To make sure Lilith wasn't just pulling his leg, Klein even sent a paper crane to ask the Snake of Mercury for confirmation.
The reply he got was, to put it mildly, the textual definition of "guilty conscience."
"It wasn't me who told you that!"
The phrasing alone practically screamed 'yes, it was me.'
So, Klein pretty much accepted the fact that he really was a Blessed of the Evernight Goddess.
After four or five days of hesitation—and conducting multiple divinations atop the grey fog just to be certain—he finally reached a decision:
Go to the Church.
See for himself.
He followed the crowd of believers into the grand, solemn Saint Samuel Cathedral. Out of caution, he deliberately sat near the back pews, so he could switch places with the Marionette he'd left outside at a moment's notice if something went wrong.
At the altar stood a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing a black double-breasted clerical robe. He spoke gently, patiently explaining doctrine to the faithful. This was Bishop Electra, the presiding bishop of Saint Samuel Cathedral.
The sermon lasted nearly two hours.
At the end, the congregation made the Sign of the Sacred Emblem across their chests and whispered devoutly:
"Praise the Lady."
Then came the donation segment—though, of course, it wasn't mandatory.
The main contributors were always the nobles, who would casually toss dozens or even hundreds of gold pounds into the donation box—each of them donating more than hundreds of common parishioners combined.
Klein originally planned to throw in a token pound or two just for show. But seeing the people in front of him tossing money around like it was pocket change…
If he took out a few measly pounds now, wouldn't that stand out far too much?
So he clenched his jaw, steeling himself—and pulled out ten gold notes of ten pounds each.
"Sir," Bishop Electra looked up just as Klein approached and immediately addressed him.
Klein tensed, clutching the notes tighter and hurriedly shoving them into the offering box. Then he forced a polite smile and said quickly, "Praise the Lady!"
"Praise the Lady,"
Electra returned the blessing with a nod—but after a brief pause, he added in a lower voice, "Sir, the Archbishop said…if you ever came, you may proceed directly to see him at the back of the church."
"Ah?"
Klein froze.
His gaze drifted reluctantly toward the offering box.
Can I…still take that money back?
Electra caught his expression and couldn't help a sigh of admiration.
"As expected," he thought. "This gentleman truly values money just as much as the Archbishop said…"
In the end, Klein didn't have the heart to ask for his donation back. He followed a priest who guided him through the corridors at the back of the church, eventually entering a quiet meditation chamber—
Where Archbishop Anthony Stevenson awaited him.
"Hello."
The Archbishop's tone was mild, his face composed, a polite smile on his lips.
"Should I address you as Gehrman Sparrow, Sherlock Moriarty, or Klein Moretti?"
"..."
For a brief, dreadful instant, Klein thought—I'm really bad at acting as a Faceless.
One look, and the man had stripped his disguise bare.
Thankfully, he hadn't said "Zhou Mingrui," or worse—"The Fool."
Otherwise, Klein was sure his soul would've leapt out of his body on the spot.
"Just…Klein is fine," he said carefully.
"Very well."
Anthony nodded slightly.
"Then may I still consider you a member of the Church of the Evernight—a Nighthawk?"
"...Of course."
Klein hesitated for a second before hastily adding,
"Archbishop, about my…resurrection—"
Anthony raised a hand, cutting him off with a gentle chuckle.
"I'm not here to condemn you. As a Blessed of the Lady, you have no need to explain anything to me."
Klein's heart gave a heavy thud.
Confirmed!
I really am the Evernight Goddess's Blessed!
"All right," Anthony continued. "Come with me. I'll take you behind the Chanis Gate to retrieve what you seek."
What I seek?
He meant…the Antigonus family notebook, didn't he?
Originally, Klein had planned to disguise himself as a wealthy benefactor, slowly earning the Church's trust, and eventually sneak a Marionette into the catacombs to steal the notebook.
But now…they were just giving it to him?
That was undeniably a good thing.
And yet, Klein couldn't shake the feeling that he was walking into a fog of mysteries he couldn't quite see through.
