13 Mink Street

Karon had originally thought Fannie would lead him into a cemetery, but instead, she took him to the seaside.

“The captain helped me write a death report for him. In the report, his body was blown apart, which was why there was no corpse to hand over, but I also didn’t find a grave and bury him. I had his remains cremated into ashes.”

“And scattered into the sea?”

“Yes.”

“That’s pretty good.”

“He said he liked places with lots of water, so I fulfilled his wish.”

“Why bother explaining? It was a pretty good atmosphere.”

“I just don’t like this kind of atmosphere. It’s boring. What? Did you want to sit by the sea with me remembering my ex-boyfriend, then lend me your shoulder to lean on, and after that we go to a nearby hotel and book a room, or just do it once right here on the beach so he can watch and it’ll feel more exciting?”

“Sigh.”

“Don’t sigh. If you really wanted to help set the mood, then it shouldn’t be me holding a wine bottle while you hold a soda bottle. How am I supposed to work with that?”

“I’m the one driving.”

“Heh.” Fannie draped an arm over Karon’s shoulder. “Let me introduce you. New teammate, first mission, and he already got the protected target pregnant. Tell me, isn’t that impressive?”

“I didn’t. Don’t listen to her nonsense.”

Fannie started drinking, one bottle after another in the sea breeze. Her alcohol tolerance was probably very good. Even now, there was not the slightest sign of drunkenness on her. Karon, meanwhile, slowly kept her company with soda.

After a long while, Fannie spoke again. “Sometimes, I really hate times when there are no missions. The moment I’m idle, I can’t help thinking about all kinds of pointless things, and it makes me feel terrible.”

“That’s normal. Everyone gets like that sometimes,” Karon comforted her. “You can try redefining and understanding ordinary life again. It’s best if you can switch between the two modes of living.”

Karon knew many soldiers who had been on the battlefield developed similar symptoms after returning home.

“Karon, I regret asking you to come drink with me. It’s really not very interesting.”

“Run out of things to say?”

“No. It’s that I suddenly realized talking to you feels like throwing stones into the sea. There is a response, but it’s only just a response.”

“Sorry for boring you.”

“It’s not exactly boring. I just can’t describe that feeling.” Fannie set down the bottle, wrapped her arms around her knees, and stared somewhat blankly at the sand in front of her. “We’re supposed to have faith, yet we’re still so lost.”

“Everyone gets tired and sick of things sometimes. That’s normal.”

“Maybe.”

Fannie stood up and patted her pant legs. “I drank. You didn’t.”

“Yes.”

“Drive me home.”

“Alright.” Karon drove Fannie back to an apartment near Sycamore Street and stopped the car.

“Just now, at the seaside, I think I heard his voice. He said the new boyfriend I found looks pretty good, better-looking than he was.”

“Really? I didn’t hear that.”

“He said I finally found someone who can keep his eyes open in a traditional position.” Fannie chuckled. Then she patted Karon on the shoulder twice and said with a smile, “In my heart, I told him, this one doesn’t even like me. In this world, other than an ugly thing like you who liked me enough to die for me, there won’t be a second person willing.”

After saying that, Fannie opened the car door and got out. She waved at Karon, then walked to the apartment without looking back. Karon sat in the car for a while, then turned it around and drove back to the funeral home. By the time he arrived home that night, it was once again very late.

After bathing and sitting on his bed, Karon found himself unable to feel sleepy for a while. It was probably because the night’s exchange with Mr. Gray had not completely squeezed him dry. That would not do. He had managed to make himself lose sleep. Tomorrow night, when they sparred again, he had to make sure he exhausted himself completely so he could come home and sleep.

Under the bedside lamp on the cabinet, Pu’er was flipping through the autobiography that Little John had ghostwritten for her.

“Still proofreading?” Karon reached out and rubbed Pu’er’s head.

“Karon, I’ve discovered that writing an autobiography for myself is really hard.”

“Of course. Trying to come up with new ways to praise yourself is always embarrassing.”

“Tch, it’s not that at all! It’s that I actually realize how dashing and beloved I used to be. It’s a pity I missed it all back then.”

“Was it love?”

“No.” Pu’er rolled over and lay on her side facing Karon, her tail gently swishing behind her. “It’s that the old me only knew how to play, but never played in any particularly interesting way. The current me looks at the old me the same way one would look at a little girl squatting on the ground playing with mud.”

“The threshold and direction of excitement are different at each stage of life.”

“What about you? What’s your direction of excitement right now?”

“I don’t want to talk about myself.”

“Is it because you haven’t figured it out yourself?”

