"Sounds like a contrived story. Ever since the new sea route was discovered, there has been no end to stories of people becoming rich from taking risks," Soest casually commented on the content of the telegram. As he thought, he looked towards a particular Red Glove. "I recall that we had investigated Dwayne Dantès before and had an exchange with him in his dream."
"Yes," the Red Glove who was responsible for the task nodded and replied. "I didn't directly ask him about such matters, but I could tell that Dwayne Dantès was very familiar with the Southern Continent. He had plenty of experience there."
Heh heh, that might be information that Dwayne Dantès deliberately revealed to you... Leonard had his doubts regarding the contents of the telegram, believing that this was another layer of disguise from an undying monster who had lived since the Fourth Epoch.
However, he didn't inform his teammates about his conjectures, because he had no basis for them.
Soest didn't pay great attention to the matter as he said, "Do you have any problems with the clues related to Gehrman Sparrow?"
"Since this crazy adventurer was still at sea in recent weeks, when did he come to Backlund?" As a Nightmare, Cindy repeated her doubts, "What I'm concerned about isn't the exact time, but whether he has the time to travel to Backlund. After all, we're rather far from the sea."
Soest nodded gently and said, "In the meeting, a deacon raised this question. According to the time and venue of Gehrman Sparrow's last sighting, he normally has no way to arrive in Backlund last night and complete an infiltration.
"Of course, I'm referring to normal circumstances.
"The missing servant told us that when he was sweeping the square, he suddenly lost control of his body. He froze on the spot and was unable to cry for help. Then, he saw bright colors like an abstract oil painting, and he felt that his body was floating upwards.
"Later, he lost consciousness, and after awakening, he found himself in a room in East Borough.
"The former matches with the Keeper's description of being possessed by a Wraith. The latter is suspected to be a Traveler's Teleport.
"If it really is Teleport, then Gehrman Sparrow can appear in Backlund at any moment."
As elites of the Nighthawks, the Red Gloves knew about the various Beyonder pathways far better than their colleagues which were at the same level. They were no strangers to Wraiths and Travelers.
After listening to the captain's explanation, another Red Glove added in thought, "It's rumored that Admiral of Blood, who was hunted by Gehrman Sparrow, is a Wraith."
The details matched!
And as for Gehrman Sparrow being able to obtain the powers to become a Wraith, it wasn't unacceptable. The easiest method was to find an Artisan to make one's prey into a mystical item.
Cindy recalled even more information with this stimulus.
"It's said that Gehrman Sparrow has the ability to change his appearance... And the infiltrator had disguised himself as the Keeper."
Another detail matched!
"Excellent thinking," Soest raised his hand to rub this temples. "According to these details, we can come to a preliminary consensus that the infiltrator is Gehrman Sparrow. And this way, the name list we came up with might be erroneous. Gehrman Sparrow doesn't need a companion to frequently come to the cathedral to pray to gather information. He can change his appearance every day and enter to figure out the situation. This will be more indiscreet than using a companion."
As the largest and most holy Church of Evernight cathedral in Backlund, the number of believers that came to Saint Samuel Cathedral on a daily basis was too numerous to count. No bishop could remember every unfamiliar face that they once met.
"That also means that the names we have here are meaningless?" Leonard raised his hand to rub his brows, sounding rather desultory.
"That's somewhat obvious. Our focus now should be on Gehrman Sparrow. The other targets can be placed aside as we perform the most basic level of surveillance." Having said that, Soest clapped and said, "Alright, get busy."
Leonard didn't have any objections. He happened to hope to find the Machinery Hivemind, Mandated Punishers, and MI9 to gather some information.
...
On Tuesday morning, Klein woke up naturally, feeling relaxed and calm. He had the feeling of joyful emotions slowly coming to life.
A Psychiatrist's Beyonder powers are quite useful after all... It really matches the extremely infectious optimism that Miss Justice brings with her... Klein got out of bed and drew the curtains.
He leisurely took in the scenery outside and the scattering golden sunlight. He regained his drive and began formulating his plans for the next couple months and even the year.
First, get a new marionette.
Second, use the identity of Dwayne Dantès and the control over a marionette to orchestrate scripts to expedite the digestion of the potion.
Third, during this process, slowly gather the ingredients needed for the Bizarro Sorcerer potion. In that regard, I can ask Little Sun about the Bizarro Bane to see if he has any clues. I'll seek Mr. Azik's help regarding the Spirit World Plunderer. After all, the Underworld is part of the spirit world.