Why was the Evernight Goddess helping him so much?
Why did Lilith know he was the Goddess's Blessed—did Edward tell her?
And how did the Goddess even know he wanted the notebook in the first place?
Had she…been watching him all along?
Would a true deity really keep an eye on a mere Sequence 5?
Klein could think of only one possible explanation—That enigmatic power above the grey fog.
He followed Anthony down a spiral staircase leading underground. The air grew colder, quieter. The corridor was dim, the front swallowed in shadow, and the back just as black.
Klein couldn't help feeling a thread of tension coil in his chest. He exhaled slowly, forcing his mind to stay calm.
Before long, they arrived before a pair of massive iron double doors, their surface engraved with seven sacred emblems. Nothing mortal could possibly move them.
Anthony stepped aside, knocked lightly on the door of the adjoining guard room, and under the supervision of the on-duty Nighthawks, the Chanis Gate slowly opened.
A deep darkness surged from within.
Even though ornate silver candles burned quietly along the walls, their cold, bluish flames only deepened the oppressive silence rather than dispelling it.
The moment Klein stepped through the Chanis Gate, he felt it—as if countless invisible tendrils slithered out of the darkness, brushing against his skin and sinking into his flesh. A biting chill crept into his bones.
"From here on," Archbishop Anthony said evenly, his voice calm and solemn, "you'll have to proceed alone. Take what you came for, and return immediately."
Klein froze for a second, confused.
"But…I don't even know where it is."
"On the second level," the Archbishop replied. "You'll see it when you get there."
Though uncertainty gnawed at him, Klein had no choice but to obey.
He picked up a nearby oil lantern, lit it, and stepped silently into the depths—the forbidden vault that housed countless Sealed Artifacts, each carrying power enough to destroy cities or shatter minds.
With every step deeper into the darkness, that cold, suffocating air grew heavier. He could almost feel the sealed horrors pressing against the walls, whispering in the void. The flickering blue flame in his lantern cast long shadows that seemed to breathe.
Suppressing the instinctive chill crawling up his spine, Klein walked past one stone gate after another. From behind them leaked an endless variety of unsettling sensations — whispers, pressure, eyes he couldn't see but felt upon him.
Finally, as he descended to the second level, the atmosphere changed.
The walls here were crafted from iron, brick, earth, and silver, twisted into strange, almost ritualistic patterns. They divided the vast space into separate chambers — some open, others sealed — each housing a different relic of unimaginable power.
Klein kept his gaze fixed forward, reciting silently the Nighthawk discipline:
"See nothing, hear nothing, think nothing."
He dared not let curiosity wander.
After passing several closed chambers, his intuition suddenly flared — something was calling to him.
He turned instinctively toward his right.
There, hidden behind layers of cold air, came the faint sound of a heartbeat —
Thump, thump…
Slow and deliberate, like the pulse of a slumbering beast.
Klein followed the invisible pull, his steps cautious but swift.
Two or three minutes later, he found himself standing before a half-open stone door. The room beyond was pitch-black — the kind of darkness that seemed to swallow light whole.
He raised his lantern and stepped closer. The dim glow revealed a bookshelf made entirely of bones, its white surface gleaming eerily.
And there, on the top shelf—
A black, hard-covered notebook rested quietly, its presence so heavy it felt alive.
Klein's heart skipped a beat.
"The Antigonus Family Notebook…"
At once, a voice echoed softly in his ears, unreal yet familiar, chanting rhythmically like a heartbeat:
"Hornacis…Flegrea…Hornacis…Flegrea…"
That whisper made his scalp prickle.
He'd found it.
No doubt about it.
Everything had come full circle — right back to the beginning.
Months ago, the original Klein Moretti had been driven to suicide by this very book.
And in the aftermath of that death, he had crossed into this world—taking Klein's place, inheriting his body, his fate.
And now, after all this time, all the struggles, all the deaths and resurrections—
He was here again.
The same book. The same darkness.
A perfect loop.
No joy. No fear. Not even excitement.
