Krafft's Notes on Anomalies

A symbol I haven't seen before is somewhat similar to the one I know, but also different.

There are no cracks on this ring that was divided into two, and it maintains considerable integrity. There is no common ground except for the transverse grain in the middle.

But when observing it, a vague feeling of being watched appeared, and the opposite gaze was cast behind the horizontal stripes.

It's like looking directly at the broken celestial body, but it's much weaker, to the point where it can't be detected unless you feel it carefully. If this feeling of being watched wasn't really unique, it wouldn't be impossible to think that it was an illusion caused by oversensitivity.

The symbols carved on the prism gradually merged with the broken celestial body in the impression, and the crisscrossing cracks disappeared, which is how it originally looked.

Yes, since there are cracks, where do the broken things go?

Those lines came alive. A long time ago, unimaginable power shattered the only observable celestial body in the black sky. Countless fragments scattered, were captured by gravity, and turned into meteorites all over the sky.

Those fragments burned in the atmosphere, landing on a level far away from this world but similar to this world.

The fragments from that celestial body naturally inherited its dull, dull texture, as well as the power of floating between incomplete layers.

A certain civilization that had no historical records recorded this unprecedented large-scale contact with their—or possibly their—unique aesthetic carvings on this meteorite.

Then, these things with vague consciousness were alienated for unknown reasons and multiplied infinitely. The materials came from intelligent creatures that were most likely to access the deep layers.

From then on, he lingered on a level close to the real world, using his weakened copyright ability to hunt all human beings who consciously or unconsciously come into contact with the deep layers according to biological instincts.

On this deep land, their footprints are probably everywhere, from the distant Dunling to the Bianhuai land, and even beyond. As long as you have something to do with the depths, you have a chance of encountering them and being dragged deeper into the depths.

Not to mention the kind of contact between people in salt tide areas. Encountering them is no longer a probability event, but an inevitable event.

The professor wants to elicit them in this way and achieve the coveted breakthrough that surpasses the current limits of human cognition.

The whole story of the matter has been revealed, and the motives, methods of operation, and the progress of the matter at this stage were displayed in front of him without reservation. Cold and inhumane plans are intertwined with evil from the deep.

As for the consequences of being completely pulled into the depths and encountering them irresistibly in his sleep, Kraft could not continue to think about it. Who can guarantee that those tissues must have grown by themselves?

But there are still some small questions here. At least two have been raised now. What next? And how does Professor Kalman plan to catch them when he comes back?

To put it mildly, if Kraft had to tie one hand, even ten Kalmans plus Lucius might not be enough to fight. The use of weapons also requires long-term training and accumulation.

Force is not something that can be easily compensated for, not to mention that in the weird depths, it has entered the three-axe routine of creeping creatures. If it weren't for Kraft's own special characteristics, the young version of Old Wood would probably be filled with hatred on the spot.

It’s not that I look down on the professor, but given his level, I might as well forget about taking Kraft’s path. It only takes him less than two minutes to finish Brachiopod, which is faster than him eating grilled fish. After all, Brachiopod doesn't look like he needs to pick at it.

Therefore, the professor's contact method is different, or there are other safer methods, and the contact is made with preparation.

Not surprisingly, this place in the deep layer has been staying "underneath" the real world. If I could come into contact with it by chance, someone must have come into contact with it earlier. If I was lucky enough to survive, it would be reasonable to explore it.

Along with the black liquid, other things came to Wendeng Port, which gave the professor's plan a final boost. Maybe he saw Kalman’s character so well that he couldn’t refuse, and everything fell into place.

So who might know best this old professor who has been alone in Hong Kong for so many years? Knows more than his student Lucius.

"Morrison." Kraft read out the name, a mentor mentioned only in professor's letters, the leader of Dunling University School of Medicine who he had never met, "Black liquor, Dunling, so-called new discoveries? This muddy water is deep. Very good."

This is really a pain in the head. Dealing with the creepers is similar to hunting. Everyone shows off their swords and claws to compete. Dealing with the layers of human malice has never been his area of ​​expertise. It is not easy to think like a normal person, and it is too difficult for him to have to be an antisocial psychopath.

Now Kraft has other things to do. He had to get familiar with this round trip medium as soon as possible. If nothing else happened, there would be at least one living guy waiting for him to deal with.

…

…

In the early morning, Lucius opened the door to Kraft's new residence. There was no life in the deserted room. It seemed that Kraft had not had time to add some items that a normal home should have after returning last night.

"Craft?"

He called Kraft's name and walked into the house. There were several newly drilled nail holes in the walls and floors, as if they were for installation, but they were quickly removed.

