On Moonlight night, in the garden of 160 Böklund Street.
A gray mouse scurried out of its hole and ran to the area below the master bedroom balcony.
A small, sticky, black substance drifted down and was acrobatically balanced on the rat's head.
It quickly turned and ran out of 160 Böklund Street, heading towards the entrance to a nearby sewer.
At this moment, the gray mouse raised its front half and stretched out its two paws.
Its claws suddenly and strangely extended, and clearly visible bulges of muscle appeared on its forelegs!
Then, relying on its mutated forepaws, it forcefully moved the manhole cover, making almost no sound!
Without pausing, the gray rat scurried into the sewers, making its way to the place where the Witch Trissy had once hidden.
It dug and dug in the corner, and unearthed a shard of mirror from the soil.
Having done all this, the gray rat flicked the paste-like black substance from its head to a cleaner spot nearby, retreated to a corner, and let its body slowly lengthen and widen as if being pulled by an invisible person, transforming into a middle-aged man wearing a dark red coat and an old tricorn hat, clearly the " Admiral of Blood " who was once active at sea.
However, this Senor was only dressed in a thin layer, like a mannequin cut from paper.
"This rat is quite fat..." The paper-like " Admiral of Blood " raised his hand and touched his chin, nearly floating away when the cold wind from the sewer blew on him.
It was Klein who was speaking. In the master bedroom, he Manipulation the " Spirit Body Threads " to transform a mouse into Marionette and sent it to carry "ritual materials" to the sewers to try to contact the Witch Trissy.
With his arms swaying in the wind and his movements, " Senor " bent down and picked up the clump of black, paste-like substance. It was a remnant left behind by Trissy after she burned a lock of her hair with black flames, and it could be used for communication rituals.
He then wiped the shard of mirror clean and applied the material he had in his hand to it.
After completing this step, Klein had the Marionette take two steps back with the "mirror" and stick it to the moss-covered wall with a slap, like a realistic oil painting.
In the East Borough, in a room with heavy curtains and almost no light.
Layers of dark, slippery "tentacles" intertwined to form a giant sphere.
At the tip of these "tentacles," some are adorned with a distinct black and white eye, while others resemble the head of a venomous snake, with their mouths slightly parted and their tongues flicking out—all bizarre and terrifying.
Suddenly, they either rose up or shrank back, and the spheres disintegrated layer by layer.
Inside the sphere was a girl curled up in a ball. She had an exceptionally sweet face, but her brows were tightly furrowed, and her expression was slightly Distortion with pain, making her all the more pitiful.
Those slimy, disgusting "tentacles" had all retracted, rapidly shrinking until they finally returned to their original shape.
Strands of jet-black, lustrous hair!
The girl with long, flowing hair softened her expression, slowly got up, walked to the bed which had been divided into small sections, picked up the nightgown that had fallen to the floor, and put it on.
Then, she smoothed her black hair, went to the full-length mirror, and stretched out her right palm to wipe the glass surface.
A layer of black flames then ignited, quietly burning the air before quickly extinguishing, leaving behind a mirror that had become dark and deep.
Inside the mirror, light and shadow shifted, quickly revealing a filthy, muddy sewer environment. A middle-aged man wearing an old tricorn hat and a dark red coat was pressed against the wall, looking down at a girl some distance away, like a masterpiece brought to life.
The girl with the round face and slender eyes stared at him quietly for two seconds, then suddenly laughed.
As her smile blossomed, the almost dark room seemed to brighten considerably in an instant.
She then parted her lips slightly and said in a teasing tone:
"Mr. Gehrman Sparrow, is this the madness and ruthlessness of the greatest adventurer?"
"Or perhaps, I actually know a Clown?"
Klein wasn't surprised that the Witch Trissy could recognize him Gehrman Sparrow, after all, he had met her in the guise of " Admiral of Blood " Senor, and this pirate general had long been Gehrman Sparrow's prey.
Trissy was hiding in the sewers after being injured, and she was focused on her revenge investigation. It was quite normal that she was unaware of the news at sea and the fate of " Admiral of Blood ". However, after recovering her health and leaving there, if she still didn't find out about her collaborator's latest news, it can only be said that she was completely unqualified in both the " Assassin " and " Instigator " stages.
Clearly, Trissy's past behavior proves that while she may be bad, she's not entirely incompetent.
Klein didn't argue. Senor, who Manipulation the paper figure, smiled and simply replied:
Why can't the Clown be crazy and ruthless?
Before Trissy could answer, he turned and asked:
"How far have you progressed in your investigation of that palace guard captain?"
Trissy's expression darkened slightly as she said:
"It will take at least another month, maybe even two, to get results."
"If you need any help, feel free to ask me," Klein emphasized again.
Trissy chuckled and said:
"In Backlund, in this game, strength cannot solve all problems."
"Of course, I never waste opportunities to take advantage of others."
"Mr. Gehrman Sparrow, since there's no longer any need to conceal my identity, could you provide me with a more convenient way to contact you?"
Why does this feel like I'm being asked for my phone number...? Klein thought for a moment, then calmly described the steps to summon the messenger, not forgetting to emphasize that gold coins were an important ritual material.
Trissy didn't say anything more, and once again reached out her right hand and lightly touched the mirror.
The black flames rose and then disappeared, and the full-length mirror returned to normal.
