NOVPUBBack at the hideout, Alex immediately changed into his usual casual clothes.
“Ahh, this really is what suits me best.”
“At least button your damn shirt properly.”
Even with Ludger’s comment, Alex just slumped into the sofa, not bothering to listen.
Ludger was about to say something else, but stopped.
He knew exactly why Alex was acting like this—mentally, the guy was pretty worn out.
Just then, the door opened, and the rest of the members began to arrive one by one.
The leaders of the secret organization. The only one missing was Bellaruna, who was still absorbed in analyzing the werewolf drug Ludger had given her.
“Everyone’s here. Let’s begin the meeting.”
After confirming all members were present, Ludger glanced sideways at Alex.
“Alex.”
“I know.”
Alex shook his head and began to explain everything he had seen inside the Kunst Auction House and how the place operated.
He especially detailed the underground vault’s structure without missing a single thing, and with every word, the members’ faces filled with amazement.
“That’s all.”
“Hmm. So that’s how it’s set up.”
Hans stroked his chin and asked Alex.
“You said they record from six locations?”
“Yeah. Two artifacts in each of the vault rooms.”
“All three vaults have the same layout?”
“Yup. Same specs for all three. The arrangement of items inside varies, but I remember everything.”
Ludger spoke.
“Violetta, do you know any architecture or interior experts?”
“Yes. We can ask the Old Kids for that.”
“Good. Seridan, how’s the production of the items I ordered?”
“Almost done. Three days, and they’ll be ready.”
“As fast as possible, please.”
“I was planning on that anyway. But come on, there’s a ton of stuff on my plate right now—aren’t you overworking me?”
Seridan pouted her lips, grumbling.
She had been busy crafting portable communicators, recording devices disguised as artifacts, and other gear.
She was probably the busiest person in the organization.
But what could she do? Having to make so much in so little time was the fate of every engineer.
“You’re enjoying it, though, right?”
“...Yeah, well, I am!”
She couldn’t deny that.
No matter what anyone said, she was loving every minute of it.
Honestly, her hands were already itching to get back to work.
“The auction lasts for three days. It’s a big event this time, so they extended it. Each day, different items go up for bidding.”
“I checked the listing. The item you’re looking for, boss, it’s in Vault 3—the most secure one. They’ll put it up on the third day.”
On the first day, items from Vault 1.
On the second day, items from Vault 2.
“The stuff we need is coming on day three, the last day. That means we hit them on the second day.”
“Leader, any reason we’re going for the second day?”
“The first day will have the tightest security. They’ll be on edge, expecting trouble. If we stand out even a little, they’ll jump on us. But if we get past the first day, they’ll ease up a bit. That’s our best chance.”
“Makes sense.”
“Still, are we sure about this?”
The one who spoke was Violetta.
“You said a Security Bureau knight is there, right? The Nightcrawler Knights aren’t exactly a joke.”
“It’s just one low-ranking knight.”
Alex answered, but Violetta scoffed.
“And you’re sure it’s only one? What if more show up? And from what you said, you seem to know that knight personally. Isn’t that a problem for the plan?”
“......”
Hans and Seridan both nodded, agreeing with her.
Alex’s role was to impersonate someone else. If someone who knew his past was around, things could go south fast.
“I’m surprised, honestly. You knowing a Bureau knight? What was your relationship?”
“What do you mean, relationship? There wasn’t one.”
“You were lovers.”
It was Ludger who answered instead.
Alex glared at him.
“...Leader.”
“It’s a lie that’ll come out soon enough. Phantos saw it too. What’s the point in denying it?”
“Ugh.”
There was no arguing with that, and Alex could only groan in defeat.
He finally raised both hands and shook his head.
“We dated a bit. Yeah, we were lovers, but it didn’t last. We broke up fast. That’s all.”
His voice, usually playful and light, was calm and heavy now.
“Did you cheat on her or something?”
“...Yeah, something like that.”
Alex gave a bitter smile, not denying it.
Because it wasn’t wrong.
“Still, I can handle my role. Don’t worry.”
“...Well, the intel you brought today is solid enough. I won’t question it. Seems the boss agrees.”
Violetta didn’t push him further.
With Ludger, the leader of the organization, staying silent, she, a mere subordinate, couldn’t argue more.
At that moment, Arfa, who had been quietly listening, raised his hand.
