Chapter Text
0.
“After killing Ince Zangwill and successfully advancing to Sequence 4 Bizarro Sorcerer, Klein Moretti suffered a backlash from the potion due to spiritual exhaustion, rendering him unable to use his Beyonder powers for a short period of time, this is a reasonable development.”
“The Church of the Evernight’s Red Gloves, who arrived upon hearing the news apprehended the wild Beyonder, Gehrman Sparrow, this is also a reasonable development.”
The blond priest put away his quill pen, tore the page with writing on it from his notebook, handed it to Klein, and then vanished from the spot.
The contents on the paper made Klein’s scalp tingle. Just as he was about to use Flaming Jump to escape, he felt a pain in his head as if it had been split in two by an axe. Before he could react, his entire body fell stiffly to the ground. He watched helplessly as teams after teams of Red Gloves rushed to the edge of the Revival Square.
…What the hell, why.jpg [1]
This is cheating! Corruption! I need to report this!
1.
Lying in a ruin filled with bricks and tiles, Klein watched as Beyonders belonging to the Church of the Evernight rushed over. Several people approached Leonard and Daly, while many more turned their eyes to him.
With his last ounce of spirituality, he turned his face into Gehrman Sparrow—The moment he completed his revenge, Klein Moretti had already let go of his greatest obsession and the rest of fate should not be borne by that college student from the history department of Tingen City.
It has nothing to do with whether his true identity was revealed or not, but rather, after being promoted to a demigod, a Sequence 4, he had a deeper understanding of the "blessings” he has received.
Let Klein Moretti be buried here. The game between the gods will be faced by the “World”, Gehrman Sparrow or rather, Zhou Mingrui.
The Bizarro Sorcerer, lying on his back on the ground, was lost in thought as he chuckled silently. Suddenly, as a flash of inspiration struck him, he saw that a portion of the dazzling sunlight was blocked by someone. The person was wearing the robe of an ordinary cleric of the Church of Evernight with beautiful black hair and a delicate face.
Klein noticed her eyes, deep and profound, containing countless stars within them; simply gazing into them brought a feeling of endless tranquility.
Without needing to guess, his intuition told him that the person in front of him was Ilya, a Senior Deacon known as the "Eye of the Goddess".
"Gehrman Sparrow?" Ilya gently uttered out the name, and although it was a question, it carried an undeniable sense of certainty. "Did you kill Ince Zangwill?"
"What does it look like?" Klein said coldly as he maintained his persona of a crazy adventurer.
"The Church will be placing you under temporary detention for questioning. Please cooperate with the investigation; we hope you understand."
After saying this, the "Eye of the Goddess" took a step back. Several Red Gloves behind her immediately came forward, helped Klein, who was still lying on the ground, to his feet, then bound his hands behind his back with handcuffs filled with spirituality, designed specifically for Beyonders—an essential tool for capturing wild Beyonders when traveling, highly recommended even by the Goddess herself.
…Honestly, I don't understand.
Klein was feeling a little dejected as he got escorted forward by the Red Gloves, but these emotions were well-hidden beneath his expression thanks to the ability of the Clown. In the eyes of others, he was still the same cold and deranged adventurer even after being captured.
The state of spiritual exhaustion gave him a splitting headache and made him feel disoriented. If Creeping Hunger and Leymano’s Travel Notes were still in his possession, he would slip away at moments notice even if he took on the risk of losing control. Unfortunately, the two mystical items with the ability to teleport were in Leonard’s possession.
Sighing inwardly, Klein tried to alleviate his pain through cogitation.
He did not make any unnecessary resistance. Facing a demigod known as the "Eye of the Goddess" and more than a dozen Red Gloves, he knew that the probability of escaping with his current state was slim.
More importantly, he knew that it was all arranged by 0-08.
After all, Adam had written down his fate for the next few days with 0-08 in front of him, and had even kindly handed the paper to him.
He had a vague feeling that this might be what the Goddess had intended.
Reaching the edge of the Revival Square, he saw Leonard communicating with his companions.
