13 Mink Street

After sitting for a while with Mrs. Seymour, Karon excused himself and drove home.

The woman was currently in a state of emotional emptiness. The passing of time allowed the anger and hatred triggered by her husband’s betrayal to slowly start fading, only to be replaced with a deep discomfort for her daily life. Returning from a two-person rhythm to a one-person existence felt like a table missing one of its legs.

Karon’s advice to her was simple: move.

A new house and a new environment would help to sever old habits. For most people, this would be unrealistic advice, but it was not any problem at all for Mrs. Seymour, as she was very wealthy.

When Karon returned home, he went into the receiving room, pigment box in hand.

Aunt Winnie was sitting on the sofa, balancing accounts. Aunt Mary sat on the opposite side of the room, her legs crossed as she ate some fruit. Mason was lying within an elegant black coffin that rested atop a mortuary table.

“I think you could add a bit more decoration inside,” Mason said. “Maybe a spot for a radio, or a hidden compartment with a gun.”

“Planning to fend off grave robbers?” Aunt Winnie asked without even looking up. “You’d be better off giving the cemetery caretaker another gun.”

“I’m thinking in case someone wakes up from a fake death inside the coffin,” Mason said seriously. “A gun could be used to signal for help. If it weren’t impossible to run a phone line underground, I’d install a telephone, too. Think about it: the deceased’s family would surely want at least a chance of them waking up. Isn’t that a comforting thought?”

“Our burial depth is excellent,” Aunt Winnie said with a shake of her head. “The soil is thick, so bullets won’t penetrate. He’d suffocate long before firing a gun anyway.”

“Hope! I’m talking about hope,” Mason insisted. He then turned to Aunt Mary. “If I died, would you hope that I suddenly sat up in my coffin?”

Aunt Mary took a bite of her apple and shook her head. “I’d stab you in the chest during preparation to prevent any chance of fake death. I don’t want you suffocating in a coffin. That’s too cruel.”

Mason froze, then sat up and looked at her. “That is actually a very good choice, my dear.”

It was at that moment that he noticed Karon standing in the entrance.

“Oh my goodness,” Mason exclaimed. “Look who’s back! Bathed in golden radiance! Stepping on the light of the sunset! Surrounded by magnificent symphonies! Lo’ and behold, my handsome nephew, Karon!”

He propped himself up on the edge of the coffin and flipped himself out in one motion, only for his foot to slip. The mortuary table had steps, and the momentum carried him forward. In the end—

Thud.

He dropped to his knees directly in front of Karon.

The young man instinctively stepped aside, avoiding the full force of his uncle’s dramatic bow.

Aunt Winnie immediately tossed her pen aside and hurried over to Karon, only to step on her own skirt. The fabric was excellent and didn’t tear, but she also toppled forward and struck the coffee table, barely managing to cling to its edge.

Aunt Mary should have been the calmest of the three, but after first seeing her husband kneeling, and then her sister-in-law crashing forward, she was shocked so badly that she swallowed an unchewed piece of apple. It became lodged in her throat, and she clutched her neck, gagging.

Karon didn’t stop to help his uncle or aunt on the floor, but rushed straight to Aunt Mary, tossing the pigment box onto the sofa as he passed, and then wrapped his arms around her from behind.

He clenched his fists and delivered some upward abdominal thrusts with the heel of his palm: the Heimlich maneuver.

Once. Twice. Three times. Four.

“Ack!” Aunt Mary gasped, coughing up a chunk of apple.

Karon let out a long breath and wiped his forehead with the back of his left hand. He grabbed the pigment box from the sofa and placed it neatly on the coffee table.

Aunt Mary leaned forward, clutching her chest and breathing heavily. Before she’d even fully recovered, she turned to Karon and breathlessly asked, “Karon... yesterday... how was the date?”

“Are you alright?” Mason rushed to her side, but she shoved him away, staring at Karon and demanding an answer.

“Yes, yes, how was it?” Mason echoed.

Aunt Winnie was still fixing her skirt, but her eyes never left Karon.

Karon hadn’t expected his family to be quite this invested in his dating life. It felt like the pride and anticipation of farmers felt when watching their prized pig finally head to market.

Strangely, it moved him.

“It went well,” Karon said. Then, realizing that was a bit too brief, he added, “We went to the amusement park, watched a movie, and then had dinner. We went to the Mamme Couples’ Restaurant by the river, the one Uncle Mason recommended. The atmosphere was really nice.”

“And then?” Aunt Winnie pressed.

“Yes, and then?” Mason echoed.

“What else did you do?” Aunt Mary pressed, opening her hands.

“It got late, so I dropped her off at her home.”

“Before that!” Aunt Winnie insisted.

