Exploring Technology in a Wizard World
Chapter 416 - 415: Divination, Tarot Cards

Chapter 416: Chapter 415: Divination, Tarot Cards

October, Frost Month.

Although the East Coast is close to the ocean and generally falls within the maritime climate zone, the impact of sunlight has begun to drive temperatures down. The air turned bitterly cold, and the wind at night, funneling into people’s clothes, was as painfully sharp as knife scraping flesh.

Hai Ya.

This port city along the East Coast wasn’t too big or small, a medium-sized settlement that gained its name because the land extending into the ocean resembled two enormous beast fangs.

About a few thousand people lived here. Buildings of varying heights were haphazardly arranged, clearly lacking proper planning. The streets had no drainage ditches, with sewage flowing freely, and most of the ground was dirt, turning into a slippery mire whenever it rained—utterly abhorrent.

At this moment, Hai Ya’s sky was a dreary grey, and the bone-chilling cold rain fell like broken strands of beads, soaking the ground and drenching the rooftops. The streets, due to the icy chill, were devoid of pedestrians and eerily quiet. The taverns were bustling, however: people with no place to go gathered there, craving a glass or two of the cheapest liquor, while eagerly bragging and boasting about all manner of things.

Guevara Tavern was Hai Ya’s liveliest spot.

The reason wasn’t that it offered great service or delicious meals, but simply because its drink prices were nearly a tenth lower than other taverns.

That was enough!

At this time, within Guevara Tavern, many people sat around wooden tables, talking loudly and animatedly.

"Hey, Duke, have you heard? Last month, there was a ship named ’Black Thorn’ that sailed out to sea and encountered the legendary Ghost Ship. Not a single soul returned," a man said, his skin a bronze hue from frequent sun exposure.

"Psh, Hal, your news is outdated and can’t compare to mine," Duke, a lean man with dark skin, replied with a hint of disdain after hearing his companion’s words, "Let me tell you, just over half a month ago, another ship named ’Nautilus’ also came across the Ghost Ship, and likewise, not one person came back.

You have no idea. That ship carried the ship owner’s daughter, called Eliza, who had just turned eighteen this year. Her skin was white, especially her hands—so pale as if they had been soaked in milk, soft and smooth, tsk tsk. What a pity."

At this point, the third person at the table spoke up, a fellow with small, close-set eyes, his voice somewhat shrill: "You know, Duke, Hal, do you ever get tired of talking about the Ghost Ship all day long? Have you actually seen one, or what? Can’t you talk about something more realistic?"

The two men discussing the Ghost Ship turned to look at the third, and Duke spoke, "Pister, we don’t like what you’re saying. Whether you believe it or not, everything we’re talking about is true."

"That’s right," Hal concurred.

Pister rolled his eyes, his voice still pointedly sharp, "Yeah, as if I’d believe that. According to you two, both the ’Black Thorn’ and the ’Nautilus’ encountered the Ghost Ship and never returned, so how would you know what happened? Were you on those ships? Or maybe, you’re from the Ghost Ship? Hmph, it’s nothing more than hearsay you’ve heard from others, completely unreliable. You guys are really too naïve."

"You!" Duke and Hal were at a loss for words. Hal, who had a bit of a temper, couldn’t help but stand up, about to give the talkative Pister a lesson.

Just then, with a "creak," the door to the tavern swung open, letting in the outside cold wind and the icy rain.

Hal and his company were sitting close to the door. Sprayed by the rain, Hal couldn’t help but shiver. Muttering a disgruntled curse, he instinctively looked towards the door, forgetting about giving Pister a lesson.

Hal then saw two figures clad in straw raincoats walk in, one tall, one short. The two removed their straw coats, revealing their true faces—a young man dressed in black and a young girl who was not fully grown yet.

Seeing this combination, Hal couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. Out of habit, he subconsciously looked toward the young man’s waist, searching for a money bag. But... there was no money bag to be seen, instead, a shiny longsword hung at his waist, which didn’t seem like any ordinary sort.

