Tonight at 10 PM... Klein glanced at the messenger waiting there, walked to his desk, unfolded a piece of white paper, and wrote:
I will be on time.
"Furthermore, the situation in Backlund is tense recently, and we must pay close attention to controlling the situation."
After reminding Sharron, Klein folded the letter and took out a gold coin and a rectangular "diamond" that kept reflecting light from his pocket.
"This is the ' Yesterday Once More ' charm, which allows you to briefly borrow power from your past self." Klein handed all three items to Reinette Tinekerr simultaneously.
One of the blonde, red-eyed heads that Reinette Tinekerr was holding opened its mouth and bit everything in its path. The remaining three then spoke in turn:
Why... did you... give... to... me...?
"Consider it part of the advance payment," Klein said with a calm smile.
The reminder from " Magic Mirror " Arrodes made him realize that he needed to make more preparations.
Reinette Tinekerr didn't ask any more questions, and the four brightly colored heads swayed up and down in unison, aided by the hair that was being held.
He then stepped into the void and disappeared from the room.
Klein glanced at the drizzling rain and the already dark sky outside the window, took off his coat, and handed it to his personal servant Enuni.
9:50 p. m., Cherwood Borough, a street near the Tussock River.
In the typical autumn and winter drizzle of Backlund, a rented horse-drawn carriage turned into the area and moved slowly forward.
Inside the carriage, Emlyn White, holding a top hat, looked at the pale-faced, slightly disheveled young man opposite him with his bright red eyes, and said with a slight smile:
"Is this the place?"
Maric, whose figure seemed somewhat ethereal, nodded and pointed to a shop-lined building diagonally ahead, saying:
"Right.
"It was a bookstore Charlie Lake, a pure-blooded Loen. However, when he was young, he went to the Southern Continent hoping to get rich quickly. There, he became a member of the Rose School of Thought, a follower of the ' Chained God,' and was sent back to Backlund to gather intelligence and provide assistance to other Rose School of Thought members on missions. We kept an eye on him for a long time, wanting to take action against him, cut off the Rose School of Thought's intelligence transmission, and create a better environment for our own survival, but in the end, we held back."
Emlyn said with a smile:
"As it turns out, patience often does indeed lead to better results."
"Ha, to be honest, your behavior is quite different from the Temperance Faction ' Wraith ' I imagined. I thought you would be very sparing with your words."
Maric glanced at the Vampire opposite him, who was supposedly now Viscount:
Different people have different personalities, and moderation is simply controlling desires that exceed limits.
"If I don't explain this matter clearly, I'm worried you won't understand, which will affect the final outcome. In that case, the desire for 'moderation' will exceed its proper limits."
Ah, that's quite philosophical, but you don't need to use me as an example... Emlyn leaned casually against the wall, looking at the other person and said:
"Let's continue with our previous topic."
Maric looked out the window again:
"In Charlie Lake's household, there was a maid from the Paz Valley, who was also a member of the Rose School of Thought."
"In addition, in the two houses diagonally opposite Lake Bookstore, there lives a widow and an alcoholic man, respectively. They are followers of the ' Chained God ' and will pass on intelligence to the Rose School of Thought at crucial moments."
"What you need to do is to secretly monitor these three people while we deal with Charlie Lake, and through the transmission of information, identify the Rose School of Thought's leader in Backlund."
"Of course, we will definitely give Charlie Lake some chance to call for help or send a signal."
Emlyn nodded slightly and said:
"I see."
He immediately turned his head to look at the sky, which was full of dark clouds and the red moon was nowhere to be seen, and turned the ring on the ring finger of his left hand, which was inlaid with a dark blue gemstone.
This is the " Rose's Vow " ring, which allows Count Mistral to share his sight, hearing, and smell.
The ring came full circle and ended up back in Emlyn's hand, though only temporarily.
In this way, Count Mistral had heard what Maric had just said and shared it with the other Sanguine participants.
Emlyn originally thought that although he was only responsible for liaison and wouldn't play any important role, he could at least demonstrate some spell-like abilities derived from the " Scarlet Scholar " and deliver messages with great dignity in front of the " Wraith " Maric. However, he didn't have to do anything; he just had to put on the ring and arrive at the scene.
This frustrated him greatly, making him feel like he was merely a tool.
Without being Demigod, one doesn't even have the right to directly participate in many things, let alone save one's race... At this moment, Emlyn felt a surge of emotion, realizing that his level was not worthy of his clandestine identity and that he was not yet capable of shouldering the responsibilities he should bear.
As for the effect of " Rose's Vow " causing the thoughts in the minds of the two wearers to appear in each other's minds from time to time, Emlyn was not worried. He had asked Miss " Justice " to Hypnosis him in advance so that he would not think about things that should not be known to the Sanguine high command tonight.
