mtl008 Chapter 4608 The Day of Brightest Day (67)
Chapter 4608 The Day of Brightest Day (67)
Chapter 4608 The Day of Brightest Light (Sixty-Seven)
Schiller was able to recognize the wine glass not only because of the patterns Constantine had drawn, but also because of its shape and the fact that Constantine had just gestured to him how tall the glass was.
Generally speaking, even a short-stemmed wine glass should be at least as tall as an adult's hand. The stem is shorter in the lower part, but the length of the upper part of the glass remains the same, so it can hold the same amount of wine.
However, the Soviet Union had a very special type of stemmed glass, rumored to have been invented by Stalin, specifically for controlling the amount of alcohol consumed – the "civilization glass." This type of glass had its height reduced by about half, making the upper part look more like a bowl, and even when fully filled, it could only hold less than 200 milliliters of liquid.
Two hundred milliliters might sound like a lot, but you have to understand that Slavs, when they get drunk, chug vodka straight from the bottle. And obviously, you can't expect them to gather in the tea room at Buckingham Palace for a proper Darjeeling tea during afternoon tea. The Kremlin's tea room is more like a liquor room. "I'm going to the restroom" sometimes actually means "I need to sneak off for a drink."
Clearly, the Politburo leaders understand the principle that prevention is worse than cure. Even if you forbid them from drinking, they'll simply hide vodka in their briefcases and indulge in it in their offices. It's better to manufacture a batch of special cups, just enough for one cup at a time, ensuring they don't get drunk and minimizing the risk of drinking leading to problems.
The shape of the cup that Constantine drew, and the height of the cup he gestured, clearly indicated that it was this type of cup. This is why Schiller was certain that the cup had been taken from the Kremlin's tea room.
As for why Anatoly would steal this cup, there's no way of knowing now. Either it was to express his dissatisfaction with its capacity, or he didn't visit the Kremlin often and, since he was there, he wanted to take a souvenir. In any case, he gave it to Lucifer, who then broke it.
Furthermore, after breaking it, he didn't collect all the fragments; instead, he left a small piece, which Constantine picked up. This meant that he couldn't fix it even if he wanted to.
Perhaps God made Lucifer Morning Star too perfect, so much so that his life was filled with moments that could never be perfect, such as the feather that could never be glued back together, the broken wine glass, and the missing pieces.
Schiller became increasingly convinced that Anatoly wouldn't choose to conceal his return simply to create another tragedy for Lucifer's life. He must have some other purpose.
The pendant usually repels lower-ranking angels, who fear Satan's wrath. But if an archangel comes in person, the pendant will likely have no effect; instead, it might pique their interest. Constantine shook his head and said, "If he sends his subordinates, such as demigods and lower-ranking angels, the pendant will be more than enough. But I fear he might come in person..."
"Do you have any other ideas?" Schiller asked.
“I don’t usually deal with angels and devils myself,” Constantine said. “I find ways to make them fight amongst themselves. If we need to deal with an archangel, the best way is to use the power of Satan.”
"Are you able to contact him?"
Constantine shook his head and said, "Contacting him directly like this is not a good idea. Because what the archangels are interested in, Satan will also be interested in. Although they may fight among themselves because of this, if the angels leave and Satan stays, it obviously won't end well."
Schiller nodded. Although Constantine seemed unaware that Lucifer had returned to Heaven, his deduction was sound. Even if Lucifer had gone back and become a true archangel, he was essentially still the same carefree Lucifer Morningstar. Expecting him to follow the rules like the other archangels was wishful thinking. If Michael wanted to do something, he wouldn't be Lucifer if he didn't find a way to thwart it.
Essentially, he was on the opposite path from all the archangels. He had a grudge against Michael, looked down on the petty Gabriel, disliked the overly serious Uriel, and even found the very popular Raphael to be hypocritical. If he could have gotten along with these people, he wouldn't have had to fall from grace in the first place.
Of all the current archangels, he only truly clicked with Bruce, who had replaced Gabriel, but unfortunately, their relationship remained merely that of close friends. Furthermore, Lucifer's sense of time was unlike that of ordinary people. Even if Bruce hung on the wall for a hundred years, Lucifer would probably only think he had gone on a two-week vacation and wouldn't even consider going to see him.
For Schiller, his goal was to get Anatoly to go to Lucifer, not for Lucifer to go to Anatoly. There is a fundamental difference between the two.
By finding a way to disrupt Anatoly and force him to go to Lucifer, we can see how unwilling he is, and perhaps even find out why he doesn't want to go to Lucifer.
But if Lucifer discovers that Anatoly has returned, he will definitely come to kill him immediately. At that point, whatever plans Anatoly may have will be completely exposed.
