"'Hero of East Borough,' James Scott——"
Xio and Fors had also seen the latest issue of The Backlund Daily; the front-page headline featured the man they knew so well—and worried about.
"Great! Scott's been released!"
"And he's become a hero!" Xio stared at the slightly blurry photo in the paper and sighed.
"This could be new novel material——"
Fors's writer instincts kicked in at once, her eyes sparkling as her mind began spinning dramatic plots. An apparently ordinary factory owner, secretly a Justice-loving, highly capable hero who becomes a Guardian of Darkness at night—what an irresistible premise!
But a moment later she seemed to remember something, puffing her cheeks and planting her hands on her hips. "Still! That guy actually lied to us! Claimed he'd done nothing, just happened to be passing by, when in fact he stormed that gangster Capin's villa single-handedly!"
"Maybe—he just didn't want us to worry." Xio scratched her head, reflexively defending Lorne.
"Hmph!" Fors's cheeks puffed out even more; clearly she wasn't entirely buying it.
Xio couldn't fathom what had gotten into her friend.
When had Fors's relationship with Scott turned so—delicate? Scott had saved her, sure, but Fors had always kept her guard up around him. Now, though, it felt…
She suddenly recalled that full-moon night: exhausted after a job, she'd come home to find Fors sobbing in Scott's arms.
At the time they'd explained it away—Full Moon Speech Disorder had struck, Scott had rescued her, and in her emotional turmoil she'd thrown herself at Mr. Scott for comfort.
Could it… not have been that simple? Xio studied her huffing friend without a word.
"Something this huge and he didn't tell us—he obviously doesn't consider us friends!" Fors was still muttering complaints, but Xio's thoughts had drifted elsewhere.
Could it be… Fors has feelings for Scott…
Fors is emotionally sensitive, and Scott has twice played the dashing rescuer; if she's developed some affection, it makes perfect sense—
"No, impossible." Xio shook her head hard, trying to fling the absurd idea away.
"Fors isn't that kind of person."
She thought of Fors's longtime Pen-pal; Fors's behavior clearly showed interest in that correspondent.
They'd even gone on a "date" not long ago. Fors had come back reeking of alcohol, bragging that they'd toured the Roselle the Great Memorial Exhibition, gathered loads of rare material, and finished with dinner at a Fancy Restaurant.
Scatter-brained as Fors could be, Xio knew her friend might indulge in starry-eyed fantasies now and then but was definitely not fickle.
She trusted her friend's character.
"Um, Fors—" Xio spoke up hesitantly, cutting off the grumbling.
"What should we do next?"
Should we—go thank Miss Audrey?"
"Miss Audrey…" Fors tapped her chin. "Right. For Scott to be released so quickly and turned into a hero overnight, someone upstairs must have pulled strings. It had to be Miss Audrey."
We really should thank her."
Should we tell Scott first?" Xio suggested. "He ought to know."
Besides—" she added, embarrassed, "we don't actually have any suitable gift to thank Miss Audrey with."
But Scott's a powerful Beyonder; maybe—he can offer Miss Audrey some esoteric knowledge she'd find interesting."
"Makes sense." Fors nodded, recalling Miss Audrey's keen interest in mysticism and her ever-curious nature.
Then let's pay Scott a visit first."
I've something I want to ask him anyway," Xio added quietly.
"Oh? What is it?" Fors turned, curious.
That Masked Man posted a job: find information about a Ghost."
They say the night Capine Villa exploded, an Armored Ghost appeared on the scene."
Scott went to rescue people that day—maybe he saw that Ghost."
"I see." Fors gave a small nod.
"By the way, Fors," Xio remembered something, "there's another job—ask around your circle for me."
"What job?" Fors asked.
"Someone's offering a huge reward for information—about an organization connected to the Tarot Cards."
"Tarot Cards?!" Fors's pupils shrank.
July 23rd.
My situation is getting worse; quite a few factions are stirring.
Damn it, can't I find a single reliable ally? That fellow Zaratul has vanished again.
Another full moon; once more I contacted Mr. Door. He told me some fourth epoch history. I asked him about the Zaratul family.
He smiled and said that early in the fourth epoch he and Old Charatu were colleagues.
Of course, I know Mr. Door meant the Old Charatu, not that divination-obsessed guy.
Mr. Door said the Zaratul family followed Emperor Solomon the Black Emperor with fanatical loyalty. Even after Solomon's First Empire fell, they stayed loyal and later held important posts in Solomon's Second Empire. It was then that he and Old Charatu stopped being colleagues.
When I asked why, he just smiled and offered no details.
I suspect Mr. Door was once a noble or minister under Emperor Solomon. After the First Empire collapsed, he switched sides, splitting with Old Charatu, who stayed loyal to Solomon.
Honestly, given Mr. Door's knowledge and promises, I'm tempted. If he could return, having such a powerful ally would make things much easier.
He told me that sacrificing demigods from the Apprentice, Seer, and Marauder Pathways in a ritual could bring him back.
There's an even simpler method—blood from many different descendants of the Abraham Family.
"This Roselle diary entry is really something."
"Worthy of the Mystic Queen's collection," Lorne murmured, setting down the diary.
He was fulfilling his deal with Bernadette by translating Roselle's diary, and this entry had shocked him.
"Sure enough, Mr. Door is linked to the Abraham Family. Door, Abraham, and the Full-Moon Murmur—"
"Case closed: the Full-Moon Murmur is probably the sealed Mr. Door calling for help."
"That night I heard a cry for help," Lorne recalled helping Fors with the Full-Moon Murmur. "Perhaps the murmur is a plea for rescue; Fors's Sequence was too low to bear even the voice—"
"If we could free him, would the Full-Moon Murmur end for good?"
"And if even Roselle was impressed, Mr. Door must be unimaginably strong. I'm struggling because I lack a powerful backer. Maybe I could—" Lorne's fingers tightened unconsciously.
"Forget it. Sacrificing three demigods is beyond me."
Who knows where the Abraham descendants are?"
Lorne sighed and set the idea aside, translating the diary in summary so Bernadette couldn't reverse-engineer the Chinese.
"In two days the police are holding a press conference—and they actually want me there."
"Those officers sneered at me during questioning, but now they're all smiles, begging me to show up."
No surprise: the Capin case is nasty and far-reaching. Without me praising their swift Justice, they'd look incompetent or even suspicious.
"Fine—maybe I can discuss some police-equipment deals while I'm at it."
"Ahh—" Lorne stretched and rose from his desk.
"From hell to heaven in one step—being a Winner feels pretty good."
"And this might be only the beginning."
>