The faint light shone through the small stained windows high up, making the darkness inside Morse Church a little more visible.
Klein placed his hat on his knees and leaned on his cane. He sat quietly in the first row of chairs on the left side of the aisle, looking at the altar in front of him.
There were no statues dedicated there, only a huge dark holy emblem with a deep black background and bright embellishments, surrounding a half crimson moon.
On the wall behind the holy emblem, there are holes one after another, and the sunlight from outside shines in and condenses into pure, miniature bright spots. They are connected with the surrounding almost dark environment and transformed into a lofty starry sky.
Whether it was the Goddess of Night, the Eternal Sun, or the Lord of Storms, all orthodox gods had never left behind any specific images. What could be worshipped and venerated were only their symbols... This seemed to be another manifestation of "not looking directly at God"... Klein let his thoughts wander, and did not rush to take advantage of the opportunity to guard the sealed object "3-0782" alone to create the "Yangyan Talisman."
He believed that such matters required caution, patience, and waiting. In the first ten minutes or so, Leonard and Coenley might come in at any time to remind him of certain precautions.
Time passed quickly in the extremely quiet atmosphere. Klein suddenly came to his senses, took out the silver pocket watch with vine patterns, clicked it open, and took a look.
Twenty minutes have passed... He whispered silently, put his half-high silk hat and black silver-studded cane aside, stood up and walked to a relatively secluded corner near the altar.
He was facing the side of the altar at first, but when he saw the huge dark holy emblem and the sacred scene that seemed like a projection of the night sky, he inexplicably felt guilty and uncomfortable, so he turned around and faced away from the altar.
Then, Klein took off the seal "3-0782" worn on the inside of his black tuxedo, bent down and placed the dark gold-colored ancient badge on the ground.
After taking a look at the abstract "sun" symbol, Klein took out a small candle mixed with sandalwood and placed it directly below the seal "3-0782".
This was the binary ritual method he had "learned" from the Eternal Sun: using objects closely related to the deity to directly symbolize Him, and using candles to represent himself.
After taking a deep breath and calming his slightly tense emotions, Klein took out the items needed for the ceremony one by one, including a carving knife, two thin gold flakes, "sun" essential oil extracted from a mixture of black-edged sunflowers, gold-edged sunflowers, and white-edged sunflowers, citrus aurantium powder, and rosemary powder.
After doing all this, Klein skillfully used the ritual silver dagger to guide the flow of spirituality, circling the simple "altar" and creating an invisible, sealed wall.
He squatted down, put away the silver dagger, stretched out his right hand, and lit the candle that symbolized himself with spiritual friction.
In the flickering and dim light, Klein picked up the "Sun" essential oil and dripped a drop into the candle flame.
Suddenly, an illusory mist spread, carrying a hint of sunshine.
After burning the tangerine and rosemary powder, Klein took the carving knife and gold flakes, stood up, took a step back, and chanted in ancient Hermetic language:
"The blood of the eternal blazing sun."
"You are the eternal light, the embodiment of order, the god of contract, and the guardian of commerce."
…
The Eternal Light, the Incarnation of Order, the God of Contract, and the Guardian of Commerce are all part of the honorific name of "Eternal Blazing Sun". Without the prefix "Blood of the Eternal Blazing Sun", the ceremony must obtain the response of the gods before it can continue. In that case, Klein suspected that "Eternal Blazing Sun" would recognize him as the disrespectful person who looked directly at it. At that time, Leonard and Cohenli would only see a pile of black ashes when they came in.
Moreover, the ceremony must be performed in the ancient Hermetic language, a sacrificial language that comes directly from nature. Only this unprotected but effective language can allow the spell to bypass the "Eternal Blazing Sun" and point to the "Mutated Sun Holy Emblem".
At the same time, because he was stealing the power of the gods, Klein couldn't predict in advance whether things would go smoothly. He believed that would force him to face the gods again, so he could only be cautious and recite the subsequent spells carefully:
"I pray to you;"
"Please give me strength;"
"Give me the power to complete the Sunfire Charm."
"Blood of the Eternal Sun, please pass your power to my talisman..."
"Golden orange, herb from the realm of the sun, please pass your power to my spell..."
…
As the spell drew to an end, Klein suddenly felt something light up in front of him.
The dark gold ancient badge burst into a blazing light, like the sun descending upon the earth.
Klein was suddenly caught in an extreme heat, his hair quickly became hot and seemed about to burn.
His feet seemed to be stepping on the yellow sand exposed to the midday sun, and his face and body were washed and polished again and again by the strong wind blowing from all directions.
At this moment, he felt that he had to do something to guide and express the burning power, otherwise, he would become a human candle.
Without much thought, Klein raised his hands. With his thoughts boiling like hot porridge, he relied on the coordination of his spirituality and the strong wind, followed his instinctive memory and the guidance of the ritual, and began to use a carving knife to draw symbolic symbols, corresponding spiritual numbers, magic signs, and ancient spells on both sides of the gold piece.
Outside the church, Leonard was standing in the shadows, avoiding the direct afternoon sun.
Suddenly, he found that the sunlight became very strong, just like the hottest days in early July.
He squinted his eyes and looked up at the sky, only to see that the blue "curtain" was without a trace of clouds or dust, so clear and quiet that it was amazing.
"Strange weather." On the other side, Cornelius also noticed the change in the sunlight.
Leonard was about to respond with a low laugh, but suddenly tilted his head.
His brows furrowed slightly, and he looked towards the church with a scrutinizing gaze.
