Klein pressed against the wall, staring at the darkness in the hallway opposite, and instinctively held his breath.
What was the captain doing? What had happened to the captain? Was he drinking blood? Was he showing the early signs of losing control? Thoughts poured into his mind, a complete mess that prevented any effective thinking.
After more than ten seconds, Klein clenched his teeth. Relying on the 'Clown's' control over his body, he silently moved to the stairway.
Then, he deliberately made his footsteps heavier and walked back, once again arriving at the entrance of Mrs. Sheron's bedroom.
Looking in, Klein saw the captain standing there, his expression solemn, his gray eyes deep, his face clean, as he carefully wrapped the Sealed Artifact '3-0271' in layers of black cloth.
What he had seen just now seemed like an illusion.
Scanning the corner of his eye, Klein saw no new abnormalities in Cohen Leith's corpse. It was exactly as it had been before.
He quietly took a breath and asked,
"Captain, how can I confirm whether those servants are asleep? Using just Spirit Vision doesn't seem to allow for an accurate judgment. They'll have different emotional reactions due to their dreams and show corresponding colors."
Dunn Smith held the 'Spiritreader's Mirror,' was silent for a few seconds, and said in a hoarse voice, "I'm sorry, I forgot. I've made too many mistakes tonight."
"You don't need to check. I'll confirm it."
He raised his hand, pressed it against his glabella, then closed his eyes, letting circles of invisible ripples spread to the other rooms and to the first floor.
Whether one was asleep or not was clearly visible to a 'Nightmare.'
Klein stared blankly at this scene, slowly lowered his eyelids, and fiercely bit the inside of his lips.
Captain, you really just wanted to get rid of me just now, didn't you...
What exactly are you doing? Do you know what you're doing...?
He turned his head abruptly and looked at the window, seeing the crimson moon hanging high, as if it hadn't changed for tens of thousands of years.
After calming down for a while, Klein used the pretext of picking up the Tarot cards, the revolver, the half top hat, and other items to carefully examine the corpses of Cohen Leith and Mrs. Sheron.
They maintained their appearance at the time of death, their skin turning pale at a rate faster than ordinary people, with some hints of cyan and purple.
A little strange. It's as if they're missing something... Not a physical object, but a certain feeling... Klein muttered to himself, feeling the cool wind from the broken window make his skin crawl.
At this moment, Dunn opened his eyes and said in a deep voice, "They are all still asleep. A few are close to waking up."
"That's good, that's good..." Klein looked at the captain, himself not knowing what he was answering.
Dunn looked around and said, "Tidy up the items at the scene, then go to the nearest police station to bring someone here. Mmm, make a trip back to Zouteland Street and get Fry to come help."
Klein gave the captain a deep look, clenched his teeth, and nodded. "Mm."
With Dunn's help, he quickly dealt with the scene and left Mrs. Sheron's house through the front door.
Crossing the garden and stepping outside, Klein couldn't help but look back again. The small building still lay quietly in the darkness, without a single ray of light.
He turned around heavily and, relying on his memory, quickly found the nearest police station—basic knowledge every Nighthawk had to remember.
Knock, knock, knock. Klein rapped on the iron door.
Before long, the policeman on the night shift crossed the small courtyard with a lantern in hand, pulled open the door, and scrutinized him with suspicion.
"What's the matter?"
Klein couldn't muster any expression. With a heavy face, he took out his credentials, opened them, and presented them to the policeman.
"There has been a serious murder at 15 Orsner Street. Immediately call your colleagues and go to assist!"
The policeman lifted his lantern, carefully examined the credentials, then snapped his heels together and raised his hand in a salute.
"Yes, sir!"
Dealing with this matter, Klein took a hired carriage back to Zouteland Street.
On the way, he sat in the dark carriage, his thoughts both chaotic and scattered:
Cohen Leith is dead...
I remember he just got engaged... His parents are still alive...
What exactly was the captain just doing...
Was he thirsting for blood...
Or did he have another purpose...
His memory is still so poor, with no significant improvement. This means, this means he doesn't have the early signs of losing control!
But he has known about the 'Acting Method' for quite some time now. Does the lack of improvement in his memory similarly indicate some hidden problem?
No! The captain must just still be figuring out how a 'Nightmare' should be acted!
... Ah, right. One of the important reasons for Cohen Leith's death was the Sealed Artifact '3-0271', which the captain entrusted to him...
What am I thinking! It was an inevitable choice at the time!
... And it was the captain who suggested using the Sealed Artifact '3-0271'...