On another road beside the Pitt Hotel, the carriage carrying Leonard and Cindy was also forced to stop.
The moment the two of them got out of the carriage, Cindy, with her wine-red long hair, moved closer and hooked her arm around Leonard's.
Leonard's emerald-green eyes swept over the surroundings. Although he felt somewhat uncomfortable, he ultimately did not make any move to pull his arm away.
As he walked forward, he lowered his voice and said to Cindy beside him, "You've memorized the identity information that MI9 'arranged' for us, right?
"If we run into questioning later, don't let anything slip."
Because there were many people around and the noise was loud, and because the two of them were standing very close together, even if someone noticed them, they would only think they were a couple whispering to each other and wouldn't pay special attention.
Of course, the reason Leonard dared to speak about such a topic openly on the street was also because he had the "old man" helping him keep watch.
Cindy discreetly glanced around a few times. Seeing that no one was looking over, she finally let out a sigh of relief and replied vaguely, "I'm familiar with everything already, don't worry…"
As she spoke, she pinched the arm she was holding, signaling him to be more careful with what he said.
Leonard smiled and was just about to reassure her, when something suddenly entered the corner of his eye, and he immediately stopped in his tracks.
Cindy was almost thrown into a stumble by his abrupt stop and asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
However, she did not receive a response. Leonard stood there motionless like a stone statue, staring fixedly at a spot across the road.
Cindy was instantly surprised. Following Leonard's gaze, she saw that a traffic accident had occurred on the other side of the road.
A carriage that looked even cheaper than the one they had rented had "rear-ended" a luxurious carriage bearing a noble crest, then tipped over itself.
At that moment, a man wearing a white formal suit and a matching white top hat crawled out of the overturned carriage in a somewhat disheveled state, meeting the gaze of a noblewoman who had stepped down from the luxurious carriage.
The two sides exchanged a few brief words. Apparently moved by the man's temperament and manner of speech, the noblewoman did not pursue his fault for the "rear-end collision" and instead invited him into her carriage to tidy up his attire.
After a brief hesitation, the man nodded in agreement and disappeared together with the noblewoman from the sight of the onlookers.
"Judging by the crest, that should be the carriage of the 'Countess of Raus'… Tsk tsk, did that man just turn disaster into fortune?
"Sure enough, regardless of gender or country, nobles are all the same!" After watching the whole thing, Cindy predictably made a sarcastic remark. Being of commoner origin, she never found nobles pleasing to the eye.
At this moment, Leonard also withdrew his gaze, his clenched fist gradually loosening.
He took a deep breath, turned his head slightly, and asked in an almost inaudible voice, "Old man… that person just now was Ince Zangwill, right?"
"Yes… it was him." An aged voice sounded beside Leonard's ear. "It seems that your 'enemy' also intends to sneak into the 'Twilight Day Celebration.' You need to be careful. Don't let your head heat up and rush over recklessly.
"If I hadn't 'stolen' your 'anger' just now, I'm afraid I'd already have to switch to a different host."
"I know… I'm still not his match right now… I won't act impulsively again!"
At most, I'll secretly sabotage whatever he's trying to do… Leonard did not say this last sentence out loud.
But whether he said it or not did not matter much to Pallez. The old man sighed quietly, then sensed the familiar aura not far away and thought to himself: Forget it, with Rhine around, this foolish kid won't get into serious trouble.
...
On an open space not far from the site of the carriage accident, Ebner looked at the man who had boarded "Greed" Ksenia's carriage and couldn't help but complain, "He even used this kind of 'ancient' car-crash routine?
"So many coincidences and forced 'reasonableness'… A third-rate writer is a third-rate writer!"
"Laziness," Closfia, on the other hand, said thoughtfully, "That person… was Ince Zangwill, wasn't he? No wonder 'Gluttony' said he had an opportunity related to a 'Discerner'… Heh, not just a 'Discerner'—even a 'Author' is possible!"
Having once traveled alongside Dunn for half a year, Closfia was naturally not unfamiliar with his enemy. However, thinking of the abilities of that "0"-grade Sealed Artifact, she quickly switched to a "virtual persona" that did not know the specific details of "0-08," letting it overwrite her current self.
Ebner instantly noticed that the "young lady" beside him had become "cool and aloof," no longer displaying her previous cheerful teasing and passionate enthusiasm.
Moreover, for some reason, he also sensed a hint of Dunn's "Iron Man" version from her.
Noticing Ebner's gradually strange expression, Closfia simply explained, "It is indeed an 'Iron Man' personality template, just adjusted by me, so it's not completely the same."
Ebner nodded and no longer paid attention to such trivial matters. He began to recall what he had just "cognized" from the "River of Fate" of Ince Zangwill and Leonard, the corners of his mouth involuntarily lifting slightly.
As his understanding of this "setup" became more and more comprehensive, he also gradually perceived what the core of this "game" truly was.
I still need to observe more… especially that 'Two-Five Dragon.' It looks like He has already taken a side in this game, but I faintly feel that it's not that simple…
And both sides have offered me stakes. In the end, does it come down to how 'I' choose?
No, what They value is not the 'me' who only has angel-level strength right now, but the goddess and Lilith behind 'me'…
At this thought, Ebner narrowed his eyes slightly, then said to the "Laziness" lady beside him, "It's getting late. We should enter the Pitt Hotel as well."
"Alright." Closfia, carrying the "virtual persona," replied coolly.
...
In the streets near the Pitt Grand Hotel, Cullen transformed into "moonlight," continuously moving through one building after another, searching for the location of "Gluttony's" true body.
Because the Sealed Artifact in the other party's possession, which came from an outer pathway, had diverse abilities and could allow "Gluttony" to combine it with his own "virtual persona" to create avatars nearly identical to his true body, this was what had caused Mr. Azik's previous ambushes to fail repeatedly.
Cullen actually could not distinguish which one was "Gluttony's" true body and which were his avatars… but one thing was certain: that Sealed Artifact had to be carried personally by his true body!
And in Cullen's hands, there happened to be a wondrous item capable of locating that Sealed Artifact.
It was a personal belonging of the "Blood Moon Queen." After Her fall, its whereabouts had become unknown and it was suspected to have been placed within the "Ghost Empire"…
Yet more than a hundred years ago, the aged Emperor Roselle somehow obtained it and gifted it to Kallen's mother, Lady Helen.
That item was called the "Ornia Ring."
(end of the chapter)