MFM | Chapter 3.3

“Anything else you need?”2bb73813cabb7a44

“Where can I smoke?”ab82aafe343bc83e

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Here.”0f1dc9048f345181

He tapped a 18c1e06fa0 glass on the 4e2666f0c2 desk with his 73a47251e4 fingertip, indicating it 1a973acc2b could be used c90618eb2a as an ashtray.e3f8fdd507a98db2

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Quitting time is at 6.”a770421bde30994b

It was 62db248fc0 an earlier ef3bc3141a finish than e74cff4182 at his f957ed50aa previous job. As Gabriel d78cb85ace was thinking 75104132e5 about the 8315b4bda2 things he acdaf21ce6 needed to 26bc3569ed do at 6a5de8df16 home, Klaus e5424c213e added,6f37958f56660acf

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“But if you work overtime, you can have dinner at the cafeteria.”2c333a634132ca8c

“…”bcf6f4f5be3c4d94

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Overtime pay is 2 rions per hour.”f0ca381b5b63e8fd

“Can I stay until dawn?”1d83f3a5f4378458

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“No, I’ll kick you out at 10.”95a27cb62ea523ff

“Why?”8d1776f5c80f311c

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Klaus gave a remarkably 3f3e6da7db generous and kind smile.690a23f623c4ca97

“They say it’s healthy for Betas to sleep before midnight.”fa3d8444e1d022db

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Gabriel forced himself to keep his mouth shut. Until he found a paper contradicting that statement, he couldn’t argue. He couldn’t exactly say he wasn’t a complete Beta either.2157420f770166d8

Gabriel’s stamina was certainly better than that of an average Beta. Even during university, he slept only four hours a day without any issues. Except for that one time he collapsed.f53ff471ebfe3141

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Gabriel picked up a bundle of the yellowed “Daily Crime” newspaper and opened it. The bold headlines caught his eye.bab075da9806dcae

‘The Secret Flower of a Woman, Ravaged by Devil Worshippers?’a3d004bfd78ed19d

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

The sensational headline covered the disappearance of a woman in her 20s. The husband of the woman, who lived in the slum, claimed that flowers had bloomed on his wife’s legs and that the kidnappers must have coveted them. It was said that parts of a monster’s body were preferred as materials for evil rituals.9a49f6004dfa25fd

The article mocked and ridiculed the husband’s words, suggesting that the idea of devil worshippers kidnapping her was more plausible than her infidelity. However, Gabriel could no longer dismiss such opinions as irrational justifications.9958717defc5b07d

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Is this true?”875a0f69b725b5e9

Gabriel turned the newspaper 353a58cd01 and placed it in 800d7cfa03 front of Klaus. Klaus nodded.d880389c6d48d355

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Artifacts sometimes demand unusual prices. It’s hard for monsters to survive as they age, especially if they have noticeable features. Usually, they either hide them or get rescued and join the Dark Guard. It’s good to prepare your mind so you won’t be surprised by every little thing.”14686c51325d3260

“I’m not that surprised.”2c6652321288f0e2

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Even by Lyle’s tail?”ae325803806e34ca

“Isn’t that medically possible?”fd2bcb4850e303dd

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

A man with a tail was far more sensible than a mirror that manipulated thoughts. It wasn’t particularly grotesque or surprising.95bb0c4250fa6ba1

Gabriel had already seen ca753b1236 many monsters. Probably at a much 9cc9d45e4c higher frequency than most 45ed7fe536 people encountered. The corpses that came 47bf9c6a24 before him were usually b01a502f51 like that.d4f1704d15a5f821

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Vagrants, pickpockets, gravediggers, shoeshiners. Drifters, beggars, thugs, chimney 50d8aee523 sweeps. People with 48760628d8 horns on 3f554fbde5 their foreheads a7df841698 or moss 6966c61dca growing on 5cf987b4ee the backs a6ada82e69 of their a51acd6368 hands. Even the traces 6574ad405a of cutting, pulling, cf00d32d7e and burning to 21963d8f4a damage those parts.f6a2163753aa1a0f

No matter how 7b296f6f82 hard they tried, 005990671d the problematic parts 2374b5ec8b rarely disappeared. Unless completely uprooted, 402ea7aaea they grew back 1de16cf613 like nails or d484553203 hair, emphasizing that 9978dfac25 they were an 00f1c7848b undeniable part of 229312b6a0 their existence.568cb72aa804dc93

