The light shining through the glass illuminated the guardhouse outside the armory. Old Neil finished reading the newspaper, took a sip of coffee, and looked up at Klein, saying:
"How are you feeling now? Have you calmed down? Or do you need a drink, an early paycheck, or a relaxing day off?"
At this moment, having fully digested the " Seer's" Potion, Klein is trying to use Cogitation to change the "switch" of his Spirit Vision, making it less conspicuous.
He no longer relies on stimulating specific areas to activate his Spirit Vision, so he can achieve his goal in more Concealment ways, such as quickly pinching the two joints of his middle finger once with his thumb, or gently tapping his left teeth twice in succession.
Considering that he sometimes had to hold a gun in one hand and a cane in the other, but also needed to use his Spirit Vision, Klein ultimately chose to tap his teeth together, opening the left side and closing the right.
After repeated Psychological Suggestion and making the changes, he opened his eyes, smiled, and said:
"I was just too focused on the captain and the others' actions; I didn't need to calm down."
At the same time, he tapped his left teeth twice, trying to activate his Spirit Vision to familiarize himself with the method as quickly as possible.
Cough, cough, cough! Old Neil suddenly started coughing violently, his face turning red like a boiled lobster.
"What's wrong?" Klein paused for a moment, then asked with concern.
He carefully examined Old Neil's aura and found that the man's complexion was relatively normal, only somewhat weak due to his age.
Old Neil coughed for another ten seconds before calming down. He reached for his coffee, took a slow sip, and said, "Everyone makes mistakes. Cough, I choked on my own saliva just now... Shall we begin today's occult lesson?"
"Okay." Klein tapped his right teeth together almost silently twice.
The fact that he digested Potion " Seer " one to two weeks faster than expected filled him with both joy and frustration. The joy was obvious; getting rid of the risk of losing control, being about to be promoted, and mastering more extraordinary abilities was something that would make anyone happy and excited. The frustration lay in the fact that it disrupted his plans and arrangements.
Considering he would be staying with the Tingen City Nightwalkers squad for a long time, Klein felt that becoming a "clown" was not a good choice. He would be constantly worried about being exposed and would not dare to use his abilities in missions that required cooperation, thus putting himself in greater danger.
His plan was to emulate the " Spirit Medium " Daly, submit a special application to the higher-ups, and exchange his accumulated merits for the rewards of recipes and extraordinary materials, so as to legitimately become Sequence 8 Nighthawks.
However, there is a fundamental difference between mastering Potion in a month and mastering Potion in a year. Klein can withstand a certain amount of attention from the Holy Cathedral and is willing to become a key trainee, but he absolutely does not want to arouse high suspicion from the higher-ups. He must find a sufficiently convincing reason for his condition.
His original plan was to take advantage of the time before the " Potion "Seer was fully digested and gradually lay the groundwork with the captain. For example, he would mention that he felt Spirituality vibrant every time he went to the Divination Club, casually describe the " Seer Code " he had summarized from his Divination, and mention in advance that he had recently stopped hearing sounds he shouldn't have heard or seeing things he shouldn't have seen.
In this way, the higher-ups on Nighthawks would think that he unconsciously imitated Daly while completing his "mission," and did it even more thoroughly.
This would allow them to focus on summarizing patterns and exploring the " Acting Method," greatly reducing their suspicion of Klein and only conducting routine checks.
Hmm, this can also serve as a reminder to the captain and help him discover the " Acting Method "... Klein silently added in his mind that, to him, Dunn Smith. Apart from having a poor memory, he didn't have any major flaws, so he hoped to reduce the risk of Dunn going out of control and make him stronger.
Of course, Klein could choose to wait a year before submitting a special application, which would avoid any risk, but the series of coincidences and the red chimney he saw in his Dream Divination forced him to improve himself as soon as possible.
"Next, I'll spend the next two weeks laying the groundwork with the captain three or four times, and then formally submit my application... At the same time, I can also check the underground market to see if there are any extraordinary materials available... They should be very expensive..." Klein quickly made his decision and turned his attention back to his mystical studies course.
Time ticked by, and the pleasant lunchtime slowly arrived. Old Neil finished his coffee, tidied up the clutter on the table, and chuckled as he said:
"Your occult course is coming to an end. Judging from your recent attempt, you are now capable of making your own talismans."
"This is exactly my plan for the next few days." Klein let out a satisfied sigh.
The talisman is different from the amulets he gave to his brother Benson and sister Melissa before. It must be engraved with the aid of a ritual and has certain special abilities that can be used in intense battles.
However, low-grade talismans are not omnipotent either. Their Spirituality will gradually decline, and they must be "remade" every two weeks. Moreover, they require specific incantations to activate, and they cannot be used immediately whenever you want.