The poet’s eyes were still slightly red from crying. He carefully sorted out Madam Daly’s clothes and gently wiped away the smudged blue eyeshadow from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief.
The beautiful Gatekeeper lay quietly on the stretcher with a black shroud dotted with stars covering her body.
Klein turned his head away, afraid he wouldn’t be able to control his expression.
But…
"Kle...Gehrman?! How did you..."
Yes, this poet of his will never let him have his way.
The exclamation attracted the attention of most people present, including the "Eye of the Goddess" who glanced between Leonard and Gehrman.
Captain Soest, who arrived in a hurry, was equally surprised. "You know that crazy adventurer?"
"Uh..." Leonard was speechless. He really couldn't explain how he had gotten involved with this wild Beyonder.
Klein glanced at him briefly, and didn't say anything.
Of course, he didn't have a chance to speak. That “Eye of the Goddess” clearly had no intention of giving him time to reminisce. Under the influence of a hidden force, he was quickly led to the nearest Church of Evernight.
2.
West Balam Cookawa City, under the basement of St. Coria (kēlǐyǎ) Church, behind the Chanis Gate.
Klein was first taken to the lounge under the church by Ilya, the "Eye of the Goddess", then the Sequence 3 Senior Deacon left by concealing herself. Klein guessed that she probably went to do Spirit Channeling on Ince Zangwill.
Then he was taken away by a group of unfamiliar Red Gloves and locked in the interrogation room behind Chanis Gate.
The interrogation room was gloomy and dimly lit as ever. Klein leaned back in the high-backed chair and half-closed his eyes as if taking a nap—a posture very unsuitable for the crazy adventurer's persona, but he couldn't help it. The leather straps on the interrogation chair fixed his neck, hands, and feet to the high-backed chair, leaving him no room for movement.
All his mystical items were found and taken away, including Death Knell, the Red Priest's Blasphemy Card, the Fate Siphon charm, the topaz spirit pendulum, and even the matchbox and paper figurines in his pocket were thoroughly searched and taken away.
However... Klein slightly raised his eyelids and glanced at the candlestick outside the dark window. As long as he wanted to, he could still use Flaming Jump to escape. But he will definitely be caught again as his remaining spirituality is not enough for him to break out of Chanis Gate.
The prolonged darkness and absolute silence behind Chanis Gate made him restless and uneasy. The surging darkness made him uncontrollably think of terrifying things. Klein closed his eyes and used cogitation to dispel the oppressive fear in the depths of the darkness—he knew that this was the manifestation of the Goddess’s authority, as the last sentence of ‘Her’ honorific name was "The Empress of Misfortune and Horror".
Suddenly, a series of footsteps echoed , the chains rattled, and the iron door creaked open. Several figures entered the narrow interrogation room. The leading figure was wearing the robes of a high ranking cleric of the Church of the Evernight. Half of his face was hidden in the shadows of the candlelight making it possible to roughly discern that he was a middle-aged man with dark gray curly hair.
He pulled up a chair in front of Gehrman and sat down. He took out paper and pen from the drawer beside him and spread it flat on the table between them. Three Red Gloves stood behind him, all of whom were maintaining a vigilant stance staring at the dangerous adventurer who is restrained to the interrogation chair.
Before they came in, Klein sat up straight and returned to the posture of the crazy adventurer. He glanced at the person coldly and found that it was a face he had never seen before.
My dear poet isn’t here... Klein subtly breathed a sigh of relief. He was really afraid that that guy wouldn't be able to control his mouth and spill everything about himself in one breath.
However, he was somewhat worried. Getting involved with this crazy adventurer with a bounty of 90,000 pounds on his head, especially after leaving the team without notice, and having a Sequence 5 teammate die in battle meant that Leonard's future was likely over.
"Hello, Mr. Sparrow. Let me introduce myself. I am Snow Antheus (sīnuò-āntèxiūsī), Bishop of the St. Coria Church of the Evernight Goddess in the Northern Diocese of West Balam, and leader of the Nighthawk team in Cookawa City.”
