Karen's Mask!

"Looking for my brother?" Serena asked curiously. "What do you need him for?" "Mr. Karen came to buy a piece of pottery. 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 fell silent. "Brother! He saved my life!" Lemar frowned. "Brother, do you really think your own sister's life isn't even worth a mask? Masks normally sell for just five hundred Abyss coupons!" "It's not about the coupons," Lemar tried to explain. Karen spoke up. "There's no need to put your brother on the spot. Besides, I don't have any point coupons on me. I was being presumptuous." "No, no coupons needed! He'll make it for free!" "..." Lemar. "Brother, he saved my life! He saved my life! If not for him, you would have lost your lovely sister!" "To be honest, I was always strongly against Father and Mother forcing themselves to have you at their age." "Ah!" Serena pounced straight onto Lemar, and brother and sister actually began tussling right in front of Karen. Karen stood to the side, watching. After all, it was hardly his place to break up a sibling squabble. "Alright, alright, I'll make it! I'll make it!" In the end, the elder brother surrendered. Truth be told, the moment his sister had walked in and called out Karen's name, he had guessed who Karen was. He had assumed Karen would be a gentleman and wouldn't press him, but who could have known this gentleman would be so unhesitatingly blunt? "Thank you, Mr. Lemar." "Are you taking payment?!" Serena glared at her brother. "No, no payment," Lemar raised his hands in utter defeat. Serena turned back to Karen and asked, "Did you say you don't have any point coupons on hand?" "Yes." "Brother, did you hear that? My savior is so poor he doesn't even have point coupons!" "..." Lemar. "Brother, let me check your pockets." Serena reached in and pulled out two notes. "Only two hundred? That's not enough." "Serena..." "Scrape together some more! Two hundred is too embarrassing to give." "Serena..." "Are you giving it or not?!" "Fine, fine, fine." Lemar pulled out three more notes and handed them over. "Here, take them." Serena took Karen's hand and pressed five hundred Abyss coupons into his palm. "Thank you." Karen voiced his thanks, then placed the coupons onto the desk. Lemar sighed and said, "Mr. Karen, you'd better keep them. Otherwise, my sister will find an excuse to go to your home and deliver them herself." "Why did you have to warn him, Brother!" "My apologies. Using a past favor to coerce you into making a mask is already embarrassing enough. How could I take your coupons as well?" "Please, accept them." Lemar pushed his sister aside, then bowed formally to Karen. "Lemar Din Voss. Thank you for protecting my sister." Seeing her brother turn solemn, Serena mirrored his posture and bowed to Karen as well. "Serena Voss. Thank you for saving my life." The Voss family? Karen recognized the name; he had read about them in Mr. Hoffen's notes. This family was most skilled in puppetry and followed a family faith system. It had once been an extraordinarily glorious house. In the mythological narratives of the *Long Song of the Abyss*, there was a passage recording them, albeit only a single line: *When the God of the Abyss set out to pioneer heaven, in order to keep the demons of hell deterred from causing chaos, he summoned Voss to craft a puppet for him and placed it in hell. Until the God of the Abyss successfully breached heaven, the demons of hell believed the God of the Abyss had remained there the entire time and dared not act out of turn.* The "Voss" mentioned there surely referred to the ancestor of the Voss family—a figure capable of crafting a puppet for a chief deity! However, Mr. Hoffen's notes also recorded that the Church of Light had once demanded the Voss family craft a puppet for them. The Voss family refused and suffered pursuit and persecution from the Church of Light, after which they declined. Now that his host had declared his lineage, Karen could only respond in the customary manner of their circle. He brought his hands before his chest. "All is guided by Order. Praise Order." Lemar frowned slightly, noticing Karen had not given his surname. The outspoken Serena asked directly, "What is your surname?" Karen shook his head with a rueful smile. "I don't wish to deceive you." The Church of Light had already perished; even if remnants still lingered, they could no longer trouble the Voss family. However, the Church of Order still stood. Because of his grandfather, Karen could not speak the surname "Inmerlais" out in the open. Lemar asked, "Mr. Karen, are you married?" Serena immediately looked at Karen with rapt attention, awaiting his answer. "No, but I am engaged. In six months, I will hold my wedding, and when the time comes, I will sincerely invite you both to attend." Serena's face fell in disappointment. Lemar, on the other hand, smiled at Karen, pleased by such forthcoming honesty. "Crafting the mask will take time." "Understood. When may I return?" Karen could not afford to be overly polite or courteous when it came to crafting the mask. This was the facial skin Mr. Pavaro had torn off with his own hands; Karen had a responsibility to honor it. "Five hours." "Alright. Wait... what?" *That fast?