Chapter 122: Toward the Mysteries

Chapter 122: Toward the Mysteries

Mo Fei stared down at the empty, frayed fabric of his pocket; his mind refused to drop the thought. His thumb traced the small tear where the armor of the Divine Dragon of Dark had pierced his coat.

The ring was gone. That thing was worth good pounds if he could sell it, but now it was either buried under the dead city or just lost near the Tower of Light’s chamber.

He tightly gripped the edge of the desk because he had now lost it, meaning he couldn’t afford to buy much unless he solved a few cases to get money.

He couldn’t afford to panic since he at least had thirteen days... which... didn’t sound pretty cool.

He looked down at the desk. Resting right next to his hidden mask was the card.

Midnight Wings head: Benson Helbert

Special Operations Division, Ciradyl Constabulary.

Mo Fei picked up the card, flipping it over between his fingers. To an ordinary citizen, that card was a lifeline, a way to call for protection. To a rogue Ascended, it was a death warrant. But Mo Fei’s eyes were focused on the small embossed symbol in the corner of the card: a pair of crossed feathers over a broken wheel.

The symbol of the official church investigators, which he had seen a few times through Murphy Law’s memories.

’If the police are investigating the alleyway distortion, they are already looking for high ordinal anomalies.’

Mo Fei pondered, his mind racing with possibilities. ’But Lionel Rofocale didn’t arrest me immediately. He’s playing along and wants to see where I go, who I contact, and what secrets I dig up.’

"Vennisa, if I want to leave a coded message for the Midnight Wings at the underground market tonight, what’s the current cipher? I know the factions change their call signs every season."

Venissa remained silent for a while as the candlelight of the room flickered. "A question for a question, remember."

Mo Fei exhaled and waved his hand. "Never mind, I’ll ask the Divine Serpent."

"Great Master, you called me."

"A quick question: you heard what I said, right?"

"I always do. I need a few hours, as the spirit world needs recovery."

Vennisa let out a muffled chuckle. "Wait for it then."

"Urgh, you are the most annoying artifact to ever exist."

"You can’t keep a grade 0 artifact without consequences."

"Ask your question."

"Here we go." Vennisa said in an annoyingly teasing tone. "What do you prefer most between spicy and sweet?"

"I sometimes doubt your knowledge as a grade 0 artifact... I like spicy food more, but I also like sweets depending on the mood."

"Ohhh... that’s a worse mood swing than a woman."

Mo Fei facepalmed at her words, grabbing his face with one hand but saying nothing.

Vennisa finally spoke again. "Draw the symbol of an inverted half moon on the back of the card they left you, then give it to the counter inside the headquarters."

Mo Fei grabbed a charcoal stick and took the police inspector’s card, flipped it over, then pressed the charcoal stick against the clean white paper. With a heavy stroke, he drew an upside-down crescent moon.

He pocketed the card, took a deep breath to settle his thoughts, and grabbed his newly trimmed bangs, pulling his coat collar high up over his neck to hide his face. He sent the mirror back into the spirit. It was time to enter the foggy, dangerous underbelly of Ciradyl.

...

He lifted the mask upward to plaster it over his face as his bones shifted behind the mask and changed his persona back into Murphy Law, then walked out of the room while tucking the gun in his belt.

He exited the room and moved in the Ciradyl and checked the location in the card.

Artilius district, central statutory near the Police Station.

He walked in and got into a carriage, which brought him to the Artilius district of the Ciradyl.

Murphy jumped out of the carriage, paid the price, and entered the city. Where people walked in, he looked at the sky, it was evening now, and Mo Fei suddenly remembered Kiyori and mumbled. "Kiyori... Kiyori?!"

Her voice didn’t reach him as he quickly called out. "Divine Serpent! Why can’t I hear her voice?"

The Serpent’s voice came. "The connection had been broken due to the spirit world being damaged."

Mo Fei: "How long will it take?"

"By tomorrow."

