13 Mink Street

Although the mask was a ring worn on the ring finger of his left hand, Karon still raised his hand, pretending he was holding a mask, facing the mirror, and “placed” it on his face.

Then he pretended he was wearing a mask on his face, reached out, and removed it.

From start to finish, his face in the mirror did not change at all, not even his gaze, yet Karon felt something out of the ordinary. It was as if a door that did not exist had just been opened by him, and then closed again.

Nothing had changed, yet by his ear he seemed to hear a “creak,” the long, drawn out scrape of a hinge being dragged. He silently retreated a few steps and sat down on the bed behind the full length mirror, the one covered in pink sheets, leaning forward slightly as he kept staring at the mirror, sinking into thought.

At this moment, a black chain slowly crept out from beneath Karon’s feet. It covered the bedroom’s surrounding walls and wrapped everything up, as though isolating it from everything outside, yet it also seemed like it was sitting in stillness to listen, waiting for the result of Karon’s thinking.

In an instant, the bedroom became quiet.

***

“Brother, hurry.” Serena tugged on her brother’s arm, leading him upstairs, but when she was about to step into her bedroom, Lemar grabbed her and held her back.

“What is it, brother?”

“Hush!” Lemar made a silencing gesture to his sister. “He’s having an insight, don’t disturb him.”

“An insight?” Serena craned her neck to look at Karon, who sat motionless on her bed facing the full length mirror. She then confidently stated, “A man in deep thought really does have more flavor.”

Lemar instead glanced around. In truth, he could sense a tide of Order’s aura rippling through the bedroom, which meant that the person inside was having an insight. What Lemar had not expected was that Karon would be able to enter such a state the moment he received the mask, while still in someone else’s home.

Crack. With that sound, Lemar’s left eye flipped as though turning over. His normal eyeball rolled down, replaced by a blue eye.

He saw the Order chains coating the bedroom walls. They were not an Art, because there was no aura of any Art. If they were an Art, he would also be able to see them without using the Eye of Sigran. So how are these chains formed? They feel a bit like something projected onto the walls; a soul projection?

“Serena.”

“What is it, brother?”

“I think he might not be a Divine Servant.”

“But what he used back then were a Divine Servant’s basic defensive Arts, he just used a bit too much all at once.”

“A bit too much...” Lemar did not try to untangle his sister’s logic, as he knew she did not need it. Some people could have perfectly clear logic and still ultimately make the wrong choice, while others could have absolutely no logic at all, yet would always choose right.

“Brother, how long will this thinking state last?”

“Normally, the longer the better, because this state is rare, extremely rare.”

“Oh, then brother, you have to help guard him properly so he doesn’t get disturbed.”

“...” Lemar said nothing.

“Did we close the shop door? We can’t let a customer come in later.”

“It’s closed.”

“Oh, that’s good.” Serena patted her chest lightly. “Brother, have you entered this state too?”

“Of course.”

“But brother, your time definitely wasn’t as long as his.”

“Uh...” Lemar.

Serena added, “Even if yours was a bit longer than his, the quality definitely wasn’t as good as his.”

Lemar could not help rolling his eyes. He had heard people say that when a girl started looking for a boyfriend, she would subconsciously use her brother as a benchmark. He had long prepared himself for that and felt that he could accept it, but then his sister came up and shot him full of holes right away. What was that supposed to mean?

***

Karon’s contemplation continued. In the mirror in front of him, Mr. Pavaro’s figure appeared, even though Karon was not stimulating the ring with any spirituality at all.

In the mirror, Mr. Pavaro stood outside of his daughters’ bedroom, listening to the two girls crying, his expression pained.

Then the mirror presented another scene: Mr. Pavaro pushing away a bag of Bloodspirit Powder that had been delivered to his door.

Next, the mirror showed the man shouting while being arrested and handcuffed, “Praise Order!”

Finally, the scene froze at the moment they had first entered the basement of the sausage factory and seen the pigpen. At that moment, Mr. Pavaro pushed away the hand reaching out to support him, stubbornly forcing himself to stand, despite the great difficulty. His face grew solemn and grave as he recited the Code of Order.

