Inside the church room, the glow of the gas lamps cast a dim yellow light across the map.
Lin Huai's fingertips traced across the map of Bayam, reconnecting everything that had happened recently in his mind. On the table, several case files copied from the Police station were spread out haphazardly, placed alongside that eerie nursery rhyme to form a disturbing puzzle.
"The first sacrificial offering, the hotel owner." Lin Huai whispered to himself, his finger pointing to a location in the Harbor District. "The files mentioned he set up a private altar and had blood on his hands, committing the sin of 'murder.' And the first line of the nursery rhyme is 'fire burned away the sin,' and the hotel happened to be burned clean by a fire. That matches."
His finger moved to the Tidal Church at the other end of the city.
"The second sacrificial offering was a Beyonder of the Storm Pathway from the Tidal Church. They were killed for'snatching' a statue. What's even more chilling is that the murderer used the altar of the 'Lord of Storms' to sacrifice His own believers. This is an extreme form of blasphemy and provocation. Such an act can be considered 'mutual slaughter' between faiths, corresponding to the second line of the nursery rhyme."
Lin Huai's gaze grew solemn. This incarnation of an Outer God was ruthless and calculated; they were definitely not to be trifled with!
"The third sacrificial offerings were those greedy fishermen on the Weeping Coast; their 'greed' made them sacrifices. This corresponds to 'the earth could not bear it anymore,' because before they died, the ground here had been shaking. Unfortunately, danger lost out to greed."
"The fourth should have been that 'Marauder' Fisherman, and Loki was also captured. Their direct correlation is fraud. This corresponds to 'the forest has withered,' and the incident happened to take place in the hidden Corrupt Forest."
Lin Huai drew a large question mark on the map with his finger.
"Fire, mutual slaughter, earth, forest... So, the final altar, the'sky' mentioned in the nursery rhyme—what does it represent?"
"All the sacrificial offerings represent some kind of crime, or rather, an original sin. What exactly have I overlooked? Could it be that the final altar hasn't been set up yet?"
He immediately dismissed the thought.
"No, rituals of this scale usually have strict time limits; there's no way it could be delayed. So... what are the characteristics of the final sacrifice? And what's the connection to the'sky'?"
"Hey! What are you muttering to yourself about over here?"
The door was pushed open, and Danitz walked in, yawning with a face full of exhaustion.
"By the way, that kid Loki has stabilized, and the people from the Church are looking after him with everything they've got. According to that damn nursery rhyme, there should be one more altar that hasn't been found. Do you have any leads?"
Lin Huai shook his head, a hint of fatigue showing on his face. "None at all. I've only deduced that the final sacrifice should also represent some form of crime or negative thought. After all, those fishermen aren't strictly Criminals; they were just too greedy."
Just then, a tall figure appeared at the door.
Thor walked in. The bloodshot streaks in his eyes hadn't fully faded, but his rage had been suppressed by reason. He solemnly bowed his head, first to Danitz and then to Lin Huai.
"Thank you, Sage. And you... Big Brother. The people from the Church said Loki is fine now."
He paused, saw the map and files on the table, and asked, "What are you talking about?"
Lin Huai smiled and simplified the complex problem: "We're analyzing what constitutes a crime and what the characteristics of a Criminal are."
Hearing this topic, Thor blurted out without seemingly giving it any thought:
"Aren't the Criminals in your Midgard all pretty much the same?"
He frowned, appearing to be recalling something.
"Murder, arson, greed... Oh, right," he said, as if remembering a TV show he had watched at Jane's place. "And then there's rape and pillage. When I watch TV, the villains are basically like that. The screenwriters really have no imagination."
"Rape and pillage..."
Thor's casual words were like a bolt of lightning, instantly clearing the fog in Lin Huai's and Danitz's minds!
The two looked up almost simultaneously, their gazes colliding intensely mid-air, both seeing irrepressible shock and realization in the other's eyes.
The ritual sacrifices concepts—it sacrifices sins!
Then... the final sin!
"Lust!"
Lin Huai suddenly jumped up from his chair and roared, his voice trembling slightly with excitement. "The waitress! The ring! Hurry!"
As he spoke, without stopping to explain, he grabbed Thor—who still hadn't figured out what was going on—and rushed out. Danitz didn't say a word either, already bolting out the door in a single stride.
Beyonders running at full speed were incredibly fast. The biting wind whistled in their ears as the three of them, like arrows shot from a bow, streaked through the night streets of Bayam, heading straight for that Sailor's Tavern.
Perhaps because the recent string of sacrificial incidents had left people on edge, the tavern was quite deserted despite it being the time when nightlife should be at its peak. The scattered tables of customers were mostly desperate outlaws with murky auras and unfriendly gazes.
Lin Huai kicked open the tavern door, his gaze scanning the room like a hawk.
Found her!
The curvaceous waitress was currently carrying a tray of drinks, weaving between several tables of customers. A professional smile was plastered on her face as she served drinks and bantered with the crude Sailors.
Several dirty, wandering hands were shamelessly groping her, yet she seemed accustomed to it, skillfully twisting her waist to avoid the vital spots.
Seeing this, Lin Huai's tense nerves suddenly relaxed, and he let out a long sigh of relief.
"Alright," he said, turning his head to Danitz beside him. "It seems we're not too late."
"Let's find a place to sit." Lin Huai gestured, and the three found a booth in a dim corner where they could observe the whole room without being easily noticed.
"Three glasses of Malt Ale," Lin Huai said to a passing waiter, gesturing for Danitz to pay.
From start to finish, his gaze was pinned to the waitress like a nail, but not entirely. He observed every patron who spoke to her, every attempt to grope her, and every ill-intentioned look. That level of focus and scrutiny made him look like a creep with ulterior motives.
"Hey," Danitz whispered, shifting uncomfortably. "Can you stop staring at her like that? People who don't know better would think you've fallen for her."
Lin Huai ignored him and suddenly reached out his hand to Danitz. "Let me see the ring again."
Danitz froze for a moment, instinctively feeling around his person, before his face stiffened.
"Shit! I was in such a hurry to leave that I forgot it!" he defended himself awkwardly. "Anyway, the power in it has already vanished. Now it's just an ordinary silver ring; it wouldn't be useful even if I brought it!"
"Doesn't matter." Lin Huai's reply was flat, seemingly unconcerned. He withdrew his hand and continued to watch everything in the tavern like a Hunter observing its prey.
Minutes passed, and several groups of people in the tavern cycled through, but the expected danger failed to materialize. The waitress remained busy, and everything seemed so normal—so normal it was unsettling.
"It seems the other party won't make a move right under our noses." Lin Huai finally withdrew his gaze and leaned back against the chair. "Guarding like this isn't a long-term solution."
He said to the other two, "We'll take turns monitoring this place. We can't give her any chance to be alone. Let's go back first and tell Kaelan about this. We need to work out a detailed shift schedule."
The three settled the bill, left the noisy tavern, and blended back into the night of Bayam.
However, when they returned to the district where the Church of the Fool was located, an eerie silence enveloped the surroundings.
The church, which should have been brightly lit with guards on patrol, was now deathly silent, as dark as a crouching giant beast.
The heavy oak door that should have been tightly shut was now slightly ajar. Not a sliver of light escaped from the crack, only a bottomless Darkness.
The heart that had just been put at ease in the tavern was instantly back in his throat. This sudden, overly silent scene was like a loud slap across the faces of the three men.