Chapter 148: Karen's Mask!

Chapter 148: Cullen's Mask!

"Looking for my brother?" Serena asked, her curiosity piqued. "What do you want with him?"

"Mr. Cullen came to buy a piece of pottery from me. Since you two know each other, I'll just give him one as a gift."

"I came to ask your brother to make me a mask."

"..." Lemar went rigid.

"Brother! He's the one who saved my life!"

Lemar knitted his brows.

"Brother, don't tell me you think your own sister's life isn't worth a single mask? Usually, a mask only sells for five hundred Abyss vouchers anyway!"

"It's not a matter of vouchers," Lemar tried to explain.

Cullen spoke up, "There is no need to make things difficult for your brother. Besides, I don't have any vouchers on hand at the moment. It was presumptuous of me."

"No, no vouchers needed! He will make it for you for free!"

"..." Lemar remained silent.

"Brother, he saved my life—saved my life! If not for him, you would have lost your beloved little sister!"

"To be frank, I was always deeply against Mother and Father forcing your birth at such an advanced age."

"Ah!"

Serena threw herself directly onto Lemar, and the two siblings actually began to scuffle right in front of Cullen.

Cullen stood to the side and watched, as it was hardly appropriate for him to intervene.

"Fine, fine! I'll make it, I'll make it!"

In the end, the older brother capitulated.

In truth, the moment his sister had walked through the door shouting Cullen's name, he had guessed the man's identity. He had assumed Cullen to be a gentleman who would not put others in a tight spot, but who could have known the man before him would be so entirely unapologetic.

"Thank you, Mr. Lemar."

"Are you taking his money?" Serena eyed her brother.

"No, I am not," Lemar said, raising his hands in a gesture of absolute defeat.

Serena turned her head back to Cullen and asked, "Did you say you don't have any vouchers on you?"

"Yes."

"Brother, did you hear that? The man who saved my life is so broke he doesn't even have vouchers!"

"..." Lemar said nothing.

"Brother, let me see your pockets." Serena fished out two vouchers. "Only two hundred? That's not enough."

"Serena..."

"Scrape up some more. Two hundred is too embarrassing to give."

"Serena..."

"Are you giving them or not!"

"Fine, fine, fine." Lemar pulled out three more and handed them to his sister.

"Here, take this." Serena took Cullen's hand and pressed the five hundred Abyss vouchers into his palm.

"Thank you."

Cullen offered his thanks, then placed the vouchers down upon the office desk.

Lemar let out a sigh and said, "Mr. Cullen, you had better keep them. Otherwise, my sister will find an excuse to visit your home just to deliver them to you."

"Why did you have to warn him, Brother!"

"I am terribly sorry," Cullen said. "Using a life-saving debt to coerce you into making a mask for me already fills me with shame. How could I possibly accept your vouchers as well?"

"Please, accept it." Lemar pushed his sister aside and bowed formally to Cullen. "Lemar din Worth. Thank you for protecting my sister."

Seeing her brother grow serious, Serena followed his example and bowed to Cullen as well.

"Serena Worth. Thank you for saving my life."

The Worth family?

Cullen recognized the name; he had seen it in Mr. Hoffen's notebooks. The family's greatest expertise lay in the art of puppetry, and they were a family bound by a legacy of faith.

It was a family that had once been incredibly glorious. Mythological narratives within the *Abyssal Long Song* contained records of the Worth family, even if it was merely a single line:

When the God of the Abyss went to forge a path into Heaven, in order to maintain his deterrence over the demons of Hell and keep them from causing chaos, he summoned Worth to fashion a puppet for him. He placed it in Hell, and until the God of the Abyss successfully breached Heaven, the demons within Hell mistakenly believed the God of the Abyss had never left, and dared not act rashly.

The "Worth" mentioned there surely referred to the ancestor of the Worth family—a being capable of crafting a puppet for a master deity!

However, Mr. Hoffen's notes also recorded that the Church of Light had once demanded the Worth family craft a puppet for them. The Worth family refused, and subsequently suffered a purge at the hands of the Church of Light, after which the family fell into ruin.

Since the man had already introduced his house, Cullen could only respond in the manner of this circle. He placed his hands over his chest.

"All stems from the guidance of Order. Praise Order."

Lemar frowned slightly, noting that Cullen had not offered his own surname.

The straightforward Serena asked directly:

"What is your last name?"

Cullen shook his head with a bitter smile. "I do not wish to deceive you."

The Church of Light had already collapsed. Even if remnants still existed, it was impossible for them to trouble the Worth family again.

