On Thursday afternoon, Ebner finally returned to the city by carriage.
It wasn't because he had talked too long with Edwina and almost missed his timing, but because he had placed the "Teleportation Altar" in a small town near Backlund. That extra distance meant he had to spend another half a day traveling back.
—Due to the "Apostle of Desire" incident putting the official organizations on high alert, Ebner didn't dare to use the "Cloak" to fly directly into Backlund.
As soon as he stepped down from the carriage, he heard the sound of howling winds.
He instinctively looked up and saw the dim sky being torn apart by fierce gales, sweeping away the thin layer of pale yellow mist.
Leafless branches swayed, and the strong wind left a clear trail, heading straight southeast.
A few seconds later, everything returned to normal, as if nothing had happened.
This isn't an ordinary wind... It carries the familiar power of "Gale"... Did Spellsinger of God Snake go after the witch who disguised herself as Jason Beria? I'm not far from the docks, and the chase has reached this area... That means the assassination attempt on Duke Negan must have either started or is about to start...
I hope I can make it in time... If Klein fails to take him down like in the original plot, I'll step in to finish the job... I can't let that demon escape and become a threat to my teacher in the future...
With that thought, Ebner hurried toward the nearest subway station.
Without the ability to "fly," taking the "Steam Metro" was much faster than running while "invisible."
...
Inside a carriage outside the Quelaag Club.
Under the guise of "deduction," Klein relayed the information he had divined above the gray fog regarding the "Apostle of Desire" to Machinery Hivemind's deacon, Ikonsa.
However, he deliberately withheld the intelligence that the demon's target might be Duke Negan...
After all, such a conclusion would be difficult to explain through mere "deduction." If he hadn't heard Mr. Tower mention during the Tarot Club that the unmentionable organization was using the "Abyss Card" to tempt Blood Sanctify members into assassinating the duke, he wouldn't have made the connection either.
"You think we might have been misled?" Ikonsa didn't mock, dismiss, or belittle the idea. Instead, he seriously considered the issue with him.
After all, any arrogance, conceit, or bias he once had had long been worn down by Arrodes' questions...
Ikonsa pondered for a moment, his expression turning solemn. He glanced at the silver mirror in his hand, then quickly looked away before turning to his subordinates. "Continue protecting Mr. Moriarty in secret. I'm heading to the 'Night Watchers'..."
Interrogating Arrodes here could very well alert the demon. He needed the power of the Night Watchers' armor-like Grade 1 Sealed Artifact to do it safely.
"Yes, Deacon!" The two Machinery Hivemind members responded without hesitation.
Ikonsa immediately left for the Night Watchers' headquarters.
Spellsinger of God has been lured away, and the Goddess' church has deployed its Sealed Artifact... If the Apostle of Desire is going to make a move, it'll be now! I hope the official Beyonders can make it in time. I hope Arrodes provides the right answer... But this means I won't get to interfere, won't get to see that demon die with my own eyes, and won't be able to claim that suitcase stuffed with cash, gold bars, coins, and jewelry...
Klein sighed, feeling a tinge of disappointment as he watched Ikonsa leave.
As for missing the chance to act in character, he wasn't too concerned. Thanks to his performance during the "Flesh Abyss" ritual—when he had "acted" and "curtained" himself before Mr. A, the Adjudicators, and the Saints of the Steam Church—his "Magician" potion had already been mostly digested. The remaining portion had been absorbed through various minor performances over the past month...
If he had the necessary materials, he could advance to "Faceless" immediately.
He quickly regained his composure. This is fine. At least I don't have to take any risks, and the crisis will be resolved steadily. Once I get the "Mutated Pituitary Gland and Blood of the Thousand-Faced Hunter" from Emlyn in the next couple of days, plus the "Human-Skin Phantom's Trait" Sharon promised to bring on Sunday... Maybe I can advance to Sequence 6 before the next Tarot Club! That should help mitigate the scheduling issues caused by Mr. Tower's "vacation" ending.
The only pity is that I'll never get my hands on that Apostle of Desire's suitcase, which contains all his savings as a banker—at least 50,000 gold pounds worth of gold, jewelry, and cash...
Even Lady Mary of the Air Pollution Investigation Committee, including her shares in Coyim Company, barely had such wealth!
As these thoughts ran through his mind, Klein returned to the lounge inside the Quelaag Club. After locking the door behind him, the pale-skinned, exquisitely beautiful Miss Sharon suddenly stepped out of a mirror. She remained silent for a few seconds before speaking succinctly. "Do you need me to retrieve the suitcase?"
Are you thinking about it too? Not bad, Miss Temperance, you and Mr. Fool really think alike. A promising "Blessed One" candidate! Klein internally joked before shaking his head.
"There must be a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact there, maybe even a demigod. It's too dangerous... Forget it."
"Very rational. You understand 'Temperance' well." Miss Sharon's ethereal voice carried a note of approval before she disappeared.
Was that a reminder not to be swayed by greed, lest I fall prey to the Apostle of Desire's tricks?
Klein glanced at the mirror beside him, deep in thought, before justifying himself.
I'm not that greedy, really. Machinery Hivemind won't treat me unfairly. If this mission succeeds, my insights and suggestions will be highly valued...
And as a believer of the God of Steam and Machinery, I should receive a share of the spoils based on the churches' usual practices... With 50,000 pounds on the line, it won't be a small sum...
...
