The Witch of Pleasure on the Run
"Klein, did you not get enough rest last night?"
This was the nth time Klein had heard a similar question today, and he knew the reason.
That's right, anyone who sees the slightly dark circles under his eyes should be able to accurately guess that he didn't get a good night's sleep last night.
"I was so absorbed in reading historical materials yesterday that I accidentally went to bed a little late."
Klein explained himself skillfully.
Fortunately, his colleagues didn't think too much about it, nor did they express their understanding with subtle and "all-knowing" looks like Benson and Melissa did. Otherwise, Klein felt that he would be embarrassed.
Of course, the most important thing is that the witch named Alice did not come to work with him.
Finally, I have temporarily gotten rid of that witch...
When Klein thought of this, he felt his steps become lighter, as if even the sunlight was brighter.
It's strange to say, he clearly had insomnia yesterday, tossing and turning in bed for a long time without being able to fall asleep, but he didn't feel obviously tired now, and even felt that his body was lighter than usual and seemed full of energy.
What is this, a benefit of cultivating immortals? If that were the case, wouldn't he have achieved success in his cultivation long ago since he stayed up late almost every day before traveling through time?
He laughed secretly in his heart, then shook his head and went back to his workstation and sat down, opening the various materials spread out on the table, ready to start his morning study work.
Today is Thursday, and Old Neil has been assigned to guard the "Chaness Gate", so he has no lecturer for his morning occult course and can only study on his own.
But it doesn't matter. He had read a lot of materials in advance last night, and now this period of time is just right for consolidation and review. If everything went well, Klein felt that he could even try a new divination method.
Although pendulum divination has its own advantages, its limitations are also obvious. It can only give a binary answer to yes or no questions.
But the problem Klein was currently facing was much more difficult than a two-choice question, not to mention...
He looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to him, so he quietly took out the yellow crystal pendulum tied with a silver chain from his sleeve and repeated the question he had tried to divine several times.
"I should report yesterday's accident to the Night Watcher... I should report yesterday's accident to the Night Watcher..."
No matter how hard he tried, the Citrine Pendulum seemed to have lost its soul and remained motionless.
His divination was disturbed.
Klein wordlessly put away the pendulum pendant and looked down at the occult notebook that recorded strange symbols. His right hand unconsciously grabbed the pen on the desk and tapped on the blank page, leaving small blue-black ink marks.
He had tried many times and knew that it was not just this issue that was affected by the divination. His divination failed for almost all inquiries involving the witch lady.
Was she a real visitor from another world? Did she have any ill will towards him or intend to do something unfavorable to him? What exactly was her intention towards him...
Klein racked his brains to think of all kinds of appropriate divination sentences, but in the end he came back empty-handed, so he still had no idea about the above questions.
Was it because her power level was much higher than his?
Or was it because he signed the "contract" written in black and white by Miss Witch before leaving this morning?
Klein felt uneasy, always worrying whether he had made the wrong decision.
But the conditions she proposed were reasonable, and the reward she offered was enough to make him tempted - she made a promise to Klein. A wish that was within her reach and arbitrarily designated by him.
All Klein had to pay was a simple restriction of not revealing her origins and true identity to others in any way.
And the price for breaking the "contract"... according to Alice,
there is none. Because it seems that the "contract" will force both parties to fulfill the agreed agreement. If there is no breach of contract, there will naturally be no cost. ...Is it really that good?
To be honest, Klein had doubts and had checked the whitened parchment with the treaty over and over again, trying to find strange marks hidden in the corners, or traces of invisible ink. Based on his many years of online writing experience, characters who were usually tricked by this kind of magic contract were usually careless about the details, and he didn't want to repeat the mistakes of his predecessors.
But, no.
He did not find any problems with the "contract", and the divination results told him the same conclusion. Alice watched silently by the side, not urging him, but just waiting for his decision with a smile, as quiet and beautiful as the person in the painting.
Well, in that case, Klein made his choice. What does the treaty signed by Klein Moretti have to do with him, Zhou Mingrui?
He signed Klein Moretti's full name on the "contract" and handed it back to Alice. Then he saw her take out an exquisite seal from the pocket of her robe and stamp it where she should sign her name. That was it.
About two or three seconds later, under the gaze of the two of them, this mysterious "contract" was ignited by some unknown force with a dark blue flame, and in just a moment it was burned to ashes without a trace.
