20

  Chapter 96 "Suicide"

  They did not go directly to the crime scene on the boulevard. There were no bullet shells or bloodstains left there, and people were coming and going during the day, so it was not suitable for direct divination.

  Leonard was quite experienced in handling cases outside. He took the two novices to the intersection of the boulevard and Field Street, where the police station that governed several nearby blocks was located.

  After several people showed their inspector badges and explained their purpose, the police officer on duty took them to a small room next to the evidence room. After waiting for a while, another police officer, about 30 years old, with two V-shaped stripes on his shoulder straps, came in holding a small paper box.

  Seeing that the three people in the room were wearing inspector badges, the police officer quickly put down the paper box and saluted, with a little surprise and uneasiness on his face.

  "Hello, I'm Inspector Leonard Mitchell, this is Miss Granger and Mr. Moretti, we're here to retrieve the evidence from the Boulevard suicide case on July 21, and to hear the testimony of the police officers who handled the case."

  "Sir!" The police officer saluted first, then continued to answer: "I was the first police officer to arrive at the scene, you can call me Dean, I have brought the evidence with me."

  Dean said, picked up the paper box and handed it to Leonard.

  "Very good, please repeat the situation at the time of the crime, in detail."

  Leonard took the paper box, opened it and placed the items inside on the table. The paper box was not big, and there were only three pieces of evidence: a brand new brass revolver, three small-caliber bullet shells, and a paper roll that seemed to have something written on it.

  He flipped through it and asked Dean to continue.

  "Okay."

  Dean swallowed his saliva, took a few seconds to organize his words, and began to describe the situation at the time.

  "On July 21, Saturday morning, it was almost noon. I was patrolling Field Street. When I was about to reach the intersection with the Boulevard, I first heard a gunshot, and then a lady screamed. It was from the Boulevard..."

  Dean was attracted by the screams and thought that a vicious robbery had occurred. He immediately ran towards the Boulevard. After walking about 200 meters, he saw the dead body of Lawrence surrounded by passers-by.

  He was lying on the ground, with a big hole in the back of his head, red and yellow scattered all over the ground, and holding a brand new revolver in his hand.

  There were panicked ladies, men pretending to be calm, and children who were taken away from the scene by their parents with their eyes covered. Everyone looked panicked and innocent.

  "You knew his name was Lawrence at the time. Did you know him?" Leonard asked curiously. He was listening and looking through the evidence with gloves on.

  "No, I didn't recognize the deceased, but a passerby recognized him and introduced him to me. The deceased was the founder of Tingen Second Steel Plant, which went bankrupt last month due to poor management and heavy debts." "

  The owner of a bankrupt enterprise... I understand, you continue."

  Leonard nodded and handed the revolver to Angel, who also put on the cloth gloves provided by the evidence room and took the revolver to examine it.

  Small caliber, single action, the lubricating oil in the bolt is still very clean, and the rifling is not worn. It looks like it was newly bought... There is a little blood on the muzzle because it was fired against the upper jaw... The cylinder can hold six rounds, but there are only three shells. One was used for suicide. Was the rest used for practicing with the new gun?

  Angel carefully examined the revolver that Lawrence used to commit suicide. Seeing that Leonard stopped asking questions, Dean continued to introduce the case.

  "According to the people at the scene, before Lawrence died, he shouted loudly, attracting passers-by, and displayed the banner he carried with him, denouncing the mayor...Former Mayor Dennis did not abide by the agreement with him, resulting in him still owing a huge debt after bankruptcy. He then took out the revolver from his pocket, put it in his mouth without hesitation, and shot himself to death."

  Klein opened the banner among the evidence on the table. It was a paper banner about 1.5 meters long, with words such as "liar" and "die with the fraudster" written in large blood-red letters. In the middle was the name of former mayor Dennis, and a big cross was drawn on it.   

  "Based on the situation at the time, do you think Lawrence was sane? Did you smell alcohol or drugs?"

  Klein rolled up the banner and asked casually.

  "I didn't smell these smells next to the body. According to people who knew Lawrence, he was very conscious except for being a little excited. He also recognized his acquaintances and asked him to take the children and leave quickly."

  "Would a man who committed suicide in despair after bankruptcy care about these things?" Klein murmured, "What about his family? What about his children? Are there any clues?"

  "Lawrence sent his wife and daughter back to the countryside of Winter County a week before he committed suicide. Their house in Tingen was also taken away by the bank. Winter County is investigating further, but no results have been received yet." "Does

  the police have any information about his relationship or grudges with the former mayor?"

  After checking the pistol, Angel also joined the conversation and asked Dean.

  The police officer shook his head, but did not deny it: "I don't know about this either. The higher-ups said they would investigate, but it has been..."

  Several night watchmen looked at each other.

  "Okay, we understand. Now please go out and wait at the door for a moment. We need to discuss the case. We will call you in if necessary."

