A Diary

After putting away the red crystal pendant, Martha popped a candy into her mouth and lightly shook her head.

"Captain, there's no danger."

Lewis, adjusting his black-rimmed glasses, nodded.

"Alright, but be careful."

As he walked towards the gloomy farmhouse, Martha muttered softly, "You don't trust my divination."

Sure enough, she's a 'Seer,' just like my fellow traveler. Seth's intuition tingled at that moment, sensing a gentle ripple flowing through the surrounding space.

Then, the two large black dogs, barking energetically, suddenly fell asleep simultaneously.

Now near the dogs, Lewis turned around and gestured for everyone to proceed.

When they reached the farmhouse, Old Cook raised his voice and shouted, "Ain, are you there? Open the door; I've got something to tell you."

He called out three times, but there was no response inside the house. Suddenly, a horse neighed from behind the farmhouse. Lewis's expression shifted, and he rushed out with Jeffrey, sprinting towards the farmhouse's back. Gunshots soon followed.

After a while, they returned, with Lewis frowning deeply, his forehead creasing more than usual.

"Someone escaped on a horse. Jeffrey, did you catch a glimpse?"

Jeffrey, who had a pale complexion and a store discount leaflet sticking out of his pocket, shook his head.

"I couldn't see clearly."

Lewis glanced at the entrance.

"Jeffrey and I will go in first. The rest of you wait outside."

Worried about potential danger, Seth whispered to Old Cook, "You should head back to the carriage."

Even Martha had pulled out a revolver while the other two inspectors had drawn their weapons: Lewis held a black revolver, and Jeffrey produced a short rod adorned with patterns and symbols.

The two men approached the door, exchanged glances, and Jeffrey kicked it hard. Though shorter than his colleague, his strength was impressive. The wooden door fell off its frame, crashing to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

Seth peered inside through the entrance. The interior was dimly lit, but with the sharp eyesight of a 'Hunter,' he could still make out two dark figures sitting on chairs.

At the same time, a foul stench, like that of a decaying rodent, filled the air. The putrid smell made Seth frown, and he immediately knew the occupants were in grave danger.

Just then, a flurry of movement erupted inside, and the two dark figures scattered, revealing themselves to be crows with red eyes and black feathers!

Countless crows circled the room, cawing loudly, before flying out through the door, windows, and other exits.

"Goddess, why are there so many crows?" Martha turned pale, brushing some black feathers off her shoulders, clearly fearful of the bad omen.

Looking back into the house, Seth suddenly felt a wave of nausea and almost vomited his breakfast.

There were two corpses inside—an elderly man and a young woman—both slumped in their chairs with their heads bowed.

Their modest clothing was now in tatters, revealing decaying flesh beneath. The bodies were riddled with rotting skin, with pieces of flesh scattered across the floor, where maggots writhed in the festering wounds.

Recalling the crows that had just been perched on the corpses, Seth realized that the birds had been pecking at the bodies. His expression grew even darker.

Martha, beside him, was already retching, her eyes watering. Seth quickly handed her a handkerchief, thinking how difficult it must be to work in law enforcement.

"It's been more than 48 hours since they died. Any remaining spirituality has likely dissipated," Jeffrey remarked, demonstrating his expertise with corpses and death. He quickly pulled out a transparent glass vial filled with a dark green liquid.

Unscrewing the cap, he sniffed and handed the bottle to Lewis.

The inspector, covering his nose with his hand, relaxed after inhaling the liquid's scent.

Jeffrey then offered the vial to Seth and Martha. When Seth took a whiff, he detected a mix of mint leaves and tobacco.

The scent made him cough, but it helped mask the overwhelming stench in the room, at least easing his nausea. Martha, too, seemed to recover from her vomiting.

Lewis found some curtains inside and draped them over the bodies before heading upstairs.

A moment later, his voice called from above, "Jeffrey, Martha, come up here."

Seth followed the two officers upstairs but was asked to stay behind when Martha entered a room with them.

Standing in the corridor, Seth overheard muffled sobs from the room, followed by hushed voices. The door was quietly closed.

With his 'Hunter' enhanced hearing, Seth caught snippets of conversation: words like 'evil ritual,' 'puppet,' and 'hidden organization' reached his ears.

Something caught his attention at that moment—a false door stood before him.

Seth drew his snake-scale revolver, moved silently, and cautiously opened the door.

Behind it was a bedroom. The bed by the left window was in disarray, with a messy quilt. A table stood near the windowsill, where a pen rested, and a notebook lay on the floor beneath it.

The narrow room was easily taken in with a glance. After confirming that no one was hiding, Seth holstered his revolver, walked into the bedroom, and picked up the notebook from the floor.

It turned out to be a diary.

He opened it to the first page, where neat handwriting recorded the following:

March 18th: I finally made landfall. Damn that sea voyage; I'll never set foot on a boat again. But I must thank this journey—the gods favored me!

March 21st: I'm grateful to this small town and the ignorant farmers, especially that fool, Old Ain. He believes what I told him, convinced that I can make his mentally challenged daughter live a normal, happy life. Haha, it's time to try out Mr. Haymock's advice.

March 29th: Incredible! Mr. Haymock's suggestion worked like a charm. I modified the prayer chant according to the information he gave me and instantly received a response from the gods. Follett, just you wait. When I return to Oravi Island, you'll be kissing my boots! Hahaha!

April 5th: With the breath granted by the gods, Saila is successfully pregnant. She's carrying an important child. Old Ain is overjoyed—what an idiot.

Seth's heart sank as he read this. He knew that Saila was Old Ain's daughter, and from the diary's contents, it was clear her pregnancy resulted from the so-called "breath" granted by these gods rather than natural conception.

But who is this god that the diary's owner worships?