"Okay, sir, please go ahead." Alice said this at the time, with a sense of indifference as if to say "you can do whatever you want to do next."
...Although this was indeed the case and he really didn't want her to interfere in his life, there was always a strange confusion that made his face slightly hot.
Why did he feel that the scene before his eyes was so similar to... a stay-at-home wife talking to her husband who was about to go out for work...
After fixing his shirt and vest, Klein almost ran out of his room.
The memories end here.
Klein sighed silently, feeling that he shouldn't worry about these unsolvable problems any longer.
He must master the mysterious and extraordinary knowledge and improve his strength. Only in this way will he have the opportunity to go further and solve the problem! That's right, he should insist on entering such a virtuous circle!
Klein cheered himself up, picked up the pen again, and started to study on his own.
An unknown amount of time had passed before two tapping sounds on the table completely interrupted his concentration.
Klein raised his head and looked at the Night Watcher who came to the clerk's office. Although he had become a Beyonder, he was still an informal member of the Night Watcher team. So unlike the other team members who could just play cards in the recreation room when they had nothing to do, his position was still a civilian...
Well, a civilian who understood a little bit of mysticism and had a little knowledge of divination.
"Klein? The captain asked me to come and call you to his office."
The night watchman in front of him was also an acquaintance of Klein.
Leonard Mitchell, the black-haired and green-eyed man, the "midnight poet" of the sleepless, still looks bohemian today, without a vest, and his shirt is not tucked into his trousers, full of the romantic temperament of a poet.
"OK."
Klein agreed immediately, packed up the paper materials on hand, stood up and walked out. But he soon discovered that Leonard did not return to his standby position, but followed him.
As if noticing his gaze, the black-haired, green-eyed "Midnight Poet" smiled faintly: "Although I also want to go back and play cards, unfortunately, the captain seems to have something to tell us, so unfortunately, my game of Gwent will have to be put on hold for the time being."
Klein nodded silently, and when he passed by the Nighthawks' entertainment room, he couldn't help but glance inside. Sure enough, he saw his two Beyonder colleagues holding a few Gwent cards and playing back and forth.
It is worthy of being the Gwent card that can produce the following strange dialogue...
"My wife is missing, please help me find her!" "Okay, but before that, why don't we play a game of Gwent?" "Come on!"
Emperor Roselle, who brought the source of all evil into the board game culture here, is truly a talent. He walks in other people's paths and leaves them with no way to go...
Klein habitually complained.
"But is there anything you want to tell us specifically?" Klein noticed a detail in his words.
"Well, I suggest you go ask the captain directly. You're already here anyway."
Leonard knocked on the door frame of the captain's office without much ceremony. Without waiting for a response, he walked over first, and Klein hurriedly followed.
"Now that you're here, come and take a look at the information here."
Dunn Smith nodded at the two of them and went straight to the point, pointing to a document on the desk.
"This is the direct file sent from the Holy Church... which is the church headquarters yesterday afternoon. Klein, you left early yesterday, and Leonard, you also happen to have a day off on Wednesday, right? So now you two are the only ones who haven't seen this file... The detailed records are all in it. I'll add some details after you finish reading it."
"A direct file sent from the Tranquility Church? It sounds like something serious has gone wrong." Leonard still had that slightly frivolous tone, but his expression was also tinged with solemnity.
Dunn simply said, "You'll understand after you read it."
Knowing that he was a newcomer, Klein stood by with his hands hanging down. He did not touch the pile of documents on the captain's desk. Instead, he waited until Leonard took the seal of the dark brown file bag. Then he silently moved closer and prepared to look at the contents with him.
Leonard didn't care about that. He picked up the document in the envelope with two fingers and pulled it out. However, he stopped when only half of the content on the first page appeared.
Klein was also stunned for a few seconds, and a huge wave of shock suddenly rose in his heart.
Pasted at the top of the front page of this church-affiliated archive is a black-and-white photo, a photo that is completely unqualified from the perspective of official information.
It is not known when and where it was taken, but the background of the photo seems to be some extremely dark place, and the photographer used the bright flash of a new portable camera to capture this magical and beautiful scene.
The pure girl seemed to be sleeping in the darkness, her body and limbs entangled by the hideous and terrible tentacles of the monster, but her expression showed no pain, sadness or joy, she just closed her eyes silently like a fairy from another world.
