Chapter 28: Remnants of the Old Gods

Shade felt a sense of accomplishment, having gathered information that, while not directly relevant to his own goals, could prove useful. He turned to leave the narrow alley, planning to relay the day's findings to Dr. Schneider at their next meeting.

But just as he was about to step away, the woman's soft, elegant voice whispered in his ear once more:

"You have encountered 'Enlightenment'."

Shade paused, frowning. The term 'Enlightenment' was associated with elements tied to ancient civilization, and occasionally, it could be linked to strong traces of arcane rituals. But in a place like this?

He stood between the pipes and the brick wall, observing the area around him. The alley was a dead end, filthy and filled with animal droppings, but oddly enough, there was no visible trash. Shade scrutinized the wall in front of him, which was covered with vulgar graffiti, strange shapes, and lewd inscriptions. But above waist height, something else caught his attention — odd patterns carved into the surface.

Shade's eyes, trained to interpret nearly any written language, quickly processed the symbols. What seemed like random etchings revealed their meaning:

"Reveal."

In the misty air of the alley, a faint white glow shimmered before Shade's eyes. Instinctively, he took a step back but remained in the narrow space between the pipes and the wall. His curious orange cat stirred in his arms, startled by the sudden glow, though it quickly returned to resting its head on Shade's chest.

Before him, a decrepit stone statue began to rise from the ground. It was small, only about half the height of Shade, with a square base and a figure atop it — a nobleman with bat-like wings, shrouded in a cloak.

Shade closed his eyes as blood-red tears welled beneath his eyelids. He shielded the cat's eyes as well, turning away from the eerie sight. He heard faint, joyous whispers around him, reciting stories that had never been spoken aloud:

"You have encountered the remnant of the Old God, 'Duke Lowell, the Bloodthirster.'"

"An ancient deity born of the first cursed blood, driven mad by its thirst. In the twilight of the Old World, the Duke spread his curse, creating followers blinded by the blood's power, trapped within the endless nights of his dark castle."

"You have listened to the tale of 'Duke Lowell, the Bloodthirster.' You have learned one of his miracles."

Shade, still reeling from the shock of this discovery, whispered a question to the woman's voice that lingered in his mind:

"Can I inscribe this as a rune?"

Moments later, the voice answered with a quiet, mocking laugh:

"You have gained a spell, 'Echo of Blood.' But you have yet to uncover enough of the Duke's story. Miracles do not come easily to outsiders."

The voice fell silent, but Shade could feel the new power settling within him. His soul ring, hidden behind the veil of his spirit, began to turn, absorbing minute traces of golden energy. His brass soul ring glimmered faintly as tiny particles of gold infused it, solidifying his connection to the supernatural.

Suddenly, his right eye turned blood red, a sign of his newly acquired ability. Shade now possessed the power to detect faint traces of blood — any residual bloodstains, no matter how old or hidden, would be visible to him.

Rather than immediately testing this new ability, Shade's first instinct was to check on the cat in his arms. Thankfully, the little creature, named Mia after her owner, had only been mildly affected by the glow of the statue. The cat had been too distracted by the light to fully comprehend what it had witnessed.

Shade, however, understood the significance of his new power. His right eye now allowed him to see traces of blood without the need for any external tools, something that could only be achieved through advanced technology in his world. Though this ability wasn't exceptionally powerful, it was uniquely suited to his work as a detective.

Reflecting on the story of 'Duke Lowell,' Shade realized he had never heard of this Old God before. In fact, aside from the 'Infinite Tree Father,' the existence of any Old Gods had been lost to time in his world. The story of the Duke painted him as anything but benevolent, and the voice in Shade's head confirmed that he was dealing with an evil deity.

This power… he thought, it's tied to the element of Profanity, a trait associated with corrupt deities. However, Shade's connection to this particular god seemed more inclined toward Miracles, rather than outright Profanity. Despite interacting with the remnant of an evil god, Shade hadn't absorbed any corrupt elements into his soul.

Though it wasn't the most overwhelming of powers, Shade was pleased with the rare spell he had acquired. Spells, after all, didn't require the use of elemental runes and were part of the general skillset available to mystics like him. Even so, spells obtained through contact with the remnants of Old Gods were usually impossible to learn by any other means, making his new ability quite valuable.

Having gained what he came for, Shade decided it was time to leave. He couldn't take the statue with him — in fact, he dared not even touch it directly. The presence of the statue, undoubtedly tied to Madame Lathoya, was too suspicious to ignore. A relic of an evil god wouldn't just appear in a city alley by chance; someone had hidden it here, and Shade suspected that person was Lathoya herself.

With that realization, Shade carefully reversed the six ancient syllables he had spoken earlier, causing the statue to slowly sink back into the earth. Once the statue disappeared from sight, he slipped out of the alley as quietly as possible. He didn't bother saving money this time, immediately hailing a carriage at the next intersection and heading straight to Dr. Schneider's clinic in the eastern district of Tobesque, still clutching the cat in his arms.

Unfortunately, when he arrived, Dr. Schneider wasn't in.

The clinic staff recognized Shade as a guest from the previous day, and Dr. Krell, the doctor on duty, informed him that Dr. Schneider had been called to visit a nobleman's estate. Apparently, the count's wife and daughter had recently developed a severe case of gluttony, which was suspected to be a psychological issue. Dr. Schneider had been invited to diagnose the matter and would be staying overnight at the count's countryside manor. The exact location, however, was confidential due to the noble family's privacy concerns.

"Mr. Hamilton, you can leave a note for Dr. Schneider," Dr. Krell suggested kindly, "He'll see it when he returns."

Dr. Cray said kindly, but firmly refused to disclose the location of the Count's estate.