Lord of Mysteries

Chapter 403 Excavation

Who is it? Klein looked up sharply towards the doorway.

He felt that he had contracted a disease, a fear of the doorbell, just like the fear of receiving phone calls on his cell phone when he was on Earth.

Klein put down the newspaper and magazine, glanced at the empty plate with hardly any condiments left, and got up to walk towards the door.

Before he even grasped the handle, he already knew that Dr. Allen was outside.

"Don't you have to go to work?" Klein muttered, reaching out to open the door.

"Good morning, Allen. The fog is gray today," he said with a smile.

Allen maintained his indifferent expression, but now showed more anxiety and fear.

He pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, and without bothering to greet him, went straight to the point:

"Sherlock, I'm dreaming again! I dreamt about Will Uncrestine again!"

Huh? Klein almost froze on the spot.

This doesn't make sense, does it? The genuine origami crane is with me, above the gray fog, while the origami crane I folded is with the Night Watcher. You're carrying a cheap origami crane folded by the Night Watcher, and you can still dream about Will Onsett? This isn't scientific, no, this isn't mysticism… Klein suddenly became serious and immediately retorted:

"Is it the same dream as before?"

"No, it wasn't that scary this time." Allen seemed a little calmer. "I dreamt about Green Cemetery. You know Green Cemetery, right?"

"I know," Klein replied succinctly.

Outside Green Cemetery, he caught a group of students performing spirit dances and a clueless occult enthusiast named Copsty, from whom he obtained another bronze whistle that could summon messengers.

Allen took a breath of cold air and continued:

"I dreamt of the woods outside Green Cemetery, and of a birch tree with a ring of bark peeled off its waist. Will Uncatherine was sitting under that tree, watching me quietly."

"And then?" Klein pressed.

Allen shook his head: "The dream ends here."

"That's a strange thing... Could it be that Dr. Allen's dream has nothing to do with that origami crane? No, if it weren't, the dream wouldn't have changed after the origami crane was switched. Besides, I also used that origami crane to perform divination above the gray fog and received some corresponding insights..." Klein said cautiously.

"This is beyond my comprehension. Allen, what do you want from me?"

Allen's breath dissipated into white mist in the air: "I want to go outside Green Cemetery and take a look, right now, during the day. Can you protect me? I'll pay the commission fee, one pound."

"Shall we explore the scenes that appeared in the dream now? We shouldn't encounter anything too strange during the day..." Klein thought for a moment and said, "I can accept this commission, but I suggest you go to the church first and tell the bishop you know about the dream."

Allen hummed in agreement, then said with some confusion, "Why do you always suggest I go to church? I know you've explained it before, logically speaking, if there were magical powers, the church that could consistently dominate the human world must be the force with the strongest magical powers. If not, then going to church would at least provide psychological comfort and corresponding connections. But why do you suggest I go to church for something that isn't too strange?"

Klein considered for two seconds, then answered seriously:

"I am a detective, and I come into contact with many unusual things, so I understand the church's special nature and when and how to ask them for help."

"Really?" Allen's expression turned serious.

Klein immediately curled up the corners of his mouth:

Just kidding.

"Allen, relax. I'm going to change my clothes first, and um, I also need to wash the dishes."

He chatted with Allen for a long time at the door without wearing a thick coat, and his body became a little stiff from the cold wind.

Taking this opportunity, Klein went to the restroom, went above the gray fog, and divined the level of danger of this commission, concluding that there was almost no risk.

If the revelation is dangerous, his plan is to use the Church of the Goddess of Night to renege on the commission.

…………

Hillston District, Star Church.

"Sherlock, why don't you hire maids? As a great detective, you can easily afford several maids," Allen asked, leading Klein into the largest church of the Church of the Goddess of the Night in Hillston District.

This was something he had wanted to ask on the carriage, but he hadn't found an opportunity to bring up the topic.

Klein sighed and said heavily:

"Allen, let me tell you a story. There was once a detective who employed two maids, a cook, and an assistant. He was doing quite well. But one day, he took on a case and successfully identified the murderer, who was a very savage and cruel man. He broke into the detective's house with the intention of revenge."

"The detective was a martial arts expert and ended up with only minor injuries, but two of his servants died as a result."

"Allen, do you understand?"

"I understand." Allen's tone was filled with obvious sympathy. "Sherlock, I didn't know you had such an experience."

No, the protagonist has nothing to do with me. This is just a story I made up... I can't just tell you directly that I'm involved in many strange and mysterious events, and that there are often unspeakable secrets in my house. It's best not to hire servants if possible... Klein looked ahead and sighed deeply.

