As Leonard strolled aimlessly to the entrance of Narcissus Street, the very neighborhood where he had once led the girl, he stopped and stared blankly at the direction of the city square for several seconds.
In that dimly lit intersection, he instantly spotted her pale golden hue amidst the vast crowd. But it wasn't until she turned her body during their conversation, her profile facing him, that he finally dared to confirm that the person on the other side of the street wasn't just a figment of his imagination. He
had actually met her!
Unlike the girl he had seen before, Alice tonight was dressed in a peculiar, floor-length grey robe, her face beautiful and delicate, with an added air of mystery, as if she had stepped out of a historical novel.
She seemed to have just finished saying goodbye to someone beside her and was turning to leave in the opposite direction from him.
Seeing this, Leonard ignored the old man's murmurs in his mind and quickly walked towards the girl's location, calling her name in a slightly raised voice.
The other person stopped, turned around with a surprised expression, and blinked twice.
"Mr. Leonard?"
"It seems our meeting was destined, Miss Alice. The night sky and stars are truly exceptionally beautiful and enchanting tonight, don't you think?"
Leonard's gloomy mood from the daytime vanished, and he greeted her with a light smile. Then, recalling the rumors about the girl and the woman in the black dress who had just left her side, he adopted a casual tone.
"By the way, was that... Miss Alice's friend?"
"Not really. That lady works at the circus. She happened to hear me playing and then came over to chat for a while... um, she just asked if I wanted to try a fortune telling, but I politely declined and was about to leave." Alice shook her head slightly.
As long as it had nothing to do with that Ms. Danitalia!
Leonard breathed a sigh of relief, then feigned admiration for the goddess in his mind before shifting his gaze to the seven-stringed harp the girl was cradling in her arms.
"So you do know music... It's a real shame I didn't get to hear the sound of those strings being plucked; it must have been incredibly beautiful."
"You'll hear it next time. But it's just a rough impromptu piece by a wandering musician, so you'd better not overestimate my abilities, or you might be disappointed."
She tucked a strand of wind-blown hair behind her ear, revealing her delicate earlobe adorned with a small silver leaf-shaped ornament.
Disappointed?! A girl as beautiful and elegant as her, with graceful manners and musical knowledge—she was definitely just being modest!
Leonard pretended not to hear the mental click of his tongue and smoothly continued the girl's earlier statement.
"A wandering musician... Miss Alice's job at the café is just a part-time job, this is her real job? It sounds romantic, but also a bit lonely..."
The slightly carefree young night watchwoman couldn't help but romanticize her journey after just a little imagination, and for a moment even felt a little longing and envy.
"You don't have to be so polite, just call me by my name." Alice smiled gently, "Besides, I don't plan to work at the café anymore, to avoid some trouble later."
— Someone with Danitalia's personality, even if she verbally acknowledged serving her as her master, probably didn't have much loyalty. If she went back to that café to continue her previous pretense, who knows what kind of non-fatal but terrible way Danitalia would come up with to persecute her...
Moreover, what master works for a servant?
Thinking this, Alice nodded slightly, unaware that Leonard was overjoyed to hear her words, and from his own perspective, interpreted it differently:
she really did reject that Ms. Danitalia! This refusal caused a conflict between her and her employer,
forcing her to resign... Right, this is a good opportunity to sound her out and see if she's interested in clerical work! "Um, I'm sorry, I hope my next job will be more challenging... but thank you so much for considering my situation." The girl responded tactfully after hearing his suggestion.
After a brief chat with Alice, Leonard vaguely sensed that she seemed less aloof than usual tonight. Just as he was wondering if something had happened to her, a familiar, weathered voice echoed in his mind.
"Foolish boy, you can't even grasp this? Do you need me to teach you? What kind of idiot would stand on the side of the street in a square chatting with a girl like this!"
Right. Leonard had barely realized it when his head was bombarded again.
"Perfect timing! She just mentioned she's been playing the piano around here since evening. Couldn't you imagine she might not have had dinner yet? Why don't you invite her to a cafe or restaurant? At the very least, we could go to the park nearby, find a nice spot with a good night view, and then we can start a conversation!"
The young night watchman, with his poetic air, momentarily went blank.
Had the old man lost his mind? He never used to say anything at times like this, so why was he acting like he wanted to kick him out?
Unfortunately, now wasn't the right time to ask the old man…
Looking at the girl before him, who seemed puzzled by his sudden silence, Leonard swallowed his question and extended a gentle, lighthearted invitation.
As expected, Alice didn't refuse much and nodded in agreement.
Through the young night watchman's perspective, the parasite watched this scene unfold before its eyes and sighed silently.
—This silly boy didn't even notice that the "witch" he had his eye on was wearing the exact same earrings as his colleague…
Oh well, young people should experience more trials and tribulations, until they get hurt and learn to stay away from unreliable relationships.
But what's wrong with young people these days? Don't they all mind dating women on the wanted list?
…
Regardless of the parasite's inner turmoil, Leonard had a happy and fulfilling evening.
He even felt that time spent with Alice always passed too quickly, each time it was time to part in the blink of an eye—he was supposed to be on the night shift tonight, but he had managed to arrange with his colleague Cohen to cover for him until 9 pm, which gave him time to go out and look for a romantic encounter.
But today's harvest was already quite fruitful.
Although most of the time he was the one trying to find topics and she was simply responding, Alice was definitely different tonight.
She opened her heart to him! She told him about her journey of leaving her hometown and embarking on a solitary journey!
