Chapter 17: The Crow, the Cat, and the Clown

After staying in the Executor Squad's office until after work, Rekton got two books from Mr. Kesi—one in Elf language and one in Giant language—and then took a small iron box containing bronze phosphorus and the two books onto a carriage home.

When he returned home, the sky had not yet fully darkened, and the streetlights on either side were still unlit; Rekton stood at the doorway, his gaze sweeping the street, which was a wealthy district—White Maple Street—where pedestrians and vendors were few, only carriages coming and going.

Rekton's gaze swept the whole block, and finding nothing that stirred his sixth sense, he felt considerably at ease.

In the afternoon, when the captain handed the bronze phosphorus to Rekton, he said little, but Rekton could guess that he was likely being used as bait to lure out the thief—an extraordinary being—who had been pranking the hospital; since that mischievous type had already set his sights on Rekton, he might come after him.

A single piece of bronze phosphorus could not reassure Rekton; although the magical item was indeed powerful, even the strongest magical item must be used, and Rekton felt he would have no time to employ it when confronting that suspected Sequence Five dream‑stealing extraordinary being, especially since the opponent was among the most bizarre paths.

After withdrawing his gaze from the surrounding block, Rekton turned, opened the door, and went inside; a crow landed on the streetlight to his right, its plumage different—not pure black but with dark red feathers on its wings, legs, and head, like a non‑mainstream crow. The odd coloring caught Rekton's attention, and as he pulled the door open he tilted his head slightly to glance at the crow.

His spiritual intuition gave no warning, and the Secret-Viewing Eye saw nothing.

"Indeed, it's just a non‑mainstream crow!" Rekton's slight suspicion caused by the crow's feather color dissipated.

The crow motif was overly sensitive now; A Meng's true form was a crow, and Rekton was being watched by a suspected Sequence Five thief, so any crow appearing could raise doubts. Even though he knew the thief would not gain parasitic abilities until after Sequence Four.

"Young master, you're back; Shali is already preparing dinner, and in about a quarter of an hour we can eat," the butler said immediately, apparently timing his wait in the living room for Rekton's return.

"Mm, I'll be in the study; call me when dinner is ready," Rekton nodded.

"Alright, young master, I took your glasses to the shop for repair today; they should be fixed by tomorrow, at the latest the day after," Rekton had to admit the butler was reliable.

"Glasses? Hm? Okay, I understand. Uncle Xiao En, you can rest; just call me when dinner is ready," Rekton nodded and hurried a few steps into the study.

After entering the study and closing the door, Rekton's expression finally fell; he placed the two books on the desk, then opened the metal box containing the bronze phosphorus, gazing at the gray‑brown dragon scales inside, and after hesitating for a while he closed the box again.

"I don't know if touching counts as skin contact; to be safe, I'll keep it in the metal box—maybe it can block the thief‑extraordinary being's perception of the treasure," Rekton sighed, ultimately not taking the bronze phosphorus out.

The butler's words reminded Rekton of something he had forgotten after visiting the deep‑red upscale hospital on Hok Street earlier that day: he had bought two identical pairs of glasses in the morning—one he wore, the other kept in his coat pocket—but at some point one vanished, and he hadn't even realized he owned a second pair.

"If the butler hadn't mentioned that he took the previously broken glasses for repair, I would never have recalled that I still had another pair; only by confronting the thief‑extraordinary being directly can one truly grasp how bizarre and terrifying they are," Rekton whispered.

Rekton sat in a nearby chair, carefully recalling everything that happened at the deep‑red upscale hospital, yet no memory involving eyes came to mind.

"It couldn't have happened after I met the captain; otherwise the captain would have noticed something. It must have been during the time I spent with Yilisha—could that blood‑clan girl Yilisha be the problem? Or was there a third person beside us?" Rekton immediately dismissed his own speculation.

A blood‑clan's sense of smell isn't easily fooled; although the hospital's ventilation was tampered with, mixing odors, if someone were right beside them, Yilisha would surely have detected it.

"All the accusations point at Yilisha! Is she truly a blood‑clan member or a disguise? In the vision I divined, the person who took my dropped book and the one who tore the book were dressed differently!" Rekton thought the blood‑clan girl Yilisha was highly suspicious.

"But that doesn't add up! If she were the problem, she wouldn't care about my provocative remarks back then. So why is she still after me? Is there something special about me?" Rekton examined whether he possessed anything that might attract others.

