Chapter 71: Sluggish Phenomenon

Klein repeatedly bent and extended his arm as he watched Dunn push open

the Keeper's room with his body sideways.

The captain's carefulness and high alertness, as well as the ridiculous

and laughable "protective actions," left him feeling abnormally tensed.

The feeling was identical to what he felt when taking tests of courage

that required him to walk through spooky cemeteries at night in his

youth.

*A Grade 2 Sealed Artifact. Dangerous. To be used with care and

moderation... It is something even a formal Nighthawk member does not

know the details to... It is unknown how dangerous it is...*

Amid his tense nerves, Klein found it impossible to curb himself from

overthinking.

At that moment, his brain suddenly turned numb as though a power switch

had been flicked off.

Everything in Klein's vision turned slow. Even his arm actions shared

the same fate.

He saw Captain Dunn stop in his tracks. He came close to him as though

in slow motion, extending his palm out slowly before pushing him in the

shoulder.

Suddenly, Klein's thought processes and vision were restored to normal

at the same time. It was as though everything from before was just an

illusion.

"What happened?" he whispered amid his fright and confusion.

Dunn shook his head and said in a deep voice, "Observe carefully."

The moment he finished his sentence, he turned around and walked into

the Keeper's room. Klein followed closely behind and saw four other

people in the room; they were either seated or standing.

One of them was the Midnight Poet, Leonard. The other three were people

Klein had never met before. However, all of them shared a common trait.

They were all doing the extending and bending arm "exercise" with utmost

seriousness.

"Klein Moretti has a miraculous connection with the Antigonus family's

notebook." Dunn gave a brief introduction.

Then, he pointed to the other three strangers and said, "These lady and

gentlemen are colleagues from the Backlund diocese. They escorted Sealed

Artifact 2-049 here. This is Madam Lorotta, Sequence 8 Gravedigger. She

is a master sharpshooter."

At that moment, the black-haired woman who looked about thirty nodded at

Klein in a friendly manner.

She looked pretty good. She did not wear a hat and was dressed in what

appeared like male attire---a black coat with a white shirt, tight black

trousers and black leather boots. The corners of her mouth were slightly

curved up.

After Klein exchanged greetings, Dunn pointed to a man seated behind the

desk.

"Aiur Harson, someone just like me."

Before he finished his sentence, Klein saw Mr. Aiur Harson in his gray

trench coat turn sluggish with his arm motion. It was as though a gear

had lost its lubricant or a joint covered in rust.

What's wrong... Amid Klein's daze, he saw Lorotta push Aiur

Harson. Only then did the gentleman's actions return to normal.

Was I like that previously? Klein was first taken aback before

he came to the realization.

This indicated the dangers that Sealed Artifact 02-49 held!

What would happen if one was not awoken in time?

Would one become a zombie?

Filled with questions, Klein greeted the charming middle-aged Aiur

Harson.

"Borgia," Dunn said as he pointed to the last Nighthawk.

Borgia was a cold man with a knife scar on the side of his face. His

sharp brown eyes were like an eagle's. He was constantly observing

everyone in the room.

"Let's set off. The faster we end this, the faster we can seal 2-049,"

the handsome Aiur Harson said as he stood, his eyes revealing some

wrinkles.

So, where is 2-049? Klein surveyed his surroundings curiously

but did not notice any traces of the Sealed Artifact. Of course, he

could not see the areas obscured by the table without activating his

Spirit Vision.

"Alright," Dunn turned and looked at Leonard Mitchell. "You'll be in

charge of driving. It is best not to involve Cesare with matters like

this."

Cesare was the clerk in charge of procuring and collecting supplies for

the Tingen Nighthawks while standing in as a carriage driver. He was the

one who drove Klein to Welch's home to meet the Spirit Medium Daly.

"No problem." Leonard stopped acting frivolous and nodded seriously.

At that moment, Klein saw Aiur Harson bending over. He picked up a black

metal chest which had been obscured by the table.

The chest was carved with resplendent stars and the crimson full moon.

It was as though there was a formless barrier around the chest.

*The Sealed Artifact should be inside there? I wonder what 2-049 looks

like...* Klein observed the chest curiously.

Thump!

Thump! Thump!

Violent knocking sounds suddenly erupted from the black chest. Even the

surface of the chest bulged time and time again.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

It was as though something horrifying had awakened within the chest and

was pounding wildly. The sound of the knocking was beaten into the

hearts of everyone present.

It's alive? Just as Klein had a thought, he saw Captain Dunn's

arm exercises turning sluggish, as if his joints were layered with glue.

Borgia, the Nighthawk from Backlund, pushed Dunn's shoulder, allowing

him to recover.

