America: The Cremator

Elena didn't let the guest stand at the door. She stepped aside to make way and said in a calm tone, "Come in and we'll talk... Sue, please entertain him while I prepare some tea and refreshments."

The three moved to the living room. Surong invited the old pastor to sit down, then went into the kitchen to bring Elena some black tea and pastries, and sat down on the sofa.

Elena poured the old pastor a cup of tea herself, then asked, "What brings you here?"

The old man removed his wide-brimmed black hat, revealing sparse white hair. He sat on the edge of the sofa and said in a hoarse voice, "I am Samuel Aberdeen, the head pastor of Cedar Ridge Community Church."

Elena nodded slightly, signaling him to continue.

"Last time, Mr. John lent us that reliquary wine jug. Later, as agreed, we returned the jug to the address he left... which is here."

Samuel took a deep breath, seemingly organizing his thoughts: "I'm so sorry, Ms. Elena, and this gentleman as well."

"We need to borrow that wine jug again... I know it's presumptuous, but the situation has reached a point where it's out of control, so we have no choice but to swallow our pride and visit them in person."

Elena frowned and leaned forward slightly: "Have you had another child injured over there? The Support Bureau hasn't received any reports of child attacks or injuries in Cedar Ridge recently."

Samuel suddenly lowered his head, avoiding their eyes, and his voice became much softer: "I'm sorry, we lied to Mr. John on this point."

"The last time we borrowed the wine jug, it wasn't actually to treat any injured children."

Elena slowly lowered her hands from her chest to hide the uncontrollable trembling of her fingers: "What did you say?"

Her voice was soft, but Surong could tell she was trying to suppress her anger.

Samuel kept his head down, his voice filled with remorse: "We did it for...repression."

"What are you trying to suppress?" Elena pressed.

"A weirdo."

Elena jumped to her feet, looking down at the old man huddled on the sofa, and demanded angrily, "Do you even know how old John died?"

"He died in the stinking sewers, in the hands of a damn monster. If the flask had been in his hand, he might not have died at all!"

"You borrowed his life-saving charm, and then tell me it's to save some children who don't even exist?"

Samuel raised his head, made the sign of the cross, and replied in a trembling voice, "I am deeply sorry for what happened... May the Lord forgive my sins. But at that time, we had no other choice."

"If we tell Mr. John the truth, he will definitely go down the well to check, and then become the fifth missing exorcist."

"So we just borrowed the sacred wine jug to reinforce the seal in the well in the church's backyard."

"That strange creature... was suppressed under the well by the first priest when our church was first established, a hundred years ago. It has remained silent for the past century."

"But in the last ten years or so, the seal seems to have loosened. Until recently, when homeless people and believers started disappearing from the church, we had no choice but to search everywhere for relics to suppress that strange thing."

"Since it's a sealed artifact from a hundred years ago, why didn't you report it to the Bureau of Oddity Control? That's within our scope of responsibility." Elena looked at him coldly.

Samuel gave a bitter smile: "We've reported it. Over the past ten years, I've personally gone to the branch office more than a dozen times to fill out forms."

"Your agents have come a few times. They walked around the church with their equipment and only detected a little residual spiritual radiation, but they couldn't find any bodies or bloodstains."

"For the bureaucracy, no body, no case. Those who go missing are ultimately categorized as 'runaways' or 'relocated.' After all, in a place like Cedar Ridge, it's perfectly normal for poor people to suddenly disappear."

"The Weird Support Bureau is no longer willing to waste police resources dealing with these 'imaginary' problems. They have even blacklisted us and will not accept any cases reported by Cedar Church."

After hearing Samuel's account, Elena took a deep breath and cursed in a low voice, "FUCK! Those bureaucrats in the Bureau of the Uncanny Aspects who just loaf around all day are utterly rotten!"

Samuel paused for a moment, then reached into his pocket and shakily pulled out a cloth bag, placing it on the coffee table.

The cloth bag was opened, revealing two coins that gleamed with a cold, silvery light.

The moment he saw the two mithril coins, Surong's previously indifferent gaze suddenly lit up.

Mithril!

Samuel looked at the two mithril coins, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes: "These are the coins our church has accumulated over the past hundred years. I've heard that mithril is very attractive to exorcists, and in order to deal with that monster, we secretly offered these two mithril coins as payment for exorcisms."

"Driven by the reward of two mithril coins, four exorcists successively accepted the mission and went down into that well."

Su Long asked, "And then?"

"And then they never came up again." Samuel's voice trailed off.

Surong reached out and picked up a mithril coin. It did indeed have that unique lightness and hardness in his hand, and even the "Sirius" and "Raphael" at his waist once again felt a strong desire.

Two mithril coins.

Even if he splits these two coins with Elena, he will still get one. As long as Vladimir assigns him a mission, he can collect five mithril coins.

At that time... he can upgrade [Ode to Flesh and Blood], [American Dream], and the two relics to three stars.

Surong turned to Elena and asked, "Do you want to go take a look?"

Elena didn't speak. She stared intently at Samuel, the anger in her eyes gradually subsiding, replaced by a resolute look.

Su Long shrugged: "Okay, looks like there's no need to ask."

"What were the ranks of those four exorcists who died?" He turned to look at the priest.

"Three C-level and one D-level," Samuel answered truthfully.

Su Long raised an eyebrow slightly.

Three C-rank exorcists went and never returned, so it seems that what was at the bottom of the well was at least at the peak of C-rank, and possibly even B-rank.

The risk is high, but the value of Mithril coins makes it worth the risk.

Surong placed the mithril coins back on the table, his tone calm: "If we can deal with that monster, will these two coins still be considered our reward?"

Samuel was stunned. He looked at the two young men in front of him, especially the Asian youth with dyed yellow hair who looked like a street thug, and a hint of hesitation appeared in his eyes.

"The reward is certainly due... but that monster has already killed four exorcists and more than a dozen innocent civilians. I don't want you to suffer the same fate..." The old man stood up, trying to dissuade Su Long.

"That's our business," Elena interrupted him.

She turned and walked to the entrance, took the black trench coat from the hanger, and put it on deftly.

"Come on, priest. Take us to see what that strange thing hiding in the church's basement is."