Klein unfolded the letter paper with both anticipation and trepidation, and began to read Azik's reply: "... The scene you described made me think of some possibilities, of vampires and abominations. Natural vampires were nearly extinct before dragons and giants withdrew from the historical stage. After that, they could only be found occasionally. The vampires we usually discuss, those in folk tales, are closer to the extraordinary. I remember that there's a potion in one of the sequences of a certain path called "Vampire". If your superior is already in a semi-crazy state, he might have accidentally taken this potion. The mixture of potions from two different paths will inevitably lead to this result. Well, I vaguely remember that the "Night" path, which you call the "Sleepless" path, can be exchanged with the "Death" path and the "Giant" path at high sequences, but not with the "Vampire" path. Of course, it's not impossible that your superior took it consciously. After all, vampires can have a long life, excellent physical condition, and outstanding appearance. Compared to these benefits, a semi-crazy state is not unacceptable. Klein was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Mr. Azik to provide such useful information. The "Death" path refers to the "Grave Digger" path. It can be exchanged with the "Sleepless" path at high sequences. This was a secret I learned from Roselle's diary before, but I never thought that they could also be exchanged with the "Giant" path at sequence 4 and above... The "Giant" path is the one held by the Silver City, which is now the "War God" path... I've always suspected that the Giant King, Ormir, was an ancient war god... Well, Roselle the Great's diary described that the Church of the Night Goddess and the Church of the War God were at odds... Could it be because their sequences can be exchanged at high levels? Based on this assumption, the mutual hatred among the three oldest churches, the Church of the Storm Lord, the Church of the Eternal Sun, and the Church of Knowledge and Wisdom, can be explained to some extent, because the "Sailor", "Praise" and "Reader" paths they respectively hold can be exchanged at high sequences! Well, at the end of the last era, the "Pale Age", the main force behind the fall of the Death God was probably the Night Goddess and the War God... The captain's state is usually normal. Apart from having a bad memory, he shows no signs of being semi-crazy. The possibility of him taking the "Vampire" potion can be ruled out! Mr. Azik has recalled quite a few things recently... Could it be that the "Crawling Hunger" really stimulated him? Klein nodded slightly and continued reading: "Abominations are not the name of a race, but a description of many similar creatures. They are indistinguishable from humans in normal times, but there is always a twisted and suppressed desire lurking in their hearts. As long as they encounter a specific scene or are stimulated by a specific thing, they will burst out and turn into monsters, satisfying their desires for blood and killing wantonly." "After everything calms down, they will return to normal, but each time they burst out, they will become a little more ruthless, and eventually their hearts will be completely distorted." "The most common and the only example I can recall is the werewolf. They are equivalent to humans in normal times and cannot be identified by most extraordinary abilities. But when the moon is full, their twisted desires will intensify, and their bodies will also undergo certain changes." "Your superior might be a hidden abomination, and the death of his teammates triggered his nature." "All of the above are my personal speculations. Because my memory is not complete, I can't guarantee that there are no other possibilities. Maybe the signs of losing control you guessed can also explain it." Whether one has taken the "vampire" potion or is inherently an "alien species", there is no cure. Of course, there was once speculation that "alien species" were originally normal humans but were cursed by strange forces or contaminated by evil gods and demons, which is why they transform into different monsters under certain conditions. Also, I'm not sure if the loss of control with only the precursors can be treated. I suggest you report directly to your superior's superior. I hope it's not too late. " Putting down the letter paper, Klein looked at the desk with a solemn expression and thought for a long time. He had to admit that the existence of the "alien species" was possible, but the signs of its getting out of control could not be ruled out. "All I can do is wait for Ms. Daly's reply... I sent the letter the night before last, and she should have received it yesterday morning. If she replies in time, I should have seen it last night or this morning... It's almost noon now... Could it be that the little messenger didn't dare to approach Charnis Gate? Or did Ms. Daly have something else to deal with?" Klein shook his head, feeling very tired. So he used meditation to force himself to fall asleep again. In the hazy world of his dream, he suddenly became conscious and