss discounts and other things." The waiter's voice came from not far away. At this moment, the waiter was leaning against the corner, close to a double-barreled shotgun on the wall.

Only then did Klein realize he was waving his cane to test the feel. And just now, the way he'd been staring at the other guests as they walked away looked more like he was about to strike them with a club.

Klein forced an awkward yet polite smile, expressing his satisfaction with the 7 soli 6 pence cane. He paid with a heavy heart and quickly left.

The clerk opened his mouth and reached out from behind Klein, trying to get him to stay a little longer, at least until the two people Klein had "targeted" earlier were gone.

In the end, he still didn't dare to speak.

(End of this chapter)