Only calm resignation.
He stretched out his gloved hand, his voice low and steady.
"Let's end this."
Just as his fingers brushed the notebook—
Clack.
A soft, deliberate sound echoed from the doorway, like the step of a boot.
Klein froze.
He turned sharply toward the sound.
Standing in the doorway was a hooded figure, draped in flowing robes of old-fashioned design. Her face was beautiful yet eerily blank, her eyes black as ink—deep, cold, and utterly devoid of light.
Recognition struck instantly.
It's her.
The mysterious woman who had once appeared out of nowhere and saved him from Amon.
So…she was a high-ranking member of the Church of the Evernight?
Klein hastily bowed.
"Good evening, madam. Thank you again for rescuing me last time."
"May I ask…what brings you here?"
The woman's empty eyes turned toward him. Her voice, when it came, was melodious and detached.
"Do you seek the Antigonus Family Notebook…or the higher Sequence formula of the Seer Pathway?"
Klein blinked, momentarily stunned.
What did she mean?
The whole reason he wanted the notebook was to divine the formula!
After a brief hesitation, he answered honestly,
"I plan to use the notebook to search for clues about the higher Sequence formulas."
"Then," she said lightly, "if there were a faster, simpler way to obtain it…would you try it?"
Klein's instincts screamed danger.
He tensed immediately.
"Um…I think I'd rather take things slowly and safely, step by step."
The woman stared at him silently for a few moments.
Then she raised her hand.
In an instant, the black notebook vanished from the shelf—and reappeared in her hand.
Her lips curved faintly.
"And now?"
"..."
Klein's expression twitched.
You've already made the decision for me, and now you're pretending to ask my opinion? Are we…playing a game here?
Still, she had saved his life once.
He sighed.
"Could you, uh…ask me that question again?"
Her tone didn't change.
"If there were a faster way to obtain the formula, would you try it?"
Klein forced a smile.
"Of course I would."
The woman nodded slightly.
"Good. Then I wish you success."
Before he could respond, the world blurred.
Klein watched in horror as his body began to fade—like a pencil sketch being erased by an invisible hand.
Within seconds, he was gone.
"...Crap."
That was the last thought to cross his mind before his consciousness dissolved into nothingness.
———
Earl Hall's Mansion.
In the manicured gardens, Earl Hall and his wife were taking an afternoon stroll when a group of men in Church of the Evernight's uniforms suddenly entered the grounds.
They were the Beyonders assigned to protect the Hall family after the recent assassination attempt.
"My lord, my lady," the leading clergyman said gravely, "we've just received urgent orders. Please come with us to Saint Samuel Cathedral immediately. The Church and the government are about to conduct a joint air-defence exercise."
Earl Hall frowned.
"An air-defence drill? Why haven't I heard anything about this?"
"It's a last-minute decision," the priest replied. "Purely precautionary. For your family's safety, please come with us right away."
For a brief moment, the Earl simply stared at him—then realisation dawned.
"Pack our things. We're leaving for the Church. Now."
He turned to his butler.
"Hibbert, where's Audrey?"
"She went out to meet a friend, sir."
"Bring her back immediately."
"Yes, sir."
Hibbert bowed and hurried off.
Lady Hall, noticing her husband's sudden tension, leaned closer.
"Dear…what's going on?"
The Earl patted her hand gently.
"Nothing. It'll all be over soon."
He turned his gaze toward the distant direction of the royal palace—and sighed deeply in his heart.
"I hope so."
———
Meanwhile—
At the Aurora Order's stronghold in Backlund, Audrey sat anxiously in the drawing room beside Priscilla, waiting for Lilith's arrival.
This was the meeting time and place they'd agreed upon the day they last parted.
If Lilith was going to come, it might as well be now—and Audrey had far too many questions waiting to be answered.
Just then, a man in bloodstained armour appeared out of thin air.
He strode to the window, crossed his arms, and looked up at the sky, his expression dark and cold.
"Tch. Took them long enough," he said quietly.
"So…it's finally begun."
———
[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.