Above the gray fog, in the ancient palace.
As Klein touched the crimson star, two figures whose faces were concealed by the gray fog instantly appeared from the explosive light. They were Mr. Tower and Miss Judgment.
Among them, there weren't many changes to Ebner. He could only vaguely see a pair of copper-framed glasses on his nose bridge.
However, Miss Xio was completely different from her image at the Tarot Club. Not only was her waist-length blonde hair gone, but even her height had also shrunk to 150cm.
Hidden in the shadows, Klein secretly nodded. This was the Miss Judgment he had seen when she was "exorcising" the evil spirit, and not the "packaged" one from the previous Tarot Gathering.
As expected of a military detective, he's indeed good at disguises.
Just as Klein let out another sigh, Ebner had already recovered his vision and met Xio, who was still in a daze.
Xio was stunned for a few seconds before realizing where she was. She looked around, but she didn't see Mr. Fool.
At this moment, Ebner sighed and asked directly, "Where are you and Jane now? Have you found Baron Conva?"
Xio was alarmed as she blurted out, "How do you know of my and Jane's plan?"
It really is…
Upon hearing Xio's words, Ebner immediately confirmed his guess.
Previously, after hearing Fors mention Xio's abnormality, he had roughly guessed something.
Since Xio had chosen to hide the matter from Fors after receiving the letter, it was definitely dangerous.
She didn't come to me either, which means that she has some confidence in resolving the matter and doesn't want to involve me…
The only person who might pose a threat to me in the near future is the escaped Baron Conva. Xio has a high chance of dealing with him.
That night, she had witnessed Baron Conva strength, but she still felt that she had the confidence to defeat him. There must be some external force involved… Furthermore, this external force might very well have come to her on its own accord!
The goal was likely to need her as "bait."
There was only one person who had the reason to do so, and he also knew about the incident that night, and he was also familiar with the rough strength of Baron Conva, and that was Jane…
And behind Jane was Admiral of Stars. This was probably the source of their confidence!
However, as he guessed their general plan, he also understood their motives for taking action behind his back: They wanted to help him eliminate the threat from the baronet.
Therefore, be it Xio or Jane, Ebner had no right to blame them. He could only sigh and repeat his previous question. "Where are you now?"
At this moment, Xio also sensed that she had been deceived by Ebner. In consideration of his "reasoning" powers, she knew that there was no need to hide it any further. Therefore, she said very straightforwardly, "We've already confirmed the baron's location near the North Borough's Yafana Library."
At this point, to prevent Ebner from worrying, she added, "An important figure provided me with help by setting up a secret space near the library."
An important figure? Hidden space? Don't tell me Bernadette is here too? Peach Blossom Source?
Ebner heart stirred, but he secretly heaved a sigh of relief.
No matter how strange the baron was, no matter how terrifying the spirit in his body was, he was no match for Queen Mystic, who possessed several Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts and had mastered many mysterious spells.
With her around, at least Xio and Jane's safety was guaranteed.
"I'll be there soon. Be safe… Also, if there's a chance, warn that important figure to be careful of the 'spirit' on the baron!
"The corruption on them might very well come from underground."
Ebner nodded slightly and gave a solemn reminder before praying to Mr. Fool to end the "communication."
Soon, he and Xio vanished from the ancient palace above the gray fog.
Klein, who had been hiding behind the gray fog, appeared. He frowned slightly and muttered to himself,
"Underground corruption? What's that? Abyss? Devil? Speaking of which, when I was cleansing the black spots on Miss Judgment, I did feel the power of degeneration."
…
In the villa at 28 Kingst Street, Ebner, who had returned from above the gray fog, removed the wall of spirituality. After coming out of the bathroom, he first found Fors and told her not to worry. He had already confirmed Xio's location and was about to rush over to make her wait here for the time being.
Fors wasn't willing to wait as she looked at Ebner and requested, "Take me with you. I'm here at the critical moment, so there's still a safe way out."
Ebner shook his head and declined politely, "Don't worry, it's not that dangerous this time… Besides, if you use that bracelet again, I'm afraid you won't be able to bear the corresponding price."
Although he could seek Klein's help, he was afraid that his chest would be pierced this weekend. He hadn't been in the service area for several days, so it was better to avoid courting death.
Fors was instantly at a loss for words. Before she could think of an excuse, she heard Ebner say, "Besides, I have the ability to traverse the spirit world this time. I don't need you to sacrifice yourself… So just wait here in peace."
With that, Ebner didn't explain further. He went straight up to the study and said to Mr. Azik, who was gently chatting with Silika,
"Mr. Azik, I'll have to trouble you with the North Borough's Yafana Library."
He believed that he understood what he meant.
Mr. Azik gently patted Silika's head before turning around to joke, "I thought I was a carriage driver after hearing what you said…"
Although it was a joke, Mr. Azik's actions weren't slow at all. Ebner felt his vision suddenly change. The reds were redder, the yellows were yellower, and the whites were whiter. All sorts of colors saturated as he drew a strange oil painting!
As for Mr. Azik, he grabbed his arm and walked deep into the saturated, stacked oil paintings!
…
North Borough, in a carriage near the Yefana Library. Xio, who had just met Ebner, lowered her head in thought for a few seconds. Then, she took out a mirror she carried with her and seemingly muttered to herself,
"I just recalled something. The baron and the spirit in his body might've been corrupted by some unknown entity from underground."
With that said, she didn't speak further. Instead, she rubbed the Ring of Prejudice on her hand and prepared for any possible attacks.
At that moment, she suddenly heard an ethereal voice. "That person said, 'Got it.'"
Xio instantly felt her hair stand on end. When she saw who was sitting in front of her, she heaved a sigh of relief and said with a helpless smile,
"Miss Sharron, why did you suddenly appear?"
The ring of prediction didn't provide any images… Could it be that she doesn't harbor any animosity?
Sharron, who was wearing a gothic regal dress and a small black bonnet, was sitting quietly on the other side of the carriage, her face as pale as always.
"That man suddenly acted abnormally. I'll take you away," Sharron said without emotion before grabbing Xio's arm.
Before Xio could react, she felt herself moving involuntarily under a huge force. She could also hear the sound of the wind!
When she snapped back to her senses, she found herself in a forest filled with peach blossoms.