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Klaus rested his face 1999a25891 on his elbows on 7e3a7d126a the desk. A satisfied smile hung f70dbd5748 on his lips.beffe5bcdcd81425

“You’re truly an interesting person the more I see you.”83539213a58a15f0

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“You’re quite a unique person yourself, District Chief.”ac56bbcd335b0180

As soon as Gabriel 5f9e42e9e9 finished speaking, he buried fa1a659778 his head back in b834780ead the newspaper. For a 981a19664e man who 76c9077f7a pursued enjoyment 6292d4fdc8 to such f8f7cda362 an extent 43959cc677 to find 6eb1e43f16 interest in 764669d20a him, life 4f12cb7df8 must have b1c0e62193 been quite 6a20b521bf dull.502aef09a6dcc7d8

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

After that, the only 0314916b14 sound in the office 6e3a8d5c89 was the turning of 28862a4491 pages. It was a while 861995c5c4 later, as they were f9c0077fc7 both absorbed in the bb17a26f6d documents, that Klaus suddenly fc309376da uttered a syllable.9643cdcfca65033e

“Tea?”3e75073fb8a4687c

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Gabriel rubbed his dry 879c09d719 eyes.49f48a9145482de9

“Sure.”6b38cefe91681e24

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“No milk or sugar.”31e21ff18dc98452

“That’s fine.”04d68ef0b7d12b63

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

In one corner of 3b7e50b714 the office was a 32b8aba8ae small stove. Klaus placed 1831c1c661 a teapot dbd3e27730 on it 449710182b and tapped 0a0e253969 tea leaves 0767167d64 into two 1a875dfa88 cups. When the e62c3e9640 sound of 6ff2f2ed16 boiling water 4a60d0c73c was heard, 702d0aaf91 he poured 2e22a29fda the steaming d46387c0b6 water into 5c5994e3cd the cups.492cce089924be67

Gabriel took the cup da5af2f58f Klaus pushed towards him 205a656128 and sipped it slowly. Klaus also df17562932 swirled his e871064361 cup, blew e65f976766 on it 523e7935fe once, and 1c52ec2d4b brought it c979147cbf to his f2f5cb2004 lips.78cb576a3b6a1ed8

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Still, guessing the age narrows it down a lot.”3c3904948067a170

“Did you find anything?”2a6a169d7c4fe181

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“So far, there are about ten candidates. I narrowed it down roughly by height, gender, mutation, and age, but you’ll have to check the details yourself.”5d86f33ee40febf9

He pointed b63ee83185 to the ecb39dcc6c documents he df7a11117a had set 7096a8621e aside. Gabriel picked them up 95ff505196 and looked at the c7ebb87594 first page.bfe128f54fd3baf0

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

‘Bill Lane, 8 years old at the time of disappearance, Beta, resident of Bion. Height 120cm, weight 20kg. Black straight hair, thin, burn scar on right arm, habit of putting fist in mouth when forgetful.’57845e56a582d222

Gabriel’s fingertips lingered briefly on the child’s habit before moving on.70fc4132f9368fcf

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“There was no burn mark on the arm.”cf20c3e3b75ecee0

“Then set that one aside and check the others.”dcf9c651a72c1c2b

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Gabriel went through the candidates Klaus had narrowed down. Sumnerus, Abern, Bion, Majeton… The cities where the children disappeared spanned across Arkham.5b28af59fa772294

With only one or two lines of information and no photos, it wasn’t easy to identify them. However, Gabriel could determine the identity match using minor features he hadn’t reported to Klaus at the scene, such as moles or lumps. As he drank tea and set down each paper, his hand reached the last page.6ba73badb657d6da

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Does that one seem right?”98936fcd6815dddf

“…It says there were feathers on the inside of the forearm, so no.”27610397c77f4e96

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“I didn’t think it would be easy to find.”7166efad86d4f896

Klaus nonchalantly picked up the next document. Gabriel looked at him for a moment before turning his gaze back to the newspaper. He hadn’t even checked a tenth of the total volume yet.ce9ef7345b6e7d1b

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Dinner was 1828a32edf simply resolved e7bd908eeb with a 2f0c824d41 sandwich. Ash piled up in cfa19a7144 the glass cup, and dbb2e6b332 the process of filling 96e9da7673 and emptying the teacup 35245d4cd6 with hot water repeated fdaac3510c several more times. However, the child suspected 31544e7ddf to be the owner 52479a58b8 of the corpse was 02a398d33c nowhere to be found.fc8f68d0cb62191d