The person speaking was sitting across from Klein. He was wearing a cleric’s robe and looked young, but his tone was completely devoid of emotion, and his deep gray eyes showed no expression whatsoever.
Klein looked at him coldly and didn't say anything.
According to his assessment, Bishop Snow Antheus in front of him is likely a Sequence 5 Beyonder from the Sleepless pathway or the Corpse Collector pathway. Before coming to the Southern Continent, he had used Arrodes to investigate the personnel of the Church of the Evernight in this region. This Bishop Snow is not only the bishop of St. Coria Church, but also the head of the entire Northern Diocese of West Balam. Arrodes’s evaluation is that he is serious, rigid, and difficult to get along with.
A Red Glove walked up behind him carrying a very heavy ring-shaped object, then buttoned the black collar made of unknown material around his neck with a click.
"What is the meaning of this?" He asked coldly.
"Seal Artifact 1-215, The Punisher of Lies, from the Arbitrator's pathway." Snow Antheus, the bishop of the Evernight Goddess sitting opposite Gehrman, introduced in a flat, emotionless voice. "Its power is to automatically punish anyone detected lying within its range, punishing one person at a time depending on the distance. At the same time, keeping silent will also be regarded as a form of dishonesty and will incur punishment. The negative effect is that repeated punishment will cause the spirit body to be irreversiblely damaged.”
Klein narrowed his eyes and said nothing.
As 1-215 was put on him, he felt a powerful oppressive force, which reminded him of Admiral Amyrius, the military demigod he met at sea.
Although he has just advanced to a demigod, and should be at the same level as this Sealed Artifact, the state of spiritual exhaustion made him barely able to control himself from losing control, and he couldn’t even put up any resistance.
In other words, with all his defenses down, even a slight graze can cause a real injury.
Enduring the mental anguish, Klein sighed inwardly, unsure of the Goddess’s intentions.
In his opinion, the hunt for Ince Zangwill was a tacit agreement between him and the Goddess. The Goddess gave Adam 0-08 to help him achieve godhood, and Adam, in turn, helped him complete his advancement ritual. They would then go their own way, and he would seek other opportunities for advancement.
Moreover, under the Goddess’s gaze, Leonard would not be investigated, and his former identity as a Nighthawk will be buried in the files and never be mentioned again, but now things have turned out like this...
Did I misunderstand the Goddess’s intentions? ‘She’ wants to punish me for stealing the notebook?
"Next, we will be asking you some questions about certain matters. We hope you will answer truthfully." Bishop Snow, unfazed about the other party’s cold demeanor, picked up a fountain pen and wrote a ‘1’ on the white sheet of paper. "The first question, did you kill Ince Zangwill?"
"What does it look like?"
"Mr. Sparrow, in order to not cause unnecessary troubles and misunderstandings, I hope you can answer this question with a simple yes or no."
Klein glanced at him in surprise, thought for a moment, and chose cooperation over defiance, "Yes."
"The second question, why did you kill Ince Zangwill?"
"I'm a bounty hunter." Klein replied, using an answer he has already prepared.
"Can it be understood that you attacked Ince Zangwill for his bounty?"
"Yes."
"Third question, was the telegram sent to the Church of Evernight about the whereabouts of Ince Zangwill sent by you or your accomplices?"
Klein thought for a moment, deciding this was something he could answer, he nodded and said, "It’s from me."
"Fourth question, what is the relationship between you and Leonard Mitchell?"
"It doesn't matter. I don't know him—ugh—" Before he could finish, Klein let out a muffled groan, and the powerful attack of the level 1 Seal Artifact made his entire body tremble.
"Oh? It seems that this answer is incorrect.” Bishop Snow hurriedly made a mark next to the question, "Tell me how did he know you?"
Klein narrowed his eyes and showed the signature smile of the crazy adventurer, "Heh, anyone who reads the newspaper regularly knows me."
He avoided the question.