“So we’re going ahead with the plan?”
“Of course. There’s a Bureau knight, but it’s only one. We’ve accounted for that.”
“Then there’s no problem, right?”
“Right. As long as no more annoying people show up, we’re good.”
Ludger looked out the window.
Dark clouds gathered in the sky, casting a shadow over the city even though it was daytime.
Thunder rumbled like the sky had a stomachache—rain was coming, and it’d be heavy.
Clouds from the north, maybe.
Ominous.
“As long as no more annoying people show up.”
* * *
Rederbelk Train Station.
As the clouds thickened, the citizens moved quickly, knowing a downpour was imminent.
The usually bustling station entrance was eerily quiet, like a war had just broken out.
Then, in stark contrast to the desolation, lively footsteps echoed through the air.
“Finally here!”
Her sky-blue side-tail bounced like water droplets with each step.
Wearing a short, refined beige trench coat, the woman turned with a bold smile.
“Hey, assistant! It’s gonna pour soon. You keep dragging your feet, and you’ll end up like a drowned rat!”
“Wa-wait! Casey! Stop running off on your own! I’m carrying so much stuff here!”
Chasing after her was a much smaller girl, visibly younger.
Blonde, short-cropped hair, somewhere between teen and adult, doll-like in her perfection.
She was hauling luggage three times her size, strapped to her back and under both arms.
“You dump all this crap on me and expect me to keep up?!”
“Well, you’re strong. It makes sense for the stronger one to carry the heavy stuff. Efficient labor division.”
“That’s nonsense! And why do you even pack so much for a trip?! Half this stuff is useless!”
“Useless? These are tools to fuel my endless inspiration, thank you very much.”
At that moment, one of the bags slipped, and its contents spilled onto the ground.
Countless sheets of paper.
“Ugh! Seriously?! What even is all this? You’ve hoarded newspapers and case files from every incident on the continent over the past five years?! This is like 30 books’ worth! You expect me to lug this around?!”
“I need all of it, every last piece. So, Betty, are you moving or what?”
Betty’s face twisted in frustration.
“Why.”
“Why? Because it’s about to rain.”
Rain? That’s bad.
Betty hated rain. It was tied to her origins—she couldn’t help it.
“When?”
“Hmm. Sky’s dark, breeze picking up, humidity like this... about 5...”
“5 minutes? We’ve got time then!”
“4, 3, 2, 1.”
As Casey’s countdown ended—
Plop.
A raindrop landed on the top of Betty’s head.
“Huh...?”
Betty’s face turned pale.
She looked up. Through the gaps in the monstrous black clouds, raindrops began to fall.
“Eeeek! Casey! It’s raining! It’s raining!”
“I know.”
“No, not ‘I know’! We have to get out of the rain! Ahh! The papers are gonna get soaked!”
Watching Betty panic, Casey casually opened a black umbrella.
“What? When did you bring that? Where’s mine?”
“Only have one.”
“What?! Wait! I can’t get wet! You know how delicate I am!”
As Betty panicked, Casey just grinned, flashing a sharp smile.
“Just kidding.”
At that moment, Casey’s mana flared.
The rain seemed to slide off some invisible barrier.
Even the scattered papers on the ground stayed dry.
The rain, which had started with a few drops, now poured so heavily you couldn’t see a step ahead—but Betty and Casey stood untouched.
Betty glared at her.
“Seriously. You could’ve done that from the start!”
Despite her frustration, Casey just laughed.
If any bystander, especially someone with knowledge of magic, had seen this, they would’ve been shocked.
Casey wasn’t conjuring water with magic—she was manipulating the rain itself.
That was something only a mage who had reached the absolute pinnacle of a single elemental attribute could do.
Not just conjuring water from thin air—but the ability to interfere with water already present in nature. A master.
Her name was Casey Selmore.
One of the few mages in existence who could claim the prestigious title <Azure of Water>, a title reserved only for those at the very top.
Despite being a mage, she was a wandering eccentric adventurer who refused to settle down or open a workshop. She was also the granddaughter of the once-famous detective, Serokion Selmore.
And most notably—
She was the genius private detective who had defeated the infamous "Professor James Moriarty" in the Delica Kingdom.
Now, she had arrived in Rederbelk.
“Casey, why exactly did we come to Rederbelk?”
