Information, as always, was another form of currency. Jack kept a close eye on the broader political landscape. Particularly regarding the [Forbidden Chalice].
He acquired information through various channels. The most obvious one was the Aether Daily. Lonestone's most prominent transcendent newspaper. It published many blunt articles related to the speculation about what had happened in the Valley of Despair.
Reina added more news from her recent transcendent contacts. They provided the grittier, more accurate details.
The Royal Faction had indeed acquired the [Forbidden Chalice]. This was no longer a rumor. Instead, it was an established fact. Following its acquisition, the Kingdom's forces seemed to have undergone a sudden, aggressive rejuvenation.
EK01-Hunters and other elite units were deployed with unprecedented speed. Targeting non-orthodox cults, pirate enclaves, and illegal transcendent organizations across the Elrush Kingdom. The purges were brutal, efficient, and surprisingly widespread.
Jack connected the dots. His analytical mind had quickly caught the implications. "They're not just quelling dissent." He murmured to Reina one evening, as they talked about it over their dining table. "They're hunting specific types of targets. Transcendent beings."
Reina sipped her tea and nodded. "They were trying to activate the chalice?"
"Obviously." Jack confirmed. His gaze was distant. "The [Forbidden Chalice] required equal or greater sacrifice to resurrect a person. If they wanted to resurrect an illuminated being like Elder Keystone or General Primefeller, they needed to sacrifice an illuminated being or multiple weaker transcendent people."
The implications were chilling. The kingdom-wide hunt for 'evil' individuals was not for justice. But for fuel. The Royal Faction was now potentially far more dangerous. What would happen when they ran out of 'evil transcendent beings'? Would they target... anyone?
...
That night, Jack slipped into his Jack Mystery form. A shimmering distortion in the air. Barely visible against the blackness of the night. He floated out of their study bedroom walls.
Rune was a tiny, glowing wisp beside his invisible head. It was time for his nightly patrol. His usual patrol route was loose. Dictated by instinct and the faint whispers of misfortune he could detect.
Tonight, he found himself drifting towards the Academy District. The area characterized by the grand educational institution. And various sprawling libraries. And the residences of scholars and their families.
The district was typically quiet. Especially at night. It was quite far apart from the loud clamor of the Industrial Districts and the port.
He was a silent observer. An invisible spectator. Watching a lone scholar burning the midnight oil, a young couple arguing softly in an alleyway, and stoic guards patrolling the academy grounds.
Suddenly, his senses felt a subtle tug. A strange, insistent urge. His spectral senses were usually attuned to the malevolent or the desperate. But this time, it was different. It wasn't malice. Nor was it distress. It was… a calling. A familiar one.
Following this 'calling', his invisible form veered off course. Drawn towards a specific, luxurious house. Nestled between two larger mansions. The Lingreen Residence. The home of the Fateless Twins. Adam and Alice.
Jack raised his eyebrows behind his spectral mask. He hadn't visited them in weeks. And he hadn't informed them that he would come. But he didn't hesitate to enter the house. The twins always had a way of knowing whenever he came.
He phased through the wall. Entering the familiar bedroom of the twins. The soft glow of a rune-powered nightlight illuminated the room. He didn't expect them to be asleep. They never did. No matter what time he went there. And he was right. He found them wide awake.
Adam and Alice sat upright in their separate beds. Their small forms were silhouetted against the dim light. Their blankets were pulled up to their chests.
Their faces were as usual. Flat, without expression. Even solemn. Almost grave. Their eight-year-old eyes were unnervingly perceptive. They were fixed on him the moment he appeared. There was no surprise. Only an expectant stillness.
"Jack." Adam greeted. His flat voice was a quiet murmur that held an unusual weight.
Alice nodded. Her gaze was unwavering. "We felt you coming."
Jack floated closer. Deactivating his invisibility. "Everything alright, Kids? You seem… more serious tonight." He commented.
Adam twisted his small hands in his blanket. "Not alright. Wicked thing is here."
"The stone man." Alice added. Her voice was chillingly calm.
Jack tilted his head. Intrigued. "Wicked thing? Stone man? What are you talking about, Kids?"
"They brought it to the museum today." Adam explained. Still in his childish, yet flat voice. "An evil statue."
"It's old." Alice chimed in. "And wicked. Nasty."
Jack felt a prickle of unease. The twins rarely made things up. And their abilities to sense supernatural threat were even greater than him. "Wicked? How?"
Adam leaned forward slightly. "It's a… kin slayer. Inhuman son."
"Traitor. Children devourer." Alice finished in low whisper. "Cursed man."
Jack processed their cryptic words. A stone statue. Delivered to the Lonestone City Museum. And... it used to be an evil man? Someone who was cursed and turned into a stone statue?
What was this? One of Medusa's victims? People who turned into statues due to her gaze? Or Malin Kundang? The ungrateful son cursed into stone in Sumateran folk tales?
This wasn't the usual case he typically dealt with. This felt different.
"Is there anything wrong with it?" Jack pressed for information. "Is the curse weakening? Does it corrupt anyone nearby?"
Alice looked at him in flat expression. "Both."
"And people want to use it. Dumb, evil people." Adam added.
