Chapter 28: Secret Order
Badump! Badump! Badump!
Klein's heart began beating rapidly. It shrank into a clump before
expanding abruptly. It made his body tremble gently.
There was an instant when he nearly forgot what he had to do until the
lurking figure suddenly paused. The figure pricked his ears slightly as
though listening for any changes.
Blood flowed back from his brain as Klein regained his basic cognitive
abilities. He reached beneath the pillow for the wooden grip of the
revolver.
He felt the firm but smooth feeling as he rapidly calmed down. He
silently and slowly pulled out the revolver and aimed it at the
trespasser's head.
To be honest, he had no confidence in striking the intruder. Although he
was already able to stably hit the target during practice, a moving
person and a fixed target were completely different. He was not arrogant
enough to confound the two together.
However, he vaguely remembered something from his previous life; the
general idea was that a nuclear weapon wielded the greatest strength
before its launch.
The principle held in his current situation. The best deterrence was
before he shot!
By not pulling the trigger or shooting blindly, the intruder was unable
to determine whether or not he was a complete rookie who had an
extremely high chance of missing him. His worries and fears would make
him deliberate more, resulting in him restraining himself!
In an instant, another thought arose in him. It immediately made Klein
turn decisive. He was not the kind of person who turned calmer when
faced with danger; instead, he had already imagined the situation when
he faced the observer---using intimidation instead of attacking.
The Foodaholic Empire had an idiom: Where there is precaution there will
be no danger!
When Klein pointed his gun at the intruder, the thin man froze suddenly,
as though he had sensed something.
Following that, he heard a voice that hid a chuckle.
"Good evening, Sir."
The scrawny man clasped both his hands together, and his body seemed to
tense. Klein sat on the lower bunk, aimed the person's head with the
revolver, and tried to speak as leisurely and as naturally as he could.
"Please raise both of your hands and turn around. Try to do it slow. To
be frank, I am very timid and I get nervous easily. If you move too
quickly, I can be frightened, and I can't guarantee that there won't be
a situation where I misfire. Yes, that's right."
The scrawny man raised both of his hands and held them up near his head
before turning his body bit by bit. The first thing that came into view
was a black tight suit with neat buttons. Next, he caught a pair of
brown eyebrows that were thick and sharp.
The intruder's deep blue eyes didn't reflect fear, but rather gazed upon
Klein with the intensity of a ferocious beast. It seemed that if Klein
were careless for a second, the other person would leap forward and tear
him to pieces.
He clenched the handle tightly as he tried his best to appear calm and
indifferent.
It was only when the thin man faced him completely did Klein jerk his
chin towards the door. He softly and gently said, "Sir, let's take this
outside. Do not disturb the beautiful dreams of others. Oh, do keep your
motions slow. Lighten your footsteps a little too. It's basic courtesy
for a gentleman."
The thin man's cold pupils rolled as he swept Klein a glance. He
continued raising his hands as he walked slowly to the door.
Under the revolver's aim, he twisted the handle and slowly opened the
door.
When the door was half-opened, he suddenly lowered himself and rolled
forward. The door was pulled by a strong wind and it closed with a slam.
"Uh..." Benson, who was on the top bunk, was stirred. He almost woke up
in a daze.
At that moment, a leisurely and serene melody entered from outside. The
heavy and comfortable voice started to sing.
"Oh, the threat of horror, the hope of crimson cries!
"One thing at least is certain---that this Life flies;
"One thing is certain, and the rest is Lies;
"The Flower that once has bloomed forever dies... [Adapted from the English translation of Rubáiyát.]"
The poem seemed to possess the power to calm and relax others. Benson,
who was on the top bunk, and Melissa, who was in another room, again
fell asleep amid their grogginess.
Klein's body and mind was also peaceful and quiet. He nearly yawned.
The way the thin man had darted off was so agile that he could not react
in time.
Looking at the closed door, he smiled and muttered to himself. "You
might not believe it, but pulling the trigger would not release a
round."
The empty chamber to prevent misfiring!
Following that, Klein listened to the midnight poem as he patiently
awaited for the battle outside to end.
Within a minute, the tranquil melody which resembled the reflection of
moonlight on the surface of a lake stopped, and the dark night resumed
its deep silence.
Klein silently spun the cylinder and moved the empty chamber away as he
awaited for the outcome.
He uneasily waited for a full ten minutes. Just as he wondered if he
should investigate, he heard Dunn Smith's staid and warm voice from the
door.
"It's settled."
Phew. Klein exhaled. He held his revolver and took his key.
Barefooted, he carefully approached the door before silently opening it
to see the black trench coat and the halved top hat. Dunn Smith was
standing there with his deep and calm gray eyes.
