One pocket, two pockets, three pockets... Klein quickly found a bloodstained wallet, a library card from the Deville Library, two brass keys hanging together, an empty pipe, a sheathed dagger, and several neatly folded pieces of paper.
After placing everything except the letter on the ground, he straightened up and glanced at his wallet, confirming that it contained only a dozen or so Soli in banknotes and a small amount of copper pennies.
"This wallet is quite well-made, what a pity..." Klein sighed silently, his thoughts drifting.
If he hadn't spent too much of his savings today, buying a wallet would already be on his agenda.
Shaking his head, Klein unfolded the letter and quickly skimmed through it:
"Dear Mr. Z:"
"Please allow me to defend myself. It was neither foolish nor a betrayal for Hynas and me to sell the Antigonus Family's notes. While they were in our possession, they behaved in no special way."
"I suspect it's alive, that it's an evil entity possessing some form of life and Wisdom, a dangerous thing that must be sealed away."
"It presents different content at different stages and to different people!"
"I received confirmation of this from the lambs within the police department."
"Although the contents of that notebook are always authentic and supported by a lot of evidence, I believe that it will only reveal its complete form in the hands of the descendants of the Antigonus Family."
"When Hynas and I obtained it, we could only see some trivial matters concerning the Antigonus Family, the general situation of the Nation of Evernight on the Main Peak of Hornacis, and the three Sequence Potion recipes we submitted to you last time."
"As you know, the Secret Order possesses the ' Seer ' pathway and has extremely strong tracking abilities. Therefore, both Hynas and I believed that continuing to keep that notebook was a very risky move, and at the time, its value was not enough for us to take that risk."
"Without waiting for your reply, we discussed it and sold the notebook to Welch, who lives in the same neighborhood. He likes collecting artifacts and ancient books and could afford a high price. And then, as you know, that's what happened."
"This is the first thing I want to say, and as I write this line, Hynas has died from a sudden heart attack in his sleep. This must be a blessing from God, saving him from falling into the hands of infidels."
"I had to move to a safe, secluded place and didn't even dare to go out. Fortunately, that lamb told me that Hynas was being targeted by the heretics not because of the Antigonus Family notes, nor because he exposed his identity, but because he foolishly took on a female Apprentice and tried to slowly recruit her into our ranks."
"His female Apprentice peeked at his secret incantation and, under the watchful eyes of the night watch cultists, attempted Magic Mirror Divination. You can probably guess what happened next; I don't need to describe it further."
Unfortunately, the lamb's status wasn't high enough to uncover the specific details.
"Judging from the various feedbacks, the heretics did not suspect me, and their investigation was interrupted by Hynas ' timely death."
"So, I went back to the street, intending to first go to the Deville Library to borrow a few more journals and look for more clues."
"As a power that also possessed the ' Seer ' pathway, the Antigonus Family must have foreseen their own demise; they must have left behind a secret treasure for their resurgence!"
"There's every reason to believe that the treasure lies on the main peak of the Hornacis Mountain Range, somewhere within the ruins of the Nation of Evernight!"
Upon seeing this, Klein's pupils contracted sharply, almost causing the letter to fall from his hand.
"Is the Sequence controlled by the Antigonus Family the ' Seer ' pathway?"
"What a coincidence!"
A series of thunderclaps exploded in Klein's mind, throwing him into disarray and giving him a sense of destiny:
"The notebook that caused the original owner's death and indirectly helped me transmigrate came from the Antigonus Family, who possessed the ' Seer ' pathway. What ultimately led me to choose the ' Seer ' Potion was Emperor Roselle's diary, and Emperor Roselle's inclination towards the ' Seer ' Sequence was due to the mysterious Mr. Zaratul, the leader of the Secret Order who also possessed the ' Seer ' pathway!"
"... It's like Fate has woven a suffocating net."
What lies behind all of this?
Klein paced back and forth, holding the letter, trying to find corroborating evidence from other sources.
"Hmm, the Zaratul Family's Secret Order pursuing and searching for the remnants of the Antigonus Family... If we consider that both belong to the same Beyonder Pathway, the reasons and motives are sufficient: perhaps it's to complete the Sequence, perhaps it's to obtain rare materials for High-Sequence advancement, perhaps it's to covet the experience the other has accumulated in avoiding loss of control..."
