At noon, after finishing a simple lunch, Audrey brought along her golden retriever Susie, her personal maid Annie, and her bodyguard, boarded her family carriage as usual, and left the "Loen Charitable Education Fund" at No. 22 Pesfield Street in the North Borough, heading toward Philip’s Department Store in the West Borough.

The tinkling of bells rang out from time to time outside the window, carrying with it a peculiar kind of vitality, drawing Audrey to turn her head and look out at the street, taking in the flow of people and carriages passing by.

It made her feel calm and peaceful inside, with a growing sense of liveliness added on top of that, as though the entire world was brimming with energy.

Just then, from the corner of her eye, Audrey noticed that an additional figure had appeared inside the carriage.

The figure was dressed in a black three-piece suit with a dark red cravat, a top hat held in one hand. His hair had gone completely white yet remained thick and full, and within his pale blue eyes, there seemed to reside an endless depth of wisdom.

This was Hvin Rambis, a member of the Psychological Alchemists’ council of assessors, and at the same time, a Marionette under Alvin’s control.

Of course, as for that last point, Audrey had no idea whatsoever.

In an instant, Audrey’s mind turned hazy, as though every last trace of alertness and wariness had been stripped away from her, while Susie, Annie, and the others inside the carriage all went glassy-eyed at once, as if they had fallen into a half-dazed state where they had lost all focus on the world around them.

Hvin Rambis’s gentle voice then followed:

"Two things.

"First, through the various social gatherings we have attended previously, I trust that you should already be well acquainted with Viscount Bryan.

"I need you to use every means at your disposal to draw out intelligence regarding German Sparrow from that viscount."

That gentle voice seemed to resonate with the deepest recesses of Audrey’s thoughts, and with only the faintest flicker of resistance, she felt as though these words had arisen from within herself — that they were her truest and most genuine feelings.

Hvin Rambis gazed into her eyes, as green and vivid as gemstones, and continued speaking at an unhurried pace:

"Second, at the upcoming banquets and balls, be less resistant toward the advances of several of the princes, and in front of Earl Hall and his wife, offer a few words of praise for them.

"Remember what has been said. This is the projection of your subconscious. And then, forget that I was ever here, forget that I ever spoke these words to you, forget that this behavior stands in contrast to your usual conduct, do not attempt to seek shelter, and drift away from the key positions during the Church of the Evernight’s grand mass..."

When he had finished, "Hvin" withdrew his gaze from Audrey’s eyes, and then turned to give suggestions to the maid Annie, the assistant Islanté, and the others, so that they would feel no surprise at their young mistress’s subsequent unusual behavior.

When his gaze landed on the golden retriever "Susie," he smiled in an odd way and gave her a suggestion as well.

Having settled all of this, his figure simply vanished from inside the carriage without making the slightest stir.

Ding-a-ling-ling!

Another bicycle rode past outside the carriage window, and Audrey’s slightly unfocused eyes snapped back to clarity all at once.

She glanced at the flow of people and carriages on the street outside, then suddenly let out a small "Oh."

Then, looking a little embarrassed, she turned back toward Annie and the others and said:

"I forgot something — I need to make a stop at Viscount Bryan’s place first."

Annie, Islanté, and the other servants felt not the slightest bit of surprise or inconvenience. They promptly instructed the coachman to turn onto another street, and even Susie raised no objection.

...

Watching the carriage change its course, the avatar of the "Saintess of Purple," Josenna, stepped out from the shadows and smiled at Hvin Rambis, who had just revealed himself as well:

"Mr. ’Pride,’ are you certain this will work? You should know that even Miss Xio, who is quite well-favored by Viscount Bryan, was unable to obtain any intelligence regarding ’German Sparrow’ from him."

Because of the earlier battle at the port over the "mummy," the upper echelons of Loen had almost unanimously concluded that "German Sparrow" was a Bizarro Sorcerer secretly cultivated by the Church of the Evernight.

"That’s not quite accurate — Xio did still manage to obtain some useful information... For instance, the ’Feathered Serpent’ who crossed blades with me at Pris Port is very likely the same ’Death Consul’ who had fought against Ince Zangwill and the others inside Ruin No. 1.

"Though that angel’s condition was clearly not at its peak, otherwise it would not have been held back by me."

"Hvin" first offered a word in defense of his "subordinate," then collected his thoughts before answering Josenna’s question: "As for whether Miss Audrey will get any results from her inquiry, I cannot make any guarantees...

"But I still have faith in the charm of this ’most radiant jewel of Backlund.’ With her sparing no effort to probe for information, I believe that viscount with his poor reputation will not be able to hold out...

"After all, unlike Xio, who has already fallen under his suspicion, Miss Audrey will be far more difficult for him to guard against."

