Part 1V THE UNDEAD CHAPTER 122 CONFESSIONS
Early in the morning, 160 Birklund Street.
Klein got up and washed himself, and instead of opening the door in a hurry, he took four steps against the grain and entered the gray fog.
He instantly materialized the “world” of Germaine Sparrow, and told the dummy to pray:
”Great Mr. ‘Fool’, convey two words to Danez:
”I need him to provide information on Sibiran, preferably with accompanying human resources.
”Also, tell him to watch out for the Church of Darkness these days.”
……
”Aboard the Golden Dream, Danez, who had seen the sun before Birkeland, was sitting in the shadows with a mug of ale, sheltered from the hot rays.
In a quarter of an hour, classes would begin again, and the captain said that a competent treasure hunter must have an adequate knowledge of math …… This is a headache, but it’s something to look forward to, shit! Danez rested one hand on his knee and gulped down his beer.
Just then, a gray mist filled his eyes and a blurry figure looking down on everything appeared, while Gelman Sparrow’s voice echoed in his ears.
Information on West Byron? Although we have gone there to look for lost ancient treasures and met a few tribal natives, but that s all, more can t be said …… What a pain in the ass, running around again, why does Gelman Sparrow have so many things to do! Daniz grumbled silently, then looked around warily for a couple moments, fearing that crazy man would suddenly leap out.
Taking a breath and thinking that he had to work on getting stronger so that he wouldn’t be completely unable to help the captain when he was in danger and would have to hide shamefully in the background, Daniz slapped himself in the face a few more times with the palm of his hand that wasn’t holding the glass of wine, and violently rolled over and stood up.
He immediately left the shadows and found his companions, Tin and Bucket, and inquired as to whom he should consult if he wanted to learn more about the situation in Sibylang, and was met with a near unanimous answer:
”Captain Edwina Edwards, or Anderson Hood, who’s been on the ship before for the bonfire.”
Would asking the captain directly be suspicious of her and make her think I have secrets and am secretly working for someone else …… But then again, that Anderson guy is off somewhere, shit! Danez was in a momentary dilemma, and couldn’t help but turn his thoughts away to consider the reminder that followed Gelman Sparrow’s comment:
”Watch out for the Church of Darkness!”
Danitz was not stupid, and knew that things that could be emphasized by the crazy adventurer would not be simple, which meant that he believed that he would most likely become a key target of the Church of Darkness, and would be chased by the Red Gloves!
In addition to the Black Night Church, the Storm Church and the military are also targeting me, and it is rumored that each of them has sent a whole team …… Danez thought with a trembling heart.
He quickly revealed an expression of doubt mixed with bitterness and whispered to himself:
”But I haven’t done anything ……”
……
After relaying the words of gathering information on Sibiran to “Star General” Gadelia, Klein left the gray mist and returned to the real world, where he had breakfast and attended tutoring classes as usual.
When he woke up in the late afternoon, with the help of his valet, Richardson, he changed into his formal attire and boarded the carriage that was already parked in front of the door.
”To St. Samuel’s Cathedral.” Klein half leaned against the wall of the compartment and instructed the coachman.
–He considered that he still retained the identity of Dawn Dantes, and thought it best not to easily change his previous persona, so the frequency of going to St. Samuel’s Church could not become lower, and the amount of donations could not become less.
Moreover, this can also effectively clear a certain degree of suspicion, after all, it is difficult for anyone to think that the previous infiltration of Charnes door behind the “criminals” not only did not escape, on the contrary, strutting back to the church, as if nothing had happened …… Thank you Russell the Great! Thanks to Rossel the Great for not copying criminal psychology and pointing out that many highly intelligent criminals like to go back to the place where they committed their crimes, admiring their own masterpieces and the helplessness of others. …… Klein mumbled a few words in his heart, picked up the black tea that Richardson had prepared, and gently sipped on it.
After moistening his throat well, he glanced at his personal manservant and asked in a seemingly casual manner:
”What is your deepest impression of East Byron and West Byron?”
Richardson, who sat next to him, did not ask the reason and thought for a moment:
”East Byron is more stable, West Byron is more chaotic.”
Finishing his simple answer, Richardson looked sideways at his employer to find that Dawn Dantes had half-closed her eyes and was posing as if you were continuing on.
Richardson scratched behind his ears and weighed his words:
”Also, poverty, starvation, and whipping, uh, those in East and West Byron originally used to worship the God of Death, and then had preferential treatment for believing in the Goddess, the ‘Lord of Storms’, the ‘Eternal Blaze of Sunshine’, and other positive deities, which allowed them to gain elevation in status and protection from the church, there was a mass conversion.
”However, as the number of proselytizers increased, that special status was soon gone, and many at the bottom of the hierarchy secretly worshipped the God of Death again.
