Translators: Sfile, Lancent
"We are the guardians, but at the same time we are also the miserable people who are constantly fighting against dangers and madness."
The corridor outside the window was enclosed by the cold stone walls and the lights in the room shone in a bright yellow color. Dunn Smith’s voice echoed faintly in the environment. Every word that he said knocked on Klein’s heart. They made him speechless for a short time.
Noticing that Klein was at a loss for words, Dunn shook his head and smiled.
“Are you disappointed? Extraordinaries are not what you imagined. We are always walking with dangers.”
“Where there is a gain, there is a cost.” Klein recovered from the shock and took a moment to formulate his reply.
Indeed, he had not realized the potential risks beneath the glorious, uncommon, and outstanding surface of the Extraordinaries. However, perhaps it was because he had just heard about them and had yet to encounter them in real life. Or perhaps it was because he was already swept into a vortex of troubles where strange things could happen to him at any time. Therefore, he quickly reduced his fears, upsets, worries and some other emotions to a controllable level.
Certainly, the thoughts of giving up were inevitable; which lingered and refused to leave.
“Not bad. Very mature and sensible…” Dunn finished the last sip of coffee, then added, “In addition, Extraordinaries are not as powerful as you think. A low Sequence Extraordinaries… huh, why do we use 1 to represent the highest rank, while using 9 to represent the lowest? That is contrary to intuition and logic. When we say low Sequence, we usually say means low rank, with a high number. It is the starting point of the sequence chain.”
“All right. Where was I? Oh, right, Extraordinaries are not as powerful as you think. The power of a low Sequence Extraordinaries is no match for guns, not to mention cannons. They are just more magical, and less predictable than firearms. If you ever have a chance to become an Extraordinary, please consider what I have said today carefully. Do not rush into any decision.”
Klein gave a self-deprecating smile.
“I don’t even know when will I have the chance.”
If there was a chance, he believed that he would not let it go. Afterall, mistakes such as drinking the wrong potion, or taking a hyper-potent potion of higher rank could be avoided to most extents. The major potential risks were actually the subtle influences that came along with the potion, or the “dangers” one would hear or see with improved insight.
As for the former, he could utilize the experiences from the generations of forerunners. As long as he did not rush into promotions but gain the command of the power steadily, the probability of losing control should be relatively low. Moreover, his main objectives were to resolve the pressing hidden dangers, learn the essence of the occult studies, and find a way to transmigrate back. Those were the reasons why he would want to aim for the high Sequence positions. If it was really easy to lose control, he could always give up promotion, stay in the current sequence, and then plan the “way home” by utilizing his knowledge.
The potential risks of the later were even more needless to say. Klein’s memory was still fresh from the whispers that he heard during the luck conversion ritual. It had almost driven him crazy with his head exploding. That was not avoidable by not becoming an Extraordinary. In any case, it was better to gain some power so that he could combat the risks better.
Having evaluated these points, Klein felt that the pros and cons were so clear that the thoughts of withdrawal had almost disappeared.
Dunn picked up the pipe again and replied with smiles in his grey eyes.
“Regarding this matter, I cannot give you a definite answer. To become an Extraordinary… first, you need to earn enough credits. Perhaps you can decipher critical ancient documents, or provide useful opinions for our cases just tomorrow or the day after? Secondly, it depends on if there are new arrangements from above. As for that, no one can say for sure.”
“All right, I believe that now you have a better knowledge of Extraordinaries. You will not make impulsive choices in the future. Next, I will introduce you to the civilian jobs of our Night Watcher team.”
He stood up, paved to the door, pointed the direction opposite the “Chanes Gate”, and continued.
“We have an accountant and a coachman who is also responsible for purchasing necessary goods and collecting supplies from the church and police department. They are all professionals. They do not need to join the rotation and can rest on weekends. The other three civilians are Roseanne, Bright and Old Neil. Their respective jobs are: reception of visitors, cleaning the rooms, writing case files and item declaration lists, watching the library of weapons, materials, and documents, as well as exercising strict entries and registrations for claims. Each of them has one day off a week, other than Sundays. They negotiate among themselves on the arrangement of night shifts and rest days.”
“So I will perform the same job as Roseanne and the others?” Klein concluded his thought on Extraordinaries and tried to clarify his “job responsibilities”.
“No, you don’t have to. You are a professional.” Dunn smiled and said, “There are two things for you to do at the moment. First, go out for a walk every morning or afternoon, the focus is on the various streets from Welch’s residence to your home. ”
“What?” Klein was dumbfounded.
[What kind of “job” is that?
[What is so professional about that?]
Dunn put his hands in the pockets of his black windbreaker and said.
“After we have confirmed that you have really lost your memory, Welch and Naya’s case is considered closed. At the same time, the Antigonus family's notebook is completely lost. We suspect that you might have taken it at that time and hidden it on your way home. That’s why we couldn't find any clues in your home. That should be the reason why you committed ‘suicide’ at home instead of at the scene.”
“Although you were influenced by supernatural power and have forgotten this piece of memory, the human spirit and brain are very wonderful. There might be some residual traces that Daley could not obtain with the Soul Whisperer’s ability. It doesn’t mean that they don’t exist. Perhaps, at familiar places, at important places, you may have a feeling of recalling something that you have seen or done.”
“Those are the gains that we want.”
“I understand.” Klein suddenly realized.
[The Night Watcher’s deduction for the notebook’s whereabouts was reasonable.
