"That depends on what you want to borrow."
Dunn's smile faded at the question.
"You once served the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, so you should know about Sealed Artifacts and their various taboos.
"So I can tell you outright that Sealed Artifacts are out of the question. Anything else will depend on the circumstances."
"I understand."
Julian nodded.
"Don't worry. It isn't a Sealed Artifact, but it isn't an everyday item either.
"I'd like to borrow a handgun and some Demon-Hunting Bullets. Would that be possible?"
"Well..."
Dunn froze for a moment. He had never expected Julian to make such a request.
Although handguns and Demon-Hunting Bullets did not fall into the category of Sealed Artifacts, they were still lethal weapons.
Without supervision, even the most ordinary six-shot revolver could cause heavy civilian casualties.
Moreover, Julian was a foreigner without a firearms license from the Loen Kingdom-unlike official members of the Nighthawks, whose secular status was equivalent to that of police officers and who naturally had the right to carry guns.
"Don't worry."
Julian smiled and shook his head.
"If I really wanted to endanger civilians' lives, I'd have plenty of ways to do it. I wouldn't need to borrow a gun from you.
"This isn't for a private purpose, either. It's for my work as an expert consultant.
"If you're concerned, I can write a detailed report after I've finished using the gun."
Dunn considered this briefly before answering.
"That may be true, but I still need to send a telegram to the Holy Cathedral. If they approve, I'll have no objections."
"Then sorry for the trouble."
Julian blinked.
"This is somewhat time-sensitive. It would be best to settle it within two or three days."
"I'll do my best."
Dunn nodded.
"There's one other thing."
Julian paused in thought before continuing.
"I need to look through the household registration records at the Awwa County Police Department."
"That's a minor matter."
Dunn felt a little relieved upon hearing this. He had thought Julian was about to make another troublesome request, but simply checking household registration records would not be much trouble.
To be safe, however, he still instructed Leonard to accompany Julian to retrieve the records. That way, the Nighthawks would have a general idea of which records Julian had examined.
By around four in the afternoon, Julian had more or less finished reading everything he wanted to see at the Awwa County Police Department.
To mislead Leonard beside him, he deliberately examined quite a few other people's records. Only when Leonard began yawning and losing focus did he feign indifference and write down the crucial information he was actually interested in.
"Professor Albrecht, the captain would like to see you."
Just as Julian had accomplished his goal and was about to pack up and head home, Kenley White came looking for him.
"Oh? That soon?"
Somewhat surprised, Julian glanced at the short Sleepless, then nodded.
"Sorry for the trouble, but could you take me to him?"
"This way, please."
With Kenley leading the way, Julian arrived at the nearby Blackthorn Security Company at 36 Zouteland Street.
As he gazed at the building, with its stucco-coated ground floor and the pairs of windows on each upper floor joined into a whole by enclosed arches, he felt momentarily dazed.
This was Julian's first visit to the Nighthawks' headquarters in Tingen City. Previously, he had only read descriptions of it in the novel.
After a brief pause, Julian caught up with Kenley and went upstairs.
The lighting really is poor... Even with my eyes' sensitivity to light, it still feels too dark.
"Julian."
Just as Julian was looking around, Dunn's voice suddenly rang out.
Julian turned and found Dunn standing at the entrance to the corridor at the far end of the reception hall, holding a thick teacup.
"Good afternoon, Dunn."
"Good afternoon. Would you like something to drink? Coffee or tea?"
Dunn shook hands with Julian as he approached briskly, then asked him pleasantly.
"Don't trouble yourself."
Julian smiled.
"Anyway, I assume you asked me here because you have good news?"
"That's right."
Dunn nodded.
"The Holy Cathedral has approved your request to use a weapon. You can receive a temporary Firearm Permit, but you'll only have two days, and you may only carry six rounds.
"If you fire even a single round during that time, you must submit a complete report afterward.
"In addition, you must not use the gun to attack anyone, especially civilians without supernatural powers or anyone affiliated with the Church of Knowledge, unless they attack you first."
"No problem."
Julian breathed a sigh of relief. He had to admit that the Holy Cathedral had been far more accommodating than he had imagined.
Although the time limit and conditions were strict, they were enough.
Julian could not help suspecting that the Holy Cathedral might already have established a rough range of tolerance for his actions, defining what he could and could not do.
That was certainly a good thing, but it also indicated something else-that the Servant of Concealment, or some other demigod of the Church of Evernight, had never stopped monitoring him.
If Julian overstepped his bounds in any way, they would intervene immediately.
Fortunately, he had no intention of doing anything outrageous with the gun. Instead, he wanted to do something for the Nighthawks while securing a few benefits for himself.
His plan was to find Ray Bieber, a descendant of the Antigonus Family, ahead of everyone else, then obtain from him the notebook containing various potion formulas and even information about the Antigonus Family's treasure.
His earlier examination of the household registration records had been precisely to confirm Ray Bieber's address. Although the method was a little troublesome, considering that the notebook and the people involved might already have been protected by anti-divination measures, this approach had actually become a shortcut.
If he was lucky, he might also learn about the Secret Order's movements in Tingen, which would be a great help to Dunn and the others.
After all, with the Nighthawks paying him such a high salary, he had to contribute something to justify it.
As they chatted, Julian and Dunn
arrived outside the Captain's Office.
"Old Neil, this is Professor Albrecht."
As the door swung open, a busy elderly man came into Julian's view.
He wore his signature classic black soft hat. His dark red eyes were slightly cloudy, his hair was graying, and his wrinkles ran deep.
"Hello, Mr. Neil."
As Julian extended his hand to Old Neil, he used his Four-Color Seer vision to examine the faint, pale purple light behind him.
The light was exceptionally distinctive and pure, fundamentally different from the spiritual glow he had previously seen on ordinary people and even Beyonders.
Based on this, Julian judged that it was most likely some special radiance inherent to a Mystery Pryer.
"Hello, Professor Albrecht."
Old Neil was very amiable. Smiling warmly, he likewise extended his right hand, its skin loose with age.
Yet the moment their hands clasped, something changed.
Julian suddenly sensed the indistinct light and shadows that surrounded him everywhere becoming sharp and bright. Their formerly faint colors abruptly deepened and spread, as though neon light had descended all around him.
Stranger still, at the very moment this neon-like light appeared, the pale purple spiritual glow behind Old Neil was also suffused with the same colors.
Then all the light began to seethe before Julian's eyes.
As the light grew increasingly bright, a Phantom Eyeball emerged behind Old Neil and began swiveling madly, as though subjected to some intense stimulus!