The gas street lamps at night illuminated the wet ground, and occasionally a carriage passed by, splashing a few drops of water.
Backlund is located in the central part of the kingdom, only a few dozen kilometers away from the Sonia Sea. It rains a lot all year round, with an average maximum temperature of only 28 degrees Celsius in July and a minimum of around 2 degrees Celsius in winter. It rarely drops to "zero" or even breaks through, but this does not prevent people from feeling cold here. Even the people of Northern Feysac, who are used to living in ice and snow, sometimes cannot withstand the dampness and coolness that can penetrate their clothes and flesh.
Klein stood in the room with an unlit fireplace, behind the oriel window, looking at the peaceful and tranquil scene outside. He felt extremely relaxed in body, mind, and spirit.
As long as he gathered all the materials and concocted the potion, he could immediately advance to Sequence 6 and become a "Faceless Man".
"The Magician's potion has been completely digested... I killed the Apostle myself and he didn't escape... The Aurora Society's search for the Fool's followers is still going in circles... Apart from the fact that Mr. Azik is being pursued by some unknown force and issues related to potion materials, I don't have any worries for the time being..." Klein leaned forward, exhaled, and watched a layer of white mist condense on the window.
The reason why he took the risk to intercept the "*Apostle" was because he was worried that the other party had other arrangements and wanted to successfully get rid of the tracking of the official Beyonders. At that time, he might be remembered for providing key opinions and be retaliated against afterwards. As "cold-blooded", demons are unlikely to take the risk of revenge for their companions, but this does not mean that they will not choose to vent their anger because they almost died.
"This operation is indeed necessary. Maybe someone from the Dusk Hermit Society is waiting for us somewhere. When the Apostle escapes, I, who don't have the corresponding information, might just defend myself according to Sequence 5, thinking that I won't be in too much danger after being promoted to the Faceless Man. However, the Apostle is likely to be promoted to a high-sequence with the help of the Abyss card and the help of the Dusk Hermit Society! Such a development is frightening just thinking about it... The finishing blow of justice is indispensable..." Klein reviewed what happened this afternoon and summarized the experience and lessons.
After admiring the night view for a while, he walked back to the sofa and sat down, thinking about the next arrangements:
"With the bounty from the Mechanical Heart, I can buy the mutant pituitary gland and blood of the Thousand-Faced Hunter. I also have enough money for the hair of the Deep Sea Naga. This kind of material should be relatively easy to collect at sea. I can ask Mr. The Hanged Man for help. The only problem is the characteristics of the human skin shadow...
"And even if we have clues, the gold pounds are not enough..."
Thinking of this, Klein couldn't help but laugh at himself silently:
"I'm not a money-loving person, it's just a normal hobby. When I was in Tingen, I always encouraged Melissa to spend money and urged her and Benson to hire a maid. I thought that no matter what, we should try not to treat ourselves badly. Whenever we do a covert operation, safety is the first priority, and caution is the most important thing. We will not let wealth affect our minds.
“But in order to take revenge, I must upgrade my sequence, and to upgrade my sequence, I must purchase expensive extraordinary materials. I can only save money by the penny, so I have to save as much as possible…”
He suddenly shrank his shoulders, feeling the chill in the living room, which made the "magician" who was not known for his physical fitness tremble a little.
So he decided to take a shower, get into bed, and read a book in bed.
It’s time to go to bed in three or four hours. There’s no need to light the fireplace... Klein sighed, stood up, and walked to the second floor.
…………
The underground area of the Steam Cathedral.
After reading through all the recorded confessions, Ikanser picked up his coffee and took a sip.
After a few seconds of calm, he took out the ancient silver mirror called Arrodes.
Carlson took a look and asked curiously:
"Deacon, if you ask the respected Arrodes an unsolved mathematical problem or a classic paradox, will it give the correct answer?"
"Most of the time, it will directly refuse. If it thinks you have bad intentions, it may even give you a lightning bolt or make you bear a curse that you absolutely don't want to face." Ikanser sighed, "It is a living seal with extremely high intelligence. It is not a differential machine that rigidly abides by the rules. When using it, it is best not to try to find loopholes."
Carlson looked at the players around him and kindly suggested:
"Deacon, let me ask for you. I have nothing to hide."
He straightened his back and assumed a frank and honest attitude.
Ikanser smiled bitterly and said:
"No need. I already know everything I need to know. I am no longer afraid of such questions. Besides, the respected Arrodes occasionally asks quite profound questions. Given your physical condition, the subsequent punishment will not be so easy to bear."
After saying that, he clenched his fist first, then stretched out his five fingers and gently stroked the surface of the silver mirror three times.
In the subtle mist, Ikanser spoke in a low voice:
"Dear Arrodes, my question is, who or which force ordered the 'Apostle' to assassinate Duke Negan?"
The silver mirror did not change for a short while. After a while, the water light floated on it, outlining a scene like an oil painting:
It was the plain where the sun was about to set, and the vast fields were filled with pale golden afterglow.
“What does this mean?” Carlson and other members of the Mechanical Heart looked at each other, totally unable to comprehend. Even among them there were Extraordinary beings who had been promoted from Secret Peepers and were no strangers to interpreting revelations.
"Dusk? A symbol of life approaching the end? A sect that believes in the god of death or a madman who believes in doomsday?" A "secret peeper" said carefully.
Carlson nodded in agreement:
"I think it's the latter."
