"Mr. Barton, what's wrong with you? Do you need to call someone?"
Shade stood up and tried to get closer to him, but Joey Barton immediately waved his hand to stop Shade from coming over:
"I'm fine, I'm fine, don't call for help. I just... overused my eyes. This strange talent can't be used often. Yes, the gift of fate always has other costs."
Although he said he was fine, he still covered his face with his hands and his whole body was shaking.
The quiet Iluna didn't stand up like Shade. She scanned the surroundings and then stretched out her right finger to hook it lightly. The Rhodes card thrown on the coffee table immediately turned over automatically under the traction of the spell, and Shade's eyes were attracted by the front of the card.
The front of the card only has white, black, and cool colors close to the two colors. A humanoid figure stands in the center of the card with its back to the outside. It wears a black robe with a hood, and its exposed head is a skull with bone spurs on the back of its head. It holds a sharp sickle in its right hand and a filthy short knife in its left hand. Both hands are pieces of rotten meat.
The background of the card is a dense forest of spire-like tombstones, with vague white shadows between the tombstones. Further in the background is a body of water with no end in sight.
The most clear part was the tombstone at the feet of the figure occupying the center of the card. There were bone-like patterns on the tombstone, and Xia De actually interpreted its meaning.
World (1st Era to the present)
The number 6 is marked in the upper right corner of the front, and the small sun symbol is in the upper left corner. Between the two, that is, in the center of the upper edge of the front of the card, there is a black vertical line in a white circle, which is the symbol of the "Original" series.
There was a little blank space at the bottom of the card, with two lines of small words written there:
If the total points of this card are over 21, choose a card from the used cards and exchange it with this card. The special effects of the selected card are invalid.
"Sun 6, Genesis Death! It is indeed Genesis Death!"
Xia De widened his eyes and subconsciously wanted to reach out his hand, but immediately withdrew his hand.
Seeing that Mr. Barton was about to take his hand away from his face, Iluna lowered her eyelids, and with her white fingers she flicked the Rhodes card again, and it immediately flipped back to its back facing up, without even moving.
Xia De withdrew his gaze from the Rhodes card, suppressed the throbbing in his heart, and asked Mr. Barton, whose eyes were bleeding across the coffee table, with concern:
"Are you really okay?"
"It's all right. It's all right."
He used his thick fingers to pull out his handkerchief from his pocket and wipe his eyes with an embarrassed expression on his face:
"Just now, it felt like I was looking directly at the sun... Oh, it seems I have been using my eyes too much recently."
He wiped the blood from his left eye with his left hand. As his vision had recovered, he noticed the Rhodes card on the table and immediately took it back with his right hand:
"I'm sorry, I may not be able to continue fortune-telling for you today."
The apology in his tone was sincere.
"It's okay, I'm glad you're okay. After all, if I really knew that this cat would naturally age in a few decades, I would be very sad... After all, it is just a pet with a short lifespan."
As he said this, Shade pretended to be sad and touched Mia's head. The orange cat looked around and looked up at Shade. Seeing that he was fine, he rubbed his head against the hand and continued to observe the surroundings.
“You don’t have to grieve over the passing of loved ones and those close to you.”
Joey Barton put down the handkerchief in his hand. Because of the characteristics of "reverse birth", his limbs and body proportions looked very abnormal, but his pair of black eyes were very bright:
"All mortals will eventually die. This is a stage that everyone must go through in life. A normal birth and a normal death. I have always believed that this is a miracle bestowed upon mortals by the great ones."
Combined with Joey Barton's identity as a "man who goes against life", his feelings can only be expressed when he is touched by life.
“Yes, every ordinary day we experience may be a miracle that happens continuously.”
Xia De was also very moved. Outsiders have experienced so much in this world, and they understand more clearly how precious it is for ordinary people living in this world to have a safe and peaceful life.
"Yes, yes."
Mr. Barton agrees with what Shade said:
"You mentioned that you are a writer. Oh, if you publish a work in the future, please let me know. Yes, an ordinary and ordinary life is so precious. A normal birth, both parents are alive, a normal growth, an enjoyable childhood, a normal maturity, encountering love, and then..."
He took a deep breath and adjusted his expression:
"Please don't refuse, Mr. Watson. I must have a drink with you today."
As he said this, he stood up from the sofa, but this made Joey Patton's figure look even more weird.
He was indeed the size of a child, but his body was thin and his limbs were unusually strong. In addition, he seemed to have difficulty coordinating his body and walked with a limp. But he still came to the desk that was not illuminated by the gas lamp and took out a bottle of red wine and three wine glasses from the mahogany wine cabinet on the side. After Miss "Agatha Holmes" said that she did not drink, Shade and Mr. Barton drank together.
