Lead-gray clouds shrouded the sky above Backlund. There were many factories in the eastern part of the city, and huge iron-black chimneys towered adjacent to them. From a distance, they looked like columns connecting heaven and earth.
The early morning sun was cut off from the sky by the pale yellow mist. The postman, dressed in dark green, endured the choking sour smell and hurriedly ran through the streets carrying a large bundle of newspapers that still smelled like ink.
From time to time, he took out a newspaper from the package behind him, pressed the list in his hand, and stuffed the scheduled letters together with the newspaper into the mailbox on the lawn in front of the townhouse or single-family house.
"No. 15, Minsk Street." The postman, whose face was covered with a scarf, took a quick glance and wrote down five customers on the list at a glance.
This is a common thing for him.
"Minsk Street 17."
After crossing the road, the postman who was about to put the newspaper into the mailbox suddenly heard the sound of the door latch being pulled. He looked up and saw that the owner of the house had opened the door. The glasses on the bridge of his nose were crooked and he looked stiff.
The look of waking up.
"I guess this is the newspaper I ordered?"
Klein, who was struck by inspiration as soon as he got up, resisted the urge to yawn and waved to the postman.
"Yes." Unwilling to waste time, the postman once again confirmed the house number on the garden mailbox, then handed the newspaper in his hand to the confused Klein and walked away.
He had to deliver newspapers in almost the entire Jowood District before nine o'clock in the morning. Without transportation, he had to rush.
The weather in Backlund is simply worse than the heavy industrial cities in the north of the earth... Just opening the door and taking a few breaths of "fresh" smog, Klein felt a burning sensation in his lungs.
, every breath you take out feels like you are swallowing sand.
After leaving the East District yesterday, he went to the headquarters of the "Daily Observer" to find Mike, the only reporter he knew. He wanted to share some of his newly acquired clues with the other party and see if he could come up with some other new information.
clue.
But unfortunately, Mike went to the port of Enmatt two days ago to interview the dock workers there.
After the last incident, he found that he might need to change the direction of his investigation to ensure the safety of himself and his family.
But Klein didn't know about this decision. He waited at the headquarters of the "Daily Observer" until everyone at the newspaper got off work, and then he learned Mike's whereabouts from the front desk lady.
And the sad thing is that the closing time of "Daily Observer" is actually at 9pm, and they need to compile the content of the next day's newspaper in advance.
Because of this reason, I got home quite late yesterday, and I needed to deal with various evidences obtained from Ian. In addition, I forgot to add firewood to the fireplace. I was suddenly woken up by stomach pain in the morning. After getting up today, Klein, who had not had enough sleep, almost
Can't open my eyes.
After making sure that no one else would disturb him, he held the newspaper he had just received with a hint of air-conditioning in his hand and walked straight to the bathroom at home.
When his butt came into contact with the toilet seat, the cold touch from bottom to top completely awakened Klein's groggy mind.
"I guess the bad cream I ate in the East End yesterday was also one of the culprits for my constant squirting today..."
He frowned, slowly opened the newspaper, and forced himself to turn his attention away from his physiological reactions.
"Well, these are all reports from the Kingdom Council. There is no Crazy Ripper today... It seems that after the death of Lan Erwus last time, the major churches stepped up their pursuit of the Aurora Society, and the actions of the official Beyonders were also affected.
To this 'demon'?"
Of course, there is another possibility, that is, the other party has completed the ritual and been promoted to the "Apostle of Desire", so that he no longer needs to expose himself frequently.
Looking down, Klein quickly came up with multiple guesses and looked at the next section.
"The fishermen went out to sea and discovered a thrilling pirate gathering. The gathering of the pirate general and four pirate kings was crushed by the kingdom's navy!
"What? The kingdom's army actually attacked the pirate convention mentioned by Mr. 'The Hanged Man'?"
Then did Mr. Mr. "The Hanged Man", my potion ingredient, buy it?
Klein was immediately worried about the elfin spring water marrow crystal that he had entrusted Mr. "The Hanged Man" to find.
After all, Mr. "The Hanged Man" himself is an insider of the Church of Storms and has official endorsement, but the pirates who sell the materials do not have that.
Moreover, after the military kills pirates, it will 100% put the captured materials and extraordinary properties directly into the warehouse, without giving church members the opportunity to come into contact with them.
With this idea in mind, Klein carefully read the follow-up report at the bottom and found that the entire article was only promoting the powerful strength of the Loen Ironclad Ship, and deftly avoided every pirate general and pirate king. He couldn't help but
Feel relieved.