But the Church of Order still stood. Because of his grandfather, Cullen could not speak the name "Inmales" out in the world.

Lemar spoke up, asking, "Mr. Cullen, are you married?"

Serena immediately looked at Cullen with rapt attention, waiting for his answer.

"No, but I am engaged. In half a year, I will hold my wedding, and when the time comes, I shall sincerely invite you both to attend."

Serena looked somewhat disheartened.

Lemar, however, offered Cullen a smile, deeply satisfied with the extent of the man's honesty.

"Crafting the mask will take time."

"Very well. How long before I can return?"

On the matter of making this mask, Cullen could not afford to be too polite or overly courteous, for this was the face skin Mr. Pavarotti had peeled off with his own hands; he had a duty to it.

"Five hours."

"Very well. Wait, what?"

That fast?

"Therefore, Mr. Cullen may wait here in the shop. Once it is finished, you can try it on. If you are satisfied and there are no flaws, you may take it with you directly."

"Thank you ever so much."

"Think nothing of it. Do you have any arrangements for the time being, Mr. Cullen?"

"My car is parked outside the shop, I can wait inside it."

"Selina, take Mr. Karen to the guest room to rest for a bit. Look at Mr. Karen's eyes—if I hadn't felt that he was just an ordinary person when he entered the shop, when I looked up, I really would have thought some aberrant demon had walked through the door.

Haha, hmm?"

Lemar's laughter died away, his smile vanishing. The man standing right before him had just said "Praise the Order," and he had even used sorcery on the tram to save his own sister. How could he possibly be considered an ordinary person?

This was practically a blunt declaration of his own blindness.

To ease the awkwardness, Lemar could only say sheepishly, "Mr. Karen's sorcery and magical artifacts for concealing his aura are truly remarkable."

Karen nodded, acknowledging it: "I have made a fool of myself before you."

"Brother Karen, let me take you to rest."

"My servant is still outside, I will go tell him."

"Alright, I'll wait for you."

Karen stepped out of the shop and walked over to the car. Alfred immediately got out and approached him proactively:

"Young Master, how did it go?"

"Everything went smoothly. They agreed to make it for me. The young girl I saved in the last tram explosion happens to be the shopkeeper's sister."

"Phew..." Alfred sighed with emotion. "This is God's arrangement—oh no, it is the Young Master's own arrangement for himself."

"They invited me to rest in the guest room. The mask will probably be ready in about five hours, so it wasn't very convenient to refuse."

This was a gesture the other party had chosen to bring them closer, and refusing would indeed be improper, especially since the mask was not yet in hand.

"Go on and rest, Young Master. I will just wait in the car."

"Mm."

Karen bent down again toward the rearview mirror, studied his own eyes, and said:

"They actually said I look like you."

"Haha, how could my eyes ever compare to yours, Young Master?"

"That line was a bit stiff."

"The Young Master's reprimand is just."

"It must be because you are tired too. I will go inside and sleep for a while; you should rest in the car as well."

"Very well, Young Master."

Karen walked back into the pottery workshop, and Selina warmly approached to guide him. Behind them, Lemar shouted, "It is Mr. Karen who is resting, you must come out in a moment."

"Humph!"

The first floor was the storefront, while the second floor served as the living quarters. Selina led Karen up the stairs, where the furnishings were no different from those of an ordinary household.

"You sleep in this one," Selina said, pointing to a room.

Karen glanced at the pink color scheme and the various cloth dolls inside, then shook his head.

"Alright." Helpless, Selina could only bring Karen to the guest room. The furnishings here were much simpler, containing only a bed and a cabinet; it was likely rarely occupied.

"Thank you, and thank your brother as well."

Karen sat down by the edge of the bed.

"Brother Karen, how did you and your fiancée meet?"

"Introduced by the parents of both families."

"Met through a blind date?"

"Mm."

"Then it wasn't as thrilling as our encounter."

"Haha."

"Brother Karen, is your fiancée beautiful?"

"Very elegant."

"What type is she, can you describe her?"

"Very refined."

"Can you... describe her a bit more?"

With just "refined," her brother wouldn't be able to make the mask properly.

"If there's an opportunity in the future, I will bring her to meet you. You might become good friends."

"Alright." Selina walked out, poured a glass of water for Karen, and placed a piece of cream bread on the cabinet. "Brother Karen, take a good rest. I'm going to keep an eye on my brother while he makes the mask for you."

"Thank you."

"No need to be polite, you're my savior, aren't you?"

Selina closed the door.

