Having caught a glimpse of the image forming in the silver mirror, Klein immediately fell into thought:
"This mirror is quite remarkable—it even has its own name. It seems to be a living sealed artefact...
"Something like this might not be inherently too dangerous, but the difficulty of sealing it is extremely high. It's rarely brought out except under special circumstances. This Mechanical Heart member called Iksander Bernard seems to hold a rather high position—probably a Steward—and he's clearly no ordinary person himself...
"The limits of divination are pretty much what that silver mirror just showed. Even if I went Above the
"The appearance of the 'Desire Apostle' can't be confirmed. There's no telling how many people in
As Klein's thoughts swirled, the image displayed in the silver mirror quickly faded.
Then, words as red as blood materialized on the mirror's surface:
"According to the principle of reciprocity, it is my turn to ask a question. If you lie or fail to answer, you will either accept a task I assign or be punished."
"..." Klein raised an eyebrow:
A Truth or Dare mirror? Interesting...
The words, as if dripping with blood, slowly transformed into new letters, new sentences:
"The true name of the Red Light?"
Red Light? One of the leaders of the Ancient Sun Order? One of the seven rays of light high up in the Spirit World? Klein thought carefully and realized he didn't know the answer.
He only knew of one—"Yellow Light" Veni.
Iksander's throat bobbed, and sweat gradually appeared on his forehead.
After a brief silence, he said in a deep voice:
"Nanides!"
"Wrong." The blood-red words on the mirror shifted again. "Task, or punishment?"
Iksander's expression was visibly conflicted. Finally, he exhaled and said:
"Punishment."
The moment he finished speaking, a silver-white bolt of lightning materialized out of thin air and struck the top of his head.
With a crackling buzz, Iksander's hair stood straight up. His body collapsed with a thud, and wisps of black smoke rose from him.
The mirror, however, didn't fall with him. Instead, it floated up on its own and settled on the table.
Two seconds later, Iksander tremblingly pulled himself up using the chair and sat there, shaking and gasping for breath.
Klein watched all of this in silence, at a loss for how to react for a long while.
Having recovered slightly, Iksander looked at him and forced a smile:
"You should have heard what sealed artefacts are. You should also know that they all come with certain negative effects."
"Yes." Klein looked at Iksander's standing hair and suddenly understood why his hairstyle had been so fluffy, messy, and stubborn before.
Klein couldn't help but say:
"You could have just asked it by yourself. There was no need to do it in front of me."
"Phew... this mirror requires that someone must be watching," Iksander said, still trembling.
It really does have spirituality... Klein took two steps forward to the table and examined the silver mirror with great curiosity. He found that apart from its strange patterns and two eye-like adornments, this living sealed artefact didn't look particularly special.
Iksander, facing sideways to him, let out a shuddering laugh:
"You can ask it questions too. We don't mind."
"No, I have no such intention." Klein had no desire to play Truth or Dare with something reminiscent of a Ouija board spirit.
As he spoke, he tried touching the edge of the silver mirror.
The touch was ice-cold, metallic... The moment that thought crossed Klein's mind, he saw the ancient silver mirror tremble slightly twice.
White words quickly appeared on its surface:
"Your loyal and humble servant Arodes is at your service."
Huh? Klein was momentarily bewildered.
Then he casually moved away from the desk.
What was going on? This mirror had just been coldly playing Truth or Dare with someone—how did it suddenly become like this? Klein found it both amusing and baffling.
He quickly formed some guesses based on the available information:
"The silver mirror knows the true name of the 'Red Light,' which suggests it has some connection to the Spirit World...
"And that mysterious space above the Gray Fog also seems to be connected to the Spirit World. At least when I summon myself, I can see what appears to be the Spirit World through the gate...
"Did this mirror called Arodes detect the aura of the Gray Fog?"
As these thoughts flickered through his mind, Klein saw Iksander recover, stand up again, and pick up the ancient silver mirror. The other two team members in the room also ended their act of pretending to see nothing and their aimless searching.
After some further inspection, Klein bid farewell to Iksander and the others, and found Icendrhas Stanton, who had returned to the sitting room.
"What do we do next?" he asked directly.
Icendrhas replied with a solemn expression:
"First, have Stanton and his family move in together so they're easier to protect. But this can only be a short-term solution.
"You, I, and Caslana will continue our normal activities while receiving covert protection. Hopefully, we can find that 'Desire Apostle' as soon as possible.
"You're a follower of the