His descent would take at least 21 days, since he performed it today, meaning twenty days were left before he’d reach Ordinal Nine. Although, only one requirement still remained, which he have to do the day he would Descent, exploit the loopholes.

As he moved through the pathway and entered a narrow street, suddenly someone came out of the dustbin and pointed his knife at Murphy.

The detective’s grey, piercing gaze locked on the thief, and he tilted his neck slightly to examine the man. His hand reached for his fedora, looking at the man coldly.

The man pointed his knife and yelled. "Give me all your money."

"Oh, is that a small knife? Oh no... small knives are my weakness."

Hearing that, the thief rushed in with the knife. Murphy held the knife effortlessly with his two fingers and grabbed it from his hand before throwing it away near a dustbin. "Now my weakness is gone."

A small grin crept on his expressionless face, which frightened the thief enough that he moved back.

Murphy walked forward and adjusted his collar. "I suppose you must be the most intelligent guy here; there must be a reason for this outstanding plan of trying to thieve from a detective?"

A few minutes later, Murphy could be seen walking out of the narrow street while dusting off his long coat. He pulled out a cigarette to clench it between his teeth before flaring it up.

From the street, whimpers came out.

The thief was tied to a pipe with a dirty paper stuffed in his mouth and a note put nearby which stated. "Don’t need validation; have the thief free."

Murphy asked a citizen about the headquarters and when he got the location from one. He found the building standing ahead as he pulled out the card and walked inside the building.

***

Kiyori sat cross-legged at the base of a cedar tree, poking her half-eaten persimmon with a stick.

Kikyo watched her from a rock nearby, his fox tail curled around his feet. "What are you doing for so many minutes?"

"Nothing truly." She poked the persimmon again. "Everything, maybe." Another poke as her expression went sulkier. "Why is he not replying? It’s been a whole day."

Kikyo tilted his head. "Is it about that someone who sends you strange food?"

"Hmm." She put the stick down and looked at the sky. "He doesn’t do that too much and not often dissy—disi... disappears." The word finally came out correctly, and she looked mildly proud of herself for a second before the annoyance returned. "And leaves nothing. Not even a..." She gestured vaguely at her own head and poked it. "Like that, he does something with his temple to see something."

"Did he die?"

"NO! Don’t say that." Kiyori said firmly, more for herself than for Kikyo. "He would have told me first at least if something. He is very— he talks too much when it matters, that kind." She pulled her knees to her chest and stared at the forest line ahead. A breeze moved through the blossoms scattered along the path, their petals rushing across the surface.

She had tried calling dozens of times since morning. The Divine Serpent had been unreachable too, which was strange and unsettling in a way she didn’t want to examine closely. Her eyes were slightly squinted, showing the worry as she looked at the mountain.

Kikyo hopped off the rock and sat beside her, his small shoulder barely reaching her arm. "What is he for you? Is he your family member?"

Kiyori considered the question with more seriousness than it probably deserved. "Not really a family member. I don’t understand what he is to me yet, but I just want to talk to him more, maybe because he listened me with less judgment than others."

Kikyo went quiet, his small head couldn’t understand clearly what she meant.

Kiyori only reached into her shard pouch and held one of the clean shards up toward the fading sky, watching the light catch in it.

The demons who killed Kikyo’s family were still up there.

’I’m fine, he is an idiot for not talking.’ She pondered and poked the persimmon one more time, clearly only trying to convince herself she was good.

She exhaled a long sigh. ’If he’s still silent by tomorrow, I won’t talk to him for a whole week!’ She tucked the shard away and lifted Kikyo by the back of his coat, dropping him neatly into the velvet bag at her hip.

Kikyo poked his head out.

"We will stop near your village, and at the sunrise, we will attack them, got it?"

The Kitsune fox nodded as they walked forward.

Just then, lightning roared as thunder struck a place nearby.

Kikyo hid inside the bag and whimpered. "That’s his thunder!"