Chapter 820: Prayers Before The Gravestone
Translator: Dess Editor: EbonyFrost
As usual, words and voices started to appear.
[Entering Single Player dungeon!]
[This Single Player dungeon is an Extra Dungeon!]
[Dungeon Difficulty: 2nd dungeon]
[The Failed Great Detective: In the eyes of the people, you as the great detective are dead because you covered your friend's escape and died with the monster. Your grave stood behind the small hut of the night watcher in St. Paolo School. With your new name 2567, you have been traveling around for quite some time and now, you've come back again…]
[Main Mission: None]
[Temporary language pack, disappears upon exiting the dungeon.]
[Clothing, backpack, weapons, and other items remain unchanged. Temporarily altered appearance. Returns to normal upon exiting the dungeon.]
[Inspecting firearms and grenades… Weapons do not match the current year, damage reduced by 50%, handgun reloading speed +1 second, sniper reloading speed +30 seconds]
[This is an extra entry, you can only choose 3 equipment and items…]
[Detected 10-times Increase Cooldown Card's effect still remains, unable to choose any pieces of equipment and items!]
[Note 1: This is an extra entry dungeon, you can only stay for a maximum of 12 weeks]
[Note 2: Dungeon will not fail but player can still die]
[Note 3: This is an extra entry dungeon, you will not acquire any items or trigger any events that will initiate a subsequent dungeon]
…
"Second dungeon difficulty? It calculated based on the special dungeon method?"
Kieran's eyes had a slight sense of regret.
If it wasn't the rule that the extra dungeon would not drop any equipment, with his current power level, he would have been able to rake in a huge amount of loot.
Even though the current dungeon world's mystical realm had deteriorated, inheritances and legacies would not be altered by time.
One needed to know, there wasn't just one Church of Dawn, the mystical faction, in [The Failed Great Detective]'s dungeon world. Based on Kieran's knowledge, there was another Church of Light which was ten times stronger than the Church of Dawn, and one could only imagine what inner secrets it held!
Though Kieran knew what he was after, the [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] advanced skill!
As for the others, Kieran couldn't be bothered at the moment because he only had one chance.
He knew it was one of the aftereffects of using [Extra Dungeon Entry Scroll] when he saw Note 3 and when his gaze landed on '10-times Increase Cooldown Card's effect still remains, unable to choose any equipment and items', his eyes turned cold rapidly.
His killer intent was erupting but he knew the overflow of killer intent would only affect the upcoming dungeon world.
"We will slowly clear our debts, Broker."
After he muttered softly, he took in a deep breath habitually and started to adjust his form again.
Soon, 3 minutes flashed by, the familiar blinding light and loss of gravity appeared again.When everything returned to normal, Kieran was standing on a street.
The gloomy sky was drizzling, the people on the streets were moving fast.
Horse wagons and antique cars roared through the wet streets.
The water puddles that were splashed up by the vehicles made the pedestrians, who didn't dodge in time, curse out loud, but the wagons and cars drove away even faster.
No one wanted to look for trouble, especially under such gloomy weather.
The pedestrians were no exceptions either, after a few more phrases of greeting the driver's mother, they continued on with hastened steps since they knew they wouldn't get any realistic compensation from the drivers and commuters.
Kieran gazed across the road, he saw the police box and St. Paolo School behind it.
Inside the police box, the police officer on duty was standing straight as a stick, fulfilling his duty of blocking wagons and cars that wanted to enter the school.
Behind the police box though, St. Paolo looked even quieter under the gloomy drizzle, when a series of reading entered Kieran's ears, the quiet didn't break, instead, it added a deeper layer of tranquility.
"Duke Wayne's death was covered up? Or some other particular methods were used?"
The normally operating school gave Kieran guesses.
Kieran didn't have the slightest sympathy for that noble who was obsessed with gold and eventually died because of it, but because the family he apart of and the control of the city that his family had, Kieran dared not underestimate his influence.