"Then let’s change the question, why does Leonard Mitchell have a Sealed Artifact corresponding to the Sequence 5 Secret Suppliant pathway? As far as we know, that's your commonly seen item, Creeping Hunger.”
"The battle scene shows that Leonard Mitchell used a high-level charm, and we found the same high-level charm among your belongings."
There was no way for him to explain it.
Klein was silent for a moment, then said, "Leonard Mitchell is my employer. He hired me to assassinate Ince Zangwill."
……
Meanwhile, in another interrogation room separated by a wall...
Hearing the answer from the next room, the black-haired, green-eyed poet breathed a sigh of relief, his previously rigid back relaxed slightly against the backrest of the interrogation chair, a subtle smile appearing in his eyes.
Opposite him were Soest, Captain of the Red Gloves team and Crestet Cesimir, the "Goddess's Sword."
Of course, out of consideration for all of them being colleagues, Leonard wasn't handcuffed like Gehrman Sparrow; he sat in a normal high-backed chair. However, the red leather gloves he usually wore had been removed and placed to the side, his distinctly jointed hands clasped together on the black iron table.
Soest looked at the first few lines of the interrogation record in his hand, the ink still fresh:
—Leonard Mitchell claimed to have contacted Gehrman Sparrow in Backlund and commissioned the latter to hunt down Ince Zangwill. During this time, they communicated through Gehrman's Spirit World messenger.
—The mystical items used by Leonard Mitchell were: a glove with the ability to teleport (Note: Creeping Hunger, suspected to be from the Secret Supplicant pathway, a Level 2 Sealed Artifact), a notebook with the ability to record different abilities (Note: Leymano's Travel Notes, suspected to be from the Apprentice pathway, a Level 2 Sealed Artifact), and a high-level charm (Note: Fate Siphon Charm, pathway unknown), all temporarily borrowed from Gehrman Sparrow.
This was the alibi the two had concocted before the operation.
Originally, Klein believed that he and the Church had a certain understanding, and that even if he and Leonard killed Ince Zangwill, they wouldn't be subjected to too harsh of an investigation—after all, the Goddess's divine vessel had even smiled at him.
However, Leonard insisted that it was better to coordinate their stories, lest they be caught with conflicting accounts. He directly stated that he couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't reveal some things about Gehrman—it would be awkward if he had to swear to the Goddess that he wasn't lying, as Leonard considered himself very devout to the Goddess, and he wouldn't lie under the Goddess's gaze.
At that time, Klein rolled his eyes at him and then fabricated a story about hiring someone to commit a murder. After all, it was almost common knowledge that Gehrman was a bounty hunter, and he even collected a commission fee worth a cup of sweet iced tea–which was perfectly reasonable.
He also stated that if any of those "contraband" mystical items were discovered, they could all be attributed to him, claiming they were provided by Gehrman Sparrow.
After all, there was no rule that said that the Red Gloves from the Church of the Evernight couldn't issue bounties to hunt down fugitives on the wanted list; at most, it would just be a violation of protocol, which might result in a reprimand during a meeting and some corrective training.
However...
"Leonard, I hope you'll tell the truth," Soest tapped the table, and Deacon Cesimir beside him also shook his head.
Of course, they didn't believe this flawed testimony.
"As far as we know, Gehrman Sparrow was promoted to Sequence 4 only after killing Ince Zangwill. That means at that time, you were two Sequence 5s and one Sequence 6. Do you really think the three of you could kill a demigod carrying a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact? I need a detailed account of the battle, Leonard."
“...As I said before, I don't know the details," Leonard clenched his knuckles until they turned white, and pursed his lips. "Ince Zangwill revealed his mythical creature form, and we didn't dare open our eyes. Madam Daly lured away the evil spirit possessing Ince Zangwill and perished along with a Spirit World creature he summoned. I used Creeping Hunger and that high-level charm to injure Ince Zangwill. That's all I know. As for where those demigod-level powers came from, I really don't know. You might want to ask Gehrman Sparrow."