No one responded to his call. The furnishings were the same as when they first moved in yesterday, except that the boxes containing the fish oil cans had been moved away.

There seems to be a strange atmosphere here. The new owner of the house did not modify it for living purposes, but to hide secrets that he did not want others to know. Lucius slowed down as he contacted Kraft about what he had bought yesterday.

"are u there?"

Still no response. As he went deeper, Lucius saw several more nail holes, which were drilled at the entrance of the stairs. They should have been used for installation, but they were removed overnight.

He stepped up the stairs carefully, and here he saw the first thing that was different from yesterday, an iron chain half a person's height with a small bell hanging on it.

Leaning over, my back still touched the bell on it, which made a crisp tinkling sound behind me. It was quite pleasant, but it seemed a bit noisy in the quiet house.

Lucius believed that if Kraft was here, he would have been informed of his arrival, but he still did not hear the movement of the second person besides him.

Climbing up the stairs, the same iron chains were hung on the open doorways of each floor, and there were more and more nail holes. The bizarre arrangement reminded him of the changes in his mentor, who was also doing something incomprehensible.

Step by step, Lucius carefully climbed up to the attic, bypassing the iron chain and entering. This is the only place with beds.

The blanket on the bed was torn off, and a few iron nails that had not been cleaned fell on the sheets. There are new candles on the candlesticks, keeping the room illuminated with the windows closed during the day.

There is no one here, but judging from the length of the candle, the owner has clearly left not long ago.

"Are you there, Craft?"

Lucius asked symbolically without hope, and was about to leave to look for a nearby place to buy bread. Maybe Kraft was preparing today's breakfast and happened to miss him.

"Yeah, sorry for getting up late."

The sudden answer came from behind without any warning, making Lucius stumble forward in fright, and turned around while clutching his chest where his heart was beating wildly.

The man standing behind was none other than Kraft. There was no sound of footsteps, just like he was there, saying hello to Lucius as a matter of course.

He put on a new gray-yellow jacket that was different from yesterday. His left sleeve was rolled up and wrapped around several loops of neat cotton tape that he had bandaged. There were still small blood spots oozing from it.

The long sword that was usually sheathed was held in his hand. The surface of the sword was no longer smooth and shiny, and there were white stains that could not be removed.

Noticing Lucius staring at his long sword, Kraft put it back into the scabbard as if nothing had happened. "It's nothing. I get up early to practice sword practice, right? Recently I always feel that I have neglected to exercise, and sometimes I am not capable of it."

"Ah, I really envy you for having a family heritage like this. Sometimes I want to imitate it." Lucius wisely did not ask when the "sometimes not being able to do what he wanted" happened. He moved away from the topic and asked about business, "Today we are going to What to do?"

After one night, he seemed to have recovered from yesterday's blow, and something had changed. In the words of the alien soul, he "looked less like a student." The faint dark circles under his eyes revealed that he didn't sleep well last night.

Kraft walked to the window, removed the wooden bolt, and pushed the window outward. The early morning sunlight shone into the room, and the slightly fishy morning breeze blew in.

The height of the attic is a bit higher than that of the house opposite. Passing across Elm Street, you can see a dark mass of low shacks scattered on the black tidal flats. A new day has arrived in the salt tide area.

"We will go to that area again and record it day by day to see if the situation has changed."

"all?"

"Probably from here to the slightly higher shack over there." Kraft stepped aside and pointed out to Lucius the range he had drawn in his mind. Thanks to the good height, It can be seen here.

Lucius, who had no idea of ​​the scope, certainly didn't understand his intention at all. He only noticed the rows of nail holes by the window exposed after Kraft stepped aside and fell into deep thought.

"Today we have to go find those who dug the wells. I hope their bids are not too high." Kraft didn't care much about whether Lucius understood the meaning. He sometimes forgot that not everyone agreed with him. Also has extraordinary memory.

His right forearm was leaning against the window sill, and there was a sound of a hard object banging in his sleeve. Uncomfortably, he wanted to switch to his left hand to lean on, but thinking of the wound, he had to give up and found a chair to sit down.

"The current situation is like this. I think most people's condition will get better if there are no accidents. Solve this matter as soon as possible and can't delay it any longer." There was some anxiety between his brows, and Lucius felt that there was some threat that made him restless.

Although it was a bit offensive to ask at this time, Lucius still asked, "What if someone is still in trouble?"

"That means there are other problems in the area where they live, and I will solve it." Kraft pushed the chair away, "Let's go have something to eat before you leave. I'll treat you."