Facing his sister's question, Klein could only smile bitterly:
"Muscle soreness."
He originally thought that after taking the Sequence Potion and becoming a Beyonder, his physical fitness would be improved to some extent, but the cruel reality told him that the skills of the "Fortune Teller" were all focused on spirituality, spirit, intuition and interpretation, which would not allow him to quickly adapt to combat training.
The original owner had been concentrating on studying for many years and was somewhat malnourished, which had kept his physical fitness at a lower-than-average level. It was quite normal for him to have such "aftereffects" today.
"Muscle soreness? I remember you came back after dinner yesterday and didn't do anything else... Could alcohol cause muscle soreness?" Melissa asked inquiringly.
Could it be that alcohol causes muscle soreness... Sister, the way you ask this question... the way you ask it really makes me think of something wrong... Klein laughed dryly and said:
"No, it has nothing to do with alcohol. It happened yesterday afternoon. I joined the company's combat training."
"Fighting?" Melissa was even more surprised.
Klein quickly organized his words and said:
"That's right. I think that as a history and cultural relic consultant for a security company, I can't stay in the office or the dock warehouse forever. Maybe one day in the future, I will need to go to the countryside with them, to the ancient castle, to the original location of the cultural relics. On the way, I will climb mountains, cross rivers, walk a lot of roads, and accept various tests of nature. This requires a healthy body."
"So you joined combat training to improve your physique?" Melissa understood what her brother meant.
“Yes.” Klein answered affirmatively.
Melissa frowned slightly and said:
"But this is not gentlemanly... Haven't you always held yourself to the standards of a professor? A professor only needs to read literature, think about difficult problems, and be polite and graceful."
"Of course, I'm not saying this is a bad thing. I like men who can solve problems on their own, whether they use their muscles or their brains."
Klein smiled and said:
"No, no, no, Melissa, you have a misunderstanding of the definition of a professor. A true professor can communicate with others in a gentle and polite manner, and when there is a communication barrier, he can pick up his cane and use physical means to persuade the other party."
"The physical method..." Melissa didn't react at first, but she soon understood what her brother wanted to express, and she couldn't find the words to refute for a while.
Klein didn't say anything more. He moved his legs with difficulty and moved to the bathroom.
Melissa stood there and watched for a few seconds, then suddenly shook her head and chased after him in two steps:
"Can I help you?"
She gave a gesture of support.
“No, that’s not necessary. I was just performing a little bit.” Klein felt insulted. He straightened his back suddenly and walked normally.
Watching her brother walk steadily into the bathroom and close the door, Melissa pursed her lips and muttered in a low voice:
“Klein is really becoming more and more exaggerated… I thought his muscle soreness was really that serious…”
In the bathroom, Klein stood behind the closed door, his face suddenly twisted.
"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts..." He held his breath, tensed his body, and relaxed for seven or eight seconds.
It was not until he trudged downstairs, had breakfast, and watched Benson and Melissa leave that he felt the pain was no longer so severe.
After resting for a while, Klein picked up his cane, put on his top hat, and slowly walked out the door to the tram stop.
…………
During the summer vacation, Khoi University is shaded by green trees, with flourishing flowers and birds, and it is peaceful and quiet.
After walking along the river for a while, Klein turned into the road leading to the History Department and found the old three-story gray stone building and the office of his mentor Cohen Quentin.
He knocked on the door and entered, and was surprised to see teacher Azik sitting in the instructor's seat.
"Good morning, Mr. Azik. Where is my mentor? We agreed in the letter to meet at ten o'clock." Klein asked in confusion.
Azik, a good friend of Cohen Quentin and a teacher who often argued with him over academic issues, laughed:
"Cohen had a meeting at Tingen University and asked me to wait for you here."
He has bronze skin, a medium build, black hair and brown eyes, soft facial features, and an indescribable sense of vicissitudes in his eyes. There is a small mole hidden under his right ear that cannot be seen without careful observation.
After explaining the reason, Azik suddenly frowned and looked at Klein carefully.
“Is there anything impolite about me?” Klein looked at his clothes blankly.
Tuxedo, black vest, white shirt, black bow tie, dark trousers, buttonless leather boots... It's normal...
Azik relaxed his brows and laughed:
"Don't worry about it. I just suddenly found that you are much more energetic than before and more like a gentleman."
“Thank you for your compliment.” Klein accepted it calmly and asked, “Mr. Azik, has the instructor found the book ‘A Study of the Ancient Relics of the Main Peak of Honachis’ in the school library?”
"Found it, with my help." Azik said with a gentle smile, then opened the drawer and took out a book with a gray cover. "You are no longer a student of Hoy University. You can only read it here and cannot take it away."
“Okay.” Klein took the academic monograph with a mixture of joy and fear.
The appearance design of this book is completely in line with the current fashion trends. The front and back covers are made of cardboard, and the patterns are pictures, forming an abstract shape of the main peak of Hornachis.
Klein took a quick look, found a seat to sit down, opened the book, and read it carefully line by line.
He was so absorbed in watching that he suddenly noticed a cup of coffee at hand, with a mellow and rich aroma.
