Backlund, St. George Borough, in a factory room filled with junk.
Light flashed in a mirror filled with obvious cracks. Its surface turned dark and deep, as though it was connected to another world.
Suddenly, a white hand reached out from under the mirror, as though it had penetrated through layers of aqueous waves.
A figure walked out from the shadows—she was none other than the sweet and beautiful Demoness Trissy in a long black dress.
There was a rare paleness to her face, as though her face had lost all its ruddiness. Her forehead was covered in dense beads of sweat.
With a smacking sound, the suitcase in Trissy's hand fell to the ground. She could hardly suppress the horror in her eyes.
She then muttered to herself blankly, "His messenger is actually an angel..."
At that moment, Trissy felt a chill run down her spine, as though a cold wind had blown at her.
She had never expected how dangerous it would be to summon a messenger previously. Thankfully, the woman holding the four heads in her hands watched her silently for a while before she left without doing anything.
160 Boklund Street, inside Dwayne Dantes's mansion.
"Who's it from?" Klein asked with anticipation as he received the letter from Miss Messenger.
The four heads in Reinette Tinekerr's hand spoke one after another:
Vessel..." "Of..." "Dirtiness..." "Darkness..."
This nickname... Klein was taken aback when he heard that. For a moment, he didn't immediately figure out who Miss Messenger was referring to.
In his mind, the people who knew how to summon his messenger quickly flashed past, one by one, as he filtered through them.
In a few seconds, he had the corresponding guess.
Trissy!
From what Klein knew, this Demoness, who had been renamed to Trissy Cheek, might very well be one of the mediums for the Primordial Demoness's awakening or descent upon the world.
In such a situation, calling her a "vessel" wasn't wrong.
And people who knew enough about the mysterious world knew that the Primordial Demoness was an evil goddess, one that was known as the ultimate bringer of the apocalypse that would end everything. "She" had the creation of the apocalypse and the destruction of everything as "Her" mission. She also wielded authorities such as desires related to feelings and emotions. It wasn't very apt to describe "Her" with dirtiness and darkness, but it was understandable.
Similarly, dirtiness and darkness could also describe Trissy, who had been corrupted by the evil goddess to a certain extent.
As expected of an angel. "She" actually dared to say that about the Primordial Demoness... Klein secretly marveled as he opened the letter and quickly read it.
At that moment, he suddenly recalled something. He hurriedly looked at Miss Messenger and said, "What reaction did the sender have when she saw you?"
"She..." "Was ..." "Very scared..." Reinette Tinekerr's three heads spoke one after another without giving the last one a chance to speak as its head was simply left agape.
Klein's expression turned slightly heavy as he deliberated and asked, "Did you mark her?"
The head of Reinette Tinekerr, which failed to speak previously, rushed to speak.
"No..."
The remaining three blonde, red-eyed heads added, "Because..." "She..." "Had..."
"The aura..." "Of..." "Primordial..."
Klein fell silent for a few seconds before nodding.
"I understand."
After watching Miss Messenger step into the void and leave, he unfurled the piece of paper and quickly read Trissy's letter.
She actually sought me out to deal with Saintess of White Katarina... Isn't this exactly what I wanted to do? Klein's eyes shimmered a few times as he immediately rummaged for a black sticky blob.
Right on the heels of that, he transformed into Gehrman Sparrow and smeared the blob uniformly onto a tiny mirror in the room.
After patiently waiting for nearly ten minutes, the black sticky blob vanished into thin air, leaving nothing behind. Klein had failed to contact Demoness Trissy.
As expected, Trissy, who has been corrupted by the Primordial Demoness to a certain extent, managed to identify Miss Messenger's level and was given a fright... She probably wouldn't communicate with Gehrman Sparrow anytime soon... Sigh, if I had known Miss Messenger is a special angel, I definitely wouldn't have let "Her" appear in front of Trissy, or I would've informed "Her" that if a Demoness were to summon "Her," she can bring both the person and letter over... Klein sighed silently and could only blame it on his luck.
At that moment, he suddenly heard a series of illusory pleas.
In a dark alley in the Backlund Bridge area.
Xio hid Wintry Blade and entered the area, looking around warily.
"Not bad, you're getting more and more experienced."
A deep male voice sounded, and a figure walked out from the darkness around the corner.
He stood tall, wearing a golden mask that revealed his eyes, nostrils, mouth, and cheeks. It was none other than the MI9 member who had contacted Xio before.
"Why did you contact me so urgently?" Xio asked.
The golden-masked man didn't make any small talk and directly asked, "You still seem to be monitoring Viscount Stratford's surroundings. Have you discovered anything unusual recently?"
