Red Rose Manor, outside a luxurious room filled with antiques.
Klein stood at the door and asked the sixth maid he met today.
The young maid was wearing a black and white servant dress with the characteristics of this era. She had a pretty appearance and was in the prime of her youth. Her brown hair was naturally curly, and she looked a little playful.
"Who does Mr. Talim come into contact with when he visits?" Klein repeated the previous question with a numb expression.
The maid didn't even pause before replying.
"Mr. Talim usually requests an audience with His Royal Highness, either to accompany him on horseback or to discuss matters. If His Royal Highness happens to be absent, he will meet with that lady. They are very good friends and have obtained the butler's permission."
Talim and the commoner woman that Prince Edessak likes are good friends? They would meet in private from time to time? 'He should be trying to persuade him to leave so that it won't affect the prince's reputation …' Klein nodded while he was deep in thought.
"They, I mean, what will Mr. Talim and that lady talk about?"
When he raised this question, Klein suddenly recalled Talim's previous behavior of falling into the river of love. With his rich "experience" from the information age, he had inexplicably imagined an extremely melodramatic romance story.
The maid was not afraid of the detective. She smiled and shook her head.
"At times like this, we will all be asked to leave the room."
This … Klein found it increasingly difficult to restrain his imagination. He even felt that Prince Edessak's top hat and helmet needed a different coating.
Without waiting for him to ask again, the maid chuckled and said,
"Detective Moriarty, if you want to know what that lady and Mr. Talim were talking about, you can ask her directly."
"The old butler doesn't allow it." Klein confidently pushed out the shield that blocked the arrows.
He turned around and smiled.
"You seem to know more than the servants before you. You even know how to call me Detective Moriarty."
The maid looked around and maintained her smile.
"Because I'm taking turns serving that lady, and she's always wanted to meet you, Detective Moriarty. After all, she's good friends with Mr. Talim and is very concerned about his death.
"It's a pity that she always misses you."
"Always?" Klein was very sensitive to words like "always", "coincidentally", and "missed".
The maid nodded seriously.
"The first time His Highness invited you to be his guest, she deliberately threw a tantrum. She wanted to take the opportunity to meet you while you were walking downstairs. Who knew that you would leave in a hurry.
"After that, she took the initiative to offer flowers at Mr. Talim's grave in place of His Highness, but because she didn't know what you looked like, she couldn't find you.
"And today, she coincidentally went to the golf course at the back to relax. Otherwise, even if the butler didn't allow it, she would have found a way to see you."
What a coincidence … Klein had just sighed when he suddenly grasped a key point.
On the day of Talim's funeral, the person who offered flowers in place of the prince was the commoner woman he loved!
And what concerned Klein the most that day was the lady with the black veil and sapphire ring. She might very well have a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact, or she might be a powerful existence at the same level!
Suddenly, the scene at that time flashed in Klein's mind.
The woman with the sapphire ring on her finger was wearing a heavy black dress. Accompanied by two maids, she gradually disappeared into the distance …
One of the two maids had naturally curly brown hair …
The image of the maid quickly overlapped with the maid in front of Klein, and it was a perfect match!
Klein's body tensed up as sweat seeped out of his back, but his expression didn't change in the slightest.
Using his Clown powers, he pretended to recall and asked with a smile,
"Were you with that lady on the day of Talim's funeral?"
The maid replied without a care.
"Yes."
… F * ck, it's really her! Klein maintained his smile.
"Very good. Next question."
As if nothing had happened, he asked about other matters step by step before switching to another servant to continue.
However, Klein had secretly shortened the process and sped up the progress.
He wanted to leave Red Rose Manor before the lady returned on horseback!
At four o 'clock in the afternoon, before the sky turned dark, Klein bade farewell much earlier than he had expected and returned to the city in the carriage sent by the old butler.
Sitting in the carriage window with his back against the wall wrapped in silk and cotton, he finally heaved a sigh of relief and had the energy to reflect on the entire matter.
The person who cursed Talim was Prince Edessak's beloved commoner woman …
Why would she want to deal with a descendant of a fallen noble to take revenge on Talim for trying to separate her and the prince?
However, there's no need for her to do it herself. She could find an opportunity to reveal this matter in bed. Prince Edessak has plenty of ways to make Talim disappear without a trace …
Before Talim died, he was completely in a state of love. Hmm … The earliest sign was after he successfully persuaded the commoner woman to leave Prince Edessak … They had an affair? So, in order to eliminate the latent danger, the commoner woman who was brought back to the manor cursed Talim to death?
Logically, it makes sense, but the problem is, how can a big shot with a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact or a powerhouse of the same level be restrained by Prince Edessak? Even if Augustus is from an angel family and has enough accumulation, he would still have to use immense power and use special methods to restrain him. This isn't something a prince can do …
Furthermore, how could such a figure like Talim?
