Chapter 136 Lanrvus
The southern suburbs of Tingen City, Tussock River.
The dark clouds covering Tingen City have gradually dissipated, and the red moon has revealed its face, casting crimson moonlight on the endlessly flowing river.
A figure appears and disappears between the waves. She is naked, but covered with glittering scales, like an elegant mermaid, floating down the river.
She seems to be born to move in the water. Even with only one left hand, it is enough to control the direction in the turbulent river. Her flexible lower limbs swing forward at a very fast speed, gradually moving away from Tingen City.
While swimming, she whispered something, as if talking to herself, or as if communicating with a distant existence.
"Yes, they really came to my door. Their strength is stronger than I expected, and they also used several magical items, but I have successfully escaped. Gabrio sacrificed himself to cover me."
She listened attentively, nodded constantly, and then continued.
"...I will be able to reach Backlund before dawn, and I will stay at Mr. A's place for a while...It's okay. I have released the 'astrologers', which can interfere with divination, but they should know that I have left Tingen, and the search targets will also be in the surrounding cities, and even in Backlund. You are safe for the time being, and you will continue to carry out the subsequent plans."
"Heh, I didn't kill her, but even if I wanted to, it would be very difficult. Is she really only Sequence 9?"
The woman slowed down her hands and feet that stirred the river water, raised her head and floated to the surface. There seemed to be scales hidden under her skin, and her expression was a little obscure, but it could still be seen that she was Ms. D who had just escaped from the northern district of Tingen City.
"...I know, you should be careful too, and don't let your guard down against those two people. They must have their own plans."
After saying this, Ms. D turned around and looked at Tingen City, which was faintly visible under the night sky.
——————
"The last time I saw old Neil was two years ago. He hasn't retired yet?"
In the reception hall of Blackthorn Security Company, with the door locked and the curtains closed, three exhausted night watchmen sat down and discussed tonight's battle with cold coffee.
"Soon, he said that he would apply for retirement after Klein learned all his ritual magic."
Dunn replied. His windbreaker was hung on the coat rack at the door, revealing his shirt and black vest. After a short rest, this "nightmare" had eliminated some of his fatigue.
Soster nodded, picked up the coffee cup with his right hand wearing a red glove, and drank the whole cup of coffee like drinking water. His left hand was still swollen and rested weakly on his knee. Angel guessed that this might be the negative effect of the silver ring. Henry
and Lares, who were seriously injured, had been sent to the alchemy room in the basement, and old Neil was treating them with the ritual magic that had been prepared long ago.
In order to take care of Angel who was in a state of "fear of fire", all the gas lamps in the hall were turned off at this moment. Fortunately, the three people present had night vision, so even if the room was pitch black, it would not affect their conversation.
The only exception was Klein, who had been on standby at the station. Not only was he unable to move in the dark, but he also needed to use ritual candles for the divination he needed to perform next.
So he took the initiative to propose to perform divination in the lounge next door to avoid the influence of other people on the divination and to avoid scaring Angel with his candles.
——————
Using the need to light candles as an excuse, after leaving the hall and coming to the lounge, Klein carefully locked the door, used a ritual dagger to build a spiritual wall to seal the entire lounge, and then walked to the sofa in the center of the lounge.
Just now, when the four night watchmen carried an unconscious teammate back to the Blackthorn Security Company, his heart was almost in his throat. Fortunately, after seeing clearly, he found that his captain and Angel were not injured, and it was only a member of the "Red Gloves" who was lying down.
Although he knew that this mentality was unhealthy, if there would definitely be a victim, he didn't want it to be his teammate.
Just last week, he witnessed a member of the "Manufactured Punishers" losing control at the docks, turning into a monster covered with scales, and eventually died at the hands of other Manufactured Punishers, his former teammates.
After feeling the sadness of those Manufactured Punishers, he couldn't imagine how he would react if this happened to his teammates who he had been with day and night. After
clearing his mind of all the complicated thoughts, Klein sat on the sofa, untied the gold chain on his left wrist, and held it, letting the purple crystal pendant hang above the table and gradually stop shaking.
Looking at the purple crystal shining under the light, his somewhat depressed mood gradually recovered, and then he closed his eyes and entered a meditative state, muttering to himself:
"Ms. D is still in Tingen City."
After reciting the divination content seven times, he opened his eyes and saw, as expected, that the pendulum was randomly shaking due to interference.
"Sure enough, there is interference. Fortunately, I guessed it and came here in advance to do divination alone."
Klein murmured, without any hesitation, quickly put away the pendant, and stood up.
He glanced at the locked door, then slowly walked four steps counterclockwise on the carpet, and, accompanied by the spell he had memorized long ago, he arrived at the gray foggy space belonging to The Fool.
