At noon, after completing his assignment for the Nighthawks, Old Neil returned home.
The moment he entered, he sensed that something was wrong. He immediately activated his Eyes of Mystery Prying and, sure enough, found signs that someone had been there.
He followed the clues until his gaze settled on the basement. His pupils abruptly contracted.
Worry, fear, terror, relief, and finally anger and fury-a jumble of emotions surged through Old Neil.
He was worried and afraid because he instinctively thought his secret research into a resurrection ritual had been discovered.
As for his terror and relief, they came from his belief that the visitor was an official Beyonder. At the same time, he felt he no longer had to spend every day on edge, afraid of being discovered. The weight had finally lifted from his heart, and so he felt relieved.
But Old Neil promptly rejected that guess. If it had been official Beyonders, the best time to act would have been at the church. Even if they had chosen to come to his home, they would have sent a team, not one person alone.
Old Neil understood the truth of the matter: a thief had come in and had even dared to enter the basement.
That was why Old Neil was angry, furious. The basement was where he conducted his vital research into resurrecting his fiancée, and the things there were more precious than his own life.
Old Neil drew a revolver. He had decided to teach the intruder a little lesson...
Click!
The faint sound of the lock turning pulled Wilt's thoughts away from the book.
Was that Old Neil coming back?
He took the ring off his hand and placed it against his face.
Buzz!!!
The Sealed Artifact immediately changed, spreading across his face as he wished and giving him a different appearance.
Only then did Wilt chuckle toward the stairs and say:
"Since you're back, Mr. Neil, why don't you dare come out and meet me? Are you afraid of disturbing the site of a sacred ritual?"
Old Neil emerged from the shadows and aimed his revolver at the young man sitting in the chair. "Who are you, and why are you here?"
Wilt put down the book, stood up, and said to Old Neil, "You can call me Vincent. I'm a Sequence 7 Cryptologist."
"I came here both to help you, Mr. Neil, and to digest the Potion in my body."
"Help me... digest a Potion?" Old Neil was utterly baffled. "What do you mean?"
"Hmm?" Wilt froze for a moment before suddenly realizing something. "I forgot. You probably don't know about the Acting Method yet, Mr. Neil. In that case, let's start with the most basic concept."
"The Acting Method is the key to a Beyonder digesting a Potion and mastering Beyonder Abilities. Based on the name of the Sequence, we work out a corresponding set of acting principles and follow them. That lets us bypass obstacles and break down the residual mental influence within the Potion, thereby reducing the risk of losing control and speeding up digestion."
"For example, Mr. Neil, as a Mystery Pryer, as long as you act as one and find the right method, the Potion in your body will be fully digested in as little as a few weeks or as long as a month or two."
"And that's why I came. I'm a Cryptologist. If I want to quickly digest the Potion in my body, I need to use my Beyonder Abilities to decipher mysteries."
"The Acting Method... act as a Mystery Pryer..." Old Neil, who had spent many years navigating the Beyonder world, instantly understood what Wilt meant. An idea he had dimly sensed before but had never managed to grasp fully finally became clear.
Still, to be cautious, Old Neil decided to divine the answer. He took a pendulum from his pocket and repeated silently:
"What he said is true..."
The pendulum began to rotate clockwise, slowly at first, then faster, indicating that Wilt had told the truth.
"Now you can believe me, can't you?"
Old Neil put away the pendulum, but he still didn't lower his gun. "What do you mean by helping me?"
"Didn't I just say? I'm helping you to digest the Cryptologist Potion." Wilt then explained further.
"Yesterday, I encountered the Hidden Sage, who imparted some knowledge of Life Alchemy to me. Afterward, I hurriedly prayed to a hidden existence and received instructions from Them. So I came here today."
Wilt looked at the ritual magic on the floor. "Now I know why. There must be someone important to you whom you want to resurrect, Mr. Neil. She's more important to you than your own life."
Old Neil's gaze paused abruptly. He thought of the person he loved most.
Then Old Neil heard Wilt continue, "But you're facing two problems right now, Mr. Neil."
"First, you're running out of time. To obtain knowledge of Life Alchemy, you actively contacted the Hidden Sage. You've already been influenced and secretly corrupted by him, and you're almost on the verge of losing control."
"Second, Life Alchemy is knowledge and an ability at the Demigod level. The chances of this ritual magic succeeding are almost zero."
"So, would you like to cooperate?"
"Cooperate?"
"That's right." Wilt nodded and pointed at the ritual magic on the floor. "I'll use my Cryptologist abilities and the knowledge of Life Alchemy in my head to help you improve this."
"Although the chances of success will still be zero, it'll be much better than before."
"Also, I have a Sealed Artifact of the Spectator Pathway. It can treat your current mental state and greatly reduce your risk of losing control."
"Well, Mr. Neil, would you like to cooperate with me?"
"What I want is simple. I'll digest my Cryptologist Potion by taking part in the process, and I hope you can teach me some knowledge of the Beyonder world, such as ritual magic."
Old Neil fell silent. He knew his chances of success were extremely slim, because bringing the dead back to life was something even Angels couldn't easily do. In other words, he was making an effort doomed to fail.
But Old Neil was unwilling to give up. He was already so old, his hair white at the temples, feeble with age, a man with one foot in the grave.
He didn't care how much longer he had to live. Even if it cost him his life, he had to try to see whether he could resurrect his fiancée in his final moments, even if it only meant seeing her one last time.
If he couldn't, then he would go and join her.
Because he loved her more than anything!
Watching Old Neil struggle, Wilt spoke again. "Mr. Neil, have you thought about telling the Nighthawks what you're doing?"
"If you tell them, there's still time. They'll deal with your risk of losing control, but the resurrection ritual will also be stopped, because they won't allow you to do this."
"No, I won't allow that to happen!" Old Neil instantly became hysterical.
"I haven't harmed anyone! I only want to resurrect my deceased fiancée. Why should they stop me?"
"Placate!" Wilt immediately used the Sealed Artifact to soothe him.
Once Old Neil's emotions had settled, Wilt said again, "It seems you don't want to tell the Nighthawks. In that case, I have another suggestion..."
"Choose to cooperate with me, and then tell the Evernight Goddess everything about me, what you're going to do, and your awareness, thoughts, and decision."
"What do you think... of that suggestion?"