Klein returned to the Captain's office, only to realize that Dunn had already gone underground. There was a telegram on the table. It was the reply from the Mandated Punishers.
"Yes. We will be there immediately."
'Yes. The Mandated Punisher did lose control because of Megose.' Klein couldn't calm himself down as he made his way to the corridor. He didn't know if he was waiting for the Captain to retrieve the holy ashes or for reinforcements to arrive.
'I wonder if High-Sequence Beyonders can teleport. I don't think so.'
He paced around a few times, suddenly feeling peaceful. He saw that the gas lamps on both sides of the corridor were now dyed a faint blue.
Amid the darkness, Dunn followed the stairs into the corridor. In his palm was a square, palm-sized box of ashes. This box looked as though it was made out of pure silver, but it also felt like it was human bones. It was carved with many mysterious patterns.
Klein felt colder the closer he was to the box; it was as if the cold was rapidly seeping into his blood. Dunn's face was bathed in an icy blue light.
He told Klein, "Go to Chanis Gate and pick out a Sealed Artifact with the highest offensive ability. Decide exactly which one with your own judgment. I've already told Seeka and the Keepers inside. Take note of the hidden threats. Of those, there are three Grade 2 Sealed Artifacts, which are… Oh, now that I've taken out the ashes of Saint Selena, Seeka and the Keepers cannot leave their positions now."
At this point, Frye and Royale were both at Kenley's house for the funeral preparations. The Archbishop at Saint Selena Cathedral had gone to the countryside to preach.
"Alright." Klein didn't hesitate, immediately turning towards the basement. When he was nearing the intersection, Klein suddenly stopped.
He knew that most of the Sealed Artifacts behind Chanis Gate at Tingen City were Grade 3 and wouldn't have much of an effect on the baby in Megose's stomach.
'It was, at the very least, a legendary creature. The Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem might work, but it takes too long to have an effect. It's unsuitable for this. There are only three Grade 2 Sealed Artifacts in Tingen City, and they're all very dangerous artifacts that can easily result in my death.'
'I estimate their powers to be about the same as my Flaring Sun Charm, so I cannot have too many reservations later. I'll use the Flaring Sun Charm without any hesitation! It would definitely be as powerful as a Grade 2 Sealed Artifact; after all, it has the power of divine blood in it.' Klein's mind whirled as he nodded indiscernibly.
He felt for the Flaring Sun Charm and Azik's copper whistle in his pocket, but he was surprised to find that the sensation of the latter was back. Regardless of whether it was useful or not, Klein took out a pen and paper set that was used for divination and wrote a short message.
[The person who made my fate disharmonious and stole the skull of your child has appeared. He has arranged for Megose to enter the Blackthorn Security Company at 36 Zouteland Street. It's highly likely that Megose is harbouring the son of an evil god. The situation is very urgent.]
He put away his pen and folded the piece of paper. Klein took out the copper whistle at the intersection and blew, then watched the giant skeleton messenger appear before him.
In the corridor within the deep and serene basement, the nearly four-meter-tall bone messenger disappeared before Klein's eyes after taking the letter.
When all that was left of the surroundings were the classic gas lamps embedded in the walls, he put away Azik's copper whistle and walked towards Chanis Gate.
As he was writing the letter, he had already decided on which Sealed Artifact to pick. Firstly, it would be almost impossible for the Grade 3 three Sealed Artifacts to have any effect on the baby in Megose's stomach.
Unless it was an item like the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem which had hidden powers. But, at that very moment, in such a situation, Klein wasn't in the mood to explore or research a secret that might or might not exist.
Plus, most Sealed Artifacts would carry a certain level of danger for the user. So, Klein eliminated the Grade 3 Sealed Artifacts that would weaken the user without affecting the enemy.
Secondly, the Tingen Nighthawks didn't have any Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts and only three Grade 2 artefacts. That was originally a secret that Klein wasn't allowed to know, but due to the urgency of the situation, Dunn made use of an emergency clause and told him the general situation.
Dunn Smith couldn't hold any other Sealed Artifacts at the same time while holding Saint Selena's ashes. And behind Tingen City's Chanis Gate, there were three Grade 2 Sealed Artifacts: 2-030, 2-078, and 2-105.
Ultimately, he had to choose between 2-030; 'Inexhaustible poison', 2-078; 'Door of death' and 2-105; 'Blood vessel thief.' After a deep thought while he was writing the letter to Mr. Azik, Klein decided to go with Sealed Artifact 2-105.
It looked like a thick, stiffened blood vessel. Anyone who touched it, regardless of whether they were protected or not, would have their life stolen.
In the beginning, it wouldn't be obvious. But, if one didn't break contact with it, the effects would be visible half an hour later.
Dunn had said that a Sequence 5 heretic held onto it for two hours. He turned from a brawny man in his thirties into a hunched old man who had loose skin, thin white hair, and missing teeth.
The most important trait of 2-105 was that the person wearing it would have the chance to steal an ability from a target within a specific range. Even High-Sequence Beyonders could be robbed of their abilities, but the probability was smaller.
Within a ten-minute time period, the person who was robbed would lose the corresponding ability while the person who wore the item would be able to use the ability skillfully.
Ten minutes later, the ability would vanish, and the person who was robbed would need to wait a couple of days to recover.
'Regardless of whether it works or not, it will at least raise the probability of success from five per cent to ten per cent. I'm the King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck, after all. Besides, our main goal is just to take precautions and make preparations to deal with the worst-case scenario. We won't necessarily have to take action. Hopefully, reinforcements will arrive soon.'
