Chapter 64: Finalizing the Plan

Chapter Sixty-Four
Finalizing the Plan

“Rafter Pound’s future.”

Holding the baronet’s hair, Klein closed his eyes and, with the help of meditation, entered sleep.

Inside the gray, hazy world, he saw a narrow and irregular opening. Rafter Pound, with swollen eye bags and graying temples, crawled forward like a reptile, propping himself up on his elbows as he emerged.

Immediately afterward, the scene flashed. From somewhere unknown, he picked up a black-iron badge and pinned it to his chest.

Carved upon that badge was a scepter, and a hand tightly gripping that scepter!

“Tudor!”

Klein abruptly woke from the dream and sat upright.

According to Miss Bodyguard’s introduction, what was carved on that black-iron badge was the imperial emblem of the Fourth Epoch Tudor Empire!

It was exactly the same as what he had seen inside that ancient building!

“Rafter Pound is definitely not as simple as he appeared…”

Klein rubbed his forehead and muttered in a low voice.

As a Diviner, he had his own interpretation of the revelation he had seen in the dream. On one hand, he knew it was an action Rafter Pound would perform in the future. On the other, he believed this showed that Rafter Pound himself had a very deep connection with the Tudor family.

After the threefold test of direct questioning, dream invasion, and spirit-channeling communication, Rafter Pound did not expose any problem, nor did he let me detect the slightest abnormality. If I had not kept one more trick in reserve, he might truly have deceived me… Hm… Perhaps, perhaps he really knows nothing right now, and what he displayed just now was natural. Only in the future will he coincidentally encounter an opportunity and form a connection with the Tudor family…

But the greater possibility is that he already learned quite a bit from the old viscount, and before he has any certainty, he has deliberately fallen, feigned madness, and played the fool. As for being able to fool my dream invasion and spirit channeling, that should be the effect of some Beyonder ability… Uh… He probably was not acting at that time, but truly had fallen into a muddled state. Otherwise, he would have long ago revealed a flaw before me, someone highly experienced in such matters…

What Beyonder ability could it be?

What Sequence is he?

Or is he the type born with certain Beyonder abilities?

Klein followed that line of thought for some time and felt he had entered a dead end. He hurriedly pulled himself out and changed his angle, silently murmuring:

“Rafter Pound has a very deep connection with the Tudor family…

“Can I make a bold hypothesis: that he is actually a descendant of the Tudor family?

“If his blood relationship with the old viscount is real, then matters become interesting.

“The entire Pound family may be one branch of the Tudor family that changed names and surnames to escape pursuit.

“They established military merit, obtained a title, and step by step returned to the center of power. At the same time, in secret, they searched for the hidden ruins the Tudor Empire had left behind in Backlund.

“After no one knows how many years, they finally gained something. They bought the house that currently belongs to Miller Carter and built an exaggerated basement in order to explore the surrounding region.

“Thirty or forty years ago, they found the ruins and built a hidden door leading there.

“However, during the exploration of the ruins, an accident occurred. That evil spirit did not acknowledge these so-called Tudor family descendants at all. The old viscount’s two heirs died one after another in the innermost room, and not even their Beyonder characteristics or mystical items could be retrieved.

“Although the old viscount spent an enormous price buying similar Beyonder characteristics, making the two heirs’ deaths appear relatively normal, successive sudden deaths still seemed suspicious in the eyes of the royal family and the Churches. Therefore, after the old viscount died, Rafter Pound deliberately exaggerated and distorted the investigation carried out in secret back then, making himself appear to have been ‘frightened’ into psychological problems and sink into indulgence in alcohol, women, and gambling in order to evade attention.

“This can explain one thing I found very puzzling earlier. A dignified viscount family was actually controlled by mysterious people from who knows where? Did they take the royal family and the Churches for blind fools? Even if they wanted to control him, they would use a softer, less detectable method—like Sequence 6 of my pathway, Faceless.

“Even a child could detect the abnormality. How could the powerhouses of the royal family and the three great Churches fail to?

“The only explanation for why they ‘did not know’ is that those people were sent by them.

“Hmm… I previously guessed that the Tudor family and Trunsoest family also controlled the Black Emperor pathway. Based on the needs of acting, the dynasties they established preserved the style and traits of the Solomon Empire. Miss Bodyguard seems to have indirectly confirmed that.

“Sequence 9 of the Black Emperor pathway is Lawyer, a Beyonder profession extremely skilled at using order. Uh… The ability that let Rafter Pound fool dream invasion and spirit channeling may come from this—or from something a step further? He fully cooperated with me, but inside the dream and muddled state, he still subconsciously used loopholes in order, guiding the result toward the direction he wanted.

“Thinking carefully, during the spirit-channeling process, Rafter Pound did seem not to have lied. It is only that the truth he told was merely a partial truth… Preserving the family and remembering the glory can point to the Pound family, but they can also point to the Tudor family…”

Klein’s thoughts gradually became clear. He formed an overall judgment regarding the matter.