"Hmm, not a rookie then..." Hal thought to himself, quickly averting his gaze.

...

From another perspective.

Richard, with Pandora in tow, entered the tavern called "Guevara." After taking off the rainproof cloak, he quickly became aware of many eyes casting their gaze upon him.

Some were curious, some were inquisitive, and a few were malevolent.

Fortunately, those looks didn’t linger long; after noticing the longsword at his waist, most of them sensibly turned away. There were a few stubborn stares, but he didn’t mind and pulled Pandora towards the counter.

It was the fifth day since they had left White Stone Tower.

After leaving White Stone Tower with Pandora, they traveled by carriage to the seaside. However, they didn’t head for the port where he first landed on the East Coast; instead, they chose Hai Ya, a rather ordinary place.

The reason was simple: the port where he first landed was one of the largest on the entire East Coast. He suspected that members of the Mysterious Organization or other wizards might be present, so to avoid as much trouble as possible, he steered clear.

He hoped they could make it to Mo’er without any issues.

As Richard thought this, he stepped up to the counter.

The tavern keeper, a rotund man with a greasy face, greeted him with the utmost sincerity, rubbing his hands and saying, "Welcome to ’Guevara’ Tavern, dear guest! How may I serve you?"

"Slap!"

Richard flipped his hand, and a silver coin slapped onto the table. He spoke directly, "Get me a glass of water, and... I’d like to ask you for some information."

The tavern keeper’s eyes shone as he quickly pocketed the silver coin, still smiling sincerely, "Sure thing, water’s easy. But I wonder what kind of information you’re after? If it’s something illegal, I can’t guarantee I’ll tell you, though... the silver coin is non-refundable, you understand."

"Is that so," Richard said, "Well, you don’t need to worry too much. The information I’m seeking is quite simple: when does a ship set sail?"

"Ah, that," said the tavern keeper, "indeed, that is simple." He waved at the patrons sitting in the tavern, "I can tell you this much: at least half the people here are sailors. They only came back because they got caught in the rain and are waiting it out here. As soon as the weather clears up, they’ll all be setting out to sea."

"You might have misunderstood me. When I say setting out to sea, I mean sailing the high seas," Richard clarified without showing any anger at the tavern keeper’s feigned ignorance, "I would like to know if there is a large ship heading north any time soon. I wish to travel to the north with them."

"Northbound? Large ship?" The tavern keeper scratched his head, frowning, "I’d have to give that some thought, really think about it..."

"Slap!"

Richard slapped a second silver coin on the table.

"Ha! I remember now," the tavern owner quickly spoke out, then even more swiftly pocketed the silver coin.

"A ship heading north, there should be one," the tavern owner said, "But... guest, you should also know that our port is not that large, so many northbound ships won’t stop here.

Moreover, recently, there have been rumors spreading about a ’Ghost Ship,’ putting everyone on edge, and many large ships take detours to avoid it, so there have been even fewer dockings. Three days ago, the ’Lord Beili’ docked to replenish fresh water and food, but beyond that, I really don’t know..."

"Really don’t know?"

"Really don’t know..." the tavern owner replied with a sincere face.

"Slap!"

Richard slapped a coin on the table for the third time; this time, it wasn’t a silver coin, but a shiny gold one!

A single gold coin was worth dozens of silver coins!

The tavern owner’s eyes instantly lit up, and he reached for it but couldn’t move it because Richard had a finger "lightly" pressing down on it—after acquiring the treasure of White Stone Tower and the Black Spirit King, Richard generally couldn’t be bothered with money, but that didn’t mean he was willing to be taken for a fool. The tavern owner in front of him was clearly greedy, and Richard was willing to satisfy his greed, but only if his own needs were met first.

"Clack, clack, clack!"

The tavern owner tried several times to lift the gold coin that Richard was "lightly" holding down with a finger, to no avail. He gave up, realizing what this meant. Looking up at Richard, he carefully asked, "Guest, I really don’t know about any large ships heading north, at least not now. After all, big ships navigate the sea; if they don’t dock, there’s no way to contact them. I can’t exactly fly out to inquire, can I?"