“At her door!” Aunt Mary corrected sharply. “At her door, did you do anything?”

Karon licked his lips. “I hugged her...”

“Yes!” Aunt Mary clenched her fist and pumped it. “If a girl lets you hug her at her doorstep, it means she’s already accepted the relationship! Her mother might even be watching through a crack in the curtains! If Mina ever gets walked home by a boy, I’ll definitely be peeking from behind the curtains. Lights off, of course, so my shadow doesn’t show. Mina will know I’m watching, so if she still lets him hug her, it’ll mean that she’s ready to make it public.”

“No, no! There’s more nuance than that,” Mason interjected. “Was it a polite hug? Did you initiate it? Was she shy?”

“I hugged her twice.”

“Oh!” Mason slapped Karon’s shoulder repeatedly, like a scarred veteran passing down his legacy. “Well done! Truly well done! A true man of the Immers family!”

Karon smiled politely.

Aunt Winnie clasped her hands. “Thank the gods, our Karon is dating.”

Aunt Mary laughed. “I told you. He used to be quiet and awkward, but now? What woman of any age can resist him?”

Overwhelmed, Karon asked, “Is Grandpa home?”

“Third-floor study,” Aunt Mary replied.

“I’ll go see him.”

“Yes, yes, you should,” Aunt Mary nodded, but then paused. “Oh, there’s one more thing: how did you end up staying overnight at Professor Piaget’s place after your date with Miss Eunice?”

“They live on the same street,” Karon explained. “Professor Piaget is a psychologist, so we—”

“Stay away from him.” Aunt Mary frowned. “His wife just passed away. Why does he keep coming around?”

“Yes,” Aunt Winnie agreed. “Highly educated people often have... loose morals.”

Karon understood their concern, and also knew that they were misunderstanding things. Still, instead of arguing, he just calmly explained, “Professor Piaget’s father is the Minister of Energy and Industrial Development.”

Aunt Mary immediately nodded. “Then spending time with him could be very educational.”

Aunt Winnie added, “Someone like that must have excellent character.”

Mason chuckled at the sudden reversal.

Karon went upstairs. On the third floor, Pu’er was sitting on a windowsill, batting at a potted flower. Petals littered the sill. The cat turned her head. “You despicable heretical god! How dare you treat me like that!”

Watching her descendant go off being courted while she had been forcibly sent home, denied the dignity of even being a third wheel, it was unbearable.

Karon gently gathered the scattered petals in his hands and sighed.

“What are you doing?” Pu’er asked.

“These flowers... they’re pitiful.”

“No. I am pitiful.”

“Have some mercy with your claws. You’ve hurt them.”

“Are you acting in a play?” Pu’er snapped. “Can you be normal?”

“I’ll get a small shovel later and bury them in the garden.”

“You! Are—you—insane?!”

Karon dropped the petals and apologized. “Sorry. I’m still stuck in yesterday’s mood.”

“Shameless! Despicable! Lewd! Heretical god!” Pu’er lunged at him, her claws bared.

Karon didn’t move. The paw froze midair.

Pu’er withdrew it, raised it again, and then withdrew it again.

“Why didn’t you dodge?”

“Why didn’t you scratch?”

“You’re insufferable! You couldn’t even pretend to dodge so I could vent!”

“Heh...” Karon remained calm. Tiz was inside his study. Pu’er would have to be out of her mind to scratch Tiz’s favorite grandson at such a time, especially when that grandson was in the middle of courting someone.

Everyone in the family feared Tiz, including the family cat.

Karon reached out, lifted Pu’er off himself, and set her back on the windowsill. She rubbed her paws back and forth against the sill, then said with a trace of dejection, “Handsome looks and a mature soul... I don’t think my little descendant can possibly resist you, but I’m still furious. How could you and your grandfather do this to me?”

Karon sat down by the window and gently stroked Pu’er’s head. “Nothing has actually happened.”

“Heh.” Pu’er bared her teeth. “Lying to a nineteen-year-old girl just for a boat ticket. Don’t you think that’s excessive?”

“I’m sixteen.”

“You know exactly what kind of age I’m talking about.” Pu’er stubbornly dodged his hand.

“And you know that there are some things that neither you nor I can change.” Karon pointed at the study door. “Honestly, I didn’t plan to start dating so soon. I thought I had plenty of time to handle my own affairs.”

Pu’er immediately lifted her head to glare at him. “What do you mean? You don’t want to date her? Are you saying that my great-great-great-great-grandniece isn’t good enough for you?”

“She’s a lovely girl. Being with her feels comfortable.”

“That doesn’t sound like love.”