*It's like doing the robot dance when one is affected by 2-049... If all

of us are under its influence, wouldn't we be some awkward dance

squad... Luckily, 2-049 seems capable of only influencing one person at

a time...* Klein lampooned to relax his tense nerves. He did not

dare halt his arm exercises.

He followed Dunn's lead and left his cane behind. He then followed

behind the five Nighthawks through the tunnel and up the stairs to the

second floor of the Blackthorn Security Company.

Leonard had gone ahead and notified everyone in the front of the

buildings, so Rozanne and the rest had all made their way to the third

level. These incidents rarely involved them, but they were not

completely alien to them. Another Nighthawk, Kenley, had replaced Dunn

in his watch over Chanis Gate.

Klein heaved a sigh of relief when he reached the carriage. He looked

suspiciously out the window and said, "Won't 2-049 affect the ordinary

people on the streets?"

From their journey underground to the carriage, Sealed Artifact 2-049

had already caused six sluggish incidents, two of which were targeted at

him. He had been jolted awake by Captain Dunn and Leonard Mitchell

respectively. The rate of the sluggish effect was rather alarming!

"No worries, 2-049 will target humanoid creatures within five meters of

it first. The closer you are to it, the easier it is for you to be

chosen. As long as there are three people surrounding it, people who

happen to be around when the carriage steers past will not be affected,"

the beautiful, black-haired lady Lorotta explained with a lazy tone.

What a weird Sealed Artifact... Klein thought as he continued

his arm exercises.

Dunn and the rest of the Nighthawks did not speak on the journey to Ray

Bieber's house. They were paying close attention to each other's

condition. Only Lorotta wore a nonchalant look. At times, she took in

the sights of Tingen's not-so-clean streets, and at other times, she

praised Backlund's underground water system.

Soon after, the familiar building finally entered Klein's line of sight.

The group of six made their way to the third level while observing each

other.

The door to Ray Bieber's house was labeled with the Tingen Police

Department's symbol, indicating that entry was forbidden to unauthorized

personnel.

As Dunn did his stretching exercises, he took out a key. He opened the

newly changed lock, then turned around, allowing Aiur Harson who was

carrying the black chest to enter first.

Thump!

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The Sealed Artifact in the black chest knocked violently once again,

even more violent than before. This made Aiur Harson's arm waver from

side to side uncontrollably. It even made Klein suspect that the chest

would be pounded open in time.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Klein quickly noticed that Captain Dunn's movements were becoming

sluggish. He was about to wake him up when a buzz sounded in his brain.

His brain became numb, the scenes before his eyes played as though they

were in slow motion.

*Didn't they say that... that it only affects one... person at a

time...* Klein's thoughts quickly became sluggish.

At this moment, the prepared Lorotta and Borgia woke each of them up

respectively by pushing them.

Having his thought processes and vision restored, Klein looked around

with lingering fear. He nearly blurted out.

"Didn't you say that 2-049 can only affect one person at a time?"

Thankfully, I did not stop my stretches!

"When Sealed Artifact 2-049 enters its berserk mode, it can affect up to

two people at once. We can confirm that Ray Bieber is indeed a

descendant of the Antigonus family," Aiur Harson said with a mechanical

tone.

Lorota let out a faint laugh. She looked at Klein and said, "2-049

becomes very agitated when it meets a descendant of the Antigonus

family, even if only their scent remains. Its abilities would also

increase considerably. I believe you would be able to understand its

feelings."

Well, I don't... Klein asked curiously, "So, is it a living

creature?"

Lorotta smiled but did not reply him directly.

"You'll know in a while. As long as Ray Bieber hasn't escaped Tingen,

2-049 will lead us to him."

Klein could only put his other questions on hold as he walked around the

room with the Nighthawks.

Amid the loud and violent thumping from the chest, they locked the door,

walked down the stairs, and returned to the carriage.

Aiur Harson looked out the window several times and confirmed that there

were no pedestrians within a five-meter radius of them. He then placed

the black chest on the ground and twisted the mechanical switch to

release its spiritual restraints.

The violent thumping stopped suddenly, slipping the entire carriage into

silence. Not even the breaths of the Nighthawks could be heard.

Klein held his breath as the black chest opened slowly. A sharp creak

that hurt his ears could be heard.

Creak!

The chest fell as a slender brown arm extended out of the chest. It was

about the length of a child's finger.

Two arms pressed forward one after another as an object about the size a

normal human being's palm appeared bit by bit in front of Klein and

company.

It had clear elbow, finger, and knee joints. Covered in an oil-stained

brown cloth, its face was painted with the colors of a clown---red and

yellow.

It was a wooden puppet with a weird appearance!

2-049 lifted its head and looked at Klein with its pure black eyes.

Its rigid mouth slowly parted to reveal a clown-like smile.