He waited another few minutes, but the Goddess gave no further response.
As soon as he left the library, Anthony approached with a smile. "Mr. Edward, from this moment onward, you are a member of our Church of Evernight."
Slightly surprised, Edward asked, "Does that make me one of Her Majesty the Goddess's Blessed?"
Anthony shook his head.
"I'm sorry, but I received no such decree. However, I can arrange for you to join the Nighthawks or the Red Gloves at any time. Of course, you may also choose to become a priest."
Edward asked tentatively,
"Can I choose not to?"
"Of course."
"Then I'll give it some more thought."
Anthony traced four points counterclockwise over his chest and smiled faintly. "Certainly."
After a pause, he suddenly added, "By the way, what are your plans next?"
Edward blinked. "What?"
"My suggestion is that you visit Tingen. It's a lovely little city."
Tingen?
Why send me to Tingen? Is this the Goddess's idea? What am I supposed to do there? Keep Klein safe? Surely that isn't necessary.
"Can I choose not to go?"
Anthony smiled without answering.
"I understand."
Fine, fine, fine. You took my stuff, gave me nothing in return, and now you're ordering me around. Lady Evernight, aren't you going a little too far?
Once he left the cathedral, Edward's taut nerves finally relaxed.
Although the Evernight Goddess had sided with Klein in the original novel and belonged to the "good guys," anyone who actually took her for a good person would be sorely mistaken. When Feng Baizhi had betrayed the ancient Sun God, the biggest beneficiary had been none of them, but this demonic wolf lady. Then there was the demonic wolf clan she had come from: she had slaughtered them until only Antigonus remained, and he had been trapped in madness ever since.
To kill the God of Combat, she had even spent thousands of years laying plans with Lilith, leading to his death at the hands of his own "mother."
Insidious, cunning, vicious, cruel, willing to do anything to achieve her goals... none of those descriptions would be unfair to her. In another novel, she would absolutely have been the final boss!
As the saying went: trust in a god's power, but never in a god's mercy.
"What did 'payment has been given' mean, anyway? She wouldn't even grant me the status of a Blessed, let alone a Beyonder item or a potion formula."
"But she's a proper deity. There's no reason for her to toy with me like this. Could she have already given me something, and I simply haven't realized it?"
Edward knitted his brows. "What could it be? Something I need, but can't see or touch? A potion formula? Ingredients? A Beyonder item? Power?"
"Or something else I need even more?"
He stopped in his tracks as inspiration struck.
"I've got it!"
"It's my uniqueness... or, more precisely, keeping others from knowing about my uniqueness."
No wonder!
No wonder I've traveled back and forth twice and come through unscathed.
No wonder those orthodox gods and evil gods haven't reacted at all to an interloper like me.
No wonder even the Fallen Creator, right in front of me, only thought my special quality was that the portal could temporarily restore his sanity.
All this time, he had thought he had some sort of cheat.
"So the Goddess concealed my existence!"
"Other than her, no person or god in this world knows I can travel between the two worlds!"
Everything finally made sense.
So what had she meant to convey by arranging all this today? A reminder? A warning? An investment?
Although he knew the Goddess must have had an ulterior motive for "helping" him, Edward still traced the sacred sign of Evernight over his chest.
"Praise the Goddess."
Chapter 43: Lilith, Go!
Tingen City.
Scart of the Tingen City Housing Improvement Company held a ring of brass keys. As he unlocked the front door, he explained the property to Edward.
"Our terraced houses don't have entrance halls. You step straight into the living room, which has a bay window facing Daffodil Street. It gets quite good light..."
Edward quickly toured the seventy- to eighty-square-meter house. Although it was larger than the one-bedroom place in Backlund, it would not necessarily be as comfortable to live in.
The shabby furniture, peeling walls, and faint smell of mildew reminded Edward of his days scraping by in the capital.
Lilith looked thoroughly displeased. She had spent ages yesterday rubbing her scent all over their new home, and now they were moving again. Didn't he know how exhausted she had been last night?
"Mr. Scart, do you have any slightly nicer houses?"
"Yes, certainly!"
Scart took a small notebook from his pocket and quickly flipped through it, then pointed to a page with a smile. "The terraced houses on Tulip Street were only completed last year. The furniture and fittings are almost all new. Only numbers five and six are still vacant, but the price..."
"Take me to have a look first."
"No problem!"
As the two stepped outside, they saw a pretty girl with a slender, slightly pale face and a youthful air. She wore the Tingen Technical School uniform and carried a basket containing bread, fruit, and some meat.
"Hello, Mr. Scart. Have you brought another customer to view the house?" the girl greeted Scart politely.
"Oh, you're... the younger sister of Mr. Benson Moretti, the gentleman who's so good at bargaining. Unfortunately, today's customer is rather particular and wasn't interested in the house on Daffodil Street."