Judging from Rafter Pound’s current attitude, without outside assistance, that evil spirit should not be able to escape. Otherwise, the baronet would have tried to save himself long ago. Whether or not the evil spirit came after him, as long as it escaped the seal and created a disaster, the matter of the underground ruin would no longer stay hidden from the royal family and the Churches. At that point, Rafter would inevitably be implicated… The room opposite it collapsed, yet did not affect the power restraining the evil spirit. This means that as long as the innermost room is not directly destroyed, the evil spirit cannot get out…

Mm… The plan is clear now. I will ask Kaspars to buy some explosives, blow up the entrance, and keep everyone from getting in, letting that evil spirit be buried underground forever. Heh. When I have sufficient strength, I can consider resolving it, helping Backlund’s citizens completely remove that hidden danger and collecting some valuable items in passing…

However, how exactly should the blasting be done safely? I do not understand that at all… Perhaps Kaspars knows a blasting expert? After all, he is a black-market arms dealer.

Klein swiftly finalized the plan and decided that he would go look for Kaspars tomorrow evening, striving to resolve the matter of the underground ruin completely within the week.

As for the true relationship between the Pound family and the Tudor family, and as for Rafter Pound’s abnormality, he had no desire to investigate any further.

“What the hell does it have to do with me?”

Klein muttered, then swiftly dropped through the gray fog and returned to the real world.

…

Friday morning, Klein still went out early, pretending to be exceptionally busy.

The truth, however, was that he once again came to Cragg Club, practiced shooting, read newspapers, and passed the time quite pleasantly.

At afternoon tea, after spending nearly an entire day there, he was preparing to leave when he unexpectedly saw Mary Gale, his former employer, enter the club together with Talim Dumont, the equestrian instructor.

Accompanying them were many gentlemen in double-breasted frock coats and ladies in beautiful dresses with exquisite makeup. Among them was the Daily Observer reporter Mike Joseph.

“Oh, Detective Moriarty. What a coincidence,” Mike greeted first. He had a pair of charming eyes, though his skin was rather rough.

Klein smiled in reply.

“Mr. Reporter, have you completed your investigative article?”

“Completed. Thanks to your help! Let me introduce you. This is the famous great detective, Mr. Sherlock Moriarty, Talim’s good friend.”

Mike waved his arm.

After both sides exchanged greetings, Mike continued, “I have roughly figured out who Capim is. When I have time, I will tell you in detail. In short, I already have sufficient reason to believe that Sibel’s death came from an imitation crime, not from that serial killer. Haha. Tomorrow—tomorrow, you will be able to read my investigative report in the newspaper.”

“Just as I guessed,” Klein answered with a smile.

At that moment, Mike seemed to recall something. He turned his head and said to Mary Gale, “I would like to arrange an interview with you regarding Backlund’s atmospheric pollution situation and possible solutions. However, you must communicate with our editor-in-chief ahead of time to finalize the page placement and timing.”

Mary’s eyes immediately lit up.

“All right.

“Thank you so much! Mike, why did I not think of such a good method?”

Is this publicity and momentum-building for entering the Kingdom Atmospheric Pollution Investigation Committee? Mike truly is an experienced reporter… Although the Daily Observer is not one of the top newspapers, its circulation is still quite large… Mary suddenly came here today because the several House of Commons members who joined this club are coming over? The format of a private club really does suit politics and business…

Having come to that realization, Klein offered his farewell.

Before becoming a Faceless, he did not want to involve himself in matters approaching the upper levels.

…

Toward evening, inside an apartment in the East Borough.

Williams, busy for an entire day, entered the narrow room he rented, intending to change his coat, take some banknotes, go to the tavern for a good drink, and solve dinner there in passing.

Inside the gloomy, dim environment, his motion of putting on his coat suddenly froze.

He saw a black shadow standing beside the window, a shadow whose face was completely hidden by the shade of a hood.

“Who told you to search for Lanevus?” the shadow asked in a deep, slow voice.

Williams quickly pulled on the coat, swallowed, and answered, “A friend of mine. A bounty hunter.”

Bounty hunter referred to adventurers who took all sorts of bounties as their main source of income. In the East Borough, in Backlund, there were quite a few.

“Why has she suddenly begun searching for Lanevus again? That was a bounty from a long time ago.”

The black shadow was very tall. Step by step, it walked before Williams.

“I do not know. Perhaps she is merely trying a different bounty,” Williams answered, retreating by very small degrees.

The black shadow asked in a low, hoarse voice, “Who is she?”

Williams instantly fell into struggle. Several seconds passed before he answered shakily, “Xio. Xio Derecha. I do not know where she lives.”

“Very good. Very honest.”

The black shadow reached out and patted Williams’s body. It asked no more questions and walked toward the door.

Williams quietly let out a breath of relief, believing that his rich underworld experience had helped him.

Never try to be tough when you should not be tough!

Just then, he saw the black shadow snap its fingers.

Snap!

Williams’s thoughts froze. His body instantly split into pieces, scattering in every direction and covering the floor and walls in flesh and blood.

Immediately afterward, the black shadow broke the gas pipe there.

Amid the hissing sound, it picked up the candle on Williams’s table and rubbed the wick.

The black shadow then left. Several minutes later, the candle suddenly lit on its own.

Boom!

The explosion drowned out everything.