Episode 21 – "There exists a secret world in this world. And these events happen in the secret world. Moving corpses. Monsters…"
"Good heavens. Are you saying this isn’t a joke?"
Rudolph had always regarded things like ghosts or goblins as just fairy tales. The other policemen were the same.
"They exist. And they’re a threat to reality."
"G-Good heavens."
"I’d like to handle this matter normally, but we probably can’t avoid reporting this to the higher-ups. Please exclude what I did from that story."
"Why, why is that? Everyone would need your help if there’s someone as great as you."
"The only thing I did was call out its name. And secrets lose their power the more people know about them. So please."
"U-Understood, Professor Hexen."
Rudolph, who saw the faint light glimmering in Charles’ eyes, unconsciously thought that Charles was right.
"Let’s search the surrounding area for any potential evidence."
The policemen hesitated to touch the corpse covered in cloth for a while. Instead, they explored the surroundings, looking for the tools used in the crime, and they succeeded.
The tool used was a giant machining tool, the kind you might find in a butcher shop. Figuring out how it was smuggled and placed in his basement would soon be clear after further investigation.
This tool was used to neatly dismember the body. However, the tool that was used to carve the face was not found. Charles speculated that it was a sculpting knife, probably held by someone from the Sculptor Guild.
Meanwhile, Charles used his spiritual ability to survey the surroundings and found something. It was a bundle, inside of which there were countless ‘bolts.’
These were magically reprocessed bolts, used as materials for controlling dolls or humans through brainwashing. Realizing he could use these to track the culprit, Charles secretly took them.
Below the bolts was a piece of paper hidden discreetly in a crevice between rocks.
- A red moon will rise in the sky. When ready, carry out the ceremony. After carrying out the ceremony, do not leave any traces.
‘Vince left a trace, though.’
It seemed like a case of choosing the wrong henchman. Most people with spiritual abilities often faced problems because they couldn’t choose the right henchmen. In the secret world, this was not unusual.
As Charles continued reading, the next passage caught his eye.
- Those who were with you will also carry out the ceremony in their own places. Look forward to the newly created dolls.
‘Dolls? Not just one, but several?’
Charles frowned. It was clear that murders must have occurred in places he hadn’t seen. But the Police Department had no leads, and there was no reaction from the journalists. It was obvious that the incidents probably took place in the slums.
‘Should I check out the mafia? It seems too much for now.’
Charles sighed.
‘Indeed, I need divination. If I had used divination, I wouldn’t have even thought about going after the mafia.’
Thinking that he absolutely needed divination abilities, Charles continued reading the note. He realized the next part was written in ink that could only be seen through spiritual means.
- There is an alchemist at 99 Mundanke Street. Buy the secret materials needed for the ceremony from the alchemist. The most important thing is not to reveal your identity. Do not show any weaknesses. And you must show the medal engraved with the pentacle. That is the sign of the deal.
‘…Alchemist?’
Then he found the medal below the note. It was made of yellow brass and crafted in a special manner, though he couldn’t find anything more remarkable about it.
Charles quickly organized his thoughts. Then he called for Rudolph, informing him that he had found this note. For the rest of the murders, Louis would handle it.
The police and Charles’ underground investigation ended there. The policemen commented that they wouldn’t be able to sleep for a while, and one of them approached Charles to speak separately.
It was Bernard Hipsen, a devout follower who recited the doctrine of the Church of Light.
"Professor Hexen."
"Bernard Hipsen?"
"I wish to follow you. That light… I believe that light will guide me."
Bernard Hipsen seemed like an ordinary policeman. However, Charles had long known, by observing his behavior, that he was quite unstable and sought peace of mind.
Due to this incident, Bernard’s level of enlightenment must have greatly increased, and so did his anxiety.
Light attracts unstable insects. It’s natural for a man trapped in a spider’s web to be drawn to the light.
"Do you want to understand the light?"
"Yes. I wish to understand it. Please, show me that light…"
"Bernard. It’s too early for you to understand the light. How about coming to the gathering and observing the light first?"
"Ah! I understand. Where should I go?"
Charles gently drew Bernard in. Although he was a follower of the Church of Light, it seemed like he was completely captivated by Charles’ spell.
It was the moment when a policeman from the Police Department joined the Nameless Church. Based on this moment, the Nameless Church would expand throughout Metropole and influence every place.
‘I wanted Rudolph with spiritual powers, but this is a good start. Bernard is likely to bring his colleagues to the Nameless Church gatherings. Let’s start drawing in the lower-level policemen through him.’
As a result of this incident, the interior of the Police Bureau became chaotic. They anticipated it to be a simple corpse discovery, but several inspectors testified about the same thing, and the bizarre scenery they saw upon revisiting was no lie.
The fired bullets and the strange transformation of Vince’s basement alone were horrific to look at.
