Chapter 166: Examination

Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Six
Examination

The wind blowing up from underground carried a chilling coldness, and within Klein’s tightly stretched nerves there was suddenly a faint sense of release.

It is finally here…

Once I get through this, for at least half a year, I will not need to worry about anything similar…

As soon as I advance to Sequence 8 and become the so-called Clown, I will possess true practical combat ability. With divination as support and the Sunflame Charms as a guarantee, even if I encounter greater danger, there will be no small hope of making it through…

In order to wait for the Sanctuary’s examination, I have not even withdrawn the three hundred pounds Miss Justice deposited into the bearer account. I was afraid that if they “audited” me, they might discover some financial problem and convict me of possessing a huge sum from an unknown source…

…

As all kinds of thoughts flashed uncontrollably through Klein’s mind, Dunn Smith straightened the collar of his shirt and said in a low, mellow voice, “The person responsible for this examination is Crestet Cesimir, one of the nine high-ranking deacons of the Nighthawks. The Sanctuary regards your matter as very important.”

“A high-ranking deacon?” Klein blurted in astonishment.

Thirteen archbishops and nine high-ranking deacons—these were what people usually meant by the Church’s upper ranks. It was said that quite a few high-Sequence powerhouses existed among them.

Those twenty-two gentlemen and ladies were entirely equal in status. They followed only the Evernight Goddess’s divine revelations and answered only to the Pope.

Dunn inhaled a breath of cold wind from underground and nodded gently.

“Yes. A high-ranking deacon. But you need not be nervous. Crestet is only Sequence 5. He has not yet stepped into the level of half-god and half-human. You do not need to be too afraid or overawed.

“Mm. In the entire Beyonder world, his title is ‘Sword of the Goddess,’ because he received the acknowledgment of a sacred relic. His combat strength is no weaker than that of someone who has just advanced to Sequence 4.

“I spoke with him just now. His attitude is very kind.”

The Captain’s hidden meaning is that he said only what should be said and did not say what should not be said, so I need not be nervous and can proceed according to the plan…

Klein nodded thoughtfully and asked, “Where should I go to meet this high-ranking deacon?”

“The alchemy room used to mix potions,” Dunn answered simply and directly. Immediately afterward, a faint trace of gloom flashed across his face.

The alchemy room used to mix potions? The laboratory where Old Neil mixed the Seer potion for me?

Klein slowly exhaled, returned to the Nighthawks’ recreation room, and took his coat from the rack.

He put on the thin black windbreaker, slipped both hands into his pockets, descended step by step along the winding staircase into the depths underground, and turned left at the intersection.

Before long, Klein saw a hidden door illuminated by one elegant gas lamp after another. Inside, the long tables had all been moved aside, leaving the center empty.

There, two classical high-backed chairs had been placed facing each other, less than a meter apart.

On the chair facing the doorway sat a man in his thirties, wearing a black windbreaker and white shirt.

His golden-brown hair was cropped very short. His dark-green eyes were like a lake on a moonless midnight. The collars of both his shirt and windbreaker were raised high, hiding his entire chin in shadow.

“Hello, Your Excellency Cesimir.”

Klein bowed.

Crestet Cesimir had his right leg crossed over his left. Leaning leisurely against the back of the chair, he smiled slightly and said, “Hello, Klein. You may sit there.”

He pointed toward the high-backed chair opposite him.

By his feet stood a silver-white metal suitcase. Its length and width were similar to a violin case.

That could hold a sword that is not too long…

Klein took several steps forward and sat in the seat that belonged to him.

Crestet crooked the index finger of his right hand and pressed it lightly against his nostril. After pondering for several seconds, he said, “I intend to first test the extent to which you have mastered the potion. Is that a problem?”

“No,” Klein answered, shaking his head with complete confidence.

“Very confident,” Crestet said with a chuckle. Then, maintaining his earlier posture, he simply looked quietly at the person across from him.

Klein suddenly felt the light of the surrounding gas lamps vanish, swallowed by dense darkness.

In an instant, he became extremely exhausted, as though he had reached the time marked by his biological clock for sleep.

Yet his mind was intensely taut, unable to relax, just like those moments when he was so tired that he could not peacefully fall asleep.

Silent “night” spread all around him. Klein heard the drip, drip, drip of a faucet that had not been tightened. He heard voices speaking within Blackthorn Security Company. He heard wind blowing past the stairway.

Aside from that, he saw nothing he should not have seen and heard no voice he should not have heard.

“Very good.”

Crestet’s magnetic voice dispersed the darkness, and the light of the gas lamps inside and outside the alchemy room reappeared before Klein’s eyes.

Klein abruptly broke free from that deep fatigue and recovered the vigor he had possessed moments earlier.

He affected me without me even noticing… Is this the standard of Sequence 5? Is this the terror of a high-ranking deacon?

With a bit of lingering fear, he recalled what had just happened.

Crestet Cesimir interlaced both hands and placed them upon his knee. His entire person shrank slightly downward, so that even his lips were hidden by his high, upright collar.