Schiller knew very well that Anatoly's every plan was a big undertaking, and while he might seem like a reckless brute, he was actually more shrewd than anyone else and quite patient. If he missed an opportunity, he would rather suspend all action and wait quietly than risk launching a forceful attack at an inopportune time.
If his purpose isn't exposed this time, he'll either lie low or change his plans, letting things develop in unpredictable directions. That's not what Schiller wants to see.
Therefore, although calling Lucifer now, telling him about Anatoly, and asking him to help solve the problem of the string of candied hawthorns on the Origin Wall would be the quickest way to resolve the issue, Schiller cannot do that.
Actually, Anatoly's anomaly is far more important than that string of candied hawthorns. After all, being hung on the Origin Wall, while immobile, isn't inherently dangerous. In fact, releasing Bruce is far more dangerous for the multiverse.
Schiller agreed with Constantine, arguing that one shouldn't risk a tiger just to drive away a wolf, especially without a gun. "I don't know much about this," he said. "If we can't contact him directly, what other ways are there to utilize his power?"
"Actually, there are many ways. Satan isn't exactly careless, but he has been active in the human world for many years. Many of the items he left behind are very powerful. For example, a pendant made from a shard of a wine glass can drive away lower-ranking angels. Some items are deeply connected to Satan, and he might be able to sense the situation here through those items. The archangels might choose to give up in order to avoid giving him any leverage."
From Constantine's perspective, this was indeed a good approach; and from Schiller's perspective, it was also good. Clearly, more of Lucifer's items could reveal more about his past with Anatoly. And Anatoly was clearly not indifferent to this; perhaps it would cause him some unease.
“How should we look for it?” Schiller asked. “Do you have any connections?”
“We need to find the universe that Satan visits most often,” Constantine suggested.
“Unfortunately, the universe we visit most often is now hanging on the wall, and none of us can enter it.” Schiller denied this possibility.
“I mean, the universes we can access, the universes he frequents most,” Constantine explained.
“That’s this universe,” Schiller said. He was absolutely certain that, aside from the Pride universe, Lucifer was the one who visited the main universe the most. Putting aside the fact that the main universe was the most important, Lucifer also had a role here; he made quite a few appearances in the Constantine series, and also in the Justice League Dark series.
Of course, Lucifer also has a TV universe, which features him as the protagonist. But the problem is, that universe isn't registered in the Battle Realm, so they can't find it now. Searching for it now would be like looking for a needle in a haystack; it's better to search directly in the main universe.
“Okay, then we need to move on to the next step,” Constantine said. “Following in Satan’s footsteps is not so simple; we need to investigate his identity in the human world first.”
“He might own a bar,” Schiller said, but his tone wasn’t entirely certain. While Lucifer was known for his penchant for opening bars, no one in the main universe knew whether he owned one, or where it was located.
Wait a minute, it seems like it's not like nobody knows. Schiller said, "We need to find Constantine in this universe."
Constantine nodded and said, "That's what I think too. He might even have some Satanic stuff on him—definitely not obtained through any normal channels, but it might be useful."
Schiller called Wonder Woman in the main universe, but she didn't answer. The Justice League is probably busy gathering information about Batman; they should be assembling near the Source Wall soon.
“Robin,” Schiller said, “the Constantine in this universe caused a huge mess before, and Batman won’t let him get away with it. The Robins might know where Batman took him.”
At this point, Schiller's headache returned. If he remembered correctly, before coming here, Aquaman seemed to have mentioned some conflict between Robin and the others. Great, this world is basically a massive, non-stop soap opera about family feuds, one episode after another, never-ending.
"How is your relationship with your family?" Schiller asked Constantine.
Constantine's hand holding the cigarette paused slightly. He frowned slightly, as if somewhat offended. Schiller continued, "Robins aren't always sons, but they're always brothers and sisters. If you come from a large family, you might have more experience with this."
“Obviously I’m not,” Constantine said. “But I won’t get involved in their family conflicts just to get a clue. That’s none of my business.”
“If we don’t let them calm down, they probably won’t tell us anything.”
“There are many ways to calm someone down,” Constantine said. “If you don’t want to, then I’ll go. After all, I’m not like most Constantines. Exorcists are paid to do their jobs, they charge per session, and I’m never used to wasting time.”
"It seems your exorcism experience has been quite remarkable." Schiller looked at Constantine, picked up the box again, and continued, "The devil was the least important link, wasn't he?"
Constantine smiled at him. Even in that smile, there was a hint of melancholy and coldness. He was indeed unlike almost all Constantines; he was like a forgotten Gothic cathedral, with towering domes, flickering candlelight, and an absurd aesthetic of death flowing in his veins.