  Leonard saw that the other two had no other questions to ask, so he ordered Dean to leave. After the other saluted and left, he immediately locked the door.

  "What do you think?"

  He returned to the table, glanced at several pieces of evidence one by one, and asked in a low voice.

  "The pistol is very new and was purchased recently. Only one shot was fired at the scene, but there were three bullet shells. Lawrence should have tried it before he died and understood the power of the weapon." Angel answered first, "I checked it with my psychic vision. It's just an ordinary revolver, but we can consider starting the investigation from the place where the gun was purchased."

  "He asked the children at the scene to leave before he committed suicide. Maybe he didn't want to scare the children. This shows that Lawrence was still rational at the time and was not impulsive. He didn't want to retaliate against society. He just wanted to commit suicide and give the former mayor some public opinion blows. We can start from the source of hatred and investigate whether the bankruptcy of the steel plant is related to the former mayor."

  Klein took over the conversation, stroking his chin and said, but unfortunately he didn't have a beard, and this behavior seemed a bit artificial.

  "You really think of yourselves as detectives..." Leonard said with a wry smile, "I'm asking if there are any supernatural factors involved. I didn't ask you to come here to investigate the mayor's corruption case."

  "Unless there is a supernatural being who can remotely control him to do these things, what means can make a person commit suicide in the street with a clear mind, and even settle his wife and daughter in advance?" Klein asked, not knowing whether he was asking others or asking himself.

  But he didn't get tangled up, and took out a copper penny from his pocket.

  "It seems that I can only ask the magical George III."

  The fortune teller muttered "Lawrence's death was affected by supernatural factors" and half-closed his eyes and threw the coin upwards.

  (End of this chapter)

  Chapter 97 The truth is approaching

  "George III" was flying in the air, and the head and numbers engraved on the convex surface appeared and disappeared quickly.

  Angel's eyes followed the tumbling coin, trying to see what kind of magical power was affecting the divination props from the divination process. Unfortunately, the ordinary coin just rotated and fell normally, and was then caught steadily by Klein.

  He spread his palm, and the big "1" on the coin was facing up.

  "The number means negation. Lawrence's death does not involve extraordinary factors."

  Klein explained slowly, with a little regret in his tone.

  "I didn't expect the first case to be ruled out as a normal incident."

  Leonard's expression was not surprised or disappointed. Perhaps he had been mentally prepared for a long time and knew that the investigation process would not be so smooth.

  "Let's go to the next location. We have to speed up."

  He put the revolver and banner back into the paper box, closed the lid, and prepared to greet Dean in.

  "Wait a minute," Angel rushed forward and pressed the paper box, "It doesn't have to be affected by extraordinary factors. At least I know a way to do this without using extraordinary abilities."

  "What? How to do it?"

  Leonard seemed a little surprised. He put down the paper box and looked at Angel.

  "For example, if a Beyonder, a Beyonder with a strengthened body, directly uses his extraordinary physical strength to beat a victim to death, will divination indicate that the deceased is affected by extraordinary factors?"

  Angel looked at Klein and asked.

  The latter thought for a moment and shook his head: "The incident does not involve extraordinary abilities and extraordinary items. Divination will give a negative answer."

  He frowned and asked back: "You mean, Lawrence did come into contact with the Beyonder, but this person did not use extraordinary abilities, but used threats, provocations, or instigation..." As soon

  as the word came out, he was stunned.

  "That's right, Sequence 8 of the 'Assassin' path, 'Instigator' can do this just by talking. Most of the time, there is no need to use extraordinary abilities."

  Angel continued to speak.

  After getting the hint, Klein took out the 1-penny copper coin, but after thinking for a moment, he put it back into his pocket. He pulled open the sleeve of his left hand and shook out the silver chain on his wrist. The yellow crystal at the end swayed slowly, reflecting the gas light in the room, emitting a flickering light.

  "Lawrence's death is related to the Extraordinary."

  Angel reminded.

  This will point the target of divination to the behavior of "Extraordinary" rather than the influence of certain "Extraordinary abilities. "

  Klein nodded, first looked at Angel with a scrutinizing look for a few seconds, and then re-entered a meditative state, holding the yellow crystal pendant steadily in his left hand, half-closing his eyes.

  "Lawrence's death is related to the Extraordinary."

  After silently repeating it seven times, he opened his eyes.

  The crystal pendant was slowly rotating clockwise.

  "This means that there is indeed an Extraordinary who instigated him to commit suicide publicly on the street just through words."

  Leonard said first, his expression was a little excited, this was the excitement of finding valuable clues in the fog.

  "Can we find this instigator through divination?"

  Angel asked curiously.

  At this time, Klein had already put away the yellow crystal pendant and wrapped the silver chain around his left wrist. When he heard her question, he shook his head and denied it.   

  "Dream divination may work, but it requires sufficient information for divination to give a definite answer. I think this little bit of evidence is not enough, and it will only waste our spiritual energy."

