Steam Old Days: The Extraordinary Begins with a Corpse Collector

The morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting a golden patch on the ground.

In the trees beside the sanctuary, sparrows nestled in their nests, chirping and chattering.

In the kitchen in the backyard, Cecilia stood in front of the stove, steam rising from the pot.

She picked up a long-handled ladle and stirred the potato soup a few times.

Cecilia scooped up a small spoonful of soup, blew on it, and took a sip.

Mmm! The saltiness is just right!

After the potato soup was cooked, Cecilia served it on the wooden table.

On the small wooden table, plates were already laid out, along with several slices of toasted bread with a crispy crust, emitting a rich wheat aroma.

"Herbert! Breakfast is ready!"

Cecilia walked to the kitchen door and called out to her brother Herbert's room. Although she was calling out, her voice sounded so sweet and delicate.

Seeing that there was no response from Herbert's room after she shouted, Cecilia pouted and stomped her heels on the ground.

She took off her apron, hung it on a nail behind the door, and then walked toward the room behind the side corridor.

"Herbert, are you awake?"

Cecilia stood at Herbert's door and knocked, but there was still no response.

Cecilia didn't shout anymore, but instead pushed open her brother's door.

The room was dimly lit, with the curtains drawn tightly, allowing only a faint ray of light to peek through the edges.

On the bed, the large wool blanket looked like it had been bulged out by something, revealing only a tuft of messy golden hair.

"Herbert!" Cecilia walked to the bedside and slapped the large bag on the bed hard.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from under the covers, followed by a muffled murmur.

"Get up," Cecilia called out again.

Finally, Herbert reluctantly poked his head out of the covers. The boy looked languid, his lips drooping, seemingly annoyed that someone was disturbing his sleep, but because it was his older sister, he couldn't show it.

He could only reply perfunctorily, "Okay... I'm getting up..."

After saying that, Herbert put his head back on the pillow.

"Hurry up, you've slept all night."

"The night is too short."

"Breakfast is getting cold!"

"Then let's eat it cold."

Seeing how lazy her younger brother was, Cecilia took a deep breath and yanked off the blanket covering Herbert.

As the blanket was pulled back, Herbert, who had been lying down, suddenly sat up in bed as if he had been startled.

His body swayed unsteadily, and he didn't even open his eyelids.

But at least he got up.

"I'll be waiting for you outside. It'll be potato soup and toast for breakfast."

Cecilia said, then turned and walked out.

"After we finish eating, we need to fix the fence in the yard. It has to be done today, so we don't put it off until tomorrow."

"After we finish all that, we still need to clean up and complete today's homework. Mr. Craig has retired and left, so now it's just the two of us in the sanctuary. We can't let our guard down..."

Boom!

Before Cecilia could finish speaking, a muffled thud came from behind her.

Looking back, I saw that Herbert had fallen down again and was fast asleep on the bed.

"Oh, Herbert..."

Cecilia glanced helplessly at her younger brother, then walked out of the room.

As time passed, the sun gradually climbed towards the center of the sky.

When the birdsong outside the window grew louder, Herbert finally woke up.

He got dressed, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and walked out of the room.

"sister?"

Herbert called out as he went outside the sanctuary and saw Cecilia wearing gloves and using nails and a hammer to repair the broken fence.

"You're awake." Cecilia wiped the fine sweat from her forehead with her forearm. "Let's eat. The soup's gone cold. Just make yourself a cup of tea and dip some bread in it. We still have some toast."

Herbert nodded and went to the kitchen, where he saw two slices of toast on a plate.

He picked up a piece of bread and put it in his mouth, then lit the fire, filled a kettle with water, and put it on the fire to boil.

While waiting for the water to boil, Herbert went to Cecilia's side, took the hammer from his sister, and repaired the fence for her. Then he let Cecilia sit down and rest.

"Then you fix the fence, I'm going inside to clean."

Cecilia didn't want to be idle, so she volunteered to clean the sanctuary.

But Herbert was not happy about it.

He called out to Cecilia, his brow furrowed.

"Sis, you rest, I'll clean up later."

Upon hearing this, Cecilia laughed and teased Herbert, "Oh! So you're starting to care about your sister now!"

"Sis, what are you saying? You're my sister, how could I not care about you!" Herbert grinned sheepishly. "I'm just worried you'll get too tired. This kind of hard work should be left to a man like me."

As he spoke, Herbert patted his strong biceps.

"Oh, I see~"

Cecilia walked over to Herbert and, laughing, grabbed his ear.

"Then tell me, why didn't you get up when I called you?"

"Ouch! Sis! That hurts!" Herbert crouched down, pleading, "Sis, this is different!"

"What's different?"

"I'm usually kept in check by Mr. Craig, so now that I'm finally free, I can let loose a little."

Cecilia gripped the handle even tighter at the mention of Mr. Craig.

"How dare you say that!"

"How did Teacher Craig teach us? What kind of life should we, as pastors, maintain? Hmm? Answer!"

Herbert tilted his head and hurriedly began reciting the rules of life.

