The color of blood reddened Klein's eyes, reddening his almost frozen gaze.
Just then, a soft cough came from inside the room, and Old Neil said in a hoarse voice:
" Dunn, what are you doing here?"
Dunn's grey eyes were incredibly deep, and he answered in a deep, unhurried voice:
We heard you were sick, so we came to visit you.
The room fell silent for a moment, then after a few seconds, Old Neil screamed in a mixture of anger and fear:
No! You're lying!
Before Klein and the others could speak, his tone suddenly softened:
"Yes, I know something's wrong with me."
Old Neil... Klein suddenly closed his eyes, but the blood seeping from the crack in the door did not stop.
Immediately afterward, Old Neil raised his voice and said:
"But I have never hurt anyone, nor have I ever intended to hurt anyone! I haven't, I haven't betrayed any important secrets of the Nighthawks. At most, I've only reimbursed some expenses that shouldn't have been reimbursed. I really haven't done anything wrong!"
" Klein," he suddenly called out as usual, "I told you the Mystery Pryer ' motto is 'Do as you please, but do not harm,' and I've always adhered to that. I'd rather endure, I'd rather wait, than do anything to hurt others..."
At this point, he pleaded fearfully:
" Dunn, Loyao, Klein, go back, go back. Wait until tomorrow, wait until tomorrow, and I'll be back to normal. I swear, I swear to the goddess, I won't hurt anyone, really!"
Dunn closed his eyes briefly and asked in a very gentle tone, "What exactly do you want to do? What have you been trying to do?"
"Me?" Old Neil was initially bewildered, then spoke with great anticipation, "I'm trying to resurrect Céleste, Dunn, I've found a way, I'm on the right track!"
"You should have heard that I made a mistake during the Ritualistic Magic, failing to cure her illness and save her. I know it's because my mastery of mysticism wasn't good enough. But now, I have enough knowledge and experience to accomplish it all! It's such a pity I failed to draw inspiration from the ' Mystery Pryer's ' motto and Daly's example, missing the best opportunity. If, if I were High-Sequence powerhouse, things would be so much easier." As he spoke, Old Neil's voice trembled with emotion. "No, I can't give up anymore... Dunn, please go back, please go back, I beg you."
Klein gritted his teeth, hearing the captain's voice waver slightly as he asked:
How do you plan to resurrect Céleste?
Old Neil suddenly became excited:
"I will use the ' Life Refinement ' method to prepare a body for her that will not Aging. Dunn, perhaps you don't know, but Sequence 4 of the Church of the Earth Mother is skilled in ' Life Refinement,' and the corresponding Sequence of the ' Reader ' pathway can also barely do it. Hmm, I will use the grace of the gods to complete it."
"Then, I will summon her soul from the Spirit World and pray for divine help to reunite her spirit and body."
Isn't that a great idea?
Dunn forced a smile and said:
"Yes, that's a great idea. Old Neil, let's go in; perhaps we can help you."
"... Dunn, you still won't let me go?" Old Neil pleaded. "Go back, you guys go back. I'll be back to normal tomorrow, really, Dunn, I swear, I won't steal your coffee beans again. Klein, Loyao, I swear, I won't let you help me reimburse expenses that aren't rightfully mine again, really!"
Through Klein and Loyao's slightly blurred vision, Dunn lowered his head, then raised it again and said, " Old Neil, you've misunderstood. We're here to visit you. You're our comrade. You're sick and not feeling well, so of course we'd come to see you. Door Opening, let us see you, let us put our minds at ease. As long as you're really alright, we'll go back immediately. You know, we've had a lot of missions lately. We have to monitor the mental hospital while also dealing with all sorts of emergencies."
Old Neil hesitated for a moment and said:
"I'm really fine, really, I'll be back to normal tomorrow."
The crimson liquid seeping from the cracks in the main gate flowed down the steps, onto the stone path, and into the garden soil.
" Old Neil, we've known each other for 15 years, haven't we? We've been on countless missions together. I care about you a lot, I'm worried about you, and I have to see you in person to put my mind at ease," Dunn said in a mellow voice.
"... Alright then," Old Neil muttered, "I really have no problem."
With a creak, the main door slowly opened. Klein quickly raised his hand to wipe his eyes, restoring his vision to normal.
Then he saw that the carpet in the foyer was covered with a blood-red, viscous, hairy liquid.
Looking ahead and then upward, he discovered that the living room floor, ceiling, round table, piano, and chairs were all covered in a disgusting, sticky, bloody liquid with densely packed short black hairs.
Old Neil's white head hung in mid-air, connected to the ceiling by thick mucus, with a pair of eyes growing from his forehead and cheeks, cold eyes without eyelashes.