After many experiments, Klein has understood that this gray fog space has a special function that can greatly enhance his divination ability and even isolate the attention caused by divination of high-level beings.
"The details of the battle between the Night Watchers and Ms. D tonight."
He materialized the parchment with the divination content, held the paper and recited it silently seven times, then leaned back in his chair and entered the "dream".
An illusory, gray-white fog enveloped him. As the fog dispersed, the through-type hall of the luxurious villa appeared in front of him.
He saw Ms. D, who appeared under the statue of the "True Creator", wearing a black robe and with a beautiful face. He
saw the Night Watchers who tried to sneak attack but were ambushed and dodged the flaming spears in embarrassment.
He saw the souls that continuously changed their grazing, and the "shepherd" who instantly appeared in silver-white armor and slashed at Angel with a two-handed giant sword.
And the furniture blown by the scattered light and hurricane, the spiritual creatures expelled by the "ban", the armored warriors controlled by the "nightmare", and the Night Watchers who were blown away by the black-haired man who jumped out of the shadows.
Angel pushed Dunn away, and then he himself turned into a shattered paper man in the explosion.
The last one was Ms. D who passed through the wall with a strange smile.
Even though he already knew that the parties involved had returned to the base intact and were now sitting outside the door chatting, Klein still took a breath of cold air.
"No wonder the captain didn't let me participate in the operation. This is really not a place for a 'fortune teller' like me to go..."
Klein muttered to himself after exiting the dream divination.
After obtaining enough information through dream divination, he once again materialized a new parchment, which read:
"Ms. D is still in Tingen City."
Using the amethyst pendant that entered the gray fog space with him, Klein performed the "Pendulum Method" and got the answer through the counterclockwise rotating pendulum.
"So, she has indeed left Tingen City... Captain Soster of the 'Red Gloves' is right."
Klein breathed a sigh of relief when he learned that this Sequence 5 "shepherd" had left Tingen City.
If this "Aurora Society" envoy is still hiding in Tingen, after seeing her methods, Klein is afraid that he will not even be able to eat or sleep in peace. Just
as he was about to leave the gray fog space and tell the people waiting in the hall this good news, Klein stopped his action with a thought.
He remembered the words that Ms. D said before she passed through the wall and left in the dream divination just now.
"As he said? You will see it?"
This made him feel very uncomfortable, as if he had missed some important clues.
"Just delay for two more minutes..."
Klein materialized another parchment with new divination content.
"People who have had contact with Ms. D in Tingen City."
It was limited to Tingen City because he had never left this city after "crossing" and lacked information about other areas. If he divined other places and expanded the content to the "Lune Kingdom", the divination would most likely fail due to lack of information.
Entering meditation again, Klein saw faces flashing by quickly in his dream. Most of them were shrouded in a hazy mist, which was caused by the lack of divination information. As for the others, he had never seen them at all - excluding Ms. D's "Aurora Society" subordinate, who had died in the battle tonight.
Trying hard to remember the faces of those who could be seen clearly, Klein suddenly found a familiar person among them.
Because he had seen this person on the wanted list, had contact with his "family" many times, and even wanted to find the other party's trace through divination.
"Lanlevus?"
He read out the name of the swindler who embezzled tens of thousands of pounds and fell into deep thought.
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 137: The Red Gloves Leave After
leaving the gray fog, Klein looked around cautiously.
It was the first time for him to perform the ritual of entering the gray fog space at the Blackthorn Security Company. He was also a little nervous, afraid that his teammates would open the locked door and break through the spiritual wall, and see him standing there stiffly like a demon, not responding to his calls. Fortunately,
the lounge had not changed compared to before he "left".
Using the ritual dagger to cut through the spiritual wall, Klein opened the door and returned to the dark hall.
The two night watchmen and the captain of the Red Gloves were still talking in a low voice. He could hear meaningless conversations such as "Write this into the report" and "Don't worry, many teams in the parish have magical items that they keep privately."
"Hmm--" Klein pretended to clear his throat, and then walked to the sofa and coffee table in the center of the reception hall in the dark.
Crash--
someone at the window opened the curtains, letting a ray of moonlight into the room, coating the furniture and the people present with a layer of crimson.
Klein looked over in surprise and found a pair of purple eyes staring at him.
He nodded to express his gratitude, and found a single sofa to sit on in the moonlight. Dunn and Soster beside him also looked over, waiting for the conclusion of this "fortune teller".
"The good news is that 'Ms. D' is no longer in Tingen City. She should have left Tingen quickly and went to a secret base to recuperate as Captain Soster said."
