Lord of Mysteries: Taiyi

In the basement of St. Samuel's Church in the North District of Backlund.

Wearing an extravagant top hat and red gloves, Soster, who looked to be in his forties, looked at an elderly teammate in front of him and asked:

"How's it going, old Jamie?"

The man called Old Jamie was an elderly man with gray hair, but he had sharp eyes. He answered Soster's question:

"Lia's father, Barr Kingston, claimed that he took his son Luke to East Byron four years ago, but investigations show that he did not go to the South Continent but to Fenneport."

"The money and letters he sent were all processed, making it impossible to trace his whereabouts. Baal outwardly worshipped the goddess of night, but during a psychic session with Leah, she recalled that he often prayed to an unknown symbol."

"That symbol is very similar to the one carved on Leah's amulet."

At this point, old Jamie coughed, bent down, and started rummaging through the cupboard, saying:

"I'm probably retiring soon. My health isn't what it used to be. You guys need to find a younger 'necromancer' to replace me. No, a 'psychic' would be fine too..."

"That symbol looks like this. It reminds me of a symbol invented by Emperor Roselle, a symbol that represents the balance of yin and yang, but this symbol is only half drawn."

Soster curiously took the parchment, on which a strange symbol was drawn in ink, as if a part was missing.

If Kurt were here, he would have discovered that it was a "yin-yang fish" from the Tai Chi symbol, just one all alone...

He hesitated for a moment, then handed the symbol to a red-gloved man behind him and whispered the instructions:

"Have someone investigate this symbol, and give Barr Kingston and the image of this symbol to the Church of the Earth Mother so they can help with the investigation."

At this moment, old Jamie leisurely picked up a cup of hand-drip coffee, took a sip, and then continued to ask:

"Sost, why not also suspect Kurt, whom she mentioned when she psychiced Leah, about psychic abilities or dream entry?"

Soster responded with a smile:

"He didn't show anything unusual in the dream. As for psychic abilities, hey, if you dare to psychic with a true chosen one, you can probably retire as you wish."

Old Jamie immediately shut his mouth, and after a long while, he said:

"Hurry up and find me a successor. I don't want to work anymore. I want to use my life savings to buy a manor in Intis or the South Seas and hire enough servants..."

"We've probably already found someone, old Jamie. In two or three weeks, someone will be here to replace you," Soster said, adjusting his gloves.

Old Jamie was taken aback, his expression became complicated, and finally he let out a heavy sigh:

"In the end, I'm a little reluctant to give up the free coffee here..."

……

"Captain, what should we do with Ms. Leah? She witnessed the extraordinary event firsthand, and she's also a part-time lawyer."

Back in his office, Soster touched his top hat and said:

"According to the rules, either let her sign a confidentiality agreement and go back to living a normal life, but this would put her at the risk of being half an extraordinary person, requiring her to be monitored, and her father might cut off contact with her upon hearing the news... or invite her to join the Night Watchers as an office worker, and if she later obtains the 'Lawyer' potion recipe, promote her."

"By the way, when signing the confidentiality agreement, tell him his identity as an official of the Kurt organization."

……

Backlund, Joewood District, Rose Street, Harvest Church.

After stretching his body and feeling mostly alright, Kurt looked at the tall bishop and asked:

"Father Utrafer, don't the Church of the Night need me to provide information?"

The bishop smiled gently and said:

"I will truthfully relay the details you just told me to them, and that will be enough."

"Is that good?" Kurt was taken aback for a moment, then felt relieved. He was a "chosen one" who would receive an immediate response from the Mother Goddess. Even the Night Watchers couldn't force him to do anything, or rather, they had to go through procedures... Of course, this required him to have actually done nothing wrong, otherwise he would become a fallen "chosen one" in no time and be killed.

The bishop then added:

"That unreleased evil spirit may have reached Sequence 4 strength. If it were to be released, it would be a disaster. You played a major role, which earned you a reward from the Church of the Night: 1000 pounds. That will be deposited directly into your pre-registered bank account."

"Of course, the church also rewarded you, awarding you a merit worth approximately 1000 pounds."

Kurt didn't refuse; he genuinely needed the money and wanted to start a charitable education fund… He sincerely praised it:

"Life is precious, harvest is joyous, praise be to the Mother Goddess."

Finally, upon learning that Leah was still being controlled by the Night Watchers, he breathed a sigh of relief, abandoned his plan to visit her, and left the church.

As darkness fell, he had instructed that the cook should only prepare food if he was home, so he randomly chose a restaurant and ordered a bowl of Fennebot pasta with extra beef, which cost 11 pence.

When he got home, he saw Finks getting ready to go home from get off work. Seeing that he looked a little weak, he pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and said:

"Today's income and expenses and orders are on the table. I have to go home to take care of my mother, Mr. Kurt."

Curry nodded and smiled:

"Give my regards to her."

Finks nodded and strode out of the watch shop.

Kurt smiled and shook his head. Mr. Finks really does go home to be with his mother very promptly every day after work.

Kurt glanced at the note, jotted down its contents, and then ignored it; he didn't want to work today.

Finally, he fell asleep on the sofa while looking at "The History of Art in Rue" in the warm firelight of the fireplace.

It wasn't until Bill gently nudged her awake that she saw Bill still sporting his meticulously combed slicked-back hair. Fortunately, his hairline wasn't high, and he wore black-rimmed glasses, giving him a refined appearance.

With faint dark circles under his eyes, he offered his advice:

"Kurt, remember to take plenty of rest outside of work. As Emperor Roselle said, 'Work and rest should be balanced,' and medical evidence shows that this will improve work efficiency."

Kurt nodded dazedly, then guiltily covered the sticky note on the table and replied:

"You look exhausted, and you're like this every day."

"After Lori went on her business trip, no one has been able to take over her work... I need to do the work of two people, which will give me two sources of income," Bill said, rubbing his forehead. "As for the school, I've already asked a friend to handle it, and it should be completed in three days."

Curry nodded, pinched the sticky note, got up to get some coffee, and said:

"I'm a little tired today, so I won't make you any water. These are the coffees from before; consider them my thank-you gift."

……

It was another new day. This time, Kurt spent the morning replenishing his spells, withdrew £200 from the bank, spent two hours at church, and then promptly went home…

After completing yesterday's orders, I started studying the seeds and reading books, no longer going out, and patiently waiting for the school's setup and the instructors sent by the church.