The sky was just beginning to brighten when a figure wearing a black robe with silver patterns and gold-rimmed glasses arrived in the Ivisa District.
Although the streets were empty in the early morning, save for the occasional stray cat darting past the roadside.
But the moment Syl stepped into the Ivisa District, she immediately felt the sensation of prying eyes from the windows of the houses on both sides.
However, when Syl turned her head toward the windows, that sensation vanished, as if they had confirmed she wasn't the target.
"Are they still keeping watch... how diligent..." Syl shook her head, feeling sorry for them for a second in her heart.
If it were any other murderer or criminal, they would have definitely been caught by now under such a carpet search.
But now, after perhaps another day of monitoring, the Investigators of the Church of Generosity and Wisdom would have to start changing their investigation strategy.
After all, they probably couldn't even imagine in their dreams that the Devotee and the Joker they were searching for were actually the same person, and that this person had other different forms; catching her would be as difficult as reaching the heavens.
Syl began walking toward the West District.
Unlike yesterday, the security forces in the South District were starting to increase, whereas the closer she got to the West District, the fewer Investigators there were.
This was likely because the West District had already been thoroughly searched, and the new murder case occurred in the South District, causing the Investigators to shift the focus of their investigation.
This was also good news for Syl; at least she didn't have to worry about any Investigators barging in to cause trouble while she was dealing with Frank.
She passed by Qikaodi Street in Iviza West District, a street that was all too familiar to Syl.
No. 12 was the workshop where Edward's younger sister worked, while No. 53 in the Dark Alley was where the blood sacrifice had taken place.
However, Syl's destination today wasn't Qikaodi Street, but Hanberning Street, which was just one street away; this street was considered slightly cleaner than the other streets in the West District. It could be seen as a relatively "high-end" residential area in the Ivisa District.
But it wasn't that high-end; many workers still passed through this place every day on their way to work, making it not much different from other parts of Iviza West District.
Syl wasn't in a hurry to go over; instead, she turned into a small alleyway, which provided good cover from any potential prying eyes from the windows.
Walking deeper into the alleyway, if she turned right ahead, went straight, then turned left and went straight again, she would arrive directly at Hanberning Street.
Syl walked at a leisurely pace, and when she reached the right turn where the view from both ends of the alley was completely blocked, Syl raised her right hand:
"Joker—"
Along with a faint murmur from Syl's mouth, the space around her flickered for a moment. In the next second, the Saintess vanished, and the Joker appeared in her place.
Without any pause, Syl, now transformed into the Joker, used the window frames on both sides and the protrusions of the houses to quickly climb toward the roof.
In almost just two or three breaths, Syl had nimbly climbed onto the rooftop.
Unlike the pointed or sloped roofs of the detached villa churches in other areas, the four-story terraced houses in the Ivisa District all had flat roofs similar to the Georgian architectural style.
Although the aesthetics were a generation behind, it made it convenient for the Joker to move around on top.
Having climbed onto the roof, although the heights of the houses were somewhat uneven and there were some blind spots, she could generally see everything at a glance.
Most importantly, as soon as she climbed to the rooftop, Syl saw a Female Investigator sitting on the roof with her back to Syl.
She seemed to have been assigned to patrol the roofs, but a night of surveillance seemed to have exhausted her spirit; she sat leaning against a chimney, her head nodding as if she might fall asleep at any moment.
Syl lowered her body and observed the surroundings. After finding no other Investigators, she began to stay low and, without making a sound, slowly approached the Investigator.
Just as she was about to reach the Investigator's back, Syl pulled out the Fear Spikes, but her figure paused, and the smile on her face was forcibly interrupted.
In an instant, the Joker silently transformed into the Physician. The Physician slowly reached into her tool bag, took out a sharp scalpel, and lightly sliced her own index finger.
Then, the Physician no longer concealed her movements; she quickly reached out and smeared the blood on her hand under the Female Investigator's nose.
Instantly, before the drowsy Investigator could react, the Physician's blood rapidly evaporated into gas and entered the Investigator's nasal cavity.
That Investigator had only just had the thought of standing up when she quickly fell into a hallucination; her body slumped down, leaning against the chimney, and she fell asleep with a foolish smile on her face.
While asleep, she was still murmuring something, occasionally letting out a soft moan that made Syl blush slightly.
It seemed she was dreaming of something good.
"Sorry about that..." Syl made a performative sign of the cross on her chest, then transformed back into the Joker, stood up, and quickly ran and leapt toward her target.
Her movements were more precise and graceful than any parkour Syl had ever seen on TV; most importantly, the strength difference between the two was nearly double, and their core strength was simply incomparable.
Soon, Syl flipped onto a building. This was the house located at No. 23 Hanberning Street, Frank's temporary residence—the entire building was his private property.
Glancing across the rooftop, Syl soon discovered the rooftop door that opened from the bottom up.
However, this copper-plated wooden door was locked from the inside, but that wouldn't stop Syl.
She directly reached out her right hand and used the sharp blade in her right hand to insert into the gap of the door, smoothly sliding it with force toward the lock.
It was slightly harder than a hot knife through butter, but the knife still successfully sliced through the wooden latch; years of erosion from wind and rain had already caused the wood of this door lock to mostly rot away.
Syl reached out and pulled the door open, and a wooden staircase leading to the attic appeared before her.
Syl gave an enigmatic smile, and after glancing left and right, she slowly walked down the wooden staircase.
As her figure went down the wooden stairs until she disappeared, a hand wearing a white glove reached out, grabbed the handle of the wooden door, and gently closed it without making a sound.
The servants were all resting on the first floor, and a loud snoring sound could be heard clearly by Syl even from the attic.
"Well then, I don't even have to go looking for him myself." Syl smiled and shook her head, the Fear Spikes dancing in her hand like a blood-colored silver light sprite.
Gently twisting open the attic door, Syl slowly walked down the stairs toward the direction of the snoring.
Just as Syl was about to descend to the third floor from the stairs, she came face-to-face with the gaze of a girl dressed in a maid's uniform.
"You... You are!" The maid wanted to scream loudly, but instinct made her cover her mouth with her hands.
Syl's heart skipped a beat, and while she was still thinking of a way to get through without hurting the maid, the Joker took it upon herself to control the body and move.
She narrowed her eyes, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly, and raised her hand to press the blade of the Fear Spikes against her lips, looking at the maid:
"Shh—"
The maid seemed to understand something; she covered her mouth excitedly, her eyes seemingly shimmering with tears, and she quickly reached out to point toward a room on the third floor.
The Joker walked down the stairs, and as she passed the maid, she spun the blade, lowered her head, used the back of the blade to tilt up the maid's chin, and said softly in a slightly raspy voice: "It's over."