~4274 words
At around ten in the night, Kiyotaka was finally done with the entire ordeal of the Feysac terrorist.
His initial plan was to immediately tell the Nighthawks about it, however, he had — with help from Klein — done numerous anti-Divinations by invoking the power from Black Emperor Card of Blasphemy.
Since he felt interested in the woman and her roots, he decided against the decision. While he was also interested in the Sealed Artifact named Seventh Shackle, he knew that it was now in the control of Mandated Punishers.
Right now, he was making his way to Prometheus Motors. However, just as he arrived outside it, he saw a small group of people outside the main entrance and there were countless voices coming from it— some were consoling, others were loud and boisterous.
Kiyotaka walked with his normal pace, letting his cane support his weight. Once he was there, he saw a group of angry men outside the entrance, shouting insults and threats.
It was a group of well-dressed men standing before the showroom. Their expensive coats and polished shoes made it evident that they were from affluent backgrounds, however, their expressions were anything but refined.
Rage had stripped away whatever nobility their appearances otherwise suggested.
Leppard stood before them with a strained smile, trying in vain to keep the situation from spiralling further.
Kiyotaka walked forward at his usual pace as his cane struck the pavement with a quiet rhythm. Without breaking his stride, he extended the cane and rested its silver handle against one of the men's chest before gently pushing him back.
The man suddenly looked at him.
There was an unnatural amount of strength behind the cane.
"What?"
Kiyotaka's calm blue eyes met his. "I am the owner. Has something happened?"
"Oh, something has happened!"
The man hissed through his teeth. He grabbed another young gentleman by the shoulder and pulled him forward. Kiyotaka took one look at him and recognised him almost immediately.
It was Edwin Wycliffe—the minor noble from Falkendorf.
His nose had swollen into an ugly shape and dried blood stained both his lips and collar. The angry man pointing at him glared with barely restrained fury. "Look at him!"
He jabbed a finger towards Edwin. "Your servant assaulted my nephew! Hand that woman over this instant, or I swear you'll regret ever opening this establishment."
Kiyotaka merely observed Edwin for a second before shifting his gaze towards the older gentleman. He stepped closer and lightly patted the man's shoulder.
"Forgive my rudeness." His voice was composed as he spoke. "I don't believe we've been introduced."
"...Andrew."
"Mr. Andrew." Kiyotaka inclined his head slightly. "I doubt standing outside and attracting a crowd benefits either of us. Shall we discuss the matter inside?"
There was something strangely reassuring about Kiyotaka's voice and Andrew felt an instinctive urge to trust and obey him. The anger lingering on Andrew's face visibly weakened. "...Fine."
The group followed Kiyotaka inside and one after another, the people who had gathered due to the shouting, started to disperse.
As they walked past Leppard, Kiyotaka slowed ever so slightly and whispered: "Where is Freya?"
"I sent her to your residence." Leppard hesitated. "...Williams... she really shouldn't have struck him. It was not her place to do so...!"
"Close the showroom." Kiyotaka didn't even look back. "And go home."
Leppard stared after him for a long moment before sighing. "...Understood."
*****
A few minutes later, the executive room had already descended into another argument. The moment everyone had taken their seats, Edwin slammed both hands onto the table.
"That damned woman should be imprisoned!" His voice echoed through the office. "I merely spoke to her and she broke my nose!"
A middle-aged man seated beside Andrew immediately nodded in agreement. He looked to be in forties and was dressed in an elegant cream-coloured suit. "Exactly!"
He turned his head to glare directly at Kiyotaka. "She's nothing more than a servant. How dare she refuse a gentleman? Women, and especially women of her station exist only to obey men. She should consider it an honour that someone like Edwin even paid attention to her."
Kiyotaka lowered his gaze slightly and nodded his head.
'Lord of Storms believers. Since this body previously worshipped Lord of Storms, I can tell this much. To his believers, women are regarded as little more than property, mere tools to bear children and objects to satisfy men.'
The middle-aged man continued speaking. Every other sentence was more indignant than the last. However, Kiyotaka never looked at him. Instead, his attention remained solely on Andrew.
"Mr. Andrew." He sighed softly, cutting the old man off. "I must first apologise. The girl acted... impulsively. She has served under me for only a short while."
His words were fluent and seemed to drill into Andrew's heart and mind. "To be frank... She is rather difficult."
Andrew snorted. "I can imagine."