The piano keys seemed to be jumping on their own, producing a beautiful and melodious tune.
" Dunn, you see, I'm really fine," Old Neil said with a bright smile. " Loyao, Klein, you both think so too, right!"
As soon as he opened his mouth, Klein saw a thick, bloody liquid with short black hairs flowing out.
Dunn's grey eyes flickered, and he began to chat casually, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary:
" Old Neil, where did you learn about ' Life Refinement ' and ' Resurrection Ritual '?"
Old Neil answered excitedly:
"I heard it, I tried the first part, it's really true! This is a gift from God, He keeps telling me, describing it, He is, He is..."
Old Neil's voice froze for a moment, and after a dozen seconds, he said, with a mixture of confusion and fear:
"He is the Hidden Sage..."
The Hidden Sage? Isn't that the impersonal deity worshipped by the Moss Ascetic Order? And this deity later came to life, bringing evil and Depravity... The Moss Ascetic Order possesses the complete Sequence " Mystery Pryer "... Klein's heart stirred, and many thoughts began to surface.
Upon hearing the mention of the " Hidden Sage," Old Neil seemed to finally come to his senses, looking around blankly and taking in everything.
In an indescribable silence, all six of his eyes turned to Dunn, and he spoke with a wry smile:
"So, so I've become Monster..."
Before Dunn and the others could answer, Old Neil suddenly revealed a flustered, ingratiating, fearful, and timid smile:
"Let me go. I will go deep into the mountains and never appear again. I will not hurt anyone. I will just quietly perform my ritual. Please, let me go. I beg you."
Just then, Klein felt something illusory shatter before his eyes.
Immediately afterwards, a dark glint flashed in Old Neil's four cold, lashless eyes, which locked onto Dunn, and his expression turned indifferent:
You're pulling me into Dream Divination!
"No, it's no use! My eyes can see through all of this!"
The thick, blood-red liquid covering the ceiling, floor, and walls began to writhe, like a Giant opening its mouth to try and swallow Klein and the others whole, while Old Neil's head became blurred, like layers of phantoms overlapping.
Instead of hastily drawing his revolver, Klein reached into his pocket, intending to use the " Sleeping Charm."
Suddenly, he saw that everything had calmed down again, and the blood-red, viscous liquid covered with dense black hairs was as still as a lake without wind.
Old Neil lost his indifference, coldness, hatred, and longing, becoming serene and tranquil.
Sometime later, Dunn had already thrown the Sealed Artifact "3-0611" out, into the pool of bloody, viscous liquid.
Old Neil's four eyelash-less eyes on his forehead and cheeks slowly closed, seemingly lacking the desire to open.
Any creature that comes into unprotected contact with the " Quiet Hair " will become quiet, lose all motivation, and remain so until the end of its life!
Dunn, Klein, and Loyao all drew their guns and aimed at each other's heads.
At this moment, Old Neil's face showed extreme fear and a desperate struggle, and his strong will to survive slightly overcame the influence of the Sealed Artifact "3-0611".
The four extra eyes had disappeared, and the wrinkles around his eyes and mouth were so deep, his hair so gray, and his dark red eyes were slightly cloudy, just like when Klein first saw him.
" Dunn, do you remember when I saved you...?"
" Loyao, do you still remember how I helped you save your family's lives...?"
" Klein, do you remember me teaching you the occult every day? Do you remember us discussing how to get expense reimbursed? Do you remember me making you hand-drip coffee? Do you remember us fighting the out-of-control Mandated Punishers together?"
A series of illusory pleas pierced Klein's ears, causing his right hand, gripping the revolver, to tremble noticeably, making the trigger feel incredibly difficult to pull.
Bang! Bang!
Two silver Demon Hunting Bullets flew out and pierced Old Neil's head, one after the other.
Klein saw the desperate look on that strangely familiar face, saw his skull being ripped open, and saw blood and milky white splattering in all directions.
The viscous, blood-red liquid around them began to shrink, quietly flowing back towards the vicinity of Old Neil's head that had fallen to the ground. Dunn and Loyao simultaneously lowered their guns and fell silent.
Klein watched all this in silence, watching as Old Neil's "corpse" eventually turned into a rotten mass of flesh and blood, and seeing a pair of painful, dark red, crystalline eyes inside the flesh and blood.
He felt as if it were all a dream, unable to believe that it had happened and ended like this.
He watched blankly and silently as Dunn took two steps forward, noticing the captain's slightly hunched back.
Wearing a black trench coat, Dunn stared at Old Neil's "corpse" in front of him and muttered to himself:
"We are Guardian, but also a group of pitiful creatures constantly fighting against danger and madness."