As the leader of the political family that controlled almost half of the city, once he was dead, the influence that followed would not be small, it might be appropriate to consider the aftereffect as a storm but the scene before Kieran's eyes told him everything with the city was normal.
There weren't any cries of the stork that came with the whistle of the wind, neither were there any bloody storms that washed the streets, as though Duke Wayne's death didn't happen at all and in order to achieve something like this, it wasn't an easy task.
Relating the current situation with that elderly knight's style, Kieran had guessed in his heart.
The guesses drove him into St. Paolo with hastened steps and of course, in [Undercover] mode.
It was quite different than his first time infiltrating the place where he would still have to take notice of people's gazes and had to move along with the light and shadow, now with Transcendence [Undercover], Kieran was almost invisible by utilizing the shadowy spots, slipping through right under the police officer's sight.
St. Paolo didn't change at all, Kieran easily evaded the patrol squad that was led by the St. Paolo's security captain as if it was his backyard and directly headed to the deeper part of the campus.
The wooden hut didn't change either but Guntherson wasn't there.
The wooden hut was spotlessly clean, it seemed like someone had been cleaning the place from time to time but the cabinet that stored the food and rations was empty of its contents.
It also seemed like no one had been living here for a very long time.
"Guntherson left?"
The thought rose up in Kieran's mind but the moment it came up, he rejected it.
Aside from Guntherson being Sister Moni's guardian knight, the sole point of his feelings for her would be enough for him to never leave her side.
Of course, everything was brushed over by Guntherson, stating it was just a vow but who would believe that?
As long as one wasn't a blind man, they would know what was going on between the two.
Likewise, it also clarified that something must have happened.
"Seems like Duke Wayne's death wasn't as tranquil as it looked."
It was the only reason that Kieran could come up with explaining Guntherson's absence, it also fit the elderly knight's character and the worst case scenario.
However, Kieran needed to know more about the current situation.
Just as Kieran was about to seek out Sister Moni for further information, footsteps sounded.
Instinctively, Kieran stood in the shadows.
After a while, an elderly sister with a hand full of white flowers came into Kieran's sight.
Her steps were slightly slow but didn't pause as she went straight behind the hut.
There was a graveyard behind there but calling it a graveyard would be exaggerating because it only had a single gravestone.
'The valiant and fearless fool' was carved on the gravestone.
It was very irregular carving and it didn't have a precise name, neither did it state the precise time nor the person who the gravestone was for.
A single gravestone stood behind the hut looking more like a joke than the real thing but Sister Moni's stern attitude made it so one couldn't laugh at all.
She placed the flowers in front of the gravestone and took out a cloth, wiping the gravestone and cleaning the area.
It was conscientious and meticulous yet filled with sadness.
"Bernadette's glory will lead you into the path to the future, do not fret, do not feel helpless…"
Kieran's expression turned complicated when he heard the sister's prayers.
Although there was no exact name on the gravestone, seeing the background that the system provided, how could Kieran not know that gravestone was for him?
And from the way the words were carved in and the tone, the person who made it was no other than Guntherson.
"This really is…"
Kieran was ready to come out from the shadows since he couldn't find a precise word to describe the scene.
The single gravestone in the graveyard was already a fact, Kieran couldn't do anything to change it but at least he could dissuade Sister Moni from wasting her futile efforts.
Though, right at that moment, messy footsteps sounded, forcing Kieran to stop his own.
His eyes turned to the source of the footsteps and he saw Chief Officer John, with a heavy face.The elderly sister kept her calm at first but as soon as the box was opened up, she cried out in shock.
It wasn't frightened but unbelievable.
Inside of the box was filled with scarlet red blood, pieces of white petals that were soaked in it through a long period of time had lost their original color, including the body in it.
It wasn't an intact body though, but it was dismembered and arranged neatly.In order to display the dismembered body neatly, there was a rack that built inside, dividing the body, the limbs, and the torso into separate sections, as if the box was a lunchbox used in common cafeterias.
"Torti?!"
The elderly sister bent her waist and crawled up beside the box, hoping to have a good look at the head soaked in blood.
Right at that particular moment, the eyes of the head opened up suddenly.
