At ten o'clock on Sunday morning, although the City was still shrouded in mist, Saint Delan Square, with its deepening autumn chill, was bustling with passersby.
Last night's downpour had cleansed the City, and even by morning, the autumn rain continued to fall, though it was merely a drizzle and did not significantly impede travel.
Beneath the gloomy sky, countless black umbrellas touched and separated, yet this did not prevent well-dressed gentlemen from conversing or neatly attired young people from walking with their documents. A carriage, its color deepened to dark brown by the rain, approached from a distance, its hooves splashing in puddles, and came to a smooth stop outside the door of Saint Delan Square Six in the falling rain.
Dr. Schneider, dressed in a black overcoat, stepped down from the carriage and immediately ascended the steps to reach the shelter of the rain eaves. After paying the fare, he looked out at Saint Delan Square in the rain and tightened his collar:
“It's raining again. It seems the weather will get colder and colder.”
The carriage slowly pulled away but was quickly hailed by Xia De's neighbor, Mr. Smith, who had just stepped out.
The old gentleman was dressed in proper formal attire, indicating he likely had important business to attend to. He also noticed Dr. Schneider; after exchanging nods, Mr. Smith departed in the carriage.
“I think I've seen that man in the newspaper. Isn't that the former Chief Secretary of the Kingdom's Ministry of Finance? Indeed, those who can live in this neighborhood are certainly not ordinary citizens.”
The Psychologist thought in surprise, then looked up at the raindrops falling like strings of pearls from the rain eaves, before turning and pulling the doorbell:
Soon, footsteps were heard on the stairs. The door opened, and Xia De, wearing a black high-neck sweater, smiled at the Psychologist outside:
“You are truly punctual, exactly ten o'clock, not a minute off. Oh, it's still raining, please come in quickly.”
“Of course, I'm punctual. I charge patients by the hour, so I have a very strong sense of time.”
The blue-eyed middle-aged man boasted, but standing at the doorway, he suddenly twitched his nose:
“When did you pick up the habit of burning incense?”
He spoke as he entered the door, then noticed something unusual underfoot:
“When did you lay a carpet in the foyer? This carpet can't be cheap, can it? My clinic can't even afford such expensive goods.”
Following the carpet upwards, he saw it extending all the way up the stairs:
“When did you… You didn't go to such great lengths to welcome me by covering the stairs with petals, did you? Are you trying to borrow money from me?”
The Psychologist said with a laugh, even bending down to pick up a petal:
“Still fresh. Are these flowers from last night?”
He immediately understood, nodding slightly and looking at the young man who was closing the door, teasing:
“This must be for a lady. Did someone stay here last night? You really went all out for the atmosphere.”
Xia De, holding the cat that had been sulking all night, hesitated for a moment before nodding:
“Yes.”
“Don't worry, I won't tell a third person.”
The Psychologist patted Xia De's shoulder:
“I understand young people your age very well. I won't ask who the other person is, but you need to be careful with your private life. I can't guarantee how Annette will react if she hears about this. Oh, these flowers are not cheap.”
They walked up the stairs together, and the Psychologist noticed that from the first floor to the second, it was indeed covered in flowers, not just the area by the door.
“I didn't spend the pounds.”
Xia De rubbed his neck as he walked ahead, his memories of last night chaotic and fervent. Recalling it, he still somewhat doubted if everything last night was his imagination. It's just that this imagination was a bit too bold.
“That wasn't a dream, and you even hugged one person while calling out another person's name.”
“You actually let a lady pay?”
The Psychologist was a bit surprised, completely unable to guess what Xia De was thinking.
“It was indeed a lady who paid, but it was one lady preparing it for another lady.”
The middle-aged Psychologist frowned. Fortunately, Bill Schneider was experienced and knowledgeable, and after several seconds of thought, he understood:
“Wait, there was more than one lady who spent the night here? Oh, Detective, it was I who led you out of blind ignorance, and I have an obligation to give you some life advice. I've always known you to be of good character, but why on this matter...”
“Psychologist, it's not what you think, we're not discussing this! But I want to clarify, I'm not that kind of dissolute person.”
Xia De said with a yawn. He had actually been awake for an hour, washing up, feeding the cat, cleaning, and preparing breakfast for the drowsy girls huddled together. Although the power of First Fire was not as great as divinity, it could make this body more vibrant, so he wasn't sleepy at all. His yawn at this moment was merely to cover his embarrassment.
He hurried upstairs, quickly changing the subject:
“We're going to the third floor. I've found a method for finding souls, so I want to try if I can find the souls of Mr. Shelf Tim and Shana Aya.”