Loyalty to Order, a true Inquisitor should be like Mr. Pavaro, and in his hand, Karon already held Mr. Pavaro’s mask. When he put on this mask, he could directly borrow Mr. Pavaro’s “identity” and become an Inquisitor.

Not a fake Inquisitor, but a real Inquisitor?

At the moment, Karon was a Divine Shepherd. This rank did not seem to equal that of an Inquisitor, though Karon had long been able to awaken corpses, which only Inquisitors could normally do.

But if he could match things up, tight and seamless, it seemed it would be best, and more fitting for this image and this mask.

At this moment, on the left side of Karon’s body, the illusion of an Inquisitor uniform appeared. The uniform was black, and it gave off an archaic, solemn aura.

Lemar’s gaze tightened. “He’s about to advance to Inquisitor.”

Serena completely ignored the fact that she had just said Karon was a Divine Servant and instead said, “Hah... so amazing.”

Lemar tightly pursed his lips. So he has been waiting, waiting until the identity was in place, and then his rank would match it?

So many people would spend their whole lives with painstaking effort, yet still could not take even a single step forward in rank, while this man acted like someone shopping at a market. He bought a decent hat, so to match the hat, he casually bought an entire set of clothes?

For a moment, Lemar did not feel as much pain over the precious materials he had spent to make that mask. He did not like flattering the strong, not because he was lofty, but because he knew that in the eyes of the strong, flattery was cheap.

That was why such an investment and establishing favor to Karon carried real value.

His sister’s eye was indeed good. Too bad he’s already engaged.

***

To Karon, the mask was no longer just a cover for his appearance. He could use this opportunity to replace Mr. Pavaro and become an Inquisitor, not the office, but the rank.

Perhaps, in some unseen way, this was the true gift Mr. Pavaro had left for Karon, though the man himself might never have realized it. It was the same as how Lemar had said when inspecting Mr. Pavaro’s face skin, he could feel that the owner had provided the skin and that his heart had been at peace.

Karon had once asked Pu’er why his path of advancement felt so hard, yet there were still so many powerful existences in the world.

Pu’er had first rolled her eyes at him. “You say advancing is hard for you?”

Despite mocking him, Pu’er had still understood what Karon meant and answered, “Because you chose the hardest road for yourself.”

If faith was compared to a snow mountain, then all believers were eating the snow on the mountain. There was snow at the foot of the mountain and there was snow along the mountain’s path. It might be dirtier, but it was easy to obtain.

However, some people would specifically want the snow from the summit, and would be willing to climb for it, or even smash open the layer of ice on top of the snow.

Most people would just eat casually, but those with higher standards would step off of the path a little ways to find snow to eat, because there was no real difference. For thousands of years, or even for epochs, everyone had eaten like this, not just the Church of Order.

But Karon had a grandfather who had told him clearly that eating like that was wrong.

At this moment, Karon sighed. He did not hurry to “put on the clothes,” but instead stared into the mirror again. In the mirror, Bede’s figure appeared. Karon sat with Bede on a sofa in the patriarch’s bedroom at Allen Manor. Bede was sketching.

Bede had once mentioned that he sent a portion of himself to retrieve the key, while the remainder followed that first self into the studio to collect the painting tools. This was why Bede could both look forward to the scene of his family’s destruction and use it as a chance to create a painting that moved hearts, while also running to Roja City to discuss cooperation with Tiz.

It seemed the choice of Karon’s future father-in-law fit this mask better. When wearing the mask, Karon would be an Inquisitor of the Church of Order, believing in Order and possessing the conduct and image an Inquisitor should have.

When he removed the mask, he was Karon.

By splitting himself apart, he could have each part of himself do the work that corresponded to that specific part.

When his thoughts reached this juncture, another phantom Inquisitor uniform appeared on the right side of Karon’s body. This one was also black, yet it seemed to be lighter and it lacked the heavy archaic aura.

“Brother, why are there two?” Serena asked.

Lemar blinked, unable to believe his eyes. “He... is choosing.”

“Oh, so the church faith system is this good? When you advance you can even choose for yourself? I think the right side looks better, it’ll make him look younger.”