Its glare was red and dazzling!
Chapter 822: Further Away. Coming Closer
Translator: Dess Editor: EbonyFrost
The moment the eyes on the head opened up, a gloomy breeze circulated around the basement morgue.
Candles, oil lamps, and even the only electric light bulb were put out instantly.
The whole basement was plunged into darkness within a second, except for two scarlet red dots shining ferociously.
It was… the head's eyes!
"Careful!"
The sudden changes shocked John but it didn't affect his mobility. John pulled out his revolver and fired at the head while dragging Sister Moni behind him.
He didn't forget he had made a promise to Reed to protect the elderly sister but things were a little out of his expectations.
Bang!
Bang! Bang!
Three continuous shots fired straight in between the eyes of the head.
Although the place was in total darkness, the red shine from the eyes gave John the best lighting he could ask for in that situation, as if it was a beacon.
However, that head was totally unscathed, when the bullet impacted the skin, other than igniting some sparks, it didn't cause any harm.
On the contrary, a sudden chilly feeling came from John's hand and swiftly spread throughout his body.
It wasn't the hand that John held his gun but the other than he held the elderly sister.
"Could it be?!"
A bad feeling erupted in his heart, making John want to release his hand out of instinct but his hand holding the elderly sister's hand was locked tight as if they were glued together, no matter how hard he pulled, he couldn't free himself.
The chilly feeling became colder and colder as it ran down his spine. What followed after the chill was a wet liquid that dripped down his neck. John didn't even have to touch it and he knew the liquid was blood based on his experience in the force and the bloody stench.
Then, the head appeared before John's face, neck to neck, eyes to eyes, being extremely close together.
If John could choose, he would never have chosen to have such an intimate approach with the head, despite the owner of the head being young and beautiful when she was alive.
However, leaving behind a severed head that was swollen due to soaking too long in her own blood, nobody would have been able to look her in the eyes calmly.
At the same time, a question popped up in John's mind, where did Sister Moni go?
As if the head saw through John's question, it revealed an extremely hideous smile as it moved slightly out of sight, leaving enough space for John's sight.
Right away, John spotted the elderly sister falling down in her own blood with her head smashed out of shape.
"WHAT?!" John was stunned on the spot.
Even though he was the chief officer, having experience that no common man had and having faced countless vicious, malicious bastards before, the scene before his eyes still created a heavy impact on John's mind.
He killed the one he promised to protect?!
How could it be possible?!
The impactful scene made John's mental state extremely unstable, his body even started to wobble and when the elderly sister wobbly climbed up from the puddle of blood, John felt like he was struck by thunder.
John couldn't even see the head that opened its mouth, it revealed its sharp teeth and went after his neck for a bite.
Puk!
Blood splashed out. The pain from John's neck went into his brain, it made him instinctively cover his neck.
Just as his finger touched the skin of his neck, the lights came back on!
The candles, oil lamps and the electric bulb, all went back on!
The whole basement was filled with light again.
The box was still that same old box and the body inside it was still the dismembered body, its head was still in place and although its eyes were opened, the colors were normal, not the ones with the scarlet shine.
While Sister Moni was praying softly beside John, faint white light appeared on her body.
"Oh merciful Bernadette, your glory will protect your believers!"
"Oh merciful Bernadette, your glory will protect the innocents!"
When he saw the white light, John swiftly felt peace in his heart but what happened just now in his mind had become clearer as well.
What happened just now?" John asked impatiently when the elderly sister stopped her prayers.
Even though John saw Guntherson displayed inhuman power before in the sewer, the scene before him had a heavy impression in his mind.
Waves made up of gold were undoubtedly scary but a moving dead body was much scarier.
Death was basically similar in all terms but the fear that death brought was different, especially when it had something to do with dead bodies, the fear would be increased infinitely.
"The circulation caused by a restless soul, but…" The elderly sister wanted to explain but stopped.
"But what?" John pressed on the matter.
"Common souls couldn't have formed such a power, and…" The elderly sister stopped again.
