novelburst
Chapter 141 - 145 Heidi and her family
Chapter 141 - 145 Heidi and her family
Chapter 141: Chapter 145 Heidi and her family
Haidi wisely did not press further.
She knew that she and Fenna were different; although she was nominally a “clergy” with accreditation from the Academy of Truth, she was better at pure research and contemplation rather than directly confronting those dangerous, secretive forces. Indeed, she could pry secrets from the minds of heretics and tease out the heretical shadows left behind by mass hallucinations, but this was starkly different from the work of a Judge.
She herself lacked sensitivity to certain threats.
But Fenna was someone who had been confronting heretics and secret forces head-on for years, and she might have already keenly sensed the presence of some shadow—today’s visit to the Lower City District probably inadvertently disturbed something.
As they were getting close to home, Haidi asked a question, “Is there a problem with that antique shop?”
“The antique shop is normal,” Fenna slowly decelerated the vehicle, her expression thoughtful, “but there might be something abnormal in our City-State.”
The sky had completely darkened, the bell for the change of day and the whistle from the central steam core sounded at the same time, penetrating the clouds above the City-State in the sunset. In the Upper City District, the gas lamps along the streets had been lit a half-hour early. Arriving at her doorstep, Haidi heard the sound of the car diminishing into the distance.
There was a curfew at night in the city, but the decree only applied to common folk lacking the ability to protect themselves. The Church’s Judges were clearly unaffected—Fenna still had to check on the museum before returning to the cathedral and meet with the guards responsible for the scene blockade, her days off often went by without real rest.
Haidi inadvertently recalled her own disrupted day off and let out a sigh before entering her house.
The living room was lit but empty, and quietness pervaded the house. The day maids responsible for cleaning and laundry had gone home before sundown, leaving the large house feeling a bit desolate.
However, Haidi had long been used to this; her father was the kind of man who once holed up in his study, could not be easily called out, and her mother, with her health issues, often rested in the bedroom. The house, a bit too spacious for a family of three, was mostly this quiet every day.
But this didn’t mean that the large house was devoid of warmth—Haidi had a very good relationship with her parents, and it had always been so.
She expertly hung up her coat, put away her hat and portable medicine box, glanced at the lit study without disturbing her father who might be deeply immersed in reading, and as usual, went to her parents’ bedroom and knocked, “I’m back—are you in there?”
Her mother’s voice came from inside, tinged with helplessness and a bit of feigned annoyance, “You’re back so late!”
Haidi stuck her tongue out at the door and quickly composed her expression before entering with a smile, murmuring, “I went out with Fenna, what’s there to worry about, she could fight off the entire city with one hand…”
The room’s lighting was dim because too bright of a light would irritate her mother’s eyes—her mother had suffered from chemical fumes during a factory leak eleven years ago, which had left her vision impaired.
Haidi adjusted to the dim light before she saw her mother leaning against the headboard, dressed in soft pajamas, weaving a unique rope craft from Plunder City-State by touch. In the shadowy glow, her mother looked up at Haidi with a mix of resignation in her voice, “You’re always hanging around Fenna; you’ll end up unmarried just like her. I know it; she sneaks off to the marital aid center every weekend, then picks someone to beat up, and the church receives complaints daily…”
Haidi’s expression became quite amused, “You shouldn’t say that… Fenna is already a Judge…”
“So what if she’s a Judge, she’s the one who ate lunch at our house for several years—ever since her uncle became Governor, he’s been all about the City-State,” the old lady muttered nonstop while her hands moved quickly, “In my opinion, the problem is with the upbringing she got from her uncle, the girl’s too single-minded. At her baptism, she insisted on making a vow, she might as well, but she took on all three major vows at once to prove her devotion when most normal nuns just choose one; because of that, she’s now stuck unable to marry…”
As her mother rambled on, Haidi could only smile awkwardly. When the old lady paused for breath, Haidi seized the chance to change the subject and looked at the craft in her mother’s hands, “Are you almost finished with that?”
