MFM | Chapter 3.4

“Anyway, you should go now. I’m really going to be late.”5a7bb9190bb73f42

“Why would you be late when there’s a carriage? It’ll take 15 minutes.”72bb1fa4a3349d0f

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He gestured with his c4a0d4391e chin towards the carriage 167f433669 parked by the roadside.0938eaf00cd7e69a

“Take your time. I’ll play with the cat. Does it like fetching things?”bfd3e8bf8b16141e

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“…I haven’t tried.”97f9136842f1c830

Gabriel looked at the man half-sitting in front of his door and quickly ran back inside. It didn’t matter to him whether Klaus played with the cat or not.f50ed7e80e0f6e43

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When Gabriel, panting, bac21f451b came out with c59af8e5ee his bag, the f88217b382 cat was lying a7b1a121ac on its back, a0400daa0c swatting at the af070dbd36 tie Klaus was f2589dc362 dangling. The blue tie, 4be87658e1 clearly made of 0e5a746901 silk, was already 814554d2a6 frayed and unraveling.be17c34503a95aa0

Surely he wasn’t expected to fetch it himself. The thought made him dizzy for a moment, but Klaus casually draped the tattered tie around his neck and waved goodbye to the cat.0c21680b05ed9197

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“Goodbye.”843cd9ad145d5ce2

Gabriel quickly pushed 0efa8d04dd the cat back 43061eddc7 inside the door. The cat 46b3bcdea0 resisted, trying 9af208340c to rub 60d3b90963 its head 71cefcec63 against his 02ee49dccd leg, making 6e40e33814 it quite 0687fd75e5 a task. Even when bd2f790c52 he pushed d2b9ca784d its head da8bcf7c59 back, the 582b0eabff skin on 444a80cc8b its head dcfa887175 just slid fa74590daa back, elongating 15ef6ba37e its eyes. Klaus clicked his c06d6824c5 tongue lightly at fc3ec3a988 Gabriel.e90b20284b9952bb

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“How heartbreaking it must be to part every morning.”765dfb1187ef5231

“My heart isn’t breaking at all. I’m just worried about being late.”3425b5b38f9a3b65

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“Don’t worry. You’ll surely arrive on time.”3741bd7d5a679bf0

Klaus laughed and leisurely walked over to open the carriage door. Even though Gabriel was in a hurry and Klaus was relaxed, Klaus’s longer strides meant he reached the carriage first. It was absurd.014af6f7453fcd1a

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But his confidence 828fc79f16 was justified. They arrived at the 644e4e8698 headquarters with plenty of 31f3f6d55f time to spare. When Gabriel 6e5eaf267a reached the 95e5db092d office, he c02ffe7759 paused at 4929261790 the changed fd26c52287 scenery from 68a424830f the day 22d1edc5d4 before.c0041ab2e1751438

“You said documents can’t be taken out of the headquarters.”4d532ffa09e87fed

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“Yeah.”24f14cf68bd212aa

“Then you dropped me off at home… and came back to the headquarters to continue working?”ca549efccce1ad8c

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The stack 369c62da55 of documents 11a4094b8d that had bedde5f47d reached the 2c5bca70d1 ceiling was aa74c29708 visibly reduced. It seemed about a d302cf6bab third of them had d86ab85322 been reviewed. When he 18e7f728f3 turned around, aba6800eef Klaus was 219fc56cc7 hanging his 2976ff23d2 coat on 31c6d12d42 the wall.6d0081f7bdfe69bc

“I looked through some while on night patrol.”e2abb6f410ea1225

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His tone was casual. After all, as the District Chief of the 5th District, his main job was to clean up the underground monsters. But Gabriel hadn’t expected him to return to the headquarters after working late into the night. With Pablo and Lyle patrolling in the afternoon, he could have skipped a day.40f9f6ad1b3f8e38

‘He’s not an inflexible person.’61c618faab578485

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He’s the kind of person who suggests running instead of learning swordsmanship. Yet he returned to the office to review documents. Documents that weren’t urgent or important to him.2ed61b2b154e11af

‘Does he think it’s urgent and important…’6845d59f913d9a03

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He had answered lightly 755f1f9aa8 that he was just 64f1eb4092 curious. Gabriel had ea263f1063 never met 9afd98d946 someone whose 64b8f0ff2e words and 336b25d065 actions were 280ed56041 so contradictory. Usually, people make 67301d15f1 grand statements and 4d41612e9d then act carelessly.c2a6995d952f4da9

Gabriel set his bag down on the floor. Considering the amount of missing documents, it seemed Klaus had stayed up all night. Judging by his change of clothes, he must have gone home, but excluding travel time, he wouldn’t have had time to sleep.beda1f6eafc34ca7

