New Gods of North America.

Chapter 736 Physical Examination
After Wayne managed to shake off any potential pursuers and arrived at one of the intelligence team's safe houses,
The twin siblings were actually engaged in "the great harmony of life"—yes, just like everyone imagined.

Michelle, the older sister, simply pulled a "sheet" over herself, explaining as she tied her hair into a ponytail:

"Although it might be a bit early, Miss Lina told us not to go out without permission to avoid being watched by the Holy Spirit Church. There are no books or anything like that to read in this safe house, so we don't have anything else to do."

Is it just a matter of time?!
Although the "sheet" was somewhat visible, Wayne didn't really look at Michelle because she wasn't exactly his type.
He walked to the window and first observed the surroundings through the gaps in the blinds: "If you need anything, I can have someone bring you some books or newspapers."

To be fair, the location of the safe house chosen by the intelligence team is actually quite good.

Located in the intersection of several gang territories, and with easy access in all directions, it would be difficult to catch someone "like a turtle in a jar" without prior planning and an ambush.

"That would be perfect."

Can I specify a reading list?

The twins' voices rang out simultaneously; the one who wanted to "order" was Michael, who was still sitting on the bed in the bedroom.

Wayne didn't make any promises: "You can give the book list to the person delivering the food first, and we'll try our best to provide it."

Although most Americans view the Old World as a single, unified place, the customs and traditions of different regions within the Old World—specifically, the "northern continent of the Old World"—differed considerably.
This can be seen from the messy relationships in some of their local myths, and some places are so open that even self-proclaimed "wild" Westerners yearn for them.

But the Sicilians shouldn't theoretically do these things... Isn't that area close to the Holy See's headquarters? In the university's world history courses, it's considered relatively conservative.

Unless you also interpret Michael as one of those "little boys" who get hurt in the story...

Wayne wasn't too concerned about other people's lives and entertainment; at least the activities these twins did were far less socially harmful than what gangsters did.
After confirming that there was nothing unusual outside, he quickly got to the point: "I came here to check on your current living conditions. By the way, Lina has recently suspected that my condition may not be stable enough, and I wanted to ask if you have any way to confirm or rule it out."

"Your condition is unstable? Let me take a look."

Michael seemed genuinely bored out of his mind. His natural demeanor was more like that of a reserved, nerdy tech guy; he wasn't usually very talkative.
Upon hearing this, I almost jumped out of bed, as eager as a salesperson who would quit if I didn't close a deal today.

Wayne waved for him to get dressed first, then remembered that Brother Merlin and the others hadn't officially finished work at the docks yet: "When you use your extraordinary abilities, you won't make any strange noises, will you? Don't attract the monks."

“No, there are many ways to check.” Michael quickly put on his clothes and added, “We have plenty of experience in this area.”

Well……

Although, according to Inessa and Lina, the members of the Abyss Society should be considered quite advanced and in-depth in their extraordinary research,

But weren't your experiences "being studied"...?

Has "long-term illness made one a good doctor"?

Perhaps because of their previous unexpected encounter with the church monks, the twins didn't have much luggage in the safe house to begin with—just enough for about two backpacks.
Michael quickly pulled out a steel needle nearly as long as his arm, as well as a strange wire saw.

Wayne was shocked: "Isn't there a way to conduct an examination that doesn't cause trauma?"

“It’s just taking some flesh and bone marrow. Small wounds heal quite quickly. At worst, I can take some painkillers.” Michael replied, replacing the steel needles and wire saw with small medicine bottles.

Wayne felt the liquid inside looked familiar, and tentatively asked, "A Hunter Association potion?"

"You've drunk this too?" Upon hearing this, Michael put the small medicine bottle back, then took out a candle with a "skin" on the outside. "What about the Holy See's evil spirit candle? This thing isn't very accurate; it can only be used for the most basic checks."

Wayne answered confidently, "I think that's enough."

He didn't actually think there was anything wrong with him, but Lina brought it up, so he took the time to come and check.
Unexpectedly, these twins seem to be really capable of this job, so since we're already here, we might as well give it a try. Maybe we can have them be the medical examiners for the agents in the future.

Since most of the blinds were closed, the room was already poorly lit. When Michelle saw Michael take out candles, she cooperated by drawing the curtains, making it even darker.

Even Sanders, who was also acting as a part-time bodyguard, went into the bedroom to take a look. After seeing Wayne wave him off, he cautiously returned to the outer room to continue waiting.
Michael also took out a plaster pen and several bottles of some kind of powder, placed the candles on the table, and then began to draw a magic circle.

Good grief, it was just a medical channel a moment ago, and now it's switched to an occult channel!
Wayne watched as Michael drew the "Holy Triangle" on the table, a hint of curiosity in his eyes: "Doesn't the Abyss Society have its own unique inspection methods?"

“Yes.” Michael nodded simply and firmly. “But we’re not in a bunker now, and conditions are limited. Common methods are more convenient. Besides, the standard methods used by large organizations are often the most stable in terms of test results and the most cost-effective.”

