Chapter 50: Inspiration and Experiment

Chapter Fifty
Inspiration and Experiment

In the hazy, dim crimson moonlight, Klein lifted aside the cotton blanket and climbed out of bed.

For a Diviner, valuing dreams was the most basic quality. The dream just now absolutely could not be explained as a simple nightmare.

Wearing reasonably comfortable clothes, he went before the full-length mirror and said in a low voice, “I dreamed of the bloodstained door inside that room.”

Miss Bodyguard’s figure slowly outlined itself upon the mirror. Expressionlessly, she answered, “The influence of the evil spirit’s aura.

“It will gradually weaken until it vanishes.”

So that is how it is…

Klein nodded slightly, returned to the bedside, picked up his gold-cased pocket watch, snapped it open, and glanced at it.

Seeing that it was still early, he lay down and went back to sleep. This time, his dreams were fragmented, and he did not encounter what he had before.

The next day, Sunday morning, Klein, refreshed and clear-headed, made himself a runny fried egg and paired it with bread spread with cream.

In the Loen Kingdom—or rather, in all countries of the Northern Continent—reading newspapers at breakfast was something gentlemen were required to do. Klein was no exception. He spread out the Tussock Times, Backlund Post, and Backlund Morning Post, the three papers he subscribed to.

“The Government Employee Unified Examination Bill has officially passed the House of Lords. The first examination will be held in early December, the second examination in late January next year, and the final interview two weeks after that… Within one week, the government will announce the positions and requirements involved in this examination and begin accepting applications… The reporter speculates that most of them will be in Backlund…”

Klein’s eyes swept line after line across the report. He lifted his cup and drank a mouthful of Sibe black tea.

He inevitably thought of Benson and silently muttered to himself:

“The bill passed in late September, the positions will be announced in early October, registration will finish in early November, and the examinations will begin in early December… The timetable is extremely compressed, extremely unreasonable. It is enough to show the urgency of the King and the Prime Minister.

“But this is very advantageous for Benson. He prepared more than two months earlier than others. Even if he cannot compare with those elites graduating from universities, he can definitely surpass the vast majority of everyone else. And the positions those elites seek will not overlap with his.

“He should not have a problem…”

Klein had originally wanted to tap his chest four times, draw a crimson moon, and say, “May the Goddess bless him.” But thinking that Miss Bodyguard was nearby, he forcibly suppressed the impulse. After all, the faith he claimed to possess was in the God of Steam and Machinery.

After eating the last bite of bread, he continued reading the newspapers.

“The upper and lower houses have passed the proposal to establish a Kingdom Atmospheric Pollution Investigation Committee, allowing the government to form this institution… The next month will be the crucial period for all parties to compete for committee membership…

“…The individual position of Alkali Industry Inspector has been approved, targeting factories that produce acids and alkalis in order to reduce their pollution levels to the greatest possible extent.

“…There is no advertisement on the fifth page for Ernst Firm purchasing goods. There is no need to consider attending a Beyonder gathering tomorrow night…”

…

Tingen City, 2 Daffodil Street.

Benson silently reread the news item in the newspaper over and over, completely forgetting the bread on his plate.

“The Unified Examination Bill passed?” Melissa, wearing a black dress, turned her head to look at her brother, whose behavior was abnormal.

The newspapers over the past several days had already been gradually building up the passage of the bill.

Benson finally put down the newspaper, wiped his black hair, and slowly exhaled.

“Yes.”

At that moment, the two of them suddenly fell silent. The house was quiet. There was not even the sound of knives and forks touching plates.

The indescribable atmosphere was broken by the maid Bella emerging from the kitchen. Benson smiled and said, “This was something we could have foreseen. Actually, there was another, more important piece of news earlier.”

“Mm?” Melissa’s expression was unusually calm.

Benson bit into his bread and smiled.

“The news about Backlund Technical College being reorganized into a university.

“It will officially begin enrolling students next year. It will not test grammar or classical literature, but focus mainly on technical content. It is very suitable for graduates and current students of technical schools from all regions.

“Melissa, I think you can give it a try.”

“But…” Melissa instinctively tried to object.

Benson interrupted her, smiling as he said, “Its tuition will be half that of universities such as Tingen, Pritz, Hoy, and Backlund, equivalent to Constanton Industrial University in Midseashire. And there will be more scholarship opportunities. Melissa, do you not like machinery, steam, and things related to those fields? This is the best opportunity for you to come into contact with deeper and more advanced knowledge.

“Try, all right? Do not worry about wasting money. That money—that money can indeed let us maintain our present lives without working. But we are still young. We cannot define our lives that way. Define our lives. You see, compared to several months ago, my grammar has improved greatly.

“Uh… changing environment may be better.

“I know you are reluctant to leave Tingen, reluctant to leave this place. Mm. We will return eventually, but not while we are young.”

Melissa turned her head and glanced at the assorted parts on the coffee table. Her lips moved several times before she said, “Then what about Bella…”

After Klein passed away, she originally had not wanted to continue hiring a maid-of-all-work. But after thinking of the miserable life Bella might suffer if she became unemployed, she had abandoned that idea. In any case, the additional expense of five soli per week no longer counted as much for the Moretti family, whose annuity income would reach at least three hundred pounds.

In response, Benson shook his head and laughed.

