"What?" Klein was taken aback by Rozanne's question, and recalled somewhat blankly:
"When I visited Old Neil's house last month, I noticed a piano in the living room. He told me that his late wife loved music..."
As he spoke, Klein was suddenly startled, and some unsettling thoughts inexplicably began to form in his mind.
Rozanne frowned her pretty eyebrows and said uncertainly:
"Perhaps I'm mistaken... no, earlier this year, Mrs. Orianna and I often visited Old Neil's house. Back then, there wasn't a piano in the living room. I clearly remember asking him why he remained single, and his answer was that he hadn't met the woman he wanted to marry..."
There was still no piano in the first half of the year... and he was still answering questions about why he remained single... Klein tensed up and asked in a deep voice, " Rozanne, how long has it been since you visited Old Neil's house?"
"Ever since Kenley became Nighthawks and Viola chose to leave and stop working in the office, I've been either staying up all night or catching up on sleep. I haven't had time to visit other people's homes... Well, starting in early June." Rozanne was a little confused by the question and could only answer honestly.
Klein's heart sank as he listened, as if he had a premonition of something.
He quickly pulled a half-penny coin from his pocket and held it between his thumb and middle finger.
Taking a deep breath, Klein considered it carefully and quickly finalized the " Divination statement".
" Old Neil is not in a good condition right now."
" Old Neil is not in a good condition right now."
In silent recitation, his eyes quickly turned black, and he entered a Cogitation state.
Clang!
He flicked his thumb, sending the brass-colored penny flying into the air, where it tumbled and spun continuously.
Snap! The coin fell, landing perfectly in Klein's outstretched palm.
This time, George III's portrait is facing upwards.
A profile picture indicates correctness and affirmation.
This means that Old Neil's current situation is indeed not right!
Klein gripped the coin and suddenly remembered when he had just been promoted. He quickly mastered his Spirit Vision and saw a pair of almost transparent, unusually indifferent, eyelashless, eerie and illusory eyes behind Old Neil.
His explanation at the time was that it was a manifestation of residual Ritualistic Magic!
Oh, and I also saw an almost invisible figure in the shadows by the door. The color of his aura was exactly the same as the dim, yellowish environment around him... Also, after I completely digested the " Seer's " Potion, I secretly changed the switch of my Spirit Vision to lightly tapping my teeth. Afterward, I tried it out and casually glanced at Old Neil, and he suddenly coughed violently, coughing so hard it was heart-wrenching... Scenes Blink through Klein's mind, making his expression even more solemn.
Rozanne glanced at him, then asked with a mixture of fear and apprehension:
"Won't Old Neil lose control? No, although he's stingy and miserly, and always wants to be reimbursed, he's actually a good person and rarely gets truly angry. He won't, he won't lose control..."
"I can't be sure, but I think Old Neil is just close to losing control." Klein reassured Rozanne, then quickly passed through the partition and pushed open the door to the captain's office.
Dunn Smith was drinking coffee when he was startled by the sudden intruder and nearly choked.
"What happened?" He didn't blame Klein; his expression became very serious.
Klein answered quite succinctly but without any concealment:
"Captain, my Divination tells me that Old Neil is not in good condition."
Last month, Old Neil told me that his late wife loved music, but today Rozanne said he has remained single.
"Moreover, on the very day I became Beyonder, I saw a pair of illusory and eerie eyes watching everything from behind Old Neil's back, and an almost transparent figure peering through the doorway. He told me these were signs of residual Ritualistic Magic."
"I felt something was off, so I tried Divination."
After listening with a somber expression, Dunn abruptly stood up and, as he walked towards the coat rack, asked with a puzzled look:
Why don't you just do Divination if Old Neil is out of control?
"For the past month, Old Neil has behaved no differently than a normal Beyonder. He even joined forces with me to help Swain eliminate an out-of-control Mandated Punishers. I have also observed his aura several times with my Spirit Vision and found that he is relatively healthy, just a bit Aging. Therefore, I think he is only close to losing control and has shown certain signs. There is still room for recovery." Klein expressed his opinion in one breath.
Dunn put on his black top hat, donned his knee-length trench coat, and nodded slightly.
"A very reasonable guess... We're going to visit Old Neil now, and try to avoid upsetting him."
"Then, try to control him, using Ritualistic Magic to stabilize his condition and stop his deterioration."
Upon hearing the word "control," Klein suddenly had a flash of inspiration and said:
"Captain, can we use the Sealed Artifact '3-0611'?"
He had been trying to figure out how to resolve Old Neil's situation, hoping to salvage the situation, but he was too flustered, too uneasy, and too worried to find a solution Dunn Smith's words brought him to his senses that he remembered a Sealed Artifact that could be useful:
Number: 0611.
