13 Mink Street

Chapter 60: Feels Strong!

With a dull thud, the Chasset man’s corpse was tossed into the rear of the hearse.

Alfred stepped down, shut the rear door, and then pulled a thick wad of cash from his pocket that he offered to the Chasset woman who had helped him to create a diversion and carry the body.

She was still holding the lockbox she had worked so hard to pry open, but the rupi within did not amount to what Alfred was offering.

She pushed his hand away. “This is what I was supposed to do.”

Leaning back against the hearse door, she turned her head and asked, “Got a cigarette?”

“I do.” Alfred did not smoke, but the first time he had encountered Karon, the Great One himself had laughed and smoked with Ms. Molly, and that scene that had shaken Alfred to his core.

From that day on, he always kept cigarettes on him, ready to offer one whenever his Young Master felt like smoking. If one day a mural depicted him handing a cigarette to the Great One, Alfred would be deeply satisfied, and any believer gazing upon it would surely think their relationship was extraordinarily close.

The woman lit the cigarette, took a drag, and said, “I prayed to the gods, and the gods answered me.”

Alfred smiled. “Maybe it wasn’t the gods who heard you.”

She shrugged. “Whoever heard me is a god to me, isn’t that right?”

“You are not wrong.” He paused, then added, “But do you really not want the money, even though your husband just died?”

“You don’t understand the Chasset.” Leaving only that sentence behind, the woman hugged the lockbox to her chest and walked away.

“We don’t love poverty,” she continued, not turning back. “But wandering is who we are.”

Watching her disappear, Alfred muttered to himself, “I used to think that way too.”

Now, though...

“Having an official position really is nice.”

If he had not presented the credentials Tiz had issued to that terrifying old man from the Church of Order, Alfred’s best possible outcome would have been shopping for a suitable eyepatch at the night market.

He walked from the parking area back to the circus tent. There was no longer anyone checking tickets at the entrance. With the show was already halfway over, people were constantly stepping out for air or convenience.

As Alfred entered, Mandira was just raising her arms and rising up from the water tank. The crowd’s excitement had reached its peak. The central aisle was packed, which forced Alfred to skirt along the edge of the tent and loop around to get back to the VIP section.

As he passed near the stage, he glanced at Mandira in the tank. Something subtle felt off about her. He did not hesitate to use his Succubus Eye, given that he was already bent low to avoid blocking anyone’s view and that he could not afford to linger.

As he neared the VIP section, he saw his Young Master, his head buried in Miss Eunice’s arms.

As expected of the Great One, Alfred thought. Such rapid progress.

Setting aside any other anomalies, Karon’s actions alone gave Alfred an impression that things were unusual.

The young man was steady and composed, rational without rejecting emotion. He had a state of mind that was usually found in elderly people who had experienced a close brush with death and understood gains and losses clearly.

Just as Alfred was about to raise a hand to signal his return, he saw his Young Master suddenly turn to look at the stage. There was a chilling coldness in his eyes. His lips moved.

Alfred’s public profession was radio host, and language had always been his greatest area of expertise. He could even read lips.

“Go... die?”

What did it mean? The words were not spoken in Marcan, the common tongue of Veyn and Swillen.

At that moment, a disturbance erupted onstage. Alfred turned just in time to see Mandira pull the magician into the water tank.

The audience erupted in cheers, assuming this was the second phase of the act.

Alfred did not. He raised one hand to cover his left eye. His left eye flushed red, and through the gap between his fingers, he saw a thick black aura spilling from the woman in the long dress. She was a corpse.

Alfred looked back at his Young Master, the lip movement replaying in his mind. “Go... die?”

He still did not know the exact meaning of those syllables, but he felt their direction clearly.

No. That language... The language of the hymn! Alfred realized it in an instant; His Young Master had spoken the curse of a heretical god.

Shock flooded through Alfred’s mind, followed by a chill that crept up his spine.

Thank the gods that old man already left. If he was still here, wouldn’t he have sensed this as well? Beings of that level don’t need to deliberately probe to perceive abnormalities. Their senses alone surpass human comprehension.

Alfred’s knees grew weak. He instinctively braced himself against Lent’s shoulder and slowly sank into his seat.

It had been so close. If the old man had not left, would his Young Master’s identity have been exposed? Even the most powerful existence was weakest at the moment of descent, which was precisely why attendants were necessary. Choosing the right attendant determined whether the Great One could survive their fragile beginnings.

Thankfully, Alfred’s Young Master had shown impeccable judgment in choosing Tiz.

Even so... Alfred leaned forward slightly, eyes fixed on his Young Master. Danger is everywhere.

Circus staff went up onstage and pushed the water tank backstage. The audience grew a little confused. Was that the curtain call for this act?

