Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

Chapter 31: Inside the Confessional Room

This robe was very familiar to Hughes. After all, just a few days ago, he had watched a cleric in the same robe, covered in mechanical constructs, kill him.

Calm down, Hughes, take a deep breath.

Hughes did not show any emotion on his face. He gave a slight nod to the cleric.

"This is Brother Kaeski." Chloe’s voice sounded somewhat stiff for some reason.

She leaned closer to Hughes and whispered in his ear, "He suffered a head injury before and is unable to speak. Sometimes, his behavior can be a little strange."

It sounded like a brain injury. No wonder he was unable to manage church affairs. Hughes nodded in understanding.

But that didn’t matter much. He wasn’t really here to study doctrine. He just wanted to know the Church’s stance on different races and have this cleric recommend some books.

Chloe looked at the two men with concern.

Hughes gave a subtle smile, stepped forward, and extended his hand. "Hello, Brother Kaeski. I am the rightful lord of this land, the Empire’s Frontier Count. You may call me Hughes."

He deliberately slowed his speech.

Brother Kaeski paused, as if processing his words. Then, he slowly smiled, pointed to his own mouth, and waved his hand.

He was probably trying to indicate that he couldn’t speak. Hughes didn’t think much of it and shook his hand.

The next moment, Hughes lowered his head slightly, his eye twitching, before discreetly withdrawing his hand.

Standing to the side, Connor frowned and glanced at Chloe. She had only introduced Brother Kaeski to Hughes but had not introduced Hughes to him. This was quite rude among nobles.

However, she had always been somewhat careless and was merely an ordinary nun.

Expecting her to adhere to noble etiquette was perhaps too harsh.

Connor was not unreasonable. He felt that Chloe hadn’t done it intentionally, so he had no intention of blaming her.

Hmm?

Connor suddenly noticed Chloe clenching her fists tightly, as if she were nervous.

Oh, she must be worried that Brother Kaeski might embarrass himself in front of Hughes. The old butler didn’t think much of it and looked away.

Hughes quickly adjusted his expression and turned to Chloe with a smile. "This is a place where confessions can be made, correct?"

"Yes! Of course! I’ll take you to the confessional room." Chloe let out a breath of relief, stepped forward, and led Hughes into a room inside the church.

As they passed by Brother Kaeski, she casually pushed him toward another side door.

Hughes nodded to Connor before following Chloe away.

The two of them wound their way through several corridors before arriving at a door.

Chloe gestured for Hughes to enter by himself, then walked toward the neighboring room.

Hughes opened the door. The room wasn’t very large, but the door was unusually heavy, likely designed that way on purpose.

After all, most people coming to confess had secrets they wished to keep hidden.

Hughes ran his hand over the thick door, then looked around the room. It was empty except for a single hardwood chair in the center, its worn surface indicating years of use. The wall had a small hole, covered by a wooden board.

With a soft rustling sound, the wooden board was lifted, and Chloe’s voice came from the other side.

"You may begin your confession."

As the door closed, the room darkened. A dim candle flickered to life at some point, casting just enough light to illuminate the small space.

A faint scent of incense lingered in the air. In the corner, Hughes noticed a small incense burner, though only ashes remained inside.

The confined space, the muffled voice filtering through the hole, the thick door, and the calming scent of incense, all these elements combined to relax a person, encouraging them to slowly unburden their secrets.

As Hughes sat down, the wooden chair creaked twice. The armrests were polished smooth from years of use, reminding him of the old furniture from his childhood home.

The design of this confessional was indeed quite clever.

Each individual detail seemed ordinary, but together, they created a powerful psychological effect.

At this moment, Hughes almost felt as if he had truly returned to his childhood, lying in his grandfather’s rocking chair, lazily watching the birds outside the window as the breeze brushed past.

Hughes sighed softly.

What a pity. If he were just an ordinary person, he might really believe this was just a regular church.

His gaze gradually sharpened.

Something was very strange.

In this world, the supernatural seemed to be hidden for some reason. Ordinary people and the world of the extraordinary were completely separated.

Even though Hughes had been actively searching, his first few Descents yielded nothing. Only his last death barely revealed a corner of the supernatural world.

But once he had unexpectedly stepped into the extraordinary, crossed that threshold, he realized that traces of the supernatural were everywhere, just beyond the perception of ordinary people.

For example, just now, when he shook hands with Brother Kaeski.

A handshake was a basic courtesy. When he shook hands with the somewhat dull Brother Kaeski, nothing about it felt strange.

However…

Hughes closed his eyes slightly. He needed to verify something.

If there was anything suspicious in this room, it had to be…

He reached out toward the hole in the confessional wall.

"Ah! Please don’t reach over! Y-you can just speak from your side!" Chloe’s panicked voice came from the other side.

Hughes ignored her.

Through the Symbiotic Contract, the power of the Siren surged forth. In an instant, several words appeared in his mind.

Ebony.

Copper.

Inscription: #￥%@&

As expected!

Ebony and copper were both materials used in the confessional’s walls. That "Inscription: #￥%@&" must be some kind of supernatural element.

The reason he couldn’t fully comprehend the name was likely because he lacked understanding of such supernatural inscriptions. However, he could clearly visualize its structure in his mind.

Intricate lines coiled and intertwined, forming a three-dimensional construct, like the internal mechanisms of a mechanical watch, complex yet exquisite.

And just now, when he shook hands with Brother Kaeski, he had seen the composition of "Brother Kaeski" in his mind.

Silver.

Steel.

Obsidian.

#￥…&

Tin.

*&

Shell.

@#￥

%￥…

#￥@#

There were dozens of components, more than half of which he couldn’t identify. Several of them were also labeled "Inscription: #￥%".

Hughes wasn’t sure what they all were, but one thing was certain, Brother Kaeski’s composition contained no flesh or blood.

He was an intricate machine, operating in a way beyond Hughes’ understanding.

Brother Kaeski was definitely not human.

At that moment, Hughes had to use all his willpower to suppress the overwhelming shock in his heart and prevent himself from crying out in alarm.

Everything was becoming clear. Hughes felt he now had a better grasp of the Church’s Candlelight Emblem.

But still…

Why did he have a nagging feeling that something was off?