Leonard strolled back to Zotland Street, where his company was located, in a cheerful mood, ignoring the old man's sighs echoing in his mind. Only when he saw a carriage parked in front of the company did his lighthearted smile fade, and he resumed his usual nonchalant demeanor as he approached, his steps light as he ascended the steps.
Pushing open the door, Captain Dunn and his colleague Klein appeared in his field of vision.
"You're back just in time, Leonard." Dunn Smith gestured towards the area outside the reception hall, his voice low and gentle. "Klein just reported a sudden 'mirror divination' incident. Of course, he brilliantly identified the key issue and stopped the evil spirit's descent in time, preventing the situation from escalating further… Get ready, we'll take over the follow-up investigation of Haynes Vancent immediately; Klein, you can go back and rest."
"I thought this would be my initiation mission, and I'd have to complete it alone from now on." Klein was clearly relieved and said with a smile.
"You reminded me." Dunn nodded, remembering a trivial matter he had almost forgotten. "Around 7 o'clock earlier, the police station transferred a case. The initial assessment is that it's of a suitable difficulty level for an initiation mission. You can come and complete it tomorrow."
After the captain finished explaining the general matters, Klein, exhausted from the ritual magic draining much of his spiritual energy, bid farewell to the two and slowly left Blackthorn Security Company.
Now all he wanted was to go home and get a good night's sleep, nothing else mattered.
Ah, of course, he still had to deal with Melissa's suspicious look, as if she suspected him of doing something to her two female friends!
Klein was unaware that while he was taking a detour to Zotland Street to report the Magic Mirror incident, Alice had already walked ahead of him towards the townhouses on Narcissus Street, and encountered a man blocking her path.
He wore a long black trench coat over a standard men's white shirt and dark trousers, his golden-brown hair was shaved short, and the collars of his shirt and trench coat were turned up, hiding his lips and chin in the shadows of the night.
The unknown stranger stood quietly in the girl's likely path, one hand in his pocket, the other carrying a long suitcase, welcoming her as if she were an old acquaintance returning home.
The nearby pedestrians had vanished; on this Sunday night before nine o'clock, Narcissus Street was deserted, so quiet you could almost hear your own breathing.
Alice stopped in her tracks, silently tilting her head as if pondering the identity of the person before her.
Nice to meet you, Witch." The tall, thin man in the black trench coat turned around, his serene, dark green eyes meeting the girl's gaze, his thin, cold lips curving slightly upwards. "Let me introduce myself. I am Kreste Cecima, a high-ranking deacon of the Church of the Goddess of Night, and also the hound sent by the goddess to track you down… I presume you know why I'm here."
Kreste appeared relaxed, but in reality, he was on edge, ready to unleash his spirit at any moment, or activate the spiritual talisman in his trench coat pocket to buy himself time to break the seal on the bone sword.
The girl before him possessed a beauty that almost defied human description; even having seen her photos and information multiple times and considering himself immune to beauty, he felt a slight dizziness.
Fortunately, she was wearing a wide gray robe that completely concealed her curves, preventing her terrifying allure from being further revealed.
The silent and brief standoff finally ended, and she… no, perhaps it should be called Him, responded.
"Opening your full spiritual vision right off the bat, so eager to see my true face, aren't you afraid of going mad like that unlucky fellow before?"
He smiled as He spoke, his tone becoming lighter.
"Hmm, speaking of that unlucky fellow, what was his name again? Moon or Muri? He seemed to have only seen me in a dream, completely unprepared, and then you all treated him as mentally unstable. Really… oh dear, how pitiful."
Kreste Cecima took a breath, stepping forward unmoved, defying His almost eerily beautiful smile.
"To speak with your head held high before Your Excellency, you must first take the step of looking Your Excellency in the eye."
Seeing that he completely ignored her provocation, Alice suddenly seemed to lose interest, her smile instantly fading.
"Speak, what is your reason for coming before me... What does your goddess wish to confirm with me?"
"This place is not suitable for communication with you. Please follow me to the crypt of the Church of St. Serena." Krestai's pale fingers, gripping the suitcase, regained a touch of color as he stepped aside to make way. "There, you will find the answers to these questions."
"Hmm, convenient. If we can't reach an agreement, you can find a way to seal me away... What if I say I don't intend to cooperate? What will you do? Force me into submission, forcibly take me to the church?"
His clear, almost reflective azure eyes gazed at this chosen one, known as the "Sword of the Goddess," silently observing him for several seconds. The tension in the air almost materialized, tightening the heart of every living being.
Until the corners of his mouth lifted again, revealing a smile, the tense atmosphere instantly vanished.
"Just kidding. You seem to want to avoid conflict with me, which makes me a little curious about your limits… Alright, lift the blockade of the street. Don't disrupt normal traffic. I'll go with you."
Disrupting normal traffic… Being accused of this by someone seemingly of evil intent, Krestai was momentarily at a loss for words. After a nearly ten-second pause, he gently tapped his teeth and gave instructions to the spirit under his control.
In just a few breaths, the extremely quiet, almost deathly silent street was once again filled with the lively atmosphere of life. Even the pedestrians walking at night seemed unaware of the changes taking place in the neighborhood, let alone the invisible confrontation that had been resolved through a secret conversation. The
two-wheeled hired carriage swiftly drove through the street, turned at the intersection, and returned to Narcissus Street where Moretti's family lived.
Melissa sat in the carriage, looking out and seemed to see a somewhat familiar figure, but upon closer inspection, the person was already far past. Helpless, she had to give up the pursuit.
She had a feeling she saw Miss Alice walking with a tall man from behind...
Maybe she had mistaken her for someone else?