Very soon after, when several flaming hoops appeared on the stage, the crowd’s attention was instantly directed elsewhere. A new acrobatic act had appeared, and the performance continued.

“Let’s go,” Karon said to Eunice.

Mandira had been a corpse all along, but the magician had just become one.

There was definitely something wrong with this circus. Its operations went outside of the bounds of an ordinary performance, but Karon had no intention of investigating right away. Even with Alfred present, honestly, Alfred could not give Karon absolute reassurance.

Additionally, Mina and the other three children were present, as well as Eunice. This was not the time to push things.

First, Karon would send Eunice and the children safely home. Then, he would report everything to Tiz and leave the investigation to him.

That was the safest and most reliable approach. As for the fact that the children would miss the end of the show, well, they could live with that regret.

“All right,” Eunice nodded. She assumed that Karon was feeling unwell, so she immediately turned to Mina beside her. “Mina, let’s leave. We’re going home.”

Mina wanted to keep watching, but still nodded obediently and passed the message along to Clarice and Sara.

“Uncle Alfred, Karon says we’re going home now.”

“Okay, okay,” Alfred said. He was more than eager to leave. “Stick close to me. We’ll go around the front and out that exit.”

“Mhmm.”

Alfred led the way, the children following behind him with Karon taking up the rear while holding Eunice’s hand. Together, they moved closer to the area near the stage, and then angled towards a corner.

At just that moment, a large ball hanging overhead, something everyone had assumed to be just another decoration, suddenly split open, releasing a dense flurry of paper slips that fluttered down like snow.

A voice came over the microphone, “Tonight’s lucky draw is about to begin! Whoever picks up a paper slip with a blue side can come straight to the stage to claim a prize: a large, colorful lollipop!

“First come, first served!”

Ahead of Alfred, several members of the circus staff pushed out a cart packed with lollipops.

All around, people began searching the ground. There were many children in the audience. Some searched on their own, while others received their parents’ help. Quite a few adults also joined in, whether for the novelty of the experience or just for fun.

Sara, Lent, and Clarice also bent down, wanting to look for slips on the floor, but Karon shouted at them, “Get up! Get out!”

The children had never seen their cousin so angry. They immediately stopped looking and followed Alfred, not even daring to glance at the paper slips again.

A lollipop cart that looked to be about to block their path received a firm kick from Alfred, and was forced to a stop. He pulled the children along, and only after they had passed and the Young Master and Miss Eunice had followed, did Alfred release his grip and hurry back to the front.

“I found one!”

“So did I!” A group of children ran for the cart, holding up their slips. Mixed in with them were quite a few adults.

Anyone who rushed toward their group was shoved aside by Alfred’s arm. He didn’t care if doing so caused someone to stumble, the only thing that mattered was not allowing the crowd to separate the group behind him.

At last, they made it out of the tent.

Karon counted heads. All four children were present.

“Back to the hearse,” he ordered.

Alfred immediately replied, “Young Master, drive my car and take them home. I’ll take the hearse.”

Karon hesitated, but glanced at Alfred and quickly nodded.

When they arrived in the parking area, Karon opened the door of Alfred’s Santelan and waved for the children to get into the back seat. Fortunately, none of them were big, and all four managed to squeeze in the seat.

After closing the door, Eunice smiled at Karon and took the front passenger seat, though she did mention, “I can drive too.”

“It’s fine. I can,” Karon replied.

He opened the driver’s door, but didn’t get in right away. He looked over at Alfred, who was standing beside the hearse. The man was also looking Karon’s way. After exchanging nods, Karon shot one last glance at the circus tent, and then got in and started the car.

They drove off quickly. Karon’s expression had been serious ever since telling everyone to leave, and because of that, the children in the back seat remained silent. Before long, Lent and Clarice had even fallen asleep.

Eunice sat beside him, also quiet. Whenever Karon glanced in the rearview mirror, he found that she was looking at him as well.

Perhaps she wanted to get home sooner, or perhaps the shock of the circus had worn off, but the lingering fear was still affecting her. In any case, Karon drove much faster than usual.

They entered the city, and because Miner Street was closer, Karon headed there first. He had originally planned to walk Sara home, but Lot seemed to be waiting for his daughter. Even this late, his shoe stall wasn’t closed.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Karon. Sara must have caused you trouble again today.”

“No. She was very well-behaved. I’ll be heading off now.”

“Please be careful on the road.”

After that, while Rhine Street was actually closer than Mink Street, Karon drove first to Mink Street. Mina got out with the other two, and the three children said goodbye to Eunice together, “Goodbye, Miss Eunice.”

“Good night, Miss Eunice.”

“You should get some rest too.”