After finishing the drink, the scheduled visit came to an end. In order to compensate for not being able to conduct the divination in its entirety this time, in addition to charging only half the fee, Shade also received a promise that he could come again next Tuesday afternoon - Mr. Barton would be taking a week off, so he would not see any scheduled guests this week.
Although Mr. Barton was only a one-ring official, he seemed to have a lot of power in the Crow Club. He personally arranged for someone to send Shad and his "fiancée" to the door. When Shad was holding Iluna's hand and preparing to take a carriage at the corner of the street, a four-wheeled rental carriage stopped smoothly at the door of the Crow Club.
So, after the gentleman with the suitcase got off the carriage, Shade and Iluna left in the carriage. As the carriage slowly drove away, he glanced out the window and saw the servant who opened the door bowing to the man who entered.
Iluna threw out a silencing spell.
"The man just now was the one who fought with us in the forest of Middleburg Mechanical College during the Fire Festival dinner."
Shade said, and Iluna nodded:
"It's him. Even though he's in disguise, my eyes won't mistake him. Has he entered the Crow Club? Is he here for divination as well?"
"It shouldn't be. Joey Barton said that he wouldn't receive any guests this week. It's impossible for the servants to disobey his orders immediately. Moreover, the man didn't show the crow badge when he came in, and the person who opened the door was very respectful to him... Interesting."
Xia De, holding the cat, tapped the armrest of the seat in the carriage with his left hand:
"My local friends told me that Joey Barton's experience in becoming a ring wizard is still a mystery."
On the way here, Shade had already informed Iluna of the information Sister Defulin had mentioned. The seventeen-year-old girl frowned slightly:
"So, the man who went against his will, Joey Barton, accepted funding from the Society of Truth for treatment and became a ring wizard because of it?"
She knew more about the Truth Society than Shade did:
"Yes, this possibility is very high. The Truth Society really likes to do this kind of thing."
"Isn't the Truth Society supposed to study forbidden knowledge? How did it become an association to help the disabled?"
“Do they really mean well by helping poor people with strange disabilities?”
Iluna snorted, probably because she didn't want to affect Shade's mood, so she didn't say much:
"This is very interesting. The Truth Society and Joey Barton... Shade, I will go back to the church and ask the parish's ring wizard team to investigate the other party's boarding location."
Iluna pointed at the driver:
"I won't talk about the Crow Club for now. I'll just ask the church to investigate the location where the man got on the bus. After all, if Joey Barton is hiding, we won't be able to find him. After meeting him just now, I'm almost certain that he is the person we're looking for. But...if the church has found Joey Barton, we have to accept reality."
"It doesn't matter. It's better for the church to find the chosen one than to be controlled by the Truth Society. Besides, aren't you also the chosen one found by the church?"
Shade said with a smile, and Iluna smiled as well.
"But how do you say the source of the information? You sneaked out today."
He asked again, the carriage turned the corner and drove into the prosperous area of Midhill Castle. Although this is also a big city, Middle Castle is still inferior to Tobesk, the pearl of the north.
"This is not important. Now the church completely believes everything I say. Even if I say it was just a dream, they will believe it. After all, I am the one chosen by the Whispering Poems and the protagonist of the era."
After saying that, he looked at Xia De suspiciously again, hesitated for a moment, and then asked the question he really wanted to ask:
"I've been wanting to ask you since we got on the carriage just now, Detective, why do you smell like the perfume of our fortune-teller friend?"
Shade opened his mouth slightly, and Iluna sighed and shook her head to tell him not to speak:
"She's under so much pressure, it would be good for her to have someone to accompany her. Even if there is a dark door under your house, I'm still worried that one day she will collapse and lose control... She has too many things on her shoulders, more than I do."
The doctor said something similar.
"but... ... "
The 17-year-old girl moved her lips slightly, looked at Xia De carefully, and asked in a low voice:
"Will you dance with me again in the future?"
"Of course, why not?"
"That's good... We have a deal. We will go on together. You will stay by my side, always, until the very end."
She murmured, her eyes looking into the void in front of her.
Shade nodded, and as Iluna smiled, he turned his head to look at the street scene passing by. Everyone has their own troubles, even the protagonist of the era has to face the trivialities of life.
The Founder Death has appeared, and the third chosen one has been determined. I think the story of Midhill Castle will come to its final page this fall.
Chapter 715: Creation and Death