Part 1 The Joker Chapter 173 – Zombification

　　Before Klein had time to turn over a new thought, he saw the stiffened Senator Maynard bracing his hands together, clamping the sound of heavy wind, pouncing straight at himself, pouncing to his left!

　　In the past, when he encountered this kind of unexpected situation, he would most likely have a slow reaction, making it difficult to dodge, and even if he had realized it in advance, he would still have to roll and roll to escape from the other party’s pouncing range in time.

　　But now, Klein responded almost instinctively, with a stomp of his shiny buttonless leather boots, his whole body leaped away diagonally and jumped onto the high-backed chair.

　　Since it had only been one day since his promotion, he was not particularly accustomed to his own strength, agility and speed, and in his panic, this jump was actually too high and too much, and his landing position was actually the top of the back of the high-back chair!

　　There was only a narrow strip there, Klein’s heart tightened, quickly controlling his body and adjusting his center of gravity.

　　He swayed a few times, and even stood steadily that way, like a black cat showing off its balance.

　　At the same time, he swung his left arm, following the momentum of “walker” Maynard’s forward lunge, a cane to the side of its ribs, so that it lost its balance, staggered and fell on the carpet.

　　Klein stood on the top of the high-backed chair, his right hand quickly raised, probing into the armpit, trying to pull out the revolver from the gun pouch, to give the zombie in front of him a round of silver hunting bullets.

　　But at that very instant it suddenly occurred to him what to do with the end of his hand.

　　If a shot puts a hole in Senator Maynard’s corpse, how should I explain the cause of death afterwards to the other party’s family to the New Party legislators who cared about this matter?

　　Did I just put a bullet in his body?

　　As the thought flickered, Klein reached into the same side pocket of his police uniform with his right hand and felt a thin triangular piece.

　　Requiem Charm …… He made a quick judgment, and without hesitation took out the silver charm, and shouted out a word in the ancient Hermetic language in a low voice:

　　”Crimson!”

　　As the opening incantation reverberated, the talisman exuded a sense of peace and quiet, and Klein was busy pouring his spirit into it, and threw it at the “zombie” Maynard, who was struggling to get up.

　　Icy blue flames appeared, wrapping around and burning the triangular piece of flakes, and a peaceful and soft black color quickly filled the room, eliminating the spirit’s nervousness and uneasiness.

　　”Maynard stopped there, his empty eyes staring blankly at the ground, drop after drop of mucus from the corner of his mouth falling onto the carpet.

　　Relieved, Klein was about to take out his materials and set up a ritual to purify the unholy creature in front of him.

　　But all of a sudden, Maynard once again made a ho-ho rattling sound in his throat, and his empty eyes looked again into the left pocket of Klein’s police uniform.

　　I rubbed …… Klein took a long leap from the top of the high back chair to the ledge of the convex belly window.

　　At the same time, he heard the loud sound of the high back chair falling and breaking.

　　His scalp numb, Klein had to once again touch a rectangular piece of silver sheet.

　　It was the “Sleeping Charm”!

　　The living are not the only ones who need to sleep; the dead themselves are in a “long sleep” and must be abnormal before they awaken and wander the earth!

　　In some occult books, certain “living corpses” are even described in this way:

　　They sleep during the day and wake up at night.

　　”Crimson!”

　　Klein whispered the ancient Hermetic incantation again, intending that if he failed this time, he would pull out his revolver and shoot without thinking about the consequences.

　　The only way to bother with the aftermath was to stay alive!

　　Feeling the silver flake in his palm grow cold, Klein infused it with spirituality and threw it.

　　Dark red flames illuminated his eyes for a moment, and a slight explosion crackled and echoed through the guest room.

　　A quiet and gentle power escaped, with an irresistible fatigue, the “living corpse” Maynard just climbed up from the broken high-backed chair, and immediately shook a few times, closed his empty eyes, and flopped down.

　　With the experience just now, Klein didn’t dare to relax, and immediately took out the “Amanda Pure Dew” distilled from a mixture of Night Vanilla, Deep Sleep Flower and Chamomile, and the “Full Moon Essential Oil” made from the bark of the Dragon Tree and the Moon Flower, and quickly set up an altar.

　　Immediately afterward, with the help of the “Holy Night Powder”, he blocked off the nearby area with a spiritual wall, encompassing the altar and the dormant “living corpse” Maynard.

　　After silently reciting the incantation, lighting the three candles accordingly, and dripping pure essential oils and sprinkling powdered herbs into the candle flames, Klein took a step back, and while vigilantly looking at the “living corpse” Maynard, he chanted in Hermetic language:

　　”More sublime than the stars, more timeless than eternity, Goddess of the Night;”

　　”I pray for your favor;”

　　”I pray you to favor one of your faithful guardians.”

　　”I pray for scarlet power;”

　　”I pray for the power of rest and silence;”

　　”I pray You to purify this unclean creature near me, the gentleman once called John Maynard.”

　　……

　　”O Moonflower, herb belonging to the Red Moon, impart power to my spell!”

　　”O Deep Sleeping Flower, herb belonging to the Red Moon, impart power to my incantation!”