"You actually have to consider cost-effectiveness for something like this?" Wayne was a little speechless.

“Of course.” Michael traced the lines of the magic circle without looking up. “For ordinary exorcists, it’s enough to determine whether the other party has been corrupted by evil spirits or whether the fallen one has lost control. But some rituals and experiments have more stringent requirements, which require precise determination of the other party’s stability or degree of loss of control. For example, bone marrow is usually more reliable than blood.”

"Do you have to saw the bone open every time?" Wayne seemed to understand the nature of the Abyss Society better now. "Ah, you misunderstood." Michael raised his head slightly and explained, "The wire saw is used to harvest flesh and blood, while the steel needle is used to harvest bone marrow—it has fine grooves on it, you just need to hammer the steel needle in and pull it out—that's why I said it will only leave small wounds."

hiss……

Wayne felt as if his body was experiencing phantom pain.

Moreover, wounds can't always be judged solely by their size...

Michael, probably thinking Wayne looked like a Muggle, began explaining as he placed the candles in the center of the magic circle:

"The Holy See has many types of evil spirit candles. This one can be used by simply lighting it to determine if there are active evil spirits nearby. However, if it is combined with several corresponding magic arrays, the effect will be more targeted."

"This is one of the magic arrays used by the Holy See's Inquisition to judge 'witches' back then. It was used to detect whether a fallen person was close to losing control, and the criterion for judgment was to observe whether the flames showed any abnormalities."

"However, some of the Red Gloves back then would add sulfur to the candle wick for various reasons. This would not only make the candle burn more intensely, but also give off a sulfurous smell, which would fit the public's stereotype of a 'devil-bewitched person'."

After Michael finished speaking, he struck a match.

The flame slowly moved closer to the wick, and began muttering in a foreign language that Wayne couldn't understand.

Since the twins were still under observation, Wayne had already opened his eyes to the minimalist lines of the room before entering, and now everything was a bit blurry.

As the “foreign languages” were read aloud, the instant the candles were lit, Wayne saw something clearer flowing rapidly through the lines of the magic circle, as if an electrical circuit had been switched on.

Then Wayne saw the candles burst into flames like fireworks.

It's the kind of thing we bought as kids, put on the ground, and when you lit it, it would shoot out "fireworks"...

Michelle, who had been lounging lazily by the window watching the show with her legs crossed, suddenly seemed to shrink, her back pressed against the wall, as if in shock and reflexively trying to back away.

Michael's reaction was much calmer. He first looked at the firelight with disbelief, then at Wayne, his head turning back and forth quickly for a moment before he showed an "I see" expression. He then grabbed a cup from the side and turned it upside down over the candle.

“You’re doing well, there’s nothing wrong,” Michael nodded and said.

I don't believe you at all!

Wayne glanced at Michelle, whose face hadn't yet recovered, then turned back to Michael, staring wide-eyed as he pointed at the cup with the candle upside down, and asked, "Isn't such intense burning one of the 'abnormalities'?!"

The physical exam actually found a problem?!
“This is unusual, but there have been precedents for it in the bunker.” Michael nodded again, then pointed to the table. “If you don’t mind, I’ll start cleaning up. I didn’t expect so many candles to burn out at once; these are hard to replace.”

"Are you really alright?" Wayne was still a little doubtful.

"Don't worry. If we follow the experimental manual, if this level of loss of control were detected during the experiment, even the steel cable of the experimental cage might break. An apprentice like me, who is cooperating with the research, might end up sinking into the underground lake along with the test subject."

Michael adopted a matter-of-fact approach, saying, "If you can remain rational in this situation and there's no abnormality in your appearance, then it means you're in really good condition."

Wayne felt there was something odd about what he was saying: "Is there a more detailed conclusion?"

Michael stared at Wayne for a moment, his face saying, "Do you really want me to say it?"

After confirming that Wayne seemed to be genuinely asking a question, he finally spoke: "Usually, such extreme abnormalities only occur among the fallen who have connections with 'higher beings,' such as the 'benefactors' or 'favored by evil gods' in the eyes of the Church. There was only one test subject in the bunker who showed a similar level of test results after surviving the forbidden ritual."

"..."

Wayne's many words ultimately boiled down to one question: "Is there any danger? Can you determine which specific 'superior being' is involved?"

Compared to Michelle, who was still sulking and pressed against the wall, Michael seemed quite relaxed:
"Usually, at this point, there should be no need to worry about risks anymore—this statement applies to both the subjects and the researchers participating in the ritual. As for which superior being He is... normally you should know better than anyone else, and others can only speculate based on your descriptions and experiences."

"Although I am also interested, considering my sister's and my current situation, we have no intention of prying into your secrets and will keep them confidential for you."

Wayne was still a little worried: "What happened to that previous test subject you mentioned?"

Michael shrugged. "I don't know. That was more than seventy years ago. No one survived in the bunker back then. After it was destroyed, all that was left were some notes and records."

"..."

Don't you think the word "bunker" you mentioned sounds ominous?
You actually dared to continue using it afterward?
(End of this chapter)