Janna's eyes turned slightly, she raised her arm and said, "This is a requirement for the theater performance class."
After saying this, she seemed to relax a little, and her smile became a lot more natural: "Didn't I tell you that I work part-time as a waitress in a bar to earn some living expenses? This is my boss, I came to talk to him about a pay raise."
Janna pointed at Lumian at the door of room 207 to make her words more persuasive.
Elodie glanced at Lumian, then stared at Jenna for a few seconds, nodded and said, "Remember to go home tonight."
Jana's smile froze for a second, and she said, "Okay."
Seeing that Elodie was busy again and cleaning the other side of the second floor, Janna tiptoed down the stairs and left the Golden Rooster Hotel.
Not long after, she saw Lumian following her and couldn't help but complain: "Fuck! Why is my mother in the Golden Rooster Hotel?"
Lumian thought for a moment and said, "Blame the Old Pigeon Coop. Mr. Efe, the landlord of the Golden Cockerel Inn, hired a cleaning lady there for only half a day, and your mother would go to the Old Pigeon Coop regularly to watch plays."
Janna gritted her teeth and said, "Those damn evil god believers." She then swung her arms, "I will honestly say tonight that I am working part-time as an underground singer to pay for next year's tuition, and I earn quite a lot."
Lumian glanced at Jenna's profile and asked, "You don't seem too nervous or frightened?"
Janna spat, “That’s my mother, not a man-eating monster.
"She is a very gentle and open-minded person. I didn't tell her what I was doing before because I was afraid she would worry."
"She'll be worried now too," Lumian reminded.
Being an underground singer in dance halls and bars always means dealing with gangs, and being bullied and oppressed is common.
Janna smiled and said in a teasing tone, "I am now the mistress of Charles Dubois, the leader of the Savoy Party and the protector of the Breeze Ballroom. Who dares to bully me?"
"That's even more dangerous." Lumian laughed.
Janna retracted her gaze, looked at the vendors hawking their wares on the chaotic streets and said, "If my mother can't accept it, I plan to show her my current abilities and let her believe that I can protect myself."
Really? Lumian did not cite the example of the perverted Hedesy.
Janna put away the expression on her face and said in a slightly low voice, "She has suffered too much and worked hard for many years. I want to help her share some of the burden so that she won't break down her body."
Lumian thought for a moment and said, "Since your father died?"
Jana's eyes moved to the ground in front of her, and she hummed, "There was an accident at the factory, and my father was seriously injured. He stayed in the hospital for more than ten days, but he couldn't be saved in the end.
"We spent all our savings and even owed a lot of money. A few years ago, I could have found a good theater to start studying drama, but it wasn't until the beginning of this year that we paid off almost half of the debt and saved up some money for tuition. My mother said we couldn't delay it any longer because I would be too old if we delayed it."
Lumian listened quietly, then asked with a little confusion: "Is there no compensation for the factory accident?"
"Yes, but that bastard hasn't paid yet." Janna gritted her teeth and said, "He keeps appealing, and the court is always slow in hearing the case. Damn it, does he want to drag it out until we all die?"
Lumian was silent for a second and changed the subject: "Is your mother really a former theater actress?"
"Yes." Jana's expression gradually softened. "She has good acting skills and looks good, but most of the managers, sponsors, and owners of the theater are men. They habitually select prey in the theater, just like lions patrolling their territory. Those who are unwilling to obey them will not get good roles. Damn, everyone thinks this is normal, even the police and the court." My mother has a gentle personality, but she is very stubborn. She has always been able to play supporting roles and was even fired once. When the theater she later found went bankrupt, she temporarily lost the opportunity to return to the stage and could only work as a hotel maid and laundry worker.
"It was at that time that she met my father and they came together. Under the witness of God, they became husband and wife.
Praise the sun. At that time, my father was working hard to become a skilled worker, and my mother was doing various jobs to try to save money while looking for opportunities to become a drama actor again. My mother said that was the time she missed the most. "Later, my brother and I were born, and my father and mother became even busier, struggling to maintain the family and give us the opportunity to study.
"When we were able to take care of ourselves, my mother was too old to return to the stage, so she placed her hopes on me. She wanted to see me become an outstanding theater actor, even if it was just a supporting role, while my father hoped that my brother could become a real skilled worker."
These words seemed to have been accumulated in Janna's heart for a long time, and she only had the chance to say them now.
Lumian did not interrupt her, but waited until she stopped on her own before asking, "Do you want to be a theater actor yourself?"
Jana smiled with pride and satisfaction: "It's hard not to like drama when your mom is a drama fan and is good at acting."
Her smile made Lumian feel a little jealous for some reason. He sighed, "It can be seen that your mother really likes drama. Even when she was a cleaning lady, she would put on makeup and wear a beautiful wig."
Janna nodded lightly and said, “She said that this would make her feel young, still herself when she performed on the stage, still a real theater actor, and other jobs were just part-time jobs.