"That journalist! If he approaches, just get rid of him."
Louis, frustrated, warned them about the impending hyenas. Reporter Vecto, having caught a scent of the case, would surely come by, so Louis ordered them to beat him with a baton if he did(?).
"Inspector… You know we can’t touch reporter Vecto."
"Shut up! We need to keep our mouths shut about this case."
Louis thought it was time to use his secret connections. He sent a telegram not to the Police Department at the Metro branch but to the capital, Insignia’s Police Department headquarters.
When he went to meet Chief Kane after sending the telegram, an unpleasant figure was sitting there. It was a journalist with a clean face, having removed his fedora and sporting a 2:8 part.
"Hehe. It’s too late already."
"What? Don’t tell me, Chief?"
The distorted Louis looked at the Chief Kane sitting before Vecto. The chief was smoking a pipe with a solemn expression.
"It wasn’t me. The old man who owns that house contacted me in advance. Since they searched it thoroughly and discovered the hidden secret door below, the owner couldn’t help but notice."
"Hehe. What could I do? Being from Sundayk Street, he told me about the story for a bit of compensation. That’s what we were discussing."
"Vecto!"
"Calm down, Louis."
Chief Kane put down his monocle and rubbed around his eyes. With presbyopia, he struggled to read without his glasses, which had always been Louis’ complaint about having such an old man as the chief of Metropole.
‘A parachute who got in through connections!’
‘An insolent inspector. If there was any excuse, you’d be fired immediately.’
Kane disliked the rebellious attitude of Louis, the playboy who would have been sacked if not for his performance.
"Anyway, this case will be in tomorrow’s newspaper."
"No! That’s…!"
Just as a long argument was about to start, the phone suddenly rang. Kane casually picked up the phone.
"Yes, this is Chief Kane of the Metropole Police Bureau. Yes, who is this?"
Kane’s eye widened suddenly. Then he looked at Louis. Seeing Louis’ indifferent expression, he seemed to have already known this.
"Understood. I will handle this case without blowing it out of proportion. Yes, then."
"Yes? What does that mean?"
As Vecto asked in confusion, Chief Kane put down the phone and stuffed more tobacco into his pipe. It was chain-smoking. Knowing that Chief Kane smoked like this when in a bad mood, Vecto closed his mouth instead of complaining.
"It’s an order from above."
"Above… As in, from the capital, Insignia…?"
"Yes. You may leave now, Louis."
"Yes, then."
Louis left with a satisfied smile, and Kane plainly ignored him. After Louis left, Vecto asked.
"Who from Insignia?"
"MI7. They said they’re sending an investigator for this case."
"It’s unusual for the secret police to meddle. Do they need a dedicated investigator for it?"
"That’s a bit unclear."
"Yes?"
"Meaning, it was a call from a team leader, not a director-level person. Don’t publish the article. But how about investigating it separately?"
A team leader from MI7, the secret police, held more power than a chief in another region, but there was something fishy. Although it didn’t seem like a big deal, Kane had never had a good experience when connected to them.
"Let’s do that. But what about the promise with the count?"
"I will send someone separately about that."
"Yes, understood."
Kane watched Vecto leave. An illegitimate child of a count in this day and age… Well, thanks to him, Kane had grown closer to the count, so he didn’t have much complaint.
Giving up on thinking about Vecto, Chief Kane put down his cigarette. Knowing that Louis had his own claws was a gain, but something felt off.
‘How does that guy have a connection in MI7? I need to look into this.’
The day after Charles sent the letter mentioning the corpse, Evren Lindé came immediately. Since the police had found the body, Evren Lindé would have retrieved it.
"Ah, Mrs. Lindé."
Evren Lindé politely bowed and handed Charles an anonymous check worth 100,000 pounds.
"Thank you, Professor Hexen. Thanks to you, I was able to find my daughter’s body."
"It’s my job."
Charles nodded slightly, feeling puzzled about Evren Lindé’s visit. She could have just sent the money through a servant.
"If you don’t mind, I’d like to invite you to my mansion to express my gratitude. Please don’t say no."
"…If that’s what you want, I’ll see you this Sunday."
Evren Lindé bowed as she bade farewell. Although Charles had many things to do, he accepted her invitation due to the bizarre madness he occasionally glimpsed in her eyes.
In the original work, Evren Lindé wasn’t a significant character. But Charles was sure something was happening beneath the surface that he wasn’t aware of.
-
Hmm. That woman seems dangerous.
-
So, you think so too?
- My psychopath detector is going off.
-Huh.
This time, Charles decided to ignore Parina Coeur’s words.
Now, Charles was thinking of acquiring divination abilities. For that, he needed materials.
‘With 100,000 pounds, I should visit the auction house and buy the remaining materials.’
