Part 2 The Faceless Man Chapter 17 The Interrogation

　　Queens, in a nondescript house.

　　Hugh and Forsyth took a seat at random and examined the entries written on the surface of the blackboard, Mr. A, in his hooded robes, remained quietly and alone on the couch at the very front, looking at the crowd with a condescending attitude.

　　”Sequence 8 ‘Magistrate’ Magic Potion Formula, £450 ……” Hugh read the familiar contents wordlessly, and breathed a long sigh of relief.

　　One of her most dreaded situations was when it was hard to save up enough money, only to have no one to sell the formula to!

　　”I’ve got a share of 400 pounds, plus the original savings of 150 pounds, that’s enough …… It’s the subsequent main ingredients that must still need a large sum of money …… Ah yes, maybe I can change the circle and see if any extraordinary people are interested in this formula …… “Hugh suddenly had a boost of energy and felt that he had found a way to get rich.

　　Frankly speaking, if she didn’t need money urgently to buy materials and make magic potions for promotion, she definitely wouldn’t leak the formula, on one hand, because most people always hope that their own sequence of extraordinary people are few and special enough, on the other hand, due to the fact that there are more competitors in the same pathway, the price of the corresponding materials will be raised a lot, and the same is true for the subsequent formula.

　　After thinking seriously for a while, Hugh slowly became apprehensive again, because it is very normal for a recipe to hang around for a long time and not be sold.

　　Moreover, the “Arbiter” pathway belongs to the royal family which belongs to the military’s sequence, all aspects are strictly controlled, the part scattered outside basically comes from a small number of ragtag aristocrats, their formulas are difficult to form a complete medium-low pathway, often only one or two of them, coupled with the control of the main materials, it is difficult to obtain, and the number of extraordinary people who are willing to choose this sequence is quite scarce. Sequence of Extraordinary is quite rare.

　　Hugh had been in several mysterious circles in Birkeland for a long time, but he hadn’t found a single Arbiter other than her, which might be partly due to the fact that the other party was well-disguised, but on the other hand, it was also more or less telling.

　　Whew, think of Forsyth, I’m lucky enough that she hasn’t come across any subsequent recipes for the Apprentice in all this time …… Hugh saw Mr. A’s waiter approaching, and wrote a note to purchase the recipe for “Magistrate’s”. “I’m not going to be able to get a lot more than that, but I’m going to be able to get a lot more than that.

　　Before long, she was led to the study on the first floor, and before entering, she received a robe with a hood from the waiter’s hand and covered her body.

　　The seller in the study was similarly dressed, and they could not see each other’s faces.

　　”This is the recipe for the ‘Magistrate’ magic potion, where’s my money?” The seller asked in a hoarse voice as he pressed the note on the desk with one hand.

　　Hugh pulled out the cash that had long been counted several times and pushed it to the other party.

　　After double-checking the authenticity and the total amount, the seller finally let go of his hand that was pressing on the formula.

　　Hugh immediately stepped forward and swiftly grabbed the note.

　　Her gaze swept directly to the main ingredients section, which was the highlight of the highlights:

　　”A pair of eyes from a Dread Demon Worm, and the right paw of a Silver White War Bear.”

　　All extraordinary materials that were known but not seen to be sold by anyone …… Hugh exhaled and exited the study in a slightly melancholy manner, removing his robes.

　　Returning to the parlor, she sat down beside Forsyth, having accomplished a wish, and grew apprehensive about the honored name of unknown origin and the evil spirit that might haunt her own.

　　”Ten, no, twenty, no, thirty pounds for someone who specializes in exorcism to do the purification ritual for me.” Hugh made up his mind, exchanged a few whispered words with Forsyth, and beckoned for Mr. A’s attendant.

　　When the rest period, where they could communicate freely, was over, they saw the entry they had just submitted added to the entries on the blackboard:

　　”Suspected evil spirit haunting, requesting help from a friend who specializes in exorcism, £30.”

