After the 'Leader' finished writing down the answer, an attendant took the note and began circulating it among those who had paid for the information...
Soon, it was Xio's turn. She noticed the somewhat sloppy handwriting of the 'Leader':
<...The Rose School of Thought primarily consists of Beyonders following the 'Prisoner' Pathway. The Sequence 7 of the 'Prisoner' Pathway is called 'Werewolf', and Sequence 6 is 'Zombie'.
The former is something most of you may have heard of... they transform into mindless werewolves during the full moon. The latter, however, becomes extremely weak during the full moon and craves the warm blood of living humans.
Therefore, it's relatively easy to spot Beyonders of these two Sequences during a full moon, which is why I made the connection to the 'Rose School of Thought'...>
Xio handed the note back to the attendant while thinking: 'So that's how it is. It really does require extensive knowledge of Mysticism and experience in intelligence work to deduce something like this...'
After reading the note, everyone was impressed by the Leader's erudition and keen insight.
Once most had finished reading the information, the gathering resumed...
Byron (Lion) stood up and said, "Leader, I haven't had the chance to thank you these past few days. Now that I've seen you again today..." He bowed deeply, "Thank you for rescuing me. From now on, if there's anything you need, just give the order... I'll be at your disposal."
This was practically a public declaration of loyalty.
"Hehe," Elephant suddenly chuckled, "Do you really think you're capable of helping the 'Leader' solve problems?"
The guy had no ulter motive in saying this, he just liked running his mouth.
But Byron immediately responded, "I imagine even the 'Leader' has trivial matters that need attending, things I can easily handle."
Just as Elephant was about to throw out another sarcastic remark, Odis smiled and interjected, "I already promised to do my best to ensure your survival. There's no need to take it so seriously."
"No," Byron insisted, "To you, it may not be a big deal, but to me, it's incredibly important."
"Very well," Odis conceded without further refusal, "If the need arises, I'll let you know."
Byron bowed deeply once more before returning to his seat.
The female member, 'Peacock', remarked, "It seems Lion was discovered by Capim's men. Though I suppose there's no need to worry about Capim's retaliation now. He's dead after all."
At that moment, 'Hound' suddenly said, "I heard it was the 'Leader' who shot Capim."
"What?" Peacock lost her usual air of leisure, "Leader is the 'Hero Bandit Black Emperor'?"
The others buzzed with discussion. This was the second shocking revelation of the gathering.
Seeing that the Leader didn't stop him, Hound continued, "The 'Leader' was present at the scene of Capim's death."
This statement was startling. Everyone began speculating about the relationship between the 'Leader' and the Hero Bandit.
Noticing the misunderstanding, Byron quickly clarified, "At the time, 'Leader' was there to rescue me. He just happened to be present during the Hero Bandit's operation."
Almost in unison, everyone let out an "Oh," now understanding the sequence of events.
Xio nodded slowly: 'So that's how it was...'
But then, she realized something was off. Earlier, Hound had said the Leader shot Capim, while the masked man had claimed the Leader killed one of Capim's subordinates.
'Why are the two accounts different?' she thought.
So, she asked, "Mr. Leader, did you participate in the fight between the Hero Bandit and Capim?"
"Yes," Odis replied, "Capim's subordinates mistakenly believed I was an accomplice of the Hero Bandit, so they attacked me. I had no choice but to retaliate."
Peacock grinned, "And in doing so, you ended up killing Capim himself."
Odis smiled, saying, "I was merely acting in self-defense."
Everyone wore expressions of understanding. Giraffe even added, "Honestly, if I had the chance, I'd have taken that bastard down too."
But Hound cautioned, "I wouldn't advise acting recklessly. You don't have the Church's protection. From what I've heard, Archbishop Horamick of the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery personally intervened to prevent further investigation into the Leader."
If it had been an independent Beyonder, the investigation wouldn't have ended there. The Hero Bandit might have disappeared without a trace, but with so many deaths involved, someone had to take the fall.
Listening to the discussion, Xio pieced things together: 'It seems both Hound and the masked man were correct. Leader did kill Capim, along with at least one of his subordinates.'
But then she wondered: 'Why did the masked man emphasize the killing of Capim's subordinate while omitting the fact that Leader killed Capim himself?'
Meanwhile, Peacock asked, "Leader, were any of Capim's subordinates Beyonders?"
Odis answered, "Yes."
This didn't surprise anyone. Many Beyonders didn't care whether their money was earned through dirty means.
"What Sequences were they?" Peacock pressed.
Odis smiled, saying, "That, I can't say."
And indeed, he couldn't say. If people learned that one of Capim's 'subordinates' was a Sequence 6 Beyonder from the 'Arbiter' Pathway, they'd start drawing all sorts of conclusions.
That could very well attract the attention of the royal family.
Odis was certain that his 'Leader' persona was already under surveillance by MI9. But with the Machinery Hivemind's protection, they were only keeping an eye on him, nothing more.
Still, his response was enough to make people sense that there was more to the story.
After all, if it were just a few Low-Sequence Beyonders, the Leader could have easily shared that detail. The fact that he couldn't say suggested something far more significant...
Every intelligence-savvy member in the room caught the implication... if even the 'Leader' couldn't disclose it, then Capim's case was far more complicated than it seemed.
Xio's question was also answered: 'It seems Capim's subordinates had major connections, which is probably why the masked man had focused on them.'
Odis didn't dwell on the topic. Instead, he announced, "I have an important matter to announce. From today onward, this gathering will no longer prohibit the sale of potion formulas."
This immediately grabbed everyone's attention, pushing thoughts about Capim's case to the back of their minds.
Especially for those members who weren't yet Beyonders... this suddenly gave them hope of becoming Extraordinary themselves.
Meanwhile, Peacock, 'Wolverine', and a few others smiled. This would be a great opportunity to recruit new members for their organizations.
But then Odis added, "I currently have potion formulas for six Sequences available for purchase, each priced at 230 pounds. Next, I'll explain the Pathways these formulas belong to and their characteristics..."
Peacock and Wolverine instantly stopped smiling.
Since the decision to allow potion formula sales at these gatherings required approval from their superiors, they wouldn't be able to sell any formulas until the next gathering.
And now, with the 'Leader' offering six choices this time, they likely wouldn't be recruiting any new members today...