Lent yawned and drowsily said, “Miss Eunice, Karon, you should go to bed soon, too.”

Eunice heard him, but didn’t respond. She simply settled back into her seat.

Karon started the car back up to take Eunice home. With the children safely delivered, his mood finally eased.

“I’m sorry you couldn’t finish watching the show,” he said. Karon had no intention of apologizing for what he’d done at the circus. At that time, his mind hadn’t been clear, and besides, what would an apology mean? Should he promise to never do it again?

She hadn’t complained, and Karon bringing it up himself would just be awkward.

“It’s all right. Your health matters more,” Eunice said.

“It wasn’t my health,” Karon replied. “When I was young, I once fell into the water. That experience left me with severe psychological trauma. Seeing that act caused me to lose control.”

He would rather let Eunice think he had a psychological scar than suspect a physical issue.

“I see,” Eunice said, smiling. “I had a very good time today, Karon.”

“So did I,” Karon replied.

The words felt a little insincere. She had gone to see a performance, but he had been forced into a fully immersive experience.

When dropping Eunice off, Karon hugged her as usual and watched her go inside the house. Once he was back in the car, he drove past Piaget’s house and left Rhine Street. The lights there were off, as were the lights in Mrs. Seymour’s place next door.

He drove home.

Upstairs, he heard Lent and Clarice chattering excitedly about their afternoon barbecue and the circus. Aunt Mary and Aunt Winnie were with them. When Karon came up, Aunt Mary immediately stood. “Karon, want something to eat?”

“Thanks, Aunt but I’m not hungry. I’m going to go talk to Grandpa for a bit.”

“He went out. Alfred came back earlier and went upstairs to speak with him, and then they left together.”

“Oh, I see. All right. I’ll take a shower and rest. Driving was tiring today.”

“Okay. I’ve already laid out your clothes.”

“Thank you.” Karon went up to the third floor and took a shower. The hot water felt good.

Afterward, enveloped by the warm steam, he stepped out of the bathroom. The temperature difference instantly hit him and a chill ran through him. He had a flashback of being trapped in the water tank and the suffocating despair of that moment rushed back.

He had to brace himself on the wall for a few moments before he managed to steady his breathing. He returned to his bedroom, but instead of sitting at his desk as usual, he went straight to bed.

His hands rose up to his neck, pulling the blanket tight around himself so that he was wrapped up like in a cocoon.

His eyelids grew heavy.

Karon fell asleep.

***

At seven thirty the next morning, Karon woke up on time. Sunlight streamed through the window. He felt fully restored.

He went down to the second floor for breakfast.

“Has Grandpa eaten yet?” he asked.

“It’s Sunday. He went to church very early.”

Karon nodded. Tiz and Alfred had probably gone to the circus grounds last night, and things must have been resolved, or at least no longer be a threat. Otherwise, Tiz wouldn’t have gone to church in the morning. After all, the old man didn’t have much loyalty to the one worshipped there.

“What about Uncle Mason?” Karon asked. Normally, his uncle would be up by this time.

“There was a welfare pickup. A call came in, so your uncle and Ron went to handle it. Alf and your grandfather were out too late last night, so he hasn’t come over yet this morning.”

“Oh, I see.”

After breakfast, Karon went down to the yard. The golden retriever ran over, wagging its tail and rubbing against his legs.

At that moment, the hearse pulled up to the gate. Ron opened the rear door and began unloading the “guest” with a gurney.

Karon went over to help, automatically steadying the cart from below.

“Got it steady, Young Master?” Ron asked.

“Got it.”

“All right, moving out.” The gurney and the body on it started being pushed down.

“There’s another one,” Ron said. “Wait a moment, Young Master. I’ll bring it out.”

He bent down inside of the hearse to pick up the second body from the compartment.

A gust of wind blew past, blowing the white shroud covering the body slightly aside.

Karon saw a familiar woman’s face: Mandira.

He had never expected to see her body on his doorstep. The suffocating despair he had tried to suppress all night instantly surged back. He raised a hand to his forehead, his vision swimming.

Suddenly, the body on the stretcher extended a hand and grabbed his wrist, steadying him.

Karon looked down. He watched as the hand that had supported him withdrew again.

“Second one’s coming down, Young Master. Sorry to trouble you again,” Ron called from the hearse.

“All right, coming,” Karon replied.

Then, something even more shocking happened. With her eyes still closed, Mandira sat up on her gurney. She swung her arms back to grab the two wheels of the stretcher Ron was lowering.

Because of the height of the hearse and the fact that the gurney and the body blocked his view, Ron couldn’t see what was happening below. Instead, he exclaimed cheerfully, “Wow, Young Master, you’ve got a really firm grip this time! Feels strong!”