“Uh...” Lemar wanted to explain to his sister that reality was not at all like she was interpreting, but he hesitated. She seemed to only care which outfit looked better, so there was no need to explain such matters to her.

At this moment, the left Inquisitor uniform slowly drifted away, becoming more transparent than before, while the newly appeared right uniform slowly floated toward Karon.

“Heh heh. Brother, see that? Karon’s taste is the same as mine.”

But right after that, the uniform that had floated in front of him was moved away. No, it was pushed away.

He doesn’t want that one either? Lemar took a deep breath. Karon’s action seemed to signal only one thing: he still had more choices.

“Brother, I regret it. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have listened to you and awakened the Ekarine bloodline. Believing in a church faith is so much better! To choose like this, is to be truly free! It’s like picking clothes. God is like an enthusiastic sales lady— mmph, mmph...!”

Lemar’s hand clamped over Serena’s mouth. “Sister, remember, normally it’s fine, but at this time, right here, you cannot be disrespectful to god!”

Serena nodded quickly. Lemar released his hand. “And tell me, do you find your progenitor, Ekarine, to be approachable?”

“Not at all. She feels distant... almost exalted.”

“Exactly, and you even share her bloodline. The distance between a church’s god and their believers is even greater than that. They are distant... even cold.”

“Then Brother Karon is...”

“I don’t know.” Lemar shook his head and looked at his sister. At least he’s only engaged.

***

Karon recalled a conversation from decades ago, when a young Tiz had returned from the Temple of Order and spoken with Pu’er.

“The elders asked me a question. They asked what Order is like to us believers.”

“And what did you answer?” Pu’er asked. “Light? The sun? Air? The truth governing all things? A lifelong faith?”

“I said it’s just a mask. Others can’t see the real you behind it, yet in its name, you can do anything you want.”

***

Order is a mask. The real self, the false self, the self without a mask, the self wearing a mask, the self within Order, the self outside Order. So in truth, there was a dividing line. Then where exactly did that line fall?

Karon raised his left hand, his index finger drawing aimlessly in front of him as if trying to draw that line. He tried to comprehend Tiz’s description of the relationship between Order and masks.

Gradually, with the movement of his fingertip, his fingertip split open a tiny cut. Threads of blood seeped out and began to float along the path his finger traced.

Slowly, a third Inquisitor uniform appeared before Karon. Unlike the previous two, this uniform was stained with blood, though they appeared to form deliberate inlaid red patterns. The stains did not seem sloppy, but instead felt exquisite and well matched.

When the phantom of this uniform appeared, a completely different aura spilled out.

“Brother, why do I feel that this aura is a little familiar?” Serena asked.

Lemar gritted his teeth. Both his left eye and his right showed pure shock. He said slowly, word by word, “Because this is... the aura of a family faith system.”

Just like what the two of them possessed, just like the Vos family and the Ekarine family, this was the aura of a family faith system.

Lemar desperately wanted to shout, Why can a priest of the Church of Order still condense a family faith system Inquisitor uniform? What in the world was going on?

When did the Church of Order become his family’s? How many secrets is this young man hiding? What kind of “monster” has my sister fallen for?

Ah. Losing those valuable materials suddenly no longer hurt. In fact, Lemar even regretted it. He regretted that he should have set a few more diamonds on the ring to show his sincerity. Those things looked good, but were not particularly valuable.

Sitting on the bed, the corner of Karon’s mouth rose to form a faint smile. He felt a kind of closeness, as if Tiz stood right in front of him and was watching him. His grandfather had been the best person to Karon since he had first opened his eyes in this life.

Instinctively, Karon reached out, wanting to touch what was in front of him. It was an instinctive choice, because he trusted Tiz unconditionally.

Yet when his hand arrived halfway, a rough image suddenly appeared in the mirror. In that sketch, an old man held a sword, while a man and a woman lay on the ground, bleeding.

Then, the scene shifted back to that day at sunset, when Tiz had returned home and told Karon that he was tired and wanted to sleep.

Karon’s hand froze while still extending. He had clearly realized one thing: the road Tiz had chosen when young was wrong. Tiz had said it himself.

