Chapter 39: Stage Maker
Reinhard, Marie, and Joseph sighed in relief before glancing around at the destruction their battle had wrought. Smoke hung heavy in the air, mixing with the smell of burnt charred beast remains. The carefully arranged displays had been reduced to scorched debris and melted remains.
Mimir flew back and landed on Reinhard’s shoulder, his feathers slightly singed but otherwise unharmed.
"It’s a good thing we called the Information Institution clerk before the Taurus-X appeared." Marie observed with a sigh, wiping the dirt from her face.
Joseph nodded and glanced at Mimir. "Does the entire room need to be destroyed to break the illusion?"
Mimir tilted his head thoughtfully. "The entire tunnel system."
Reinhard looked at Marie. "You should absorb its soul while everything seems peaceful. You were the one who defeated it, so it’s yours."
Marie hummed uncertainly. "But it doesn’t look very appealing..."
Joseph chuckled while Reinhard gave her a blank stare.
Despite her hesitation, Marie walked over to the downed Taurus-X and extended her hand. Black-crimson light flowed from the creature’s corpse into her palm, the energy washing over her entire body in waves. A golden light shined over Marie as she trembled and brought her free hand to her head.
Marie groaned softly for a couple of seconds before she straightened and puffed out her chest. "That wasn’t so bad."
Joseph sighed in relief. "How many souls was that?"
Marie examined the back of her hand, where her Beast Symbol displayed a spear surrounded by twelve wings with a halo circle encompassing the design. Next to it, a gauge showed that it was still far below half and even a third of the gauge. "It was seventy-four before, and now it is eighty. So six souls."
"That’s good." Reinhard nodded and then continued. "So you can only absorb six souls at a time?"
Marie tilted her head before saying. "I can do about twenty, but it takes a while for me to fully integrate them all. So for quick integration, I do about six to eight and then keep the rest inside until I have a chance to fully devour them. Which is the opposite of Joseph, who can devour ten in total, but he can devour all of them pretty fast."
Reinhard blinks in surprise that there were still limitations on the devouring process. But it made sense that everyone’s body is different, and how much soul they can integrate and hold varies.
"Is it because you have S-class Beast Spirit and he only has A Class?" Reinhard asked.
"The Beast Spirit has no bearing on the number of souls you can absorb. It’s possible that the Beast Spirit benefit can help, but how much soul you can hold and integrate into your life. It is based solely on the person’s willpower and their own body." Joseph says with a faint smile.
Reinhard furrowed his brows before saying. "I’m not sure of my limits yet. As the ones I had devoured last night had already integrated into me after twenty minutes... Could it be because of my body or Odin?"
Marie’s eyes lit up as she said. "That might be one of your SSS class benefits, that’s an amazing one."
Joseph slightly frowns and says. "It might not be that. Maybe Reinhard just had a stronger will and self-esteem to easily devour them."
Reinhard blinks in surprise before looking at his own hand. His gauge read sixteen souls, a significant increase from when he had first obtained his Beast Symbol.
Each soul had added to his magical reserves and life force, making him sixteen times stronger than when he had just become a beast master.
When he was integrating the souls into his life. He didn’t feel full or have something blocking him from devouring more and more.
But this also made him weary, as if he had no limit, then it might become tempting to devour a lot of them at once.
And then screwing myself over. Reinhard thought, as he didn’t want to test just how special he was anytime soon, when the consequence is his own identity being at risk.
The Herald Marker began to glow with soft blue light and brought him out of his thoughts.
Marie gestured toward it. "Just tap it."
Reinhard did so, projecting the image of the familiar silver-haired woman. "Thank you for waiting... But seeing the surrounding destruction, it seems you were attacked."
Marie laughed. "It’s fine, we dealt with it."
Vanna nodded approvingly. "As expected of our Inquisitors. Now, for the information you requested. First, there is no record of bodies being preserved while the beasts died simultaneously, like what you described seeing in that room."
Reinhard, Joseph, and Marie frowned at this news, but the Vanna continued without pause.
"However, there have been similar scene replications, though far more bloody in nature."
Marie’s eyes widened. "Are you saying..."
Vanna nodded. "A year ago, in an art gallery within the city of Nevuo, wax figures were discovered spread throughout multiple rooms."
The projection shifted, displaying a large gallery space with high ceilings and architectural details. But the beauty of the setting was corrupted by what filled it.
Human-shaped wax figures stood positioned throughout the space in elaborate poses and placements. Some were arranged in circles, their blank faces turned toward each other as if engaged in a dialogue they would never have.