“Maybe. I also don’t think someone who’s never dated and who’s spent a century as a cat really understands what love is. I still remember someone yelling at me to hurry up and breed the moment the girl showed up.”

“Enough. Shut up!”

“You were the one indulging in melodrama first.” Karon reminded her. “Wouldn’t it be better to be a sweet, well-behaved cat? I still have plenty of fish recipes.”

Pu’er reflexively swallowed and even licked her lips, but she still managed to keep a solemn tone. “I know Tiz’s decision is not something I can change.”

“Mhmm.”

“And I can also guess that even if my descendant doesn’t marry you, she still will most likely not have the freedom to choose her own marriage partner. Back then, I ran away from home because my grandfather was forcing me into an arranged marriage.”

“You broke ties with your family over a marriage alliance?”

“That came later. The family acquired something extraordinary, and the ambitious ones wanted to use it to expand the family. They even planned to establish a family-led church. I stole that thing myself and destroyed it.”

“I see.”

“You’re not going to ask why I did it?”

“Not interested.” Karon stood up. He was ready to see Tiz.

Pu’er grabbed his pant leg with a paw. “One more thing. Let me say this, and then go.”

“Go on.”

“I love my family. I probably wouldn’t recognize any of them now, but they are still descendants of my brothers and sisters. They carry the meaning of ‘family’ for me. Do you understand?”

“I do.”

“So, Karon, when you go to Veyn, can you treat my family the same way you treat the Immers family?”

Karon shook his head. Pu’er’s cat face puffed up, prompting a smile. “Only if they treat me like family too.”

After that, Karon walked to the study door and knocked.

“Come in.”

***

“How is it progressing?” Tiz asked, looking at his grandson.

“It was only the first official date,” Karon reminded him.

Tiz calmly replied, “Sometimes a quarter of an hour is enough to decide the outcome of a relationship.”

Karon felt that Tiz made a point. Normally, romance was like a turtle spotting a mung bean; once eyes met, things started. Those long, bitter pursuits filled with concern and persistence often amounted to nothing more than self-afflicted sentimentality. Even when persistence worked, it was usually because the other party had no better option and resigned themselves to it.

It had to be said. The men of the Immers family had always been remarkably confident in this regard.

“So, what’s your answer?” Tiz asked.

“I think it’s a good start. For both of us,” Karon said.

“Good. Invite her over for dinner in a few days.”

“Isn’t that too fast?” Karon asked. Last time, the house had been cleared under the pretense of a teacher’s home visit, but this sounded like Tiz was suggesting a formal meeting with the family.

The old man sipped his tea. “Her family will push for it too.”

Karon nodded. “I understand.”

Once the authoritative elders on both sides reached an understanding, the younger generation had little room to maneuver, practically none at all. Even with Karon’s beliefs in free romance, he knew that this was Tiz’s decision, and all that could be done was comply. As for the other party, the girl had even fewer options.

Given such circumstances, simply meeting someone who made him feel comfortable was rare enough, and could almost be considered a stroke of fortune. It was something to be grateful for.

“By the way, Grandpa, I know who the demonkin is, the one you mentioned who is helping us to clean things up.”

“Oh?” Tiz showed no surprise at all.

“Is the Wall God Church forbidden?”

“Strictly speaking, no. The Wall God Church’s main legacy was severed long ago. Their ordinary believers who are scattered across the land won’t face suppression or persecution. However, there are still some individuals who preserve or have inherited that legacy. They are few, but they have always been targets of the Church of Order, because the Wall God Church’s true god, Rilsaar, was personally suppressed by the God of Order.”

When the leader crushes another leader, the subordinates would naturally move to annihilate the other side’s followers.

“Why?” Karon asked.

“Because Rilsaar attempted to paint the final mural of the God of Order, enraging Him.”

“I see.” Trying to predict someone’s downfall while they were at the height of their power was naturally courting aggression.

“Have you finished reading the overviews of the various religions?” Tiz asked.

“I’ve finished the first full pass,” Karon replied.

“Read them again carefully, and then choose one for me.” Tiz took out a purple bookmark and placed it before Karon. “Write the name of that church on this.”

Karon picked up the bookmark. “Then I’ll need to look again. I don’t know which church I’m interested in yet, nor which I like best.”

“No. You misunderstand.” Tiz shook his head.

“Hm?”

Tiz leveled a calm gaze onto Karon and ordered, “Choose the church you dislike the most.”

Karon froze. Into his mind sprang a passage from The Light of Order, a portion of the mythological account he had read:

When the daughter of the God of Order, Ankara, was young, she grew angry over a trivial matter. The God of Order handed her a bookmark and told her to write down the name of the god she hated most.

She wrote a name, and shortly thereafter, that god fell.

Then, Ankara smiled.