"I thought the newspapers were all lies, but the new park is actually this beautiful—and it doesn't even need admission?"
Stepping down from the carriage, Melissa's eyes widened immediately as she looked at the park before them, exclaiming in admiration.
Calling it a "pocket park" was no longer quite accurate. The new park had expanded by half, occupying the triangular area where Red Moon Street and Zotland Street intersected. Large plots of land that hadn't yet been built upon were incorporated into the park's grounds. Combined with expensive artificial landscaping, it had surpassed the park near the municipal square in Golden Indus District to become Tingen's largest green space.
Yet even so, the entire park was packed with visitors, roughly several hundred people at a glance.
They strolled along tree-lined paths, played with children on the lawns, and even more gathered around the speaker's platform at the park's center, which was already surrounded by colorful flags. Council Member Maynard's speech would begin shortly.
Supposedly there would also be a raffle after the speech, with rewards just for participating. Many idle visitors had already gathered, perhaps uninterested in speeches and elections, but raffles could definitely capture anyone's attention.
"I heard the raffle prizes even include tickets to The Return of the Earl, which premieres in Tingen next Sunday. If we win tickets, Klein will be thrilled."
Melissa had done her homework for this celebration. She now pulled Angel's hand, squeezing through the noisy crowd toward the park center, with Benson following behind wearing an indulgent smile.
"The Return of the Earl? What's that?"
Angel asked curiously.
"It's this year's most popular play in Backlund—every showing is sold out. Various newspapers frequently publish reviews about it. Klein's been looking forward to it for so long."
Melissa explained in a lowered voice, as if worried others might hear about the play's popularity and compete with her for this opportunity.
The newspapers mention it often? Why haven't I seen it...
Angel blinked, feeling a bit embarrassed about her poor information channels.
The three passed through the tree-lined walkway and approached the speaker's platform. On the other side of the stone platform, the crowd was even more boisterous—some important figure seemed to be arriving amid the throng.
Before long, Council Member Maynard, dressed as if attending a royal ball, ascended the speaker's platform. His golden short hair was meticulously groomed, his face wearing a perfect smile.
Under his commanding gaze, the surrounding noisy crowd gradually quieted down.
"Citizens of Tingen, good morning..."
Without wasting time, the councilman aiming to become mayor began his speech. In this era without amplifiers, being able to project a voice clearly to hundreds of people demonstrated Maynard's solid fundamentals.
"The speech is too formulaic though. I can even guess what he's going to say next—like 'improve public education levels, increase healthcare coverage'..."
Benson leaned over to quietly tell Angel.
"...improve public education levels, increase healthcare coverage..."
His voice was soft, easily covered by Maynard's speech from the platform.
"This makes me more confident about next year's government open examination."
Having predicted the speech content, Benson continued with a slight smile, which instantly transformed into a pained expression—Melissa had jabbed his waist hard with her finger.
"If you think it's formulaic, stop listening and help me watch for Klein. He said he'd be here by 9:30, but it's almost 10 now."
Hearing his sister's order, Benson straightened up immediately, standing on his tiptoes to scan the crowd for Klein's figure.
Angel also looked around, though not to search for Klein. Her instincts told her something was wrong—the crowd kept growing denser, their emotions stirred by the speaker. Any accident could lead to a stampede or even worse.
She activated her spirit vision, scanning the surrounding crowd but finding no anomalies that differed from the environment.
Reaching down to touch her thigh through the skirt, the holster strapped there gave her a sense of security. Seeing that Melissa seemed about to leave her and Benson to search for Klein in a more open area, Angel quickly grabbed her.
"Stay close to me. Don't get separated..."
Before she could finish, her vision became ethereal. Thick gray-white mist surged up, instantly enveloping her.
"...An evil ritual absorbing resentment from all of Tingen, this is the 'bomb' Lanevus mentioned?"
Dunn sat behind his office desk, hands pressed against his temples, brow furrowed, asking Klein.
The Captain looks much better than a few days ago. He must have moved past the guilt over Old Neil's loss of control...
Klein looked at his captain, feeling relieved, before answering:
"Yes, this is the conclusion Leonard and I reached together. I think we should telegraph the Holy Cathedral for help, asking them to send a mysticism expert to assist us in finding this 'bomb' quickly."
"You didn't try confirming it through divination first? That's not like your usual style."
Dunn's calm tone struck Klein like thunder.