Hearing Xia De mention those two names, the Psychologist paused, and then indeed stopped discussing Xia De's private life.
He slowly sighed:
“Thank you for still remembering this matter, but I don't think it will be easy to find them.”
The two arrived on the second floor together and then continued walking to the upper floor. The Psychologist saw that the door to Room No. 1 on the second floor was tightly closed, knowing that the two ladies should not have left yet. Xia De, holding Mia, also looked at that door, his eyebrows raised, recalling his surprised feeling when he woke up this morning and saw someone leaning on each of his shoulders.
And after waking up, besides being kissed by the sleepy-eyed girls, what he worried about most was what would happen once Luvia found out about this.
And when he expressed this worry, Dorothy said nothing, while Leia squinted her eyes and drowsily replied:
“How did she manage to stay alone before... She's really something.”
Xia De and the Psychologist entered the third-floor corridor together. Xia De summoned his Destiny Ring and used the spiritual light of True Death to illuminate the center of the corridor. Two ancient black iron gates, out of place in the corridor, immediately appeared.
Bill Schneider stood hesitantly behind Xia De, hearing Xia De say:
“Eternal End protects me before the end.”
With a rattling sound, the iron chains securing the two gates automatically unfastened, coiling around the gates like black iron snakes.
“Xia De, why do you always have such strange places in your house? Last time, after I devoured the Flame Demon, you also sent me into a door in the basement to quell the risk of losing control... How do I remember that this place was originally the boundary of life and death?”
“I decommissioned the traveler's travel door and managed to install a door here, so I no longer have to worry about the boundary losing control.”
Xia De said, then pushed the gate in front of him. As the door silently pushed inward, behind it was not the latter half of the third-floor corridor, but a mist door with white mist wriggling:
“Psychologist, grab my hand.”
Xia De, holding Mia, walked into the white mist with the Psychologist.
“This place is really similar to the Dark Dungeon you sent me to.”
Innumerable tombstones stood in the white mist, with the most distinct being the square stone tombstones slanted into the ground, though they bore no inscriptions.
Xia De briefly explained the situation of the Soul Graveyard to Bill Schneider. Upon hearing that “any soul heading towards True Death can be found here,” the Psychologist immediately understood Xia De's idea:
“If their souls have gained freedom, even at the cost of complete fragmentation, I will be able to see them. If the souls are still imprisoned...”
He took the small knife Xia De handed him and carefully carved Mr. Shelf Tim's name, birth and death dates, and cause of death onto the tombstone at his feet, but nothing happened after a long wait.
“Try the other one.”
Xia De encouraged.
The two then moved to another tombstone and carved Shana Aya's name, but looking at the thick white mist around them, no souls appeared.
This meant that the two souls were merely abducted and had not reached their final destination, just like souls residing in the material world, they could not be summoned here. Although the Psychologist had not held out much hope, he was still somewhat disheartened to see it fail.
“Psychologist, don't worry, I haven't used this place either. Perhaps our method is wrong. Let me try, you see.”
Xia De encouraged, then took the small knife and squatted in front of another cross-shaped tombstone, holding the cat with one hand and carefully engraving with the other:
“Sparrow Hamilton (sixth epoch 1812-1853)”
“Gray Headed Eagle”
“Eternal Loyalty - Carson Rick Gray Gloves Ace Agent”
“Died from the terrifying death countdown curse”
Flakes of stone fell but quickly disappeared. After carving, Xia De stood up and observed left and right with the Psychologist, then noticed that a black shadow had appeared deep within the white mist behind the tombstone.
The shadow was far in the white mist but was approaching. As he drew closer, his figure gradually became clearer.
A middle-aged man wearing a black deerstalker hat and leaning on a cane, his eyes fixed intently on Xia De. The soul of Sparrow Hamilton had truly appeared.
“This place can indeed summon souls. It seems that Mr. Tim and Shana Aya's souls, at least, haven't been shattered.”
The Psychologist comforted himself but saw Xia De looking hesitantly at the soul he didn't recognize.
Bill Schneider didn't know the story between Xia De and Sparrow Hamilton, but he still encouraged:
“Since you've called him out, talk to him. You inherited his legacy, and you're his nominal nephew, after all.”
He knew Xia De was just a vagrant before and had no kinship with Sparrow Hamilton, but he didn't know about the Gray Gloves.
“It's rare for a normal person to have the chance to speak with the deceased. Say something.”
The Psychologist added, then carefully stepped back.
Xia De nodded and looked at the former Detective standing behind the tombstone, only to find that the other party was also looking at him. The last time they had such a close gaze was on a summer morning, a day when one person arrived and another departed, a day when the silver moon shone.