Others stood alone by windows, hands raised as if reaching for light that would never warm them.
Reinhard’s eyes widened as he noticed that some of the positioning mirrored the beast displays they had just witnessed. The same attention to composition, the same careful arrangement to tell a story.
But these figures wore the crude form of human clothing sculpted from wax, and their featureless faces created an uncanny effect more disturbing than any beasts.
In one corner, five figures formed a semi-circle around a sixth that lay prostrate on the ground, suggesting judgment or mourning. Near the center, two figures reached toward each other without touching, yet frozen as if they wished to touch each other.
The projected angle shifted, revealing that wax had been poured throughout the space.
Coating the floors in thick layers, dripping from walls like frozen waterfalls, and creating shards that hung from the ceiling.
The entire gallery had been transformed into a room of wax that was both disturbing and interesting.
"The amount of wax used suggested months of preparation." Vanna explained. "The figures themselves showed remarkable craftsmanship in their construction, though analysis revealed they were solid wax throughout rather than having any... Internal structures."
All of them grasped the implication that it was just wax creations rather than humans who were turned into wax figures. It was both reassuring and deeply troubling, with Reinhard wondering just what the purpose of it was.
The projection shifted again, this time revealing a theater space. "Two years ago, in the Grand Theater of Luis, mannequins coated in blood were discovered arranged on the main stage."
The theater was magnificent with its box seats, decorations, and a massive chandelier that dominated the ceiling. But the stage below had been transformed into a scene from a nightmare.
Dozens of mannequins stood positioned across the stage in the frozen moment. They wore elaborate costumes that might have been beautiful if not soaked in dried blood that had turned brown and crusty with age.
Center stage, a mannequin in royal robes stood with arms outstretched in a dramatic gesture, while others were positioned around it in poses of submission or terror.
On the left part of the stage, a group of mannequins formed a chorus line, their synchronized positioning creating unsettling uniformity.
On the right stage, two mannequins had their wooden limbs positioned mid-strike against each other.
Some mannequins were nearly pristine while others were completely drenched, the contrast creating visual hierarchy within the scene.
"The blood was confirmed to be Beast in origin." The Vanna continued. "Multiple species were used to create different shades and textures. The positioning of the mannequins corresponded to Act Three, Scene Two of the classical play ’The Fallen King,’ though with significant artistic liberties taken."
More like an extreme amount of liberties.
The projection zoomed in on individual mannequins, revealing that their blank faces had been painted with crude expressions. Reinhard saw joy, sorrow, rage, and fear that contrasted sharply with their rigid wooden bodies.
Props had been carefully placed in their stiff hands, such as swords, crowns, scrolls, and cups, each item also coated in appropriate amounts of blood.
"The theater had been closed for renovation at the time." The Vanna explained. "The perpetrator had approximately two months of uninterrupted access to create this display before its discovery."
I kind of feel bad for the person who first saw it... Poor Janitor. Reinhard thought as he could imagine the person walking in to clean and being frozen by the sight.
Joseph frowned deeply. "So every year it changes, and this year..."
The Vanna nodded. "It appears to be Phantasm Beasts. The person behind these installations is known as Phineas, called the Stage Maker. He is a confirmed member of the Sinners organization."
Marie’s eyes widened with shock, Joseph flinched slightly, and Reinhard’s frown deepened. Although he was a new Inquisitor, even he knew about the Sinners, as their reputation is well known in the underworld. It’s an organization of criminals that operates across the entire world.
But they weren’t ordinary criminals who simply broke laws or operated outside legal frameworks like most in the underworld.
The Sinners were individuals who committed extreme violations that caused major incidents in their wake. They were infamous precisely because they operated on scales that drew international attention and required coordinated responses from multiple continents.
"I once heard that most members of the Sinners are fake," Reinhard said carefully. "Is this true?"
Vanna nodded with her silver hair swaying. "I can guess what you want to ask. Phineas is one of the confirmed true members of the Sinners and is believed to be the overseer of a small, previously unknown team within the organization."
Reinhard’s expression grew more serious. Being a true member was vastly different from being a "fake" one who simply claimed association for reputation or intimidation purposes.
In addition, it is even more dangerous because Phineas wouldn’t be a normal lackey or member, but a true member that has escaped the eyes of even the Empire of Mori.
At the very least, it meant the danger surrounding Phineas was extremely high and potentially fatal to encounter directly.
The projection displayed a final image, a sketch of a figure whose features were obscured, with only the notation "Phineas: The Stage Maker" beneath it.
No confirmed sightings, no clear description, just the signs of blood, and wax arranged like actors on an invisible stage.