Weak light shone through the narrow window from high above, making the interior of Morse Cathedral a little more visible.
Klein put his top hat on his knee while he leaned his leg against his cane. He sat quietly on the first row of the left pew and looked at the altar before him.
There weren’t any statues of the Goddess except for a massive Dark Sacred Emblem. Its base was black, with a crimson half-moon that was surrounded by radiant points of light.
On the wall behind the Sacred Emblem, there were a few openings which allowed sunlight to shine in from the outside. They were focused into tiny specks of pure light which combined with the dark surroundings to form a scene that resembled that of a lofty starry night sky.
None of the traditional Gods ever left behind an actual image. Only their symbols are worshiped and glorified by people... That seems to be a manifestation of the command, “Do not look directly at God”...
Klein let his thoughts wander. He wasn’t in a hurry to make the Flaring Sun Charms as soon as he got the opportunity to be alone with Sealed Artifact 3-0782.
He felt that he had to be careful, patient, and had to wait. Within the first fifteen minutes, it was possible that Leonard and Kenley would enter at any moment to remind him about points that he should take note of.
In this extremely quiet atmosphere, time flew by quickly. Klein suddenly snapped back to his senses as he took out his silver vine-leaf pocket watch, flipped it open, and took a glance.
Twenty minutes have passed...
He muttered to himself. He then set his silk top hat and silver edged black cane by the side. He got up and walked towards a hidden corner near the altar.
At first, he faced the side of the altar, but once he saw the large Dark Sacred Emblem and the holy scenery that resembled a depiction of a night sky, he felt guilty and uncomfortable. Hence, he turned his back to the altar.
Then, Klein took out the Sealed Artifact 3-0782 from the inner pocket of his black tuxedo. He bent down to place the golden unadorned badge on the ground.
Klein took a look at the Sun symbol that was filled with abstract meanings, then he took out a small candle mixed with sandalwood. He put it right at the bottom of Sealed Artifact 3-0782.
That was the dualistic ritual that he learned from the Eternal Blazing Sun. He used an item that was closely related to the deity to represent “Him” while he used the candle to represent himself.
He took a deep breath to ease his tense emotions. Klein then took out the items required for the ritual, one after another, including a carving knife, two thin gold slices, Sun essential oil extracted from the combination of black-rimmed sunflower, golden-rimmed sunflower and white-rimmed sunflower, Golden Hand fingered citron powder, and also rosemary powder.
After that, Klein adeptly used the silver ritual dagger to guide the flow of spirituality. He guided it to flow around the simple altar and created a shapeless sealed wall.
He squatted down, placed the silver dagger down, and extended his right hand. He lit up the candle that represented himself by rubbing his spirituality.
Under the flickering dim light, Klein picked up the Sun essential oil and dripped a drop onto the flame.
With a puff, an illusory fog spread out with the slight scent of sunlight.
After burning the fingered citron and rosemary powder, Klein held the carving knife and golden slices. He stood up, took a step back, and then recited in Hermes, “The blood of the Eternal Blazing Sun.
“You are the Inextinguishable Light, the Embodiment of Order, the God of Deeds, the Guardian of Businesses.”
...
Inextinguishable Light, Embodiment of Order, God of Deeds, and Guardian of Businesses were all parts of Eternal Blazing Sun’s honorable titles. If there wasn’t the prefix of the blood of the Eternal Blazing Sun, the ritual would require the god’s response to proceed. If so, Klein suspected that the Eternal Blazing Sun would recognize him as the disrespectful person that looked at “Him” directly. Then, Leonard and Kenley would only find a pile of black ashes when they entered.
Plus, the ritual had to be conducted via Ancient Hermes, a ritualistic language that stemmed from nature. Only a language without any protection but had outstanding effects could allow an incantation to sidestep around the Eternal Blazing Sun and point towards the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem.
At the same time, as he was stealing the power from a deity, Klein had no way to divine if it would be successful ahead of time. He felt that it would result in him directly dealing with the deity again. So, he could only recite the rest of the incantation with a strained heart, “I pray to you,
“I pray for you to give me strength,
“Give me strength to complete the Flaring Sun Charm.
“The blood of the Eternal Blazing Sun, please transfer your strength into my charm...
“Oh fingered citron, a herb that belongs to the Sun, please bestow your powers to my charm...”
...
As the incantation neared completion, Klein suddenly felt something light up before him.
The simple gold badge radiated with an intense light, as though the sun had descended onto the land.
Klein suddenly found himself enveloped in extreme heat. His hair was heating up rapidly and was almost on the brink of igniting.
His feet felt like they were stepping barefoot on yellow sand that had been exposed to the midday sun, and his face and body were greeted with the hot wind blowing from every direction.
In that instance, he felt that he needed to do something to let the burning energies out. Otherwise, he would turn into a human candle.
It required almost zero thought as Klein lifted both his hands. While his thoughts were boiling over like porridge, he relied on the combination of his spirituality and the strong winds, as well as his instincts and ritualistic guidance, to begin etching symbols, corresponding Path Numbers, magical characteristics, and ancient incantations onto both sides of the gold slices with his carving knife.
Outside the church, Leonard was standing in the shadows to hide from coming into contact with direct sunlight.
Suddenly, the sunlight intensified, like the hottest days of a year in early July.
He squinted his eyes and looked towards the sky. He saw that the blue sky had no clouds or dust. It was so pure that it made people gasp with admiration.
“Such strange weather.” Beside him, Kenley also noticed the changes in the sunlight.
Leonard responded with a smile when he suddenly turned his head.
He knitted his eyebrows slightly and cast his gaze towards the cathedral.