This made John even more anxious, he said, "Sister Moni, can you explain everything in one shot? I don't think teasing people is what a sister should do."
It was quite obvious that the incident that occurred just now had plunged the chief officer into a disturbed state even though Sister Moni was glowing in light when she prayed, otherwise he wouldn't have pressed the question in such a manner, hoping to ease the situation.
"Sure…" The elderly sister stopped yet once again.
This time, it wasn't Sister Moni's own will but something interrupting her.
It wasn't the body in the box whose soul has laid to rest by the sister's prayer but further away, something was happening among a few crude looking lockers.
Where was the place again?
The morgue in the police station.
What was the least lacking thing inside the morgue?
Bodies.
The answer was very obvious but when the clunking sound echoed in his ears, John the chief officer had never felt so much disgust at the morgue than he did right now.
"Sister, what should we do?" John asked anxiously with his gun pointed at the shaking lockers.
He knew his gun was useless against those things but the only thing that could be considered as a weapon was the revolver in his hand.
The elderly sister didn't answer but instead, she started to pray again.
This time, the prayers she did were much more solemn. Sister Moni didn't just kneel down on the floor, she even drew a simple drawing on the floor in front of her.
Looking from the side view, John could roughly tell the drawing was half a sun that rose from the horizon, its sunlight was shining down on the fields, rivers, and mountains.
"Oh merciful Bernadette, please guide the lost souls back to the righteous path…"
As she prayed, Sister Moni and the drawing in front of her were covered with a faint layer of light.
However the clunking sounds from the lockers didn't stop but instead, it grew stronger!
After all, the Gods had left, how could they guide the lost souls back to the right path?
"Sister Moni, we need to leave!"
John saw at the iron locker which had already been heavily distorted by the force from within as if the bodies inside would jump out at the next moment. He grabbed the elderly sister without giving her a chance to explain.
The prayers stopped abruptly, the sister showed a look of suffering.
There was nothing more unacceptable than the scene before her eyes.
The once great and mighty lord of Dawn couldn't even settle down a few lost souls…
Even though it wasn't the first time, she felt despair everytime it happened.
The despair added up layer after layer, appearing one after another as if it was building a bottomless abyss.
Bang!
The iron lockers broke after another impactful clunk that overwhelmed its load.
Three bodies climbed out from the lockers with a heavy growl, charging at the chief officer and the elderly sister like wild beasts.
Without further hesitation, John placed the sister behind him again and pointed his gun at the bodies.
Even though he knew it was useless, he wouldn't just sit back and die either.
However, John didn't pull the trigger because a figure stood in front of him all of a sudden.
The figure was glimmering softly yet real and at the same time, the drawing on the floor lit up suddenly. It was 10 times, 100 times brighter than before!
The bodies that threw themselves over fell to the ground one after another and when they touched the light, the lost all signs of mobility.
Peace came back to the morgue, leaving only a blinding brilliance that covered everything.
It was tender and tenacious, unyielding and strong like the dawn of first light.
"God's Child!?"
The dense Dawn Force and the supernatural undercover ability, Kieran had reached such heights within a "short" 6 months.
Sister Moni who had deep knowledge about Church of Dawn's history knew even the first God's Child who founded the church wasn't as powerful as Kieran.
Kieran who had far exceeded the first God's Child appeared in an era where the Church of Dawn had fallen…
"Oh merciful Bernadette, please inform your believer, have you returned?" The elderly sister prayed in her heart.
It was natural that she didn't get any answers.
The ones who passed had gone away long ago and the ones who returned had just arrived.
It was like the rotation of the four seasons, going through cycles non-stop yet each of them was distinguishably different.
All the summers were different, despite them being scorching hot.
"Sorry, I only have water here."
Inside the office, Kieran came out from the shadows and sat directly on the sofa, beside him was the elderly sister.
John picked up the cozy pot, as hot water was poured into three thick glasses, faint steam rose up.
Kieran casually took his glass and started to tell his story.