“As long as I’m already making the effort to live, whether I’ve figured it out or not isn’t all that necessary.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Figuring out your direction is meant to persuade yourself to keep striving and moving forward, but when you’re actually moving forward and pursuing something, you don’t have the spare mind to think about those things.”

“Oh, so you’re mocking me?”

“No.”

“You are. But what exactly can a cat pursue right now? Oh, right!” Pu’er jumped onto Karon’s chest, tucked in her claws, and sprawled there looking at him. “When are you finally going to advance to Inquisitor?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t chosen yet.”

“Even a woman shopping for clothes isn’t as picky as you are.”

“I just feel that becoming an Inquisitor is a very important milestone for me.”

“Of course it is! That’s obvious!” Pu’er angrily shot back. “Once you advance to Inquisitor, all the accumulations you’ve made before will finally be able to fully unfold! Your grasp and application of Arts, your real advantages, it’s like opening an entirely new door! That’s true even for an ordinary priest, let alone for you. Inquisitor is the stage where one cashes out one’s accumulation and foundation!”

“Yes, yes, alright.” Karon perfunctorily humored Pu’er.

“Hey!” Pu’er shouted. “More importantly, once you become an Inquisitor, I can form a pact with you and become your symbiotic holy relic. The Light power in your body will receive a massive enhancement, and you’ll become a special existence possessing both the Order and Light systems!”

“Yes, I know.”

“You’ll also obtain the qualification to use my bloodline abilities. You’ll gain access to part of Progenitor Allen’s power. If you master water-attributed power, your Sea God’s Armor will become even more terrifying in defense!”

“Yes, alright, alright.”

“I’ll also obtain a certain degree of freedom.” Pu’er finally got to the point. “I’ll go from an ordinary little kitty to a special little kitty.”

“You can go ask Ciri. She probably already thinks our cat is the most special cat in this world.”

“Also, you’ll gain the ability to try, based on Mr. Hoffen’s notes, to help that stupid dog loosen part of his seal.”

“Woof!” Kevin walked into the bedroom from the outer partitioned area, his tail wagging excitedly.

“Get back and sleep, stupid dog!” Pu’er cursed.

Kevin slunk back to the dog bed in the partitioned room.

“So, Karon, stop hesitating. Because once you become an Inquisitor, our entire household’s position will improve tremendously. I guarantee that in the entire Church of Order, there won’t be another Inquisitor as powerful as you- Oh, except for Tiz.

“In fact, if you properly integrate your power and mine and adjust the enhancement effect to the best possible level, you could directly kill Vicolay. Haven’t you already written his name in your little notebook? Don’t you want to kill him?”

“I do want to kill him.” Karon paused, looked at Pu’er, and said very seriously, “But if I have to stake my future on killing him, then I don’t think that’s worth it at all. He doesn’t deserve that kind of price from me.”

“Is... is it really that serious?”

“It is. From Divine Servant to Divine Seeker to Divine Shepherd, every step I’ve taken has been different from everyone else’s. I’ve been walking according to the ideas in my own heart. You could say I’m walking a path no one else has ever walked before. The result is that every step below this point, if I take it wrong, there’s a high chance I’ll be dragged back onto the traditional road. Not only would all my previous effort and investment go to waste, it would also lock off my future development.”

“Would you end up like Tiz?” Pu’er asked.

“I don’t know how to answer that, because I can’t distinguish whether becoming as powerful as Tiz is a compliment or an insult.”

“Forget it, I understand now. Just walk according to your own thoughts. I shouldn’t pressure you or rush you.” Pu’er climbed down from Karon and lay beside the pillow, saying softly, “Because I know Tiz isn’t happy.”

Karon pulled up the blanket and tucked Pu’er in. He then turned on the lamp on his side of the bed, took out a copy of the Light of Order from the drawer, and continued reading through it.

Pu’er heard the movement, turned her head, and asked in confusion, “Why are you still reading Light of Order?”

“Because I found that this book contains a very detailed description of the duties of an Inquisitor.”

“Mmm, I originally thought you would abandon that book.”

“Everything has two sides. The purpose of dialectics is to avoid going to extremes.”

“But I can’t understand it. On one hand you say you want to choose your own path, and on the other hand you’re still reading a book?”

“Do you know what the truest lie in this world is?”

“You said it before; It’s a truth with selective parts.”

“Exactly. The work process of an Inquisitor recorded in Light of Order is to face the petitioner’s demands and, according to the Code of Order, deliver judgment and punishment. But I’ve found that the current work process of Inquisitors is different from what the book records.”

Whether it was the work Tiz did as an Inquisitor or the records in Mr. Pavaro’s work notes, Karon felt that both Inquisitors functioned more like a local police station. The Divine Servants under them were the police officers, while the Inquisitor himself was the station chief. Yet judging from the description in the Light of Order, an Inquisitor ought to be more like a county magistrate.