Why does she keep wanting to see me? Did she notice that I'm using the gray fog to spy on her?
No, if that's the case, I would've been buried with Talim on the day of his funeral … In addition, when she first wanted to see me, I hadn't obtained any flesh, hair, or belongings. I hadn't done any divination!
Klein thought in puzzlement. In the end, he decided to bury the question at the bottom of his heart and not probe or investigate it!
I hope that the Machinery Hivemind, with my previous reminder, will discover the extraordinary importance the royal family places on this matter. That's right, their importance might not be for Prince Edessak's reputation, but for another reason! I hope that the royal family will continue to restrain that lady and prevent her from visiting me … In a few days, when the time is right, I'll hand in this mission and express my helplessness. Then, I'll use the excuse of going south for a vacation to change my identity and hide for a period of time! Klein's mood gradually calmed down.
...
Dusk in Baekeland was always replaced by dark clouds and drizzling rain. Physically and mentally exhausted, Klein pressed down on his half top hat and lowered his body slightly. He quickly crossed the wet streets and returned to 15 Minsk Street under the illumination of the gas lamps.
After a short rest, he took four steps counterclockwise and entered the world above the gray fog in the dark environment.
After advancing to Sequence 6 Faceless, he had always wanted to check if there were any changes in the mysterious space, but due to his exhaustion last night, he hadn't woken up in the middle of the night. Furthermore, he had been "busy" outside during the day, so he could only wait until now.
In addition, Klein had to eliminate any interference and divine something.
That was, after this advancement, when his spirituality wasn't stable, he didn't hear the illusory ravings of "Hornacis … Flegrea … Hornacis … Flegrea!"
He wanted to figure out if this was a natural change after advancing to Sequence 6, or if there was another reason.
In the majestic palace, the long, mottled bronze table and the twenty-two high-back chairs with different symbols on their backs stood quietly, as if they hadn't changed since time immemorial.
The same was true for the gray fog beneath them and the endless emptiness around them.
But the moment Klein entered, his spiritual intuition keenly sensed that the mysterious space was somewhat different from before.
He wasn't in a hurry to explore or make any attempts. After calming his emotions, he sat at the top, conjured a pen and paper, and wrote a divination statement:
"The reason why I haven't heard the ravings after my advancement."
Holding a piece of paper in his hand, Klein recited the sentence in a low voice and leaned against the back of the chair. With the help of Meditation, he quickly entered a dream.
In the dusky sky and earth, images flickered one after another before finally settling on one scene.
It was Klein when his face and body were still covered in light-colored granulation. He was surrounded by an illusory, thin, and undetectable grayish-white mist.
The dream shattered. Klein opened his eyes and roughly understood what had happened.
"The gray fog interweaves with reality, helping me block out the ravings that come from nowhere …
"Advanced to Sequence 6.
After that, my connection with the mysterious space above the gray fog became even closer, which brought about certain changes and allowed me to naturally borrow some of its power.
"That should be the case for now.
"Yes, I'll try to explore the surroundings and see if there are any changes."
Klein slowly got up, followed his spiritual perception, and walked in a certain direction outside the ancient palace. Beneath his feet was the gray fog that spread out like seawater.
After walking for an unknown period of time, just as he was about to stop and give up on exploring, there was a sudden flash of light at the end of the road.
Klein was delighted as he quickened his pace and approached.
Seven or eight seconds later, he saw a staircase, a staircase that led to heaven!
The staircase was condensed from pure light. It was sacred, transparent, and clear, capable of shocking everyone's heart.
The staircase extended upwards into the void. There were only four levels, and each level was rather high, as though it was prepared for creatures larger than giants.
Klein looked up in its direction and saw a layer of grayish-white fog. It was condensed in midair, as though it was holding something up. And there was still a certain distance between the staircase of light and it.
Four steps means that I've already finished drinking the Sequence 9, 8, 7, and 6 potions? What's above that layer of fog? Klein cautiously walked forward and arrived in front of the staircase of light before stepping onto it.
There was nothing strange about the staircase. It was as solid as stone.
Klein followed the staircase and climbed up to the fourth level. Then, he tried to look above the grayish-white fog, but unfortunately, his vision couldn't penetrate it at all.
He thought for a moment, took two steps forward, and tried his best to jump up.
However, the moment he left the staircase of light, he lost his momentum and his Spirit Body's flight instincts. He plummeted straight down and stepped on the gray fog at the bottom.
From the looks of it, I still need to raise my Sequence by two to three more. If Sequence 4 is indeed a qualitative change, then I should be able to do it after I become a demigod … Klein looked up and made a judgment.
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