Betty, who had been marveling at the raindrops curving around her, couldn’t hold back her curiosity and asked. She was busy gathering the scattered documents back into the case.
Splash.
Casey, walking ahead, lightly kicked a puddle with her leather boots and replied.
“There’s the scent of a case here.”
“What exactly do you mean by ‘scent of a case’...?”
“Betty. Did you know? Lately, a lot of strange things have been happening in Rederbelk. The most well-known is the werewolf attacks.”
“Werewolves? But the appearance of cryptids isn’t exactly unheard of, right?”
“Not when they’re ordinary cryptids.”
“Huh? What do you mean they’re not ordinary?”
Instead of answering directly, Casey said—
“And... the last trace points here.” 𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙥𝒖𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝒎
“Whose trace?”
“James Moriarty.”
Betty thought she must have misheard.
“W-Who?”
“James. Moriarty.”
“Wait, who?”
“Oh, come on, James Moriarty!”
“Stop yelling at me! And didn’t you say you already caught him? Or killed him?”
“You still believe that crap?”
“How would I know? I only met you after all that supposedly happened.”
“Ugh.”
Casey Selmore let out an exasperated sigh.
“That’s just what people say. Nothing but baseless rumors, no logic, no proof.”
“Then what about that story—how you both fell off a cliff under a waterfall after a final battle that determined the fate of the Delica Kingdom? Was that a lie too?”
“No. That part’s true.”
“...What?”
“But here’s what’s different from the official story—he didn’t die.”
“Why? You said he fell off a cliff! No body was ever found! Did you see him escape or something?”
“No. Just my gut.”
Betty scrunched her face.
“Again with the gut feeling? What about your amazing deduction skills?”
“Well, I passed some of that down to an old friend, and I guess she rubbed off on me a bit too.”
“Friend?”
“There’s someone. Someone I can’t easily meet anymore, even if I wanted to. But I’m not just going off instinct. I have actual proof that he’s still alive.”
Casey pointed with a slender finger at the case Betty had stuffed the newspapers and documents into.
“All those newspapers and case files you’ve been carrying around.”
Betty’s mouth dropped open.
She never imagined this wild woman had been gathering all those scraps of paper for a reason.
“Seriously?”
“Five years ago.”
“...?”
“In the Kingdom of Durmang, cryptids suddenly multiplied and attacked civilians. It was called the Night of Blood.”
“Oh, I’ve heard about that. There was a monstrous creature leading the cryptids, right?”
“The Beast of Jévaudan. Bigger and more horrifying than any cryptid ever recorded. It even killed multiple royal elite knights—it was that bad.”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“And there was a hunter ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) who took down that beast.”
“I know. Abraham van Helsing. He’s a legend.”
“Right. He made a name for himself after slaying the Beast of Jévaudan. But then, he vanished without a trace.”
“Why?”
Instead of answering, Casey brought up something else.
“Four years ago, in the neighboring Kingdom of Patali, nobles were bleeding the people dry, driving the nation to ruin. A thief appeared. A phantom cloaked in black shadows, they called him <Arsène Lupin>. He stole countless treasures, operated for about a year, and then vanished.”
“Casey? What are you talking about?”
“Three years ago, in the shadows of the Delica Kingdom, a vast conspiracy was brewing. A man united every underworld faction, seized control of the arms industry, and sparked wars to rake in massive profits. The infamous <James Moriarty>. And then, he too vanished.”
“......”
Betty was starting to see where this was going.
“You’re saying... all of them are the same person?”
“That’s what I suspect.”
“Isn’t that a bit much?”
“I wish it were. But recently, I heard something else interesting. You know about the civil war in the northern Yuta Kingdom, right?”
“Yes? Yeah. The prince’s faction started a rebellion, and the princess’s faction fought back. The princess won in the end.”
“Exactly. But here’s something not many know. There was a man behind the princess’s victory.”
“...What?”
“His name was Machiavelli. After the war ended, he vanished without a trace. Just like the others I mentioned.”
Casey smirked, eyes fixed on the misty cityscape of Rederbelk.
The downpour was so heavy now that umbrellas were useless, and no one was in sight.
All she could see was the city soaking in rain.
“He’s here. Or at least, this is where he was last seen.”
Her blue eyes seemed to be looking past the city—at something far beyond.