"Well, this is indeed good news."
After hearing what Klein said, Soster clenched his left hand, as if it was some kind of habitual action to express joy, but his swollen fingers made him relax after a clench and stopped moving.
"At least we don't have to worry about her sneaking in here tonight to make a scene, or going to a member's home for revenge."
Dunn also smiled and joked.
"But there is another piece of bad news. She has come into contact with many people in Tingen. In the dream divination, most of them are unclear, which means that there is a lack of relevant information or insufficient contact. But there is a face I recognize, he is Lanevus."
Just now in the locked lounge, Klein had thought about whether to inform the captain and the "Red Gloves" of this information. This might make the other party question the validity of the divination, or even suspect that he has additional information channels.
But concealing information may also cause serious consequences. After weighing the pros and cons, he decided to tell everyone the results of the divination.
Hearing this name, Angel, Dunn, and Sost all cast their eyes on Klein.
Unfortunately, two of them had confusion in their eyes.
"Lanevus, who is that?"
Dunn murmured.
It doesn't matter if Sost doesn't know, but the captain... too, I shouldn't test his memory.
Klein smiled bitterly.
"The owner of the 'Lanverus Steel Company' in the southern district recently launched an investment project and raised funds from many wealthy people in Tingen City. He then absconded with the money and took away tens of thousands of pounds."
Angel by the window answered for him. She still leaned against the wall next to the window with her arms folded, perhaps to avoid the dim light outside the window.
Dunn then remembered the wanted criminal worth hundreds of pounds. It is said that the bounty for this person is still increasing. Some victims who have been swindled of large amounts of money even claim that they can be rewarded according to the percentage of the stolen money recovered, so that all the private detectives in Tingen and even many police officers have joined this "searching game".
After listening to the stories of several Tingen market value night hunters, Soest also fell into deep thought. After a moment, he looked up at Klein and said,
"Are you sure this person has a close connection with the 'Aurora Society' and Ms. D, and not just a one-time encounter?"
"Those who can be divined must have more connections, otherwise the dream divination will not reveal his identity."
Klein was very confident in his divination in the gray fog.
"So, Lanevus is very likely to have a close connection with the Aurora Society. Even the money he took away was to provide them..." Angel also speculated in a low voice, "Is he also a member of the Aurora Society, or even a Beyonder?"
"Whether he is a Beyonder or not, since he has contact with the Aurora Society and is even suspected of providing funds, it is necessary to arrest him."
Soster said, massaging his left palm with his right hand, trying to reduce the swelling quickly, but with little success.
"Dunn, you will provide a wanted warrant for Lanevus later. I will bring it back to Backlund tomorrow and let the other Red Gloves team pay attention to this fugitive. Tingen should also hurry up to find clues. He may be the key to our capture of Ms. D."
Dunn nodded and suddenly asked:
"Are you going back tomorrow?"
"Yes, I will leave early tomorrow morning. Although this mission did not kill or control Ms. D, she was successfully injured and escaped from Tingen City. She will not be able to continue to cause trouble in the short term."
"Red Gloves" Captain Soster replied, squinting his eyes, and his soft features looked a little serious under the crimson moonlight.
"This has partially achieved the purpose of the operation. When we return to Backlund, we will apply for the use of a higher-level seal to search for her traces and solve this hidden danger as soon as possible."
"Then wait until Henry and Lares recover, and you will stay in the guest room on the third floor and have a good rest tonight."
Dunn did not ask why Soster was in a hurry to go back, but quickly arranged everything.
He then led the other party through the partition and went to the basement to check on the injuries of the two wounded, leaving Klein and Angel in the reception hall.
After the footsteps of the two captains disappeared, Klein turned his gaze to Angel by the wall and asked:
"I heard your conversation just now. Is Soest going to include your magical item in his mission report?"
The latter did not answer immediately, but walked from the window to the center of the reception hall, sat on the sofa, picked up her cup of coffee, took a sip, and then slowly said:
"He promised to only write about the battle, and also said that many cities' Nighthawks have similar situations. As long as the side effects of the magical items are not serious, the church usually does not interfere."
The side effects are not serious...
Klein resisted the urge to turn on the gas lamp to scare the lady in front of him, and changed the subject:
"I saw the process of the battle in the divination. It was very thrilling. Fortunately, you were not injured... Well, I mean you and the captain."
He thought of the two "Red Gloves" who were still receiving treatment in the basement, and added.
What did I want to say before? Why are you talking about these useless things...
Seeing Angel looking at him curiously in the moonlight, Klein was a little speechless. His mind was in a mess. He didn't know what to talk about next.
"Thank you..."
"I..."