……
In the interrogation room on the other side of the wall, Klein was also asked the same question. The special spiritual wall prevented him from hearing Leonard's answer next door, though if he had heard it, he would definitely praise his dear poet for finally becoming smarter, at least learning the trick of shifting the blame to others.
However, he didn't intend to answer this question directly either. He couldn't possibly say that at least three Kings of Angels and a pseudo-evil god were having a skirmish there, could he? Oh, and that evil god was himself.
Ough—
Klein suddenly let out a muffled groan. The unexpected punishment made his head feel as if a hot-red steel skewer had been thrust into it and repeatedly twisted around. His whole body trembled slightly with pain, and cold sweat almost soaked his entire shirt, but he stubbornly suppressed the cries of pain in his throat, refusing to let out a single sound.
He knew that the prolonged silence due to him thinking had been automatically interpreted as lying, and the Sealed Artifact had punished him again.
"Mr. Sparrow, we hope you will cooperate with our investigation."
Noticing the man's expression contort briefly, Bishop Snow continued in his unhurried tone, "We need to understand clearly, and we must understand clearly, the details of the battle, the participants, the cause of death of Madam Daly Simone, and the specific actions of Leonard Mitchell."
……
Leonard clenched his fists, his green eyes cast downwards, and his knuckles hidden in the shadows, turned white from the pressure yet, he felt nothing.
He could, of course, hear Klein's muffled groans of pain, but he couldn't do anything at this moment. He couldn't even reveal his concern, and had to maintain an indifferent attitude as if the transaction was complete and he had no further interest.
"...That's all I can say. There was indeed a high-level being that briefly descended there, but I can neither perceive nor describe it—it is a secret." Leonard said slowly, following Pallez's instructions.
"A secret?" Senior Deacon Crestet Cesimir frowned.
"Yes," Leonard nodded.
Pallez wanted him to direct the final point of suspicion towards the Evernight Goddess. He realized something, but he didn't dare to think further, because the Old Man's exact words were: "Anyway, saying that wouldn’t be wrong."
……
However, things weren’t going so well for Klein on his end.
Since he had already advanced to Sequence 4, the Nighthawks didn't use Dream Invasion or Spirit Channeling when interrogating him—this was to prevent them from being corrupted by witnessing the incomplete mythical creature form of a demigod.
Therefore, the Nighthawks chose to have him answer questions under the supervision of Sealed Artifact 1-215, The Punisher of Lies.
But the problem was, Klein believed he was telling the truth, but the Sealed Artifact didn't agree. He described in detail how his informant discovered the whereabouts of Ince Zangwill, how he sent a telegram to the Church of the Evernight and contacted his employer Leonard, and even explained the use of the Creeping Hunger and the Fate Siphon Charm—this was the testimony he had prepared for himself beforehand.
He only omitted any mention of Adam, Ouroboros, Sauron Einhorn Medici, and his use of Lightning Storm as “The Fool”.
But this damned Sealed Artifact still judged him to be lying, and the punishments it inflicted became stronger and stronger, already approaching the limit of what he could bear.
The stinging pain in his skull made it almost impossible for him to maintain the dignified posture of a crazy adventurer; he gasped softly, the restraints on the interrogation chair prevented from collapsing completely.
Sweat from the pain soaked his black hair; his once neatly styled, side-parted short hair was now matted together, just like its pale-faced owner.
"It seems you don't intend to answer this question. Almost no one has lasted more than ten rounds against 1-215. As expected of the famous Gehrman Sparrow." Bishop Snow glanced at the paper on the table, which was stained with a large ink blot, took a fresh new sheet, and continued writing.
"Then let's change the question. Why did you sneak into the Chanis Gate?"
...Finally, a question I could answer.
Klein breathed a sigh of relief, feeling for a moment that questions with a standard answer was a blessing.
"For a Sealed Artifact in the basement of St. Samuel's Cathedral," he answered.
"Which Sealed Artifact?"
"The Antigonus Family's Notebook—" He only said this much when Klein's voice suddenly trailed off.