He read the remaining part at a glance, and finally focused on the last sentence.
"Military informants revealed that the great pirate Nast Solomon, who claimed to be the King of the Five Seas, was furious and issued a notice vowing to execute the traitors who betrayed his fellow pirates."
The military will not encircle and suppress pirates for no reason, and if they really want to encircle and suppress the King of the Five Seas for the reason of protecting the order of the ocean, then the pirate king will only have death or surrender in front of the angels of the church and the kingdom.
Road optional.
Is it because there is something wrong with the pirate conference itself? Which pirate might reveal the secrets of the military's recent actions?
With too few clues to continue his reasoning, Klein gave up on further investigation and planned to wait until the next Tarot meeting to question the person involved, Mr. "The Hanged Man."
I hope Extraordinary Materials is okay!
After turning the page, Klein looked at the non-headline section, and his moving gaze suddenly froze.
"Shocked! Yesterday there was a huge explosion in a famous romantic place in Jowood District. No one survived at the scene!"
Isn't this the golden rose in the romantic place in Jorwood District?
The splendid dance floor hall and the mature madam Ms. Lopez were still vivid in his memory, and it was hard for Klein to believe that they had destroyed the entire building into nothing just a few days after his investigation.
"The entire building collapsed completely, and the huge heat generated by the suspected gas explosion vaporized some of the bodies. The remains of other victims were also difficult to identify."
Are you kidding me? How can a gas explosion produce enough heat to make a person's body vaporize and disappear?
Sensing something amiss, Klein immediately accelerated his efforts to resolve his physiological needs and walked four steps backwards to climb onto the gray mist.
As soon as he sat down on the high-backed chair, the newspaper in his hand appeared in reality, and he pretended to take off the bracelet around his wrist for divination.
"What are you going to do?"
Just when Klein was about to recite the divination sentence silently, "Mystery" suddenly interrupted him.
His figure emerged from the gray fog and sat in the "world" position as usual, with his hood stacked around his neck.
"I suspect that the explosion of the Golden Rose was influenced by extraordinary factors."
Because it was his own half, and even if he concealed something, the other party could still tell it through high-level divination, so Klein expressed his thoughts quite frankly.
The dark red stars twinkled on the gray fog. "Mystique", who seemed to be in good spirits today, gently hooked his hand, and the newspaper in Klein's hand appeared out of thin air in his hand.
After reading the content of the report, he closed the newspaper and pointed out Klein's recklessness.
"Next time, I suggest you do some divination first to see if the thing you want to divination will bring you trouble."
What's the meaning?
Klein frowned slightly and expressed his doubts with his expression.
"Sometimes, you don't need to take the initiative to contact him. The moment you know it and want to explore it, you will establish a secret connection, and this connection is usually fatal."
When he didn't want to sleep, "Secret", who was bombarded by someone else's magical power once, took the initiative to explain what he meant just now, hoping it could have a little persuasive effect.
"So, something of high status is involved behind this matter...even a true god?" Klein frowned as he caught the key part from the other party's words.
If he was not at the level of a true god, "Secret" would not have personally spoken out to stop him.
Without the existence of the true God to extend his power into the kingdom of a god, this is tantamount to courting death.
"almost."
The answer is ambiguous.
So the matter behind the Golden Rose really involves the power of the true god level... Klein subconsciously rubbed his chin, and his movements became slower little by little, and finally his hand stopped completely.
Hoe down like a sculpture.
He thought of the mysterious witch he met at the Golden Rose last time.
The other party originally stood behind him, but for some reason he gave up attacking him and left directly.
Now think about it, is it because the other party sensed the "secret" aura through special means?
But if the "secret" aura can be discovered so easily, then how come other true gods who have enmity with Him are still kept in the dark?
"That being involved with the power of the true god, is related to the 'Witch'?" Klein exhaled deeply and expressed his doubts.
But this time, he didn't get the response he wanted. "Secret" just looked at him quietly.
"Anyway, He won't threaten you in the near future."
Finally, the other party ended the topic with this answer.
............
"Name?"
"Alger Wilson."
"identity?"
"The privateer captain of the Church of Storms and the original member of the Punisher."
In the dim room, Alger calmly looked at the "judge" and "inquisitor" sitting behind the trial table, and answered each other's questions one by one.
After a few minutes, the "judge" who was responsible for recording his interrogation process took the newly translated telegram and said to the "interrogator" on the side:
"There is no problem with him. He is indeed the 'captain' arranged by the Church of Storms."