Inside the sewers, the paper doll-like " Admiral of Blood " Senor buried the mirror fragment back into the soil, then rapidly shrank back into the form of a gray rat, rushing all the way to the depths of this underground world to feed himself to the carnivorous creatures.
At 160 Böklund Street, Klein drew the curtains and returned to his armchair.
To be honest, he somewhat regretted working with Trissy.
He felt that the guy carried some of the will of the " Primordial Demoness " and was willing to do anything for revenge, like a moving bomb that could go out of control at any moment.
If Triss undergoes a transformation, it could very well cause a terrible disaster... I shouldn't have let her go in the first place... Klein sighed and began setting up a ritual, bringing the paste-like black substance above the gray fog, attempting to use it to divine Triss's current whereabouts and recent condition.
Twenty or thirty seconds later, he suffered defeat.
This worried him even more, because such a result indicated that Trissy had, in some way, become God's Blessed of the " Primordial Demoness ".
The next morning, after breakfast, Klein began instructing the butler, Walter, and the new butler's assistant Richardson, to distribute the gifts he had brought back from the Southern Continent.
It filled an entire suitcase, containing local specialties such as Fermer coffee beans, East Balam tobacco, Valley wines, and human bone sculptures.
They will be delivered to different neighbors in the block, representing Dawn Dantès ' sentiments and announcing his return to social occasions.
"Hmm, when you hand this bottle of Valley wine to Congressman Macht or his wife, remember to mention that it's good for making sour cocktails and goes perfectly with lemon juice," Klein instructed the butler Walter.
There's an art to giving a gift; it should be tailored to the recipient's interests. Of course, the hottest product in the Southern Continent right now, Doningsman hair growth tonic, isn't suitable as a gift, as it would sound more like mockery.
Walter nodded solemnly:
Yes, sir.
Once the employer had given no further instructions, Richardson glanced at the remaining pile of gifts and asked:
Where are they being sent?
"This is for the staff of the Charity Bursary Foundation; I'll deliver it myself," Klein said with a smile.
He then pointed to the golden amulet in his hand and said:
"I missed the birth of Doctor. Allen's child and need to personally apologize. Hehe, I'll go there this afternoon and give that child this amulet, a unique feature of the Southern Continent."
Of course, baby Will Auceptin Ceres probably wouldn't like that... He'd rather have ice cream... After saying that, Klein muttered a few words to himself.
After the butler and Richardson left, carrying gifts and servants to different neighbors' homes, Klein boarded his own carriage and arrived at the " Loen Charity Bursary Foundation " at 22 Phelps Street.
He stepped down from the carriage and walked ahead, followed by his personal valet, Enuni, who carried a large pile of gifts. Whenever they encountered staff members along the way, they would greet them and offer them gifts.
And so, Klein went up to the second floor, arrived at one of the directors' offices, and lightly knocked on the slightly ajar door with his finger.
"Please come in," Audrey Hall's gentle voice called out.
As a relatively experienced " Spectator," she had noticed Mr. Dawn Dantès's visit to the " Loen Charity Bursary Foundation " beforehand and had been patiently waiting.
Klein pushed open the door and entered, taking a small gift box from the inside pocket of his clothes, and said with a gentle smile:
"I'm back from the Southern Continent. Well, the business was very successful. I brought back some small gifts for everyone, and I hope to share my joy with them."
He made a point of mentioning it to show that he remembered Miss " Justice's" request.
"Then I can't find a reason to refuse," Audrey said with a hint of anticipation.
This doesn't mean she cares about what gift Mr. "World" will give, but rather that she's curious about what gift Mr. "World" will give.
Taking the gift box, she opened it in front of Dawn Dantès and found a white feather-shaped ornament decorated with pale yellow patterns inside.
"These are hat ornaments," Klein explained. "People of a certain social standing in East Balam like to adorn themselves with various white feathers in different places on their bodies. Among them, those worn on hats are the most precious and meaningful. This is said to come from the custom of Feathered Serpent worship. Hehe, the Feathered Serpent is a symbol of Death there."
The feather he used to make the hat ornament from a craftsman in the Southern Continent originated from a byproduct of the Artificial Death Project and could be used as a sacrifice.
Klein once obtained three. He used one in Bayam, which, combined with the corresponding bronze whistle messenger, summoned Monster corrupted and mutated by the Artificial Death. He sacrificed one to the " Artificial Death " in the Southern Continent, and received the revelation of being possessed by the Evil Spirit of Ince Zangwill. This is the last one left.
Since the current " Artificial Death " is essentially equivalent to the " Evernight Goddess " to some extent, Klein, who has been identified as Blessed, no longer needs to perform the rituals as before and can use other materials instead of feathers. Therefore, he simply made the remaining feather into a gift and gave it to Miss " Justice ". After all, she is also a believer in the Evernight, and she might be able to contact the " Artificial Death " with this feather at a crucial moment.
Holding the gift, Audrey listened quietly to Dawn Dantès's story with a smile, a thought inexplicably flashing through her mind:
Mr. World wouldn't actually have plucked a Feathered Serpent's hair to make this hat, would he...?
P. S.: I recommend a fantasy-themed book, The Demon Hunter's Cookbook. Synopsis: As night falls, whispers echo in his ears, and Monster in the shadows begin to stir, Jason's hungry stomach rumbles, and he involuntarily swallows hard...
Hunger is the best motivation.