Evah naturally didn't join the trade. Both he and his Jack persona knew the knowledge inside out, so there was no need or reason to participate.
He just watched the deal wrap up. Justice Audrey, having completed her knowledge trade with Mr. Fool, turned to Hanged Man Alger, asking if he'd prepared the items discussed at the last Tarot Club.
The Tarot Club shifted to the members' trading phase. Once it concluded, Mr. Fool spoke again, announcing he needed the members' cooperation for an experiment.
This experiment was, of course, the sacrificial ritual Klein had been tinkering with. The high-concept ritual sent the Tarot Club members—mostly Justice Audrey and Hanged Man Alger—into a frenzy of speculation.
To Little Sun Derrick, Mr. Fool was already a god, so a sacrificial ritual was par for the course.
Evah, knowing Klein's deal inside out, was half-acting, half-enjoying the show.
With that, Mr. Fool declared the Tarot Club meeting over.
"With the sacrificial ritual in place, Sefirah Castle's logistics company is officially open for business. Not easy, running a startup as an evil god, managing logistics. Who'd believe it?" Evah quipped inwardly, pleased about the logistics setup. It'd make trading through the Tarot Club much smoother.
He glanced out the window, confirmed no one was around and Mr. Fool wasn't peeking, then cheerfully headed to the second floor. There, he pulled out the sealed Conqueror characteristic.
If you asked Evah his biggest gain from the Tingen incident, it'd be this Conqueror characteristic. He hadn't expected Adam to be so generous, handing him one.
"The only downside is pure characteristics aren't easy to use. Gotta find someone to craft it into a mystical item." Evah poked the sealed Conqueror characteristic, his mind briefly flashing to Roselle.
Sure, the God of Craftsmanship was the top artisan, but Evah wasn't chummy with Him and had no leverage to demand a custom mystical item. Roselle, with clear weaknesses and desires, was the better bet.
"To summon Roselle's Shadow of Time, I'd need someone close to him like Bernadette or an item directly tied to him… Guess I'll have to get that Red Priest Blasphemy Card from Medici. Perfect, I need to talk to him anyway." Evah's lips curled into a smirk.
He did need to meet Medici—or rather, have a chat with the True Creator's side. Whether it was Adam's request for the Ancient Sun God to witness everything and make a choice, or the Conqueror characteristic itself, both were solid talking points, right?
"Just not sure where this characteristic came from. Conqueror, huh…" Evah recalled the fates of a few Conqueror characteristics from the original story, and his mind landed on the Primordial Demoness.
Evah knew full well the Primordial Demoness's ties to the Primordial God and the Original Creator. Thinking of Cheek and Tudor's unhinged future plan to fuse into a mini-Original, he let out a "tch."
Evah didn't care about the Primordial Demoness's schemes. She didn't succeed in the original story, and even if she had created a mini-Original, it wouldn't affect him.
"Unless it messes with me. Then we'll see who's tougher—a half-baked Original or a full-blown Celestial Worthy or God. That'd be fun." Evah's smile widened.
He wasn't into the sneaky conspiracies of Lord of Mysteries's lunatics. Evah knew his limits; scheming wasn't his forte.
If he had to play, he'd go big.
"But lunatics are a hassle, especially when they decide to drag the world down with them. Tch, trying to steal my gig?" Evah shook his head. He didn't mind mutual destruction, but only if he was the one pulling others into the abyss.
That's why Evah wasn't fond of the Primordial Demoness and Tudor, that lunatic couple. It was a bit of professional rivalry—they just rubbed each other the wrong way.
"Better take precautions…" Evah tapped the desk lightly with his fingertip. "I'll sell this info to Little Red during our meeting, save him from blundering into a trap. Honestly, compared to the two Sequence 0s of the Calamity pathway, Medici's too normal. No wonder he can't outplay them."
Then, Evah's eyes narrowed. His finger pressed on the Conqueror characteristic as a possibility hit him, and his lips curved.
"Is this why you gave me the Conqueror characteristic, Adam?"
Others might not know the Primordial Demoness and Tudor's plot, but Adam, who'd sensed something early and preemptively crushed Tudor, must have suspicions, even if he didn't know the full picture.
So, Adam handing Evah a Conqueror characteristic was intriguing.
The Primordial Demoness might snatch it from someone else, but taking it from Evah? She'd have to survive a slap from the Ancient Sun God first.
"Maybe there's a test in it too. You're probably curious how much I know about this world…" Evah chuckled, unbothered if Adam heard him. He pulled a mirror from the cabinet, ready to summon Medici for a chat.
…
"Heard you need me. What's up? Even the great Chaos Sovereign needs help from a little Red Angel like me?" Medici didn't take long to show up. The red-haired evil spirit appeared silently in the mirror, then stepped out like a paper cutout turning 3D, looking just as he did when Evah first met him.
Well, almost. He seemed in better shape, probably because the True Creator fed him some high-sequence Hunter pathway characteristics.
Evah wasn't surprised to hear "Chaos Sovereign" from Medici. He hadn't told the True Creator's camp that title, but with Adam lurking nearby, it was no shock they'd swapped notes.
Evah just glanced at Medici, grinning. "Sounds like you and Adam are getting along. Planning to team up again?" His tone was free of sarcasm, genuinely curious.
That grossed Medici out, his expression visibly souring.
He hadn't forgotten Adam's betrayal, but he also knew sharing info with Adam was necessary when dealing with this weird creature. Annoyed as he was, Medici had to grit his teeth and deal.
So, Evah's earnest question made him feel like Amon was crawling up his spine. "Don't say disgusting stuff like that," he snapped.
"Alright, respecting your wishes. Let's talk about something fun." Evah nodded, still grinning. "So, how'd you know Adam gave me a Conqueror characteristic?"
Medici: ?
Medici: !!!
(End of Chapter)