The ghost smiled faintly, seemingly having expected Bruce to ask this, and made no attempt to avoid answering.
It drifted to Bruce's side and studied him closely.
"I was born in Wayne Manor. I know its aura very well, and I'm familiar with every blade of grass and every tree here. No change can escape my notice."
A trace of confidence appeared on the ghost's face as it turned its gaze toward Fawcett.
"Three years ago, Jessica summoned you here. I know everything the two of you did, and I didn't interfere, because I knew Wayne Manor needed those things. This is a land of sin. Those killings, those curses, that blood-all of it nourishes this land."
Having finished speaking about Fawcett, the ghost looked back at Bruce.
"After you arrived, the changes in Wayne Manor became even more pronounced. The dark aura buried deep underground grew heavier and more active. This land is welcoming you. I also noticed that the seal on the Dark Bible had loosened."
"It's very difficult to loosen that seal. I've had contact with the Dark Bible before. Only greater calamity and more immense darkness can break its seal."
"So I'm certain there's some essential connection between you and the Dark Bible. It's welcoming you."
"The longer you stay at the manor, the faster the seal unravels. I'm curious, too. Why do you accelerate its release? What secret do you hold?"
The ghost stared at Bruce, making him feel uncomfortable all over.
Fawcett's grayish-brown eyes shifted slightly. "It might be the power of his bloodline."
"Bloodline power?"
The term wasn't exactly new to Bruce, but he didn't understand its true meaning.
"Yes. Some people are born extraordinary. It's said that they're descendants of gods or demigods. As their bloodlines pass down through the generations, a tiny handful of descendants inherit the pure power of their divine ancestors, giving them exceptional gifts. But I've never encountered them, so I don't know exactly how those gifts manifest," Fawcett answered, drawing on its knowledge from life. There were always gods and demigods who would mate with humans and bear offspring.
"The Wayne family probably carries the bloodline of a god or demigod. Jessica showed signs of it. She was only an ordinary person, yet she could perform sacrifices and summonings. That alone proves she was special."
The ghost nodded. It knew little about Extraordinaries, or much else. Danvers had displayed some strange traits, too, which were probably manifestations of the same thing.
"What about your origins?" Bruce turned to the ghost and asked.
The ghost smiled and began explaining where it had come from.
Seventeen years earlier, the Waynes had bought Danvers an antique vanity table. It was exquisitely made and beautiful-the same one that now stood in her room.
The antique vanity table was made from somewhat unusual materials, and its mirror had already developed a faint, rudimentary awareness. Under the influence of Wayne Manor's darkness, a ghost began to take shape within the mirror. Because Danvers always groomed and dressed herself in front of it, the ghost's appearance gradually came to match hers, growing from a child into a young woman.
Bruce nodded, accepting the account for the moment.
There was no way to verify the origins of either Fawcett or this ghost. He could only choose to believe them. The ghost had said a great deal, but his wariness had never faded.
A vengeful spirit and a ghost-neither could be trusted completely.
"So you both came to me because of the Dark Bible?" Bruce asked.
"Yes. We can't touch the Dark Bible. I've already tried. Right now, you're the only one in Wayne Manor qualified to do so. Haven't you noticed that the atmosphere in the manor has grown gloomier?"
The ghost continued. This admission was quite candid, all but putting Bruce in control while acknowledging that they needed something from him.
Bruce was starting to believe that the ghost genuinely meant its praise.
Fawcett's expression soured. It didn't want to be at a disadvantage like this. Just what was this ghost doing?
"Gloomier?"
Wasn't it always lifeless simply because no one was around?
According to the ghost, the Dark Bible held a great many secrets, and it was hidden in Wayne Manor's basement.
"Let's leave the Dark Bible aside for now. I'm more interested in Extraordinaries at the moment. I want to know how to become one, and what an Extraordinary needs to be careful about."
Bruce spoke calmly and steadily. The Dark Bible was certainly tempting, but approaching it now would be rather hasty. Since he held the initiative, he intended to make the most of it.
The ghost couldn't answer Bruce's questions about Extraordinaries and merely turned its gaze toward Fawcett.
Fawcett considered for a moment.
"I can explain that to you, but I have a condition, too. I need the Dark Bible."
The entire purpose of its coming here to make a deal was to obtain the Dark Bible. But now it seemed this ghost had played it, apparently just to please Bruce.
Was there really something about Bruce worth taking notice of? No matter how powerful his bloodline was, it couldn't become mine, could it?
"You can't touch the Dark Bible," the ghost said mercilessly, stating a simple fact.
"I want to examine the information in the Dark Bible. That should be possible, right?" Fawcett rolled its eyes, though the gesture nearly sent its eyeballs falling out.
Fortunately, it hurriedly caught them with its hand.
This doll was already falling apart. It had to find a new body.
Bruce gave it some thought.
"No problem."
Judging by the current situation, he seemed to hold the dominant position. He could use the opportunity to maximize his own gains.
"You know nothing about Extraordinaries, so I'll start with the basics. Don't worry, it's all easy to understand. But before that, there's one key point you need to remember."
Fawcett gave two light coughs, sounding a little smug.
It was proud of having once been an Extraordinary, and proud of its knowledge of them.
"The key to becoming an Extraordinary lies in acquiring an identity."
Fawcett placed great emphasis on those words.
"Acquiring an identity? An Extraordinary's identity?" Bruce didn't understand and continued listening to Fawcett's explanation.
Like a teacher, Fawcett leisurely began explaining the knowledge surrounding Extraordinaries. The ghost remained nearby, but it wasn't listening closely. Knowledge about Extraordinaries was useless to it, whereas simply being with Bruce made it feel nourished.
If Fawcett hadn't appeared, it wouldn't have dared take this step so rashly. It had feared for its safety. If Bruce possessed the ability to destroy it, emerging would have been suicide. But judging by Bruce's interaction with Fawcett, he knew nothing at all, and he seemed reasonably friendly toward supernatural beings like them.
You'll discover what makes you different. I can feel the dark power in your bones. It's so intoxicating, the ghost murmured inwardly as it closed its eyes. Clearly, it greatly enjoyed the time it spent with Bruce.
Bruce paid no attention to the ghost. He was listening to Fawcett with his full attention.
Becoming an Extraordinary really was simple.
It required neither profound, unfathomable knowledge nor a noble bloodline. Of course, that wasn't to say those two things were entirely useless. It simply meant that any living being had the potential to become an Extraordinary, provided they knew what identity they wanted to acquire and possessed a potion formula corresponding to that identity.
Different identities had different corresponding potion formulas.
Titles for Extraordinaries such as believer, Night Watcher, artisan, and hunter actually corresponded to the identities they had acquired. Their powers also matched those identities, with different identities representing different powers.
As a result, the powers of Extraordinaries varied widely.
The power represented by the Night Watcher identity was suited to the night.
The power represented by the artisan identity was suited to crafting extraordinary implements.
And a potion formula was something to be consumed. Eat it, and you could become an Extraordinary. It really was that simple.
Although every individual was different, the required dose of a potion formula was the same for everyone becoming an Extraordinary. Those individual differences merely meant that, after acquiring the corresponding identity, the power they could display would vary, being stronger or weaker.
In other words, becoming an Extraordinary only required obtaining one thing: a potion formula.
It could even be simpler and more direct than that. Who cared what the identity was? As long as you had a potion formula, consuming it would make you an Extraordinary!
A potion, ingestion, becoming an Extraordinary.
Yet this seemingly simple process was also extremely dangerous.
Because Fawcett mentioned a term, one Bruce knew very well: spirituality.