And Klein, he was familiar with the face that appeared in the black and white photo, and he could even add more colors to her.
Leonard put away the surprised look on his face and continued to take out the information. He said: "Why use such photos as reference materials... If there is really no suitable choice, they should be able to find someone to draw the portrait."
Because such photos, no matter how you look at them... are a bit bitter.
Leonard didn't say this out loud, but he could guess that anyone who had seen this information would probably have similar thoughts, regardless of whether they were men or women. After all, the person in the photo was indeed breathtakingly beautiful - look, the new "fortune teller" next to him was stunned.
"Well, where do you think this photo came from?"
Captain Dunn shook his head, motioning for them to continue reading the information while listening, and then he began in a low voice to tell the story of another Nighthawks team...or rather, the accident.
"The person who took this photo is a lady called 'Gravedigger.' She is an amateur photographer, and thanks to her bringing her camera on board the escort ship, we were able to get a good idea of what this witch looks like.
Leonard, do you think the Temple really didn't try to find someone proficient in ritual magic to paint a portrait of this witch?"
"...The ritual magic failed? Anti-divination?" Leonard made a guess and continued to flip through the information at hand. Klein stood silently and read the words on paper with him.
"At the moment, this possibility is the greatest." Dunn nodded. "Okay, you have roughly read the information, and you should have a better understanding of the danger of this fugitive witch... She led the planning of many tragedies in and outside the cities in Disi County, destroyed a manor outside the city, and even when she was arrested, she had a cunning and treacherous back-up plan. She unknowingly confused the minds of the entire Night Watch team and finally escaped calmly." "
So that photo was secretly taken by the Night Watch after the Night Watch was bewitched by the witch?" Leonard showed his inappropriate curiosity.
"Bewitching the mind is not enchanting... Well, the difference between the two is actually not that big, and the former can better take care of the feelings of the victims. But no matter what the reason was, that lady did try to take pictures, and it is said that she was slightly injured because of the lost... Oh, that is the seal that bound the witch in the photo, it has the property of 'chasing light'. The flash of the camera held by the gravedigger lady almost hurt her."
...Seal? That tentacle-like thing is also a seal? It looks pretty... Well, it looks pretty good.
I just don't know what level of sealed artifact it is. The information doesn't mention it at all. Maybe it's because the confidentiality level is not high enough... Wait, in other words, the Church of Evernight has lost a sealed artifact with a confidentiality level of at least "3"?
Klein calculated silently.
"That is to say, while we are hunting down this witch, we also have to try hard to recover the sealed object she took away, right?" Leonard threw the information aside and put his hands in his pockets.
"...It's not this one, it's a set." Dunn paused for a moment, and when Leonard couldn't help but whistled in amazement, he corrected him and added, "One '2' level sealed object, and one '3' level sealed object. You've already seen the appearance of the '2' level in the photo. The '3' level one is a large black bag that is about one and a half meters long. If you see similar items on weekdays, you can pay more attention to them... But my advice is, don't make a fuss, don't disturb, and report it immediately if you find it. Professionals will go to confirm it."
...Okay, two sealed objects taken away by the "witch", right?
Probably, possibly, all in the townhouse at 2 Daffodil Street in Tingen.
Klein closed his eyes in despair, then looked at the document spread out on the captain's desk, focusing on a few lines of seemingly insignificant small words.
The "Witch" is a person of extraordinary path... her name and age are unknown, her specific identity is unknown, she is suspected to be related to the witch family of the Fourth Epoch, and she masters some unknown ancient language... She is temporarily called "Mirror Witch" within the church...
Her abilities are mainly black flame, frost, and mirror spells... Hey, there is a bracket after this, indicating that it is ritual magic, and there is also a question mark?
... Among the items she holds are at least two powerful and dangerous sealed objects, one is in the shape of a staff, and its function is suspected to amplify ritual black magic, and the other is in unknown shape, and it is speculated that it has the ability to influence other people's cognition and fabricate illusions...
...
"Klein, what do you think?" Dunn asked gently, as if noticing that he was concentrating on reading silently.
"Captain, I have a question." Klein looked up and pondered for a while, then said, "It's mainly about the 'witch' path... This is the first time I've heard of this sequence. I wonder how much relevant information I can get with my current authority? Moreover, this information does not indicate the sequence level of the wanted 'witch'..."