  "Then let's go to the next location, collect more clues, and prepare more related items."

  Leonard made a decision immediately.

  He called Dean, who was waiting outside the door, and borrowed the pistol Lawrence used to commit suicide and the banner used to denounce the former mayor by using his identity as an inspector and a signed IOU.

  The three of them put the cardboard box on the hired carriage, and got on the carriage together, calling the driver to go to the next location.

  The driver hired on time obeyed the shouting and drove to the next crime scene calmly.

  …

  "On the afternoon of July 22, Wells, a porter at the paper mill, jumped from a six-story building in the West District and landed on the street with his head on the ground, dying on the spot. Before his death, he beat up the foreman who withheld his wages and even threatened to make him unable to survive in Tingen City. The foreman is still in the hospital with serious injuries. This is the iron rod he used."

  "It has been confirmed that Wells' death was influenced by an extraordinary person."

  …

  "On the afternoon of July 22, a dead person was found in a fire on Sapphire Street. Through his personal belongings, he was identified as a resident next to the fire scene, named Magum. Ironically, the arsonist was this dead person. According to the investigation, he had a long-standing grudge with his neighbor. This time, he took advantage of the other party's weekend at home to try to set fire to the other party's house and burn the neighbor's family to death, but when he set the fire, the fuel he was carrying ignited and he set himself on fire."

  "These are some fragments of clothing and the lighter he used to set the fire."

  "Someone influenced him and triggered the resentment in his heart."

  …

  After finding the correct divination method, the three of them visited several crime scenes and police stations in the West District where evidence was kept. Klein quickly identified them through divination and soon screened all nearby locations.

  "Five of the seven deaths so far have been confirmed to be related to Beyonders. They all instigated crimes and ended their lives in the end." In

  the carriage, Angel spread the map on her legs and unfolded it. Four bright red dots were already marked in the West District of Tingen City. Leonard took the death report and instructed her to mark another location on the map.

  "This is almost the end of the inspection of the West District. Next, we will go to Iron Cross Street. There are a group of concentrated deaths there, most of them are in the lower street. Unlike the previous deaths, many of them died of sudden illness." Looking

  through the follow-up reports, Leonard confirmed the location and knocked on the small window in front of the carriage, asking the driver to change direction and head to Iron Cross Lower Street.

  Klein sat beside him, closed his eyes, and entered a meditative state. He had performed divination many times along the way and was exhausted. At this time, he was recovering his physical strength and spirituality by rushing on the road.

  "Do you need to take a break?"

  Angel asked when he saw that the fortune teller in the team seemed to be about to collapse.

  "Well... we can go to..."

  "Thank you, but no need."

  Leonard's hesitant words were interrupted by Klein, who opened his eyes, glanced at the setting sun outside the window, and shook his head.

  "Find the murderer as soon as possible. Don't worry about me. It's enough for me to rest in the car for a while."

  "...Okay, then let's continue."

  Leonard, the "Midnight Poet", supported his head, then remembered that he was not wearing a top hat today. He awkwardly moved his hand to his chest, pulled at the buttons, and muttered.

  The carriage faced the dim sunlight, crossed the East Iron Cross Street, turned a corner, and drove towards the destination.

  (End of this chapter)

  Chapter 98 The Dead on Lower Street

  As dusk approached, the Iron Cross Lower Street was bustling with people. The noisy atmosphere of the market was overwhelming. The street vendors selling fresh and cooked food shouted at the top of their lungs, causing passers-by to slow down their pace and move closer to them.

  In this chaotic street, the carriages would be unable to move forward, so the night watchmen had no choice but to have the hired carriages stop at the street corners and get off to walk to the target location.

  Klein had recovered some of his strength in the car, and now he looked at the passers-by with caution. He lived in a nearby apartment before moving to Daffodil Street. Even now that his living conditions have improved, he often comes here to buy some cheap cooked food, and remains vigilant against the poor and chaotic Iron Cross Lower Street.

  "Be careful of thieves."

  He quietly reminded Angel and Leonard who were traveling with him.

  "Don't worry."

  Leonard didn't care. He pulled open one side of his windbreaker, revealing the holster at his waist. The brass receiver and exquisite handguard of the revolver were exposed, and the police badge on it was highly recognizable.

  In an instant, the greedy, suspicious, and vigilant gazes turned away from him, and the number of eyes staring at the three well-dressed outsiders around him decreased by half.

  "You should also be careful..."

  Klein looked at Angel, who was still unaware, until she suddenly realized and buckled the hood of her windbreaker, blocking the rest of the sight.

  But soon those eyes moved to Klein again, making him worry whether someone among them recognized him as the "Moretti boy".

  You don't know me, you don't know me...

  He muttered to himself, lowered his head, followed Leonard, who was leading the way, and Angel, who was following closely behind, through the street vendors and pedestrians, praying not to be seen by people he knew.

  Fortunately, the busy street section was not long, and they soon arrived in front of a three-story house.

