Chapter 89: The Ritual to Send Away the Evil Begins
When did Kyle start acting strangely?
"Was it on the way back from the TV station, or on the way to the broadcast?"
Marcus recalled all the details of the previous few days.
"No, nothing was wrong. He acted perfectly normal."
A young man who lost his father and was greedy for wealth, wanting to inherit his uncle's property, diligently completing his uncle's test, doing everything perfectly!
Marcus thought carefully for a moment. The details of the other party's behavior had not changed. He trusted his judgment on this point.
When inviting the "Fast Talk" duo, Marcus only felt that the duo was somewhat coincidental, but he only suspected the two of them.
The day before yesterday, Marcus deliberately said to Kyle that James was very talented, the kind of person with a destiny, hoping that Kyle could learn from the other party's experience and control some of his words.
Indeed, he was deliberately instilling something into Kyle's subconscious, but he only mentioned it briefly.
This was so that if any hostile Keepers infiltrated this scene.
When the opposing Keepers encounter James and Greyson, triggering the plot prompts, Kyle's casual mention of "boss" might lead them to many associations,
such as "Soul Collector," thus making this the core of the plot and drawing them into the drama he orchestrated.
However, just today, when Marcus was already suspicious of the duo,
Kyle conveniently appeared before them.
With perfectly chosen words, he repeatedly called James "boss," clearly and precisely stating that James was a chosen one destined for greatness, even going so far as to elaborate.
These were things he had only briefly mentioned to Kyle once.
Kyle seemed to read Marcus's mind, a perfect actor in this drama, like a pre-arranged teammate.
This tacit cooperation was too perfect, so perfect that it made Marcus uneasy!
Therefore, while casually praising Kyle as he left, he also mentioned the test he had given Kyle with a cash gift before.
But Marcus could sense from Frank's fragmented memories...
On the surface, Frank is a kind and elegant middle-aged man, but deep down he is a stubborn and selfish businessman. No one truly understands his heart; businessmen are always adept at disguise.
Frank has always believed that Aaron is responsible for his lonely and destitute life.
This time, he returned outwardly amiable, but inwardly he harbored deep resentment. How could he possibly have given Kyle a cash gift?
But Kyle admitted that he had spent the money from the gift!
If he hadn't even received a gift, what did he have to spend?
Marcus dared to test him because the Keepers have incomplete memories of the possessed characters in the storyline.
If Kyle said he hadn't received the gift, it would prove he was a native, and a simple excuse like the messenger might have pocketed it would have been easily dismissed.
But he admitted it and even felt guilty.
From the moment Marcus entered this storyline world, he had been playing the role of Frank, especially in front of Kyle, perfectly portraying an uncle looking for a successor.
Now, looking back, he realized he had been somewhat blind to his own shortcomings. He had overlooked the probability that other Keepers might also happen to appear beside him.
Looking back now, when Aaron called out to Kyle from his hospital bed, Kyle did indeed seem momentarily confused.
Marcus assumed it was because the other man had been traumatized by seeing his father's serious illness; eight out of ten family members burdened by exorbitant medical bills and the constant monitoring of patients were in this state.
Marcus breathed a deep sigh of relief, opened the hotel window to let in some fresh air; this had been a close call.
He was now 80% certain that Kyle was also a Keeper, one of the four opposing forces.
From the moment Kyle arrived in the story world, he had been willing to bow and show deference to Frank, a non-story character.
Later, following his uncle Frank's test, he first sought out the story character James, then Greyson, and then organized the Reaper exorcism ritual.
From the very beginning, he perfectly portrayed a native character, almost like a core figure in the story.
And then there was the Fast Talk duo who cleverly disguised their social media accounts, using interviews as a pretext to guide Kyle to invite them to the exorcism ritual.
The Keepers are indeed no simple characters!
What about Old Lamp and Little Sheep?
Marcus was secretly on guard. They couldn't be completely trusted, nor could they be completely used, but at least their current interests were completely aligned.
In this world, the ruthless Lily was acting, the Soul Collector was acting, and the Keepers were acting.
To sum it up in one sentence: everyone, human or demon, was acting!
Now that he thought about it, Kyle probably also considered him a native, a non-plot character acting as an outside guide, and he himself treated this place as part of the plot.
Because this whole play was led by Marcus, it was as if Marcus was guiding Kyle to participate in the plot.
Kyle must have triggered the prompt to contact a plot character when he came into contact with James, and he was also certain of Marcus's identity as the orchestrator, and that he had arrived at the core of the plot.
It seems Kyle is also a smart man; he also suspected the Fast Talk duo, which is why he deliberately kept calling James "boss" and mentioning destiny in front of them today.
He wanted to use them as stepping stones. A mantis stalking a cicada, unaware of the hawk behind!
So this time there are three teams? I just don't know if it's 3/2/2 or 3/3/1.
After sorting out his thoughts, Marcus reflected on his carelessness. Thankfully, everything was still proceeding according to plan.
He was looking forward to the upcoming show.
At 11 PM sharp, the ritual ceremony began.
James and Greyson also started livestreaming. Marcus sat on the sofa in his luxury hotel room, legs crossed, watching the livestream on his phone.
People on the streets had already retreated to their homes.
The volunteers Kyle had painstakingly hired to guard against evil spirits were all dressed in black, holding blessed brooms, and standing at various intersections along the route for the ritual.
The round-faced priest from St. Michael's Church had already painted his face with white base and black marks, and was wearing ceremonial robes.
The pale face represented how the Reaper had taken the plague sent by death to save the people, which made his face pale.
The blood flowing from his wounds, after drying, turned into streaks of black marks on his face.
This is why the Reaper has such a fearsome visage; though he looks fierce, he actually has a heart full of protection for the people.
The priest lights a candle with a match, invoking the Reaper to descend and protect the people.
However, the way he lights the candle is clearly different from the way Master Alex uses candles to channel his life force in the story, which is quite crude.
Then, the priest playing the Reaper goes outside, carrying a white rooster, and holds the rooster's head to draw symbols in the air, because rooster blood has always been considered spiritual blood and pure blood.
Next, he holds a ceremonial umbrella and sticks a circle of blessed papers on it.
The remaining papers are distributed to the drum and bell procession, who tie the papers to their heads to avoid being harmed by dark energy.
Then the priest steps in ritual patterns, holding a ceremonial blade, and performs movements to banish evil spirits.
He also takes a white rooster, sage bundles, a broom, and other ritual implements.
Blessed salt is scattered on the sage bundles, lit, and then the ritual dance continues, this can drive away evil spirits.
Night had fallen, and the streetlights cast their glow on the cold pavement. Apart from the volunteers standing silently at each intersection, brooms in hand, the streets were deserted.
A gentle breeze carried a chill; the only sound in the entire town was the ritual to ward off evil.
The priest, holding a white dove by the neck, used its beak to draw symbols on the ground at the doorway.
The use of a white dove was symbolic of "peace," intended to pacify the evil spirits. The rooster and dove used for the ritual were considered to have been tainted by the dark energy and could not be consumed, lest it bring minor illness or even major disaster.
Then, the priest looked up and bowed three times to the sky, once again praying for the descent of the Grim Reaper.
(End of Chapter)
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