Section 20: Round 2

"Gaiate, this time, have you found any clues?"

The old man sitting on the rocking chair looked at the sunlight outside the balcony, not turning his head as he posed the question.

Gaiate, who had entered the room, sighed, walked around the long table to the doors leading to the balcony, and stood next to old Hoffman. "No, I still have not been able to find Camian Mihailovich."

"Among the vast sea of people, it's not so easy to find one person, and besides, you're getting old yourself. Haven't you given up yet?" The old man closed his eyes, as if to gather his strength.

"There are some things that you can't just give up on because you've grown old." Gaiate shook his head, sighing as he looked at the setting sun outside.

The elder and the middle-aged man remained silent until the elder's cough broke the stillness.

After coughing, the old man turned his head to look at Gaiate. "Gaiate, who do you plan to pass on your mantle to, Malin or Maya?"

Gaiate simply shook his head in response.

"...If I can, I'd let this cursed profession die with my death." He said, "I truly do not want those two kids to be hurt like I was."

"If that's what you think, then you should go back and talk to Malin about it." Hoffman concluded as he pulled the blanket up over his legs.

.........

Maya was extremely happy, the petite crossbow quiver and equally petite crossbow hanging at her waist, as she hopped and skipped up the stairs. Malin walked a bit slower because he saw that the landlady had opened her door.

"Good evening, ma'am," Malin said with a smile.

"Good evening, Malin," the old lady returned the greeting with her own smile. The bouquet in her hand made Malin curious. "Ma'am, these flowers..."

"To visit my husband at the Holy Hall." The landlady smiled with a mix of sorrow and sentimentality.

Malin nodded and tipped his cap. "Ma'am, please be careful on your way."

"Don't worry dear, this old woman isn't blind yet; I can still see the road well enough." The landlady said with a smile as she closed her door, then turned back to point towards Malin. "Hurry on up now, don't keep little Maya waiting."

Malin turned and saw Maya standing at the top of the stairs, smiling somewhat sheepishly.

"Be careful, ma'am," he said, before heading up to the second floor and, taking Maya's hand, watched the old landlady depart.

"Where is the landlady going?" Maya asked.

Malin extended his hand to pat the head of the little leopard girl. "She's going to see someone who is very important to her."

"So important she needs to go out at night?" The leopard girl frowned. "Recently, the city hasn't been very peaceful."

"Yes, I think so," Malin said after a pause. "It must be someone who is more essential to her than life itself." With that, he led Maya back into their home.

Their father was busy in the kitchen. Maya happily ran over there and then quickly returned to Malin's side. "Dad is calling for you, brother."

So Malin, after changing out of his coat into casual clothes, followed his sister into the kitchen.

Setting down his knife, Gaiate patted Maya's head and then gestured for Malin to follow him into the living room.

Back in the living room, the middle-aged man sat on the sofa and motioned for Malin to sit in the chair opposite him.

"Old Hoffman has relayed to me all the recent events you've been involved in," he said, getting right to the point.

Malin nodded. "Yes, is there a problem, Father?"

""It's good to have detective dreams, my child, but ultimately, there are dangers that you should not confront at this time," his foster father said without anger, his voice full of earnest concern. "Even so, I must say you can choose your own peril because everyone has their own ambitions, but you can't lead your sister down a path with no return, do you understand?"

"Yes, Father, I understand," Malin solemnly replied — he had already keenly felt his own deficiency after witnessing Mr. Mischael's fight with the werewolf. Even a Transcendent of merely the eighth tier was an existence far beyond the reach of a tenth-tier Apprentice like him.

"Although I'm very upset, I have to admit that you handled yourself well under the circumstances. Most importantly, you made good use of your appearance. No one takes a child's detective dreams seriously, and you did well, my little detective," the old Father said, patting Malin's head. "But no matter what, remember that danger often comes unbidden, and you should always keep it at arm's length."

Malin nodded seriously. "I understand, Father."

Following that, the old Father and Malin went over Malin's recent detective work in detail, confirming that there were indeed issues with Mr. Mischael, but as Colin had said, without evidence, there was no case.