In a luxurious villa not far from the Cathedral of the Eternal Wind in Cherwood Borough—also the residence of Miss Aisha, the woman Klein was commissioned to investigate by the fake Baron Larry—
Pallas Negan, whose waist was bloated and eyes gray-blue, sat on the bed holding his mistress in his arms. She was a beautiful young lady with a touch of innocence still on her face, Miss Aisha, who had just turned twenty a few days ago.
She was the most favored woman of the Duke in the past three years.
After taking a mummified potion obtained from a certain apothecary, Duke Negan seemed to have regained the feeling of his youth—riding across vast lands, hunting with his father and elders, chasing wild beasts with hounds.
But just then, that joy and pleasure exploded within him—over and over, endlessly, with no limit or reprieve—until his heart could no longer bear it and suffered a fatal blow.
Extraordinary individuals guarding the Duke in other rooms instantly sensed a mysterious force and rushed into the bedroom.
Leading them was none other than Deacon Stewart of the Church of Storms, the "Mysticism Magister"!When the Honorable "Spellsinger of God" pursued Jason Beria to the dock, Stewart, having experienced similar situations before, sensed something was wrong and took the initiative to replace the original "Wind-Blessed" who had been protecting the Duke.
While mimicking a "healing" ability to repair the Duke's injuries, Stewart also used secret arts in an attempt to reflect the power the demon had inflicted back upon it—
But at that very moment, the Duke's blonde secretary unexpectedly rushed straight to the source of the mysterious force in the attic and used her ability to "seal" it off, seemingly trying to trap the intruder.
Yet by doing so, she also interrupted Stewart's secret art.
The Mysticism Magister frowned but didn't reprimand her. After all, they had never worked together before, and poor coordination was only natural.
So he chose not to interfere in her fight with the enemy, to avoid any misfire, and instead focused solely on protecting Duke Negan. He even calmed the Duke's emotions to prevent him from inadvertently giving the enemy an opening.
However, though the blonde secretary was powerful, she had clearly failed to fully contain the Desire Apostle, who relied on his unique abilities to become a shadow and slip past the attacks.
Just as the Desire Apostle planned to provoke the Duke's fear by killing his mistress Aisha, and then finish him off—Stewart intercepted in time. Using a variety of means, he instantly identified the weaknesses in the Apostle's unique shadow magic!
Seeing the holy light rapidly coalesce in Stewart's hands, the Desire Apostle was about to fall in bitter defeat—when suddenly, a man's figure appeared right beside Duke Negan. He pushed out his left palm and solemnly declared in Hermes, "Death!"
As the words fell, the man's body fused with a strange power, light of dawn bursting from his form, and he struck Duke Negan's head—blowing it to pieces!—If Duke Negan hadn't been injured, as a mid-sequence Beyonder, there was no way he would've been struck so easily. Even if he had been hit, he would've had enough time to activate his powers and mitigate the damage—he wouldn't have died immediately...
But there were no "ifs" in this world. The conservative party leader, the greatest landowner besides the king, the elder brother of the current prime minister, a genuine bigshot, and a Sequence 6 Beyonder—Duke Pallas Negan was dead.
The change happened so suddenly that even Stewart didn't have time to react. He could only watch helplessly as the Duke lost his head...
The blonde secretary who rushed in after was even more shocked. "Baron Larry?! You actually killed His Grace the Duke!"
Before her words had finished, she launched an attack in fury.
The man who had acted suddenly was indeed the kingdom's wanted criminal, Baron Larry. Looking down at his own fist as if waking from a dream, he muttered in disbelief, "What... did I do?"
He didn't react at all to the blonde secretary's attack.
But the blow missed anyway—because Baron Larry's figure vanished again, as if he had never appeared at all.
As for the Desire Apostle, he seemed to have anticipated this. Taking advantage of everyone's shock, he ignored the briefcase and swiftly left the villa, retreating along the predetermined route.
Until a vast blood-colored ocean appeared before his eyes—and at its center stood a figure clad in full silver armor!
...
At the same time, a fog of white, gray, yellow, and black colors swirled in the sky above Cherwood Borough. Since such fogs were common in Backlund, no one paid it any attention.
Within the fog, an old man dressed in a shirt, vest, full suit, and striped blue-gray trousers, with a dark red bowtie and a head full of thick white hair, clutched his head with a contorted expression. But after a moment, he lowered his hands and his demeanor returned to that of a gentle scholar.
The old man smiled faintly and looked around. His gaze soon landed on a heroic-looking young woman, who held an unconscious Baron Larry in her hands.
Seeing this scene, the old man bowed politely to her and smiled. "Your Highness Vera... Heh, I suppose calling you that now isn't a problem, is it?"
"No problem at all," Princess Vera nodded slightly and looked at the old man. "Your Highness Ariehogg."
"The persona I created is still Hvin Rambis—at most, it's a Hvin who possesses Ariehogg's memories... Please don't miscall me again," the old man—no, the fabricated "Hvin Rambis"—corrected her before continuing,
"If not for the item you planted on Larry ahead of time, plunging Herwin into extreme 'misfortune' and allowing the replacement of the persona marked by that individual, even I wouldn't have succeeded so easily...
"Even if I had succeeded, it would likely have triggered the mark left behind by that being...
"Heh, no... I should say that without your help, I definitely wouldn't have succeeded. After all, without the concealment of this fog, nothing we did would escape His notice."
This was something he gave me back then... Of course, it's useful... Vera fell silent for a few seconds, then replied in a calm tone, "I've fulfilled my end of the bargain. When do you intend to honor yours, Lord... Hvin Rambis?"