"First, do not be vain and do not adorn yourself with gold or silver."

"Secondly, pay attention to hygiene and keep yourself and the church clean."

"Third, go to bed early and get up early to develop good sleep habits. You should also recite the classics devoutly once in the morning and once in the evening!"

"fourth……"

"Alright," Cecilia said softly, stopping Herbert from reciting. "So, did you do it today?"

Herbert, gritting his teeth against the pain in his ear, quickly apologized to his sister, "Sis! I'm so sorry! I'll never stay in bed late again! I promise I'll follow the rules!"

Only after hearing this did Cecilia release her grip with satisfaction.

As soon as she let go, Herbert took a step back to create some distance between them, and then rubbed his ear.

"Sis! You almost twisted my ear off!"

Herbert said, looking aggrieved.

"Who told you to be lazy?" Cecilia crossed her arms and looked at Herbert's grimacing face. She couldn't help but walk over and touch his ear.

"Does it still hurt?"

Herbert nodded sadly, like a house dog with its tail drooping.

"Okay, sister, be gentler next time."

"There will be a next time?" Herbert wailed.

"Of course!" Cecilia laughed and flicked Herbert's forehead when she saw him start to talk back. "Otherwise, you won't learn your lesson! Unless you promise not to make the same mistake again, I won't hit you."

"Okay." Herbert immediately stood up straight. "I swear! I will never break the rules again!"

"Then I'll have to keep a close eye on you from now on!"

"Big sister is welcome to supervise!"

Cecilia looked at her brother's serious expression and couldn't help but smile.

She patted Herbert on the shoulder: "Get to work. We've finished what we needed to do this morning. I need to write a letter this afternoon."

"Write a letter? What kind of letter?"

Herbert scratched his head and asked in confusion.

He was clearly so asleep that he forgot everything.

"Of course, we should write to St. Caleb Church and ask why the messenger they sent hasn't arrived yet."

It turns out that the old pastor of the sanctuary, Mr. Clayt, was getting old and his energy was not as good as before, so he was increasingly unable to take care of the sanctuary and its surroundings.

Therefore, he submitted his resignation to the headquarters of the Vilterling Church, namely St. Caleb Church, and handed over the position of head to Cecilia.

He also hopes that after he retires, headquarters can send a new person to assist the brother and sister in their work.

Saint Caleb agreed to all of these requests.

Cecilia had previously learned from Teacher Crete that new students would be arriving.

A few days ago, she heard that the induction ceremony at St. Caleb Church had been successfully completed. Logically, the person should have arrived by now, no matter how slow they were. But she waited and waited, and no one came.

Cecilia began to worry that something might have happened on the way.

So I decided to write a letter to St. Caleb today to ask him about it.

"Oh! I see!"

After Cecilia's reminder, Herbert finally remembered.

"Let's go together then, so we can look out for each other on the way."

"But what about the Sanctuary?"

"It's alright," Herbert said, patting his chest. "Sis, you have no idea, a group of heretics has recently appeared in Wiltling!"

"pagan?"

"Hmm!" Herbert said with a serious expression, "Although the authorities say these are all rumors, quite a few people in the countryside still say they've seen them, and some have even joined these heretics!"

Hearing Herbert describe the situation so seriously, Cecilia's heart clenched.

"Is that so..."

Seeing Cecilia lower her head and look troubled, Herbert thought that his words had worked.

"So, you still need me, your younger brother, to accompany you..."

"No!" To Herbert's surprise, Cecilia still refused him. "If that's the case, then you should stay in the Sanctuary even more!"

Why?

"If these rumors are true, then the villagers around them must be very scared, and they need someone to help them even more."

"I am a pastor, and also a superhuman. I can get hurt, but the villagers cannot be harmed! So, you must stay!"

Herbert hadn't expected that his words would not only fail to convince his sister to let him come along, but would also make her believe that someone should be left alone in the sanctuary.

Herbert sighed, "Fine, fine! But it's a deal! I'll go mail the letter! You stay here."

As he spoke, he took Cecilia's hand as if she were the most precious thing in the world.

"Sister, you can't get hurt. You're all I have left in this world..."

"Um!"

At this moment, their eyes were filled with each other.

Just like when they were children, in the workhouse, the siblings relied on each other to get through that gray time.

Oh oh oh!

Just as the atmosphere was perfect, the sound of boiling water suddenly rang out from the sanctuary.

"Oh no! I'm still boiling water!"

Herbert slapped his thigh in frustration and rushed toward the backyard.

……

After lunch, Herbert volunteered to wash the dishes.

Cecilia, carrying a bowl of food, went into the chicken coop next to the sanctuary to feed the free-range chickens.

The chickens circled the feeding trough, pecking at the feed in fits and starts.

Worried that the chickens might get thirsty, Cecilia even ran to the nearby stream and scooped up a bowl of water.

Cecilia, carrying water, turned around and was about to go to the chicken coop when she suddenly saw someone driving a cart towards her.

The person sitting on the cart was wearing a white robe and had an earth-colored shawl draped over their shoulders.

