Skip chapter 71 just an announcement
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"The Clockwork Clown? Yes, that's quite suitable for you."
After hearing Blaine's choice, Dunn thought for a moment and nodded.
Blaine's biggest problem right now was that his extraordinary abilities leaned toward support, lacking close-combat and fighting skills.
With this Sealed Artifact, he could compensate for that deficiency to some extent.
Moreover, the side effects of this particular artifact were relatively manageable. There was no life-threatening danger; at worst, it would put the user in an embarrassing situation.
Social death was better than actual death. Probably.
"Swish."
Dunn pulled out a document that had already been prepared from his drawer, quickly wrote down some text, then signed and stamped it before handing it to Blaine.
"Take this document and retrieve the Sealed Artifact from behind the Chanis Gate.
Also, Blaine, even though the Holy Cathedral has approved this, you shouldn't go around broadcasting it. It's better if not too many people know about it."
Dunn instructed him.
"I understand, Captain."
Blaine took the document.
It was an application for removing a Sealed Artifact and assigning it to personal custody, accompanied by the original telegram from the Holy Cathedral.
On the line for the Sealed Artifact, Dunn had clearly written the number 3-169.
Leaving the captain's office, Blaine descended the stairs all the way into the basement. Under the illumination of gas lamps, he arrived at the Chanis Gate.
"What do you need?"
Inside the guardroom of the Chanis Gate, Royale was reading a ladies' magazine. When she saw him enter, she asked.
"I'm here to retrieve a Sealed Artifact."
Blaine handed her the document.
After Royale finished reading the contents, she looked somewhat surprised but didn't ask any questions.
Following protocol, she made the registration, signed her name, and returned it to Blaine, allowing him to pass through.
Blaine walked toward the Chanis Gate behind her.
It was a double-door gate made of black iron, its top so high that one had to look up to see it.
Seven sacred emblems were drawn on the door, appearing profound and distant under the glow of the gas lamps.
Come to think of it, I've never stood guard at the Chanis Gate before.
Blaine thought to himself.
According to internal regulations, team members took turns guarding the Chanis Gate at night.
But since he'd joined the team, he'd always been held up by other matters, and as a result, he'd never once stood guard.
Blaine stepped forward and knocked on the large door. For a long while, there was no response from behind it.
After about ten seconds, just as Blaine was hesitating whether to knock again, the door opened with a labored, heavy creak.
"Creak..."
The door opened just wide enough for one person to pass through, and a black-robed old man holding a lantern emerged. He looked ancient and cold; even the warm light of the gas lamps shining on him couldn't bring him a trace of warmth.
"Document."
The withered old man said tersely.
Blaine handed him the document.
The old man read it expressionlessly, then carefully examined the Holy Cathedral's approval, finally turning his gaze to Blaine. His eyes were cold and merciless, making one's heart uneasy.
"Wait here."
Finally, the old man said hoarsely, then turned and walked inside, closing the door behind him.
The instant he turned around, Blaine's pupils suddenly contracted.
He saw something pitch-black flash across the old man's back. It wasn't just on the old man himself; the entire space behind the door was filled with black threads.
They floated quietly, sometimes clustering together, sometimes dispersing, appearing both peaceful and terrifying.
Blaine's eyes stung sharply. Fortunately, he'd only caught a glimpse before the door closed, avoiding further harm from direct observation.
This must be the sealing power inside the door. Pretty frightening. No wonder it can suppress other Sealed Artifacts.
He waited outside the door for a while until he finally received 3-169 from the old man.
It was a crude clown puppet.
Judging only by its appearance, it looked like a cheaply made toy.
The clown was made entirely of wood, with messy yarn for hair and facial features painted on with oil paint. On its back was a brass clockwork key.
Blaine reached out to touch the key, trying to turn it by hand, but it wouldn't budge.
So he infused it with spirituality, and the spring of the clockwork immediately became elastic, tightening gradually as he wound it.
If I pour all my spirituality into it, I wonder how many turns I could get?
Blaine pondered this as he wound the key and headed back upstairs.
The nice thing about this item was that you could wind it up in advance without using it, then activate it when needed.
Where should I test it?
Upon reaching the ground floor, Blaine noticed that an office happened to be empty.
He walked in and closed the door. Looking at the crude puppet, he hesitated briefly, then reached out and tapped its forehead lightly with his finger.
"Click!"
Like all wound-up toys, the clown puppet began to move.
"Ah ha ha! Ah ha ha!"
Its arms swung up and down, its head moved left and right, while it emitted a comical yet shrill laugh.
The laughter echoed throughout the office and resonated through Blaine's body. He suddenly felt incredibly light.
Lifting his leg to take a step, he immediately crossed the entire length of the room, rushing straight to the window.
Seeing he was about to crash into the windowsill, Blaine wasn't the least bit flustered.
At that moment, his right hand held the puppet, so he extended his left hand to brace against the windowsill, kicked off with both feet, leapt up lightly, flipped once in midair, and landed steadily on the backrest of an office chair, which was only two fingers wide.
Incredible.
Only then did Blaine realize what he'd just done, thinking with amazement.
The mirror across from him reflected his image: dressed in a formal suit yet crouching in an undignified position on top of the chair.
Just like a monkey.
For some reason, the corners of his mouth lifted, and he couldn't help but want to laugh.
"Creak..."
Just as he opened his mouth to grin, the office door opened. Ms. Seeka, who had entered, had only casually glanced around the room when she suddenly noticed Blaine's peculiar state.
Her eyes widened, and she lost her usual composure.
"Blaine... what are you doing?"
"Uh, I, I'm exercising."
Blaine explained awkwardly and quickly jumped down from the sofa.
The Clockwork Clown had exhausted its spirituality and stopped laughing. For a moment, he couldn't adapt to his suddenly clumsy body and nearly fell when he jumped down.
"Let's just say that's what you're doing."
Seeka looked too lazy to pursue his real intentions. "Klein has already submitted his special application for advancement, and everyone wants to hear about his success.
They're all in the lounge right now. You should hurry over and listen too. It'll be good for you."
With that, she turned and left, still shaking her head as she walked away.
Was that just now the side effect? I don't think I was laughing maniacally. Maybe it was just a coincidence.
Blaine awkwardly touched his face, stuffed the clown into his inner jacket pocket, and hurried outside to hear Klein's presentation.
In truth, this was a solution the three of them had worked out together: using the special application as an excuse to share the acting method with all the Beyonders in Tingen.
These teammates were good people. He hoped they wouldn't have to leave due to losing control.