After half an hour of fruitless pondering, a frustrated Rekton got up and paced around the study.

"Woof woof~ woof~"

"Meow! Meow! Meow~ meow~~"

From outside the window came irregular cat and dog cries, anchoring him to this street. Though Rekton remembered that some residents kept pet cats and dogs, there shouldn't be so many; following the sounds, he walked to the study's window and pulled back the curtain.

Outside, a group of cats with varied fur patterns, led by a black cat, chased a pack of dogs that leapt up and down; the dogs were being routed by the well‑trained feline army, especially the leading black cat, which seemed to take down a scrub dog with each paw.

"That cat is being way too fierce!" Rekton muttered.

"Caw~" a crow on the streetlight outside cried.

Only then did Rekton notice that the crow which had landed on the streetlight when he arrived home was still there, apparently watching the cat‑dog battle below.

The scene felt oddly discordant; both the cat army and the crow seemed too anthropomorphic.

Rekton did not hesitate further and actively used the Secret-Viewing Eye; the world in his eyes changed color: the ordinary buildings outside lost hue and became black‑and‑white, while the lit streetlight, surrounding vegetation, the chasing and chased cats and dogs, and the crow perched on the streetlight—all living things—turned into abstract, intense colors; when those cats and dogs approached, they smeared into a mass in Rekton's vision.

Rekton focused his attention on the leading black cat; its star‑spirit, mind, ether, and even spirit bodies emitted layered, multicolored radiance under Rekton's gaze. Though the different glows overlapped, they remained distinctly separable to Rekton, as if he were viewing from a higher dimension.

The alternating glows layered to outline a vague orange‑yellow, scale‑shaped pattern; Rekton stopped observing, knowing restraint—one must not recklessly probe the unknown—a lesson he had just learned that afternoon.

Shifting his gaze to the crow perched on the streetlight, the crow seemed to sense Rekton's peering, turned its head, and stared back at him through the window.

In Rekton's eyes, the crow kept swelling, fine scales sprouting from its body, its red feathers turning brass‑colored and spreading across its form; the feathers became flamboyant and snarling, and its huge eyes seemed to contain a phantom book constantly turning pages.

Rekton immediately turned his head aside and closed his eyes, ceasing to use the Secret-Viewing Eye. The prickling pain in his eyes gradually faded.

Only then did Rekton, still trembling, open his eyes, unwilling to look again at the crow on the streetlight, which was clearly a true big boss.

The cat army hunting the scrub dogs seemed frightened; after a few yowls they scattered and fled, and the leading black cat hid itself in the shadows of houses on the opposite side of the street.

Rekton's gaze shifted toward the direction where the cat army dispersed; under a streetlight there stood a comically dressed clown.

The clown wore a tall red top hat, a red tailcoat with long trousers, and dark red polished leather shoes that reflected bright white light under the streetlamp; his face was painted with exaggerated makeup—white as powdered flour, a bright red nose, oversized lipstick forming a grin that stretched to his ears, blackened eyebrows, abstract square‑shaped eyes, and neatly brushed orange‑red wavy hair slicked back to his chin.

The clown wore a pair of glasses that clashed with his style; Rekton recognized them as the pair he had lost at the hospital, now appearing on the clown as if to mock him.

Noticing Rekton's stare, the clown, standing under the suddenly illuminated streetlight, flashed an exaggerated smile and bowed toward Rekton.

Rekton, startled, stepped back two paces, slipped his right hand into the inner pocket of his coat, feeling the metal box containing the bronze phosphorus, which steadied him a bit. The clown under the streetlight remained motionless, and Rekton by the window dared not make any sudden moves.

A strange, silent, fearful atmosphere began to pervade the surroundings invisibly, as if to freeze the scene.

"Caw! Caw!"

The crow perched on the streetlight called out again; the lingering impression from the Secret-Viewing Eye made Rekton instinctively look up at the crow big boss.

The crow big boss stretched its head, then resumed its motionless stance on the streetlight, as if it had only uttered two casual calls earlier.

Pulling his gaze away, Rekton realized the clown that had been under the streetlight was gone. He frantically scanned the surroundings, finding no trace of the clown, and hastily drew the curtains; standing before the window, he stepped backward as if the clown might at any moment pull the curtains aside to reveal its exaggerated, eerie grin.

(End of Chapter)