”This was more evident in the more chaotic West Byron, where the descendants of Death were always embraced in large numbers ……
”These are all things that I, that father of mine, mentioned occasionally when he was drunk.”
Klein listened quietly, not interrupting the valet’s account, nor did he ask any further questions.
Soon, the carriage arrived outside St. Samuel’s Church, and Klein first admired the flight of doves in the square for a while before entering the large prayer hall, removing his hat, and handing it, along with his cane, to the valet, Richardson.
He found a seat at random, and looked at the altar in the dim surroundings, at the “starbursts” and the dark emblems, and felt some uneasiness, embarrassment, and lack of confidence in his heart.
–If his guess was correct, ever since he touched the Holy Sword and took this oath, he should have been watched by the Goddess, and every time he entered the church and pretended to pray, he felt like parading around in the Emperor’s new clothes.
I don t know exactly what attitude the goddess has …… and what position the church is in …… Well, first try …… Klein clasped his hands together, placed them in front of his mouth and nose, and appeared to be seriously doing a Prayer.
After seven or eight minutes, he slowly got up, walked to the offering box, took out 50 gold pounds of paper money, and reverently put it in.
This done, Klein turned toward the side confessional and pushed the door in.
Unlike the oldest confessionals, which were large wooden boxes with two open doors, modern confessionals were separate rooms, more spacious, with the penitent separated from the listening bishop by a baffle made of wooden slats on one side, each with a seat.
Crane, with the help of a faint glow, sat down in that chair, and then heard the bishop behind the wooden slat partition speak in a mellow voice:
”What do you have to say? The Goddess favors k every believer.”
Klein then raised his right hand and nodded four times clockwise on his chest saying:
”Praise the Goddess.
”I have a confession to make, I was approached by the military two days ago to sell a shipment of guns and artillery to West Byron to add some charcoal to the chaos there ……”
After he finished speaking, the bishop behind the baffle didn’t even give a response for a moment, as if he was shocked by the matter of arms smuggling and briefly didn’t know how to organize his words.
Inside the confessional, there was an awkward silence.
You’re stunned? Have you never met a confessor as frank and direct as me? If I told you that I was planning a murder of a demigod and was hiding from the Mother Tree of Desire and the Real Creator, you would have jumped out of your skin. Klein belabored a few words and continued:
”I did enjoy the adventurous life when I was younger, seeking riches from iron, blood, and fire, but now I am tired of that and prefer a tranquil future.
”I should have refused, but I could not overcome the greed within me; it was a tempting enough business, and one that would help me to gain a foothold in the upper echelons of Birkeland society.
”I repent that I ultimately chose noise and chaos.”
The bishop behind the wooden barricade finally responded, his voice soft:
”Do not fear, do not linger, there is no need to feel guilty about greed within a certain degree, as long as you do not harm the innocent or commit the crimes recorded in the Holy Scriptures.
”Go ahead and do it, follow your heart and make the choice you want most, only then, step by step, will you truly recognize the teachings and understand the true meaning of those words.
”There is no need to be embarrassed; remember the words, that at all times a sincere confession of fault and repentance is praiseworthy and worthy of forgiveness.
”May the Goddess bless you.”
”Praise the Goddess!” Klein once again drew the Crimson Moon clockwise on his chest.
He came to St. Samuel’s Church this time because he wanted to use the opportunity of confession to inform the church about his own upcoming arms business, to see how they would react, and in this way, to spy on the goddess’s attitude towards himself.
Without saying anything more, Klein slowly got up, left the confessional, and walked down the aisle towards Richardson, the valet.
It was then that he saw a woman sitting in the corner of the Great Prayer Hall, wearing a black robe with a hood, blue eyeshadow and blush, a kind of demonic beauty, the former “psychic” Daley Simone.
Daley raised her head, also noticed Dawn Dantes, her expression suddenly slightly trance, seems to have fallen asleep during the prayer just now, into a dream state.
Klein nodded almost imperceptibly, making a polite salutation, then took the hat and cane handed to him by his valet, Richardson, and walked out of the large prayer hall at a pace that was not too fast or slow.
Daly withdrew her gaze and looked down at the back of the chair in front of her, slowly closing her eyes again.
Stepping out of St. Samuel’s, Klein stood at the edge of the steps and paused for two seconds.
Ahead of them, in the great square, the doves all rose up in a single bound, obscuring the view of the spectators.
……
Less than two quarters of an hour later, the underground Leonard heard that Dawn Dantes, who had been lined up earlier, was about to become a merchant working with the Crown to smuggle arms to West Byron.
What exactly was he trying to do? Leonard frowned a little bit more, completely unable to understand what that undead monster was thinking.