“Luckily Rozanne isn’t here. Otherwise, she would be complaining about the sun tanning her skin,” Leonard looked away and said with a smile.
The blazing sunlight remained intense for a few minutes before it returned to normal.
In the cathedral, Klein’s carving knife finished the final stroke.
As he finished the magical characteristic that represented light, the spirituality on both sides of the gold slices suddenly melded together, as the light converged onto the metal.
No, this is even closer to godhood...
Klein was finally relieved from the boiling and burning sensations. He examined the two Flaring Sun Charms in his hands with a clear mind.
The golden luster on the surface of the charms had turned dim, and the pattern looked ancient yet complex. There was a warm, damp feeling that seeped into Klein’s skin bit by bit.
“Not bad. I finally have a more impressive trump card.” Klein sighed emotionally.
He set the activation incantation for the Flaring Sun Charms as the word “light” in Ancient Hermes.
I want light and there will be light...
He quipped, amused. Then, he put the Flaring Sun Charms into another pocket. He didn’t put them with the Slumber, Requiem, and Dream Charms, because the Flaring Sun Charms would decrease their efficacy period.
“Yes, the power of the Flaring Sun Charms can be maintained for at least a year, or even longer.” Klein reined his thoughts back and looked at the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem on the ground.
It didn’t look any different on the surface, and it still gave off feelings of warmth and purity. Klein finally relaxed, and quickly completed the ritual and removed the spiritual wall.
At that point, he thought to examine himself. He realized that his clothes were almost drenched, and he was covered in sweat. The edges of his hair were slightly curly too.
Thankfully, thankfully...
Klein sighed in satisfaction. He put away his things and returned to his original seat. He was so exhausted that he slept the moment he sat down, until he was woken up by footsteps.
His eyes shot open, and he touched the Flaring Sun Charms subconsciously to see if they were still there.
“You don’t look alright?” Leonard asked as he entered the cathedral.
Klein massaged his temples, stood up, and smiled.
“I’m nearing my limit.”
He took out his silver pocket watch and took a glance. “Just in time. It’s your turn to look after Sealed Artifact 3-0782.”
Before he finished speaking, Klein took off the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem and passed it to Leonard.
Leonard watched Klein walk out of the cathedral. Then, he dropped his frivolous attitude and examined Sealed Artifact 3-0782 attentively and seriously. He grew confused and looked bewildered.
After the shifts ended, the three Nighthawks began their journey back.
Before that, they told Priest Siur to take note of the town’s situation. If there were any paranormal incidents, he was to immediately send a telegram to Saint Selena Cathedral.
At twenty minutes past seven that night, they finally arrived at Zouteland Street and returned Sealed Artifact 3-0782.
When he had made sure that the Captain didn’t notice anything unusual, Klein left the Blackthorn Security Company and arrived home before eight.
He took out his keys and opened the door, only to see an unknown figure.
It was obviously a maiden who wasn’t even in her twenties. She was in an old, grayish-white dress, and she was wiping the dining hall with all her might.
She had black hair and brown eyes. Her eyes were small, her nose wasn’t sharp enough, and her facial features were very ordinary.
Who is this?
Klein was stunned at first, then he realized that she was most likely the maidservant that had come for a trial.
At that moment, Benson lowered his newspaper and looked at his brother. He smiled and said, “A company that doesn’t allow employees to leave the office on time is annoying.”
“But it provides a salary that can counteract any kind of dissatisfaction,” Klein replied with a laugh.
When Miss Justice’s 300 pounds reach me, I’ll inform Benson and Melissa about my raise to six pounds a week, that way they would worry less about our family’s finances...
Klein thought as he put his cane aside and took off his top hat. He walked to the living hall and lowered his voice as he asked, “Have you made a choice?”
He had divined the information of the three maidservants the day before, and he had found that all three were suitable. Hence, the decision was left to his brother and sister.
“Yes, Bella. Weekly salary of five soli. She’s very willing and also capable of learning cooking. She hopes that she can become a home chef, at which point her weekly pay will double. Her father is a factory worker at the Tingen Steelworks Union Factory, and her mother is a laundry worker,” Benson replied with a chuckle. “Of course, another thing that led Melissa and me to the decision is that the other two servants believe in the Lord of Storms, and she is a believer of the Goddess. I personally don’t mind the believers of the Lord of Storms, but Melissa didn’t quite like the idea.”
It wasn’t that Melissa didn’t like it, a more accurate description would be “I grieve at their misfortune and am infuriated at their refusal to resist.” Yes, it was said by Lu Xun!
Klein recalled his sister’s behavior, and revealed a smile.
Benson didn’t elaborate further. He put down the newspaper and stood up.
“Since you’re back, let’s have dinner.”
...
The next day, Klein entered the Blackthorn Security Company in a good mood.
“Good morning.” Rozanne looked to the left and then the right. Then, she said, “Old Neil is sick, let’s go and visit him at noon. What say you?”
“Old Neil is sick?” Klein asked in surprise.
Could it be that the ritual for treating diarrhea caused severe constipation?
Well, from the way he acted after learning of the “acting method,” it’s not impossible for him to suddenly fall sick... He’s getting old, so once his mind turns frail, his body would also suffer from those ramifications...
Rozanne nodded and said, “Yeah, he sent someone to the Captain to request some time off.”
Klein nodded slightly. “Let’s visit him at noon. Sigh, Old Neil sure is pitiful. His wife passed away early, and his son is busy in some other city. When he’s sick, all he can do is stay at home in loneliness and helplessness.”
That was the first thing he recalled from his first visit to Old Neil’s house.
Listening to Klein’s sigh, Rozanne opened her eyes wide and asked in shock, “When did Old Neil get married?”