  "This is it, second floor, left."

  Leonard stopped and confirmed the information in his hand again before entering the apartment through the open corridor door.

  Klein finally entered the corridor. He looked around and found that this apartment was even worse than the one he had rented before. There was no gas lamp in the corridor, and it was only illuminated by the sunlight at the entrance. The wall was mottled, revealing the cracked bricks underneath. The wooden stairs creaked and seemed to break at any time, causing people to fall to the next floor.

  They walked up the shaky stairs to the second floor, bypassed the public bathroom that no one cleaned, and stood by the door of the room on the left.

  "Knock, knock--"

  Angel knocked on the door.

  "No one?"

  Klein asked after no one responded for a long time.

  As if he had not expected this to happen, Leonard frowned and knocked on the closed wooden door again.

  This time the door was opened from the inside.

  "Who are you?"

  Behind the door was a short woman. She was wearing a simple linen dress with an apron on the outside. Her brown curly hair was tied behind her head with a headband. Her hands were wet and covered with some soap bubbles, as if she had just washed clothes.

  Seeing three well-dressed and serious-looking men and women outside the door, she showed surprise and a hint of uneasiness on her face.

  "I'm Inspector Mitchell from the Tingen City Police Headquarters. We're here to investigate the death of Val Allison. The sheriff of this street is late, so the three of us can only investigate first."

  Leonard took out the inspector's badge that he had taken off before entering Iron Cross Lower Street, hung it on the outside of his windbreaker again, and said seriously.

  "Sheriff Beech Mountbatten, do you know him?"

  Klein added on the side.

  "Yes... yes, this is Allison's home, the officers, please come in, I'm... Miss Granger, why you?"

  The brown-haired woman heard the name of the notorious sheriff in this neighborhood who liked to punch and kick suspects at the slightest disagreement, and her expression became visibly panicked. She hurriedly made way for the door to let Leonard, who was in the front, enter the room.

  But then she saw Angel following behind her and exclaimed.

  "Do you know her?"   

  Klein looked at Angel curiously and asked.

  "Her name is Tromi, Cole... She was hired by my cousin as a handyman and she also did laundry. I didn't expect that she lived here and I knew her..."

  Angel's eyes widened halfway through.

  "Val Allison is your father?"

  She turned her gaze to the brown-haired woman called Tromi.

  "...Yes, I live with my father and brother. He was buried ten days ago."

  Tromi's face showed a trace of sadness, but it was soon replaced by confusion and uneasiness. It seemed that she was more worried about the purpose of the police officers in front of her and her future life than the death of her relatives.

  "Buried..." Leonard pondered, turned his head and looked at Klein behind him. Seeing that he nodded imperceptibly, he continued, "It's okay, let's see where he died. Please lead the way."

  Wiping the soapy water on her hands on her apron, Tromi nodded silently, walked through the living room with old furniture and messy tables and chairs but full of life, and came to the outer one of the two bedrooms.

  There were two single beds on both sides of the bedroom, one of which was covered with bedding, and the other was empty.

  Without Tromi's introduction, the three night watchmen gathered around the empty bed.

  The deceased had already been buried, and it had been more than ten days, so the divination effect would probably be very poor...

  Klein frowned as he looked at the empty bed board, thinking about how to get useful information.

  "My brother would go to the bar as a guard every afternoon and would not come back until dawn. When he got home that day, he found his father lying on the bed with his hands on his chest... He used to have chest pains frequently, but we saved some money last month and let him buy some medicine, and he has gotten much better. I didn't expect..."

  Tromi whispered beside him.

  "Did he leave anything behind? The ones he often used, clothes, or bedding?"

  Leonard suddenly interrupted Tromi.

  "What? Ah... Sorry, his sheets and quilt are still there, but his clothes are not."

  "Please bring them here and lay them out as they were then. We need to... um, review the scene again."

  Tromi opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but when he saw the inspector badge on Leonard's chest, he pursed his lips, went to the closet in the corner of the room, took out the folded bedding from it, and laid it out on Val's bed again.

  After bringing Tromi back to the living room and whispering a few words, Angel returned to the bedroom alone, closed the door, and looked at Klein.

  "Are these items enough?"

  "It's been too long, and the bedding has been washed. I'll try my best."

  If they went to the gray fog space to perform divination, the effect would definitely be better, but it was impossible to do it in front of the two of them, especially Angel, the "Queen" of the Tarot Club...

  Klein hesitated for a moment, and decided to use dream divination to try.

  Angel took out a dagger, used a simplified ritual to sanctify it, and then constructed a spiritual wall to seal the bedroom. Klein sat on another bed that should belong to Tromi's brother, half leaned against the head of the bed, outlined a ball of light, and quickly entered a dream.

  In the blurry mist, images surrounding the middle-aged man appeared one by one.

  He gritted his teeth and carried the goods, and from time to time he covered his chest and gasped.