"She follows the Evernight Goddess." Kiyotaka shook his head slightly, as if disgusted by it. "You know how those people are. They fill the heads of servant girls, or well, girls in general, with peculiar ideas such as vain dignity and independence.
They have convinced common women that they possess the same rights as men. What happened today was likely the unfortunate result of that misguided upbringing."
"Hmph." Andrew clicked his tongue. "I've heard enough about those Evernight lunatics. They've forgotten a woman's place. But you look like a reasonable man."
Edwin suddenly protested. "Uncle! That's not—"
Andrew silenced him with a single raised hand. Kiyotaka calmly opened one of the drawers beneath his desk. He produced a beautifully wrapped bottle of aged red wine before placing it upon the table.
Then, he went to the nearby safe and took out an empty envelope and then something rustled in his pocket. A moment later, when he turned, the empty envelope had become quite a thick one.
He walked over to the table and sat down before sliding it quietly across the polished wood. "A small apology. I hope you'll overlook my tardiness, in lieu of our shared beliefs."
Andrew looked down and his fingers rested on the envelope. His eyes then drifted towards the bottle.
The label alone was enough to reveal its considerable value and all of a sudden, the tense atmosphere softened. "...You're really a reasonable young man."
"I try."
"Uncle!" Edwin looked between them in disbelief. "This isn't why we came! She assaulted me! Me!"
Andrew ignored him and instead smiled. "I've actually been considering buying an automobile—the steam powered one, to be specific. But from what I heard, Prometheus Motors has some respectable models with far more efficiency."
Kiyotaka nodded politely. "I would be honoured to assist you. I believe one of our mid-range vehicles would suit your requirements perfectly. It is quite good for carrying you and other gentlemen in your family for things such as hunting, without having to refuel every hour.
We should be able to give you a nice discount on it as well."
"Excellent." Andrew rose to his feet. "Then we'll consider today's misunderstanding settled."
Edwin stared at his uncle with a dumbfounded look. "...What?"
"We're leaving."
"But Uncle—"
"I said we're leaving."
Edwin bit his lip and then glared at Kiyotaka as Andrew nudged Edwin towards Kiyotaka. "Apologise."
"For what?!"
"I said apologise. Or do you want me to have a stern word with your father and have you sent back to that shithole?"
Edwin's face twisted with reluctance as he looked at Kiyotaka and spoke with great restraint. "...My apologies."
Kiyotaka inclined his head. "They are accepted."
Without another word, Andrew led the entire group out of the showroom. As the office door closed after Kiyotaka escorted them out from the backdoor, silence returned once again.
Kiyotaka remained seated for several seconds and then his lips quivered into an amused look.
'I rarely have to use Fluency, but this really is a great ability. However, I was not expecting it to work so nicely. That said, there's also the fact that I am a Sequence 7 while Andrew is a normal human being.'
As he was thinking about it, he suddenly felt something minute dissolving into his body as he closed his eyes.
'As expected, the Potion digested a little. A Briber does not have to simply throw money at problems since anyone can do that.
True bribery has to be directed by ignoring the insignificant and buying the decision-maker. A Briber has to purchase the person capable of ending the conflict and profit must always exceed the price paid.'
His eyes opened as he let out a deep breath. After making a preliminary judgement, he quickly realised that Andrew was the decision maker, and hence by Bribing him and imparting Bribe-Charm on him, he was able to get his desired outcome without violence.
The money envelope and the wine that he had gifted them had cost him very little compared to what he had gained. The Wycliffe family would purchase a vehicle worth several times what he gave out.
And hence, the two-step Acting Method was finally formulated for Sequence 7: Briber— "Bribe people in power. Make sure the profit from that bribe exceeds the cost."
Feeling satisfied, Kiyotaka went to the window and drew the curtains before falling on the couch. He sunk into the soft couch and sleep instantly took over him, due to the mental and physical exhaustion he had suffered from today.
*****
The following morning, Kiyotaka woke up early, washed his face and left the place before the first employee could come. Before he left, he added £1.000 to the safe box inside the executive room.
It was a safe that only he and Leppard had access to. To not emasculate the old mechanic with the sudden appearance of such a large sum of money, he even left a note saying that it was the money he was supposed to return.
After leaving the office, he made his way to a restaurant and bought some freshly made food and had them packed for take-away. Only then did he hail a carriage and make his way towards Minsk Street.
