The Secret Master

Glancing over, Klein saw the person who had asked about the cow-toothed peony. The person was less than a meter away from him, dressed in a black suit, wearing a black half-top hat, holding a silver-inlaid cane in his hand, and wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. His demeanor was quite refined. "Yes, do you need it? This small jar is 3 sules." The stall owner was wearing a long black robe with a distinct occultist style. The inquirer with the gold-rimmed glasses thought for a moment and said, "Can it be cheaper? I also need to buy other materials, like this bottle of white-edged sunflower petals." The stall owner thought for a few seconds and replied reluctantly, "2 sules and 6 pence. I think you won't find a cheaper price than this." Seeing that the man in the gold-rimmed glasses not only bought the cow-toothed peony but also other materials like the white-edged sunflower petals, Klein immediately felt that he might have overthought it. However, he still tapped his forehead twice lightly and scanned the man with his spiritual vision. No problem, his body is very healthy and his mood is good. You should keep it up, sir... Klein withdrew his gaze, turned around, and looked back at the stall selling homemade amulets. In his pupils, the amulets were clearly presented, some made of pure silver, some of iron, and some of gold. Among these amulets, only two or three had a faint aura color, either crimson, pale white, or golden yellow. This indicated that they had initially developed a spirit, meaning these few amulets had some effect! During that moment, Klein had observed very carefully and confirmed that the stall owner had a certain foundation in occultism: He had selected the correct power sources for different incantations without any mistakes, and the corresponding materials he chose for different power sources were also very accurate. Of course, a simple occult enthusiast would definitely have some omissions. Klein found that the stall owner didn't have a good understanding of the incantations themselves. It's not that translating the content of the prayer into Hermesian grammar can be considered an incantation. Incantations must follow a certain format and have unique rules. Another issue was that when the stall owner chose the appropriate symbolic symbols for the incantations and "power sources," there were also varying degrees of errors. As a result, only two or three out of the dozens of amulets were completely correct and emitted a "glow." As for the extent of the effects of these two or three amulets, Klein could only say that it was better than nothing. A truly effective amulet requires the creator to let their own spirit burst forth from the tip of the knife during the process of engraving the incantation and symbolic symbols! If one wants a better effect, ritual magic must be used as an aid. And these two things are almost impossible for non-supernaturals to achieve. Klein tapped his forehead thoughtfully and tapped the upper left corner of the stall twice with his black cane, asking, "How much for these two?" He wasn't referring to the amulets that had a faint aura color, but the unfinished ones, only with the shape, without the incantations and symbolic symbols engraved. For Klein, it was completely unnecessary to buy the ones with weak effects. His goal was to turn the unfinished amulets into real ones. Well, I'll make one for Benson and one for Melissa to avoid misfortune... I can use the materials provided by the Night Watch team for my own... Sigh, have I been corrupted by Old Neil? I don't feel the slightest guilt when thinking about this... Klein's thoughts wandered as he watched the stall owner pick up the two unfinished silver amulets. One of the silver amulets was long and had a hollow in the middle, surrounded by angelic feathers, exquisitely crafted and very beautiful. The other was simple and plain, with almost no additional decorations or patterns, just a "vertical line" representing the night with a "circle" representing crimson embedded in it. As an appearance-oriented person, Klein immediately took a liking to them. "This one is 6 sules." The stall owner, a taciturn middle-aged man, pointed to the more exquisite one and said. He paused for a moment and stroked the simple one: "This one is five shillings and three pence." "That's too expensive. In fact, they are still far from being amulets." Klein, influenced by Benson and Melissa, began to get used to bargaining. After a verbal battle, he bought the two silver ornaments at the prices of five shillings and six pence and four shillings and nine pence respectively. Well, they can only be called silver ornaments for now... Klein thought to himself. And these ten shillings and three pence were deducted from the funds of the divination club (five pounds) that he finally received. Just as Klein was about to put the two silver ornaments in his pocket and go to other stalls to browse, he suddenly heard a soft and innocent voice: "Sir, why don't you buy a ready-made amulet?" Klein turned his head and saw that the questioner was a teenage girl. She was wearing a pale yellow dress with a lot of lace and holding a bonnet with ribbons. "Because I plan to make my own amulet. You know, this is the wish of every occult enthusiast." Klein replied tactfully. He didn't want the stall owner to think he was trying to steal business, although he had considered whether he should make a little extra money with this "skill" in the future. The girl had naturally curly brown hair and her baby fat was quite cute. She looked at Klein with her light blue eyes and asked sincerely: "Can you teach me how to choose an amulet? Well, I was brought here by a friend. I've been here a few times and I'm very interested in the occult, but I don't know much. Well, she, my friend, will be sixteen in a while, and I want to choose an amulet for her. Because I want it to be a surprise, I didn't come with her... I asked her in advance, but I can't remember many key points." Klein smiled politely and said: "Well, what kind of amulet do you want to choose? One to avoid misfortune? One to stay away from diseases? One to bring good fortune in money? Different requirements correspond to different sources of power, that is, different deities, and different deities correspond to different stars, and different stars correspond to different materials." "For example, the incantation to avoid misfortune must belong to the Queen of Misfortune and Fear, that is, the Night Goddess. And as an occult enthusiast, we all know that the symbol of the Night Goddess is the moon, and the metal corresponding to the moon is pure silver." "So, if we want to avoid misfortune, it's best to choose a silver amulet with the corresponding incantation." And the language of the incantation must be correct, the format must be correct, the corresponding symbol of the "Queen of Misfortune and Fear", the representative number, the magic sign, etc. must be correct, and the positional relationship between them must also be correct... But this is too complicated. There's no need to explain it to you... Klein added silently in his heart. The girl's eyes shone brightly and asked in confusion: "As a believer of a deity, can one wear amulets of other deities?" "No problem. Deities don't care about such small matters." Klein reassured her. His "no problem" referred to the wearer, but the maker had to be careful. If a believer of the Lord of Storms made an amulet of the Eternal Sun, they would most likely receive strong malice. Of course, this referred to the kind that required ritual magic to assist in making. Others didn't matter. The girl visibly relaxed: "I hope it's an amulet to bless her health. Which deity should I choose? The Eternal Sun, the Earth Mother, or the God of Knowledge and Wisdom?" "The Eternal Sun and the Earth Mother are both fine. The former corresponds to the sun, and the latter's symbol is the brown star." Klein said with a smile. "The material for the sun is gold, and the metal for the brown star is lead. I suggest choosing the sun, but I don't know if you have enough money." He suggested this because among the three amulets with initial spiritual light, one was a health amulet from the sun domain. "It's not..." The girl stopped speaking suddenly, looking warily at the silent stall owner waiting for her. She thought for a moment and then asked, "Once the materials are determined, how do we identify the incantations and symbolic signs?" "Do you know Hermes script?" Klein asked in return. "Just started learning it," the girl replied, a little embarrassed. "Then I'll choose for you," Klein said, pointing at the golden health amulet with his cane. "Neither the incantation nor the symbolic signs have any problems." The girl lifted her skirt and half-squatted down to pick up the health amulet with the sun pattern on its edge. She felt its warm touch and her body seemed to relax. "Thank you, thank you very much," she said, standing up and bowing gratefully. Klein laughed and said, "Now it's up to you two to communicate. I have other things to do." As he spoke, he glanced at the stall owner and noticed his strange look, as if he was hesitating whether to offer him a kickback. Smiling inwardly, Klein didn't pay any more attention to this matter. He walked around the underground market at a leisurely pace but didn't find any genuine extraordinary materials. At this time, Old Neil had already paid the bill and came out, holding a dark wooden box in his hand. Seeing Klein's puzzled look, he pointed to another room at the end and said, "If you want to buy or sell extraordinary materials, go there. After all, no one wants others to know what extraordinary items they have bought." "Understood," Klein nodded as if in thought. He had no immediate need for extraordinary materials, so he walked out of the underground market with Old Neil. "How much are these elf flowers?" A questioning voice suddenly reached Klein's ears. Elf flowers... These are also ingredients for the "Audience" potion... Klein's heart stirred. He turned his head and saw the gentleman with the gold-rimmed glasses again. "What's wrong?" Old Neil asked, slightly puzzled. "Nothing," Klein said, turning his gaze away. Although he was a probationary member of the Night Watch team, he didn't think all extraordinary individuals had to be absorbed or imprisoned. He believed it should be determined on a case-by-case basis. Among them, "Audience" was definitely a type that posed no threat to society, the kingdom, or the world, and the possibility of a Sequence 9 going out of control was also very low. ...... After leaving the Dragon's Den, Klein and Old Neil took a public carriage out of the Docklands and then parted ways in the North District, each returning to their own home. The carriage entered Narcissus Street and stopped by the roadside. Klein was about to get off when he suddenly saw a young lady in a grayish-white dress preparing to get on. This lady had smooth black hair, a round face, and long, narrow eyes that, when considered separately, were not particularly striking, but when combined, gave her a gentle and sweet appearance. Klein noticed her not because of her beauty, but because her body was trembling slightly, an abnormal tremor. "Miss, are you not feeling well?" Klein asked with the intention of doing a good deed. The young lady shook her head vigorously: "No, I'm just very tired." At this moment, the people getting off the carriage behind him began to urge, so Klein had to leave first. Only after he had steadied himself did he start to think about what had just happened and pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers, intending to confirm that the young lady was really okay. If she did have a serious illness about to flare up, he would help her get to the hospital. "Inner Eye" activated, the aura colors emerged, and Klein turned his body, preparing to look at the gentle and sweet young lady.