After listening, Dunn slowly nodded.
"This information is highly confidential. Even the Chanis in Tingen City don't have any backup. Perhaps you will only be able to access it when you are promoted to captain or an executor of the same level and go to the temple for training... Currently, I can only talk about the "Genius Society" and the "Witch Cult."
After briefly introducing the situation of the two organizations (mainly to the newcomer Klein), Dunn seemed to hesitate for a moment, lowered his eyes to look at the memo on his desk, and thought for nearly half a minute before speaking.
"The following information mainly comes from the Nighthawks team that faced the Mirror Witch... their personal experiences. You can select some of it for reference, but it's best not to mention it to others. After all... we have to consider the feelings of the victims."
Seeing the captain's seriousness, Leonard and Klein nodded in agreement with heavy faces, especially the latter, whose uneasiness in his heart almost became a reality.
What a miserable experience this must have been... He tried hard not to think of the bloody and cruel images.
"As mentioned before, after being captured by the Nighthawks, the Mirror Witch successfully bewitched almost all the team members, causing them to release her on their own initiative... In fact, according to the investigation of several senior deacons, the one who was most seriously affected by the witch's spirit was actually the captain of that team... Well, like me, the Nighthawks captain was also a Sequence 7 'Nightmare' of the Sleepless Path.
Currently, the rest of the team members who were affected by the Mirror Witch have almost all recovered and have provided oral evidence... They all said that the captain had entered their dreams during the escort and talked about topics related to the Mirror Witch. As for the 'Nightmare' captain, he was still under the strong charm until yesterday, and stubbornly believed that the 'Mirror Witch' was his destined lover. But in fact, the captain has already married and has a family, and he should even become a father in the winter of the second half of this year."
Klein couldn't help but look at Leonard beside him, and saw the same absurd horror in his eyes as he did in his own.
"Everyone was just affected by the witch's charm, and there were no casualties?" Leonard found it a little unbelievable. Compared to the many tragic experiences he had heard of and experienced, this was already a miraculous piece of luck.
...So it seems that the "Mirror Witch" is quite kind? He muttered to himself.
Dunn nodded.
"The affected team members all said that they clearly remembered everything that happened on the transport ship, and each of them changed unconsciously. They wanted to see more of the Mirror Witch and get closer to her. After the Mirror Witch got rid of the spiritual suppression of the Level 2 Seal, everyone felt joy and happiness from the bottom of their hearts...
Yes, all the changes happened while the Mirror Witch was sleeping. She didn't open her eyes or move, but she quietly captured four Beyonders who were in love with her... According to the two Night Watchmen who saw her wake up, they were very excited at the time, and even had the urge to crawl at the feet of the Mirror Witch."
"... Could it be that 'Nightmare' tried to enter the 'Witch's' dream, but wasBecause she is good at giving people pleasure, she is called the Pleasure Witch... This potion name is really intuitive.
Klein chatted with this poetic colleague for a while, and then they parted at the door of the entertainment room. One continued to study Quint, while the other staggered back to his desk and began to study and work.
...As for whether Klein, who was trying to study hard, could calm down, that was another matter.
Next door, where the new Fortune Teller couldn't see him, Leonard hastily finished the game he was playing, briefly explained the situation to his colleagues, and walked out of the entertainment room and into the dimly lit corridor.
Hiding most of his face in the dark backlight, the night watcher with black hair and green eyes exhaled softly and said something in a very low voice.
"Old man, I don't believe that you revealed the Sequence 6 name of the witch simply out of kindness... What did you find out?"
...
"Young man? You mean Klein? What's special about him... No, forget it, don't tell me anything you are not sure about."
...
"How could I take the initiative to provoke a Sequence 6 witch... But you should be able to deal with it easily, so there's nothing to be afraid of."
...
"No, who do you think would be played around by a witch?! Do I look that gullible?"
...
"...Indeed, I admit that the face is pretty, but that doesn't mean I will be charmed, and don't we have you? A mere Sequence 6, it's impossible for it to charm you as well, right?"
...
"Okay, I get it--"
"Is that you, Leonard? What are you doing there?" Roshan, who was walking from the front desk to refill her coffee, saw the back of her colleague standing alone in the corridor from afar, and called him in confusion.