Upon hearing this, Josenna covered her mouth and laughed: "And on top of that, you can use Miss Audrey to sow discord between Earl Hall and Viscount Bryan, further escalating the noble conflicts within the kingdom?"

"Clever!" "Hvin" offered the compliment, though in his heart he thought: So there’s that angle too? Wait — the way you phrased that, why does it sound as though you’re already certain ’I’ would take the opportunity to take advantage of Audrey?!

Am I really someone with so little sense of decency?

"However, that viscount is no simple figure... Even if he doesn’t see through it at first, he will figure out afterward that someone set him up... Aren’t you afraid of making yourself a fearsome enemy?" Josenna asked with a smile dancing in her eyes.

"From the moment I ’hypnotized’ Xio Derecha, he and I were already enemies, were we not?" Hvin smiled and countered, then added with deliberate implication, "A large number of people have been flooding into Beldun recently. Something ’interesting’ is bound to happen before long — I’m afraid Viscount Bryan will have no time to come after me afterward, will he?"

Josenna raised an eyebrow and nodded. "That’s fair."

However, she seemed unwilling to dwell on that topic in detail, and after a brief pause she shifted instead to ask: "Won’t you follow along to confirm the results that young lady manages to obtain?"

"The area near Viscount Bryan’s residence is far too dangerous — it would be easy to be spotted. Better to wait for her to return and confirm things then." At that, "Hvin" glanced at the "Demoness" beside him and asked with an unreadable look, "And you? Will you stay and wait with me?"

Josenna curved the corners of her lips into a light smile. "Of course!"

Hvin cast her a sidelong glance. In his heart, he understood full well that the series of "hypnosis tasks" George III had assigned were actually somewhat over the line, and very likely to draw out both the forces behind Ebner and those of the Church of the Evernight.

And because the military’s Major General Chunas Kolg had been captured by the Church of the Evernight and had subsequently exposed both Hvin and Josenna, the two of them had in truth already become discarded pawns.

It was just that Josenna was nothing more than an avatar — her true body had never been exposed — and so in George III’s eyes she still retained her value.

She is in fact George III’s ’informant’ — though this ’informant’ is not here to keep watch over ’Pride,’ but rather to determine just how great a force the Church is capable of deploying, and where exactly its ’bottom line’ lies.

But now, all of you have already stepped into my ’script.’ "Hvin" smiled to himself, and together with the Demoness, disappeared into the alleyway.

...

Meanwhile, the carriage carrying Audrey had just turned onto Kingster Street when a small, entirely blue short-haired rabbit seemed to sense something and suddenly burrowed its way out of her handbag.

And the moment she laid eyes on it, Audrey’s expression instantly turned grave.

Because seeing the little rabbit’s unusual reaction as it drew close to the Ebner household had made her aware that something was not right!

Wasn’t Ebner Bryan "The Tower"? And German Sparrow is "The World"...

And as "Justice," why would I be going to "The Tower" to find out about "The World’s" affairs? This doesn’t follow any logical reasoning whatsoever!

She thought for a moment, then quickly gestured for Islanté to use the "Box of Depravity" to block the senses of Annie and the others. She then turned to Susie and asked whether she had noticed anything unusual about her behavior.

Susie shook her head blankly, indicating she had not noticed anything at all.

Even Susie was hypnotized? The weight in Audrey’s heart grew heavier still. So after ordering Islanté to temporarily block both her own and Susie’s senses for one minute, she began to hypnotize herself in a very soft voice:

"You are not seeking help, you are simply performing your daily prayers...

"You are not seeking help, you are simply performing your daily prayers..."

After repeating this many times over, the slowly spinning vortex of pale green in Audrey’s eyes — a depth capable of drawing in one’s very soul — gradually dissipated, and her eyes returned to normal.

She then raised both hands, clasped them together before her lips and nose, and recited in a low voice in the ancient Hermes language:

"The Fool that does not belong to this era... I may have already encountered Hvin Rambis..."

...

Inside a café near the Harvest Church, Klein had very easily gotten Emlyn to let slip that the one who had been "thinking things through" on his behalf was none other than his own sister, Melissa.

While sighing over it, he also felt a quiet sense of relief.

Just as he was about to come up with some excuse to turn down Emlyn’s request for help catching a thief, the voice of Miss "Justice" reached his ears, calling out for his assistance.

And so, under Emlyn’s gaze — a blend of astonishment and pity — Klein stepped into the washroom once again.

He conceals it remarkably well. Even a top-tier ’Apothecary’ such as myself couldn’t detect a single thing wrong with his body...

Perhaps I could use an offer to treat his illness as a bargaining chip, and get him to help me catch the thief?

Hmm, he might be a man who cares a great deal about face. When it comes to negotiating, I should try to be as tactful as possible.

Emlyn took a sip of his coffee and thought to himself.

(End of Chapter)