　　After a while, Mr. A.’s waiter came to flank the pair and in a low voice invited them to proceed to the sitting-room on the first floor.

　　Inside waited a man in a white crusty mask, who looked at the two helpers, clad in loose robes of unknown gender, and laughed softly:

　　”I’ll start with a preliminary introduction of myself so that you don’t doubt my abilities.”

　　”No, that won’t be necessary, we trust Mr. A.” Hugh, whose hood covered his face, said before Voorhees could speak.

　　She purposely suppressed her voice so that her childish voice wouldn’t reveal her identity.

　　The man in the white hard shell mask spread his hands and laughed:

　　”It’s my habit, I’m a sun believer, as you know, it’s not very common in Beckland, in the whole kingdom.”

　　”It’s also only at times like this that I can live as my true identity.”

　　Due to the great conflict between the Church of the Eternal Sun and the Church of the Storm, the former had never been able to obtain the right to preach in the Kingdom of Ruen.

　　”A follower of the sun?” Foerth’s lazy eyes disappeared for a moment, “This is the first time I’ve seen a living sun believer! Err…… higher status diplomats I can’t see.”

　　”Then shouldn’t I feel honored?” The man in the white hard shell mask opened his arms and clustered them upwards in a gesture of praise to the sun.

　　Voorhees did not answer his question and turned to laugh:

　　”In terms of exorcism and purification, the Sun’s Servant is a professional, so we are very relieved that we can begin.”

　　Without further ado, the man who claimed to be a devotee of the Sun pulled out a badge with the symbol of the Sun, placed it on the round table in the center, and then lit two candles in a dualistic ritual.

　　After completing the preliminaries in order, he chanted in a loud voice and with great reverence:

　　”O Eternal Blazing Sun;”

　　”Thou art the Light of Immortality;”

　　”You are the embodiment of order.”

　　”I pray to Thee;”

　　”I pray You to give me the light of purification;”

　　”I pray that You will dispel the spirits of evil.”

　　……

　　Echoing the Hermetic incantation, Hugh and Forsyth saw a bright light of pure warmth burst forth from that sun emblem.

　　It flowed in a steady stream, turning into a tidal wave that surged towards the two, drowning them both at the same time.

　　After a few tens of seconds, everything returned to normal, and Hugh and Voorhees only felt warm, very comfortable, and very relieved; it was like taking a dip in a hot spring, or having a tanning session.

　　……

　　Jorwood District, Rice Police Precinct.

　　Klein was huddled on a very short bench with a bunch of thieving drunks, very undignified.

　　Suddenly, he felt what appeared to be warmth coming from the back of his hand position, and the chill of the Bakerland night was then dispersed quite a bit.

　　Looking down, Klein found that the four black dots symbolizing the mysterious space above the gray fog did not appear.

　　”Who’s so kind as to know that I was a little cold just now ……” he mumbled, half in jest and half in wonder.

　　As a former inspector, he glanced at the burglar handcuffed to the pipe on his left, and then at the drunkard on his right who could throw up at any moment but kept yelling for a fight, and gave a sigh of relief at his current situation, wondering when he’d break free.

　　”There should be another test next, and passing it will be a success …… Hopefully, the police will be so focused on the Ambassador and the Zimmerg party that they’ll overlook the question of where I’m coming from as a tiny detective, which is, theoretically, a lot more hopeful, as long as Mrs. Sommer, Lawyer Jürgen, and the others don’t say anything that would make the police interested in …… Well, they and I are just getting acquainted, too, and can’t know much ……”

　　”Meursault’s extraordinary traits were taken away by me and hidden above the gray mist, and as he himself has no residual strangeness, no one can find out that he was once an Extraordinary, and will not suspect my strength …… well …… for more than an hours now ……”

　　In the midst of Klein’s self-relief, he saw the sheriff from earlier with the short brown and yellow beard under his jaw approaching.

