Chapter 125: Bold Idea
When faced with a strange sense of familiarity, other Sequence 9
Beyonders might try their best to recall or even disregard and forget
about it. But a Seer was different. Klein immediately ended the ritual
and dispelled the wall of spirituality. He took out a piece of paper and
wrote on it a statement: "The source of the sense of familiarity."
After which, he sat on the edge of the bed in the room and silently
recited it with the piece of paper in hand.
Seven times later, his pupils became darker. He fell asleep with the
help of Cogitation and started conversing with his own spirituality.
In the hazy, contorted world, Klein saw a carriage. He saw a young lady
wearing a long gray dress.
This lady had smooth black hair, her face a little round. She had a
gentle and pleasant demeanor, but her body was shivering unnaturally.
The image flickered and once again, Klein saw this young, pretty lady at
the underground market. She was squatting and conversing with someone.
The dream receded quickly and Klein woke up, understanding why the image
he saw in the mirror was so familiar.
He had met this person before!
*The first time was at Daffodil Street, in the district near Iron Cross
Street. The Captain and the rest were chasing down Instigator Tris that
night... There must be a connection. *Klein thought for a few
seconds, then set up the ritual once again. He asked for the help of the
Goddess to sketch the portrait of the enemy in his memory.
Dunn and the rest had been waiting silently, without interrupting Klein
unnecessarily. Only when he was done sketching did they crowd over and
inspect the portrait.
"You met her before?" Dunn asked.
Klein nodded slightly and answered simply, "Yes. I saw her at the public
carriage stop on Daffodil Street the night when you were going after the
Instigator. It was in the district near Iron Cross Street."
"Then, there's a good chance that she was the enemy just now. The
partner of the Instigator." Dunn nodded in thought.
Leonard suddenly chimed in, "Don't any of you feel that this portrait is
very familiar? She looks a lot like Instigator Tris!"
Klein froze, immediately casting his gaze at the portrait again and
studying it carefully.
"Yeah, they look very similar indeed. Round face, narrow eyes, gentle
demeanor..." The more he looked at the portrait, the more he felt that
what Leonard said made sense. The biggest difference was that Instigator
Tris had ordinary features while the young lady could be considered
pretty.
Klein raised his head and looked at Leonard, noticing that he was
signaling something to him by raising his brows.
What does he mean? Klein was confused.
Dunn Smith guessed, "She could be the Instigator's sister. Maybe like
her brother she joined the Theosophy Order or the Demoness Sect."
Leonard sighed after he realized how bad Klein was at reading his mind.
He said in a serious tone, "I have a bold idea."
"What idea?" Dunn asked.
Leonard described succinctly, "I think that this person is Instigator
Tris!"
"What?" Frye exclaimed in shock.
Dunn creased his brows and said, "What you mean is that Instigator Tris
is actually female, or a male who's pretending to be a female? No, from
the dream, I can confirm that she's female."
Klein had been exposed to many creative and ridiculous plots after all.
He took another look at the portrait and immediately had another guess.
"Could it be that Instigator Tris became a female?"
*That could explain many things. For example, why would the trail
leading to Tris suddenly sever? Why couldn't they find any traces, even
with divination? Perhaps because there was a fundamental change to their
target! The only question was how he could change into a woman in such a
short span of time. And it appeared to be rather simple... He had pretty
decent looks after his transformation even. I mean, to be honest, she's
pretty attractive... *Klein thought, distracted.
Leonard nodded in relief, "Yes, that's my theory. This can perfectly
explain why Instigator Tris had seemed to vanish. It also fits with the
strange fact that the upper echelons of the Demoness Sect are all
female."
Dunn and Frye were momentarily at a loss for words.
Even though they had seen many monsters and wondrous things, it was
their first time dealing with a transformation like this!
"What you mean is that there are a considerable number of women in the
upper echelons of the Demoness Sect that used to be men?" Dunn asked. He
didn't wait for an answer before saying, "That could be possible...
Perhaps it's their, no, the unique characteristic of their potion."
Klein shivered a little as he listened. He felt that the potion of the
Demoness Sect was a trap!
"Let's hope that a similar potion doesn't exist in the pathway of the
Seer... No, definitely not. That is the pathway of the Demoness. Even
the name of the potion sounds wrong. But I still don't know what the
corresponding Sequence 1 to Seer is..." Klein subconsciously started
praying to the Goddess.
"Can potions accomplish such a thing?" Frye asked with a little
disbelief.
Leonard laughed and threw up his hands.
"Even a mid to low sequence potion can cause unimaginable changes. After
all, they all originated from the Creator."
Dunn turned to look at Klein. "Try to divine where the target will
appear next."
"Alright." Klein went over to the pile of dresses and picked out one
with mixed emotions. He spread it over the carpet.