Karen lay down on the bed;

First, he spent five minutes continuing to search his mind for information regarding the Vost family.

Immediately after, he spent another fifteen minutes imagining Eunice's appearance in his mind.

And then,

He fell asleep.

...

The shop had a basement level, which was Lemar's private workshop. At this moment, Lemar stood before a doll clad in a small blue suit, bearing the likeness of a child, but because the stitched lines on its body were starkly clear, it gave off a slightly horrifying vibe in the dim light.

While sorting materials into individual cups, Lemar spoke:

"The lad is indeed quite handsome, no wonder Selina took a liking to him. He looks no worse than a Prince Charming, and he's her savior to boot. What girl would be willing to wait for the next life to repay him by working like a horse?

The person is decent too; after interacting with him, he feels quite agreeable and knows his boundaries.

Mm, the most interesting part is that even if his surname cannot be spoken, during his formal greeting, he only praised the Order—everything is the arrangement of the Order. I don't believe he inadvertently forgot 'God'."

Lemar prepared the materials,

And said to the doll in front of him:

"Open your mouth."

The doll opened its mouth.

Lemar poured the cups of materials into the doll's mouth one by one. After all the items were emptied, Lemar looked at the ruby in his hand, put it down, and then retrieved a more brilliant sapphire from a nearby box...

After a moment's hesitation,

Lemar fished out another amethyst that sparkled with a crystal gleam.

"I really can't bear to part with these."

"Brother, how much longer will you take?" his own sister's urging voice echoed from the doorway.

"Soon, very soon."

Lemar shook his head, mockingly chiding himself: "How did I end up with such a foolish little sister."

Holding the purple gemstone in his hand, Lemar examined it over and over:

"Just this piece alone could fetch five thousand Abyss Vouchers if sold, ah... but since this was always a losing business, I cannot afford to be stingy now; a losing business is meant to buy goodwill.

I cannot lose money and fail to earn a deep sense of gratitude in return.

Besides, with this identity, that boy will likely climb quite high; using poor materials might make it harder to conceal himself once he reaches the inner circles, though he seems inherently skilled at hiding his aura.

Forget it, forget it, no more overthinking, my sister's life is well worth this price."

Lemar finally placed the purple gemstone into the doll’s mouth, followed by that piece of facial skin belonging to Mr. Pavarotti.

The doll closed its mouth.

Lemar took two steps back, spreading his hands open as a stark white radiance erupted from his body, while two dark vortices swirled to life within the doll's eyes, drawing the white light inside as if undergoing a profound charging process.

Presently, a purple glow emanated from deep within the doll's abdomen.

The process lasted for about ten minutes, leaving Lemar completely drenched in sweat; at last, the doll grew still, and Lemar exhaled a long breath of relief, picking up a large cup of sugar water nearby, adding a spoonful of salt to it, and drinking it all down in great gulps.

"Click!"

The doll opened its mouth, spitting out a tiny purple gemstone.

"Brother, is it ready yet? It's been so long!"

The foolish sister outside began her impatient prompting once again.

Lemar could only shake his head, walking over to open the door, and his sister came rushing in, her eyes falling upon the small piece of purple gemstone in Lemar's hand.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Lemar asked with a smile.

"Is this going to be made into a gemstone ring? Right, he's a man, so it wouldn't suit a pendant, it's only fitting as a ring; brother, where is that ring band made from the Frost Python skull you collected? It would match perfectly.

Hehe, when he wears this ring, it will surely complement his temperament all the more."

"My dear sister, do you have any idea what kind of effects that ring band possesses, or how high its value is?"

"I don't care, I don't care, we're using it."

"Sigh..."

"Brother, he is my savior, he saved your sister's life, what is there for you to hesitate about!"

"If I had known sooner that your life was this expensive, I truly might have hesitated before agreeing to it."

"Brother!!!"

"Alright, alright, give it to him, give it to him, I'll do the setting myself."

Lemar sat down, first retrieving the ring band from a drawer, then personally using his tools to set that purple gemstone onto it.

Lifting it up to eye level, Lemar could not help but fall under its spell:

"A true work of art."

"Let me see, let me see." Selena took the ring, smiling as she said, "From now on, he will always wear this ring, and every time he looks at it, he will think of me."

Lemar reminded her: "He should be thinking of me, rather."

"I'm going to take it to him, hehe."

Selena ran toward the door holding the ring, but just as she reached the threshold, she suddenly halted, turning her head back to look at her brother:

"Brother, do you still remember the night everything went wrong when we were children?"