"They'll release it." Alice chimed in. "Stupid ones."
Jack understood now. This wasn't merely a cursed statue affecting its surrounding. It was an entity, or at least a vessel for one. Sealed for some reason. Very likely because it carried a great danger. And there was a great risk of the danger to manifest due to some people's reckless actions.
He contemplated. The Lonestone City Museum was a public place. In the Central District, which was usually full of people during the day. If this 'stone man' carried such risk…
Jack nodded slowly. "Alright. I'll check it." He said. He needed to take a risk. The cryptic warnings from the twins needed confirmation.
"Stay safe, you two." He continued. "Don't go near the museum for a while."
Alice gave him a flat look. "We aren't stupid."
Adam also gave him a similar look. "It smells bad there. Very bad."
With a final, silent nod, Jack phased out of their bedroom. Back to invisibility. The warm, living presence of the twins faded behind him. Replaced by the chill of the night air.
Jack drifted through the city. The Academy District was not as crowded as the other districts. But, it was still usually filled with students and academics during the day. At night, like at present, t was very quiet though.
Gas lamps cast long, flickering shadows down cobbled streets. Illuminating closed buildings and silent residences.
He moved with purpose. His invisible form drifted higher. Allowing him to glide over rooftops. Taking the sky shortcut toward his destination. The Central District was a short distance away. Its grander architecture and wider thoroughfares gradually appeared beneath him.
Lonestone City at night was very different from its day-light counterpart. It was now a mosaic of soft glows and deep shadows. Accompanied by the distant hum of industrial machinery.
His destination stood as a monolithic structure of ornate stone. Its classical columns and grand entrance were imposing even in the darkness. The Lonestone City Museum.
It was well past midnight. The entire area was quite deserted. No late-night revelers. No patrolling city guards. Just the oppressive silence of a sleeping capital city. And a sleepy museum security guard. Sitting on the stair. Just right in front of the entrance door.
Jack descended. Phasing through the thick, cold stone of the museum's outer wall. The interior was like a cavern of darkness. Punctuated only by slivers of moonlight filtering through high windows. And the occasional gleam from polished display cases.
The air inside was heavy and stale. Imbued with the faint, peculiar scent of preservation chemicals and old dust.
He drifted through the silent halls. His senses were fully alert. The twins' warning had been specific. A stone man. A statue with wicked aura. It shouldn't be hard to find in a place like this. Right?
Jack phased through exhibits of ancient weaponry, fossilized remains, and old steamrune contraptions. All were mute witnesses to history.
Then, he felt it. A cold, insidious aura of corrupted power. Subtle enough to be missed by a regular human. But it was unmistakable to anyone with enough sensitivities, like him.
Jack grimaced. It was an aura of deep malice. Like a wound slowly festering. Dirtying the world with its corruption.
Following the malevolent trace, Jack found himself in a newly opened wing. One still smelling faintly of fresh plaster and polished wood. There, in the center of a circular pedestal, stood the statue.
Under a single, narrow beam of faint moonlight, it looked eerie. It was roughly man-sized. Slightly larger than the size of Jack's human incarnation. It seemed to be carved from a dark, rough stone. One that absorbed light rather than reflected it.
The depiction was crude. Almost primitive. Showing a hunched figure. Its rough features seemed to be distorted into a permanent grimace. Its hands were clutched to its chest as if holding an invisible, agony-inducing burden.
Its eyes were hollow and unblinking. They seemed to bore into the very essence of the museum's silence. The oppressive aura grew stronger here. A palpable weight that made the air feel thick and cold. Even in his invisible spectral form, Jack felt a shiver of unease.
Rune, his tiny wisp companion, pulsed with an agitated violet and crimson glow. Almost invisible to see for others. But perfectly clear in Jack's eyes. It was a clear sign of distress. Confirming the statue's ominous nature.
Jack hovered several meters away before the statue. His invisible form was silent. He focused his will. Activating his [Eyes of Judgement].
The world around him faded slightly. Replaced by a momentary wash of pure information. The statue, the pedestal, the very air around it... They all seemed to dissolve into streams of data.
Then, the familiar panel appeared. Stark and chilling. Floating before his vision.
[Name: Nalam Gandare]
[Race: Demonized Human]
[Age: 43 (578)]
[Affiliation: -]
[Karma: Extreme Negative]
[Power Level: Extremely High]
[Power Class: Mutated Beast Brawler]
[Power Traits: Aura of Corruption, Tainted Power Absorption, Demonic Vitality, Hyper Regeneration, Demigod Lifespan]
[Personalities: Selfish, Cunning]
[Attitudes: Cruel, Treacherous]
[Crimes: Cannibalism (71), Murders (788), Betrayals (52), Rapes (371),…]
[Current Status: Cursed, Sealed]
[Overview: ...]
Jack felt a wave of cold dread wash over him. A sensation far more potent than the ambient chill of the museum.
'Damn it!' He internally cursed. Demonized Human. Like... Count Bellcroft? No! Jack remembered that when the Count turned into Glorious Bellcroft, he became a demon completely. A Glorious Demon. This one should be a different case.
And this case... might be even worse.