Xio thought and said, "Yes.
"He had intimate contact with a girl of unknown origins. He made her visit him at his residence late at night several times.
"I tried to track that woman down, but I failed both times.
"Also, Viscount Stratford suddenly went out in the middle of the night two days ago. I don't know where he went because I didn't manage to follow him."
The golden-masked man tersely acknowledged this as he went deeper into the details. Xio answered according to the details she had seen back then. She only concealed the fact that she had met Shermane in the carriage and how she had followed Viscount Stratford all the way outside the warehouse.
"Not bad. Your persistence was rewarding." The golden-masked man nodded slightly. He didn't seem to doubt what Xio had said.
He sighed and said, "With this, your contributions to us will increase significantly.
To be frank, if this continues, you'll soon be able to accumulate the contributions needed for the Sequence 6 potion. However, before that, there will definitely be a strict examination. And with your background, heh heh, it will fail the examination without a doubt. After all, I know it very well.
"Actually, there's no need for you to seek the truth. I know that this was the motivation for you to persist in continuing the mission regarding Viscount Stratford, but my personal suggestion is to put the matter aside.
"With your current Sequence and abilities, it's enough to let your mother and brother lead a very good life. Don't worry, no one will cause you trouble.
"And if you wish to continue persisting, I cannot guarantee what will happen."
Although Xio had already expected such an explanation, she was helpless in resisting her emotions and throbbing heart. She blurted out a question:
"Who exactly are you?"
"I'm just an ordinary Mid-Sequence Beyonder," the golden-masked man said with a smile. "You might not know that the post of ‘captain of the royal guards' has the corresponding authority in MI9. It's equivalent to a deputy director that handles matters related to the royal family. Back when your father was alive, I was his subordinate and had received his help in various aspects. After his passing, I, who didn't commit any wrongs or hide any matters, was removed from the core of MI9. See, heh—I'm only responsible for informants on the outside like you."
Upon saying that, the golden-masked man sighed.
Your father helped me a lot. So, after I recognized you, I deliberately made you become an informant under me. With the extent of my power, I provided you some help. I have a family of my own and my own life, so I can't take excessive risks or do anything too dangerous for you.
"Let's do this, I'll help you get the potion formula for Judge. Afterward, stop your contributions and your pursuit to advance your Sequence. Do something that will improve your life. As for what you want to do or plan to do in private, I don't know, nor do I want to know."
Xio fell into a daze. Her lips trembled as she said, "What kind of person was my father?"
The golden-masked man sighed as he replied, "He was a really brave, noble, and just aristocrat, but he wasn't that perfect. He was impulsive, eager, prone to anger..."
Xio silently listened and had planned on asking further, but all she said was a phrase:
"Thank you."
"Go back. After obtaining the Judge formula, I'll leave you a message to meet me," the golden-masked man said with a wave.
After Xio completely disappeared from the alley's entrance, the golden-masked man was just about to turn around when a slightly ethereal voice sounded in his ears:
"She's lying.
"She had tailed Viscount Stratford to the scene back then. It's something that can be confirmed."
The golden-masked man fell silent for a moment before saying to the shadow beside him, "She might've only been worried that this would arouse suspicion.
"How can she defeat Viscount Stratford at her Sequence? Besides, wasn't it said that Viscount Stratford carried a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact?
"I believe that she likely didn't dare approach. Otherwise, she wouldn't even be able to survive!"
The slightly ethereal voice replied, "No matter what, since there is a doubt, we need to do further investigations. Don't inquire about it in the future."
Outside the alley, Xio walked calmly along street lamps.
She deliberately didn't mention that she had followed Viscount Stratford.
This wasn't to hide the truth, to clear herself of suspicion, or to not invite trouble; in fact, that was contrary to her true motives.
Before the Tarot Club, her plan was to say that she had followed Viscount Stratford to a particular warehouse in the dock area. Outside, she was scared off by a terrifying hurricane. This was more convincing and made it less prone to suspicion. However, after knowing that this matter piqued The World Gehrman Sparrow's interest, she secretly changed her mind and decided to use her explanation to garner suspicion.
She felt that if she wanted to investigate the king's secret at her level, it might take another three to five years, or even longer. Perhaps, there wouldn't be any hope forever. But with The World's help, success was a possibility.
As such, she was willing to bear the risks and place herself right in the middle of the tides.
And today, before meeting the golden-masked man from MI9, Xio had prayed to Mr. Fool so that "He" could inform The World Gehrman Sparrow of her thoughts.
