In the afternoon, Miao Miao had been working on designing a gown, meticulously inspecting every fine detail. Rosie was already asleep. Thanks to her skill and focus, she had completed two outfits.
The doorbell suddenly rang. At that moment, Miss Assistant appeared beside her and whispered into her ear,
"Whatever he asks, answer with a mix of truth and lies."
"You've dragged me into trouble again, haven't you?" Miao Miao muttered in annoyance.
She walked over and opened the door. Standing outside was Klein, disguised as Sherlock Moriarty. His scholarly demeanor remained unchanged.
Why is he here at this time? And was Miss Assistant referring to him?
"Mr. Moriarty, welcome to my home. How may I assist you?" Miao Miao said politely.
"Thank you," Klein replied as he stepped inside. "Is there anyone else here?"
"There is, but she's asleep in the next room. Would you like some tea or coffee?"
"Fight with me, Miao Miao," Klein said calmly.
Miao Miao froze. The needle in her hand trembled ever so slightly, as if disturbed by an unseen force.
"Fight? What do you mean?" she asked, her voice tinged with surprise.
"I simply want to test you," Klein said, swiftly shifting to her side?
Klein just revealed his Beyonder abilities in front of me.Has he already discovered that I'm a Beyonder? But Miss Assistant said no divination would work on me… that no one could detect any spiritual traces… Then how did Klein manage it? Was it her doing? Did she somehow inform him?
"So I was right—you are a Beyonder," Miao Miao finally said, her tone making it sound as though she had just confirmed her suspicion.
"When did you start suspecting me?" Klein asked.
With a flick of his wrist, he sent several tarot cards flying toward her at a moderate speed. He had no intention of harming her—only to force out the truth. After all, when a person is defending themselves, their answers tend to be honest.
"From the very first day," Miao Miao replied, feigning composure as she grabbed a ruler from beside her and deflected the incoming cards.
"When you used that strange key… and when you told me about Roselle's diary."
She stepped forward. Klein remained calm, standing to one side. Miao Miao raised the wooden ruler in her hand, pointing it at him.
"Can't we just sit down and talk? Look, there's no way I could ever win against you in a fight," Miao Miao said, as if conceding. There was a certain sincerity in her voice enough to mislead anyone.
Klein adjusted his silk hat slightly. His sharp gaze observed every subtle movement of Miao Miao's muscles. In a low voice, he said,
"When a Beyonder speaks of surrender, it usually means they're looking for a way to escape… or preparing for their next attack. The way you're holding that ruler already says enough."
Klein leaned slightly forward on the sofa, his eyes carrying that sharp curiosity characteristic of Sherlock Moriarty. He continued,
"Miao Miao, I still wonder how did someone at Sequence 9 manage to withstand the spiritual pressure of that Sequence 6 Devil Dog… and survive? That kind of extraordinary ability is exactly what I need for a mission."
So he thinks I've been a Beyonder from the very beginning… even before my transmigration.
Extraordinary ability? What should I even say… I used to be a professional killer… and a spy.
A gentle smile appeared on Miao Miao's face. With a hint of pride, she said,
"Actually, I was quite skilled in martial arts for self-defense. But—"
Her expression turned slightly pale in an instant. As the bone-chilling memory of that first night resurfaced, she added,
"To be honest, if you hadn't brought that strange key with you… I might have been forced to leave this bizarre world on my very first day."
Klein smiled faintly, though the caution in his gaze remained.
Miao Miao relaxed into the sofa, resting her cheek on one hand. Looking directly into Klein's eyes, she asked,
"Who are we fighting? What's the opposing group like, and what exactly are their weaknesses?"
Miao Miao knew Klein was calling her to fight Zombies, Werewolves, and Wraiths. She thought to herself, To be honest, Klein's team will win whether I go or not. Let's see if my presence changes anything.
. . . . . . .
10 PM, in the alley beside the back entrance of "The Braveheart ."
Klein, dressed in a black double-breasted frock coat and a half-cut top hat of the same color, circled the area once, just as he had last time, before heading toward the nearest street.
Miao Miao followed slightly behind him. She wore a white high-neck blouse adorned with abundant ruffles and frills, a small black bow at her collar, and a long, high-waisted black skirt with layered pleats. A black hat rested on her head. She acted as if this were her first time here.
The moment they stepped out of the alley, a carriage stopped in front of them. Behind the glass window were Maric's brown eyes, constantly suppressing a deep-seated hostility. Seeing the young woman beside Klein, Maric showed a hint of surprise.