Once that was done, he did not return home and instead made his way to Minsk Street.
It had only been a little after seven in the morning and the streets were still rather quiet. Apart from newspaper boys and shouting today's headlines and a handful of pedestrians making their way towards work, there were very few people outside.
A few minutes later, the carriage came to a halt before a familiar apartment building as Kiyotaka paid the driver before making his way upstairs.
Standing before the apartment, he raised his hand and knocked on the door, however, there was no response.
He waited for a few moments before knocking once again.
Only after the third knock did footsteps echo from inside, followed by the sound of a lock being turned as the door slowly opened.
Standing on the other side was Klein, dressed in loose night clothes. His hair was completely dishevelled and the stubble around his chin and lips had grown noticeably since the first time they had met in person.
Well of course it had. It had been over two months since then.
Judging from his appearance, he had only just woken up. However, his eyes weren't as red or unfocused as Kiyotaka had expected.
'Typical Seer. He most likely performed a Divination before opening the door.'
Klein looked at Kiyotaka for a brief moment before his gaze shifted towards the paper parcel in his hand. "...Do you know what time it is?" he asked while suppressing a yawn.
"A little after seven."
Klein stared at him. "That... I did not ask you to tell me the time."
"It wasn't?"
"...Forget it." Klein rubbed his eyes before letting out another yawn, his gaze returning to the parcel once more. "What's with the food?"
"I bought breakfast."
"I can see that." Klein looked at him with squinted eyes and then at the parcel. Judging from the sagging of the parcel, he could tell that he had brought quite a lot of food. "There should be enough there to feed at least three people."
"I bought too much. Accidentally."
"...Somehow, I don't believe you."
Kiyotaka remained silent for a second before nodding slightly. "Neither do I."
Klein looked at him for another moment before letting out an amused snort. Moving aside, he fully opened the door. "Come in then."
Kiyotaka removed his hat before stepping inside, after which Klein quietly shut the door behind him.
The apartment looked much the same as always. Several newspapers were unfolded on the couch and a few sheets of paper filled with handwriting had been left near the window.
There was some minimal dust on his windows and the couches.
Kiyotaka placed the breakfast on the table before taking off his overcoat and hanging it beside the entrance. Meanwhile, Klein stretched his arms over his head before collapsing onto the couch.
"I only went to sleep a few hours ago," he muttered as he leaned back. "If I had known someone was going to visit this early."
"You could have ignored the door."
"I could." Klein nodded matter-of-factly before looking towards him again. "But if someone knocks three times this early in the morning, it's usually because something happened. Not to mention your knocks made me feel like the door was going to break."
As he was speaking, Klein's eyes fell on Kiyotaka's face and he could suddenly feel the faint exhaustion beneath those calm blue eyes, even though his face and overall demeanor looked quite alright.
"You don't look particularly well yourself."
"I am fine."
"You look tired."
Kiyotaka looked at him and went silent. After a few moments of silence, he pursed his lips. "I am."
"...Long night?"
"It was."
Klein instinctively wanted to ask what had happened. However, after thinking about it for a brief moment, he gave up on the idea.
Ever since meeting Kiyotaka, he had gradually realised that the strange man rarely hid things out of distrust. Rather, if he believed something did not need to be said, then no amount of questioning would make him speak.
"I'll go take a bath first." Klein stood up from the couch and pointed towards the kitchen. "The coffee powder is in the lower cabinet, the kettle is beside the sink and the cups are on the shelf above it. How about you make some coffee? We both need it."
After taking a few steps, he suddenly stopped and looked back. "Actually... Now that I think about it, you've been here often enough that you probably already know where everything is."
"I do."
"...That's still a little unsettling. You never invite me over to your place."
"You are welcome to visit anytime. At least, there are no restrictions for you." Kiyotaka shrugged his shoulders.
Klein let out a scoff and then smiled faintly. "Alright. I'll come over for dinner tonight then."
"Sure."
"Deal."
With that said, Klein moved towards the bathroom and closed the door behind himself. As the sound of running water echoed from behind the closed door, Kiyotaka quietly unpacked the breakfast.
He placed the bread, eggs, sausages, beans, potatoes and fruit onto separate plates before arranging everything neatly on the table. Only then did he walk into the kitchen.
Without the slightest hesitation, he opened the lower cabinet and took out the coffee powder before reaching for the kettle beside the sink. As he filled it with water, his movements paused for a brief moment as he ruminated over Klein's words for a fleeting second.