Mr. Benson Moretti's younger sister?
Wouldn't that be Klein's sister, Melissa?
Edward took off his hat to greet her, then crouched slightly so Lilith could jump onto his shoulder. "Let's go, Lilith."
"Meow (*~︿~)."
Melissa had been a little reserved at first, but her eyes widened as soon as she saw the adorable Lilith. Few girls her age disliked small, fluffy animals. Unfortunately, she knew her family's financial situation and had never considered keeping one herself.
Watching Edward leave in the carriage with Scart, Melissa couldn't help feeling disappointed. If only that gentleman lived here. Then I could drop by whenever I wanted and pet his cat.
Oh well. I'll find a way to make a mechanical cat sometime. That would be nice too!
The carriage rattled along for over ten minutes before bringing them to another street. Compared with Daffodil Street, Tulip Street looked much better overall. The houses and street were newly built, and all sorts of plants grew outside each property's boundary wall, making the area lush, green, and very pleasant.
Although he had not yet entered the house, Edward had already decided: This is the place!
"The previous tenant of number five Tulip Street was a professor, a very gentlemanly man. He only ended his lease because he left Tingen to teach at another school. He spent most of his time at school and left hardly any signs of wear." Scart unlocked the door as he explained. "Number six, on the right, is still vacant. Number four is occupied by a dentist, Mr. Green, and his six-year-old daughter. But don't worry, she's a very well-behaved child."
Scart strode inside and opened the windows to air the house. "As for the other residents farther along, they all have good jobs and incomes. I can guarantee this is one of the best streets to live on in Tingen City."
"Mm."
Edward inspected every room in turn and was very satisfied with the terraced house.
The rest was straightforward. After inspecting the house and confirming that it was indeed as Scart had described, Edward decided to rent it. The rent was eighteen soli a week, paid six months at a time, totaling just under twenty-two pounds.
Although that was nothing compared with formulas or ingredients that routinely cost hundreds of pounds, it was certainly a substantial expense for an ordinary person.
"I wouldn't mind where I lived on my own, but Lilith has to live here too. Isn't that right, Lilith?"
Lilith ignored him completely. With her tail raised, she began rubbing against things again, as though inspecting her new territory.
Once the contract was signed, Scart shook Edward's hand warmly and smiled. "I hope you enjoy living here, Mr. Edward. If you have any problems, you can contact me at any time."
"Um, is there a circus in Tingen?"
Edward snapped his fingers, and a flame flashed into existence before vanishing. "As you can see, I'm a magician."
Scart looked quite surprised. "A magician? I thought you were a lawyer or a doctor, though you do look rather young."
He thought for a moment. "Tingen City doesn't have a permanent circus. A traveling circus comes through every so often, usually staying for a fortnight before leaving. I believe a new one arrived a couple of days ago. You could take a look at Civic Square, at the junction of Iron Cross Street and Daffodil Street."
"All right, thank you."
Edward couldn't help feeling troubled. A fortnight wouldn't be enough to digest his potion. Once the circus left, would he have to set up a street stall and perform tricks to act out his role?
Well, that is an option.
After Scart left, he used magic to clean each room and rearranged the furniture. Twenty minutes later, he stood with his hands on his hips, surveying the refreshed house with satisfaction. From today onward, this would be his "home."
Although he had previously lived in a more luxurious villa, Edward had always felt out of place there. It had been large, empty, and utterly devoid of a lived-in feel. This place was much more comfortable.
He leaned back against the soft sofa, tilted his head, and mused,
"Well, the only thing missing now is a lady of the house."
"Meow~~((-^〇^)-)"
Lilith came pattering over on her little paws, and Edward scratched her head.
"I forgot. The lady of the house is right here!"
Lilith flopped down on the spot and wrapped herself around his hand, scratching and biting it, though without any force.
After playing with Lilith for a while and having a tub of instant noodles for lunch, Edward headed out again.
"Next, let's have a look at the circus."
As soon as he arrived at Civic Square,
a host of colorful tents came into view. In the center stood an enormous tent, from which bursts of cheering and astonished cries rose from time to time. Several clowns were scattered around the square, some juggling balls, some entertaining children, and others handing out flyers to passersby.
As Edward approached, a girl whose lower body was encased in an enormous mascot costume came over. She delivered her practiced pitch. "Sir, why not watch a magic show? We have a new magician who's exceptionally skilled."
Holding his wand disguised as a walking stick in one hand, he removed his silk top hat and said gently, "Hello, lovely lady. I'm a conjurer, and I was wondering whether your circus is currently hiring."
As he spoke, he reached out and snapped his fingers in front of the girl. A rose appeared from thin air between his fingertips. "For you."
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