The cleaning of his room was mainly the responsibility of Mrs. Starling Summer's maid, who did only the most basic cleaning twice a week, costing 1 sulph each time.

As they spoke, the two had already entered the hall of the Starry Church.

This place maintains the consistent style of the Church of the Goddess of Night: dim, quiet, and with few candles.

At the very front of the hall was an altar engraved with the Dark Holy Symbol, inlaid with self-illuminating pearls to form stars, and composed of red gems to form a crimson moon, with the rest of the space filled with pitch-black night.

At first glance, the area was dotted with tiny, crimson dots, giving it an exceptionally sacred appearance.

But Klein felt that this was not as good as the design of the St. Serena Church in Tingen, where the hall was pitch black except for light shining through from the front, through fist-sized round holes, which made people feel as if they could see the starry sky directly, and inspire a sense of awe from the bottom of their hearts.

However, that design also had a problem: the effect was gone at night... Klein casually found a place to sit down, took off his half-high silk hat, and leaned his black hardwood cane against the wall, while Allen continued along the corridor, heading straight for the confessional to find the bishop.

Sitting in this hall, looking at the believers around him who were praying intently, Klein suddenly felt a sense of peace.

Come to think of it, this is only my third time entering the goddess's church... He chuckled self-deprecatingly.

…………

Inside the tranquil church in Wintershire.

Leonard Mitchell donned a black trench coat and red gloves, then entered the room belonging to Senior Butler Christie Cecima.

"Congratulations, you have officially become a Red Glove. May the goddess bless you." Cecima drew a crimson moon on her chest.

He still covered his mouth with his high collar.

"Praise beauties, it's my honor." Leonard raised his right hand and tapped four times clockwise.

Cecima didn't say much, getting straight to the point:

"At your own request, I have placed you in Soster's squad. He is a 'Requiem Master' with his own magical items. I have also had the extraordinary weapon you need prepared for you."

"You've been primarily in charge of a demon summoning case lately, and you've also been handling the collection of some clues, such as the series of events related to Tarot rituals that have been happening in Backlund."

"Yes, Your Excellency Cecima." Leonard had no objection to this.

This will be the beginning of my revenge… he thought to himself.

…………

West section, outside Green Cemetery.

Klein accompanied Dr. Allen for a long time in the nearby woods, coughing occasionally from the falling grayish-white dust.

"Maybe such a tree doesn't exist, and things in dreams can't be fully reflected in reality." By the end, even Allen himself was a little unsure.

Fortunately, I'm good at finding things... Klein pointed in a direction with his cane and said:

"Let's look over there again and make one last effort."

"Okay." Allen took a breath.

After walking for a while, Allen suddenly stopped and pointed diagonally ahead, saying:

"There, there!"

A dozen meters away, a birch tree with a ring of bark peeled off its trunk stood quietly, as if waiting for the two of them.

"It's exactly the same as in my dream," Allen said with absolute certainty.

Klein smiled with a hint of wariness:

"But there is no Will Onsett."

Allen approached the birch tree, frowned as he looked at it for a while, then suddenly pointed to the area next to the roots and said:

"Will Uncatherine was sitting right here, pointing at the dirt below!"

Pointing to the soil below? Klein stood beside him, looking down at the patch of land almost devoid of withered grass:

"You want to dig it open?"

Allen nodded: "Now that we've found this place, we should check what's there. Sherlock, go to the cemetery and borrow two shovels."

"I'd rather you go to the cemetery; I'm worried something might happen," Klein said cautiously.

"Okay." Allen did not refuse and immediately left the woods.

After a while, he returned with money, three shovels, and a gravedigger, and began to try digging.

As Klein dug, he suddenly smelled a familiar scent, and as the surface soil was separated, what lay beneath was gradually revealed.

That was the highly decomposed body of a child!

His skin and flesh looked like they were about to melt, and many insects were crawling in and out of his nose and mouth.

when!

Allen's shovel fell and smashed into a rock.

He pointed at the corpse's legs, his mouth moving frantically but he couldn't utter a word.

Klein suppressed his nausea and looked closely, discovering that the child's corpse was clearly missing the lower half of its left leg.

At the same time, Allen took two steps back, fell to the ground, and shouted in a shrill voice:

"Will Onsetin! Will Onsetin!"

That's Will Unsett's body!

PS: I haven't rested for almost three months while writing this chapter, and I feel physically and mentally exhausted. I originally planned to do three updates during the double update period, but I haven't been able to do so. Well, I might apply for a day off when it's appropriate this month. I'm letting everyone know in advance. Also, I will update earlier at midnight.

(End of this chapter)