Ikanser ignored their discussion because Arrodes's question had already surfaced:
"What color ** do you like best?"
Ikanser's face suddenly turned red, and he felt as if smoke was coming out of his head.
He uttered a word with great difficulty:
"red."
The room suddenly became unusually quiet, and Carlson and others looked towards the corner as if nothing had happened.
Ikanser sat down exhausted, scratched his fluffy hair, and prepared to ask the second question.
Carlson couldn't help but say:
"Butler, let me give it a try."
“…Try not to get into the punishment phase.” Ikanser finally nodded in agreement.
Carlson confidently imitated the deacon's actions, stroking the surface of the silver mirror three times, and the other members gathered around again.
"Dear Arrodes, my question is, who are the collaborators of the 'Apostle'?"
The water light floated, the images changed, and the surface of the silver mirror first showed the back of a woman with an outstanding figure.
Next, there was a person whose figure was extremely blurry. One could only roughly judge from his clothing that he was a male.
"Sure enough, there is another collaborator. This should be the person who sold out Duke Negan's information! Unfortunately, the other party has taken certain measures..." Carlson said after looking around.
He thought he had no secrets and didn't need to worry about the follow-up questions.
This time, the choices given by Arrodes were questions, tasks, or punishments.
Carlson said without hesitation:
"question!"
Bloody words were quickly written on the silver mirror:
"You solve it with your hands every day?"
Carlson's lips moved and he felt his ears quickly becoming hot.
Although he thought this was normal, giving the answer in front of so many teammates and superiors still made him want to bury his face in the ground.
"Yes..." he answered very quietly.
…………
The base of St Samuel's Church.
Daly, who was wearing blue eyeshadow, threw a stack of documents in front of the Requiem Master Soest:
"All the case information involving Tarot cards that you want."
"Less than I thought," Soest said with a little surprise.
Daly said:
“It’s just the index.”
Leonard saw this and stroked his lower lip with his red-gloved right palm and said:
"Captain Soest, why don't we conduct a thorough investigation of the people who have come into contact with Jason Belia and compare them with the previous two cases? There may be clues to the organization symbolized by the tarot cards hidden here."
"Duke Negan is a devout believer of the Lord of Storms and represents the interests of the Church of Storms in the political arena. The Mandated Punishers will certainly be frantically searching for the real murderer. There is no need for us to get involved, as that would easily lead to conflicts with them. We can check other cases involving tarot cards and perhaps find new clues. Of course, we will inevitably have to run around for this, but this is the duty of the Red Gloves." Sost explained with a smile.
Leonard nodded:
"I see."
But in his mind, the slightly old voice laughed and said:
"The Nighthawks actually missed it. That man smells like the Black Emperor, the real Black Emperor!"
…………
Inside the Holy Wind Cathedral.
Ace Snake, the "Singer of God" wearing a black soft hat, glanced at the selected elite Punishers with his silver eyes and said:
“Although I am about to leave Backlund, this is the decision of the Cardinals’ Conference.
“You have only one mission left, which is to investigate the assassination of Duke Negan.
"After declaration, you have the right to use the Level 1 seal. You must find out who is targeting us!"
Standing at the front, a middle-aged man wearing a modified captain's hat immediately led everyone, clenched his fist, tapped his chest and said:
"As you command, Your Excellency Cardinal!"
He was thin and had a plain appearance, but he had a dark blue tattoo on his neck in the shape of an anchor.
…………
In Queens, in the luxurious villa of Earl Hall's family.
Audrey looked at Susie who had opened the door and came in, and said in a low voice:
"Dad, what are they discussing?"
After discovering that Earl Hall came back very late and had an unusually serious expression, she immediately sent her big golden retriever Susie to sneak in and sit in.
"Duke Negan has been assassinated." Susie said as she closed the door.
"Ah?" Audrey was stunned for a moment, wondering if she had heard it wrongly.
Although she had experienced an assassination attempt on Duke Negan, she never thought that this extremely powerful nobleman would actually die as a result.
"Really." Susie answered in the affirmative.
Audrey was suddenly confused and felt that it was not real enough.
Such a great nobleman, such a flesh-and-blood duke who could speak and laugh, and who also gave himself an estate, died just like that?
Suddenly, she realized the cruelty and coldness of the adult world.
"Who did it?" Audrey asked subconsciously.
"A Sequence 5 demon." Susie answered quickly, "But he has been silenced by that thief 'Black Emperor'."
"Ah?" Audrey was stunned again.
How could he be the chivalrous thief “Black Emperor”? How could he be the follower of Mr. Fool?
He just helped me solve the crisis of Duke Negan being assassinated last time!
This is totally contradictory!
Audrey immediately told Susie to go and listen again, and she locked the door, sat on the bed, and prayed to Mr. Fool.
After reciting the honorific name and describing the assassination of Duke Nigan, she asked with great trust:
"Is your follower present?"
After a while, she saw endless gray fog and heard the voice of The Fool:
"Yes.
"He is looking for the organization that commands the 'Apostles'."
Sure enough, it wasn’t arranged by Mr. Fool! The last time He asked His Followers to stop Qi Lingos, was it also for the organization behind the scenes? Audrey relaxed and asked curiously:
"What kind of organization is that? It actually got your attention."
A second later, she heard Mr. Fool’s calm reply:
"The Dusk Hermits."
ps: Today's two updates are all sent, please recommend and vote for monthly tickets~