"I'm just thinking about it, miss. Not everyone can understand this poetic sentiment of turning toward light and embracing darkness." Leonard turned around and replied as if nothing had happened.
"Poetry? I've never seen you read your own works. What's the point of poetry?" Luo Shan couldn't stand this man's narcissistic behavior of always thinking of himself as a poet, and couldn't help but sarcastically said.
After exchanging a few words with the young and energetic girl at the front desk, Leonard waved his hand nonchalantly, strolled around for a while on the pretext of going to the bathroom, returned to the Night Watcher's entertainment room, and once again joined the card game started by his colleague.
…
Lunch time at Blackthorn Security Company.
Klein ate his meal and felt even more sorry for spending these 7 pence than he did yesterday.
His wealth had shrunk by 12 soli and 8 pence after the robbery by Miss Witch yesterday. However, the meal was an expense that he could not save, so he could only give it up with great reluctance.
He still has several weeks of advance salary to pay back, and he's really worried about not being able to pay next month's rent... maybe he should find a part-time job to earn some extra money?
The Divination Club is a good choice, but unfortunately the membership fee is too high, and before the reimbursement funds are issued, he can only watch and think about it.
It's so miserable. Why is life always full of hardships and setbacks?
Perhaps because the lunch was priced at 7 pence, Klein did not pick out the seasoning leaves in the vegetable soup today. He drank up the soup in the bowl mouthful after mouthful.
...the taste is actually not bad. He comforted himself.
Just as the lunch in front of him was dwindling, Klein caught a glimpse of someone approaching him with a lunch box. He quickly swallowed the stew in his mouth and looked over there.
The rather good-looking face of the midnight poet Leonard appeared in the field of vision.
"Do you mind if I sit next to you?" He asked Klein, and without any politeness, he placed the lunch box on the table next to him.
Klein could only shake his head a little late.
In fact, the two of them were not familiar enough to have lunch together... Although worrying about such things would make him seem like a big boy who was still in junior high school, in fact, similar problems would not necessarily change much after entering society, and the social distance between people has always been so subtle.
...There didn't seem to be any special intersection between them, right?
Klein recalled carefully, and in the end he only found his own evaluation of him as "gay inside gay" in the fragments of his memory.
While chewing his bread silently, Klein quietly moved his lunch box a little further away. He glanced at Leonard's meal and guessed from the richer dishes that he had bought a working meal for about 10 pence.
It's nice to be rich...but I reject homosexuality...
Klein said firmly in silence.
However, this night watchman with the romantic temperament of a poet seemed to have simply found a place to eat. When both of their lunch boxes were almost empty, Leonard picked up the tissue that came with the meal and wiped his mouth casually. He glanced at Klein with his green eyes that were slightly deep.
"I thought you would be curious about how I knew the name of the sequence."
"...I believe that if it wasn't your secret, you would choose to tell it." Klein answered honestly, putting the opened lunch box away and covering it so that the restaurant waiter could come and collect it.
Hearing this, Leonard's smile deepened a little.
"You're right. Everyone has their own secrets, including me..." He deliberately prolonged the last syllable and slowly added the second half of the sentence, "Including you, isn't it?"
Klein didn't have any special reaction.
"Of course, everyone has things they don't want to tell others, but..." Klein calmed himself down and decided to give it a try. "Do you mind chatting about something? Just treat it as a way to kill time during the afternoon break."
Leonard nodded happily.
——Klein's thoughts were not complicated.
Now he has few choices. One is to believe Alice's words and help her conceal her identity and avoid the pursuit of the Night Watchers; the other is to acknowledge the authenticity of the information from the Night Watchers and selflessly report and expose the witch.
And considering the content of the "contract" signed with Miss Witch... he couldn't reveal Alice's true identity and origins to outsiders, but there was no stipulation that he couldn't report her to the Night Watchers.
This creates a contradiction.
If the "contract" he signed was really as magical as the witch lady said, then he could not reveal her true origins to a third person. In other words... she was telling the truth: she was indeed a visitor from another world, not the "Witch of Joy" mentioned on the wanted poster.
But if the "contract" is fake, the situation will be countless times more complicated than it is now, and he should probably worry about the safety of himself and his family first.
Therefore, the current priority is to prove the authenticity of the "contract".
How to prove it?