He realised why he had come to visit him like this.
'Humans truly are creatures of habit.'
Kiyotaka reached no further conclusion than that before placing the kettle onto the stove. By the time Klein emerged from the bathroom, dressed properly and with his hair still slightly damp, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee had already spread throughout the apartment.
He looked towards the dining table and stopped for a moment.
The breakfast had already been arranged neatly across the table, while two cups of coffee rested beside the plates while thin wisps of steam were still rising from them.
"...You really made yourself at home."
Kiyotaka looked up from the newspaper he had picked up while waiting. "You inferred that I could."
"...Fair point." Klein pulled out the chair opposite him before sitting down. He picked up the coffee, took a sip and raised an eyebrow. "Not bad."
Neither continued the conversation after that.
Instead, they quietly ate breakfast while occasionally reading different sections of the morning newspaper.
The silence between them did not feel awkward like before. Instead there was a certain warmth to it, and somehow, Klein felt like he was once more back on Earth, sitting with his good friends and amidst his family.
And the realisation of it was bittersweet, because for a brief moment, he felt not as a Beyonder dealing with conspiracies but rather as a normal human being.
He felt like Klein Moretti, sitting with Benson and Melissa.
And at the same time, he felt like Zhou Mingrui sitting with a friend, eating breakfast after a long night of meeting deadlines.
Indeed, it was strange how humans worked.
They could survive nightmares, go through the absolute worst, and face things that should shatter and debilitate their minds, only to find comfort in something as insignificant as sharing a meal.
After a few minutes, when both of them were done eating, they wiped their mouths and began drinking the coffee that had gotten just the right temperature.
Klein took a sip from it and pressed his lips together. As he felt them stick, he looked at Kiyotaka. "It's too sweet. You know I don't drink this sweet."
"A little sweet sometimes is good." Kiyotaka took a sip from his coffee and felt his mind getting refreshed. "Even more so for you since you had little to no sleep. Not to mention, you had no food last night."
Klein looked at his reflection on the surface of the coffee and then up. "How do you know?"
"You ate like a starved beast after saying this could feed three people."
A little embarrassed, Klein placed his hand on his face.
"Alright, so anyways. I had been meaning to ask, how did you beat the Conspirer? It was a woman right?" Klein changed the subject. "The Police have said that there was a gas-leak and did not link it to the terrorist bombing."
Kiyotaka felt the warm liquid in his chest and nodded. "They have nothing to work on, even with Divination. I might be called in for questioning later on by the Nighthawks, but they would most likely not have any proof in regards to you or me."
Klein crossed his legs under the table. "I don't know about that. While yes, Emperor Roselle's Cards of Blasphemy are powerful, there is no telling what kind of Sealed Artifacts the Church might possess. It's better to tell them..."
"Cards of Blasphemy contains information from a Blasphemy Slate. If they were that easy to track, the Angels from various Churches would have obtained Black Emperor Card of Blasphemy which was right under their noses." Kiyotaka explained.
"While your concern is valid in some way, since there was a Card of Blasphemy in the possession of that Evil Spirit which is most likely a mashed version of negative resentment of Medici, Einhorn and Sauron."
Klein sank back into his seat. "True... We'll have to look deeper into it. Ah, yes, I almost forgot." His face twisted into something between a smile and a frown. "Miss Magician wished to send a message to Miss Justice regarding Williams Holmes."
Kiyotaka did not look up or show any reaction. Seeing this, Klein continued. "Now, I would advise you to not be hasty. I did not relay her information to Miss Justice. If she is smart enough, she'd understand that this information should not be transmitted."
"At the cost of revealing to her that I am directly related to either Mr. Fool or Mr. Emperor. Right?"
Klein huffed. "It's one thing or the other. I don't know what you did to get Miss Justice's attention, but it was bound to come out. Now the rest is up to you. You can either let only Miss Magician have suspicion about you."
"What information did she wish to give to Miss Justice?"
"Oh, it was that she had seen various Mystical Items in your possession, that you're a low-Sequence Beyonder, but she did not mention the Pathway. She also briefed about how your maid is a Beyonder as well."
Klein explained and then smiled. "That said, when did you get a Beyonder maid?"
"Not too long ago. She just recently became one." Kiyotaka replied with a change in expression.