  He bargained with the fishmonger in front of the fish stall with red ears.

  He looked at his daughter who went out early and came back late, and his son who went out late and came back early with a sad face.

  When he was queuing to receive his wages, he was patted by a slender hand that stretched out from behind.

  He covered his chest in pain under the crimson moonlight, trying to open his mouth to call for help, but finally closed his eyes.

  (End of this chapter)

  Chapter 99 Clues to the Curse

  "Huh..."

  Angel, who was waiting on the side, saw Klein, who was sitting on the bed, shaking his body and exhaling foul air. Then he opened his eyes and stood up from the bed.

  "He did die of heart disease. I saw the moment he got sick..."

  The "fortune teller" briefly described the scene he saw in the dream divination to the other two.

  "...But before he died, he was patted by a woman, probably a woman's hand. Can an extraordinary person cause a heart attack and die in his own home in this way?"

  Without waiting for Angel and Leonard to answer, Klein had already taken out a penny and performed a quick divination.

  "Val Allison's death was affected by extraordinary factors."

  He silently recited this sentence, threw the coin, followed the coin flying up and down with his eyes, and caught it with both hands with a "snap".

  Spreading his palm, as expected, the relief sculpture of George III was shining in the evening sun.

  "But this is inconsistent with the previous five cases of instigation. I remember that the 'instigator' does not have the ability to make people sick or die, right?"

  Leonard looked at "George III" with a confused expression, and then looked at Angel beside him.

  "The 'instigator' really can't do it. They only have the ability to persuade people with words."

  But if it's not the instigator, but...

  "Then we have to consider the possibility of multiple extraordinary people working together. They let the 'instigator' search for people who are fragile and resentful of others, and persuade them to commit crimes; other companions look for ordinary people who are weak and sick, and use extraordinary abilities to curse them and accelerate their death..."

  Klein sat back at the head of the bed and joined the brainstorming of the two people, and put forward his own views.

  "It may not be multiple people who committed the crime. Maybe there is only one extraordinary person who committed the crime..."

  Because of his familiarity with the "assassin" path, when Angel heard the key words "female", "instigation", and "curse", the first thought in his mind was completely different from the other two.

  "The next sequence of 'Instigator', 'Witch', has the ability to curse others. She can curse others by using their blood, hair, or direct contact."

  "You mean, the same person committed these crimes? She killed nearly a hundred people all over Tingen City in less than half a month alone?"

  Leonard took a breath and seemed to want to refute, but he tilted his head and paused for a moment, then changed his mind.

  "Maybe it's true. This 'witch' doesn't need to go to every crime scene to commit a crime. She just needs to find the target in the crowd, slightly influence them, push their inner thoughts, or aggravate their original illness, so that she has time to kill many people in a short period of time."

  "But why did she do this? To hide the person she really wanted to kill among these dead people? But that would make too much noise. If she only killed a few of them, the police would not notify the official Beyonder because of the large increase in the number of deaths."

  Angel thought about it, but couldn't figure out why this murderer did this. Did she just enjoy killing?

  "No, maybe there are other reasons." Leonard's expression became serious and his brows were furrowed, which made him look even lazier without a hat. "Just imagine, what would have happened if Lawrence, who committed suicide in the street, had not been 'instigated'?"

  "His factory went bankrupt and he was heavily in debt. Even his house was taken away by his creditors. Even if he had not committed suicide in the street because of someone's instigation, he would probably have picked up a pistol and ended his life on impulse one day after getting drunk, and even endangered the people around him."

  Angel deduced based on the existing intelligence.

  Leonard nodded and mentioned another victim: "What about Magram who burned himself to death?"

  Klein thought for a moment and answered: "According to the police investigation, Magram and his neighbors had a deep grudge. He had threatened many times to "use some ruthless means" to deal with his neighbors. Even if he didn't set the fire this time, there would be a murder sooner or later. Even if he didn't kill himself, the law would give him due punishment."

  "Next is Val Allison who died in this bed. According to his daughter's description, Val had a heart disease. Recently, due to high-intensity labor, he had frequent chest pain. As far as I know, once a heart disease causes frequent chest pain, death is not far away."

  This time Leonard gave his own answer.

  "You mean, these victims, even without the intervention of extraordinary power, are already approaching their death date. This Beyonder just artificially shortened their short lives?"

  "A more accurate description is that their lives, which should have been, were "stolen" by this Beyonder."

  Speaking of "stolen", he used an emphatic tone.

  "She stole the lives of these victims in order to prolong her own lifespan?"

  Klein asked with his eyes wide open, lowering his voice, as if he was afraid that his surprised voice would be heard by Tromi outside the door.

  "No, stealing lives for personal use is something that only high-sequence Beyonders can do. Her purpose is probably more complicated, such as using the stolen lives to summon certain evil gods, sacrifice demons, or use them as materials for some large-scale curses. These evil beings love fresh life the most."