“I weave and I unravel, now I am finally a bit satisfied,” her mother smiled, showing off the piece that resembled a dazzling ribbon—complex structures woven meticulously from fine ropes, adorned with pretty stones and colored beads, a unique skill of Plunder City-State known for its complexity, long hours of work, and believed to bring blessings and ward off evil, “I wonder if it will be ready when you find a nice young man…”
Haidi looked at the nearly finished rope craft and delicately suggested, “Then maybe… you could unravel it one more time, maybe it will be ready in time…”
“You are really teasing me!”
Heidi hurriedly wore a smile and turned to leave the room.
Her mother’s nagging voice came from behind her. Heidi casually closed the door and then tiptoed, preparing to head to the kitchen. But just as she was about to walk away, she saw her father standing in the hallway.
Morris, with his refined demeanor and sparse white hair, looked helplessly at his sneaky daughter, “I heard you come home quite a while ago… Did you upset your mother again?”
Heidi quickly waved her hands, “No, no, we were just chatting.”
“Did you deliver the gift to Mr. Duncan?” Morris asked.
“I did—Mr. Duncan was very pleased,” Heidi nodded and then couldn’t help but take another look at her father, “But I really didn’t expect you would part with your beloved book collection…”
“That was just one item from my collection—he saved your life,” Morris said indifferently, “In fact, I don’t think that’s enough. I need to go thank him in person in a couple of days.”
Heidi suddenly remembered her “little mishap” during the hypnosis treatment she conducted for Nina today, and her expression turned somewhat awkward, “You don’t need to… be so formal, right?”
“It’s not about being formal. Mr. Duncan saved your life and not only am I your father, I’m also Nina’s teacher. On the other hand, Mr. Duncan is a keen and enthusiastic antiques dealer with a strong desire to learn. From a social standpoint, it’s a relationship worth cultivating,” Morris explained casually, “I like a phrase Mr. Duncan often uses, it’s called ‘fate’…”
“Alright, alright, your point makes sense, makes sense,” Heidi, already feeling a headache coming on as her father, not particularly good at socializing himself, started to impart social etiquette on her, “Next time you visit, just visit, please don’t buy random things anymore, okay…”
“That will depend on whether or not there are any collectibles that interest me,” Morris said offhandedly. He then paused to think and seemingly in a casual manner asked, “Did you go with Fenna today?”
“Oh, right, she had the day off, so I took her car.”
Morris thought again, his expression hesitant, “You seem… quite close with Fenna.”
“I’ve been close with her for years now, haven’t I?” Heidi was bewildered, “We’ve known each other since we were kids…”
“No, I just feel…” The old man suddenly stuttered, and for some reason, he was reminded of a phrase Mr. Duncan, the antique dealer, had mentioned during his last visit,
“Girls’ school, could be…”
“Father?” Heidi, seeing her father acting out of character, couldn’t help but speak up.
“Ah, it’s nothing.” Morris suddenly snapped back to reality, feeling his previous train of thought might have been a bit too outrageous. He quickly tried to gather his composure and change the subject to prevent his daughter from noticing anything amiss. In that brief moment of shifting his gaze, his eyes suddenly fell upon Heidi’s wrist.
On the charm bracelet symbolizing the protection of the God of Wisdom Rahm, a red agate bead was missing.
The old man’s expression suddenly changed, but then he noticed Heidi’s completely normal demeanor and quickly forced himself to control his emotions, making an effort to remain calm and seemingly casual, “Did you lose a bead from your bracelet? Did it accidentally come off?”
“Bracelet?” Heidi was startled and looked down at her wrist, where she saw the missing section of string. However, her expression seemed completely unsurprised, “Wasn’t there always one missing here?”
There was always one missing?
Morris slowly controlled his breathing and heartbeat while managing his emotions and thoughts, as if he feared his own intense “ideas” might attract some dangerous attention. At the same time, he also began to recall the last time he saw his daughter’s charm bracelet and what it looked like.
After two seconds, he finished controlling his thoughts and safeguarded them before slowly easing his mood, asking in a tone as normal as any other day, “By the way, you only went to that antique shop today, right?”