At this point, Jana looked forward to the future: "If I continue to be an underground singer for another year, I will be able to save enough for next year's tuition and pay off most of the remaining debt. Together with the money my mother and brother earn, we will have no burden. By then, she won't need to work several jobs, and my brother will be able to learn skills from others."
The more Janna spoke, the more excited she became. She couldn't help but raise her arm, as if she wanted to touch the beauty of the future.
Lumian looked at Jane like this quietly, and suddenly felt that the pent-up emotions in his heart dissipated a lot.
Hope, what a moving word.
After Jenna calmed down for a few seconds, she felt awkward for some reason and glared at Lumian, "What are you looking at? Haven't you seen other people get excited?"
Lumian sneered but did not respond.
Janna looked at him for a few times and said to herself, "Why do I feel like you're feeling a little better?"
“No.” Lumian answered simply.
At this time, the two had walked into the market avenue and saw posters everywhere announcing Hugues Artois' successful election as a member of parliament.
Hugh Artois, who is supported by both the Savoy Party and the Sting Gang, has really become a member of parliament. I wonder what kind of changes he will bring to the market district.
Lumian turned his eyes away from the poster, and his mind flashed back to something that Franca had told him: the "Lady of the Moon" who believed in the "Great Mother" thought that Hugues Artois was open-minded enough.
In the afternoon, before setting off to the Boulevard District to find Mr. K, Lumian set up an altar in the bedroom on the second floor of the Breeze Ballroom.
After building the "spiritual wall", he lit three candles in the order from God to man, from left to right, and dripped essential oils and hydrosols. Then, Lumian took two steps back in the misty environment and said in a deep voice: "The fool who does not belong to this era, the mysterious master above the gray fog, the yellow and black king who controls good luck."
A faint gray fog spread out, and an unsettling feeling surged in the surroundings.
Resisting the dullness of his thoughts and the itchiness of his flesh and blood, Lumian looked at the candle flame that had turned blue-black. Following the instructions of the "Magician", he recited the subsequent spell in Hermetic: "I pray to you, and ask for your protection."
After a series of operations, Lumian saw the holy angel again, who seemed to be condensed from pure light.
At the same time, he vaguely heard a sigh like a dream.
A sigh from the infinite height.
The angel, whose light was dazzling and extremely unreal, descended from above, opened his arms, and embraced Lumian.
The pairs of wings of light then closed and wrapped him.
When Lumian regained consciousness, everything returned to normal.
Nearing evening.
19 Scheer Street, The Boulevards.
Lumian met Mr. K again in the basement.
He was still wearing a big hood and a black robe, sitting silently in a red armchair.
Mr. K looked at Lumian, nodded slightly, and said in a low voice: "I am very satisfied with your ability to act, and without knowing it, your actions are in line with the teachings of my Lord to strike those evil beings."
Mr. K paused and said, "Have you thought about it?"
"I've thought about it." Lumian lowered his head and said, "You let me see the glory of the Lord."
"Haha." Mr. K suddenly burst into laughter. His laughter was so crazy that it gave people a feeling that he had lost his mind.
After several seconds, he calmed down. Without letting the attendants around him avoid him, he said directly: "The honorable name of my Lord is 'the Lord who created everything, the omniscient and omnipotent God, the master behind the veil of shadows, the ruler of the spiritual world, and the fallen self of all living beings'. Choose three of them yourself and pray to her in the Hermetic language."
Just by hearing Mr. K's description, Lumian had the horrifying feeling that his clothes, skin, flesh, and bones had been completely melted away, leaving only his pure mind and self-awareness.
He could not help but tremble, and recited almost instinctively: "The Lord who created everything, the omniscient and omnipotent God, the Lord behind the veil of shadows." Lumian could not think carefully, and subconsciously chose the first three sentences.
Almost at the same time, he felt the surroundings suddenly become dark, as if covered by thick curtains.
Behind the illusory and deep shadow curtain, there was a pair of eyes staring at Lumian, piercing through his consciousness and making him almost lose consciousness.
After an unknown amount of time, Lumian regained his senses and felt sticky cold sweat all over his body.
Mr. K stood up, and his hoarse voice was filled with an obvious smile: "From now on, you are our brother, and you have truly become one of us.
"We are a secret organization that believes in the true Creator. Our name is the Aurora Society."
Aurora Society? Lumian was stunned.
Isn't this the terrorist organization that took the blame for me
From this point of view, the official Beyonders didn't seem to have chosen the wrong target. I really became a member of the "Aurora Society".
Mr. K immediately asked the waiters around to leave the basement, and then said to Lumian: "Gardner Martin is a member of the Iron Cross. That secret organization originally believed in our Lord, but in recent years, they have gradually distanced themselves from us, no longer praying frequently, and are suspected of planning something very important.
"I sent you to join them in the hope that you would find out the reason and figure out what they are doing."