Klein turned his gaze to the young poet with black hair and green eyes beside him.
"Well, I have some immature ideas that I need other people's opinions to refer to..."
Klein considered, and in a tone like he was conceiving a novel outline, he unfolded a brand new world full of fantasy to his audience word by word -
in that world, ordinary people can also understand the existence of extraordinary powers, and even, if they are willing to try, they can master the most basic "Level 0 Tricks" without spending too much effort.
Of course, advancing upward is like rowing against the current, the further you go the more difficult it becomes, but there is no loss of control or madness over there...
If you try to contact evil gods that are not recognized by the church, that is another matter.
In addition to humans like them, there are elves, dragons, orcs, winged sky races, aquatic species lurking in the deep sea, and the dwarf civilization that mysteriously disappeared overnight... The sky, the earth, and the ocean are each engraved with their own stories and legends, secrets and treasures buried in history, and bards playing heroic poems travel to every corner of civilization...
Klein only briefly described the homeland that Alice had told him about, and found that he was indeed not judged as violating the agreement by the mysterious power of the "contract" and was able to tell others about her original world in the form of language.
But when he came to his senses and stopped telling the story, he found that there seemed to be a lot more people around him.
Roxanne, Brett, Frye, Cohenley... several colleagues who were originally chatting in the lounge gathered around the empty seats near him, listening attentively.
Seeing him stop, Luo Shan seemed to ask with some regret: "Is that all?"
... He didn't know much!
Klein sighed silently in his heart, while his face showed a thoughtful expression without showing any sign of it.
"I'm still thinking about the general framework... I'm sharing this now mainly to get your opinions so that I can make revisions later."
Brett, who is also a clerical worker like Roshan, was the first to express his opinion. The middle-aged gentleman smiled amiably and made no secret of his admiration for Klein's imagination.
"As expected of a top student who graduated from the History Department of Hoy University, the background you constructed is so sophisticated. I guess, Klein, you must have referred to the myths close to the First and Second Ages. It is said that that era was indeed splendid, and fantasy races such as elves and dragons were very active in history..."
It is true that the original owner was a college student who graduated from the History Department, but he was not... Moreover, the original owner's focus was almost entirely on the Fourth Age, which he loved, and he really didn't know much about those ancient myths...
Klein listened to the compliments praising himself and shamelessly accepted them in a humble manner.
"Very imaginative writing... But, Klein, are you planning to write a novel? Become a writer like Ms. Xijia? Well, if you really plan to write, I would like to apply for a character based on me... It doesn't have to be the protagonist or supporting role, just a small role is fine! My only hope is to arrange a romantic and touching love story, and the other party should preferably be a great noble from the capital!... Or, a prince from a royal family would also be good!"
The above is what Luo Shan said.
"But I must say this, Klein. I'm not trying to throw cold water on you. If you dare to write like this, official Beyonders from major churches will visit your home the day before your novel is published, and confiscate the manuscript of your novel, or burn it directly... Considering that you still work for the Nighthawks, you may even be charged with leaking confidential matters."
"Corpse Collector" Frye always had a cold face like a corpse. It was the first time Klein heard him speak such a long paragraph, but the content...
Leonard had been smiling faintly until this moment when he began to explain for his colleague.
"Frye is right, Klein. Your ideas are indeed interesting and novel, but there is one point that is an absolute taboo that cannot be touched - you cannot describe a world where 'ordinary people can also achieve extraordinary things', do you understand?"
"This..." Klein was stunned for a moment, but he quickly reacted.
"…Yes, if we lose our reverence for these things, countless more people will embark on that extraordinary and dangerous road without careful consideration… I, I don't want to see any more tragedies happen…"
After a moment, Luo Shan, who was still excited about conceiving a romantic love story, calmed down and spoke slowly with her head down.
…
After receiving fair comments such as "novel concept, but poorly considered details," the people surrounding Klein gradually dispersed.
The lunch break was almost over, and several clerical staff had to return to their workstations to begin afternoon work. On the contrary, several night watchmen and the newcomer Klein could still relax for a while.
Well, to be exact, I can still relax for a while.
Frye, the "corpse collector" with a gloomy breath, found a corner to lie down and began to take a nap. Seeing this, Klein felt a little embarrassed to disturb the quietness in the lounge, but he was somewhat unwilling to give up before he could make the next attempt.