He recalled the angel with the authority of concealment he had encountered behind Chanis Gate, and suspected that this angel was the divine vessel for the Goddess that had appeared before him and Mr. Azik not long ago.
Thinking of this, Klein raised his head slightly and said in a low voice, "Wait a moment, I need to pray to the Goddess."
He decided to clarify the Goddess's intentions. It would be utterly ridiculous if he were interrogated to death by his own people right after completing his revenge.
"...I’m sorry, what did you say?" Bishop Snow was clearly taken aback.
"I said, I need to pray to the Goddess." Klein paused, "I'm referring to the Evernight Goddess, the Lady of Crimson, the Mother of Concealment, the Empress of Misfortune and Horror, the Mistress of Repose and Silence."
For a moment, the two interrogation rooms were so silent, you could hear a pin drop. The Red Gloves of the Church of the Evernight exchanged glances, each seeing the astonishment in each other's eyes.
A crazy adventurer, suspected of being a fanatical follower of an evil god, wanted to pray to the Goddess? Has he finally gone mad?
Even Leonard suddenly sat up straight, instinctively looking at the wall beside him. He couldn't describe his current feelings, only that his heart was pounding, and he was eagerly waiting for the answer that seemed so close to being revealed.
He realized from the Old Man's hints that the Goddess was behind 0-08, and even boldly speculated that Klein's current actions might be guided by the Goddess, or that the evil god, The Fool, might have made some kind of deal with the Goddess...
And now Klein's request completely confirmed this speculation—otherwise, would a cultist who had betrayed his faith and fanatically worshipped an evil god dare to pray to his former deity again and attract the god's attention?
What if, what if... what if Klein hadn't betrayed the Goddess or the Church?
"Leonard, you seem very excited right now, and happy or perhaps anticipating that Gehrman Sparrow will pray to the Goddess, why?"
This question was asked by Deacon Cesimir, the "Sword of the Goddess."
Crap, I forgot to manage my expression…
The poet's emerald eyes flickered slightly, and he resumed his languid posture, chuckling at the familiar face opposite him, saying "it is a secret."
……
Klein was temporarily relieved of the restraints of Sealed Artifact 1-215, the Punisher of Lies, but the cautious Nighthawks didn't remove the other restraints on the crazy adventurer. Instead, they brought candles and essential oils, setting up an altar for him, and then allowed him to recite the prayer himself.
Facing the Nighthawks’ actions of setting up the altar and their questioning gazes, Klein pursed his lips and remained silent.
He wasn't sure if the Goddess would actually respond to him, but if the woman who had appeared before him and Mr. Azik was indeed the Goddess's divine vessel, then at least the Goddess was paying special attention to him.
Even though he didn't know what kind of punishment the Goddess would inflict on him for sneaking into the Chanis Gate and stealing Antigonus Family’s Notebook, it certainly wouldn't be like being locked in a dark room and subjected to torture. As for those gifts, whether they counted as gifts or not, he would repay them later.
Of course, all of this was based on the assumption that his deductions were correct.
However, there was no harm in offering a prayer. After all, when he was playing the role of Dwayne Dantès, he went to St. Samuel's Cathedral to pray to the Goddess every now and then, and the Goddess didn't conceal him. Moreover, he was now suspected of being a Blessed of the Evernight, and the Goddess had responded when he inquired about Ince Zangwill's whereabouts before. There was no harm in asking a couple of questions.
Thinking of this, Klein took a deep breath, squeezed out his remaining spirituality, and gazed at the flames on the altar, praying in a low voice:
"The Evernight Goddess stands higher than the cosmos and more eternal than eternity; The Lady of Crimson; The Mother of Concealment; The Empress of Misfortune and Horror; Mistress of Repose and Silence;
"I pray for the power of the Night;
"I pray for the power of Crimson;
"I pray for the favor of the Goddess; "I pray for your guidance,
I pray that you will help me escape my current predicament..."