That meant that the connection between Order and masks explained in the conversation between Tiz and Pu’er after Tiz had returned from the Temple was not absolutely correct. The words might be correct, but the emotional meaning attached to them might not be what Karon believed.

In an instant, all three of the Inquisitor uniforms floating around Karon vanished without warning.

“It seems Karon doesn’t like any of them,” Serena observed.

Lemar slowly exhaled. So... excessive?

Karon closed his eyes and stopped looking at the mirror. Then what exactly os the relationship between Order and masks? An Inquisitor’s purpose is judgment, but how is the standard for judgment defined? The Code of Order?

***

In Bluebridge Community, on the fourth floor of Allen Apartments, in a study.

“Meow.”

Pu’er lay sprawled on a desk, drinking coffee and reading a collection of essays while basking in the sun. She suddenly noticed the box on the desk moved by itself.

The box opened by itself and the black notebook inside floated up. Its pages flipped automatically as it emitted a faint golden glow.

Pu’er raised her head to look over, and she saw a line of golden words. “Truth is proven through practice alone.”

***

In Lemar Pottery Studio, in a second floor bedroom, Karon raised his head.

Why, when given a choice by Tiz, had Karon ultimately chosen to leave home and travel to Veyn, when he could clearly have stayed under Tiz’s protection and continued living the warm, comfortable life of a middle-class man in Roja City.

Why had he left Allen Manor? Why, when he could clearly have been rich, had he still accepted a loan to buy a house, a secondhand car, then gone to work to earn wages?

Why, after reading Mr. Pavaro’s notes, had he so rashly gone to that pigpen, even though he knew there was enormous danger there?

Because I want to search, I want to discover, I want to test, I want... to see.

Karon murmured, “When I put on the mask, I am practicing, when I take off the mask, I am testing.”

At this moment, a new phantom Church of Order Inquisitor uniform appeared on Karon’s body. This uniform was black, but looked extremely ordinary. Compared to the previous three, it was also far dimmer.

Serena sighed, “Such a snug, well fitting outfit.”

Even Lemar, a puppet master, could not help but nod in agreement. If the two really are suitable, then her being a lover doesn’t seem impossible.

Yes, it was snug. It was different from the previous uniforms or the standardized Inquisitor uniforms. It seemed tailored specifically for Karon.

But it was also shallow, faint, and thin. At this moment, it could not yet be worn. However, at this moment, Karon’s aura also rose far above his original Divine Shepherd. It was clearly beyond the level of a Divine Shepherd, yet it was not that of an Inquisitor.

“Heh heh.” Karon suddenly laughed.

Why was he in a hurry? He could clearly take things slowly. He could first understand the meaning of “judgment” for an Inquisitor of the Church of Order, and then naturally advance to become an Inquisitor.

It was no different from how Piaget was always so carefree, because he had never lived a life where he was short of money.

At this moment, Karon had three paths to choose from to advance and become an Inquisitor. He did not need to rush. He could stand there, look more, think more. People only have composure when they have many choices.

The phantom Inquisitor uniform on Karon dissipated, but the color of the Chains of Order covering the walls grew deeper. It could be said Karon had become an Inquisitor, but he was not yet an Inquisitor.

He stood up and flipped the full length mirror around, as though turning a freshly finished painting around to face any direction but towards him.

Bede had once mentioned that after a true painter finishes a piece of art, he would step back and take one look. That one look was the greatest enjoyment, the true delight and spiritual pleasure.

After that, the painter would not really want to look anymore, but would grow tired of it.

Yes, Karon had seen enough of this mirror. There was no need to linger.

Right after that, he released a wisp of spirituality into the ring on his left hand’s ring finger. There was a flash of violet light, and he became Mr. Pavaro. He placed both hands to his chest, and in an incomparably devout posture said, “Praise Order.”

Violet light flashed again. Karon returned to his original appearance.

His gaze was clear, so clear that it seemed unable to hold any impurity. He raised a hand and pointed upward, saying in a flat tone and with a very clear enunciation, “...the God of Order, raised by a whore!”