* "You are welcome to wait here in the shop, Mr. Karen. Once it's finished, you can try it on. If you're satisfied and find no flaws, you can take it right away." "Thank you so very much." "Don't mention it. Do you have other plans during this time, Mr. Karen?" "My car is parked outside. I can wait in the car." "Serena, take Mr. Karen up to the guest room to rest. Looking at Mr. Karen's eyes... if I hadn't sensed he was an ordinary person when he stepped inside, I would have thought an aberrant demon had walked through the door when I looked up. "Haha, huh?" Lemar's chuckle died in his throat. The man before him had just said "Praise Order," and had previously used spells on a tram to save his sister. How could he possibly be an ordinary person? Lemar had basically blurted out that he was completely blind. To ease the embarrassment, Lemar could only say sheepishly, "Mr. Karen's concealment spells and magical implements are truly impressive." Karen nodded, acknowledging it. "You flatter me." "Big Brother Karen, let me take you up to rest." "My servant is still outside. I'll go let him know." "Alright, I'll wait for you." Karen walked out of the shop to the car. Alfred immediately stepped out and came over. "Young Master, how did it go?" "Everything went smoothly. He agreed to make it. The little girl I saved during the tram explosion turned out to be the shop owner's sister." "Phew..." Alfred sighed with emotion. "Truly the arrangement of the gods—or rather, the Young Master's arrangement for himself." "They invited me to rest in their guest room. The mask will take about five hours to finish, so it wasn't convenient to refuse." This was an overture to build closer ties. Declining would be poor form, especially before he had received the mask. "Go ahead and rest, Young Master. I'll wait in the car." "Mm." Karen leaned toward the rearview mirror, inspected his eyes, and remarked, "He actually said they looked like yours." "Haha, how could my eyes ever compare to the Young Master's?" "That sounded a bit forced." "You are right to reprimand me, Young Master." "You must be exhausted too. I'll go take a nap inside. Get some rest in the car as well." "Understood, Young Master." Karen walked back into the pottery studio. Serena warmly came over to lead the way. Behind them, Lemar called out, "Mr. Karen is resting! You come back down after!" "Hmph!" The ground floor was the storefront, while the second floor served as living quarters. Serena led Karen up the stairs; the furnishings inside looked no different from an ordinary home. "You can sleep here," Serena said, pointing to a room. Karen took one look at the pink decor and assortment of cloth dolls, then shook his head. "Alright, then." Resigned, Serena led him to the guest room. The decor here was far simpler—just a bed and a wardrobe. It clearly saw little use. "Thank you, and thank your brother for me." Karen sat down on the edge of the bed. "Big Brother Karen, how did you and your fiancée meet?" "Our parents introduced us." "A blind match?" "Yes." "That doesn't sound nearly as thrilling as how we met." "Haha." "Big Brother Karen, is your fiancée pretty?" "Very beautiful." "What type is she? Can you describe her?" "Very elegant." "Can you... describe her a bit more?" With just "elegant," there was no way her brother could craft one like her. "If there's a chance in the future, I'll bring her to meet you. Perhaps you two could become good friends." "Alright." Serena stepped out, poured a cup of water, and returned with a cream bun, setting both on the wardrobe. "Rest well, Big Brother Karen. I'll go keep an eye on my brother while he makes your mask." "Thank you." "No need to be polite! You're my savior, after all." Serena closed the door. Karen lay down on the bed. He spent five minutes searching his mind for any further information about the Voss family. Then, he spent fifteen minutes picturing Eunice's appearance in his mind. After that, he fell asleep. ... The shop had a basement level that served as Lemar's private workshop. At this moment, Lemar stood before a puppet. It wore a small blue suit and was shaped like a child, but the distinct seams across its body gave it an eerie, unsettling feel in the dim light. As Lemar sorted various materials into small cups, he muttered to himself: "The kid really is good-looking. No wonder Serena took a fancy to him. He looks every bit as handsome as Prince Charming, and on top of that, he's her savior. What girl would be willing to wait for the next life to repay that debt? "His character seems decent too. From our brief interaction, he carries himself well and knows his boundaries. "Mm, the most interesting part is that even setting aside his hidden surname, when he gave his formal greeting, he only praised Order. *All is guided by Order.