The two of them spoke at the same time, and then closed their mouths humbly, leaving the reception room in an awkward silence.
Footsteps came from far away, and Dunn Smith walked out from behind the partition again.
Seeing the two sitting quietly on the sofa and looking at him at the same time, Dunn smiled and asked:
"Shall I drive you back in a carriage?"
——————
Wearing a hood and getting off the carriage, Angel rushed to the door of No. 6 Daffodil Street with half-closed eyes before he could thank Dunn.
"I have to find a way to break the streetlight at the door... but will it cause a gas leak and blow up the whole street?"
She unlocked the door while thinking wildly. Before entering, she looked at No. 2 Narcissus Street on the side. Seeing Klein opening the door very carefully like a thief in order not to wake up his sleeping family, she laughed secretly and pushed the door open and walked in.
As soon as she entered the house, she felt that the whole living room was unusually cold, as if it was two different seasons from the outside. It was summer outside, but it was late autumn inside.
Subconsciously, she clenched her back teeth and turned on her spiritual vision.
A translucent face without eyes and nose, with only an incredibly large mouth, floated in front of her.
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 138 Letters and Messengers
"Ms. Daly?"
Angel was somewhat puzzled. Last night, Daly also appeared in her home in this image, but at that time, there was a strange green flame in the living room, as if in a nightmare woven by "Nightmare".
At this time, the "Nightmare" was even outside the door, and had not had time to drive away!
The translucent face did not answer, but opened its lips, revealing a bright red tongue, which was covered with irregular fangs, and had five slender fingers on the top like a human hand, holding a folded letter in its hand.
Letter... Is this a messenger? Daly's messenger?
Angel understood, she looked back at Dunn who was about to drive away on the street, closed the door, and then reached out to take the letter.
Mission accomplished, the messenger waved his five fingers happily a few times, as if saying goodbye, and then retracted his entire tongue into his mouth, floating and blending into the wall, accompanied by a wave of translucent water waves, and disappeared into the living room.
Well, aren't you waiting for my reply?
She looked in the direction the messenger left in confusion, and released her psychic vision. The living room, which was glowing white in her vision, turned back to normal color.
Fearing that it might cause a fire, Angel, who dared not light the gas lamp, could only rely on the moonlight and her night vision to open the folded letter on the sofa next to the oriel window and read the letter sent by the magical psychic.
"If you can see this letter, it means that the operation tonight should be smooth and you have successfully survived. This makes me very happy. After all, I don't have to play the role of 'corpse collector' anymore."
The first sentence made Angel frown.
What a bad tone of expressing concern... It was indeed the same Ms. Daly who was always unforgiving.
And how did she guess that I would participate in the operation instead of being on standby at the base?
With curiosity, Angel continued to read.
"I hope you can tell me the details of this operation. If the privacy part can be skipped, I can use it to evaluate Dunn's digestion of the potion and judge whether he is at risk of losing control."
Evaluating the digestion of the potion... Is this expressing concern for the captain?
Angel grinned.
"The second thing is, if you are not seriously injured in the operation, please submit a special application for early promotion with Klein as soon as possible."
"A senior deacon who is relatively easy to communicate with is currently stationed in Backlund. He will examine the special application you submitted. This is an opportunity not to be missed - I assume that you have completed the digestion of the potion at this stage."
"Some rumors I heard in Backlund indicate that some senior deacons will deliberately make things difficult for the night watchers who seek promotion. You are very lucky."
Seeing this, Angel ignored the half-finished content, folded the letter, and closed her eyes to think.
She and Klein had originally agreed to find an opportunity to submit an application at the end of this month, and then perhaps face the internal examination of the church in early September. In this way, they will digest the potion in about two months on the surface. Although it is different from ordinary people, it is not too exaggerated for extraordinary people who master the method of acting.
According to Daly, even if they apply in advance and expose their shorter digestion time, they must seize the opportunity to pass the examination in the hands of this "easy to communicate" senior deacon.
Is it because of any special reason? Or was it just Daly's own opinion? Should
he and Klein wait until the end of the month or even next month as originally planned, or should they submit their applications as soon as possible this week?
Angel thought for a moment, but could not get an answer for the time being, so he reopened the letter and continued reading.
"Finally, I will teach you how to summon the little cutie who just sent you the letter. This is a simple ritual magic. After summoning the messenger, you hand the letter to it, and it will be delivered accurately to my hands. The speed of the messenger is not as fast as the telegraph, but it is faster than the steam train. It only takes one afternoon to go from Backlund to Tingen and back."
At the end of the letter was the preparation method and spell of the ritual magic.
