In the cold, damp hall, Klein suddenly shivered, looked away, and said to the bodyguard:
"Let's go back."
Judging from Azik Copper Whistle's performance just now, there's most likely a terrifying Evil Spirit in the innermost room, and its danger level is probably above that of " Marionettist " Rosago and " Admiral Hurricane " Qilangos... It has been wandering for hundreds or thousands of years, and may already be equivalent to High-Sequence powerhouse. If it weren't for the difficulty in its power penetrating the room, I would already be dead... Even if the bodyguard is one of the best in Sequence 5, even with her, we have almost no hope of turning the tide... One must have self-awareness and not be tempted by the "treasure" of suspected Beyonder characteristics and magical items... Greed often leads to death... Klein searched for reasons to convince himself.
The bodyguard glanced at him sideways, her gaze devoid of emotion, and asked:
"And then what?"
Then? Klein subtly grinned, carefully choosing his words:
"Have Miller Carter. Who knows when that Evil Spirit will break free? We should deal with it as soon as possible. No, no, Mr. Carter doesn't know much. Calling the police this way might not be taken seriously enough. The first group to investigate will suffer heavy casualties, and it might even indirectly help the Evil Spirit break free. Also, if I see a statue like that, I, the Detective, might be silenced... Um... Did you see the bones and Spirituality light in the room?"
The bodyguard turned her gaze back to the dark passageway behind the half-open stone door and nodded slightly.
Klein's thoughts raced:
"I suspect those are the corpses of previous explorers, killed by Evil Spirit in that room. The Beyonder among them left behind magical artifacts, which may be related to the Viscount family who originally lived in the outer house. I plan to find out their surnames, search for information in the library, and interview their descendants to see if I can get any useful clues."
"Once the situation is initially assessed, I will make a choice based on its severity. We might use explosives to destroy the door and prevent others from entering, or we might send an anonymous letter to the police department detailing the existence of the Evil Spirit. However, we must have a plan in place to mitigate the risks."
"These things aren't too urgent; we can take our time."
The bodyguard listened quietly, looked straight ahead, and said in a detached tone:
"Aren't you considering organizing people to Purification that Evil Spirit?"
Even without any magical artifacts left behind, the remnants of the Evil Spirit after its dissipation are precious enough.
This is the first time I've seen you talk so much... I guess... Klein replied without hesitation, "The risk is too high. I think my life and health are more important."
He organized his thoughts and added:
"The most powerful person I know is you, and judging from your performance just now, you don't seem to be a match for that Evil Spirit either. I can't imagine any way to deal with it besides calling the police."
The bodyguard turned around, her pale face appearing slightly translucent.
"You still have your senses," she said calmly and indifferently, then drifted towards the exit of the ancient hall.
Aside from the apparent influence of the " True Creator," how do I look like Lunatic? Klein thought to himself, carrying his lantern and cane, closely following behind the bodyguard. Throughout the entire process, he felt himself being watched by the cold gaze from within the dark passageway.
This feeling only dissipated when I stepped out of that ancient stone gate.
Klein turned around, closed the door, and sealed the upside-down candlesticks, the knife-like brand, and the eerie statue of the six gods inside, letting them continue to "sleep" in the unchanging darkness and silence of thousands of years.
He brushed the dust off his clothes, switched the lantern to his other hand, and hurried back to Miller Carter's basement, while the bodyguard had, as usual, vanished into thin air.
Miller Carter was pacing in the basement when he saw Klein come out and quickly asked:
"How is it? What's the situation inside?"
Klein had already prepared his explanation, and with a look of lingering fear, he said:
"This is terrible. There are so many snakes, and several places have collapsed. I plan to gather some information, get enough manpower, and make preparations before launching a second exploration. In the meantime, you'd better not send anyone in. Trust me, there are far more venomous snakes than you can imagine."
The old gentleman Miller took a deep breath and asked with slight fear:
Will they swim over?
Do you know any professionals who deal with snakes?
Klein immediately nodded and said, "I will find someone to cooperate with and try my best to handle this matter. It's already cold autumn, and snakes don't want to move. As long as you don't send anyone in to disturb them, nothing will happen."
"Okay, please do it as soon as possible. I'll keep this door closed and prevent anyone from getting in during this time." Miller relaxed a little upon hearing this.
Seeing that his employer was intimidated by what he said, though true, but not entirely true, Klein quickly put down the lantern, adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, and said:
"Next, I will gather some information to get a preliminary understanding of the layout of that underground structure before proceeding with further exploration."
"That requires you to tell me which Viscount originally owned this house."
Miller bought the building precisely because of its reputation as a former aristocratic property, and immediately replied:
Viscount Pound.
"What do you know about him and his family?" Klein pressed, adopting a professional demeanor.
Miller pondered:
"I don't know much, only that they obtained their titles in the ' War of Broken Oaths,' and had a glorious past, but decades ago they suddenly fell from grace for some unknown reason, losing successive heirs and having to find relatives from collateral branches to retain their titles. The new Viscount Pound is, well, anyway, he squandered most of his fortune and was demoted to Baron by the king. He should still be in Backlund, but he could go bankrupt at any time."