"Add sugar and milk yourself." Azik put down the small silver plate and pointed to the milk jug and sugar box.
“Thank you.” Klein nodded gratefully.
He casually added three sugar cubes and a spoonful of milk and continued reading without tasting the food.
The book "Research on the Ancient Relics of the Main Peak of Honachis" was not thick. Klein finished reading it near noon and grasped a few points that needed attention:
"First, the biological settlements on the main peak of Honachis and the surrounding areas have clearly formed a civilization, and an ancient country exists."
"Second, judging from the murals, their appearance is no different from that of humans, so they can be preliminarily considered human."
"Third, they revered and feared the night, and thus personified a god to believe in, calling this god the ruler of the night and the mother of the sky."
"Fourth, the strangest thing is that no tombs of this country have been found in the entire area, giving people a strange illusion that their residents do not need to be buried and may not even die. This is inconsistent with the content reflected in the murals. In the murals, the people of this country believe that death is not the end and that their dead relatives will protect them in the dark night. Therefore, they will keep their dead relatives at home, in their beds, and by their pillows for three full days."
"After that, the mural ends here and does not involve the burial part."
Klein took a sip of coffee and continued writing his “reading notes” in his notebook:
"Mother of the Sky, Mother of Heaven, these are very high-sounding titles, and the Ruler of the Night obviously overlaps with the Goddess of the Night... Is this the source of the contradiction?"
"In the ancient ruins of the main peak of Honachis and the surrounding area, all the displays and furnishings are well preserved, and there are no signs of damage to the murals. It seems that this place has not been disturbed at all before it was discovered... There are dinner plates on the table, and there are signs of dryness and decay in the dinner plates... In some rooms, there are half bottles of wine that have almost turned into clear water..."
"What about the people of this country? They all seemed to have left their homes in a hurry, without packing anything, and never returned."
"It's even more strange when you consider that there's no tomb."
"The author, Mr. Joseph, also mentioned that when he first discovered these ruins, he even thought that the residents here evaporated in an instant."
Klein put down his pen and cast his eyes on an illustration.
It was a black-and-white photo taken by John Joseph with a new camera during his third trip to the main peak of Honachis.
In the photos, the palace is towering, the walls are collapsed, and there are overgrown weeds, and the style is mainly grand.
When he turned to this photo just now, Klein instantly remembered the palace he saw in his dream:
The styles of the two are similar, but the one I dreamed of is located at the top of the mountain, more magnificent, and there is a huge chair that does not belong to a human at the top, and there are countless transparent maggots huddled together, wriggling slowly.
It can be confirmed that my dream is related to the ancient ruins on the main peak of Honachis... That should be the Kingdom of Night mentioned in the Antigonus family notes... Klein nodded slightly and closed the book.
At this time, Azik sat opposite him, touched the inconspicuous black mole under his right ear and said:
"How was it? Did you gain anything?"
"There are quite a few. Look, I took many pages of notes." Klein pointed at the table and smiled.
"I don't understand why you are suddenly interested in this matter." Azik sighed casually and said, "Klein, when I was in college in Backlund, I came across some divination and did some research in this area. Well, I found that there is something inconsistent with your fate."
What? Divination? Talking to me about divination? As a "diviner", Klein looked at Teacher Azik opposite him with amusement and said:
"What's inconsistent?"
Azik thought for a moment and said:
"Have you encountered many coincidences in the past two months?"
"Coincidence?" Because he had received a favor from Mr. Azik, Klein did not resist the other party's question and subconsciously began to recall:
If we really have to talk about coincidence, the most obvious thing is that when they were chasing the kidnappers, they actually found clues to the Antigonus family notes that had been missing for several days opposite the room where they were hiding.
Also, Riel Bieber was in a hurry to find a place to digest the power granted by the notebook before escaping Tingen, which made it easy for the Sealed Artifact "2-049" to track his whereabouts. This is a bit against common sense... Although Mr. Al Hassan's explanation is good, I always feel that there are some coincidences...
Well, after Selina peeked at Hanas Vincent's secret spell, she waited until the birthday party to try it, and I happened to find it, which was a bit of a coincidence... Otherwise, Hanas Vincent wouldn't have died so suddenly...
Klein thought carefully for a few minutes and said:
"There are three. Not too many, not too often, and there is no sign of interference or guidance from others."
Azik nodded slightly and said:
"Emperor Roselle said that if a coincidence happens once, everyone will encounter it. If it happens twice, it is normal. But if it happens three times, you have to think about the underlying factors that led to it."
“Can you see anything?” Klein asked tentatively.
Azik laughed and shook his head and replied:
"I can only see a little inconsistency, nothing else. You have to understand that I am not a real fortune teller."
Isn't it the same as not saying anything... Mr. Azik is a little strange... He is pretending to be a charlatan in front of a charlatan like me... Klein let out a breath, and took the opportunity when the other party stood up to pinch his brows and open his spiritual vision.
At first glance, Azik's aura was fully reflected in his eyes, and everything was normal.
It’s a pity that I can only see the depths of other people’s etheric bodies and the surface of their astral bodies above the gray fog... Klein tapped his brows lightly, stood up, and thought leisurely.