The thought of lamentation had barely settled when a voice belonging to Count Mistral suddenly echoed in his mind:
"Arrogant, naive, innocent..."
This... this is the " Rose's Vow " randomly transmitting some of Count Mistral's thoughts... Ha... Emlyn chuckled inwardly and began to silently repeat a name:
" Ernes Boyar... Ernes Boyar..."
This Viscount Hypnosis under the protection of Earl Mistral and forced to do volunteer work at the Harvest Church for a long time!
At this moment, Maric glanced at Emlyn's expression and nodded, saying:
Your current attitude makes me feel much more at ease.
Very serious, very solemn, very focused.
"Huh?" Emlyn was taken aback at first, then slightly raised the corners of his mouth and said:
"Thanks."
The second floor of that bookstore was the home of Charlie Lake. His parents had died long ago, and he had never married. He was said to have several illegitimate children, but none of them lived with him.
After instructing the male and female servants to check that the doors and windows were locked, he returned to his bedroom, poured himself a glass of red wine, sat on the sofa, and began to enjoy it in a relaxed manner.
He has a habit of drinking a little alcohol before bed.
When the wine was empty, Charlie Lake stood up and walked towards the restroom.
As he passed the full-length mirror in the bedroom, he glanced at it casually, then suddenly froze.
In the mirror, his face had turned deathly pale, his eyes were bulging, with bright red blood dripping from their edges, and a dark red tinge at the corner of his mouth.
As a member of the Rose School of Thought, Charlie Lake. Instead of screaming or running around like an ordinary person, he simply raised his right hand and stretched it towards his chest.
The moment he touched the piece of jewelry he was wearing, his body felt as if it had fallen into an unmelting ice cave, chilling him to the bone.
This chilling coldness seemed to possess a life force, rapidly expanding and occupying every corner of Charlie Lake's body, giving him the feeling that his joints and muscles no longer belonged to him, but had begun to obey others.
At that moment, it was as if another person had entered his body, cold, blurry, and full of malice, directly taking over everything outside of his thoughts.
Charlie Lake also noticed a change in his reflection in the mirror; two figures appeared in his eyes, both young men in white shirts and black vests.
With the preemptive touch of his right hand, a bright light suddenly shone in front of him.
This radiance seemed to originate from a miniature " The Sun," scattering light and heat in all directions.
Charlie Lake suddenly felt the warmth, no longer controlled by the chill within him, and uttered a single word, albeit somewhat indistinctly:
" Purification!"
The miniature " The Sun " on his chest grew increasingly intense, its light like warm water flowing inward, creating ripples.
Charlie Lake regained control of his body and immediately abandoned the doorway, running towards the window.
The curtains hadn't been drawn yet; a light drizzle was falling outside, and the streetlights cast a hazy glow.
Thump thump thump!
Charlie Lake stumbled and nearly fell as he passed the carpeted coffee table and sofa area.
The carpet seemed to come alive, wrapping around and enveloping his ankles!
Bang!
The coffee table flew up, along with the bone china teacups and various documents on it, and slammed directly into Charlie Lake's face, smashing him to pieces and turning him into a bizarre, dismembered Puppet.
A moment later, Charlie Lake's figure appeared on the other side, still running wildly with lingering fear in his heart.
He had never hated his bedroom being so big as he did now.
Thump thump thump!
Amidst the scattering of pens and flying papers, Charlie Lake finally reached the window.
As a devout believer, he did not immediately break out of the window, but instead grabbed the curtain and pulled it open with a whoosh.
At the same time, he placed his other hand on the gas pipe.
A layer of white frost instantly condensed on the iron-black metal surface.
Crack Charlie Lake shattered on its own, each shard shooting out like a bullet, striking the businessman's face, leaving not a single patch of intact skin, and causing blood to gush explosively from his neck.
Charlie Lake's eyes darkened, and he fell backward helplessly. During this process, he screamed and shouted, but the sound could not be heard outside the room.
At that moment, in another room, a maid who was clearly from the Southern Continent noticed that the light from the gas lamp was flickering.
She immediately turned her head and looked towards where the "employer" was, only to see that the gas pipes there were covered with white frost.
In a house across from Charlie Lake, a red-nosed man with his sleeves rolled up and gulping down a drink suddenly noticed that the curtains on their side were only half-drawn.
In the code he and Charlie Lake agreed on, drawing the curtains completely or opening them completely meant there was no problem, while drawing only one side or only halfway meant there was an emergency and the higher-ups had to be notified immediately.
He suddenly stood up.
P. S.: I recommend an entrepreneurship book, "The Self-Rescue Guide for the Salted Fish," which teaches you how to become a short video self-media creator and reach the pinnacle of success.