Compared with the ritual magic taught by the Fool to the Tarot Club, this ritual to summon the messenger is much simpler. Angel only needs to select herbs related to the realm of death and darkness, and light the candle that symbolizes himself...
Candles...
Angel pursed her lips and continued to read, repeating the spell to deepen her memory.
The first was "I" in ancient Hermetic language.
Then it changed to "I summon in my name" in Hermetic language.
The third paragraph pointed to the specific summoned object: "A spirit wandering in the void, a creature from the upper world driven by people, a messenger belonging to Daly Simone."
As she recited the spell sentence by sentence, the room seemed to become as cold as when she just returned home. The wind blew through the hall from nowhere, making a "woooo" sound.
Hmm? Could it be that the spell took effect? But I haven't completed the ritual yet...
Angel opened her spiritual vision and found that the messenger with a translucent face came out of the wall again, slowly floated in front of her, and stretched out his hand... a hand-shaped tongue, and the five fingers repeatedly opened and clenched, as if asking for something.
It turns out that it has not left, waiting for my reply?
Angel felt a little embarrassed. If she was going to read the letter after taking a shower, or even the next day, would this diligent messenger wait all night?
Seeing the spiritual creature who had not received the letter for a long time and retracted his tongue sadly, Angel said apologetically, "Wait a minute", went to the study to get paper and pen, and returned to the living room to start replying in front of the messenger.
"Ms. Daly, I am very happy to receive your letter. It seems that you have stopped hiding your concern for Captain Dunn. I hope you can talk to him openly as soon as possible, otherwise I may not be able to bear the loneliness and attack him - this time you won't have the opportunity to light the chandelier to scare me."
After responding to Daly with a smile on her face, she began to write in detail about the preparations, process and aftermath of the battle with Ms. D, the "Shepherd", tonight, including Klein's divination and her suspicion of Lanevus.
These are all the contents of the battle record that the "Red Gloves" will submit. After the church reviews it, it will be sent to various parishes as a case of fighting the "Aurora Society". It is not confidential, so she did not consider hiding it.
Then she talked about the "special application".
"...Regarding the special application, you guessed it right. Klein and I have already digested the potion. I will discuss it with him first and then decide whether to submit the application immediately. Maybe it is better to choose a suitable senior deacon and stay in this sequence for a while to make us less conspicuous."
She did not blindly believe in Daly's judgment. After all, the other party could only make guesses based on the information they obtained, and she could not make decisions on behalf of Klein.
Originally, the letter would have ended here, but Angel suddenly remembered that the main material of the potion for her promotion to "witch" had not been found. Maybe Miss Justice could find the material from her channels, but in order to conceal the formula of the potion and to spread the risk, she only asked Justice to find "all the blood of the black abyss demon fish". The other half of the material "the egg of the agate peacock" could only rely on himself.
Unfortunately, Angel went to the underground market of the Dragon Bar many times, but he did not find the material for this potion, and even did not find anyone who had heard of it.
It is reasonable to suspect that the underground extraordinary people in Tingen City are almost unable to access the "middle sequence" potion.
Or perhaps these promotion materials are firmly controlled by the "Witch Cult". When Cole Granger was promoted to Sequence 7, the main material of the potion was provided by Madam Sharon.
In any case, if you want to get potion materials in Tingen City, you may have to rely on the help of people from other regions. Maybe you can buy them in cities like Enmat Port where the management is lax and the flow of people is large, but she no longer has any acquaintances there.
Thinking of this, Angel added a few words at the end of the letter.
"Finally, please help me find an 'Agate Peacock Egg' in the Extraordinary Item Trading Market in Backlund. The price of this extraordinary material may be between 500 and 800 pounds. If the price is right, I hope you can buy it for me, or tell me the channel."
Putting down the pen, she looked at the quarrel at the beginning of the letter again, and had an urge to cross it out.
In the end, Angel gave up the idea, folded the letter, handed it to the messenger whose fingers were twisted together with boredom, and watched it swallow the letter and disappear into the corner.
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 139 Dinner at Klein's House
"Come in."
Klein opened the door and stepped aside. He bent down and raised his hand, inviting Angel to come in like a waiter at the door of a restaurant.
"Thank you."
Angel was not polite. This was not her first time to come to Klein's house.
Since the last celebration party for the Moretti family's move, Angel has visited this neighbor several times. Basically, she ran into Klein's sister Melissa Moretti after work and was warmly invited by her to come to Klein's house to chat.
But unlike the previous times, this time Angel took the initiative to ask to come.
Entering the living room, Angel walked straight to the single sofa next to the bay window and sat down directly as if she was back home.
No. 2, No. 4 and No. 6 Daffodil Street have almost the same internal structure. The locations of the living room, study, kitchen, bathroom and other rooms on the first floor are the same as her own home, especially the same single sofa next to the bay window facing the street.
