Klein said, "I previously visited Old Neil's place just last month. I saw a piano in the living room, and he told me that his deceased wife loved music..."
Rozanne said, "Perhaps I remembered wrong... No, Mrs. Orianna and I frequented Old Neil's place during the earlier half of the year. There was no piano in his living room back then. I clearly remember asking him why he chose to remain single. His answer was that he hasn't met a lady that he wished to marry..."
Klein took out a halfpence from his pocket and decided on a divination statement.
"There's something wrong with Old Neil's current situation."
His pupils quickly darkened as he recited the statement silently and entered Cogitation.
He flicked his thumb, pushing the brass coin into the air and allowing it to spin.
The coin fell right into Klein's open palm, with the portrait of George III facing up.
That meant that there really was something wrong with Old Neil's current situation.
Klein remembered the translucent pair of eyes behind Old Neil when he had just become a Beyonder.
Old Neil had explained that the pair of eyes was a characteristic of ritualistic magic.
Klein made his way past the partition and opened the door to the Captain's office.
"What happened?" Dunn asked.
Klein replied, "Last month, Old Neil told me that his late wife loved music, but today, Rozanne told me that he's remained single all this time.
Also, on the day that I became a Beyonder, I saw a pair of eyes looking over everything behind Old Neil. There was also an almost transparent human figure near the door spying on us. He told me that those were characteristics of ritualistic magic.
I felt that something was off and, thus, attempted a divination."
Dunn stood up. "Why didn't you directly divine if Old Neil had lost control?"
Klein explained, "Over the past month, Old Neil hasn't acted any differently from ordinary Beyonders. He even worked with me to help Swain deal with a Mandated Punisher who had lost control. I've observed the colors of his aura from time to time and noticed that he's relatively healthy other than his frailty that's due to his age."
Dunn put on his black hat and windbreaker before nodding. "Let's go pay a visit to Old Neil now, and oh—try not to agitate him if possible."
"Captain, could we use Sealed Artifact 3-0611?"
"Number: 0611.
Name: Peaceful Hair Strands.
Danger Grade: 3. Considerably dangerous. It can only be applied for operations that require three or more people.
Security classification: Official Nighthawk member or above.
Sealing Method: No direct contact with living organisms.
Description: A simple decoration formed with many strands of black hair.
These strands of hair appeared during a failed advancement. It was something left behind when a Captain of the Nighthawks failed to advance to Sequence 6.
As long as contact is made with a living being without any protection, the living being would lose all their desires and emotions, including, but not limited to, hunger, anger, grief, pain, envy, jealousy, hate, joy, satisfaction, greed, etc.
Living beings under 0611's influence will lose the desire to break contact with it. If an external force is used to break contact between the person and 0611, then the person will gradually recover, as long as the person has not been in contact with the Sealed Artifact for more than two hours; otherwise, the victim would become silent for eternity."
Dunn nodded. "Great suggestion, I nearly forgot about 3-0611. Find Royale in the recreation room. I'll retrieve the Sealed Artifact from Chanis Gate and submit the application after we come back."
A few minutes passed, and Dunn returned. He wore black gloves and had a tangled mess of black hair in his hand.
Compared to the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem, the Peaceful Hair Strands looked ordinary.
After calling for the chauffeur Cesare, the four of them made their way to Old Neil's house.
Dunn sighed. "Old Neil did have a partner that he was about to be engaged to when he was younger, but she became terminally ill. Neil was just a beginner in mysticism and tried using ritualistic magic to save her, but he didn't succeed.
According to the records, the Nighthawks were afraid that he would lose control because of this, but luckily, he managed to find his sanity and looked normal."
...
When the sky started to turn brighter as the dark clouds receded, the Nighthawks arrived in front of Old Neil's bungalow.
Dunn collected himself and walked towards the main door, cane in one hand and Sealed Artifact 3-0611 in the other.
Klein pressed down his hat as he and Royale followed behind, making their way past the rose and gold mint garden.
When they reached the door, Klein stepped forward and pulled on the rope connected to the bell within the building.
Clink! Clang!
A pleasant chime resounded in the house as it broke the heavy silence.
Klein pulled several times, then politely took a step back without making any further attempts.
The three Nighthawks waited patiently for a few minutes, but they didn't hear any footsteps approaching the door.
"Perhaps Old Neil went to visit a doctor and isn't at home." Klein forced a smile.
He hadn't finished his sentence when a melody came from within the building, like a silent lake veiled by a thin mist beneath the moonlight.
Just as he was about to do another divination, he suddenly saw liquid flowing out from the gap beneath the door.
The stream of liquid was transparent and pure at first, before it became dyed crimson.