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The next morning, Wednesday, he got up early and took a hired carriage to the Church of Steam.
The church had towering chimneys and a bell tower. The former represented the power of steam, while the latter housed intricate clocks, symbolizing the beauty of machinery.
It was neither the weekend nor noon or evening, so only a scattering of believers were quietly praying in the church hall.
Klein sat down by the aisle, propped up his walking stick, took off his hat, and made a show of praying to the Holy Emblem at the very front for ten minutes.
Then he gathered his things, walked down the aisle to the altar, and said to the bishop standing beside it:
"I wish to confess."
"Very well. God is watching over you." The kindly bishop, whose temples had turned white, led the way to the confessional at the side.
Klein followed close behind and closed the door.
He sat on the chair and spoke to the bishop through the wooden partition:
"I confess that, faced with danger, I failed to uphold my principles and chose to back down."
"What were you thinking at the time?" the bishop asked gently.
Klein immediately gave a full account of Talim's death, his own suspicions, his warning to the Machinery Hivemind, Prince Edessak's commission, and his heartfelt desire to retreat in the face of royal infighting after divination failed to give him the answer he wanted.
The reason he had not gone straight to Carlson was that he feared he was being watched not only by the other side but also secretly by Prince Edessak's people. If he explicitly stated his intention to go through the motions and shirk the work, he might face another calamity.
The Church of Steam, however, was the headquarters of