She stretched out on the sofa and watched Klein go to the kitchen. After a while, he brought two cups of steaming coffee.
"Melissa hasn't finished school yet. I thought you were here to see her."
Putting the coffee on the table, Klein sat on the sofa opposite Angel, stretched out his arms and legs, and said tiredly.
Today, the two of them followed the senior night watchman to patrol the area, and used the free time in the afternoon to look for the "red chimney" building that Klein divined in the city. After a day of running around, they were very tired.
But Angel thought of Ms. Daly's letter last night, and still insisted on asking to come to Klein's house to talk about "private matters."
"This time I'm not looking for her, I'm looking for you," Angel said, staring at the steaming coffee in the cup, "Ms. Daly wrote to me last night, and she mentioned the "special application" again."
"Again?"
Klein caught the word sharply.
Angel then remembered that he had not told the other party about Daly's first visit.
"It's like this..."
From the time Daly came to Tingen at night and communicated with her with the help of a translucent face, until last night when she handed the reply to the messenger who grabbed the letter with his tongue, Angel told Klein the complete content of the communication with Daly in the past two days.
Well, except for the fact that Daly was angered when she was "instigating", and asking her to find the materials for the potion.
"So that's it, Ms. Daly did master the 'acting method', no wonder she was promoted so quickly... But why did the church prohibit the spread of this method of safely digesting potions? Even those who know it must swear not to disclose relevant information?"
Klein murmured, thinking, and picked up the coffee cup and took a sip, but the scalding coffee burned his teeth.
"Maybe I have to wait until I am promoted to the upper echelons of the church to know the reason. At least with Ms. Daly's Sequence 6, I still don't know the relevant information."
Angel was also puzzled by this, but the highest sequence of the church insiders she knew was Ms. Daly. Since she didn't know or couldn't say it, there was no other source of information.
"Let's put that aside for now. She also told us to submit a special application as soon as possible. My 'Fortune Teller' potion has been digested, but what about you? If you need to take the potion on the spot..."
Angel knew that Klein had found out that he was already a Sequence 8 "Instigator" in some way, so he had this question.
"Ms. Daly specifically mentioned that the church does not have the formula for the 'Instigator' potion. After the examination, you may be required to prepare the potion on the spot for promotion, and I'm afraid I can only figure it out on my own. What a pity."
Her expression did not show any regret, but a smile.
Klein on the opposite side also breathed a sigh of relief.
"That's no problem. We can go to the captain to submit a special application tomorrow."
He seemed to have let go of a worry, with a smile on his face.
"After submitting the application, we have to find a chance to tell the other team members about the 'acting method'. Well... the captain is already acting, and I believe he will have results soon..."
At this point, Klein frowned, as if he remembered something unpleasant.
"...As for the others, Leonard is likely to be aware of this method, or at least has a similar summary. We can tell Daly and the captain's role-playing method to the others. Don't be too direct, or it will seem deliberate, and the examiner will think that we knew in advance that we needed to take an oath, which would cause trouble for Ms. Daly..."
Angel sipped his hot coffee, bathing in the sunset that poured into the living room from the window, watching Klein racking his brains and planning how to reasonably "reveal" the role-playing method tomorrow. For a moment, he felt that this moment of tranquility and peace would last until the end of time.
"Well, what's wrong?"
Klein was talking about his plan nonstop. Feeling Angel's gaze, he looked up at him.
"No, it's okay. You continue..."
There
was a sound of a key being inserted into the lock at the door, followed by Melissa muttering to herself:
"I'm back."
She carried her schoolbag in one hand and a paper bag of bread and vegetables in the other. She pushed the door open with her knee and walked into the living room.
"Hey, Klein, you're here so early today ... Miss Angel, you're here too!"