Fourth, I'll continue investigating the Great Smog of Backlund and find the true culprit. This includes Ince Zangwill, as well as the demigod that killed Crazy Captain. There aren't any targets more suitable than them for my advancement ritual. However, I have to be careful of 0-08. I have to constantly keep watch of any intentional coincidences... Hmm, I'll just dabble in the matter in an ordinary manner and mainly provide support. The dangerous investigations can be handed to Demoness Trissy.
Klein's thought processes slowly became clear. Although he still felt worried and fearful, this no longer affected his mental state and capacity to take action.
Retracting his gaze from outside the balcony, Klein walked into the bathroom and washed up.
Soon, he opened the door while feeling highly spirited, and he saw his valet, Richardson, and butler, Walter, waiting outside.
The gentleman was wearing white gloves as he politely bowed and said, "Good morning, sir. There's only one item on your schedule today. It's to join an event at the East Balam Military Veterans Mess with Member of Parliament Macht at three in the afternoon.
"He's a new member of parliament, so by accepting his invitation, it will also indicate your political inclinations. You still have the opportunity to be hesitant about it."
Klein thought for a moment before saying, "There's no need. It's my choice."
He paused and asked in an inquiring tone, "It will be my first time visiting the East Balam Military Veterans Mess. What should I take note of?"
"Praise their work that they have established in East Balam. Use this opportunity to make some donations. There's no need to give too much or little. 500 pounds is a rather suitable sum," Walter provided his opinion.
500 pounds... Seriously, no matter which circle I enter, I'll have to spend large sums of money... Sigh, this is because Dwayne Dantès doesn't have any birthright or background. He can only open a path with cash... Klein nodded gently and agreed with his butler's suggestion.
At the same time, he quickly did a count of his present assets.
The Artisan hasn't completed the work regarding the Ocean Songster, but the money for Mentor of Confusion and Druid has been obtained. That's a total of 16,000 pounds...
With the cash I originally had on hand, subtracting the 13,000 pounds I used to purchase 3% of the Coim Company's shares, as well as the daily expenses of a tycoon's household and the donations at the cathedral, there's still 23,985 pounds and 5 gold coins left...
In addition, I still owe Miss Messenger 3,413 gold coins...
500 pounds has already exceeded 2% of the cash I have on hand...
Klein didn't speak further as he walked out of his bedroom, going to the second floor where the dining room was in order to have his breakfast.
...
In the basement of Saint Samuel Cathedral, Leonard Mitchell returned to his office earlier than his teammates.
He had already obtained the relevant information and had learned of an inconspicuous matter.
Prince Edessak, who passed away in the Great Smog of Backlund, had once hired a private detective to investigate the death of equestrian teacher, Talim Dumont.
And that private detective's name was: Sherlock Moriarty!
As expected! There are hints of him being involved with the Great Smog of Backlund! Leonard was delighted as he excitedly ruffled his hair.
Following that, he pounded down at the documents on his desk with his fist, planning to seek out even more clues.
However, he suddenly fell silent for about eight seconds before raising his cup in embarrassment and drank a mouthful of coffee. He mumbled inwardly, What did I want to do. I forgot about it after the pounding...
After some careful recall, Leonard finally recalled what it was. He pulled out his drawer and took out a deck of tarot cards.
Then, he found The Fool card and placed it on a piece of paper. On it, he wrote three names:
"Sherlock Moriarty, Gehrman Sparrow, Dwayne Dantès."
After some hesitation, Leonard drew a line linking the three names to The Fool card, indicating that they might very well be members of a secret organization that believed in The Fool.
Among them, he was most unsure of Gehrman Sparrow's identity as he wrote a question mark.
Later, Leonard took out The Emperor card and stuck it beside the name, "Sherlock Moriarty." He labeled it "suspected to be."
Gehrman Sparrow and Dwayne Dantès each correspond to a card? Leonard muttered silently. He took out the crazy adventurer's records and began reading them seriously.
Suddenly, he found a date very familiar.
Early January!
Gehrman Sparrow's first appearance was in early January!
No way... Leonard drew a gasp as he flipped through another set of documents. At the end of it were the words:
"At the end of December, Sherlock Moriarty left Backlund and headed south for a vacation. He has yet to return."
End of December... Early January... Backlund... Pritz Harbor... Gehrman Sparrow can change his appearance... No way? Leonard mumbled inwardly as he drew a dotted equality sign between "Sherlock Moriarty" and "Gehrman Sparrow."
This great detective is the key... Leonard found Sherlock Moriarty's portrait that he had drawn via a ritual as he carefully looked at it.
After considering the point that "looks could be changed," he began imagining the detective in different disguises.
As he did it, Leonard's gaze froze bit by bit as he couldn't help but frown.