Miao Miao silently stepped into the carriage. Klein pressed down the small hat on his head, took his sturdy cane in hand, and calmly got in, as if he had been the one who signaled for it to stop.
He sat down and adjusted his bow tie, like a gentleman on his way to a formal banquet. Maric looked at the young woman again, slightly surprised, and asked,
"Is she going to take part in the battle with us?"
Klein replied in a low voice,
"My apologies for not informing you earlier. She agreed to join the fight. Although she's only Sequence 9, she has already faced a Sequence 6 creature alone. She couldn't defeat it, but she managed to escape with her life."
Listening from the side, Miao Miao felt that Klein was praising her, yet at the same time subtly mocking her.
Her agreement to fight alongside Klein, under the excuse of repaying a favor for saving her from the Devil Dog, was merely that—an excuse. In truth, she simply wanted to witness the battle with her own eyes, like a curious reader.
Miao Miao looked toward Maric, who wore a shirt, a black vest, and tight-fitting trousers. He appeared to be around twenty-eight years old, with a pale face and cunning brown eyes. He always wore a white shirt and a black undershirt.
Due to the nature of his pathway, there was an intense desire to kill within him. His eyes were always filled with a gloomy emotion, as if suppressing a deep hatred. His expression carried a hint of madness, though at this moment, there was also a trace of tension.
Through her glasses, Miao Miao could see the pathway symbol, its name, and the sequence title above his head.
"Hello, I'm Aria Nightshade," Miao Miao said, extending her hand.
Maric took it. To Miao Miao , it didn't feel like the touch of a living person, but rather a piece of ice.
"Maric," the melancholic young man replied briefly.
"This kind of attire isn't suitable for combat," Maric said, frowning slightly after observing Klein carefully. However, he made no comment about Miao Miao's clothing.
He was probably thinking that, given the level of the upcoming battle, having four of them meant a numerical advantage over the opponents—regardless of their sequences.
As Miao Miao gazed out through the carriage window at the fog-shrouded streets, her mind drifted back to the strange incident from that afternoon. How had Klein discovered that she was a Beyonder? It had been Miss Assistant—she had deliberately allowed a subtle trace of Miao Miao's spirituality to reach Klein's perception.
Miss Assistant had also subtly interfered with Klein's divination, ensuring that he saw only just enough just enough to motivate him to invite her into this battle.
Klein tugged slightly at the sleeve of his double-breasted coat and smiled with an air of ease. In response to Maric's suspicion, he said calmly,
"My Beyonder abilities are different from yours, Maric. And my way of fighting is different as well. Clothing like this doesn't have any negative effect on me in fact, it suits me quite well. For example, it has many pockets, which allows me to keep different items in specific places. In moments of tension, I won't fumble for the wrong item… nor lose my life because of a ridiculous mistake."
As he spoke, he took out three small test tubes from a hidden pocket in his coat a specially prepared sleeping agent crafted by a skilled "Pharmacist"!
At that very moment, a shadowy figure flashed past the carriage window. In the next instant, the figure appeared inside the carriage. Dressed in black, aristocratic gothic attire and wearing a small soft hat, she was none other than Sharron, a Sequence 5 Beyonder of the Mutant pathway.
Sharron looked at Klein with her blue eyes. The contrast between her pale face and golden hair made her resemble an otherworldly doll. In a cold voice, she said,
"You're explaining far too much. That's not normal."
Klein let out a dry chuckle and replied,
"Perhaps I'm a bit nervous, so I'm trying to get into the mood of acting."
Without waiting for her response, he handed the tubes of medicine to Maric and added,
"I believe your experience surpasses mine. You'll know the right time and the right dosage to use it."
Maric examined the glass tube, turning it slightly in his hand, and muttered,
"Two and a half drops. Any more than that, and I'll become completely calm… I won't feel like doing anything for a while."
Sharron's gaze then shifted to the young woman seated beside Klein. Miao Miao looked back at her calmly.
As Sharron's cold blue eyes met Miao Miao's intelligent gaze, the temperature inside the carriage seemed to drop by several degrees.
Sharron observed Miao Miao's gothic attire and the peculiar composure surrounding her. Normally, Sequence 9 Beyonders would shrink under the presence of someone at her level Sequence 5 but this girl was entirely different.
In a very slow voice, Sharron said, "It seems… today is a good day."
Miao Miao gave a slight nod in return. She understood that this brief remark was, in fact, a form of acknowledgment Sharron had accepted the presence of someone like her, an "invisible" fighter, in a positive light.
Klein returned to the matter at hand."Have you found the ambush location?"
Sharron gave a faint nod. Her voice sounded like the murmur of the wind as she replied,"We're heading there."