Melissa found the two of them in a corner of the living room and called out in surprise. Then she glanced back and forth between Angel and Klein and suddenly asked: "Miss Angel, are you going to have dinner with us today?" —————— "Braised lamb, this is my brother's specialty." Melissa proudly introduced the last dish on the table. I didn't expect Klein to cook such a "hard dish". Angel, who had only known how to cook a pot of stew in her previous and next two lives, blushed. She opened the lid of the plate and tried to find faults driven by her self-esteem, but was lost in the aroma that burst out instantly. "... Well, it is indeed very fragrant..." She had to admit. As Klein, who had distributed the plates, sat down, Angel saw that the two were preparing to eat and asked curiously: "Don't we need to wait for Mr. Benson to come back?" Melissa handed the bread to Klein, then spread butter on her piece and replied: "Ben... My brother's company often works overtime until late recently, and he often needs to go on business trips to Pritz Harbor and even to Dessie County. Fortunately, he can push away those heavy tasks recently, because..." She looked at Klein who was breaking bread and smiled without saying anything. Angel understood that Klein became a night watchman and earned this high income, which was a great help to the Moretti family, which originally relied on Mr. Benson alone. Their eldest brother, who was so busy that his hairline was receding, no longer needed to work overtime frequently for that little extra income, and Melissa... In less than a month of knowing Melissa, Angel could clearly see that the girl's facial skin was gradually becoming rosy, the subcutaneous fat was slowly filling up, and even her long black hair was becoming more shiny. It can be imagined that before this, she had not been able to get enough nutrition for her age. No wonder Klein tried so hard to get promoted and wanted to gain a foothold among the Nighthawks... Looking at the "Fortune Teller" Klein who was spreading butter on the bread beside him, Angel smiled slightly, and she quickly took a bite of the fluffy bread to cover up her expression. Well, maybe after a while, he will no longer be a "Fortune Teller". By the way, what is the name of the potion for the Fortune Teller's Sequence 8? While thinking, Melissa across from her thought of something, her eyes lit up, and she said: "Besides, Benson... Brother has been studying hard in his spare time recently, preparing to take the public examination of the kingdom next year. If he can pass the examination and become a government employee, everything will be fine." By the way, Miss Justice mentioned at the Tarot Club that the proposal to recruit affairs officials through public examinations will enter the implementation stage at the beginning of next year. For an employee like Mr. Benson who is diligent in involution, if he can... Hey, but how did the Moretti family, such an ordinary family, know about this proposal that has not even passed the vote of the upper and lower houses? This question suddenly popped up in Angel's mind. He looked up at Melissa and saw that she was immersed in the imagination of a better life in the future. He turned to look at Klein. The latter was looking at him, but then he looked away. Why can't the chapter title be changed after uploading? (End of this chapter)
Chapter 140 Special Application
"He said he got the news from his contact in the Ahowa County Police Department, but I can't confirm its authenticity. Maybe he is covering up something?" At
No. 6 Narcissus Street, Angel, who was wearing a light nightgown after taking a bath, was sitting at the table in the study, muttering to herself with a fountain pen. She had already written a lot of sentences in the notebook in front of her.
"He is a fortune teller of Sequence 9, but he is proficient in divination. Old Neil, who can also do divination, thinks highly of him."
"He has some secrets hidden in him. The seal '2-049' that can restrict his actions seems to have no effect on him, or can the effect be removed by himself?"
"He is familiar with the 'acting method' and digested the potion of Sequence 9 in a short period of time. He plans to be promoted to Sequence 8 in the near future."
"He knows that I have been promoted to Sequence 8. The source of the information is unknown. Maybe it is divination?"
"There is some information channel that can obtain the intelligence of the kingdom's high-level officials that has not been made public."
The last line was just added by her.
Looking at these "suspicions" about neighbors, teammates and friends, Angel's face was a little hesitant, but soon his expression became calm.
She put her hands together, pressed them against her forehead, and placed her elbows on the table. She closed her eyes and whispered:
"The Fool who does not belong to this era, you are the mysterious master above the gray fog, you are the yellow and black king who controls good luck."
"I pray for your attention, for your listening..."
This is a simplified version of ritual magic. There is no need to prepare the four local staple foods in advance, and there is no need for a complicated altar with essential oils and sandalwood candles. You only need to recite the prayer directed to the "Fool" in full.
After successfully establishing a connection with the Fool using the complete ritual magic, several members of the Tarot Club received such a simplified version of the ritual from the Fool, so that they could ask for leave when they could not attend the meeting.
"Dear Mr. Fool, I have found a 'suitable person' who may be suitable to join the Tarot Club. His name is Klein Moretti..."
Angel briefly told the Fool through prayer how Klein became a 'diviner', joined the Night Watchers, had an extraordinary talent for divination, and was about to be promoted to the next sequence.
"...Please decide whether he can join."
Worried that Mr. Fool didn't "answer" in time, she repeated it again before slowly opening her eyes.
Yes, Mr. Fool must be a busy man. How could he have time to respond to prayers at any time? Remember the last time he used the complete ritual magic to pray, He didn't respond until the next day.
Thinking of this, she loosened her clenched hands and was about to stand up from the chair.
Suddenly, a mist that appeared out of thin air surrounded Angel. Her eyes blurred, and an ancient high-backed chair appeared in the gray mist. On it sat the mysterious existence whose appearance the members of the Tarot Club could never see clearly.
It was Mr. Fool. He responded to the prayer!