Suddenly, Alger felt that the illusory whip that had been hanging high above his head disappeared without a trace. The mental paralysis gradually dissipated, and he was no longer in the torture of being entangled by low-current voltage at all times.
After walking out of the interrogation room in the MI9 armored ship, Alger, who had everything confiscated except his clothes, took out his belongings from the next room.
In the process, he "shared" a full thousand pounds, so that the military colonel did not delve into the "Interrogator" sequence sealed item he purchased from the Tarot Society.
Walking up the metal stairs and being enveloped by the familiar moist sea breeze, Alger felt truly at ease.
Although he had acted very calmly when facing the "interrogator" just now, he still couldn't help but wonder whether the demigods in the military would discover the specialness of the fossil pendant.
But looking at it now, all this is in vain.
How could a mere "Law Master" discover the handwriting of an angel?
He leaned on the railing of the ironclad ship, looking into the distance, following the ups and downs of a small dark blue dot.
That was his vehicle, the ghost ship of the Fourth Age - the Blue Avenger.
After the military sneak attack on the pirate conference that was about to end, he received an order from His Highness Edmund, requiring him to take the initiative to hand over an item to the Loen military. That's why Alger risked exposing his identity.
Using the ability of "Wind Blessed One", he secretly seduced a pirate group that was apparently more powerful than him and took the initiative to cause friction, attracting Roen's armored ship to catch two pirate ships that were engaging in a boarding battle.
It was an ordinary wooden box, with only a medal carved with symbols similar to the Holy Emblem of the "Hidden Sage".
I don’t know what it is that makes His Highness Edmund pay so much attention to it... Alger only remembers that he was fine after his identity was revealed at the beginning, but when the Beyonders in Loen found out, he was thrown into another place by him.
After the pirate ship passed through the box in the cabin, the demigod personally ordered that he be locked up in the interrogation room, saying that he wanted to confirm his identity again.
Fortunately, I did not lose what I gained at the pirate conference, otherwise my next promotion would also be hindered... Looking at the cumulus clouds on the horizon getting closer and closer, Alger, who has been drifting at sea for many years, can only
One glance and I knew a storm was coming.
At the pirate conference, he not only bought the elven spring water medulla crystals needed by the "world", but also purchased an additional main material for the "Wind Blessed One".
This military action actually greatly facilitated Alger's little thinking.
He originally planned to use the excuse that he found someone selling the "Wind Blessed One" formula at a pirate conference, and in turn told the church that he had obtained the corresponding formula and a copy of the main material, and then "promoted" along the way.
But now, it seems that he no longer has to worry about the follow-up of this excuse. As long as the higher-ups ask, he can blame the few flaws on the military.
The Loen military attack killed the pirate who bought the formula, and there was no evidence of his death!
Anyway, it is impossible for those in Bayam Church to send members of the "Ascetics" to detect lies because of this.
Within the Church of Storms, most mid-to-high-level people who are not on the "Sailor" path will become ascetics to prove their devotion to the Lord.
And in fact, up to now, the religious institution of "ascetic monks" has completely evolved into a mere special department. They have long lost the "ascetic" precepts they had at the beginning, and their lives are no different from ordinary church members.
"Finally, I finally see the hope of digestion..." Alger turned around and walked down the metal stairs behind him.
The next second, the low-pressure Sonia Sea was roaring with strong winds, and the storm was coming!
............
Ancient temple-style buildings tower above the gray mist.
In the end, Klein, who couldn't extract any more information from "Secret", gave up the inquiry and turned to look at the notebook he obtained from Ian.
After yesterday's "adventure" in the East District, he found that it was almost impossible to get information about the gang boss, Kapin, from the residents of the East District who were oppressed by gangs.
If he didn't have extraordinary means, the only thing he could do was to hire a bounty hunter with a strong background to investigate, or give up on this dangerous matter immediately.
Fortunately, the original owner of this note had tracked down various crimes committed by Capin and could help me determine some details.
As long as he is sure that the other party does not have the support of a big shot like Ambassador Intis, Klein can completely solve Kaping by himself!
"The gangster forces associated with Cappin in this diary."
After reciting seven divination sentences silently, Klein leaned back on his chair. In his dream, an illusory notebook opened up. Several pages were quickly stained by spiritual power, and the ink in some sentences changed color and turned deep red.
of light.
"On August 27, Capin shot and killed another human trafficker, Diamado. Next to him, I saw people who had the same extraordinary power as me. Those people were very strong, and the middle-aged man who led him looked very similar.