knew he was dreaming. Then, he saw Dunn Smith appear in front of him, wearing a black thin windbreaker. According to the normal reaction in a dream, Klein responded slowly: "Good morning... Captain..." Dunn nodded slightly and said: "Leonard found a clue while investigating the Lanerius case and needs your help." "The spy sent by the Church will arrive tomorrow morning due to a malfunction of the steam train." "Okay..." Klein replied in a dazed tone. Dunn thought for a moment and added: "You don't need to return to Zottland Street. Go directly to No. 62 in the Howles District. Leonard will be waiting for you there." "Thank you for your hard work." As soon as he finished speaking, Klein's dream shattered piece by piece, and his eyes opened subconsciously. The Howles District... Isn't this the district where my classmate Welch and that member of the Aurora Society live? There have been so many things happening recently, one after another, as if something is brewing... Klein got up slowly, deep in thought. He first went to the bathroom to clean himself up, then changed into a white shirt, a brown waistcoat, and a black thin windbreaker, and took his half-high silk hat before going downstairs to the living room. It was not yet 11 o'clock. Benson and Melissa had not returned yet. Klein told the maid Bella not to consider his lunch. Then, he took a tram to the Howles District and saw the "Midnight Poet" Leonard Mitchell with his disheveled hair in front of No. 62. In the cold September, Leonard was still wearing only a thin white shirt and beige trousers. He glanced at Klein and said: "This house might be where Lanerius rented under a false name." "How did you find out?" Klein asked curiously. Leonard pointed at his head: "Since you got a clue from Hood Eogen and suspected that Lanerius might be related to that member of the Aurora Society, the cloth merchant Sirius Arepius, I had to change my approach and look from the Aurora Society's side when my normal investigation didn't yield any results." "The previous report showed that Sirius had contact with many residents in the Howles District. I checked them one by one and found some problems here." "What kind of problems?" Klein nodded slightly. Leonard raised his eyebrows: "Very obvious problems. The tenant here rarely appeared. After the death of Haines Vincent, he claimed to go to the South Continent for business and never returned. His information was very real, and the police didn't find anything." "This can only be a coincidence." Klein frowned. "Of course, just a coincidence. But when I showed Lanerius' photo to the residents around here, an old gentleman felt that it looked very similar to the tenant of No. 62, except for the glasses." Leonard took out a black and white photo from his pocket. Why didn't you say it earlier... Klein thought to himself. Then he followed Leonard into No. 62 in the Howles District and began to divinate whether there was a hidden compartment or a secret room as requested. And the result was, there was! "There is a hidden compartment or a secret room in this house." Klein wrote down the new divination statement, sat on the sofa, and closed his eyes while murmuring. After seven times, he entered a dream, and everything was hazy before his eyes. In the gray world, Klein saw the oak bookshelf, saw the rows of books, saw one of the books being pulled out, and saw the wooden surface beside it suddenly open, revealing a hidden compartment. The scene quickly vanished, and Klein opened his eyes, saying to Leonard, "In the study." He wrapped the yellow crystal pendant and followed Leonard into the study, where he saw the oak bookshelf he had dreamed of. "Pull out that book. There's a hidden compartment behind it," Klein pointed to the book at the edge of the shelf. "Here it is... I searched the entire house before and found nothing. I had to go back to Zottel Street to ask for help," Leonard muttered as he walked over and pulled out the book Klein had pointed to. He fumbled around for a while and finally found the mechanism, snapping open the hidden compartment. Inside was a letter. A letter? Larnius had hidden a letter here? Klein was very surprised by this. He divined whether there were dangerous items in the letter and, after getting a negative answer, Leonard reached out and picked up the letter, opening it. He pulled out the letter paper and shook it, unfolding it. Klein moved closer and focused on reading. The first few paragraphs of the letter read: "Ha ha ha, congratulations to you! Congratulations on finally finding this letter!" "This shows that you are not too stupid and not too dull, and you are qualified to participate in the game of life and death I have designed." "The constantly dying child laborers, the factory workers who rarely live past ten years due to the environment and hard work, the female workers who risk serious illness but only receive meager wages. I see countless resentments shrouding every factory, making the surroundings oppressive and gloomy. This is the worst of times, and the best of times. Our game will begin against this backdrop." "Idiots, get ready! I'm going to give you a hint!"