"Colin is right, child, you have no evidence to prove that he is the murderer driving his wife to death, and moreover, you are no match for him, so my advice is to put your dreams on hold for now," the old man continued. "Wait until you are strong enough, then consider fulfilling today's vows."

"Yes, Father, no problem." Malin nodded in agreement.

"Tomorrow I must head out again, this time northward, to Pitzport. I'm tracking someone, so..." "Maya needs me to take care of her again?"

"Yes." The middle-aged man pursed his lips, "You are her brother, take good care of her, understand?"

"I will," Malin nodded, then glanced at the kitchen, "Father."

"Hmm?" Gaiate hummed and then looked at his foster son.

"I'll strive to become stronger." Malin looked seriously at the man before him.

"…then I'll be waiting to see that, lad." His foster father replied with a smile.

......

Gaiate boarded a north-bound passenger ship early the next day, with Malin and Maya seeing him off.

"Daddy is leaving again." The little leopard girl, as usual, seemed somewhat unhappy.

But this time, her unhappiness was short-lived. Soon, the little leopard girl approached Malin, hopping happily as if leading him toward the church.

"Hey, Malin." A carriage followed alongside Malin, and Faye's little head popped out of the window, "How come you're coming from the port side?"

"Our father is setting out again," Malin said truthfully while noticing that in the gap of the carriage window, Margaret seemed to be sitting as well, "What about you? Don't you all live at the church?"

"My sister and I's dad came by yesterday." The little girl sounded happy, as if she had been praised.

She turned her head back and said something in the rapid Northern language, then, with Margaret's slightly awkward smile, leaped out of the carriage.

Though the carriage was slow, her agility was befitting of a half-elf—Malin had seen an unfortunate fellow who, when jumping down before, snagged a bit and nearly killed himself.

The girl seemed to have endless topics that day, chatting with Malin about issues related to proclamation work, and then discussing how to sell potions faster and better. Malin's responses were somewhat perfunctory until she asked a more serious question, "Malin, do you want to become a Transcendent?"

"Of course," Malin nodded, then asked with a smile, "Why? Do you have some kind of connection?"

"Eh, haven't you heard? The official Apprentice selection starts next month, just a week from now." Faye blinked her beautiful big eyes, "I want to become an Apprentice because that way, I'll have the chance to become as impressive as my sister."

…Don't be silly, girl, your sister is still just a Nine-tier novice Priest, lazily following Colin around all day. If you want to be like her, your parents might just die of dismay.

Having finished his mental commentary, Malin nodded and smiled, "I think you'll be more impressive than your sister."

The softest knife in the world is that flattering mouth.

"Thank you, but what about you, Malin? Do you also want to become a Priest like me?"

Priest is the name for all base Transcendent professions in the church, the only differences among them being their faith and the factions they represent, such as the Goddess of Harvest, which would completely eradicate any desire Colin has to burn fields and barns.

"Well, to be honest, it's really hard for me to make a choice." This was Malin's truth; indeed, as an atheist, lately he felt like he was on pins and needles, yet he still wasn't inclined to believe in these deities because he believed that every god in the world was just a more powerful being.

"Why?" Faye was obviously very curious.

"Because I don't find the path of a Priest particularly suitable for me," Malin explained, "And I've heard that to become a Transcendent, you have to become the kind of person that the Transcendent profession represents."

That was something Gaiate had told Malin, explaining that without this clarification, Malin might suffer out in the world.

Malin could only appreciate how his old foster father truly cared for his foster son and daughter, afraid that without a good explanation, his foster son might start practicing the Sunflower Manual while his foster daughter might dive headlong into the Tomb of the Living Dead.

Please, old man, can't you stop treating me as an idiot? Those tricks where you cut a little something to become a superhero can only fool children.

With this thought, Malin gave the girl a smile, "However, I'll try my best to become an Apprentice. After all, being an Apprentice is a step towards becoming a Transcendent, isn't it?"

"Yeah, yeah, let's become Apprentices together." The girl declared.

Malin also nodded—after all, he had never been afraid of exams. During his studies at the church, he had never panicked in typical exams.

"Of course, Malin, let's become Apprentices together," Faye seemed to wholeheartedly agree with his decision.