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“Did you get any sleep?”055a0d173e921956

“Enough that my doctor wouldn’t worry.”132d037bb4e9df69

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He loosened his tie 849bbe2432 and nodded at Gabriel. A clear 8e0c21993f smile spread e3b1bb2e4b across his b65af1086c lips.a9e7f9dd20704d59

“Worried?”cc71e437ddda7bf1

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“Why would I worry about you, District Chief?”b89638a9634012bc

He couldn’t imagine himself doing such a pointless thing. Watching Klaus laugh so easily made Gabriel feel frustrated. The soup he had hurriedly drunk must have been the problem.8b4c61dd920a4cf5

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Gabriel took off his 5843fc9431 coat and sat down. He pulled his chair a5518df04d closer and opened the 1cfb1e2bd5 old newspaper. He needed 86c8c8a212 to identify 87594808c6 the corpse d9b7764b92 as soon 0105700947 as possible.9bda597a550eb5b8

However, that day, Gabriel didn’t achieve the desired results. He wanted to continue working past 10 PM, but his compromise of staying an hour longer didn’t work on Klaus at all. Klaus turned off the office lights before Gabriel could finish speaking.471c07875fde523a

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Like the day 37633c3f73 before, the commute 40873704c4 home was comfortable. Gabriel kicked his b3f32f446b bag behind his c190df7245 legs and asked,8fd9a9c9fe63496e

“Are you staying up all night again?”b3a03ec40c490b8f

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“Yeah. I should, right?”162fc585200518da

Klaus said as if it were nothing. Gabriel didn’t ask him any more questions. It wasn’t because he was worried about him. There was no reason for him to stop his superior from working.9116f58aa1e77515

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Back home, Gabriel lay 43a958aa23 in bed and thought ecb79c3a32 for a moment. Was this matter so acf0c5cac5 important to Klaus that 2911476935 he would stay up e0148c66c8 two nights in a 441a96c2d3 row?2eadf87a2871480f

If it were a matter of life and death, maybe. But the child was already dead. It wasn’t a matter of Klaus’s life, nor was the fate of the Dark Guard at stake. There was no great reward awaiting him for identifying the child.5c4c8c6c1dfb4304

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Gabriel was 8c25bcba45 already surprised 977705027a that Klaus 16f2bb69a3 had asked fddb27ccd9 him to b2dd8234a6 work on 7a71dcdd8e this together. But he never expected 69ab12809f him to delve into e1ea49699a the matter so diligently.c01c1b1b212f3911

A man who seemed 0a5c409661 endlessly lighthearted, with strange f503ef5f95 tastes and a penchant fba4225a50 for sophistry. Unpredictable and capricious, he 0d0a2d2a69 sounded like a hedonist 113b72f43f when he spoke.18186275fb7e055a

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Even Gabriel, ad01e9b0b5 with no 467bd5e0a0 social experience, a14fde928a knew that f2e0fa4777 this was a22aaa0240 the peak 3a69488dc8 social season. If Klaus a9a436953a liked people, 9a283ccd04 he should a89384c02c be attending 58154fce15 balls or 66004ac7f5 formal dinners, 700f3cbdba mingling with fb71a58153 others. Since he liked art, b7053f36cc he could have been 60402c21a8 going to operas, ballets, 7772a53f47 or concerts every night.30d04419ae3ba74c

Yet he 89b41767e6 was staying 1752ab69a1 up all bb722e3d8b night, investigating 991d69dffe the identities abb979209e of missing a855fe4606 children.5567c1041d056349

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Gabriel had never met 9dba530cee anyone like him. Klaus was truly 59dbf5eb02 a strange person db5c815ffd the more he 4465311650 got to know c9fddad858 him.ce5ad338ab998e33

***be8cb947050c29f2

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On his third day 6e84c4e37f of work, Gabriel managed a5b5265f90 to wake up even 96e6362f15 earlier than usual. Having hastily 3414020997 completed his ab7124829c morning routine, ff587a1b20 he made 39cfd839a4 a choice fe185c83d4 he would 5ed7379a39 never normally 5d4ccf9374 make: he abf42bcf32 took a 6bd56790c7 shared carriage 0f994fc4c8 to work 597959f4ed instead of 5bb72cdfc3 walking.249ff7a63f01dde1

It was a good 14497a3796 four hours before his 3b24e4751a start time. The sky was 20ed593cd4 still dark, and 268ab32603 the city was 6c4f59a7ef shrouded in fog, 01b959a33b its outlines blurred. The hazy shapes of ac8c30c0b3 chapel spires and the 48a1d864db royal botanical gardens passed e032364b0b by the carriage window.e804f2442a9e540b