Suddenly, a strong spiritual wind blew from the altar, the three candle flames instantly swelled and brightened, and a deep, tranquil darkness spread out, accompanied by the scent of slumber flowers and night vanilla wafting through the air.
Klein immediately sensed a gaze from a high-ranking being from an infinite distance! He vaguely heard a light chuckle and a sigh, then the candlelight before him flickered and twisted, forming a line of words.
"Return to Backlund, await further instructions."
The candlelight flickered out, and the deep darkness receded like a tide, returning the interrogation room to its state illuminated by gas lamps.
The Goddess had actually responded…
Klein was slightly startled, instinctively wanted to raise his right hand to draw a crimson moon on his chest, but his hands were still bound to the interrogation chair, so he could only devoutly praise the Goddess verbally.
The Nighthawks present were stunned by this scene.
A cultist on the wanted list, prayed to the Goddess while being interrogated behind the Chanis Gate, and received a personal response from the Goddess herself…
It should be noted that, among those present, besides Bishop Snow Antheus and Senior Deacon Cesimir Crestet, the two high-ranking church officials, no one had ever truly heard a "divine oracle." All the tasks or instructions they received came from their superiors and the Holy See.
”This..."
Deacon Cesimir, who had rushed over, glanced at the uncleaned altar in front of Gehrman and exchanged a look with Bishop Snow. They both saw the surprise and confusion in each other's eyes: What should we do? Should they continue the interrogation?
Just then, a faint sound of footsteps was heard. Seeing the person approaching, the Red Gloves guarding the door immediately stepped aside to let her through.
The person who arrived was wearing the robe of an ordinary cleric of the Church of the Evernight, and had beautiful dark hair and a delicate face. Klein recognized her; it was Ilya, the "Eye of the Goddess," who had "arrested" him earlier.
This late-arriving Senior Deacon's gaze swept over the Red Gloves with their strange expressions, the altar on the table, and the Sealed Artifact 1-215 in the open safe, finally settling on Gehrman Sparrow.
She could see that the Beyonder in front of her was in a very bad condition, from his pale face to the fine beads of sweat on his forehead and his almost completely depleted spirituality—plus the presence of Sealed Artifact 1-215, it already explained a lot.
"Stop the interrogation," she said, then turned to her familiar colleagues, Snow Antheus and Cesimir Crestet. "The Holy Order commands that this matter ends here, no further investigation will be conducted, and all related files will be encrypted and classified as Level 1 confidential."
3.
After being subjected to an intense interrogation for over half an hour, Klein was finally released from the interrogation chair and sat on a sofa in the lounge, holding a cup of black tea.
At this moment, only Cesimir Crestet and Ilya, two senior deacons, were in front of him.
“I'm very sorry, Mr. Sparrow, it was my mistake for not explaining things clearly to them," Ilya said, placing one hand on her chest and bowing slightly in apology.
Klein thought to himself, then you'd better let me go back to sleep now, but outwardly, he simply took a sip of tea and calmly said, "It's alright, they were just doing their duty."
"Thank you for your understanding," Ilya nodded, changing her posture. "I just received a divine oracle and understood your identity. May I ask if you are willing to return to, or join the Church of the Evernight?"
"Returning and joining... is there a difference?" Klein carefully pondered these two words, and suddenly his eyelids twitched.
"Joining means you will become a member of the Church of the Evernight as Gehrman Sparrow; returning means you return to the church as Klein Moretti after completing a secret mission. You can choose whichever method you prefer."
Great, his secret identity was blown so unexpectedly, and it was the Goddess herself who exposed it.
Klein, still wearing the disguise of Gehrman Sparrow, remained expressionless and took another sip of black tea.
"Wait, Ilya, what did you just say..." Deacon Cesimir asked, his face filled with disbelief. "Who did you say he was?"
"Klein Moretti, the Nighthawk member who sacrificed himself in the Tingen incident, you've met him. He is a Blessed of the Goddess." After saying this, Ilya added, "I only just found out about this, from the Goddess's divine oracle just now."
"...Klein?" Cesimir turned to look at the crazy adventurer quietly sitting and drinking tea.