Right, I'm a 'Diviner'... was one, anyway. Why didn't I immediately use divination to confirm this?
Klein froze for a moment, realizing there was no time to waste. He plopped into the nearby chair, preparing to enter a dream state to divine the "bomb's" exact location.
Wait, I should use the pendulum method first, at least confirm the divination's safety. Last time directly gazing at the 'Eternal Blazing Sun' was a cautionary tale... I'm being too hasty. Is it because of fear of the unknown, or because...
Dunn watched curiously as Klein sat down then stood up again. Seeing him roll up his left sleeve, unfasten the gold chain, and lower the purple crystal pendant, Dunn suddenly asked:
"She gave you that?"
"Hm?" Klein was startled by the captain's question. "Yes... Captain, I'm going to start divining now."
After signaling for silence, he murmured the divination statement, half-closing his eyes to enter meditation.
" Lanevus's bomb will cause me harm."
He didn't divine whether "the bomb will explode" or other divinations targeting the bomb itself, but rather used himself as the divination subject—this would yield the most accurate results.
And if this "bomb" could harm him at the Nighthawks' station, then "capable of destroying the city" probably wasn't an empty threat.
After seven repetitions, Klein opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Dunn's serious expression, his eyes widening. Then he looked down at the pendant.
The purple crystal was spinning clockwise at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye. The gold chain even caused his left hand to tremble slightly.
"The harm is severe!"
Without needing Klein's explanation, Dunn had already understood the divination result.
He immediately pulled open his drawer, took out the telegraph log, and uncovered the telegraph machine on his desk.
"I'll telegraph the Holy Cathedral immediately to request expert assistance," Dunn said, opening the telegraph with one hand while flipping through the log with the other. "Have Leonard bring Lorotta back and ask what she found at the police station. You go find Angel and tell her the vacation is canceled."
"...Understood."
Klein took a deep breath, nodded, and turned to leave the office.
Hearing the "tap-tap-tap" of the telegraph behind him, he walked slowly through the corridor to the reception hall partition and stopped, pulling out his pocket watch to check the time.
9:35—already past the agreed meeting time...
Angel should be at the park with Melissa and Benson now. I'll have to go there myself and call her back.
Klein could imagine his sister's disappointed expression when she heard the news.
Sighing quietly, he was about to cross the partition to call Leonard and gather other teammates when he heard the latter's shocked exclamation:
"Miss Megose?"
Megose... Megose!
Klein remembered that name—the pregnant fiancée abandoned by Lanevus.
How is it that just as we're about to investigate Lanevus's 'bomb,' his fiancée shows up at our door?
He felt something was wrong. Taking the stairs two at a time, he emerged from the partition to see the door pushed open and a woman in her early twenties with golden hair and blue eyes entering the reception hall.
"I just happened to be passing by and remembered that the diviner gentleman who helped me search for Lanevus works here, so I wanted to stop in."
Megose answered with a smile. She wore a loose dress, her temperament melancholic yet serene. Even with Angel as a comparison, Klein thought she was a rare beauty.
But most eye-catching was her prominently protruding belly—that was Lanevus's child, what he had left behind...
Left behind by Lanevus?
As if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him, Klein shuddered. His teeth began to lift, about to activate spirit vision for observation.
But his loosened jaw wouldn't close again—his spirituality was issuing a strong warning, forcing his jaw open, preventing him from clenching his teeth to activate spirit vision. It even made his entire body rigid, not daring to move.
"Can't look... if I look, I'll die!"
The intense thought seemed to explode in his ears. Klein stood frozen like a statue, his stiff neck twisting toward Leonard in the reception hall. The other man was also looking back, his face covered in cold sweat, lips pale, eyes full of fear.
The only person completely unaware was Miss Rozanne. Seeing a pregnant woman arrive, she quickly emerged from behind the reception desk, helped Megose to the sofa, and handed her a glass of warm water.
"No, don't get close to her..."
Klein almost blurted out the words but didn't dare make a sound.
That's right—didn't dare.
He recalled what Lanevus had written in his letter about a "bomb that grows stronger over time."
He recalled what he'd read in Roselle's diary about "the womb for an evil god's descent."
He recalled how he'd repeatedly tried to activate spirit vision to observe this pregnant woman but had been unconsciously prevented by his spirituality.
"Do not gaze upon god"...
Inside Megose's belly, that "bomb" left by Lanevus...
Was an evil god about to be born.
Between adding more chapters and adding more words, I chose to add words.