The War of Broken Oaths? The War of Broken Oaths that began in 738 of the Fifth Era? Klein, a history major who had just graduated, reflexively recalled the relevant knowledge.
That war more than 600 years ago was a religious war. The southern Kingdom of Feynapotter originally worshipped both the Earth Mother and the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, but under the influence of certain factors, the two churches became seriously opposed, and the believers often clashed.
Its two northern neighbors, the Kingdom of Loen and the Kingdom of Intis, seized this opportunity and, under the pretext of protecting freedom of religion, started a war. Later, the Feynapotter Empire joined in, attempting to thwart Loen and Intis's schemes, but still failed to reverse the situation and suffered defeat.
As a result of the war, the countries of Lenburg, Masin, and Segar, located at the borders of Loen and Feynapotter respectively, and Intis and Feynapotter respectively, gained independence and began to worship the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Only the Church of the Earth Mother remained within the Kingdom of Feynapotter.
Because both sides accused each other of breaking the Sacred Oath made at the end of the Fourth Age, this five-year conflict was known as the " War of Broken Oaths."
After that, the Northern Continent enjoyed more than 300 years of peace. This does not mean that there were no conflicts between countries, but that there were no longer large-scale wars. All of this continued until Roselle invented the Steam and improved sailing ships and cannons.
This is what the history textbooks record... Now that I think about it, since it involves faith, there must have been Beyonder from the church involved, and a fierce extraordinary war must have broken out in secret... However, it is said that at that time, Beyonder were already rare, and their numbers were not large... Small-scale battles? Could the sudden decline of the Pound Family decades ago, with the continuous loss of heirs, be related to the discovery of that ancient underground structure? Klein asked thoughtfully:
"Do you know where Baronet Pound is currently residing?"
"Sorry, I don't know." Miller shook his head slightly.
Klein asked a few more questions, but seeing that he could not get any more information, he took his leave and returned to 15 Minsk Street.
It was nearly 5:30 p. m., and the sky was overcast and dark, like night. Klein thought that the public libraries should have already closed, so he temporarily put aside the matter of the underground building and began to prepare dinner for himself.
He originally intended to learn how to make Feynapotter pasta based on a recipe in the newspaper, but ended up making a mixed pasta dish with meat, sauce, and vegetables, which surprisingly tasted quite good.
After eating and drinking his fill, Klein casually tossed a coin to Divination whether he should call the police, and received the answer that he shouldn't.
Backlund is as quiet as any other city at night, at least in the Cherwood Borough.
Klein was sleeping soundly, vaguely drifting between different dreams, when suddenly he awoke with a start, realizing with a profound realization that he was dreaming.
Someone has invaded my dream? Klein suppressed the urge to frown and pretended to be confused as he surveyed his surroundings.
He found himself in a scorching, yellow desert.
A roar suddenly came from the sky, and a huge Monster, black with gold tinged with its own color, soared in.
The Monster had a stout, lizard-like body and a pair of broad, skin-covered wings on its back. It lowered itself further and further, blocking out the Sun in the sky.
A Dragon! A powerful Dragon! Klein saw scales the size of saucers, a gaping maw radiating pure light, and two dark golden vertical pupils.
roar!
The Dragon unleashed a boundless, all-encompassing light, which obliterated vast swathes of desert.
Amidst the light, a figure leaped into the air.
He was three or four meters tall, but he didn't have the Giant's unique vertical single eye. He had a handsome, youthful face and wore full black armor that looked like it had been splattered with blood.
The Giant- like knight swung his broadsword upwards, and countless bluish-white and purple flames condensed into spears, shooting densely at the Dragon. It seemed as if he had an entire legion of phantom Beyonder cooperating with him in the battle!
Amidst the meteor shower, the giant knight leaped atop the Dragon's head and made a slashing motion downwards.
The afterimages he had created earlier instantly overlapped, and the sword light transformed into converging lightning.
Snap!
The earth shook violently, and the Dragon fell, its blood a dark gold.
At this moment, the scene suddenly changed, revealing a blood-stained door, the very same blood-red door that Klein had seen at the innermost part of that ancient building that afternoon.
With a creak, the blood-stained door opened a crack, allowing a glimpse of a black high-backed chair.
A man of normal size sat in a high-backed chair, his head bowed, quiet and lifeless.
As the view drew closer, Klein could see the man's attire clearly. He seemed to be the knight who had just killed the Dragon, still wearing his blood-stained black armor!
The only difference is that he is no longer three or four meters tall.
Just then, the man suddenly raised his head. His young and handsome face was covered with horrible marks of decay that exposed bone, and his eyes were cold and ruthless.
Klein was startled and suddenly woke up from his dream, opening his eyes to see the crimson moonlight shining through the curtains.
P. S.: Requesting guaranteed monthly votes~