"Thinking about it this way, it's quite reasonable that the Antigonus Family at least possessed a portion of the Sequence in the ' Seer ' pathway."
"By the way, when I Divination the clues to the ' Clown ' Potion, almost all the images that appeared were related to the Antigonus Family, with the only exception being the tuxedo Clown from the Secret Order... So, the true meaning of those symbols is that each image represents a possibility of obtaining the ' Clown ' Potion, and each contains a clue, but I didn't understand the key and regrettably missed it."
With these two pieces of evidence, Klein almost believed what Sirius had mentioned in the letter, and he also understood why the word " Hornacis " always appeared when he heard voices he shouldn't have heard.
"The first time something like this happened was right after I took the ' Seer ' Potion!" he muttered to himself with a serious expression.
At the same time, he speculated that "having contact with the remnants of the Antigonus Family and still being alive" and "becoming Beyonder on the Seer Pathway " were two necessary conditions for hearing the whispers related to " Hornacis ".
Could the ancient ruins of Main Peak of Hornacis truly hold the secret treasure left behind by the Antigonus Family? No, one mustn't think about that! The notebook alone claimed countless lives; the complete treasure would only be far more terrifying! Klein instinctively shook his head, turning his gaze to the end of the third and final sheet of paper:
"Dear Mr. Z, I hope to get your help. I think you must also be quite interested in that treasure."
"Before that, I will act like a normal person, a normal history enthusiast."
Finally, when the day of destruction comes, I will offer the entire lamb of Tingen City to the Lord.
"Lord, the Humble Sirius Arapis."
After reading Sirius's letter, Klein suddenly felt like laughing:
"Hey, why do I feel like I saved Tingen City? What is this guy trying to do? Cultists are just incomprehensible..."
"... Who is that Mr. Z? He seems to be of very high status... at least at the captain Sequence."
"Where should Sirius send this letter? He didn't write an address... It seems this is the caution of cultists; they won't leave an address until the very last moment before sending it..."
"By the way, since the Antigonus Family has mastered part of the ' Seer ' pathway, do the three recipes that Sirius submitted, obtained from the Antigonus Family Notebook, contain the ' Clown ' Potion?"
"Very likely!"
In that instant, Klein seemed to have found a clue to the " Clown " Potion.
Although Sirius did not carry the formula with him, there might be records of it in his home or where he hid, and it certainly existed in his mind and in his memory!
Klein turned his gaze to the corpse in front of him, pondering how to make the dead speak.
Almost without thinking, a solution immediately popped into his mind:
" Spirit Channeling!"
" Spirit Medium " can communicate directly with spirits that have not yet dissipated, while professions such as " Seer " and " Mystery Pryer " can also do so with the help of Ritualistic Magic.
When Klein faced the Clown in the tuxedo's corpse last time, he was in a hurry to save people, didn't bring any materials, and lacked confidence, so he didn't consider " Spirit Channeling " and missed the best opportunity. By the time he returned to Blackthorn Security Company, the spirit had already dissipated by more than half, and even if Spirit Medium came, he could only obtain some superficial information.
Now, Klein has just gathered all the materials and has experience communicating with lingering resentment using " Dream Divination " techniques.
"I'm afraid that communicating with the spirits of cultists might lead to seeing terrifying beings, just like the captain's dream in Hynas... However, the captain was only weak for two days, and his injuries weren't too serious. Not too serious, hmm, we can give it a try!" After hesitating for only a dozen seconds, Klein made his decision, not wanting to miss this opportunity.
He raised his head, turned around, and looked at the broken glass and the onlookers who were peering in his direction.
Taking out his identification and badge, Klein went back first and, through the jagged, convex window, addressed the onlookers:
"I am a trainee inspector from the Special Operations Department of the Awwa County Police Department. I have killed the criminal. Please have someone take this badge to the nearest police station and ask them to send someone over to handle the follow-up."
"The rest of you, help me seal off this area. Don't let anyone get close and disturb the evidence."
"Yes, officer!" The administrator who had tricked Klein immediately accepted the badge.
Once the scene was cordoned off and no one else entered the lawn, Klein returned to the spot near the corner and stood to the side of the body.
While relieved that the innocent crowd couldn't see the corpse that looked more like Monster, he put down his cane and revolver, and reached into the inner pocket of his black trench coat to pull out a small metal vial.
He intends to use " Spirit Channeling " rituals and " Dream Divination " techniques to make the dead speak!