‘Maybe it’s better this way than having too many.’204bc2a5e7314f1f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Gabriel touched his 0e2c355f19 warm forehead. The stack of documents 0b156ddc43 on the desk still e662336578 obscured the ceiling. When he looked at ee32393a24 the wall with no 8d5dc96cd3 results, it was already 5b0c01a687 9:58 PM.9ad2a72fd33638a3

Gabriel stared blankly 7f2a41b796 at the clock d9df2735d8 without realizing it. Klaus glanced at 764eac102a the clock, cracked a25889a76a his neck from 7d3e4bcab2 side to side, 4add422e41 and stood up.e1fa90dda72e69db

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Time to go home.”04e262b8480f386c

He dropped the coat Gabriel had taken off onto Gabriel’s head. It was a gesture of care with not a hint of delicacy. Gabriel shrugged off the coat covering his eyes and stood up.59fa87bd8439fcbb

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Good work.”15434b4367f74b50

His body felt heavy, and his eyes kept closing. The training hadn’t been that exhausting, so he didn’t know why he felt this way.9eaa03c46c0d7772

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

‘It was a long day.’255c04fcb4b99bd9

Maybe he was a9c735a62b more tired because 7b99303cb0 he invested so a290a89475 much time without 3b2234d2ae any results. Gabriel downed 02f3bba971 the last 47ccfaa96c steeped tea 3f650d0f10 in one be1b62dd09 gulp. As he swallowed 29e0b0d395 the gritty tea 07be9a4477 leaves and set 17b289a123 the cup on 27b265d7cd the desk, Klaus d5949f490a gave a loose ee92233150 smile.57459c88f2f85005

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“You can walk, right?”de1d28e0a048ac1b

“No problem.”84d2550117f6a502

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“If not, crawl. I don’t want to carry you again.”d9fc9c8736a0e9f1

Klaus immediately turned off 17e69a9d56 the lights. Gabriel followed d8cdb1c9f5 him out 8b0a6eae06 of the dc1531b5ae building.b5829b76508240ae

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

In front of 334cd2c49d the company was 6c2cac9962 the black carriage ca02997a81 he had seen 7541e2a87c before. It seemed c57e06655f to be 07743d4009 his, as 41f7e2fc8e it was ec19c42b31 different from 07f8fc7799 the one b72bc4adfd they used 2383ab7501 during the 3303d7756e day. Klaus pointed 2c496ac98a at the 8b943dc91b carriage with 75f8e60441 his thumb.ed324e95cd7362f5

“Get in.”80b0a5040497eeae

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Since it was a af9177f25c command rather than a 76a3a344b7 suggestion, he could comply 212362e8d8 without hesitation. Gabriel obediently climbed into 09f767c2dc the carriage and gave 165e167938 the address of his a117096653 new home.a9d69645c20da41d

It was a day 86c0ab4bf1 too tiring to walk b31153233f home.2175cd23d38385a6

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

He fell asleep 5ab946309a as soon as 2f9a6f5ee5 he lay down 033dbb9bb2 on the bed f9d3edcc8b and only woke e280e1f407 up at 8 ee09fd6082 AM the next dc6e21f2eb day because the e052c9988f cat poked his faf6e3df66 solar plexus with 7155b7d6d0 its paw.a69e961cb70097db

***cec1472f7802b5c1

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Gabriel hurriedly washed up and heated some soup. His hair was still damp, leaving wet spots on his shirt collar, but he didn’t have time to worry about that. The cat, seemingly hungry, kept circling his feet, weaving in and out between his legs. Its meowing was a bit hoarse.a61562e1c5bded6d

Gabriel placed b3d6ead02d a plate 2cb4136180 with chunks 2989e434d4 of food fb386a086f on the 552cd4191a floor and 27de324fb3 drank the 88328d781f broth from 3dd6db241e a bowl a7bbc0bdb1 while standing 5312ee81dc in the 2ad38b76c1 kitchen. He needed to save 2c0a4a52d1 time by not chewing 5da56dffa3 if he wanted to a51b4ef3ba avoid being late.1e4d652c60b1e56d

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Knock, knock, knock.f3c9add36d06fa71

