Gun of Ashes

A beautiful day begins with opening one’s eyes and seeing a ceiling covered in posters.

For the person lying in bed, seeing those strange posters first thing is good news; it proves he woke up at home and not in some peculiar place.

Lorenzo woke up, and although as a Demon Hunter, he could relieve fatigue with a very short sleep, he still preferred to sleep until dawn like a normal person. During that wonderful country lifestyle, Lorenzo even slept for an entire day.

He enjoyed this lazy feeling; even the journey towards death seemed to slow down.

”Good morning! Good morning!”

The detective cheerfully greeted everyone, though only the landlord and two tenants were in the house. Perhaps because of Divine Birthday, everyone was more amicable that night. Even Hig would respond to Lorenzo’s greetings, although he still felt a bit uncomfortable with Lorenzo, but it was much better than coldly keeping silent.

Mrs. Van Rudd, as usual, sat on the sofa reading a book. For safety reasons, those miscellaneous ammunition boxes had already been dealt with by someone Selyu arranged.

It must be said, this moment truly showcased the extravagance of the nobility. When those people came to move the items, the entire street turned heads. Some even suspected there might be terrorists hiding here.

Fortunately, with Selyu’s status involved, Mrs. Van Rudd only received a slight warning. Ingwig was not very concerned about personal gun ownership, but there were excessively too many guns here.

The most awkward person was a man who seemed to be an officer. He stood in the living room, looking at the large map hanging on the wall. The war-time numbers were not removed, just hung there brazenly. He wanted to reclaim the map but was angrily scolded by Mrs. Van Rudd for a long time.

In her words, it was merely a decorative item.

”How’s the job search?”

Whether out of kindness or finally having gone through that damned menopause, Mrs. Van Rudd began preparing breakfast for the two of them.

At the breakfast table in the early morning, Lorenzo inquired of Hig nearby.

Hig, head down, mumbled while eating, ”Still looking.”

Mrs. Van Rudd appeared charitable, seeming satisfied with Hig’s repentance and attempts to make amends.

Hig’s secret couldn’t be concealed for long. The matter of him taking hallucinogens and being fired was known early on. Fortunately, Hig managed to control himself and broke free from it. He joined the Mutual Aid Association and found a therapist. With guidance and care from multiple sources, his life began to normalize.

Perhaps because of surviving a brink of death, Lorenzo’s emotions had become much richer. Sometimes, he also showed concern for this roommate, even though this roommate still had some difficulty accepting the extraordinary hunk that Lorenzo was.

”Knock, knock, knock!”

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

The three of them looked at the door with some confusion. It must be said, despite living under the same roof with vast age differences and status gaps among them, these differences brought them some wonderful similarities—these three had very few friends.

Lorenzo rarely saw Mrs. Van Rudd go out, and no one visited her either. She just slowly decayed in the house. Sometimes Lorenzo thought she took in lodgers purely out of fear of dying unnoticed at home one day.

Hig was somewhat reclusive, at least Lorenzo thought so. Regarding Hig’s past, Lorenzo didn’t know much; he only knew Hig hadn’t returned home since arriving in Old Dunling. Before losing his job due to hallucinogens, his life was straightforward—home after work, then work again.

As for Lorenzo himself, it was too simple. Almost all acquaintances were dead, and Lorenzo restrained himself severely to prevent dragging ordinary people into the vortex of demons.

After a brief confusion, the door was pushed open, and a familiar guy walked in.

”Good morning, everyone.”

Joey had come many times, almost becoming familiar. He carried a heavy iron box in his hand, looking like it stored something inside.

This was for Lorenzo; Hig didn’t look much, knowing Lorenzo was a mysterious guy and not wanting to be drawn into Lorenzo’s troubles.

Lorenzo quickly gulped down a few more bites of food and then led Joey to his room. If his guess was correct, those things were not suitable to be taken out in the living room.

”Is your efficiency so high now?” Lorenzo asked while walking.

”Old Dunling is already under lockdown. The new Pope’s mission, Cardinal Miguel’s defectors, and those foreign envoys, most importantly, that lost ’Revelation’.”

Even though it was morning, Joey looked extremely tired.

”Lorenzo, Old Dunling is now at the center of the vortex, just waiting for all this to erupt.”

He looked extremely worried, as more and more people entered Old Dunling, bringing trouble and chaos.

”I think your Purification Mechanism can handle it,” Lorenzo said with great trust.

It wasn’t a thought but a necessity. The Purification Mechanism must ensure everything; otherwise, the organization had no reason for existing.

”Indeed, although the pressure is immense, it’s still within a controllable range. The overall forces have begun to contract. Due to the lack of manpower, several Knight Commanders led by Gawain were also recalled from outside.”

Knight Commander, after so much interaction, Lorenzo had roughly understood the ranking differentiation within the Purification Mechanism. Since the Ranger Project was canceled, Arthur became the last Ranger, but the Ranger techniques didn’t vanish; they deteriorated into specialization. Specialized Knights possess resistance to counter erosion.