“Because the times are different,” Pu’er explained. “Because royal power declined, and divine power no longer substantially controls states, but moves behind the scenes.”

“Why did that happen?” Karon asked.

“Because it isn’t worth it. You can understand it like this: if a state is controlled by divine authority, then that state’s prosperity and decline will naturally act back on that church. Do you understand what I mean?”

“A little.”

“So the orthodox churches no longer substantially control states. That would be like digging open the water in your own pond and using it to irrigate someone else’s fields, while having no way to channel the water back. It’s purely exhausting work with no benefit.

“Not only do the orthodox churches no longer do this, the great churches don’t either, because they hope to accumulate strength and long to enter the sequence of orthodox churches. It’s only some mid-sized churches that still retain this binding to secular power, but in this epoch, no one has seen a mid-sized church gain development through this method. But they don’t care, because their purpose is not development, but survival.”

“Pu’er, I think the problem may lie right here. I even think that the choice for my Inquisitor path is exactly the kind recorded in this book.”

“Then do your best. I’m sleepy. I’m going to sleep first, meow.”

Karon read for a while longer, occasionally picking up a pen and writing notes and annotations directly in the book. Only after midnight, when he finally felt fatigued, did he put the book down, then tuck the blanket back around Pu’er after she had kicked it off again. He turned off the light and went to sleep.

Over the next three days, Karon went to the factory district every evening to train with Mr. Gray. Finally, on the third day, during their exchanges, Karon no longer had to wait for Gray to exhaust himself before reaching an overall four-to-six win rate against him, with Karon being the four.

Of course, this was based on the condition that they were not fighting to the death. In a true life-and-death struggle, Karon knew that the one who would die would undoubtedly be him. Even so, this was already remarkable progress, because Karon was not yet an Inquisitor, while he could clearly sense that Mr. Gray was. In terms of rank, Gray was still one level above him.

Mr. Gray also saw this. He said that once Karon advanced to Inquisitor, even in a life-and-death battle, he would no longer be certain that he himself would be the one left standing in the end. He also encouraged Karon to spend more time and effort on his current rank and strive to comprehend the Inquisitor realm as soon as possible.

What he did not know was that Karon was agonizing over which set of clothes he should wear, which was why he was deliberately lingering between Divine Shepherd and Inquisitor. Even the last time in front of Ophelia, when he had revealed his rank, he had only let out a slight trace of an Inquisitor aura before immediately pretending to be impatient and dispersing it, afraid that if he were careless he might truly advance.

What he knew even less was just how great the gap between them would become once Karon advanced, given Karon’s accumulation, not to mention that he would also be able to enter a symbiotic relationship with Pu’er and gain mastery over an entirely new Light sequence. At that point, when they sparred again, it would be Karon who had to wrap cloth around the edge of his sword.

Still, this also proved from another angle how strong this Whip of Order squad truly was. There were actually team members at the Inquisitor level within it, and apparently more than one. At the very least, that fast-moving Wynn from last time was probably also an Inquisitor.

Their exchanges ended there, because if Karon wanted to improve any further, he would need to gain it through the slaughter of actual combat, and that was something Gray could not offer. After all, they could not really fight each other to the death. Karon could only go find other targets who deserved to die.

On the afternoon of the second day after the lessons ended, Karon transformed into Mr. Pavaro’s appearance and came to a row villa. This was Vicolay’s workplace, though of course he also had an office in the Church Affairs Building.

A total of seven Inquisitors attended the meeting, along with seven Divine Shepherds who held concrete duties and worked within the district under Vicolay’s jurisdiction, as well as two Whip of Order squad captains.

Upon entering, Karon overheard a conversation between the two Whip of Order captains. The key phrase was, “Nio didn’t come?”

“Heh, he couldn’t be bothered to come here.”

Karon remembered that Nio’s squad’s district should also fall to the same region, but the grassroots territorial divisions within the Church of Order were very complicated. On paper, it might be one person’s district, while in practice, they wielded no real authority over it. The overlap and coverage between departments was severe.

Still, it was clear that Nio had not shown Vicolay any bit of face.

The meeting began. Vicolay first addressed the problems of the previous administration, namely the evils committed by Zeric’s faction, and he placed every problem of the past and present upon the heads of that group.

He then went on to describe the achievements he had made since taking office. After that, he laid out future work requirements and reiterated the importance of faith in Order. This section was the longest, yet also the smoothest. Vicolay truly had once worked in administration. He was very good at speeches and emotional staging. There was not the slightest sign that he was someone who had stolen credit from an Inquisitor under him.