  His tone was calm and emotionless, as if he was stating a fact that he had already confirmed in his heart.

  But Angel's heart was not as calm as Leonard's.

  Summoning evil gods, sacrificing demons, and large-scale curses.   

  Behind every word there might be dozens or even hundreds of lives.

  She needed to use the lives of nearly a hundred people as materials. Even if these people only had a few weeks or months left to live, the ones she summoned would probably not be simple beings. Even if it was just to curse some targets that she couldn't easily attack, the number of dead would be astonishing.

  Klein's face also looked very ugly. Seeing that Leonard didn't seem to be in a hurry at all, he hurriedly asked, "Then how do we find her? To carry out such a large-scale sacrificial ceremony, we need a specially built altar and venue, and we need to prepare complex rituals. It may even require the participation of multiple people."

  "That's your business, fortune teller." Leonard forced a smile on his face, "Besides, the altar for such a large-scale ceremony, the altar for sacrificing lives, isn't the surrounding environment easy to imagine?"

  "Stay away from the downtown area and avoid busy streets. It's best to have a single-family building. The surrounding atmosphere is full of death. Except for the host of the ceremony, no life can get close," he said confidently without waiting for Klein to answer, "Because the acquired life needs to be stored, the venue must be sealed with a spiritual wall to bind these ghosts. The environment where the undead gather will be much lower in temperature than nearby, and even sunlight can hardly penetrate."

  "Take the deceased's belongings with you. It will be easy for you to use divination to connect them with the deceased's life that was taken away. Find the ceremony venue, I believe you can do it."

  "I'll try my best."

  Klein was still a little hesitant.

  "There are no outsiders here, so let's be frank."

  Leonard shook his head, somewhat dissatisfied with Klein's attitude.

  "Even as a 'fortune teller', your efficiency and accuracy in divination are terrifyingly high. Look at old Neil, he has been in this business for decades, and he can't compare to you in divination. And when you were chasing Antigonus's notes, you were controlled by the sealed item '2-049'. I later learned that you didn't rely on the notes to remove the negative effects." Did

  he know?

  Angel was listening to Leonard and Klein's conversation. Suddenly, he said something shocking, saying "there are no outsiders" and then began to reveal Klein's secrets. He subconsciously moved his feet and walked closer to Klein, away from this "midnight poet" who didn't know what was going on.

  Klein was also stiff all over, standing by the bed, not knowing what to say.

  "And you," Leonard's gaze shifted to Angel, "Your rich combat experience cannot be explained by the improvement of the 'Assassin' potion, right? I even suspect that without the 'Nightmare' ability, even the captain is not your opponent in close combat. In less than a month, the number of Beyonders defeated by you is too many to count on one hand, and you are only Sequence 9!"

  Sorry, I have been promoted to Sequence 8 now...

  Seeing Leonard's aggressiveness, Angel frowned and did not rush to refute.

  "And I also have some little secrets of my own." The bohemian poet changed the subject and began to talk about his own secrets. "There are all kinds of magical items and extraordinary powers in this world. There will always be people who get them and become the protagonists of the world stage. There won't be too many such people, but there will definitely be more than one or two."

  "You are, and so am I."

  "This does not mean that such people should be imprisoned in the Chanis Gate and brought to the trial court. As long as your behavior does not endanger me, the Nighthawks, or even the entire Tingen City, then we are still teammates, closer teammates, and I hope you will treat me the same way."

  His eyes were frank and sincere, looking at Angel and Klein in turn.

  So this is what you call "open and honest"? Do you think that Klein and I are the same as you, the lucky ones who have some magical items or mysterious powers, and we are talking here to form a private alliance?

  Angel did not rush to answer, but looked at Klein beside him first, but found that he was also looking at me with a serious face.

  It seems that this guy has a lot of secrets...

  However, Leonard is willing to take the initiative to tell the secrets and extend an olive branch. Why not agree to it first? If he is really as he said and does not intend to use these powers to do evil, then the three of them might as well become allies and help each other; if this guy hides in the Nighthawks for some malicious purpose, then more contact with him can also timely discover problems and report them...

  After weighing the pros and cons, Angel took the initiative to extend his right hand: "I agree, as long as you don't endanger us and don't commit crimes in a broad sense, we will always be allies."

  Leonard smiled and stretched out his right hand, but did not hold it. Instead, he placed it on the back of Angel's hand and turned his eyes to Klein, who had not yet expressed his opinion.

  "The premise is that we promise each other not to pry into each other's secrets. And it's better not to let the higher-ups know about our specialness. They may not have this attitude."

  After emphasizing this point, Klein also stretched out his right hand and placed it on the hands of the two.

  "That's exactly what I want to say. I'm glad we have reached a consensus." Leonard smiled even more and retracted his arm.

  "Let's get back to the mission. You guessed right. I can use divination to find the location of the altar, as long as it is located in Tingen City or in an area not far from it."

  After being "frank," Klein seemed to be more relaxed and no longer hesitated.