Angel was delighted and felt the Fool's eyes lingering on her. Then she heard a familiar low voice:
"I will conduct an examination. Before that, don't let him know the existence of the Tarot Club."
Before she could respond, the gray mist and the hazy image in it disappeared as quickly as when they came.
——————
"Good morning, Angel. Hey, Klein is here too. Good morning to you too."
The next morning, Angel and Klein came to the second floor of the Blackthorn Security Company, and were greeted by Miss Roxanne's energetic greetings.
"Good morning, Roxanne. Is the captain in the office?"
After receiving a positive answer, the two looked at each other and walked towards Dunn's office one after the other.
Roxanne, who was left with a look of surprise and a burning gossip spirit, looked fluctuating. She seemed to want to follow and eavesdrop, but she was troubled by the confidentiality code and finally sat on the sofa with a sullen face.
...
"Captain, I think I have completely mastered the magic potion of the 'Fortune Teller'. I want to... want to submit a 'special application' now."
As soon as Klein entered the room, he put on an excited expression, but it was mixed with a hint of solemnity and hesitation.
Dunn Smith was sitting behind the table, holding a pen and thinking about something. When he heard Klein's words, he looked up and raised his eyebrows. He did not answer him, but glanced at Angel next to him.
"What about you?"
"I..." Angel wanted to pretend to have Klein's complex expression of excitement and hesitation, but after brewing for a while, he gave up, "...Me too."
"How did you determine that, um, you have completely mastered the potion? Are you more proficient in using your extraordinary abilities, or do you just think you have reached this stage?"
Dunn frowned, as if asking the two people, but also as if asking himself.
Angel glanced at Klein and saw that he nodded, then he replied: "Captain, when I felt that I completely mastered the potion, I had a special feeling, as if something in my mind shattered and merged into my body. At that moment, I knew that I had completely mastered the potion."
This was the statement that the two had discussed in advance, and it was also part of the plan to reveal the acting method to Dunn.
"Special feeling..."
Dunn fell into deep thought, as if he had realized something.
But isn't he already Sequence 7? He should have some experience with fully digesting the potion... Could it be that the two previous promotions were made when the potion was not fully digested? That would be too dangerous...
Angel speculated secretly.
"Sure enough..." Dunn's brows relaxed and he looked up at the two people, "Maybe you have indeed mastered the potion, but isn't it too early to submit the application now?" Is
he suggesting that we continue to consolidate the potion, or does he think it will attract attention from within the church?
She was about to answer, but Klein spoke first:
"I had originally planned to apply next year, but I've been a member of the Nighthawks for two months, and I've encountered too many things and too many coincidences. In an ordinary kidnapping case, I came across the Antigonus Notes, and then found Riel Bibb through it. When I was investigating the suspects in the library, I ran into the target, the member of the Aurora Society, and divined the follow-up clues from him..."
Klein talked endlessly about the many events that happened in less than two months since he joined the Nighthawks. He repeated all the "coincidences". Some of the events Angel had never even heard of. It seemed that this colleague's "wonderful life" was no less than hers.
"I heard from old Neil that there have been more major supernatural events in the past two months than in the past year. I don't know why, but I feel very uneasy and want to do my best to improve myself..."
"... And I also want to protect my family and my current friends."
The last sentence moved Dunn a little. He pursed his lips, his eyes stayed on Klein for a moment, and then wandered between the two.
After a few minutes of silence, he nodded slowly and said in a low voice:
"Go ahead, show it to me after you finish writing it. It's best to pass it in one try, so that the examiner can bring the formula and materials of the 'Joker' potion and be promoted directly."
Angel could hear Klein beside him clearly relieved, and replied with a smile: "Okay."
Dunn turned his gaze to Angel again:
"You too, but I can't be sure that the church has the formula of the 'Instigator' potion. Maybe you have to find another way yourself. Well, according to convention, they should provide some financial support."
"I'm mentally prepared for this."
Angel replied seriously.
Or rather, she expected this to happen.
After saying goodbye to Dunn who continued to ponder, they left the office and stood in the corridor, looking at each other with unstoppable joy.
Convincing the captain to agree was the most difficult step they expected, but they didn't expect it to be passed so easily.
"I'll go to the next room to draft it. Um... I need to let the captain review it first, and the telegram has to be sent by the captain... Oh, I need to type out the final draft."
Klein put away his smile and said seriously, but there was something wrong with his words, and his mood was far from as calm as he looked.
"No problem, you go first, I can also refer to your text later," Angel smiled slyly, "By the way, the fortune teller's Sequence 8, it turns out to be 'Joker'?"
Klein's excited expression froze.
(End of this chapter)