Just as the speech reached its most impassioned point, slipping into extended parallel phrasing, a Bishop in red robes arrived, accompanied by two Expositors and a group of attendants, and they proceeded to listen in on the meeting.

Karon clearly felt a ripple run through the room. At the same time, he noticed that the Bishop’s gaze lingered on him for a brief moment, twice in passing.

The next segment was led by a representative of the Inquisitors. Three Inquisitors spoke in turn, recounting past issues, describing the new atmosphere since Vicolay had taken office, outlining the methods they had found to address those problems, and finally offering their outlook for the future.

Karon, or rather “Mr. Pavaro,” had no right to speak. It was not only a matter of maintaining the persona; he had not been given a script beforehand. Those who had not rehearsed had no place stepping onto the stage. He was more than content to sit there and let his mind wander.

At last, the meeting came to an end. Vicolay’s grandfather, the Bishop in red robes, stepped closer to the table and offered a brief word of encouragement regarding everyone’s work. Amid applause, the meeting was formally concluded.

Karon could not help but feel that the pair handled things without much care. It was one thing for a grandfather to show his support, but to come in person to stand behind his own grandson, how would that look once word spread? Or perhaps this Bishop did not have many allies among the Bishops in York City, leaving no one else willing to lend their support.

Karon felt the latter was far more likely.

After the meeting came a work dinner. “Mr. Pavaro” took his leave early. Vicolay did not stop him, and merely offered a few perfunctory remarks before letting Karon go.

Karon drove back to the funeral home. Since he was still in Mr. Pavaro’s form, he first greeted Dinkom and Pike, his two old subordinates, and asked about their recent situation. Neither Pike nor Dinkom dared speak ill of him.

After that, Karon went to see Dora and Dorin. The two girls responded to their “father’s” return with a formality that felt almost procedural. They had long known that their real father was gone.

Finally, Karon went to Ms. Lake, but when she saw her “husband” return, she did not show any grief. Instead, she let out a soft laugh. “That’s enough, that’s enough. I have photos to look at.”

Karon gave a small shrug. “Madam, are you sure you don’t need them?”

“No need. I’ll be meeting your friends later. It would be awkward.”

“Alright.” Still in Mr. Pavaro’s appearance, Karon bade farewell to Pike and Dinkom, saying he had additional tasks to attend to and would be away for quite some time. He lingered outside for a while, then reverted to his original appearance. When he returned to the funeral home, he saw Pike holding a letter.

Upon seeing Karon, Pike immediately ran over and handed it to him. “Boss, someone came earlier to deliver this. They said it was for Mr. Pavaro, but he just left, and we don’t know when he’ll be back.”

Clearly, after being put through both carrot and stick, even Pike, the more slow-witted of the two, now understood who his true superior was. Under normal circumstances, the letter should have been handed to Ms. Lake for her to pass along to Mr. Pavaro.

Karon nodded. “I’ll contact Mr. Pavaro. Go back to your work.”

“Yes, Boss.”

Karon took the letter into his study. It was not an official document, just a plain envelope, though the seal was quite refined. He sat down behind his desk and opened it directly. Inside was a sheet of paper with nothing on it but a single string of numbers.

He had just attended a meeting as Mr. Pavaro, and now this letter arrived. It was difficult not to draw certain conclusions.

Karon rang the bell on the desk, and before long, Alfred pushed open the study door and stepped inside. “Young Master?”

Karon gestured toward the telephone on the desk. Alfred understood at once, and he reached out and took hold of the line, his eyes beginning to glow faintly red.

Karon reverted to Mr. Pavaro’s appearance before picking up the receiver. Just as he was about to dial, he hesitated. He gestured for Alfred to wait, then walked to the inner door of the study and opened it. “Come here for a moment.”

Pu’er and Kevin quickly came in, and Karon then nodded to Alfred. He set the receiver on the desk, and dialed the number. Instead of the sound coming from the receiver, the voice that should have been heard through it came from Alfred’s mouth. The tone was identical, sounding like the call came through the phone’s speaker.

“Hello.” The voice was unfamiliar to Karon, but the moment Pu’er and Kevin heard it, they reacted. Kevin silently mouthed a bark.

Pu’er slapped the foolish dog, then jumped onto the desk. Dipping her paw in tea, she wrote a name on the surface: Luke.

Adjudicator Luke? He hasn’t been captured yet?

It was Luke who had personally killed Mr. Pavaro and Ms. Annie on the bridge.

Alfred spoke again, echoing the voice on the other end of the line, “Why aren’t you speaking?”

Karon was now in Mr. Pavaro’s form, and even his voice matched perfectly. “What should I say?”

“Heh... heh heh...” Alfred began to laugh. After a long pause, Alfred looked at his young master and continued, “Who exactly are you?”