Klein stopped outside the duty room, showing no signs of hesitation anymore. About the negative effects of Sealed Artifact 2-105, he wasn't worried because he wasn't planning to use the artefact himself. His plan was to give it to Leonard, as he already had the Flaring Sun Charm and Azik's copper whistle who he had no idea if it would still be suppressed.
'My dear Poet, it's time for you to show your true secret,' Klein muttered and saw Seeka Tron standing by the duty room. With her white hair and black eyes, the part-time author remained silent for a few seconds before saying, "Why don't you guard Chanis Gate? I'm stronger and more experienced than you."
'But you don't have Flaring Sun Charms,' Klein replied with a smile, "Madam, I'm already a Sequence 8. It wouldn't be safe here either. There are many Sealed Artifacts that possess living traits that are itching to take action. Well, if we fail, the people here will definitely not survive."
"Heh, heh, our goal upstairs is to buy time and wait for reinforcements. It might be safer than being around Chanis Gate." Seeka Tron puckered her lips slowly and drew a crimson moon on her chest.
"May the Goddess bless all of you."
As Dunn didn't have the time to write the document in time, Klein couldn't enter Chanis Gate directly. All he did was watch Seeka Tron push open a tiny crack and enter. After a few minutes, she appeared by the door, and she was holding a thick, blood-tainted, pale blood vessel in her left hand.
Klein extended his hand to take it, and he immediately felt a faint current surging in his body.
In the reception hall of the Blackthorn Security Company. Leonard had already shaken off his stiff state from earlier, and his expression didn't look abnormal as he talked about the recently discovered house that Lanevus rented before.
"Is that so? He never told me about it before," Megose replied normally, creasing her eyebrows slightly.
…
Max, who had been watching with bated breath the entire time, felt his heart skip a beat as there was finally a reaction from Megose as she raised her hand while her brows were still furrowed.
…
Then, she grabbed her blonde hair, pulled out a handful, and casually threw it into the trashcan by the side.
Leonard was dumbfounded. He gulped with difficulty, and his palms were full of cold sweat once again.
Klein walked up the stairs to the second floor with the Blood Vessel Thief in his left hand. He looked at the door that led to the Nighthawks break room, where Dunn Smith stood silently in his black windbreaker.
Here, Dunn Smith had a rather emotional chat with Klein explaining to him why it was that Dunn 'ate' the Beyonder Characteristics of their fallen comrades, with it mainly having to do with him honouring their deaths and not letting the Beyonder Characteristics of Indestructability turn their Beyonder characteristic and bodies into something horrifying.
…
On the sofa in the receptionist area, Leonard watched Megose pull out clumps of her hair as his expression became more and more rigid.
Megose seemed increasingly restless as she constantly picked up the glass for a mouthful of water. She looked at Leonard with a contorted expression.
"I don't know why, but I suddenly feel a little unwell."
Leonard Mitchell was about to reply when he suddenly saw Megose reach for her face.
She clawed out a piece of flesh—a long piece of flesh—a piece of flesh stained with blood.
"My face is a little itchy," Megose smiled, a little embarrassed. The edge of her lips spread to where her cheekbones were, revealing a row of white teeth and bright red gums.
'F*CK!' Leonard cursed out silently. He felt that the situation was worsening way too quickly.
His lips quivering, Leonard turned to listen as his expression immediately turned steely green. He forced a smile and apologized to Megose, who was clawing out pieces of her flesh.
"I need to use the bathroom."
"Al…right," Megose's tone became ethereal. She rubbed her belly and said, "My... child... is a little restless."
Leonard didn't reply. He hastened his footsteps and approached the partition. After entering the corridor, Leonard stared deeply at the box of ash in Dunn Smith's hands and exhaled in exasperation.
Following that, his expression turned firm, "Captain, I'm afraid that it's too late. We have to deal with Megose and her baby immediately. Otherwise, the whole of Tingen will suffer terrible losses. This isn't something that can be avoided just by evacuating the citizens around us. I know that you've already sent such a telegram."
Dunn knitted his eyebrows and asked, unusually stern, "Are you sure that the situation has worsened to such an extent?"
"Yes. In no more than three minutes, Megose will undergo a mutation, and her child will descend upon us," Leonard said with a certain tone. At the same time, he glanced at the thick, large blood vessel wrapped around Klein's hand and said, "Sealed Artifact 2-105? Let me use it. I can better utilize its abilities."
"Alright." Klein didn't hesitate to hand the Blood Vessel Thief over to Leonard. That was something he intended to do so from the beginning. At that moment, Dunn tugged at his collar and patted down his windbreaker.
He spoke with a determined tone, "I'll head out with Saint Selena's ashes first. Come out after ten seconds; remember, come out only after you finish counting to ten. Then, regardless of my condition, direct your strongest attacks at Megose and her baby without wasting any time."
With that said, he turned around and walked towards the partition with the urn of ashes. "Captain…" Klein let out a shout, his lips dry.
"Captain!" Leonard also shouted.
Dunn stopped and looked back. He had a gentle expression as he said with his mellow voice, "Don't worry about me. I'm not alone. Adelaide, Dwayne, Hitte, and Kenley are all fighting alongside me, no matter what kind of danger I face."
He paused for a moment before speaking, his grey eyes gentle, "There's no need to be too nervous as well. We're guarding Tingen City."
His lips arched upwards, forming his usual smile. After saying those words, he didn't stay any longer. He stepped through the partition, his black windbreaker following behind him.
"Captain!" Klein and Leonard shouted at the same time, their tears falling uncontrollably, but Dunn didn't slow down.
'We are guardians, but also a bunch of miserable wretches that are constantly fighting against threats and madness.'