  "I need to take as many of the deceased's belongings as possible, and I need an absolutely quiet environment. It's not far from Daffodil Street, so let's go to my house."

  "Very good, let's do it. Move quickly, it's going to be dark soon."

  Leonard snapped his fingers, threw the hem of his windbreaker behind him, walked to the door first, and put the door handle on...

  "...Please remove the spiritual wall."

  After twisting the door handle a few times, he turned around and whispered.

  (End of this chapter)

  Chapter 100 Cursed Altar

  "... Tromi, thank you for your cooperation. I'm sorry about your father..."

  After secretly leaving the 5-pound note in the bedroom, Angel sincerely apologized to the handywoman waiting outside the door, and then left the simply furnished two-bedroom apartment.

  If she had time, she would have a good chat with her own handywoman, but now there was no more time to waste.

  Leonard carried the bedding without regard for his manners. The three of them, under the curious eyes of passers-by, quickly returned to the section of Iron Cross Street near the street square along the way they came.

  The hired carriage that brought them here was still parked on the side of the road. The driver sat in the driver's seat, holding an unlit low-quality cigarette in his mouth, and yawned repeatedly.

  Seeing his employer coming, he quickly put the cigarette in his pocket, rubbed his eyes, and cheered up to set off.

  "Daffodil Street, hurry up."

  Leonard threw the bedding into the carriage, and then climbed into the carriage himself.

  "Okay, no problem."

  The driver followed the others and ran through most of the western district of Tingen City in the afternoon. He saw the three gentlemen and the lady going in and out of police stations, residential buildings, and burned houses, and occasionally bringing some strange items into the carriage. He no longer had any curiosity about their strange behavior. He let out a "whoosh", called the horses, and slowly moved forward on the crowded Iron Cross Street.

  ——————

  "Oh no, Melissa is back from school..."

  Looking at the lights on No. 2 Narcissus Street outside the car window, Klein scratched his neck and seemed a little helpless.

  "Melissa, who is that?"

  Leonard also leaned over the window, looked at Klein's house, and asked curiously.

  "His sister, she goes to Tingen Technical School," Angel answered for Klein, "so we can't go to his house for divination, and it's too late to go back to Zouteland Street. My house is not far away, let's go to my house."

  The two men hesitated for a moment and nodded in agreement.

  To avoid being discovered by Melissa in the house, the three got off the carriage from the other side, each carrying a portion of the deceased's belongings, and came to No. 6 Daffodil Street.

  Opening the door, ignoring the thin paper slips falling through the crack of the door, Angel turned on the large gas lamp in the living room, and the living room, which was illuminated by the golden sunlight at dusk, became warmer.

  "Go to the study? Or the bedroom?"

  She looked at Klein who followed her into the house and asked.

  "Well... the study will do."

  Klein looked around and seemed surprised that the furnishings in the living room were too simple. He came back to his senses after hearing Angel's words and quickly answered.

  The three came to the study next to the living room and placed Val's bedding, Magram's burnt clothes and lighters, Lawrence's revolver used for suicide and other items on the floor. Seeing that Klein had taken out a silver knife to set up the spiritual wall, the two people who seemed redundant at the ceremony quickly left the room and thoughtfully helped the fortune teller close the door.

  "Tsk, your house is really... decorated in a Feysac style."

  Sitting on the sofa with his back against the bay window, Leonard half-reclined on the backrest like "Nightmare" Dunn Smith who broke into the room last time, crossed his legs, looked around the furnishings in the living room, and sighed.

  That's the sofa I sat on...

  Angel opened his mouth, but still didn't feel comfortable asking him to give up his seat, so he could only sit on the double sofa opposite the coffee table.

  "...It means that the decoration style is simple, minimalist, less is more... That's about it."

  Seeing that the other party didn't respond, Leonard added an introduction angrily.

  "Aren't you afraid of disturbing his divination?"

  Angel saw that he had no scruples and was shouting loudly, and asked curiously.

  "What does it matter? The spiritual wall can block most sounds and interference. Can you hear Klein praying in there?"

  Leonard said, suddenly changing from sitting against the sofa to leaning forward, lowering his voice and asking: "Speaking of Klein, what do you think of that guy?"

  What do you think? Do you mean his secrets?

  "Didn't we agree not to pry into each other's secrets?"

  Angel was confused, not knowing why Leonard asked her what she thought of Klein at this time.

  "Huh?" Leonard seemed even more surprised than her, and his eyes rolled for a moment before he reacted, "No, I'm not talking about that aspect, I'm talking about your personal opinion of him. Miss Roxanne told me yesterday that you two have been..."

  He showed an ambiguous smile on his face, and his tone became lower and lower, as if he had forgotten what he had just said, that the spiritual wall would block the outside world's voice.   