* I doubt he simply forgot the word 'God.'" Having prepared all the ingredients, Lemar instructed the puppet before him, "Open your mouth." The puppet parted its jaws. Lemar poured cup after cup of materials down its throat. Once everything was inside, he glanced at the ruby in his hand, hesitated, and set it down. From a nearby box, he retrieved a far more brilliant sapphire... After another moment of hesitation, Lemar took out a shimmering, translucent amethyst. "It truly pains me to part with this." "Brother, how much longer are you going to take?" his sister's voice called impatiently from the doorway. "Soon, soon!" Lemar shook his head, mocking himself, "How did I end up saddled with such a foolish sister?" Turning the amethyst over in his hand, Lemar inspected it repeatedly. "Just this stone alone could fetch five thousand Abyss coupons on the market. Sigh... Still, since this is already a losing deal, there's no point in being stingy now. The only thing to gain from a money-losing transaction is goodwill. "Can't end up losing money without securing the favor in full. "Besides, using this identity, the kid will probably climb quite high. If I use inferior materials, it might be hard for him to keep concealed once he enters the middle ranks, though he seems plenty skilled at concealing his aura on his own. "Forget it, forget it. Stop overthinking. My sister's life is worth this price." Ultimately, Lemar placed the amethyst into the puppet's mouth, followed by Mr. Pavaro's severed face. The puppet closed its jaws. Lemar stepped back two paces and spread his hands. A white luminescence rose from his body, and two black vortexes appeared within the puppet's eyes, drawing in the white light as if charging with power. Shortly after, a purple glow emanated from the puppet's belly. The process lasted roughly ten minutes, leaving Lemar drenched in sweat. Finally, the puppet fell still. Lemar let out a long breath, picked up a large mug of sugar water nearby, tossed in a spoonful of salt, and gulped it all down. *Crack!* The puppet opened its mouth, spitting out a tiny purple gem. "Brother, is it done yet? It's been forever!" His silly sister was clamoring outside once more. Lemar could only shake his head as he walked over and opened the door. Serena darted in and caught sight of the small purple gem in his palm. "Pretty, isn't it?" Lemar asked with a smile. "Are you turning this into a gem ring? Right, he's a man, so a pendant wouldn't suit him—a ring is much better! Brother, what about that ring band in your collection made from the skull of an Ice Python? It would match perfectly! "Hehe, wearing this ring will definitely bring out his charm even more." "My dear sister, do you have any idea what that band does, or how valuable it is?" "I don't care, I don't care! Just use it!" "Sigh..." "Brother, he saved my life! He saved your sister! What is there to hesitate about?!" "If I'd known how expensive your life was, I might have hesitated to take the job in the first place." "Brother!" "Alright, alright, it's his, it's his! I'll set it now." Lemar sat down, retrieved the ring band from a drawer, and personally mounted the purple gem onto it with his tools. Lifting it to examine it closely, even Lemar couldn't help but be captivated. "A true work of art." "Let me see, let me see!" Serena took the ring, beaming. "He'll wear this ring from now on, and every time he looks at it, he'll think of me." Lemar reminded her, "He ought to be thinking of me." "I'm going to take it to him! Hehe." Serena ran toward the door clutching the ring, but just as she reached the threshold, she abruptly stopped, turned around, and looked at her brother. "Brother, do you remember the night everything went wrong when we were little?" "Why bring that up all of a sudden?" "That night, I dragged you out of the house to look for the puppy that had suddenly run away." "Yes. If you hadn't insisted on dragging me out, we likely would have died that