Mystery: Death Singer

Tingen, Zotland Street, Blackthorn Security Company.

As Klein folded the newspaper and placed it back on the reception desk, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a visitor entering through the door.

The woman was not very old, at most in her early twenties. She wore a lotus leaf hat and a loose skirt. She had a smooth forehead, long golden hair, emerald green eyes, and a melancholy and calm temperament. She was quite a beautiful woman.

But what's most eye-catching about her is her prominently swollen belly, which looks like she's more than seven months pregnant.

Klein paused for a moment, feeling that the woman looked familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.

Suddenly, he heard Leonard's surprised voice coming from the rest area:

"Miss Megalos?!"

Megas… Klein suddenly realized that he had seen this woman at the “Diviners’ Club”, but at that time her belly was not so big or so obvious.

But how did she find this place? A hint of doubt flashed through Klein's mind. Before he could ask, he saw Megoss raise her head, look at the two of them with slightly vacant eyes, and politely greet them:

Hello.

Klein stepped forward and took the initiative to speak: "Ms. Megas, what brings you to our Blackthorn Security Company? Is there anything you need me to do?"

A flicker of confusion crossed Megos's face, but it was quickly replaced by maternal warmth. She gently stroked her belly and smiled:

"I don't know why, I just suddenly wanted to come out to the street, suddenly wanted to come up and take a look at the fortune teller."

"Her mental problems are quite serious..." Klein recalled that he hadn't had time to activate his spiritual vision last time, which prevented him from confirming Megao's condition. So he slightly raised his teeth, about to gently knock them down.

Just then, he suddenly froze, and a series of increasingly intense thoughts flashed through his mind:

"Don't watch!"

"Don't look! Don't look!"

"You'll die!"

"I'd die if I saw it!"

"I'd die if I saw it!"

Klein stood rooted to the spot like a statue, his forehead beaded with cold sweat, his thoughts wandering uncontrollably.

He suddenly realized something: last time, it wasn't that he didn't have time to activate his spiritual vision, but rather that his spirit sensed an unimaginable danger, causing him to subconsciously slow down, thus allowing him to survive the ordeal.

After more than ten seconds, Klein finally broke free from the inexplicable oppressive feeling in the surrounding air and regained his ability to move.

He turned to look at Leonard and found that this self-proclaimed "special" "midnight poet" was also covered in cold sweat and filled with fear.

"You really do possess something 'special'..." Klein sighed to himself, trying to find some humor in his words. At this moment, he understood what the so-called "bomb" in Lanius's letter was.

It's the baby in Megao's belly! It's the baby he left behind!

No wonder Hud Eugen, a Sequence 7 "psychiatrist," suddenly went mad. He actually dared to help Lanluus and leave a seed of divinity in Megaus!

Klein suddenly remembered a page from Russell's diary he had seen before:

"The Industrial Revolution I started, the age of steam and machinery I forged, will it become the breeding ground for an evil god?"

He thought of the East District, filled with a buildup of negative emotions; he thought of the child laborers who died young, the female workers who suddenly collapsed on their way to work, and the ordinary workers, most of whom did not live past ten years...

Klein instinctively put both hands into his pockets, one holding the "Sunfire Talisman" and the other gripping the "Azik Bronze Whistle".

With the warmth and comfort brought by the "Sunfire Charm", Klein quickly entered a semi-meditative state. He actively isolated himself from negative emotions and no longer harbored any illusions.

After signaling Leonard to keep Megas calm for the time being, Klein made up an excuse, turned around, and walked towards the partition, heading straight for Dunn Smith's office.

He quickly turned the doorknob, slipped inside, and slammed the door shut.

Looking at Dunn, who was initially surprised but then became serious, Klein said in a deep voice:

"Captain, something terrible has happened!"

…………

Meanwhile, a horse-drawn carriage was parked on the side of the road just 300 meters away from Blackthorn Security Company.

Inside the carriage, Edric closed his eyes tightly, trying to suppress any memories of the "story".

Just minutes before, he had seen a beautiful woman walk past the carriage and enter Blackthorn Security Company with a clear purpose, and he knew that everything was about to happen.

As the wielder of the "Hand of the Dead," Edric was well aware of just how powerful a "Gatekeeper" could be.

Considering the possibility that he might become an accomplice due to being controlled, he even sent the three spirits in the Solomon Coin into a small underworld in order to make himself as "harmless" as possible.

Moreover, from the very beginning, Edric had no intention of engaging in direct combat; even before boarding the steam train, he had already decided to "win by surprise."

Only by using "the strange" as a fulcrum and "the Hand of the Dead" and his own uniqueness as leverage can Edric possibly pry open the mastermind behind the scenes and exert some influence on him.

Moreover, Edric did not crave to inflict casualties; he only wanted to buy as much time as possible until the extraordinary beings of the Church of Storms and the Church of the God of Steam and Machines came to his aid.

If it weren't for the usual delays in the steam train that caused him to arrive in Tingen only recently, he could have chosen to warn the two major churches in advance, thus increasing his chances of winning.

Unfortunately, time was too short, and Edric could only choose between "seeking help" and "staying put," forcing him to abandon the other option.

Just then, Edric's informants near Blackthorn Security Company reported that the colorful auras began to gather and then entered the underground area in unison, quickly disappearing from the perception of these intangible entities.

He immediately put his right hand into his pocket and gently stroked the empty Solomon's coin.

The next moment, one after another illusory white bones spewed out from the ground, forming a huge skeleton four meters tall in front of Edric.

The instant the skeleton took shape, Edric handed over the letter he had written earlier, and solemnly instructed:

"Give it to the man with the brass whistle."

The skeletal messenger took the letter, and its massive body suddenly collapsed, transforming back into illusory skeletons that disappeared into the ground before Edric's eyes.

…………

In a secluded corner, a quill pen suddenly flew into the air and quickly scribbled on a notebook:

"Surprise! It seems there's been a slight 'unexpected' turn in Ince Zangwell's plan..."