  "Bang—"

  The door of the study was opened, and Klein walked out of the room slowly, holding a silver knife. His eyes were deep, and the spiritual leakage after meditation had not yet been completely controlled. Behind him was the spiritual wall that had just been removed, and there seemed to be a breeze blowing inside.

  "I found the location of the altar... What's wrong with you?"

  Seeing the two people looking at him like thieves, Klein was stunned by the mysterious aura that had not yet faded because he had just finished divination.

  ——————

  "In order to accurately divine the location of the altar, I used dream divination and saw the scene around the altar." Sitting on the single sofa that Leonard gave up, Klein said slowly, "It was a gray-blue two-story single-family building with all windows closed and curtains drawn. It was surrounded by a dilapidated and dark garden with dark brown soil and no grass, just like the kind commonly seen in ghost stories."

  "The perspective in the dream was very close, and I couldn't see the surrounding buildings. I could tell that it was about the present time, but I couldn't determine the specific location... There was a river behind the house, a very wide river, either the Hoy River or the Tussock River. Other rivers in Tingen City don't have such a wide surface." The

  Hoy River that Klein mentioned spread from York Mountain in the north to the southwest, flowing through the university district in the eastern part of Tingen, and merging into the Tussock River locally. The Tussock River

  originates from the Minerminsk Mountains and flows all the way to the southeast, passing through the docks in the southwest and southern suburbs of Tingen City, and finally entering the sea at Pritz Harbor southeast of Backlund.

  "So, what we're looking for is a two-story house located beside the Tussock River or the Hoy River." Leonard frowned and concluded, "There are hundreds of houses like this in Tingen City. We can only search along the river. The probability of finding it before dark is too low."

  "And once night falls, once it drags on beyond today, the variables will be greater." Angel directly spread out the map they marked the crime scene on the coffee table, "We must determine its location now."

  This is a large-scale map of Tingen City, with detailed markings of various streets, districts and rivers, but not specific houses and buildings. At this time, she has drawn several red dots in the west district, indicating that the murders have been confirmed to be affected by extraordinary powers.

  "Did you see the shadow of the building in the dream divination? Which direction is it facing?" Holding the red pencil, Angel looked at Klein.

  The latter frowned, as if recalling the scene in the dream.

  "I didn't see any shadows. The walls of the buildings were bright in my direction... Yes, the shadow was on the other side, slightly to the right."

  "It's dusk now, and the sun is in the southwest..." Angel explained, turning the map so that the southwest side of Tingen City was facing him. "Klein saw the shadow on the other side of the house, slightly to the right, which means that his dream perspective was in the south-west direction of the house, and the river he saw was in the northeast of the house."

  She drew several parallel auxiliary lines on the map with a pencil, sweeping across the entire city in the south-west direction. Leonard's mouth twitched as he watched, not knowing whether he felt sorry for the map or for the results of their busy work throughout the afternoon.

  "This will rule out the east bank of the Tussock River and all locations on the Hoy River."

  With the help of the auxiliary lines, entering the city from the northeast, the Hoy River, which was almost parallel to the auxiliary lines, was no longer a possibility, and only a few areas on the west bank of the Tussock River matched what Klein saw in his divination.

  "The remaining areas are the West District, South District, and Dock District..." Angel used a red pencil to circle the three areas near the west bank of the Tussock River. The total area of ​​these areas is still not small.

  "The Dock District can be ruled out," Klein pressed his finger on the suburban area south of Tingen City. "There is not a single ship on the river. It is getting close to night, and it is dangerous for ships to travel. All nearby ships will return to the docks for the night. If it is the Dock District, I will see them."

  "Then there are only two areas left. Let's go there separately as soon as possible..."

  "No need, maybe we can rule out one of the areas."

  Leonard, who had been watching Angel draw the direction on the map, interrupted Angel and said with a smile: "The South District belongs to the jurisdiction of the 'Manufactured Punishers'. They also received a list of deaths and are investigating. I roughly learned about it when I was at the Police Headquarters. The deaths there were concentrated before July 20, and the earlier the time, the more deaths..."

  Before he finished speaking, Angel understood what he meant.

  "You mean, this extraordinary person first committed crimes in the South District, and then came to the West District to select victims here?"

  "It should be said, 'return to the West District'."

  Leonard's mouth corners moved up, very satisfied with his teammates' reactions.

  "For this kind of premeditated criminal who is ready to make a big news, they will subconsciously choose victims away from their own residence and away from the location of the altar to avoid being discovered too early."

  "And when their goal is close and there are not many optional targets in other areas, they will turn their attention to the area where they are."

  "That is the West District!"

  Klein exclaimed, with a hint of excitement and fear in his eyes.

  Unexpectedly, this extraordinary criminal and her altar are in the area where his home is.

  Angel also used a red pencil to draw a heavy circle on the block in the southwest of the West District of Tingen City, adjacent to the west bank of the Tussock River.

  "Let's go, let's go to the scene and let the fortune teller find the location of the altar with the naked eye!"

  (End of this chapter)