The Hand Behind the Scenes

After bestowing the Fallen Morning Star necklace upon himself, Klein descended from the Gray Fog and returned to reality. He slipped it into his pocket.

Then he took down the Wall of Spirituality, left the washroom, and strode to the captain's office. He pushed the door open.

Dunn Smith was drinking coffee. The sudden intrusion startled him so badly he nearly choked.

"What happened?" He did not scold Klein. Instead, his expression turned grave. When a teammate behaved this unusually, it often meant something serious had happened.

Klein answered concisely, without hiding anything:

"Captain, my Divination showed that something is wrong with Old Neil.

"Last month, Old Neil told me his late wife loved music. But today, Rozanne said he's always been single.

"And on the day I became a Beyonder, I saw a pair of illusory, eerie eyes behind Old Neil, watching everything. There was also an almost transparent figure peering in from the doorway. He told me they were traces left by ritual magic.

"It didn't feel right, so I tried Divination."

Dunn listened with a grim expression, then shot to his feet. As he walked toward the coat rack, he asked, puzzled:

"Why didn't you simply divine whether Old Neil had lost control?"

"I've been watching Old Neil's physical condition all month. At least until last weekend, there was nothing seriously wrong with him... just some signs of aging. So I think he's only nearing a Loss of Control and showing some warning signs. There's still a chance to save him." Klein laid out his thoughts in one breath.

Dunn put on his black top hat and knee-length coat, then gave a slight nod.

"That's a very reasonable deduction... We'll visit Old Neil now. Try not to agitate him.

"I'll retrieve Sealed Artifact 3-0611 from behind Chanis