“You passed the test. Your mastery of the potion has reached a level above excellent.

“Next, I will examine whether hidden dangers exist within your body, mind, and spirit—whether your personality has unknowingly been altered by the potion’s remaining mental influence, leaving behind problems.

“You have three minutes to adjust your state.”

Klein immediately nodded.

“All right.”

He secretly inhaled, slowly entered a meditative state, and cast away all kinds of undesirable thoughts.

Crestet did not speak again. He took a silver pocket watch from inside his black windbreaker and pressed it open with a snap.

Then he focused on watching the second hand tick forward.

Three minutes later, Crestet closed the pocket watch with a click and said with a hint of amusement in his voice, “I will begin chanting.”

Chanting?

Klein revealed a puzzled expression.

Before he could say anything, Crestet began humming a melodious tune.

The melody echoed inside the alchemy room. Gradually, it lost all harmony and no longer followed any proper pitch.

Creak! Screech! Scratch!

Klein seemed to hear fingernails scraping across a blackboard. He heard the friction of plastic foam. He heard the dull, repeated drilling of an electric drill. He heard every kind of noise that could drive him insane.

The noises grew more and more numerous, more and more chaotic, causing a violent desire to vent and destroy to rise naturally inside his heart.

But Klein, who had often endured the tests of mad ravings and terrifying shrieks, soon suppressed every impulse.

He also appropriately revealed a little agitation, a little tautness, a little irritation, and a little unease.

A state that is too perfect would itself be a problem!

At some unknown point, Crestet Cesimir stopped chanting. The noise inside the alchemy room vanished with it, and the peace and quiet of the underground once more surged in.

Silence is wonderful!

Klein sighed from the bottom of his heart.

“Good. Very good. There are no hidden dangers in your body, mind, or spirit. Of course, wanting to beat me up or wanting to block my mouth are both normal reactions,” Crestet said. His lips were hidden by the high collar, so one could judge his emotions only from his tone.

“No. I would not dare,” Klein admitted honestly.

Crestet laughed.

“Congratulations. You have passed all tests. Next is the question-and-answer portion.”

His dark-green eyes suddenly became deeper. His gaze grew so profound that it seemed capable of seeing through flesh and reaching the soul.

“Please ask, Your Excellency,” Klein said, sitting straight.

Crestet maintained the same posture as before and asked as if casually, “You said it was your experiences at the Divination Club that allowed you to master the potion so quickly?”

“Yes,” Klein answered with complete calm, without adding further explanation.

Crestet nodded faintly.

“You said this was inspiration obtained from the maxim of the Mystery Pryers and Daly’s example?”

“Mm.”

Klein first confirmed it, then shifted the subject and explained in detail, “From a Mystery Pryer teammate, I learned that Mystery Pryers who obey their maxim have a probability of losing control far lower than normal. Afterward, I heard of something Madam Daly once said: that she wanted to be a true Spirit Medium. And she is a genius who advanced to Sequence 7 within two years.

“Combining those two things, I felt I could attempt something similar: to become a true diviner and summarize a Seer’s code. Mm, the results of that attempt were much better than I expected. I quickly mastered the potion. Your Excellency Cesimir, I do not know whether you have had a similar experience, but when one truly masters a potion, a special, wonderful sensation appears…”

Klein described his own experience, giving a vague and not overly clear explanation of the acting method.

In his previous life, if he had spoken so many half-truths and half-lies before such a powerful Nighthawk, he certainly would have been nervous. His face would certainly have reddened. But after transmigrating into this world, he had told far too many lies. He had long since become accustomed to such matters, and his performance was flawless.

The depth inside Crestet’s dark-green eyes faded, and his gaze returned to normal. He chuckled softly.

“Do not worry. That is not an illusion.”

From his answer, Klein detected no suspicion or scrutiny, and his heart quietly relaxed a little.

“Dunn has confirmed your experiences. I believe you are indeed a genius with clear logic and sharp intuition,” Crestet praised. Then he asked, “Did you share these experiences with your teammates?”

“Of course,” Klein admitted calmly. “I hoped to help them reduce their probability of losing control. We are teammates. We are companions who must face danger together. I cannot think of any reason to conceal it. For the same reason, I did not tell the civilian staff.”

Crestet set down his right leg and sat upright, revealing his thin lips from the shadow of his upright collar.

The corners of his mouth lifted as he said, “Although you have been a member of the Nighthawks for less than two months, I believe your understanding of companions is stronger than that of many people.

“Mm. I intend to share some experience with you. But according to the Sanctuary’s regulations, you must swear to the Goddess that you will not tell anyone unaware of these matters the contents of our conversation.

“Is that acceptable?”

I passed the examination?

Joy rose in Klein’s heart. He nodded without hesitation.

“That is acceptable!”

Although I will no longer be able to directly teach the acting method to others because of this, I can still do so indirectly through Miss Justice, Mr. Hanged Man, and the others!