Furthermore, the spells that Nighthawks can master are limited to the "domain" of the Evernight Goddess. Klein can currently only create three types: one is the " Sleeping Charm," which has an effect similar to the calming and soothing chants of Dunn Smith and Leonard Mitchell; another is the " Requiem Charm," which can Placate ghosts, Specter, zombies, and Water Ghost, and to some extent deal with Wraith and Evil Spirit; and the third is the " Dream Charm," which can help the caster enter the target's dream.
These effects overlap with the " Midnight Poet " and " Nightmare " abilities of the " Sleepless " Sequence, so Dunn, Leonard, and others hardly ever use talismans. However, " Corpse Collector " Frye and " Sleepless " Loyao and Kenley would carry one or two with them, but they were rarely used and had to ask Old Neil to "recharge" them from time to time.
At this moment, Old Neil glanced at Klein and smiled, saying:
"I remember you ran out of material quota this month because you practiced too frequently. Are you planning to go to the underground trading market?"
Klein was taken aback at first, then nodded with heartache:
"Yes."
He knew the prices of all the materials; he just hoped to succeed on the first try and avoid any waste...
After taking on the task of delivering lunch underground, Klein put on his coat, hat, and cane, and returned to the Blackthorn Security Company on the second floor.
As he passed the recreation room, he saw that Leonard and the others had returned and were having a meal.
Knock, knock, knock! He knocked on the captain's office door.
"Please come in," came Dunn's deep voice.
Klein pushed open the door, took off his hat, and said:
"Captain, have you caught the ' Instigator,' Trissy?"
Dunn rubbed his temples, shaking his head wearily. "We didn't find her at Tingen station, but according to a telegram from Backlund, a passenger saw her in the first-class carriage of the earliest train. Unfortunately, she got off midway."
"What a pity," Klein sighed, already somewhat prepared. " Divination isn't a magic bullet..."
Dunn glanced at her with his grey eyes and said:
"You don't need to be discouraged. Sequence 7 Beyonder aren't so easy to catch. At least we thwarted Trissy's evil ritual, saved at least forty innocent lives, and we also have information on her current situation, ensuring she can no longer commit crimes as recklessly as before."
"If she tries to do something similar again, she could be noticed, discovered, or reported at any time. Sooner or later, she'll be found and caught by us Nighthawks, or by the Mandated Punishers, or by the Machinery Hivemind. Of course, she'll most likely be killed."
"I hope so, may the goddess protect me." Klein drew a Crimson Moon on his chest.
Then, he paused, carefully choosing his words, and said:
"Captain, I haven't heard any sounds I shouldn't have heard or seen anything I shouldn't have seen for over a week, even with frequent Cogitation and use of Spirit Vision."
"Hmm?" Dunn frowned slightly in confusion.
Klein immediately added:
"I feel I'm not far from fully mastering the ' Seer ' Potion, and this is probably related to my frequent visits to Divination Club to Divination for people."
"... Why would you have such a thought?" Dunn shifted his posture, a puzzled expression on his face.
Klein deliberately answered haltingly, "Every time I go, every time I go to Divination Club, I feel my Spirituality become more vibrant, and after each divination Divination, my body, mind, and spirit feel much lighter. I've even summarized a set, well, a set of ' Seer Code,' and strictly adhere to them, just like the 'do as you please, but do not harm' of Mystery Pryer. Ah, I got my Spirit Intuition from this maxim and tried to imitate it to formulate my own maxims for Seer."
"I think this might be an effective way to help Beyonder master Potion more quickly and reduce the risk of losing control, just like Ms. Daly, who has been working as a ' Spirit Medium '."
Dunn had somehow produced his pipe, which he held to his nose and inhaled gently. He seemed to have forgotten about Klein, and after several minutes of contemplation, he finally spoke:
"A good conjecture, an interesting attempt..."
Klein's purpose this time was merely to hint at it and lay the groundwork, so he didn't elaborate further. Instead, he half-jokingly and half-preemptively said, "Perhaps I will become the fastest member in the history of the Nighthawks to master Sequence 9 Potion."
"May the goddess bless you." Dunn smiled and offered this blessing without taking it too seriously, then fell into thought again.
Seeing this, Klein got up to say goodbye and left the captain's office.
While helping to close the door, he suddenly thought of another problem: how to Acting the " Clown "!
"They're not going to make me join a circus, are they? Besides, there aren't any permanent circuses in Tingen City; they're all touring ones..." Klein's expression immediately turned bitter.
Being Seer is respectable; even if you bump into someone you know, you can hold your head high. But to be a " Clown " is utterly undignified!
Perhaps, perhaps there are other ways to Acting. When the Blasphemy Slate was created, there was no circus, no Clown... Never mind, there are still two or three weeks before I get the chance to be promoted, so I won't rush to think about this... Klein walked towards the sofa area of the reception hall as if escaping, towards Rozanne, Mrs. Orianna, Brett and others, towards his lunch with Old Neil.