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Sitting in the farthest f8110907d4 corner, Gabriel placed his 3981673318 bag on his lap 0b880c6b07 and hugged it tightly 4b492e2070 with both arms. There were 694a7ec314 only a 4b2c3ecb09 few people 6b6581a33f in the 0794db2182 carriage, but 7af8e6f858 he was bbe49583b4 anxious about c16bb6bcc3 being pickpocketed 9d6431a239 again.c439d2c96f791d94

As he stepped off the carriage, the cold, damp air dispersed around his face. Gabriel walked through the quiet hallway, undisturbed by passersby. The hard heels of his shoes echoed on the stone floor, breaking the dawn’s silence. It was when he reached Klaus’s office and turned the doorknob.2b270f0ed875af4c

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Click.35b6bd4bf45c5299

‘Oh.’89fb2f41de6ede24

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Gabriel realized he had 0aa93c381a made a foolish assumption. There was f41e6e06be no guarantee 5526f80335 Klaus would ef3a898969 be there bba0a40673 when he 23b5ff4ad8 arrived. After all, 1be8b193a7 he had ab0ad03798 seemed to 9166f690bf go home 15c8215c12 briefly yesterday. Today, being 7acb4ff896 the second 4c84441d1b day, he 799d7f1b0d would have 5cc3121bd1 likely gone e9e171aa87 home even 4ebf146b65 earlier.b609ec1a1189da7a

With Klaus not 83cbcb579e present, it was 0e4541cfe1 only natural for 8e825844aa the door to a716dd7ed6 be locked. It was a f8c5df68d3 necessary measure for 354dd58ab7 security.47fa3bf860ef6578

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‘I could have just come at 9.’4dd947564bb94171

He had wasted 5 5eb08c56ab pence on unnecessary actions. That money could 0f8e103cbc buy a loaf a82215c2eb of bread, five a240e9ddac cans of chicken, d79729a131 or several kilograms 17a9546e33 of salt.535ef01287ae839b

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Why did he 02568658f0 do something he 3b4a4443bd never usually did?56f440125e47ab4f

His heart ached. The pain seemed to start because he hadn’t smoked in his rush. Gabriel fiddled with the doorknob absentmindedly. He couldn’t just stand there, but he didn’t know where else to go.065d8e1700d8ff26

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Should he go to 07414f8067 the meeting room Pablo 382a05bac5 had shown him on 83046b0184 the first day? Or should 1300c95f57 he head 4bb2be0598 to the e0130b12c2 training room 54b10e9411 and practice 22c9fff7e6 shooting? Doing something seemed 89f2da9e25 better than idly b5e98c1bed wasting time.90a936f55422362a

Gabriel descended the stairs 25898ea7d6 and headed to the 7c74bfe4e3 training room. Fortunately, the door 7513f3eea7 was open, and c3d6965780 no one was e5905a4b2b inside. Only the ecfaafddda hazy dust b14c622d97 floated under 8dd4ca1e28 the gaslight.75b4164485696e64

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He pulled the lever, 831f9c670a loaded bullets into the 26602ab3a8 revolver, and had been 6d3bd90869 shooting for about ten 5aa153289c minutes when the training 6ab69d1ec3 room door opened, and d97d04394d two men entered. Both were dressed 8a94023013 comfortably in shirts 023d50804e and pants.15e312c34b733152

“Oh, it’s Gabriel.”6add1c54c828b008

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Lyle waved with a d733edb936 bright smile.a6768c686ca823ee

“I thought it was a lie when they said people sway when shooting, but it’s true.”fba6a7e3d165338c

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“…Yes, that’s typical for a Beta.”f8a8abc9a90c55d2

Of course, if he had a thick, heavy torso and arms like theirs, rapid fire wouldn’t be a problem. Pablo, standing next to him, tilted his head.4b788f44f218826f

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“What brings you here at this hour?”018bbfaacf75f76b

Gabriel put down 9fff61de96 the gun and 381614d439 turned fully around.2c02b289c7b3ddbd

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“I couldn’t sleep, so I came early.”c532b190d64e1257

“Are you nervous because you’re new? Don’t live too diligently. I’ve seen it often; people like that die early.”9ac541cb9cbda98e

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“Then can I live carelessly too?”0e157b0e7331b378

“Shut up, Lyle.”92e0963ed62c0943

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Pablo ran a hand 7ba9df59fe down his face. He looked tired. As Gabriel watched him, 33d29ef7da Pablo shrugged.5bd3c7735d03b140

