Dead?
Will Auceptin is dead?
And it seems he's been dead for some time!
Could this be fake?
Klein stared at the child's corpse with a mixture of shock and suspicion, a multitude of thoughts suddenly surfacing in his mind.
In his understanding, Will Auceptin is a special child who may be related to Sequence 1 of the " Monster " pathway, " Mercury Snake ".
The Divination games he played, his casual remark, " Doctor, your luck will turn bad," brought Allen a long period of misfortune; the origami cranes he folded could locate Allen's Astral Body in the Spirit World, instilling artificially created revelations; his whereabouts were so obscure that even Klein, above the Gray Fog, could only glimpse them, unable to draw any meaningful conclusions... How could such a child die so inexplicably? Died before Doctor. Allen even dreamed? What about his family?
Klein squinted, suppressing a strong nausea, and carefully examined the highly decomposed corpse, discovering some torn tarot cards in the surrounding soil.
His Spirituality intuition told him that the corpse in front of him was most likely Will Auceptin.
This is truly shocking and perplexing... I'll go back to the Gray Fog to confirm whether Will Auceptin faked his death... Wait, what does this have to do with me? I decided a long time ago not to get too involved in this, lest I get entangled in some " Mercury Snake," which might be even more terrifying than the Sealed Artifact "0-08"... Klein suddenly snapped back to reality and said to the terrified gravedigger and the nearly collapsing Doctor. Allen:
"Call the police!"
"Okay, okay!" The tomb keeper was taken aback at first, then answered repeatedly.
He grabbed the shovel, turned, and ran out of the woods, as fast as if a Living Corpse was chasing him.
He's just an ordinary person, not careful at all. Shouldn't he be wary of people around him with bad intentions in this situation? Exposing his back makes him an easy target for someone to smash him with a shovel... Klein glanced at the gravedigger's back, sighed, and shook his head.
While he was with the Night Watchers in Tingen, he reviewed many case files and discovered that many victims were tricked by their accomplices in this way.
Thinking of this, Klein walked to Doctor. Allen's side, bent down, and extended his hand:
"There's nothing to be afraid of, he's already dead."
"... It's only scary when someone is dead." Allen calmed down a bit, refused Klein's help, and got up on his own.
His black tuxedo was covered in mud, which made Klein feel a little sorry for him.
"I can't stand seeing valuable things get damaged..." he thought to himself.
Seeing that Allen was still somewhat flustered, Klein smiled and said:
"In times like these, praying to the deity you believe in can be quite effective."
"Really?" Allen paused, tapped his chest four times clockwise, and whispered, " Evernight Goddess, more sublime than the Starry Sky, more enduring than eternity, your devout follower begs for your favor..."
As he whispered repeatedly, he gradually calmed down and was no longer as terrified as before.
Klein casually drew a triangular holy symbol on his chest and muttered to himself:
" God of Steam and Machinery, your utterly undevout believer begs for your favor..."
As he spoke, he couldn't help but chuckle self-deprecatingly, wondering if he might be struck by lightning on the spot.
However, lightning and thunder belong to the Lord of Storms, and are not within the domain of the God of Steam and Machinery... Klein thought quite easily.
More than twenty minutes later, the two were seated in an interrogation room at a nearby police station.
During the questioning, Klein frankly told the police that he was just a private Detective hired by the police and did not know what had happened. Doctor. Allen, on the other hand, described in detail his dream and the reason for exhuming the body.
Klein could tell that the police didn't believe him at all, but after they went out for a walk, they immediately changed their attitude, saying that Doctor. Allen and Detective Moriarty were not suspicious and that they could leave as long as they signed their statements.
Allen was quite surprised by this, but Klein was not surprised at all; it was obvious that Nighthawks had intervened.
The benefits of having the Doctor go to the Cathedral of Stars to see the bishop beforehand were evident.
Before leaving the police station, Klein unsurprisingly saw a familiar figure – the Nighthawks had entered his dream earlier.
The Nighthawks was probably the captain, was still wearing a gray trench coat and looked much more resistant to the cold Klein. He glanced at Klein with his blue eyes, then looked away without showing any sign of anything amiss, pretending to be just an ordinary senior inspector.
Klein was also pretending to be just an ordinary private Detective, adjusted his glasses, put on his top hat, and left the police station with Doctor. Allen, getting into the carriage.
After instructing his driver to go to Minsk Street first, Allen turned to look at Klein:
" Sherlock, do you think this is the end of it?"
"If that body really is Will Auceptin, you shouldn't be bothered anymore." Klein paused, then said, " Allen, have you felt anything else strange during this time? Whatever it may be?"