He closed the door behind him and followed Dunn to the end of the
corridor and stood amid the weak crimson moonlight.
"It took me some time to enter his dream," said Dunn calmly as he looked
at the red moon outside the window.
"Do you know his background?" Klein felt a lot more relieved.
Dunn nodded and said, "An ancient organization known as the Secret
Order. They were established in the Fourth Epoch and are related to the
Solomon Empire and a number of fallen aristocrats of that period. Heh,
the Antigonus family's diary came from them. Due to a member's
negligence, it entered the antique market and was obtained by Welch.
They had no choice but to send people in search of it."
Without waiting for Klein's question, he paused before continuing.
"We will capture the remaining members they have according to the clues.
Well, it might not end too well. These fellows are as good at hiding as
the rats in the sewers. But at the very least, they would believe that
we have likely obtained the Antigonus family's notebook or that we have
obtained a critical clue. In that case, as long as it's not something
extremely crucial or important, they would abandon the operation. That
is their philosophy on surviving."
"...What if the notebook is extremely crucial and important?" asked
Klein worriedly.
Dunn smiled without an answer. Instead, he said, "We know very little of
the Secret Order. Our success this time is all thanks to your sharp
wits. This contribution is all yours. In light of the possibility of
hidden dangers and how heightened perception would aid in finding the
notebook, you have a chance at choosing."
"A chance at choosing?" Klein vaguely guessed something as his breathing
subconsciously turned heavy.
Dunn wiped the smile from his face as he said in all seriousness, "Do
you wish to become a Beyonder? You can only choose the starting Sequence
of an incomplete Sequence.
"Of course, you can give up this chance and choose to accumulate the
merit you have garnered. Then, all you have to do is wait till there's
sufficient room for you to become a Sleepless, which is also the first,
complete Sequence the Goddess has bestowed on the Nighthawks."
Indeed... Klein felt delighted and did not have any hesitant emotions.
He took the initiative to ask, "Then from which of the Sequence 9s can I
choose from?"
*I have to have detailed information to decide whether to give up or
accept, as well as choose which one!*
Dunn turned around and seemed to be cloaked in the crimson veil that
shone down on him. He looked into Klein's eyes and said slowly, "Apart
from the Sleepless, the Church has three Sequence 9 potion formulas. One
of them is Mystery Pryer, which is also the power Old Neil controls.
Heh, Rozanne has likely mentioned this to you. She can never hold her
tongue."
Klein smiled awkwardly, at a loss for an answer. Thankfully, Dunn did
not mind it as he continued. "Our Mystery Pryer potion formula and the
later Sequences that aren't directly chained were obtained from the
Moses Ascetic Order. Back then, it was said that they had yet to fall to
corruption. They persisted in their morals and precepts, determined in
their pursuit of knowledge. They kept their secrets strictly
confidential. Anyone that entered the order would be barred from
speaking for five years after becoming a Mystery Pryer. They would learn
to keep silent, so as to cultivate and enhance their focus. The maxim of
the Moses Ascetic Order---do as you wish, but do no harm---began from
them.
"Mystery Pryers have a comprehensive but rudimentary understanding and
grasp of magic, witchcraft, astrology, and other mystical knowledge.
They also know a fair number of magical rituals, but they can easily
sense certain existences that hide among matter. Therefore, they have to
be careful and show respect to their powers as a Beyonder.
"We lack a large portion of this Sequence, causing it to be an
incomplete chain. For example, its Sequence 8. Of course, perhaps the
Holy Cathedral has it."
This pretty much meets all my requirements... Klein nodded slightly, to
the point of having the urge to choose.
Thankfully, he still remembered certain things.
"What about the other two?"
"The second type is named Corpse Collector. Quite a number of cultists
who worship Death in the Southern Continent choose it. After consuming
the potion, unintelligent dead spirits would mistake them as one of
their kind and not attack them. They would gain resistance to the cold,
decay, and corrosiveness of cadaveric auras. They will be able to
directly see a portion of evil spirits and see the characteristics and
weaknesses of undead creatures, as well as gain certain attribute
enhancements. We have the Sequence 8 and Sequence 7 that follows it. Heh
heh, you probably can guess Sequence 7---Spirit Medium! This was chosen
by Daly back then," described Dun in detail.
*Spirit Medium does appear mysterious and cool, but what I want most is
to grasp knowledge of mysticism...* Klein did not interject; all
he did was listen quietly.
Dunn Smith looked sideways at the crimson moon and said, "We only have
Sequence 9 of the third type. Whether the Holy Cathedral has it, I'm not
sure. It's called Seer."
Seer? Klein's pupils constricted as he recalled the regret
Emperor Roselle had left in his diary: He regretted not choosing
Apprentice, Marauder, or Seer!