"Hello, His Excellency Cesimir," Klein nodded slightly, acknowledging his identity, then looked at Ilya, the "Eye of the Goddess". "I need some time to think about it. I can't give you an answer right now."
He needed to perform a divination above the gray fog. After all, what happened today was far too unexpected. As a master puppeteer who had just directed a play involving hunting a demigod, Klein was extremely wary of any situation that deviated from his expectations.
Ilya wasn't surprised, and nodded, "After you return to Backlund, you can go to St. Samuel's Cathedral and inform us of your decision. Archbishop Anthony will handle this matter."
"Okay."
"Do you have any other questions?"
Klein thought for a moment and asked, "How do you guys plan to handle Leonard?"
He knew very well that since he had been arrested and interrogated, Leonard, as one of the parties involved, would naturally also be subjected to an investigation. Moreover, Leonard had recited the Fool's honorific name at the time, and the Goddess was certainly aware of this, although it was uncertain whether the high-ranking officials of the Church knew about it.
He didn't want his dear poet to ruin his promising future because of this. And if Leonard couldn't obtain advancement materials from the Church, then the Tarot Club's the "World" would have to take on commissions and killing targets on the spot. Furthermore, Leonard would have to switch to the Death pathway, because he couldn't possibly hunt down clergy members of the Church of the Evernight; he could only find Beyonder characteristics from the Numinous Episcopate.
"The investigation into Leonard Mitchell will also be stopped, and his advancement will be according to the normal procedures. The killing of Ince Zangwill will be recorded as a meritorious achievement, and he will be eligible to advance to Sequence 5 after returning to Backlund."
That's quite thoughtful...Klein pondered the meaning of the words, and suddenly wondered if he was helping Leonard through nepotism?
Stop! Stop!
Klein coughed, and tapped his chest four times, "I have no further questions. Praise the Goddess."
"Since you have no other questions, we will take our leave now. Please wait a moment; someone will bring your personal belongings to you shortly. Praise the Goddess." Saying this, Ilya and Cesimir stood up and left the lounge.
The moment the two of them left, a figure immediately rushed in.
Just as Klein was about to sit back down on the sofa, the figure lunged at him, and hugged him tightly with a force that made him wince in pain.
"Klein... Klein..."
"That’s wonderful, Klein... You didn't betray the Goddess, you didn't..."
The poet's voice was filled with surprise and a hint of a sob. His hands, rarely without a pair of red gloves, tightly embraced the Seer’s back, as if afraid that the person in front of him would disappear again.
Sighing, Klein also raised his hand and gently patted his dear poet’s back reassuringly.
"I'm here, Leonard, I'm here."
3.5
Behind Chanis Gate, in a hidden corner.
"Ilya, what's going on? Gehrman Sparrow is actually Klein Moretti? This... and he's also a Blessed of the Goddess?"
"I’m not sure either," Ilya pressed her temples in frustration. "I was performing Spirit Channeling on Ince Zangwill when I suddenly received a divine oracle telling me to go and release Gehrman Sparrow, who was locked behind the gate."
"When I rushed back, I saw you guys interrogating him, and using a Level 1 Sealed Artifact at that! He was being tortured to the point of almost losing control! You guys almost scared me to death!"
"Who would have thought he would be..." Cesimir gave a wry smile. "When I met him a year ago, he had just become a Beyonder, and he was a history major who had just graduated from university."
"In short, the fact that Gehrman, or rather Klein, is a Blessed of the Goddess must be kept a secret. And if he chooses to abandon the identity of Klein Moretti, all the interrogation records and files, including the ones from today, must be kept at Level 1 confidentiality, and no one below the rank of Archbishop is allowed to access them."
"Why? Why does the identity of a Blessed of the Goddess need to be kept a secret?" Cesimir asked, puzzled.
"I really want to answer you, but..." Ilya suddenly sighed with a half-smile, "it is a secret."
"..."
Deacon Crestet Cesimir feels like he has developed PTSD from "it is a secret".