"Fortunately, Roxanne is not here, otherwise she would complain that the sun tanned her skin." Leonard looked away and said with a smile.
The scorching sun lasted only a few minutes before gradually dimming, and everything returned to normal.
Inside the church, Klein’s carving knife was putting down the final stroke.
As the magic symbol of "light" was completed, the spirituality on the front and back of the gold piece suddenly connected into a whole and was retracted into the innermost part of the metal.
No, this is closer to divinity... Klein finally got rid of the scorching heat and soberly examined the two "Yangyan Talismans" in his palm.
The golden color on their surface has become dim, the patterns are simple and complex, and the warm and moist feeling is seeping out little by little and seeping into Klein's skin.
"Yes, I finally have a more powerful trump card." Klein sighed silently.
The opening spell he set for the "Sunfire Spell" was "light" in the ancient Hermetic language.
I want light, and there will be light... He joked to himself and put the "Yangyan Talisman" into another pocket. He did not put it together with the "Sleeping", "Soul-Relieving" and "Dream" talismans, because that would affect the latter and reduce the duration of their effects.
"Well, the power of the 'Sun Flame Talisman' can be preserved for at least a year, or even longer." Klein gathered his thoughts and looked at the "mutated sun holy emblem" on the ground.
Seeing that there was no change on the surface, and the feeling of warmth and purity still assimilated the surroundings, Klein breathed a sigh of relief and quickly completed the ceremony to remove the spiritual wall.
It was only at this time that he had the mind to check himself and found that his shirt was almost soaked, his face was covered in sweat, and the edges of his hair were slightly curled.
Fortunately, fortunately... Klein sighed with relief, put away his belongings, and returned to his original seat. He was so tired that he fell asleep while sitting until he was awakened by footsteps.
He suddenly opened his eyes and subconsciously touched the "Yangyan Talisman" to confirm whether it was still there.
"You're not feeling well?" Leonard asked as he entered the church.
Klein rubbed his forehead, stood up and said with a smile:
“Because we are almost reaching our limit.”
He took out his silver pocket watch, opened it and took a look, then said, "It's just right. It's your turn to guard the Sealed Artifact '3-0782'."
Before he finished speaking, Klein took off the Mutated Sun Holy Emblem and handed it to Leonard calmly.
After watching him walk out of the church, Leonard restrained his nonchalant attitude and examined the sealed object "3-0782" attentively and seriously. His expression gradually became confused, revealing obvious bewilderment.
After taking turns on guard, the three night watchmen set out on their return journey.
Before that, they asked Pastor Smail to keep an eye on the situation in the town at all times and to immediately send a telegram to St. Selena Church if there was any suspected haunting incident.
At 7:20 in the evening, they finally arrived at Zouteland Street and handed in the sealed object "3-0782".
After confirming that the captain had not noticed anything unusual, Klein left Blackthorn Security Company happily and returned home before eight o'clock.
He took out his key, opened the door, and suddenly saw a strange figure.
This was a girl who was obviously less than 20 years old. She was wearing an old gray and white dress and was diligently wiping the restaurant.
She has black hair, brown eyes, small eyes, a blunt nose, and very ordinary facial features.
Who? Klein was stunned at first, but then he realized that this might be the maid who came to try out housework.
At this time, Benson put down the newspaper, looked at his brother, smiled and said:
"Companies that don't let their employees leave on time are always a nuisance."
“But the salary it gives can heal the trauma,” Klein responded with a smile.
When Miss Justice's £300 arrives, I will tell Benson and Melissa that their salaries will be raised to £6 per week so they don't have to worry too much about the family's financial situation... Klein thought as he leaned his cane against his head, took off his hat, walked towards the living room, and said in a low voice:
"Have you made your choice?"
He had used the information of the three handyman maids to divine yesterday and came to a conclusion that they were all suitable, so he gave the decision-making power to his brother and sister.
"Yes, Bella, with a weekly salary of 5 soli. She is very willing and capable of learning cooking. She hopes to become a family cook in the future, which will double her weekly salary. Her father is a worker at the Tingen Iron and Steel Combined Plant, and her mother is a laundry worker." Benson chuckled and replied, "Of course, another reason why Melissa and I made the decision is that the other two maids believe in the Lord of Storms, and she is the only one who believes in the Goddess. I personally don't reject believers of the Lord of Storms, but Melissa doesn't like them a little."
Melissa's attitude was not dislike. A more accurate description was that she felt sorry for her misfortune and was angry at her for not fighting. Yes, that's what Lu Xun said! Klein recalled his sister's performance and smiled.
Benson said nothing more, put down the newspaper, stood up and said:
"Now that you're back, let's enjoy dinner."
…………
The next day, Klein entered the Blackthorn Security Company in a very good mood.
"Good morning." Luo Shan glanced around and said, "Old Neil is sick. How about we go visit him at noon?"
"Old Neil is sick?" Klein asked in surprise.
Could it be that the anti-diarrhea ritual caused the severe constipation?
Well, judging from his behavior after he vaguely understood the "acting method", it is possible that he suddenly fell ill... As he gets older, his mind becomes weak, and his body will most likely follow suit...
Luo Shan nodded vigorously:
"Yes, he asked someone to ask the captain for leave."
Klein nodded slightly and said, "Then we'll go visit him at noon. Well, come to think of it, Old Neil is also very pitiful. His wife passed away early, and his children are busy in some city. After he fell ill, he could only lie alone and helpless at home."
He was recalling the first time he went to Old Neil's house.
Hearing Klein's sigh, Roshan opened her eyes wide and asked in astonishment:
"When did old Neil get married?"