　　”Sherlock Moriarty, follow me to the interrogation room.” This sheriff ordered without explanation.

　　Here we go …… Klein said darkly, getting up to follow.

　　Rounding the corner, the sheriff stopped in front of a steel door and gestured for Klein to enter.

　　Klein took a breath and let it out slowly, twisted the handle, and opened the door.

　　Inside was a small, cramped room with what seemed to be very thick walls all around, a small table in the center and chairs on each side.

　　Illuminated by the elegant gas lamps on the walls, Klein got a good look at the inquisitor across the room, a man in a rare black shirt.

　　He was not wearing a vest, but a black jacket that was not formal attire, his eyebrows were thin, his blue eyes were cold, and the lines of his face seemed to be a slice of blade, so hard that they lacked sufficient softness.

　　This man pointed down to the chair across from him and said in a deep voice:

　　”I ask and you answer.”

　　Before his words fell, Klein felt an unimaginable oppressive force, only to feel that there was an electric current running through his own spirit, connecting into a barbed whip, constantly lashing his soul.

　　This “flavor” and pain and numbness, as if from the depths of the brain, so that people can not resist, can only shiver, knees become weak.

　　Klein almost fell, busy supporting the small table, sat down, forehead twitching.

　　This …… is an extraordinary ability …… Ordinary people might think that just now it was a mental problem caused by the combination of their own nervousness and the majesty of the opposite inquisitor, but Klein clearly and unambiguously recognized that this was an extraordinary ability, the extraordinary ability to directly attack other people’s spirit!

　　He was busy recalling the information he had read before, and quickly identified the object of his suspicion:

　　Sequence 7 of the “Arbiter” pathway, the “Inquisitor”!

　　The matter was referred to a special branch of the military? Klein thought with a sense of relief.

　　As long as it wasn’t the Night Watchman, everything was fine.

　　”You identify these photos and find the ambassador who met with Meursault.” The cold, rigid man dressed in black spread seven or eight black and white photographs out on a small table.

　　All Klein could feel was the whip of electricity within his spirit that seemed to be raised high in the air, teasing him with extreme pain so that he wouldn’t dare or want to lie.

　　Of course, there was no need for Klein to lie at all, and with a little recognition, he pushed out a photo in the direction of the inquisitor of the very same middle-aged gentleman who was dressed to the point of ostentation and had a tasteful look.

　　The interrogator glanced at it without making any indication and asked again:

　　”Is your previous statement all true?”

　　Klein, as if he had been forced into a dream, remained awake and sane, did not yield to the “whip” in his spirit, and answered sincerely:

　　”All true.”

　　The inquisitor leaned forward and braced his hands on the small table:

　　”When did you last see Ian Wright?”

　　”Yesterday, early yesterday morning.” Klein said with difficulty, a drop of cold sweat seeping from his forehead, “I followed Meursault and found Detective Zerrill’s body, and because I didn’t want to deal with the police gentlemen, I let Ian call the police on himself after taking him to identify the body; Zerrill’s body was in that sewer entrance at the bottom of Iron Carbon Street in the East End where you turn right.”

　　After a short silence, the inquisitor finally nodded, and Klein felt the massive oppressive force disappear along with the “whip” within his spirit.

　　”You may leave.” He commanded in an undulating tone.

　　Krynn stood up and opened the door, not concealing the lethargy of his steps.

　　He found this even more exhausting than the fight he’d had with Meursault, the slightest mistake and his mind would be completely crushed, and he’d answer honestly to whatever the other man asked.

　　No, if it were not for my own special spiritual body, which has been subjected to ravings and hisses for a long time, and can keep calm and rational in certain situations, I would have more than likely collapsed just now …… Klein returned to the corridor with a cold chill on his back.

　　At that moment, the same sheriff from before came over and said:

　　”Come with me to do the paperwork, Attorney Jürgen is waiting to bail you out.”

　　Whew …… Klein secretly exhaled and completely relaxed.

　　He knew the danger had finally passed.