Mystery: Death Singer

Edric sat opposite Marich, glancing at the zombie shuffling cards beside him. Watching the stiff hands skillfully shuffle and arrange the cards, he, a "gravedigger" who often dealt with corpses, suddenly felt an inexplicable eeriness.

After a brief silence, Edric looked at Marich and casually asked:

"By the way, I'm currently looking for the forepaws and blood of the 'Ghost Cat.' Have you ever heard of this extraordinary creature?"

As a former member of a secret organization in the Southern Continent, Marich naturally knew about the Ghost Cat and was aware that its forepaws and blood were part of the "Spirit Summoner" potion. He picked up the card dealt to him, glanced at it, and said:

"Of course, in fact, if you had come half a month earlier and gotten to know me sooner, you could have obtained these two documents at the right time, but it's too late now."

"However, I have some good news: this kind of extraordinary material at the seventh level of sequence is nothing special at high-level gatherings; it's a type that's frequently seen."

"If you're willing to pay the extra price, next week, or the week after, you'll see these two materials brought to you from other cities in Rune, from Intis or Fusak, or even from the southern continent teeming with undead creatures."

"I'm looking forward to it." Edric raised an eyebrow slightly, confirming once again that the extraordinary gathering Marich had mentioned was indeed impressive.

For the rest of the time, Edric and Marich didn't talk about anything related to extraordinary individuals. They played cards like opponents who had met by chance in a card room, with each of them winning and losing, and the atmosphere was quite pleasant.

…………

Around 8 p.m., Kaspass found Edric, who was sitting at the bar, holding a glass of South Wales beer, discussing with Maric who would win the boxing match.

Before Kaspass even got close, Maric looked up at him, then turned back to Edric and said:

"It seems you're going to a party. Remember, it's Friday night, around the same time. I'll take you to that secret party."

"OK."

Edric laughed as he got up and followed the limping Caspas through a back door near the bar's kitchen, from where he entered the alley behind and circled around to the front of a dark house.

Kaspass stopped and handed Edric an iron mask that only covered half of his face, chuckling softly:

"I think you'll need this; every member of the party needs it."

Edric nodded, took the mask and put it on, then watched as Kaspass knocked rhythmically on the door.

Tap~ Tap tap~ Tap~

Seven or eight seconds later, a small wooden board on the door was suddenly pulled open, revealing a pair of fierce, brown eyes.

The owner of the eyes glanced at the mask on Edric's face, then opened the door with a creak and silently handed him a hooded robe.

Edric put on his robe and followed the man slowly through the dark living room and into the first-floor sitting room.

A candle was lit on the coffee table, its dim, yellowish light casting shadows throughout the room.

There were about a dozen people sitting on the sofas and chairs around the coffee table, all dressed the same as Edric: hooded robes and half-face iron masks.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Edric did not rush to speak. Instead, he found a seat closer to the center and decided to first see what level this gathering of extraordinary individuals was at and whether they could absorb his extraordinary characteristics.

Time ticked by, and finally, an elderly man who looked somewhat old, perhaps the organizer of the gathering, glanced at the clock on the wall and spoke in a low voice:

"It's time, let's begin. No need to wait for latecomers."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a man with an unusually rounder build jumped up from his seat and calmly showed everyone several bottles of potions in his hand:

"Four bottles of treatment medicine that can effectively stop bleeding and promote wound healing, far more effective than what a general clinic doctor would do, and will be effective for six months, all for only forty pounds."

Edric recognized the fat pharmacist at a glance. After all, he knew about this extraordinary gathering because of the man, and apart from being a bit sarcastic, the man was a decent person and could be considered a friend.

The fat pharmacist had been a member of the gathering for some time and had a good reputation among the veterans. Soon, someone bought the four bottles of healing potions.

After carefully collecting the gold coins, the portly pharmacist asked again:

"As usual, I want to buy 'Marrow Crystal of the Fairy Spring,' does anyone have it?"

After waiting a short while without receiving any response, the overweight pharmacist sighed and silently returned to his seat.

Just then, a woman sitting on the edge spoke up:

"I want to sell a weapon."

"A specially made high-powered revolver that gives the wielder excellent balance, allowing him to move as if on flat ground even on a violently rocking boat; this gun is water-resistant, protecting the bullets in the chamber, and also gives the wielder the ability to hold his breath underwater for at least ten minutes."

"In addition, after firing five times in a row, the power of the sixth bullet will be increased, to about 1.5 times that of a normal bullet. This effect also applies to enchanted bullets."

"This gun can last at least three more years, and you can get it for just two hundred pounds."

Edric's eyes lit up. He was looking for an extraordinary firearm that he could carry underground. Although this gun's extraordinary abilities weren't anything special, it perfectly met his need to fire the instant he suddenly emerged from underground.

"Two hundred pounds, a reasonable price." He rose from his seat and completed the transaction with the woman sitting on the edge.

After putting away his revolver, Edric didn't return to his seat. Instead, while everyone was watching him, he took a square metal box from his jacket pocket and showed its contents to everyone—

A dark heart with ice-blue blood flowing through it.

"These are the items I'm selling."

"I'm sure there are people here who know what this is and understand its value."

All eyes were focused on the square iron box in Edric's hand, observing the heart that represented the life of a "cold-blooded" person with curiosity or scrutiny.

Ten seconds later, seeing that no one spoke, a somewhat disappointed Edric was about to return to his seat when the elderly gentleman, who appeared to be the organizer of the gathering, coughed and said:

"Six hundred pounds, it would be a nice collectible, of course, you have the right to refuse."

It seems there are still discerning customers here… Edric smiled and said, “Deal.”