Chapter 30: The Restoration Society

Chapter 30: The Restoration Society

Arriving at the door, Walter borrowed the light of the gas streetlamp and looked through the gaps in the iron railings. He discovered that there was no one outside at all, and that the street was completely quiet.

For an instant, Walter suspected he might have misheard—that perhaps there had never been any doorbell just now.

He steadied himself, then quickly walked toward the servants’ quarters behind the small building and woke several people. He had them take up double-barreled hunting rifles and patrol the main house, back and forth, to prevent thieves or robbers from sneaking in.

Walter did not immediately call the police, because nothing had yet happened. The doorbell might merely have been rung by some vagrant playing a prank.

At the same time, in the nearest sewer, the previous intruder supported himself on the metal handles, descending level by level into the dim, lightless area.

Before long, he stopped. Leaning his back against the moss-covered wall, he slowly slid downward and sat on the filthy ground.

His eyes closed again, as if he were still unconscious. In front of him, a middle-aged gentleman wearing an old tricorn hat and a dark-red coat instantly appeared. It was Klein’s marionette, the Wraith Senor.

Senor bent down and searched the intruder’s inner pockets, finding 7 soli and 11 pence in coins, as well as several small cloth packets containing different powders.

Inside his room, Klein remotely controlled the marionette dozens of meters away and identified those powders one by one. He found, as expected, that they were all powdered herbs from the domain of necromancy, and that some of them could be used for spirit channeling.

Beyonders from Balam had a fairly high chance of belonging to the Corpse Collector pathway. Even if they had not yet reached Sequence 7, Spirit Medium, it was quite normal for them to prepare corresponding herbal powders, essential oils, and hydrosols. After all, such materials were not used only for spirit channeling.

Immediately afterward, Klein controlled the marionette Senor and swiftly set up a ritual, praying to the Fool.

Then he went above the gray fog and responded, enabling the other party to complete what came next.

Having done all this, he returned to the real world, continued controlling the Wraith Senor, and truly began the spirit channeling.

Passing through a storm of dim light, Klein saw the intruder’s spirit. It was muddled, blurry, and translucent.

“What is your name? Which force do you belong to?” Senor asked in a low voice.

The intruder answered dully, “Godopos. I belong to the Black Skull Party.”

The Black Skull Party… I think that is a gang operating on the edge of the East Borough and the area near the docks in the Backlund Bridge area. It is mainly made up of people with Balam blood. Although they are not as savage and reckless as the Zmanger Gang, who dare to fight and kill at will, they are still ruthless, fierce, and unafraid to murder…

As Klein recalled the information he had once gathered, he made Senor continue asking, “What do you mainly do? Why are you looking for Richardson?”

Godopos answered in a daze, “We are fighting for God.

“We were originally members of the East Balam Restoration Society. The Black Skull Party was established to gather intelligence and obtain funds. In addition to those duties, it has another task: to collect various items related to Death and send them back to the Southern Continent.

“This time, we obtained reliable information that Count Wolf’s collection contains a mask taken from the mausoleum of the Eggers family. That family is descended from God.

“To obtain that mask, we need to send someone into Count Wolf’s household to work, or mix into the banquets and balls he hosts. Richardson is a very suitable candidate. He has no record of involvement with any organizations and has abundant experience as a servant.”

Servants in noble households are often inherited from…