"When I woke up, I found myself on a boat. The sailors who rescued me didn't know what happened and neither did I. I was badly hurt and broke, so all I could do was stay on the boat at the time. Fortunately the captain was a nice man, he tried his best in gathering medicines for me and of course, maybe it is because the power within me had awakened, my wounds healed rapidly. But when the boat finally docked, I realized I've arrived in another country. It has been a difficult 6 months for me trying to get back here. I've always been on the road, walking, riding, following merchant convoys and going across the sea again."
"Finally, I've returned," Kieran said slowly.
"Awakened power?" The chief officer didn't even doubt a single word Kieran said and his attention was completely captured by a certain phrase, so was Sister Moni.
Although she remained silent, when John asked, she too was all-ears.
This was what Kieran wanted.
"En! That's what I called it because I don't know why it would grow strong so fast. Although I learned this power with Guntherson's guidance. When I woke up, the power inside me went through drastic changes, it was powered up countless times and I've even learned some other knowledge as well," Kieran said.
At the same time, he raised his hand up, Dawn Force then started to gather in his palm.
It sounded absolutely ridiculous but when he saw the white light on Kieran's palm, John didn't even doubt it one bit.
Everything that happened before his eyes had exceeded his comprehension, the shock his heart had felt has made him forget to doubt and he never would even if he had calmed down because Sister Moni spoke.
"Inheritance that can self-awaken? Other than the first God's Child, 2567 you are the second that could achieve such feat."
The moment she finished, the elderly sister stood up and performed an ancient salutation at him.
Wung!
Just as the salutation was being performed, the Dawn Force in Kieran's body was rumbling and it started to operate in an even livelier manner.
White brilliance emanated from Kieran's body, making him look holy and majestic sitting there.
While being showered by the light, Kieran's eyes lit up when he saw the elderly sister performing the ancient salutation.
Chapter 824: Murder Reappear
Translator: Dess Editor: EbonyFrost
Kieran could clearly feel the liveliness of Dawn Force.
There was also another direct hint at his changes: the system notification.
[Energy Resonance, Musou Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art acquired a decent amount of experience, cost to level up decreased by 3000 Points…]
3000 Points was like trying to put out a cartload of fire with cups of water for the 250K Points and 25 Golden Skill Points leveling cost of [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] to Transcendence.
However, one shouldn't forget that was just a simple salutation! The salutation of a person that took less than a second!
It was enough for Kieran to relate it to more things.
This was just the effect of a single person, what if there was a hundred? Or a thousand?
He might not even need a whole day to level up [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] to Transcendence should it happen.
Of course, Kieran didn't let the delight get the best of him, he was clear that it was nearly impossible to make that happen.
Aside from how hard was it to find natives of the likes of the elderly sister, the sole task of finding a hundred natives that could resonate with Dawn Force was already impossible.
He didn't forget the Church of Dawn had fallen long ago.
Even through meticulous calculating and factoring in all natives that had the slightest possibility, 5 to 10 would be the maximum or even less than that, let alone finding a hundred or a thousand that could resonate with Dawn Force.
Though Kieran didn't completely give up on the idea, instead, he temporarily buried it in the bottom of his heart and switched to an astonished tone, asking "Sister Moni what is this? I've felt my energy become more lively again."
"This is the ancient salutation of the Church of Dawn, the Seal of Dawn! A method that fits the energy of Dawn Force, if Lord God's Child desires it, I shall teach you at a later time," the elderly sister said.
Kieran was overwhelmed with delight.
Although he knew with the base he had laid down during the early dungeon and used the identity of God's Child, it would allow him to progress smoothly ahead, he didn't expect it to be this smooth.
All he did was rely on simple conversation and he had gotten the chance to learn the supporting techniques for the [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art].
All this while, although the [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] was one of Kieran's core powers, most of the time he used it to increase his attributes and balance out the devil and cardinal sins' energy. It was hard for him to find any active methods to use it, until [Dawn Sword] appeared, only then the awkward situation started to change slightly but it was also just a bit.
[Dawn Sword] required charging time before firing, it made Kieran extremely careful when he used it and it was impossible for him to use it as a common combat measure during battle.