night along with our parents." "I've always felt that puppy foresaw something and ran away on purpose so we would go look for it." "It was the ancestor's blessing." "Honestly, standing before him, I feel something very similar in my heart. Brother, do you believe me? It isn't just because he's handsome—though he really is extraordinarily handsome." Lemar sighed. "So that was it. That's why you insisted on waiting every day just to manufacture a chance encounter?" "Yes. That way, we'd become family, wouldn't we? What a pity he's already engaged... though maybe I could try being his mistress instead." Lemar buried his face in his hands. "If Father and Mother knew, they would scold you to death." "Pfft..." Serena burst into giggles at the mention of their parents. "It's all your fault! What were you even thinking with the Father and Mother you made, Brother?" "I only wanted you to have a more realistic home. I didn't want you to be sad." "Right, the Father and Mother you made were so realistic that the two puppets actually had a fight, got divorced, and gave me an extra stepdad and stepmom!" "That... was beyond my control." "Brother, can I take it to him now?" "Go on." Watching his sister run off, Lemar couldn't help thinking of their mother—not the puppet mother he had crafted, but their real mother. She had been a member of the Yekailin family, a family of curses. Among the churches, the Church of the Mural God was most adept at foresight; among family traditions, the Yekailin family was unmatched in divination. What his sister had inherited was the Yekailin bloodline from their mother. "Aaaargh!" Lemar clutched his head in both hands. "Even after consoling myself like this, it still hurts so damn much!" ... Gently pushing the door open, Serena had planned to admire her crush's sleeping face for a little longer, only to find to her surprise that Karen was already awake, sitting on the edge of the bed putting on his coat. "You're awake?" "Mm. It felt like time was up. When there's something on my mind, I wake up naturally." Though the nap hadn't been long, he felt much more refreshed. "The mask is finished." "Your brother worked hard on it. I should go thank him in person." "Try it on first! Come, over here—there's a full-length mirror in my bedroom." Serena pulled Karen into her room, stopped before the full-length mirror, and handed him the purple gem ring: "Put it on." "This is...?" "This *is* the mask. Did you really think a mask made by my brother would just be an ordinary mask?" "No, but I didn't expect it to be so exquisite." "Pretty, right? Here, let me help you put it on." Serena enthusiastically slipped the ring onto Karen's left ring finger. "Big Brother Karen, now try channeling a wisp of spirituality into the ring to stimulate it." "Alright." Karen released a trace of spiritual power into the ring. Instantly, a violet light flared from the band and washed over his entire body. Moments later, the light faded. Karen looked up into the mirror. Standing in the reflection was none other than Mr. Pavaro. Not only was the face identical, but even the build, posture, and temperament matched down to the finest detail. Even... the top of his head had gone bald. Karen instinctively reached up and touched his cheek. He could feel a thin, cool layer resembling an oily film over his skin, but beneath his fingertips, it felt entirely like touching the real Mr. Pavaro. This meant the disguise wasn't merely visual; even physical contact from an outsider would feel authentic! Remarkable. Truly incredible. As expected of a lineage celebrated in myth for crafting puppets for a chief deity. After all, how could the demons of hell ever be easily fooled? "If you stimulate the ring again, you'll revert to your original appearance. I'll go fetch my brother so he can explain everything in detail. Keep testing it out and getting used to it!" Serena stepped out of the bedroom. Karen continued gazing at his reflection—or more accurately, at Mr. Pavaro in the glass. With this, he could enter the Church of Order under Pavaro's identity, and his starting position would be an Inquisitor. *Thank you, Mr. Pavaro.* Karen then channeled another wisp of spirituality into the ring. The violet shimmer flashed once more, and he instantly returned to his true form. Switching between the two appearances before the mirror produced a bizarre sense of unreality, evoking the very same dread and palpitation he had felt when first waking in this world and staring at himself in the glass. Was he Pavaro? Or was he Karen? He lowered his head instinctively, looking down at the ring in his hand as a line surfaced in his mind: [Order is a mask.]