Through the "Information Extraction" ability he gained by advancing from "Breath Extraction," Ebner easily sketched Xio's figure outside the door in his mind.
A white shirt, with lace spreading down from the collar, overlaid by a blue vest. Her outfit was paired with dark trousers…
At her waist was a wide belt, with a pouch and a dagger fastened to it.
That's clearly attire meant for combat… If it weren't Xio—if it were anyone else, dressed like that, at this time and place—I'd definitely assume they were here to assassinate me…
After mocking inwardly, Ebner opened the door with slight disappointment and welcomed Xio inside.
Xio stepped in, looked around, and seeing that the freshly bathed Ebner wasn't in sleepwear but instead wore a long robe, she smiled and said, "As I guessed… You plan to use the cover of night to complete Mr. World's mission."
Ebner hadn't hidden Klein's request—going to a professor's house at Stonne University to retrieve Roselle's true manuscript. He'd mentioned it to Xio even before the banquet.
"You're dressed like this… You want to come with me?" Ebner didn't need any prophecy to understand her intentions.
"That's right. I happen to have a mission in East Chester County…" Xio nodded slightly, then looked at Ebner with a tone that carried a hint of something else. "And I want to take the chance to visit my mother and brother… If I took a train, there wouldn't be enough time."
"That's no problem." Ebner smiled and nodded, but as he did, he instinctively checked Xio's "fate tributaries." His expression shifted slightly when he noticed something amiss.
He was close enough to Xio, and knew her well enough, that her most likely "fate trajectory" within the next day or two should have been clear…
Yet the results he saw were unusually blurred—especially when it involved her mission target—and there was significant danger.
In several less probable tributaries, the danger even escalated to the point of threatening her life.
Turning the thought over rapidly, Ebner hid his concern to avoid interfering with the "River of Fate," and casually asked:
"What mission did you take?"
Because Ebner asked as if it were just a passing question, Xio didn't mind. After gathering her words, she answered:
"Do you remember the theft case I mentioned before—the Gustav Dynasty 'State Seal' stolen during the exhibition in Intis?
"Although that seal was recovered, the thief has never been caught…
"The case had almost come to a dead end for lack of clues… until yesterday, when a lead appeared. A witness saw that thief board a train headed for East Chester County."
Ah, the case she suddenly picked up the night I met Princess Vera… That thief must be formidable. Even the Church of Storms' 'Mysticism Magister' Stewart failed to 'trace back' his details. He's at least a top-tier Mid-Sequence Beyonder, or holds an artifact of that level.
With this thought, Ebner asked casually, "Do you have a photo or sketch? Maybe I can help you track him down."
But Xio shook her head. "No photo, no sketch… That witness only thought the back of someone boarding the train looked like the suspect he'd seen at a rented flat…
"So at most, I'll use my 'ability' to screen suspicious people at the station. But most likely, it'll lead nowhere… After all, who knows if that man was really the thief? Even if he was, who can be sure he wouldn't get off halfway?
"Honestly, wanting to hitch a ride with you to East Chester is more about seeing my family."
If that's the case, even with Xio's 'Disciplinary Paladin' abilities and keen perception, she won't be able to identify the thief…
Then where does her danger come from?
Ebner frowned inwardly and quickly decided: tomorrow he would secretly shadow Xio the whole time, to protect her.
—Though from what he'd seen of her "fate," the chance of her dying was still very small…
At this moment, Xio glanced at the clock and asked, "When are we setting off?"
Ebner came back to himself and replied with a smile, "It's only ten o'clock. Professor Michel at Stonne University probably hasn't gone to bed yet, so it wouldn't be good to visit now… Let's wait until after midnight to act."
He paused, then added meaningfully, "We can rest for a while first—there's still plenty of time…"
…
Tingen. Inside the first-class compartment of a steam train that sat at the platform, scheduled to depart for East Chester in the morning.
Ince Zangwill awoke from a deep sleep. His first instinct was to check his condition.
He did this every time he woke, because he never knew what stories the Sealed Artifact "0-08" might weave while he slept—or what accidents it might bring.
After confirming he wasn't injured, Ince put on his polished leather boots and stood.
As expected, he saw "0-08" resting quietly on the small table in the compartment, looking like nothing more than an ordinary quill.
Yet before he fell asleep, he had locked it inside a metal box layered with symbolic seals and magical markings!
And he didn't even remember boarding a train—he remembered boarding a passenger ship!
Ince walked over solemnly, grasped "0-08" in one hand, and flipped open the notebook beside it with the other. Nearly a full page of new writing awaited him:
"Ince Zangwill still did not recall what he had done before, but he keenly sensed something was wrong.
"He looked into the mirror and found his reflection strangely unfamiliar, as though another Ince Zangwill had been born inside him, growing stronger day by day.
"This feeling had started a month ago, when he suddenly found himself hunted by MI9 and the Church of Storms…
"He had heard it was because he stole the Gustav Dynasty's seal… but he did not know what he had used the seal for.
"Just yesterday, a powerful stranger locked onto Ince and traced him to the passenger ship…
"But cautious Ince had suddenly turned back, causing the stranger to strike at nothing."
Reading this, Ince drew a deep breath. He took out a mirror from his coat and peered into it.
Inside, he still had one blinded eye, and his classically sculpted face bore no wrinkles. But at the corner of his mouth lingered faint sorrow and resentment, sharply contrasting with the heaviness in his gaze.
"It's getting worse… This is a sign the Underworld within me is expanding…
"Looks like a powerful spirit really has taken residence in my body!"
At that thought, Ince felt his complexion darken slightly, his eye sockets shadowed. Coupled with a smile he had no idea when or how had appeared, his whole visage became sinister, vicious, and eerie.
He considered summoning a powerful spirit to probe his soul's depths, and if possible, establish communication…
If handled properly, he might even gain a contract with a mighty spirit!
—Though he had already switched from the "Death" pathway to the "Darkness" pathway and become a "Nightwatcher," Ince Zangwill had not lost his previous abilities. He was still a powerful medium, a master in the field of spirits.
But just as he prepared to act, his peripheral vision caught the last paragraph on the notebook:
"Ince Zangwill tried to use a mighty spirit to drive out the unknown soul within, but found in despair that it was useless… And the Wade Sauron inside him mocked his overconfidence!
"This worried Ince greatly—he had no idea what he had become entangled in."
"Sauron…?!" Ince narrowed his eye, his expression growing darker. After a long silence, he attempted the summoning—but just as the quill had written, he received no satisfactory response.
"Wade Sauron… Who is that? And what does he have to do with the 'seal' Roselle made?!"
So tired… enough for now.
(End of this chapter)