On the other side of town, a woman gave an overly dramatic opera performance. It sounded decent, though honestly, opera was never really Klein’s thing. There was a time when he pretended to enjoy it just to seem intellectual and unique, but it only made him look foolish. That clearly wasn’t the case for the main man, Klein, who now sat among the pretentious aristocrats, appearing every bit the distinguished gentleman.
As the performance neared its end, a man came out to greet the crowd. From afar, his presence gave off a strong aura—enough that Klein briefly mistook him for someone important, perhaps someone from the Utopia Arc. But when the camera zoomed in, it was just another charming face.
Speaking of distinguished figures, Captain Dunn arrived, still showing signs of strain after the hangman’s spiritual backlash at the Seer Club. Klein asked if he was fit for duty, and Dunn confirmed he was, then proceeded to update him. Apparently, Daly had left town for another assignment, but not before interrogating Vincent in a dream state. Vincent was barely alive, clinging to life when the questioning began. Unfortunately, he didn’t survive the nightmare interrogation, but they did confirm that the cult he was involved with worshipped the True Creator.
The scene then flashed back to a week prior at the Seer Club, when Klein had a client—a woman looking for answers about her missing husband. He was supposed to be on a boat that returned with many deaths on board. The Nighthawks were already investigating the case. Interestingly, one of the few survivors was Tris, an opera singer, and the very man who had reportedly saved her husband. Tris had a sterling public reputation, but when Klein spotted him entering his caravan, he noticed something unsettling in his eyes—something dark.
In contrast, the rescued man was genuinely grateful to Klein for divining his safe return. However, he was plagued by a recurring nightmare ever since the voyage. Through a seamless transition to the Seer Club, Klein listened as the man explained the nightmare. Klein put him under and entered his psyche, revealing a disturbing vision: a man throwing a baby off the ship’s deck before leaping into the sea. The survivor had tried to save him, wanting answers as he was the last of his barbarian tribe.
Klein interrupted the dream to question the man, and began to suspect there was someone orchestrating these events. A shadowy figure emerged behind Klein—a dark presence whispering into the dream. The dreamscape warped into a grand throne room where the eerie whispers of Hornacis echoed louder and louder, forcing Klein awake. He wondered whether these voices were the temptations of a dark deity and if the palace might hold clues about his transmigration. For now, he hoped Professor Isengard Stanton would uncover more information.
Captain Dunn arrived soon after. Klein revealed his belief that the tragedy aboard the ship had been orchestrated by a manipulator—Tris, the supposed hero, had assumed a false identity and twisted the survivors into believing it. In other words, Tris was the true killer.
Dunn, lighting his pipe thoughtfully, acknowledged the complexity of the situation. Tris was hailed as a hero, and dream revelations alone wouldn’t be enough to convict him. What they needed now was solid, real-world evidence.
To catch Tris, they would need help from the Mandated Punishers and the Machinery Hive Mind. But to truly deal with him, they needed something more—someone unpredictable. Turns out, Tris had been partying all night with the victim’s family. He manipulated husbands into killing each other and then comforted their widows—classic Sequence 8 Instigator behavior. Still, he wasn’t satisfied with his current level and demanded a promotion. A mysterious woman agreed to give him the Sequence 7 formula, but only if he completed one more task—alone—since the Mangoks were now onto him.
Meanwhile, Old Neil took Klein to the market to buy materials for talismans for Klein’s siblings. He led him through a secret passage to Tingen’s underground market—a massive place, surprisingly hidden from the general public. It even had its own law enforcement, the Punishers, and strange characters like a homeless man with intense spiritual senses who could tell Klein had once died (i.e., his reincarnation). The market was full of sketchy vendors selling fake artifacts, but Klein could see the real value in some items.
Neil explained that, while most vendors couldn’t make genuine talismans, it was possible to combine prototype items and craft a proper one. Klein wasn’t impressed by the steep prices, but then he noticed Tris in the crowd. He nudged Neil, and they followed. Another man was tailing Tris, and Neil revealed he was a Punisher—not the stealthiest bunch. Once Tris realized he was being followed, he ran. During the chase, he shoved a man off a bridge, but Klein managed to save him with a quick-thinking cart maneuver. Tris, agile and ruthless, escaped after causing two deaths, but lost his hat in the process, weakening his aura just a bit.