As if he had noticed that he was hesitant to speak, Leonard pointed to the corridor outside and suggested, "I remember that you are going to the armory to get bullets later. Do you want to come with me?"
Klein was wondering how to start the conversation, so he nodded and agreed.
As they walked one after the other down the dim stairs to the armory downstairs, Leonard casually joked with the new "Fortune Teller" behind him.
"So, are you planning to share more of your exclusive creative ideas with me, our future great creator?"
Klein's mouth twitched, and he said awkwardly, "Stop calling me that. I'm just thinking about it. I haven't started writing yet..."
"Then if you finish the draft one day, please let me know as soon as possible."
Klein didn't know whether the other party was being polite or was really interested in his work, so he could only smile forcedly and evade the question.
"Speaking of which," after a few more meaningless chats, Klein tried to make his voice sound natural and relaxed, pretending to be talking casually, "If one day, someone--"
He was about to say the following words: If one day, someone told you that she came from a different world completely different from this one...
But the words were already on his lips, but what came out of his mouth was a completely different question.
"--If someone asked you for directions, how would you react?"
Leonard, who was walking in front, couldn't see the surprised look on Klein's face behind him. Hearing this somewhat confusing question, he just paused and asked back in confusion.
"As for the score, normally I would point the way to that person... Does this question have any special meaning? Is this a popular psychological test in Backlund?"
What is that... I have no idea.
Klein twitched his lips and thought about other ways to express himself. He then brushed off the question and adopted the same tone he had used to talk about the novel's setting, preparing to try the next method.
If a girl who calls herself a magician uses extraordinary, miraculous supernatural powers in front of you, what level of extraordinary person would you think she is?
However, when he realized what he had said, it was too late to undo it.
"So if... you fall in love with someone who is already in a relationship with someone else, what will you do?"
...
This question is a bit too much about touching other people's privacy.
The two of them had already walked up the steep staircase. Seeing the poet in front of them looking back, Klein waved his hands awkwardly, trying to make amends: "No, I was just thinking about the love story line in the novel to adjust the overall rhythm, but because I have no relevant experience..."
As he spoke, Klein suddenly couldn't continue.
Because he found that apart from his failed first love, he was really emotionally empty to the point that even he couldn't bear to look at it.
Okay, Klein, you have to know that love is not everything in life. Many people can still live freely and happily without love, as long as they have enough money... You who have been single since birth, you can't be so single that you don't even understand this, right?
Thinking of this, his mood gradually became calm, and the above innocent and simple excuse seemed to convince Leonard.
He did not show any displeasure at having his privacy pried into. Instead, he smiled and said meaningfully, "Before you provided additional information, I thought this was the trouble you were facing now."
Klein was stunned. Could this be a euphemism for "I have a friend.jpg" in this world... maybe.
After receiving today's bullets, the two turned around and went upstairs. Leonard casually raised a similar question. In the entire Blackthorn Security Company, perhaps only Mr. Bright's answer was of some reference value. The rest were either single for many years or had a cold temperament and kept strangers away. He thought Klein couldn't ask the question at all - and when Klein heard this, he always felt that he was referring specifically to the "Corpse Collector" team member and a certain "Insomniac" lady.
However, Mr. Bright and his wife were very loving, and Klein felt that if he dared to ask such an impolite question, he would probably be blacklisted on the spot.
...Well, that's nothing.
Klein felt that his guess had been initially verified, so he stopped testing the bottom line of the "contract" in this way to avoid causing more misunderstandings.
After all, in the two previous attempts, he had lost the ability to control his own speech. What if he said something he shouldn't have said?
Social death would be a small matter, but exposing his identity as a time traveler would be a complete disaster. At that time, the captain might personally come out to capture him and lock him up in the Chanis Gate below... Oh my God, he didn't want to go in there as a "guarded person"!
As he was about to finish the section of stairs that required careful progress, Klein suddenly became curious.
"So, you haven't given your opinion yet - if you encounter that kind of situation... and fall in love with someone you shouldn't like, what choice will you make?"
Leonard smiled and shook his head as if he heard a joke.
"Well... I haven't really thought about this issue. Maybe I'll have to wait until the time comes and think about it carefully."
- But that's impossible. As the protagonist of this era, how could he be involved in such a clichéd emotional dispute?
Leonard firmly believed this.