"I see. Well, whatever you decide, try to not harm Miss Magician. I wouldn't want you, of all people, to clash against me. Please." Klein was about to tap the edge of his table, but stopped himself from doing it.
"Don't worry." Kiyotaka reassured. "To answer your previous question, I was able to beat her with some good luck and element of surprise. Yes, it was a woman. She had a Warrior Pathway priest helping her as well."
"Phew." Klein whistled. "Can't help but think they're absolute fools. Who would send only two people to do something as daring as this in the capital of Loen Kingdom."
"They might be fools, but at least they don't call themselves Fool."
Klein huffed loudly and exhaled through his nose. "Please do not joke again. It was not funny, like at all!"
Kiyotaka looked down at the table and at the empty cup of coffee. "Alright."
"Well, anyway. I assume you have two more Mystical Items to make?"
"I do." Kiyotaka did not reveal about Astrid Albrecht and how she's still alive.
"Can I borrow one or some of them if I ever needed them?"
"Feel free to. They are usually up there anyway." Kiyotaka shrugged.
"Thanks!"
After that, the conversation mainly revolved around mundane things, Kiyotaka's company and about each other's advancement.
Klein had begun to digest his potion, little by little. While he did not outright tell Kiyotaka, he was able to infer a few things from that conversation.
The first was that "Sherlock Moriarty" was not a real person and was only a forged persona. It was because Klein had somewhat slipped up a minor detail — whether it was deliberate or not, Kiyotaka was not sure.
There was also the fact that Klein's features were somewhat different than normal. It could not be differentiated from his normal one, but there were definitely changes.
If this was true, Kiyotaka assumed that "Sherlock Moriarty" was slowly introducing small changes into his features, until he had totally changed it into something acceptable for the potion to recognise as "Acting"
After all the talks, Kiyotaka helped Klein wrap things up and washed the dishes with him. Once that was done, Klein led him to the door.
As Kiyotaka wore his coat and hat, and Klein opened the door, they saw a man dressed in dark red-burgundy robes. He had a crazy look in his eyes and looked to be some kind of heretic.
"Good lads, good lads. Do not be afraid. I bring you a message of salvation." He leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice into a solemn whisper as his expression became increasingly fervent.
"Have you ever looked upon this world and wondered why humanity suffers? It is because humanity has forgotten its origin. We have forgotten the one who created us. We have turned away from the Father who gave us life. But He never abandoned us. No matter how many sins humanity committed, no matter how much hatred, greed, and corruption filled this world, He looked upon us with mercy."
"He carried the sins of all living beings upon His own shoulders. He endured suffering so that we would not have to bear it alone."
"The Lord sacrificed Himself for humanity."
Klein looked at Kiyotaka and then turned his head towards the man who had come to proselytise the two of them. "And is this Lord of yours called the True Creator?"
"Of course! Have you heard of our Lord and Savior?"
Klein shut the door so hard on the poor man's face that it caused the hood over his head to sway in the air, instantly shunning the man outside, alongside Kiyotaka.
The man raised his hands towards the sky. "The Lord sees everything! Repent while you have the time!"
He turned his head towards Kiyotaka. "Are you perhaps in—"
"No."
Kiyotaka turned around and left immediately.
He had nothing to do with the evil God. It was not out of righteous vigour, but rather he knew that entities like these were useless to argue or reason with. He and other believers of his were nothing more than pawns for him.
After taking a single carriage back home, Kiyotaka arrived at Sørlund Street.
Just as he was about to enter his home, he suddenly felt as if someone was standing behind him. When he looked back, however, there was no one.
As he turned around, he saw a figure dressed in tattered clothes standing in the corner, under a shade, beside the side-wall of the house.
Kiyotaka's eyes settled on him as the man bowed in his direction, making his already bent posture even more hunched.
He stared at the hunched man for a moment before motioning for him to follow after him.
Once they were inside, Kiyotaka went straight to this study room, ignoring Freya's greeting who was at the door and locked the study room after him.
As he turned around, he saw Mal rub his hands in a greedy manner and despite his features not visible, Kiyotaka could tell there was a grimace behind the hood. His lips parted as a croaky voices escaped it: "Aurora Order has come into contact with us—The Zmanger Gang."
He started speaking as Kiyotaka suddenly sunk into his seat. "They wish to collaborate with us on... Certain matters. In return, we will get their protection and information on the supernatural."
Kiyotaka hummed.