Captain Dunn asked Klein to join him and used divination on the hat to track Tris to the Demoness Sect’s hideout—an evil organization led by women and devoted to the Primordial Demoness. Dunn told Klein to wait outside while they raided the building. As the agents stormed in, a beautiful woman bumped into Klein, declined help, apologized, and walked off—leaving a strong impression. Unfortunately, Tris wasn’t found. Flyers were spread citywide, but he vanished.
In the meantime, Klein got promoted, received a raise, and officially joined the Nighthawks. His life grew busy with training—learning magic at night and martial arts during the day—while also taking small jobs at the Seer Club to help digest his potion. He also continued hosting Tarot Club meetings with his loyal members.
Just as Klein started enjoying his peaceful, hectic days, strange deaths in the city surged. Poisonings, drownings, burnings—mostly among vagrants and low-class workers. The Mandated Punishers, Hive Mind, and Nighthawks joined forces to investigate. Divination revealed a common pattern: right before each death, someone had patted the victim’s back. In every case, a young woman’s hand appeared—even in deaths that seemed natural.
Klein was analyzing the clues when Leonard barged in, claiming they—emphasis on he—had come up with a theory to present to their superiors. Embarrassed, Klein let him speak. They concluded the deaths were all fated, but had been accelerated by someone stealing the victims’ remaining lifespan. These stolen lives were likely being used to summon a demon, an evil god, or to prepare a massive curse.
Leonard gave Klein a friendly pat and said, “The wheel of history begins to turn when two protagonists meet.” Klein, stunned, asked why he thought he was one of the main characters. Leonard responded, “You have secrets. As long as you don’t threaten the Nighthawks, you’re my comrade.”
Using a victim’s item, Klein located the general direction of the witch responsible. The team pinpointed her hideout in the southern industrial zone. Outside, Captain Dunn laid out the plan: trap her in a dream so Leonard and another operative could attack. Klein was told to stay back.
Once the nightmare began, the witch went on high alert. She cast multiple spells and stabbed one of the attackers—only to find it was an illusion. Leonard struck her hard, slamming her into a wall. That wall crumbled, revealing a massive hand reaching for her. Terrified, she cut her hand to wake herself up and escape the dream. Back in reality, the agents opened fire. But unlike the previous Sequence 7, this witch used a crystal shield to block bullets and then shattered it into shards to counterattack.
Back at the castle, the witch began praying to the Demonist statue, trying to draw more power and release the Wrath spirits sealed beneath it. These Wrath are vengeful souls that can be harmed with lead and steel. One of them managed to make contact with Dunn, freezing his body right down to his organs. Somehow—don’t ask how—Dunn shattered the ice and survived. Honestly, every mission he gets hit with something cursed. It’s like he’s collecting spiritual STDs like Pokémon.
Meanwhile, one of the other team members broke into a house, only to be attacked by a flying carpet. Not wanting to be taken down by a piece of furniture, he used a flashy electric spell to break free and blast it. Strangely, the carpet bled. Behind it was the witch, holding the Demonist statue. She hit him with some sort of powerful aura—almost like Conqueror’s Haki—but he held his ground and countered with his own spiritual force.
With the man down, the witch made a break for it and encountered Leonard. She struck him from behind with a black flower, which he blocked with his hand. But it didn’t matter—the flower was cursed and fused with his body. Thinking she’d won, the witch turned invisible and escaped, believing the curse had taken root.
But Leonard isn’t just anyone—he’s that guy. He ripped off his own nail, wrapped the cursed flower around it, and threw it away just as the witch activated it, narrowly avoiding being burned alive. Thinking she’d killed him, she said her goodbyes and leapt off a bridge.
Inside the house, the team gathered around Klein as he restored a mirror using a spell. The mirror revealed its last recorded image, confirming the woman from the previous building raid was the same witch. The group finally put the pieces together—Triss hadn’t been missing after all. Triss had become a woman.
Captain Dunn realized why: the upper ranks of the Demonist sect are all women. Then it clicked—many of the sect’s females were originally men. In the wise words of late Uncle Ben: with great power comes great sacrifice… or small, depending on their, uh, willy size. Now, newly transformed and training as “Tissy” in the Diddy Sect, Triss is seen enjoying all the perks of being a stunning woman.
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