“There are still several months. Bella can begin searching for a new job in advance. Before that, we will continue paying her wages and give her a bedroom. Besides, her cooking has improved considerably compared to before. She can completely apply to become a family cook. Unfortunately… heh. Of course, the premise of everything is that you can pass Backlund Technical University’s entrance examination.”

He had originally wanted to say that unfortunately Bella had not been able to learn cooking for very long, but after glancing at Melissa’s gloomy expression, he forcibly changed the topic.

Before Melissa could say more, Benson smiled and touched his hair.

“I plan to resign tomorrow and focus entirely on preparing for the examination. It is said that most of the positions this time will be in Backlund. That happens to be my goal. I hope we can go there together.”

Melissa was silent for a while. Finally, she slowly nodded.

At the same time, she set down her knife and fork, picked up her napkin, and wiped her mouth.

“I am going to the washroom.”

“All right.”

Benson watched his sister rise and leave the dining room. The smile he had kept on his face vanished swiftly.

He took out the silver pocket watch engraved with vine patterns and gazed at it carefully. Then he gave an extremely soft sigh.

…

Throughout Sunday daytime, Klein busied himself traveling among several public libraries in Cherwood Borough, hoping to find information related to Viscount Pound. However, this viscount family had no separate biography, nor had it attracted the interest of any historian enough to become the subject of specialized research.

Everything about them was scattered across different corners of various historical records. Without the use of a “search” function, Klein faced that ocean of books and essay collections and felt throbbing pain pulse through his head.

He spent six hours leafing through a large number of materials, but still failed to obtain useful information.

“I must find someone who has broad research into noble history to help. Or perhaps bribe someone in the police department to obtain Baronet Pound’s present address. He is a noble, so the police department definitely has corresponding records. There are not many nobles.”

After returning home, Klein stood before the wash mirror and spoke to the air.

Miss Bodyguard’s Gothic court dress and the black soft hat atop her head swiftly outlined themselves across the mirror’s surface.

She gave a nearly imperceptible nod, seeming to agree with Klein’s idea.

Immediately afterward, her illusory, drifting voice came out.

“The employment has ended.”

I know. Three days are up…

Klein thought for a moment and said, “If I obtain any clues regarding the Pound family, would you be willing to know?”

Miss Bodyguard did not answer, but gently nodded.

“Mm… I will have Maric pass the message along?” Klein asked.

After nodding again, Miss Bodyguard bent at the waist, lifted the hem of her skirt, and gave a curtsy.

Her figure vanished swiftly. Nothing reflected in the mirror remained unusual.

Klein looked around, but did not relax because of this. He followed his routine, preparing dinner and filling his stomach.

Only when night deepened and all was quiet did he return to the bedroom and draw the curtains shut. Then he took out the iron cigarette case and reached out to touch the entirely black eye Rosago had left behind.

Bursts of illusory roaring instantly ravaged his mind, as though they meant to tear apart his spirit and destroy his thoughts.

Klein struggled against that pain, which made his head feel close to bursting. Once again, he saw black threads extending from different parts of his body.

They were densely packed, illusory, terrifying, and they stretched all the way into infinite distance.

Klein looked around. After failing to find any other black threads, he finally confirmed that Miss Bodyguard had already left.

He hurriedly released his hand, escaping from the negative influence. Only after several dozen seconds did he completely return to normal.

“Hoo. At last I can go above the gray fog and verify that inspiration I had earlier…”

Klein muttered silently. Swiftly, he arranged the ritual, summoned himself, and responded to himself.

Then, in Spirit Body state, carrying Azik’s copper whistle and holding the iron cigarette case, he returned above the gray fog.

Klein sat at the seat of honor at the ancient long table. Rubbing his fingers together to produce spiritual flames, he burned the bloodstained documents and other items in the corner that were no longer needed.

After doing all of that, he opened the iron cigarette case. As expected, he found that the entirely black eye had become quiet. It no longer constantly emitted madness. However, that influence, that contamination, still lay settled inside it. It had merely become inactive, as though hibernating.

“As expected, it cannot be directly separated…”

Klein murmured. Then, across the mottled bronze long table, he manifested a man wearing a hooded robe in the chair opposite him.

As with his previous attempts at creating a duplicate, this man was dull and stiff at first glance. Anyone could tell he was not a real person, and he could not fool the members of the Tarot Club.

However, Klein had already gained inspiration for how to handle that.

He reached out and held the entirely black eye. Beside his ears, there was only silence. No terrifying roar appeared again.

With the help of this gathered Beyonder characteristic, he saw that black threads likewise floated outward from the fake person opposite him.

Immediately afterward, Klein cautiously let his spirituality spread through the entirely black eye and touch several of those illusory threads.

In an instant, he produced the feeling of grasping them.

At that moment, with one thought, the fake person immediately lifted his hand.

It really works! With the aid of the Marionettist’s ability, I can manufacture a false Tarot Club member! It is just that the consumption is enormous. I cannot maintain a second one… Mm, the symbolic signs on the chair back will not change accordingly, but Miss Justice and the others cannot see them anyway…

Delighted, Klein began practicing over and over. He even mastered the technique of controlling the other party’s throat and mouth to make it speak.

When his spirituality was close to exhaustion, he smiled at the fake person opposite him and said, “Welcome, new member. Which tarot card would you like to draw?”

After saying that, he closed his mouth. The fake person opposite him raised a hand and rubbed his chin, then laughed hoarsely.

“The World!

“I choose the card The World.”