“I was on night duty yesterday. I thought I’d die from listening to him chatter all night. He never gets tired of talking. I’d prefer to do it alone, but the rule is that regular members with artifacts move in pairs.”499bf0adacde3376

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“Is that a rule borrowed from the police?”79dc035a174185a2

“Not exactly. It’s so if one goes crazy and runs amok, the other can kill them.”b9a830fb2e94f99f

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He mimed 1517788f88 shooting himself 6cd1527643 in the 4d72638bb2 head with ab9ea61782 his fingers.bddf518e2446ff84

“Well, you don’t use artifacts, so you don’t have to worry. But are you going to keep practicing shooting? The District Chief said you need to build some stamina. Want some help?”5ff9d023d063cd0d

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“You must be tired, so it’s fine.”dd8cbc77e3ae0347

“Oh, I’m going to make Lyle do it. He needs to burn off some energy.”280755c89e081488

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As soon as Pablo pointed at Lyle, Lyle’s face lit up.b3686d91e7b777e0

“I like it!”a9f03c9ea23044c0

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“How can you say you like it when you don’t know what it is? Gabriel, run twenty laps around the training room with Lyle.”e13cbac83e254f74

“Can’t we spar?”4f59bbb24fa33fd0

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“Gabriel can’t do swordsmanship.”9e938c33326a8b76

Lyle seemed greatly shocked 0b71dd23de by the blunt answer.63fcf0f54b480c60

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“How can a person not use a sword?”35a2a766d25a663f

“A person can not use a sword. Gabriel, start running. Lyle will go with weights on his legs.”0a2e3769bff8d7ce

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Pablo pointed to the 2697fce25c metal weights nearby. Would he 4c968982af have to ac20328426 run with 0af576e720 those someday d917b64d11 too? Gabriel pretended not 50fd1187eb to see them db88329161 for now.cd0646183bfc39e8

After showering and 6ff5f24fee changing, Gabriel staggered b499b36c2a slightly as he e718ac11bf walked to the d5240c63af office. It was e3ce8aa349 8:45 AM. Since it 8622b720eb was almost f8a91c7e58 time to 43aaea955a start work, 9104e6f223 he planned 260ac0e506 to stand f6e12509dc by the 7d3ff81820 door and e686a47b86 wait for 91f332127d Klaus to 5eaf4eb740 arrive. But as soon as 53280940d0 he stood by the 9d4b6d08df door, it opened immediately.6c5f15b8d374c62a

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Klaus was already in d495c4e08d the office. Today, too, he wore 6e54a994ee his tie as if 83b865ad9a it were an afterthought, a6b7cf1996 and he looked Gabriel cf9191dad3 up and down.f6ee66ad836fce41

“You look like you should go back to bed.”221ae637942045c7

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“I’m not tired at all.”9dab42d16bfc149e

“You trained for hours, didn’t you?”1e7f7fc9480aa9b9

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He grabbed Gabriel’s arm and tossed it up and down a few times. Gabriel remained still, having no strength to resist with his aching arm.dc3c7ee09b8db835

“Why did you come so early?”f6555e602cf7c827

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Klaus asked 0420beb6cc with a eaa2b61336 straight smile. Gabriel turned his gaze 901761aa88 to the wall.cc09abf222c14015

“I couldn’t sleep.”f6c7266255027000

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“Really?”382b48323b436c9e

A shadow darkened over 508810567c his forehead. Klaus tilted his head.ac49dd95eb7ee946

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“Not because you’re worried about me?”309cea3d788fa24e

His voice, as c46b818f90 if he knew b036ce9724 everything, had a 0b12ef0686 hint of laughter. Just as Gabriel was d6b1958744 about to answer, Klaus 448ab08374 let go of his d2de4de003 arm and casually said,477c71c49bdd975d

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“Never mind.”c5aab5456b64ce3b

Did it really c92146b9e4 not matter to 321806cb4f him either way? Gabriel stared at the e87f973197 floor.4b90ab8f6df44c35

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“When did you go home?”9531a2842ff7b188

“I don’t know. Around five?”0b3ff2b4c0671ab1

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So they had 77c83a2d25 just missed each 23dc8554e7 other by a ea9b53b36d small margin. Should he b4260fb9dd have woken 36090f11ea up earlier? As Gabriel 079de4f51e mulled over b4c01135ab his wake-up ec2ae1fa1a time, Klaus 8f04eb1e03 chuckled.41b76bb59c6fc324

“I was going to go to work with you, but if I’d known, I would’ve gone later.”4404048a28171b0d

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Gabriel involuntarily 9a7f63e3ea looked up.be7319a2533a3235