Allen thought about it seriously for a moment, then shook his head and said:
"No."
"That's something to celebrate!" Klein exhaled and said with a smile.
For him, it was best that Will Auceptin. Although the origami crane Klein folded above the Gray Fog wouldn't reveal anything, and the subsequent Divination was correct, he was still somewhat worried that some Nighthawks might suddenly have a whim and find some clues. Now, with Will Auceptin's death, the case might soon reach a dead end, be put into the files, temporarily declared closed, and no one would pay attention to it again without new developments.
Allen relaxed, then asked with a puzzled look, "Frankly, I don't think my testimony is very convincing. Why did the police ultimately choose to believe me?"
"I don't know either," Klein said, feigning ignorance. "I thought I'd have to have my Lawyer come and take me home again—no, bail me out."
Allen, unusually, curled the corners of his mouth slightly and said:
" Sherlock, you seem to have a lot of experience when it comes to getting into police stations?"
Klein chuckled and replied in a deep voice:
"This is the fate of every private Detective."
Just as Klein and Allen were being taken to the police station near Green Cemetery, Fors Wall, dressed in an elegant black dress and a black soft hat with a fine mesh veil, entered the quiet cemetery and found Mrs. Anlisa's grave.
She and Hugh had gone to the Queens Borough to see Viscount Glaint an hour earlier and received a reply that he was willing to lend them £400 without charging any interest.
Viscount Glaint's only request was that two Beyonder accompany him to the party Mr. A would be hosting that evening, to protect his safety, as he was eager to collect " Crown Jellyfish venom crystals" to complete the concoction of the " Apothecary " Potion.
Audrey had found the horn of an adult Horned Pegasus in her family treasury and obtained it under the guise of conducting biological experiments, which effectively offset part of her debts.
She also made an additional condition: that Viscount Glaint, with the help of Duke Negan's children, confirm whether the Dragon specimen in the other party's treasury belonged to the Thousand-faced Hunter and whether there were still any glimmering lights inside.
After securing the loan, Fors didn't rush to ask Mr. The Fool to expedite the transaction, as that would make Hugh instinctively suspect something was amiss.
Taking advantage of the free time, Fors changed her clothes and rented a carriage to Green Cemetery, located on the outskirts of the West Borough.
Having learned about the laws of conservation and immortality of Beyonder Characteristic, Fors understood that the primary material for her becoming an " Apprentice " was the Beyonder Characteristic left behind by Mrs. Anlisa; she had essentially inherited the other's power.
So she couldn't resist coming here once, to place a bouquet of flowers at Mrs. Anlisa's tombstone, and to say thank you.
It was early winter, and most of the flowers had long since withered, but Fors still managed to buy a bouquet of simple, elegant flowers.
These flowers are grown in a glass greenhouse and are quite expensive.
"Thanks to Emperor Roselle for his invention... "Fors said sincerely in his heart.
As far as she knew, most of the flowers used by nobles at their winter banquets came from glass greenhouses, while a small amount were transported directly from warmer southern regions by airships, which was beyond the reach of the average middle class.
Standing before the black tombstone, Fors gazed intently at the photograph of Mrs. Anlisa for a few moments, then bent down to place the flowers and whispered:
"Thanks."
She immediately stood up straight, closed her eyes, and quietly recalled the past.
Just then, she heard a slightly aged voice:
"You are such a kind and compassionate lady."
Fors opened her eyes and turned her head, only to find that Mr. Lawrence from the Abraham Family had also appeared there at some point, holding a bouquet of elegant flowers in his hand.
"No, this isn't kindness or good intentions. Mrs. Anlisa gave me an unforgettable and warm time after I lost my mother," Fors said sincerely.
Her eyes suddenly became a little moist.
Lawrence, with only a few wrinkles around his eyes, sighed as he placed the flowers down:
This shows that you value friendship.
After exchanging a few casual words, Fors prepared to take her leave. Lawrence was waving goodbye when he suddenly broke into a violent cough.
Cough cough cough!
He coughed so hard his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground, seemingly on the verge of suffocating.
As a Doctor with a formal medical degree, Fors turned around without hesitation, knelt down, and began first aid.
After a flurry of activity, Lawrence's condition finally stabilized. He wiped the saliva from the corners of his mouth and smiled at Fors, saying:
"Madam, could you take me back to my hotel?"
"No problem." Fors helped the other person to their feet.
Lawrence stared ahead, his eyes slightly unfocused. He coughed lightly and laughed, a laugh that was half sorrowful and half self-deprecating:
"My life may be coming to an end..."
P. S.: Requesting votes on Monday!