"I understand that, so I have a request."

"A request? Tell me!"

"Send someone to keep a close watch on the port, and when a northbound ship docks, go negotiate with them to see if they can take on two more people. If you can do this for me, the gold coin is yours. For now, it stays with me."

"This—"

"Furthermore, get me a better room, and don’t forget about the water I ordered just now. The two silver coins I gave you earlier should more than cover these costs," Richard said, then he put away the gold coin, turned, and, pulling Pandora along, headed towards an empty table in the tavern. They arrived and sat down.

Quickly, the tavern owner followed, carefully placing a glass of water on the table. His mind was still on the gold coin, somewhat unwilling to let it go, he said, "Guest, I assure you, as soon as there’s a northbound ship docking, I’ll contact you for sure. About the gold coin..."

"I’ll keep it safe for you."

"This... alright then." Completely resigned, the tavern owner hung his head and left, "I’ll... I’ll go prepare your room."

Richard watched the tavern owner leave, then turned his gaze back and was about to drink the glass of water on the table when suddenly a voice sounded from nearby, "Child, you seem a bit lost. How about I tell your fortune?"

"Hmm?" Richard turned his head to look, his eyes narrowing slightly.

He saw that the speaker was a woman sitting at a nearby table.

This woman was wrapped up tightly, it was unclear whether it was because of the cold or some kind of caution, as her entire body was barely exposed, and she was covered in a black robe. Her face was veiled with black cloth, revealing only her eyes, which were a bit cloudy, suggesting she wasn’t young. Combined with the tone of her voice, Richard guessed she was in her forties or fifties.

What put Richard on alert was this woman had been one of the few people watching him intently since he had entered the door. Clearly, she was interested in him or had a purpose from the start.

Was she preparing to take action now?

Divination?

That’s somewhat interesting...

Richard thought to himself as he looked at the woman and seriously asked, "How do you plan to tell my fortune? With copper coins? Or perhaps a crystal ball?"

"No, those things are all deceptive. My divination is the real thing, hence I use genuine divination tools—something you’ve definitely never seen before," the woman spoke.

As she spoke, the woman stepped forward, sat down next to Richard’s table, and then pulled a deck of cards from her robe, giving them a shake before placing them on the table: "Look, these!"

Richard briefly glanced at the cards out of the corner of his eye and raised his eyebrows. He noticed that what the woman held was the very famous tarot cards from the modern world of Earth in the West.

Yes, tarot cards!

In modern Earth, tarot cards first appeared in the middle of the 15th century—at the end of the Medieval era.

At that time, tarot cards were used as a card game, originating from an Italian court card game called Tarocchi.

Later, not until the 18th century, tarot cards began to be used by mystics and esoteric scholars for divination purposes.

Now, in this world similar to the Medieval era, tarot cards seemed to appear a bit early. Of course, since a 20th-century bulbous bow had appeared, tarot cards were completely acceptable since the technology involved in tarot cards is virtually nonexistent.

Generally, tarot cards are similar to playing cards with usually 78 cards, made up of two different types of suits. The first type is known as the Major Arcana, consisting of 22 non-suited cards, acting as the so-called "trump cards." The second type is the Minor Arcana, made up of 56 cards divided into four suits. Each suit has cards numbered 2 to 10, plus an Ace and four court cards. Then by interpreting the different meanings of the card faces, an attempt is made to tell a person’s fortune or the outcome of an event.

Whether it is scientific or not is a matter of opinion.

At least, Richard doesn’t believe in it.

Of course, Richard didn’t show too much of his personal bias. After simply looking at the cards, he spoke up: "Tarot cards?"

The divination woman, hearing Richard’s words, flashed a look that revealed both awkwardness and surprise, and said, "Tarot cards? Have you encountered these cards before?"

"You could say that."

"Is that so? Well, tarot cards are your term for them, I prefer to call them Destiny Cards," the woman replied deeply, looking at Richard, "So how about it, child, shall I help you divine your uncertain fate?"