　　……

　　Silently, as if a cool breeze blew in from the middle of the night, it echoed within the wall of spirituality, while the “living corpse” Maynard’s body had a wisp of thin black mist vaporizing outward.

　　When everything calmed down, Klein used his psychic vision and divination methods to repeatedly confirm that the other party would not “wake up” again.

　　Seeing the result, he completely let go of the heart he was carrying, ended the ceremony and lifted the wall of spirituality.

　　”Why did he suddenly swindle?” Klein stood in front of Maynard, who was lying on the carpet, and looked down with a slight frown.

　　To an extraordinary person with a low level of inspiration, there were obvious signs that the dead would swindle, not to mention that Klein was also a “soothsayer”, and would always have some premonitions about similar things, but the change just now was completely unexpected.

　　Unless, unless there is a more mysterious factor influence …… just like the tuxedo clown that time …… Klein carefully recalled the scene just now, vaguely aware of the problem:

　　”Walker” Maynard had been trying to attack the left pocket of his police uniform!

　　Left pocket? Klein handed his silver-encrusted black staff to his right palm, let his left hand reach into his pocket, and took out an antique brass whistle that had been placed inside.

　　It was a copper whistle covered with a mysterious pattern, a copper whistle that Azik had lent him to summon a messenger.

　　”This copper whistle caused Maynard’s vivisection? It’s possible, Mr. Azek is either a descendant of the God of Death or has some connection with the God of Death, and it’s logical that the magical item he always carries has a similar effect ……” Klein nodded thoughtfully and pulled out a copper penny to do a quick divination on the judgement he had just made.

　　Because he was right there, because he was holding the appropriate item, and because he was well informed, he quickly came to a conclusion, seeing the copper penny tumble downward and land in his palm, with its head facing up.

　　This means that surely …… Mr. Aztec didn’t remind me to pay attention to similar problems, er …… he is “amnesia” patients, don’t remember it is normal, and the copper whistle in his body, may not have a negative effect, it is likely to be suppressed. There may not be a negative effect, it is likely to be suppressed …… In the future, when you go to cemeteries, ancient castles and other places with many corpses or easily haunted, you can’t carry this copper whistle, or else you will be making it more difficult for yourself, and you will be looking for a crazy death. …… Klein silently noted down this newly summarized Cautions, not counting the effort to get the shirtless Senator Maynard back on the bed.

　　Looking at the stark marks from the whiplash on the other’s side ribs, Klein sighed and covered the white cloth, pretending not to notice.

　　I’ll leave that one to the police department to worry about! Well, the two charms just now belong to quest consumption, which can be reimbursed …… He thought as he put away the items, took the portrait and walked to the door, unlocking it.

　　With a creak, the door to the room opened, and Klein saw Inspector Toller standing guard right outside, not letting anyone get close.

　　”What just happened?” Toller asked, puzzled and worried.

　　He vaguely heard a considerable commotion inside.

　　Klein smiled and answered with deliberate pomposity:

　　”Senator Maynard came to life and tried to give me a warm hug.”

　　”Don’t joke ……,” Toller looked helplessly into the room.

　　”Why so serious?” Klein spread his hands and said, “Due to issues that are uncertain for the moment, Councilor Maynard turned into a walker, well, the kind from various ghost stories, and luckily, I wasn’t gone in time to remove the impurity with ritual magic and return him to a peaceful slumber.”

　　”Does that have anything to do with the cause of his death?” Toller asked with a serious expression.

　　”I can’t give you an answer, I don’t even know what went wrong, you should be aware that unexplainable things are quite common in our field.” Klein made a perfunctory remark and turned to shake the portrait in his hand, “During the séance, I saw the scene before Senator Maynard’s death, he was sharing the pleasure that only a husband and wife should be able to have with this lady and covered his heart area when he was at his happiest.”

　　”You mean …… he was the cause of that death?” Toller had a “you got it” look.

　　”Theoretically, pending a follow-up autopsy.” Klein handed the portrait to Inspector Toller.

　　Toller only glanced at it before he exclaimed in shock:

　　”Mrs. Sherron!”

　　Klein looked at the other with a bewildered expression:

　　”Is she famous?”

　　Well, in terms of looks and figure, it should be more famous …… he spat out in his mind.

　　Toller looked around and introduced with slight excitement:

　　”Lady Sherron is the most famous and beautiful widow in Tingen City, and the most sought after lady in social occasions, she was Baron Hoy’s second wife, but unfortunately became a widow.”

　　”She was popular among the aristocracy, among the newly rich merchants, and was the celebrated lady who could get invitations to both Conservative and New Party banquets.”

　　”She is said to have had an ambiguous relationship with her stepson, the current Baron Hoy, with certain noblemen of Birkeland, and with several senior government employees, a very powerful lady …… I can’t imagine that she was in that same relationship with Councillor Maynard… …Hey ……”

　　Simply put, a brilliant socialite …… Klein summarized darkly, pointing sideways into the room:

　　”The next Part 1s not within my mandate, exactly how to interrogate Mrs. Sherron is your problem.”

　　”Well, before the purification, I smoked Senator Maynard, so you guys do a little processing and think of an explanation.”