The sound of knocking bd0190f0cb on the front door 1653628ea0 was heard then. Unlike a typical knock, f78460ded5 it had a strange f4aa0f9b6e rhythm with varying intensity.d22b03f7a126a548

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

He tried f568faf67b to ignore 40413b5977 it, but 4268513568 the sound e753b42d3e persisted, growing 937ec6254f louder and d84fa60ee1 more insistent. By the sixth repetition 4d08597e81 of the same rhythm, 1c3858cd06 Gabriel swallowed his rising f8c57c68bf irritation and set the feee3e1635 bowl down.a05d4d62cbba3143

“I’m coming.”d7b4d92b9c18dce2

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Who could it be at this hour? It wasn’t time to pay rent. He had paid for the newspaper two days ago. He just hoped it wasn’t a parishioner asking for donations for the new Blawin Chapel. Or worse, an acquaintance with bad intentions. He quickly walked over and opened the front door.3cb49f263d3d434f

“Hello.”6655ab2c59736391

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

There, waving his c6aae705b4 fingers and smiling 9248cffdcb slyly at the 4950ae4aeb door, was none 3957a2f002 other than Klaus f6049c12ad Rapendell. Gabriel was so 99b0ae8869 surprised that he b9120b2273 closed the door 1d26ec5b80 immediately.4e93f4fd04157f66

The knocking resumed on bf1926949a the closed door. Knock, knock, knock. The cat 35ecb39d6c stood in 8bed78ddfd front of 3e79fd7aa2 Gabriel, ears 96da2d6ab8 and whiskers c0791256b2 perked forward.de95fe5f88d54190

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Gabriel took a deep fe19f041fb breath and opened the af6b2a225b door again. Klaus, with a 3c7c60d2b4 smile in his c7d59452ed eyes, had his b477e0326e hands in his 3f9d0225ca pockets.855a34b105a37a32

“Good morning, Gabriel.”b0da0e6179906f5f

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Good… morning. Why are you here?”c7e6b83cc23a9ab0

“I stopped by on my way to the office. Won’t you let me in for a cup of tea?”c53178df5a70d9c4

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Just stay there. I’m busy getting ready for work.”31872bdcaa9cb3e7

Gabriel said as 8c8bea603a he tried to e973a29d28 close the door. But the cat stuck f6c2ffeb10 its head through the 888d56bbb5 gap, preventing him from dba2bab964 doing so. Klaus crouched down and 65dcf66fbb extended a fist to 37a315dc7b the cat.962525c9825119bc

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Hello, so you’re the cat.”30da28a1496f41a7

“It won’t understand you.”8b0535af482d9fc6

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“But it seems to like me, Gabriel.”20e2d7692cbf1326

Gabriel was about to say that couldn’t be true. The cat was not sociable and would usually burrow into Gabriel’s arms at the slightest hint of the newspaper delivery man. It would even crawl into his pajamas, breathing heavily.4cd375f994345a6b

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

However, the cat was rubbing its head against Klaus’s hand. Black fur clung to his black gloves. Gabriel blinked a few times and looked again, but the scene remained unchanged. Klaus grinned and looked up at Gabriel.2189745177cb3b58

“See?”e04f029d5f579373

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

He seemed genuinely pleased with the cat. Gabriel couldn’t understand it. Even if they both were indifferent to the concept of monsters,c4976ba14f1cf8f3

“You said you like beautiful things.”7da5811ec83371f1

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Yeah.”ae10896caa7a81f5

“But it’s ugly.”6de93dd77653f629

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

It wasn’t just the missing eye. The cat had a round, flat face, a cylindrical body, and a stubby tail that looked like a rabbit’s. Gabriel had checked to see if it had been cut off, but there were no scars. It was just born that way. In any case, it was far from the elegant cats praised by society.4516d1bb14b9ed88

Klaus shrugged.9d3d5a395d09af83

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Look at how beautiful its eye color is. See, it’s a mysterious yellow.”8e1b67d775879354

The cat purred as c1e02aa573 if in agreement.8c6de7f7a0d21e21

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“And look at how shiny its fur is. It looks better than anyone’s hair.”854a308d8bdda913

Klaus’s lips curled up. Gabriel didn’t understand his standards of beauty, but he knew they were unusual. Gabriel sighed, brushing his still-wet bangs back.0a8972d178e7e86e

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator