For now, it seed Antak's quest to claim the status of Savior had yet to drag Jenkins into the ss—after all, he truly hadn't done anything. But if the Church were to uncover any docunts about the [Destiny's Stage] from the Antak family in the Cheslan Kingdom, his performance last night would imdiately be cast in a suspicious light.
The only way to distance himself from the [Destiny's Stage] affair was to relocate the Doomsday Docunt, potentially hidden within the opera house, as soon as possible.
If the Doomsday Docunt were to surface in a location Jenkins could not have possibly reached, any suspicion against him would evaporate.
Having co to this realization, acting as soon as the Church and police withdrew from the opera house beca paramount. But for today, at least, Jenkins had no opportunity. The theater was still completely locked down.
His conversation with Miss Bevanna continued until lunchti. She dismissed him only after she was confident she had gathered every possible clue from the previous night. The entire discussion seed to revolve around that single topic. If Jenkins's suspicions were correct, the Church was hoping to glean clues from Duke Antak's actions on how to construct the [Destiny's Stage].
Such an effort was undoubtedly useful, but the opportunity it represented was already gone.
"Speaking of which, what's the latest on the Mirror World?"
The cat, having dozed on Jenkins's lap all morning, finally stirred as lunchti drew near. It had assud Jenkins was about to stand and head off to eat, but the man rely adjusted his posture with no intention of getting up.
"ow~"
Hearing the cat's disgruntled ow, Jenkins reached out and gave it a good scratch under the chin. Chocolate instantly settled down, docile once more.
"It's a complicated situation. The entrance to the Mirror World remains unstable, and the investigators we sent in have found no trace of the circus perforrs. The five major churches in Nolan have all appealed to their higher-ups for assistance, as we have no Enchanters in the diocese with significant knowledge of the Mirror World. No new demigods will be arriving for the ti being—after all, the incident in the desert is likely an even greater ss."
As she spoke, she casually retrieved a manila folder from her desk and handed it to Jenkins.
"Have a look if you're interested. It's all about the Mirror World. Frankly, even if we make no further headway, our current findings are enough to revolutionize our understanding of it. I simply can't fathom how that circus obtained a fixed entrance. We're currently tracing their movents over the past ten years..."
Last night's opera had been cut short midway by the sudden incident. Though Duke Antak's "descent from the heavens" nearly obliterated the stage, it was fortunate that the interruption occurred during a scene change. Only two actors, singing a duet at the very edge of the stage, were present, and thus no one was hard.
The performance would be rescheduled, but given the current plague, the new date would likely be pushed to late spring. Fortunately, the Silver Jasmine Opera Troupe had no imdiate plans to leave Nolan.
The troupe had been held up in Nolan since last autumn due to unforeseen circumstances and had been performing locally ever since. Half a year was long enough to change the minds of so staff mbers. A considerable number now supported the idea of putting down roots rather than continuing their traditionally nomadic lifestyle.
According to Mr. Nelly's letter, the matter was still in the discussion phase, but at the very least, they wouldn't be leaving the city before sumr arrived.
After leaving the church, Jenkins stopped by his ho to collect his mail. He read through the letters as he made his way to Pops Antique Shop. Among them were notes from acquaintances, inquiring after his well-being following the city-wide mass fainting incident on Friday.
Grant, the old painter, had sent a letter as well. In addition to the usual pleasantries, he ntioned that the art exhibition he was part of had been postponed until this weekend due to the plague. He renewed his invitation for Jenkins to attend, while tactfully adding that it was perfectly fine if he was unable to make it.
The cat trotted ahead of Jenkins, leading the way. Despite its lazy tendencies, it still possessed a feline's love for activity, and there were always stretches of ti when it preferred to walk on its own four paws.
The barks of a stray dog echoed from an alley corner just ahead. The cat instantly spun around and scurried back to Jenkins. Jenkins had no choice but to put the letter away for the ti being and hoist his pet onto his shoulder.
The city's strays were notoriously fierce; years of fending for themselves had sharpened their skills for hunting and fighting. Compared to them, Chocolate, who was thoroughly pampered at ho, was like a soft, delectable marshmallow in need of Jenkins's protection to ensure its safety.
Robert and Mary, who were traveling, had learned of the great disaster in Nolan from the newspapers. They had both sent letters to Jenkins, asking if he had been affected by the incident.
They had been terrified upon hearing the news, but fortunately, Jenkins was the only mber of the Williams family currently in Nolan.
The Williams family's spring trip wasn't scheduled to end until this weekend. In truth, Jenkins wished they could stay away longer, given how unsafe Nolan had beco. But Robert's work could not be postponed. His career at the Smiths United Mining Company was at its zenith, and a week-long vacation was the absolute maximum he could afford.
Back at Pops Antique Shop, the store was as empty of custors as ever. Jenkins shut the door, sealing the thick fog outside, and saw Papa Oliver engrossed in a new newspaper.
He didn't so much as look up when he heard Jenkins enter. After learning that Jenkins had already eaten lunch at the church, he told him to sort out the recent accounts, as they had important business to attend to in the afternoon.
"What important business? Weren't we supposed to be cleaning out the warehouse?"
"Have you forgotten? You're a level four Enchanter now. That's a significant transition. It's not just about being able to learn new abilities and rituals—more importantly, the thod of transcribing from photographs has beco ineffective for you!"
Jenkins had, in fact, forgotten all about it. He'd beco a level four Enchanter quite so ti ago.
In truth, there were hardly any accounts to sort through, as the antique shop hadn't been open for normal business for several days. Jenkins spent a short while resolving a few lingering issues from last year's collections and quickly found himself with nothing left to do.
Papa Oliver set down his newspaper and stood up to fetch sothing from the warehouse out back, telling Jenkins to wait a mont. Jenkins took the opportunity to open the file folder containing the docunts on the Mirror World, curious to see if it held any interesting revelations.
Chocolate padded over from the other side of the counter, craning her neck to sniff inquisitively at the folder. She didn't budge, even when Jenkins placed a hand on her head and gently pushed down.
"Co to think of it, the Mirror World can pull objects or living beings from the material world at any mont. That must be why legends about it circulate even among ordinary people."
He mused to himself as he unwound the string from the folder's clasp, completely missing the way his cat suddenly snapped its head up, its gaze darting around the room with alarm.
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