He held his cane over the dress and recalled the target's features and
relevant information. He then began to recite in his heart.
"Tris's... no, Trissy's whereabouts
"Trissy's whereabouts."
Seven times later, Klein's pupils turned from brown to black. Wind
started to blow around him.
His left hand released his cane, allowing the black cane to wobble.
Despite the shaking, the cane failed to fall. It stood tall in its
original position.
"There's an interference..." Klein said with a deep tone.
An interference implies that our assumptions are correct!
*That lady just now was most probably Instigator Tris, no,
Trissy!*
Upon seeing this, Dunn nodded indiscernibly.
"They live up to the reputation of the Demoness Sect which has been
active since the last Epoch..."
Since Tris had transformed into Trissy, Dunn deduced that she wasn't
part of the Theosophy Order, but the Demoness Sect.
Surveying the surroundings, Dunn sighed and said, "We can search for her
through different means, such as where these clothes came from or the
owner of this house. We can also get the police department to patrol the
train stations and piers."
*We might be able to get some clues like that, but Trissy will
definitely have had enough time to leave Tingen. Yes... I'll try it
again above the gray fog when I'm back at home. *Klein was
cautious of people like Trissy who wanted to unleash a massacre on a
whim. He wanted to desperately find her and execute her on the spot.
"Leonard, head to the police department and gather a group to wrap up
things here. Klein, you can go back and rest now..." Dunn rubbed his
temples and paused for a few seconds. He said to Klein, partially to
test him and also to teach him. "How would you have handled this
evening's mission? Assume that me, Leonard, and Frye are the only
members on your team."
Klein creased his brows and thought for more than ten seconds.
"I'd first use divination to ascertain if the ritual would take effect
soon. If the answer was negative, then I'd stick to observing and not
approach. Then I'd notify the police department to deploy personnel
around the area, as well as gather at least five cannons to bombard the
entire building till wherever Trissy was hiding was leveled.
"She could either be blasted to death in the building, or attempt to
flee amidst the cannon fire. This would easily expose her. Until then, I
would station you and the rest at different spots..."
He got more and more excited as he continued. He felt that his idea was
simple and effective, barbaric and decisive. It was very safe and very
appropriate!
Dunn, Leonard, and Frye were dumbfounded. They didn't say anything for a
long time.
"Captain, is that not a good idea?" The excited Klein's heart thumped
rapidly when he saw that they had no reaction.
Dunn was silent for a few seconds before he said, "No, it is a good
idea. But the premise is that we have to confirm that forceful
destruction of the altar wouldn't create a more disastrous outcome...
Sigh. As longtime Nighthawks, we're accustomed to relying on ourselves,
our powers as Beyonders, and guns in all circumstances. We're not used
to allowing normal people to come into contact with supernatural
incidents..."
*Alright, I was always an ardent fan of firepower bombardment...
*Klein added in his heart.
Klein and Leonard walked to the carriage station about five hundred
meters away before they saw it.
After waiting for a while, they returned to Iron Cross Street. One went
to the nearby police station, while the other returned to Daffodil
Street.
When Klein arrived at his front door, he adjusted his clothes and made
sure that everything was alright before fishing out his keys and opening
the door.
Melissa and Benson were in the living room, quietly doing assignments
and reading books respectively under the light from the gas lamp.
*Benson must be tired after toiling at work the entire day; yet, he
perseveres in his studies after he comes home. What a determined man...
I can't do that, all I can think about now is lying down...
*Klein glanced at his brother and smiled, giving a silent
greeting by raising his hand.
Benson smiled and said, "I now understand the price behind a handsome
salary."
"There's a price for everything in this world. There's something we must
give before we can gain anything in return," Klein said, leaving his
cane on the rack next to the door.
"That's apparently something Emperor Roselle said, right?" Melissa
stopped writing and looked up.
The Tingen Technical School was different from universities and public
schools. There was only two weeks for summer break, from late July to
early August. Their lessons resumed the moment the hottest days were
over.
"Is that so? I don't remember..." Klein replied, his expression a little
rigid.
He took off his hat and headed upstairs. He intended to divine Trissy's
whereabouts as soon as possible.
Suddenly, he heard his stomach rumble. He felt intense hunger pangs.
*Oh right, I haven't had dinner. But the note I left said that the
security company would provide food and asked them not to leave any food
for me... Seriously, Captain, you actually forgot about it...
*Klein's expression changed several times as he intended to
pretend that he was full.
At that moment, Melissa turned and looked at him. She pointed to the
kitchen and said, "We left a small piece of lamb chop and a bowl of
thick vegetable soup for you. There are a few sticks of bread left too."
After saying this, she buried her head back into her work and muttered
to herself, "I felt that meals provided by work wouldn't be too good,
probably making people lose their appetite..."