His left hand was wrapped in thick bandages, from his wrist all the way to the middle of his forearm, and an oilcloth was wrapped over the bandages and tied with hemp rope.

Cecilia stared blankly as the man drove up to her, then jumped out and took a roll of parchment from his pocket.

"Hello, is this the Sanctuary of Styx Corner?"

Cecilia nodded upon hearing this.

Upon learning that this was indeed the Sanctuary of Styx Point, a genuine smile finally appeared on Lyndon's tired face.

"Great! I thought I was lost!"

As he spoke, Lyndon handed the parchment to Cecilia.

"Philip Scott," Lyndon said softly, "I'm a new recruit this year. I just finished the induction ceremony a few days ago and was then assigned here by St. Caleb Church."

"Oh, I see." Cecilia listened, puzzled. "May I see the runes on your wrist?"

"certainly."

Lyndon casually pulled the bandage on his left hand back a little.

Cecilia looked over and saw a complete circle of runes indeed imprinted on her wrist, emitting a faint silver glow.

"Yes, that's it."

Cecilia's gaze fell on the bandage on Lyndon's left hand.

"What happened to your hand?" Cecilia asked, puzzled.

Lyndon looked at his left hand and explained awkwardly, "I accidentally fell off the shelf while packing and hurt my arm."

"That must have been very uncomfortable."

"It's alright, it's just a little inconvenient to do things," Lyndon said with a chuckle. "But don't worry, I'll be fine soon!"

As Lyndon spoke, he raised his left arm.

"No!" Cecilia quickly stopped her, then turned and called out to the sanctuary, "Herbert!"

"Yes!" Herbert, who was washing dishes, responded.

"Herbert! Forget the bowls! Come out here! The newcomer is here!"

Herbert's hands were still wet when he came out of the kitchen.

He saw Lyndon standing next to his sister Cecilia.

"Philip Scott. Philip, this is my brother, and your future colleague, Herbert."

"Hello, nice to meet you."

Lyndon shook hands with Herbert warmly.

"Me too."

Herbert's gaze also fell on Lyndon's left hand.

"Your hand?"

Cecilia recounted Lyndon's situation to him.

"I see. Please come in then." Herbert gestured for Lyndon to enter. "By the way, you don't have much luggage, do you?"

"Not many, just those on the cart."

Herbert looked at the large and small bags on the cart and couldn't help but chuckle.

"But...not many..."

So Herbert helped Lyndon carry his luggage and led him to an empty room.

Pushing open the door, I saw that the inside was quite clean, with nothing extra except for basic household items.

Herbert put all his luggage on the ground and turned to look at Lyndon.

"This room used to belong to Mr. Craig. He was our teacher and mentor, and now it's yours."

With that, Herbert handed the key to Lyndon.

"So, he's not here now?" Lyndon asked.

“Yes, he retired,” Herbert said. “You didn’t know?”

"I don't know, they didn't tell me."

Lyndon was secretly delighted when he received the news.

Plans can't always keep up with changes. He was worried that Krieg might see through his disguise, so he even rehearsed with Alastor to ensure his acting was flawless.

But to my surprise, he had already retired.

The two who stayed behind didn't look very old either, probably around the same age as me.

They shouldn't be able to see through him so easily.

That means Lyndon is safer now.

Thinking this, Cecilia, who was feeding the chickens, also came over.

She first showed concern for Lyndon.

"Have you eaten? If not, shall I ask Herbert to prepare some more?"

"No, I'll eat first and then come back," Lyndon said.

"OK!"

Cecilia looked at Lyndon's injured hand and said with concern, "If there's anything inconvenient, you can tell me and Herbert. Don't be shy, just make yourself at home. We don't have anything serious to do, just some odd jobs. Since your hand is injured, don't do any work for now, get familiar with the surroundings first."

Lyndon nodded, a smile playing on his lips. "I understand, thank you for your concern."

After all, I came from Chongqing, where I lived and met some high-society people.

At this moment, Lyndon could be described as gentle and refined, and his every move exuded gentlemanly manners.

Especially his brown eyes, which seemed to have a vortex within them, firmly drawing the gaze of others.

"It's nothing..." Cecilia turned her head away, trying not to look him in the eye, but couldn't help glancing back. "Well, you should rest for a while. I have something to do. Goodbye!"

After saying that, Cecilia pulled Herbert out of the room and closed the door behind them.

As the door closed, Lyndon looked around. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at his left hand.

Then, he reached out and untied the rope, then unwrapped the bandages one by one, and finally removed the gauze, exposing his forearm.

Below the elbow joint, there is a menacing coil.

The continuous stitches, like centipede legs, densely sewed the other person's arm and Lyndon together.

Lyndon stared at the scar, his memory returning to the day he had the surgery.

On the dimly lit operating table, under anesthesia, he could only hear the sound of the doctor sawing through his bones, but he couldn't do anything.

Meanwhile, Alastor, who was watching the show from the sidelines, held out his hand and brought it close to Alastor's face.

Alastor shook Lyndon's hand and said to him, "Hey! Lyndon, look! I'm waving at you with your hand in my hand!"