Although Mondreton had escaped, Cruno had already recorded his Beyonder Characteristic during their encounter.
With Mondreton's Beyonder Characteristic on record, the Goddess of the Night Church could pinpoint his location whenever he used his supernatural powers.
However, this tracking relied not on an individual's power, but on a supernatural item.
Like Cruno's Crescent Moon pendant and Daniel's umbrella, supernatural items possessed unique abilities. Some specialized in pinpointing other people's locations.
To use this particular supernatural item belonging to the Church, however, they had to go to the central church in Forendana.
Only city-level churches of the Goddess of the Night were authorized to use the supernatural items held by the Church directly. Churches in villages, towns, or districts, such as Lane Village and Rhode Town, had no such authority. If they wanted to use one, they had to submit an application, which would waste too much time.
Supernatural items were extremely precious.
A supernatural item was itself an anomaly, and its effects could be far-reaching. They had to be stored securely and used with care. If one fell into the hands of someone with malicious intentions, the consequences would be unthinkable. The Gargoyle currently troubling the Goddess of the Night Church in Gothe District, for instance, was also a supernatural item, and the precise nature of the disasters it could cause remained unknown.
Cruno also possessed a supernatural item, but he had acquired it through a chance opportunity of his own. It had nothing to do with the Church.
After arriving in Rhode Town, Cruno handed the Beyonder Characteristic he had recorded for Mondreton to the other missionaries. They would take it to the city center, while he returned to Lane Village.
Traveling to central Forendana would take time, and the incident at Wayne Manor still needed to be dealt with, so he could not go himself. Since a supernatural incident had occurred, the Church certainly could not pretend to know nothing about Jessica's situation and treat it as an ordinary missing-person case. After daybreak, he would go to Wayne Manor and explain what had happened.
Aside from that, however, Cruno had one more thing to do.
"I need the information on Bruce Wayne."
At Wayne Manor, Bruce sat on the edge of his bed, trying again and again to settle his emotions.
Life in another world really isn't easy. It's one problem after another. I can't keep letting things happen to me.
Bruce grumbled inwardly.
He stood, straightened his collar and cuffs, and finally left his room.
Sooner or later, he would have to face what needed facing. Jessica had come after him time and again, and he had survived every attempt. She ought to know by now that he was no easy target.
It was time for him to fight back a little, too. If he remained passive, he would be killed sooner or later. Better still if he could get some information about Extraordinary beings out of Jessica.
Bruce's room was close to the corridor and the front hall. As soon as he opened the door, he saw Danvers sitting on a chair at the dining table in the front hall, her face drenched in tears. Several people dressed in black stood beside her, compassion showing beneath their solemn expressions.
Judging by their clothing, they appeared to be clergy.
The Goddess of the Night Church?
From the style of their clothes, those seemed to be the missionary robes of the Goddess of the Night Church.
What are they doing here?
Bruce's heart lurched.
Among the larger towns near Lane Village, only the Goddess of the Night Church had built churches, so the clergy visiting Wayne Manor had to belong to it.
Only the Goddess of the Night Church dressed entirely in black apart from white collars and cuffs.
The Goddess of the Night Church had always been enthusiastic about black-all sorts of shades, from iridescent black to starry black and so on.
"Danvers, what's wrong?"
Bruce forced himself to approach and asked softly.
He was already speculating about what had happened.
Bruce looked around. Jessica was nowhere to be seen, and Danvers was crying so bitterly that he already had a rough idea.
They must have uncovered what Jessica was doing. That means the clergy took her away, and she can't hurt me anymore. Fantastic!
Even so, Bruce did not feel the slightest relief. He was worried about the questioning that would follow. How should he respond? Would the Church discover his secret?
"Cousin!"
Danvers's eyes were red. Clearly, she still could not accept what had happened to her younger sister.
"Jessica... Jessica was taken by an evil creature last night." Danvers wrapped her arms around Bruce's waist and burst into tears again.
"..."
Bruce froze. This was not quite what he had imagined.
Jessica wasn't captured by the Goddess of the Night Church?
Taken? She probably escaped.
Bruce had always suspected that Jessica was working with an evil creature. The Church must have had its reasons for describing it this way. To some extent, it protected the Wayne family's reputation, which was fine. Although she had escaped, Jessica would not be able to trouble him again for a while, and he would not have to worry about running into some sudden danger.
He patted Danvers's shoulder, unsure how to comfort her. All he could do was pretend to feel equally heavyhearted. His heart really was heavy, though-he was worried about himself.
Then Bruce turned toward the clergy standing nearby.
"What happened?" Bruce asked.
"Mr. Bruce Wayne, I am Cruno Bain, a missionary from the Goddess of the Night Church in Lane Village. This is Francis Morton, a missionary from Rhode Town. This is what happened..."
From their account, Bruce learned what had happened the previous night.
The Church had detected an anomaly last night and tracked it here. By then, Jessica had already been possessed by an evil creature, and they had failed to stop it in time.
Bruce did not know how much of the story they were concealing, but Jessica and the evil creature had indeed escaped, and the Church had already issued a wanted notice. As for what that evil creature was, Bruce was only an ordinary person, so the Church would not tell him.
Although they would not tell Bruce, he could still make his own guesses. Had Jessica made some kind of deal with that evil creature? Had it been helping Jessica each time he had come close to death?
"If you find Jessica, what will you do to her?" Bruce asked.
"They said they'll drive out the evil creature, but if Jessica has been severely corrupted, they might imprison her permanently, or even eliminate her!" Danvers said through her sobs. Clearly, she had already asked the same question.
Bruce fell silent. He did not particularly mind, and might even feel relieved. After all, it would mean being rid of a problem like Jessica. But Danvers was different. She knew nothing, and Jessica was her own sister. It was easy to imagine how devastated she felt.
Her parents had passed away not long ago, and now her younger sister had left her too. The blow was far too great.
"Please, you must save Jessica."
Bruce bowed to them with one hand pressed to his forehead. It was a customary gesture among followers of the Goddess of the Night Church, identifying him as a believer in the Goddess of the Night.
"We will do everything we can."
"Thank you."
Bruce noticed that the two clergymen had not left. Instead, they kept looking at him, their gazes appraising, and panic immediately rose in him again.
"Is there anything else?" Bruce asked, forcing himself to remain calm.
"There is one thing."
Cruno nodded and extended a hand toward a secluded corner, indicating that they should speak privately there.
Bruce's heart lurched once again. This time, there was even a faint twinge of pain.