Name: Quiet Hair.
"Danger Level: '3', Somewhat dangerous, use with caution, only applicable to operations involving three or more people."
"Confidentiality Level: Nighthawks Watch Member or Higher."
"Sealing method: Avoid direct contact with living organisms."
Description: This is a simple accessory made of many strands of long, dark black hair intertwined.
"Upon unprotected contact with it, all living beings will lose all their senses and emotions, including but not limited to hunger, anger, sadness, pain, Envy, envy, hatred, happiness, satisfaction, and Greed."
"It has been confirmed that even organisms that have lost contact with 0611 will disappear; they will remain quietly in place until the end of their lives."
"If an external force separates the affected person from 0611, the affected person will gradually return to normal. However, experimental data shows that this only applies if the contact time does not exceed two hours."
"If the contact lasts longer than two hours, the affected person will remain silent forever."
The highest level of the experimental subjects was Sequence 5.
"Direct contact can be avoided by wearing gloves or other methods."
"These strands of hair lack the characteristics of life and show no tendency to try to escape the seal."
Appendix: These strands of hair appeared in a failed promotion incident; they are relics of a Nighthawks captain who failed to reach Sequence 6.
Upon hearing Klein's words, Dunn nodded, his grey eyes deep and unfathomable.
"Excellent suggestion! I almost forgot about '3-0611'. Go to the recreation room and find Loyao. I'll retrieve the Sealed Artifact from behind the Chanis Gate and come back to complete the application."
That's how it should be, no time to waste! Klein didn't delay and immediately went to the Nighthawks' Recreation Room, calling out the rarely expressionless " Sleepless " Loyao.
"What is the mission?" Loyao, whose black hair was as smooth as silk, asked calmly.
Klein sighed and replied, his voice slightly heavy:
"Visiting Old Neil."
"Visiting Old Neil... him?" Loyao's eyes widened suddenly, a bad feeling creeping into his mind.
"Not sure yet," Klein nodded slightly.
Loyao didn't speak again, and the two fell silent at the same time. Something seemed to be gathering in the air around them, becoming heavy.
A few minutes later, Dunn finally returned from underground.
He was wearing black gloves and clutching a tangled clump of dark hair.
Compared to the " Mutated Holy Emblem of the Sun ", the " Quiet Hair " has no obvious external abnormalities and would easily be overlooked if it fell on the street.
After calling the coachman Cesar, the four of them set off for Old Neil's house.
The wheels rolled over the muddy road that had just been rained on, and the carriage was quieter than midnight.
After an unknown amount of time, Dunn finally sighed and spoke:
"When Old Neil was young, he actually had a girlfriend he was about to get engaged to, but she suddenly fell seriously ill and was incurable. Old Neil risked revealing the secrets of the Beyonder to try to save her with Ritualistic Magic, but he still failed. At that time, Old Neil was only a beginner in the field of mysticism."
"According to records, the Nighthawks were wary that Old Neil might lose control, but thankfully he eventually regained his composure and did not show any abnormalities."
Hopefully, this is just a false alarm... Klein couldn't help but draw a Crimson Moon on his chest and prayed softly:
May the goddess protect him.
Dunn and Loyao followed suit and made the same gesture:
May the goddess protect him.
The sky gradually brightened, the dark clouds completely dissipated, and the Nighthawks squad's carriage stopped in front of Old Neil's detached house.
After having Cesar drive the carriage away to a distance, Dunn composed himself, holding a cane in one hand and the Sealed Artifact "3-0611" in the other, and walked toward the main gate with his deep gray eyes.
Klein pulled down his half-high silk hat and followed behind the captain, Loyao, through the garden planted with roses and mint.
Upon reaching the doorway, Klein stepped forward and pulled the rope connecting to the bell inside the house.
Jingle bells!
The crisp, melodious sound of a bell echoed in the room, breaking the heavy silence.
Clang! Clang! Klein pulled the lever a few times, then politely stepped back and didn't try again.
The three Nighthawks waited patiently for several minutes, but they never heard any footsteps coming to Door Opening.
"Perhaps Old Neil went to see Doctor and isn't home," Klein said with a forced smile.
Before he finished speaking, a melodious tune suddenly filled the room. It was a beautiful piece played on a piano, like a tranquil lake veiled in a light mist under the moonlight.
Dunn's expression immediately became extremely serious and solemn, and Klein's heart sank to the bottom.
He was about to perform Divination when he suddenly saw water gushing out from the crack below the main entrance.
The water was initially clear and pure, then it turned crimson, a blood-red, intensely rich crimson.