"Why bring that up all of a sudden?"

"That night, I dragged you out of the house to look for the little puppy that had suddenly run away."

"Yes, if it weren't for you forcing me out that night, we likely would have died just like our parents did."

"I've always felt that the puppy foresaw something, deliberately running away from home to make us look for it."

"It was the Primordial One's blessing."

"In truth, when I face him, I have a very similar feeling in my heart; brother, do you believe me? It isn't simply because he looks handsome, though of course, he really is very handsome."

Lemar sighed and said, "So that's how it is; is that why you insisted on waiting every day just to orchestrate a chance encounter?"

"Yes, that way we'll be family, won't we? It's a pity he has a fiancée, but perhaps I can try to be his mistress instead."

Lemar covered his face: "If Father and Mother knew, they would scold you to death."

"Pfft..." Hearing the mention of Father and Mother, Selena burst out laughing, saying, "It's all your fault, brother; what on earth are the Father and Mother you created even doing?"

"I only wanted you to have a more realistic home, I didn't want you to be sad."

"Yes, the Father and Mother you made are truly too realistic, so realistic that the two dolls actually managed to fight and divorce, giving me an extra stepfather and stepmother."

"That was... beyond my control."

"Brother, can I take it to him now?"

"Go on."

Watching his sister's retreating figure as she ran out, Lemar could not help but think of their mother—not the puppet mother he had fashioned, but their true mother, who had been a member of the cursed Yekalyn family.

Within the Church, the Cult of the Wall was the most adept at prophecy, but within the great families, the Yekalyn family was the most proficient in divination.

What his sister had inherited was the Yekalyn bloodline from their mother.

"Ah ah ah ah!"

Lemar scratched his head with both hands,

"Even after comforting myself like this, my heart still bleeds for my losses!!!"

...

Gently pushing the door open, Selena, who had intended to admire her beloved's sleeping face for a little longer, was surprised to find that Karen was already awake, sitting on the edge of the bed putting on his coat.

"You're awake?"

"Yes, it seems the time has come; with things on my mind, I woke up naturally."

After a bout of sleep, though it had not been very long, his whole body felt considerably unburdened.

"The mask is finished."

"My thanks to your brother, I must thank him in person."

"Try it on first, come, over here, there's a full-length mirror in my bedroom."

Selena pulled Karen into her bedroom, standing before a dressing mirror, and handed the purple gemstone ring to him:

"Put it on."

"This is?"

"This is the mask; did you truly believe the mask my brother made would be just a simple mask?"

"No, but I didn't expect it to be so exquisite."

"Beautiful, isn't it? Come, let me help you put it on."

Serena enthusiastically helped Karen slip the ring onto his left ring finger.

"Brother Karen, now try sending a bit of spiritual power into the ring to stimulate it."

"Alright."

Karen released a wisp of spiritual energy toward the ring, and immediately, it flashed with a purple radiance that instantly enveloped his entire body. Soon, the violet light dissipated, and Karen lifted his head to look at his reflection in the vanity mirror.

Standing in the glass was none other than Mr. Pavaro; not only was the face identical, but even the stature and aura were a perfect match, and moreover... even the top of his head was bald.

Subconsciously, Karen reached up to touch his own face, sensing a thin, slightly cool layer of "grease" seemingly coating his body, yet the sensation at his fingertips felt as if he were truly touching Mr. Pavaro.

This meant the disguise of this mask was not limited to mere appearance, but extended even to physical contact from outsiders!

How marvelous, simply incredible—truly a family capable of crafting puppets for the Main God in mythological lore. Indeed, how could the demons in hell be so easily deceived?

"Whenever you stimulate the ring again, you can revert to your original form. I will go call my brother to explain it further to you; please keep trying it out to familiarize yourself with it."

Serena stepped out of the bedroom, while Karen continued to stare at himself in the mirror—or more precisely, at Mr. Pavaro in the mirror.

With this, he would be able to enter the Church of Order under the identity of "Pavaro," and his starting point would be that of an Inquisitor.

Thank you, Mr. Pavaro.

Then, Karen stimulated the ring once more with his spiritual energy. A purple shimmer flashed again, and he instantly returned to his original form. Facing the mirror, the switching between the two visages gave Karen a sense of unreality, even evoking a trace of the panic and palpitation he had felt upon looking at himself in the mirror when he first woke up in this world.

Was he Pavaro?

Was he Karen?

Instinctively, he lowered his head to gaze at the ring in his hand, and a sentence surfaced in his mind:

"Order is a mask."