[Among the people who were present at the scene, I am the only one who is still alive. Thus, only I had the time and ‘motivation’ to take the notebook and hide it on the way to home!]
“If you can find that notebook, you should be able to earn enough credits to be promoted to an Extraordinary.” Dunn Smith encouraged him, while indirectly revealed that the notebook was still important.
“I hope so.” Klein nodded.
Dunn then changed back the topic.
“Secondly, you can take a day off every week. For now, you can decide which day. When you are not outside, you can go to the library of weapons to read the documents and records that we keep. This is the job of a History professional. After you have read all of them, you can join the shift rotation.”
“Ok. No problem.” Klein secretly felt relieved.
[It doesn’t sound too hard…]
At this time, Dunn turned his body halfway and pointed to the black iron gate that was engraved with seven holy emblems.
“This is Chanes Gate’. It was named after the founder of the modern Night Watcher system, Archbishop Chanes. There is one of these under every major city’s central church.”
“It is guarded by formal members of the Night Watchers on rotation. There are also at least two ‘keepers’ from within the church and countless traps. Do not get close to it in any circumstances. Otherwise, you will be contaminated with misfortune.”
“Sounds scary.” Klein expressed his feelings.
“The area inside is divided into a few sections. We keep potion recipes of certain sequences and different kinds of magical materials. We also use it to temporarily hold heresies, unusual species, cultists and members of secret organizations. Well, they will be eventually sent to the Sacred Temple.” Dunn casually introduced.
[The Sacred Temple? It is the headquarter of the Church of the Goddess of the Night, located in Winter County to the North of the kingdom. It is also known as the "Temple of Serenity".] Klein nodded slightly as if he was thinking.
“Moreover, there are copies of all kinds of classified documents and records. You might get a chance to read them when you have a higher clearance.” Dunn hesitated for a while and said, “and at the bottom floor behind the Chanes Gate, there are some Sealed Artifacts.”
“Sealed Artifacts?” Klein pronounced the words carefully.
[It sounds like a special noun.]
“Among the extraordinary items that we have collected and retrieved, some of them are too important and too magical. If they fall into wrong hands, they can create great damages. That is why we need to keep them strictly secret and watch them carefully. Even we can only use them in certain circumstances. And…” Dunn paused at this point and continued, “there are some very special existences, which have certain kind of ‘living’ characteristics. They can lure the guards, influence the surroundings, escape by themselves, and cause catastrophic consequences. They need to be strictly controlled.”
“Very magical,” Klein commented.
“The Night Watchers' headquarter classifies Sealed Artifacts into four grades. Grade ‘0’ represents Extremely Dangerous. It has the highest importance and highest secret level. They are not allowed to be enquired, or be disseminated, or be described, nor be pried into. They can only be sealed under the 'Sacred Temple'.” Dunn described further, “Grade ‘1’ is Highly Dangerous. They can be used in limited ways. The secret level is diocesan bishops, senior Night Watchers and above. The central churches of diocese headquarters, such as Beckland, can keep one or two of them. The rest should be turned to the 'Sacred Temple'”.
“Grade ‘2’ is Dangerous. They can be used with caution and abstinence. The secret level is bishop and Night Watchers' team captain and above. The central churches in all big cities can keep three to five of these items. The rest shall be turned in to the Sacred Temple or to the diocese headquarters. Grade '3' is Somewhat Dangerous and needs to be used carefully. They can only be applied for operations with three or more participants. The secret level is official members of the Night Watchers.”
“In the future, when you read the corresponding documents, you will understand what it means in the numbers. For example, 2-125 is the Dangerous grade Sealed Artifact no. 125.”
While Dunn was speaking, he suddenly turned, walked back to the room, and pulled a piece of paper from the bottom of the drawer.
“Oh, take a look at this. Three years ago, a newly appointed archbishop lost control. He somehow managed to break through the multiple layers of protections and mysteriously disappeared with a '0' grade Sealed Artifact. You can memorize his photo. If you ever see him, do not rattle or disturb him, come back to report it immediately. Otherwise, the chance of you dying at duty is a thousand percent.”
“What?” Klein took that piece of paper. There was no title on it. There were only a black and white photo and a few lines.
“Ince Zangwill. Male. 40 years old. Former archbishop. A ‘Gatekeeper’ who failed in his promotion. He was lured by the devil and had fallen into evil. He escaped with Sealed Artifact ‘0-08’. His detailed characteristics are…”
In the photo, Ince Zangwill wore an all-black double-side priest robe and a hat. His hair color was dark blonde, his pupil was deep dark blue, his nose was high, and his lips were clenched. His features looked like those of a classical sculpture with no traces of wrinkles. The most eye-catching feature was a blind eye.
“The description for the fallen was in full details, while there was only a codename for the Sealed Artifact…” Klein honestly expressed his first impression.
“This was the highest secret level. The delivery of the search request for Seal Artifact ‘0-08’ is oral, with no written texts. That is why there are only a few descriptions.” Dunn sighed, “‘0-08' appears to be a common quill, but it can write without ink. That is all.”
Dunn said no more about the topic. He took out a gorgeous pocket watch along the golden chain on his black windbreaker. Then, he clicked open, took a look, and pointed outside the door.
“I’ve told you all you need to know. You can now look for Old Neil at the library of weapons. Let him arrange for your document readings. He is not a normal civilian clerk but he used to be a formal member. He is just old, has not been promoted, with bad health, and is in no condition to take care of cases. However, he is unwilling to become an internal 'Keeper' or rest at home. All he wants is to be accompanied by documents and records.”