Kieran's tone became more respectful towards the elderly sister who had just help him solve his urgent needs.
"Please continue to address me as 2567, your age and experience have far exceeded the identity that you bear. I have a lot of things that I want to learn from you, after all, I've just awakened the power but I don't have the knowledge that goes with it," Kieran said.
"Of course! Although God's Child is extremely gifted, someone else would still have to teach the basic knowledge, Guntherson and I wouldn't mind in teaching you everything we know." The elderly sister nodded with a smile.
Perhaps the Church of Dawn had completely fallen but the elderly sister who held on to countless years of church traditions and extending the inheritance of the church clearly knew what must she do when a God's Child appeared before her.
Maybe it was impossible to revive the Church of Dawn back to its glory days but it would be enough to continue to extend the church's legacy.
Extending the legacy of the church had slowly become the elderly sister's last hope as her age increased while felt the life force slipping out of her body.
Back when St. Paolo Church was transformed into St. Paolo School, the elderly sister already had the thought to search for a reliable heir before the last moments of her life but following Kieran's appearance, it changed her plans altogether.
While holding his glass, John was looking at Kieran and Sister Moni conversing but he couldn't join in at all. The topic they were discussing was no different than listening to a fairy tale but he was very interested.
After experiencing the thrilling incident, his fear faded away slowly and what followed was the rise of heavy curiosity.
John really wanted to know what kind of secrets that people didn't know of were hidden from the surface world he knew, especially when the conversation topic shifted to the incident earlier, John was all-ears.
"After a human dies, his or her soul is left behind but most of the time the soul will be guided towards the divine realm that they believed in. Atheist souls will fade off quickly or fall into a sorrowful realm but some exceptions will cause the souls to go through unusual changes…"
"Dying of great pain will torture the soul and the soul will not go to rest peacefully, if some other special methods are used, it would be enough to change the soul, making it more violent and evil." The elderly sister said slowly.
"So, that is why Torti was dismembered?" John asked with a sudden realization.
"Yes." The elderly sister nodded and her expression was showing an obvious sadness.
When St. Paolo Church was turned into a school, Sister Moni had given up on the idea but her love for her students was real, whether was it Altilly Hunter or the others, the sister treated all of them equally.
"Don't worry Sister Moni, I'll catch that bastard!"
John said instinctively when he saw the sad look on the sister's face and after the words escaped his mouth, the chief officer suddenly realized, the culprit this time was different than before.
Those bastards from before, no matter how vicious or evil they were, they were still human but this time, it was different!
Once the thought of the moving bodies entered his mind again, John's body twitched unnaturally.
After going through that, it didn't mean he was immune to the fear, quite the opposite, only after going through the scary experience would he learn to fear the supernatural.
Although John didn't fall into a heavily frightened state, when facing against the incidents occurring in the mystical realm, his hands were tied.
When he thought about the prideful words that escaped his mouth, he was embarrassed for a brief second but Kieran immediately broke the embarrassment for him.
"I'll deal with the incidents in the mystical realm, all you need to do is go after the common ones. The craftsmanship on that box is quite delicate, the copper that wrapped the edges were brand new as well, I'm sure it came from the hands of a popular craftsman. There was also a layer of natural latex painted inside of the box, I do remember we have a rubber estate here right? Other than that, there are also some potions that can cause hallucinations to humans, although there is the perfume and blood covering it, I won't mistake that smell," Kieran said in a precise tone and arranged every clue in an orderly fashion.
"Craftsman who made the box, rubber estate, and potions? Okay, leave it all to me!"
John instantaneously recalled the scenes that happened before with Kieran's reminder.
The chief officer stood up immediately, ready to move out but at the next moment, Deputy Chief Officer Leschuder ran in.
The moment the Leschuder stepped into the office, Kieran hid back into the shadows.
The deputy chief officer looked a little hesitant when he saw the elderly sister after he came in but in the end with John's approval, he reported, "Sir, there's a murder that happened at St. Paolo School!"