Bang! Stuart, clearly overwhelmed, pulled the trigger— the bullet skimmed past one private detective’s cheek and struck the wall, piercing through. Swiftly, the others reacted, drawing their revolvers with instinctive urgency, treating everyone as adversaries—chaos ensued. Among them, Stuart and one detective stood with flushed faces, veins bulging, their eyes blazing with a fierce blend of fear and anger, as if transformed into demons. At that moment, Kaslanara roared, "Stop!" Her voice, though soft, carried an undeniable authority, making every person present feel a jolt and instinctively inclined to comply. A brief silence followed, yet the emotional tension among the group remained unaltered. By now, Caine had rolled to a new position and stood upright, clutching his own revolver. His thoughts raced—no longer concealing his reserves—he resolved to use his perceptual abilities to calm the visitors. Suddenly, the doorbell rang—clear, sharp, and resonant. Ding-dong-ding! Several private detectives snapped to attention, their eyes gaining a sudden clarity. The soft chime of the doorbell felt like a sudden bucket of cold water poured over their heads. Stuart looked down at his revolver in his hands, murmuring in bewilderment, "What was I just doing..." Had the official anomaly agents intervened? Klein exhaled in relief, holding the revolver and stepping closer to the door. As soon as he grasped the handle, a clear mental image of the person outside formed naturally in his mind— a man with silvering hair, a lean face, wearing a hunting cap and a black coat: Esingh Stanton. Stanton's complexion was pale, and his left arm was slightly elevated near his shoulder. He was indeed unharmed! Klein was initially delighted, but then grew cautious—remembering the incident where the "Master of Secret Doubles," Rosagho, had transformed into a familiar police officer to deceive the doorkeepers. Klein pressed his fingers firmly against the trigger and opened the door, then stepped back two paces. Esgarrouth I. Stanton smiled and nodded to him. "Thank you for your visit this afternoon. Otherwise, I might not have been able to keep up the game of hide-and-seek with that demon while injured. You saved my life." This... does that mean the proper interpretation of "suitable for visiting Esgarrouth I. Stanton" is that coming to see him this afternoon helped him escape a crisis? Then what about the "suitable for visiting" days after that? Avoiding suspicion, not being tied to the crime scene? Caine found himself momentarily at a loss for words. He didn't relax his vigilance as he stepped aside. "What exactly happened?" "I'll tell you later," Esgarrouth suddenly lowered his voice, smiling. "Didn't you want to discuss matters concerning the extraordinary beings in front of Stuart and the others?" So you simply brought up the extraordinary beings to me in such a natural way? Indeed, the fact that I could hold my own against the demon hound's owner for over ten minutes already proves that I'm no ordinary person... And earlier, I had even deliberately offered consultations pointing toward animals undergoing demonization. Without a word, Caine fell two steps behind Esgarrouth Stanton. As soon as the detective entered the room, both Kaslana and her assistant, Lydia, immediately relaxed, and the private detectives, Steward and others, also expressed relief. "Mr. Stanton, are you all right?" they asked one after another. Esgarrouth slightly moved his left arm. "I've sustained a minor injury, nothing serious." "Now, everyone, please don't worry—things will soon settle down. The police are already waiting in the darkness nearby for that man." "Is it due to the series of murders?" "Have you identified the suspect yet?" "Will he harm the innocent?" ... The private detectives eagerly asked one after another. Esgarrouth pressed down with his right hand, saying, "Don't rush. I'll tell you everything in detail and accurately, but before I do, there are a few questions I need to ask Sherlock and Kaslanara. Let's stay in the sitting room for a few minutes." The detectives, under the steady influence of Esgarrouth's long-established authority, did not hesitate to sit down. Though still somewhat uncertain, they no longer felt overwhelmed or on the verge of emotional breakdown. Once in the sitting room, the wooden door closed behind them, and Caine glanced around the enclosed space, suddenly realizing something: this setting was ideal for using items of the "biological toxin bottle" type! Coughing lightly to clear his throat, Caine walked over to the opposite side and opened the glass window. He remained vigilant toward Esgarrouth-Stanton, and even doubted Kaslanara's absolute trustworthiness. Esgarrouth surveyed the room, took up Caine's armchair, and then chuckled, saying, "I'm getting older, but I still prefer to sit like this." Klein sat down on the single sofa and asked again: "Mr. Stanton, what exactly happened?" Aeging glanced at Kaslanara behind the coffee table and said: "We are all extraordinary beings—I won't go into basic concepts." "Extraordinary beings?" Kaslanara first looked at Klein, then at Aeging, slightly surprised but not entirely unexpected. So you're also an extraordinary being... how could you have been stumped by a relatively weak spirit, not even noticing the issue at all... perhaps you're not particularly adept at dealing with sequence-based shadow wraiths. Klein responded to Kaslanara's gaze. Aeging smiled and said: "I studied in Lunburg for four years, where I encountered the realm of the extraordinary, and became a devoted follower of the divine deities of knowledge and wisdom." "Upon returning to Bakersland, I've gradually established solid relationships with the military and with both the Church of the Night Goddess and the Church of Steam and Machinery, yet I still hesitate to fully reveal my identity, for the Sentinels of Reckoning will undoubtedly view me as a heretic and eliminate me. Official institutions beyond these two churches won't directly support me, as doing so would effectively mean going to war with the Church of the Storm Sovereign. 'Indeed, the Church of the Tyrant.' 'The Tyrant?' Kline asked casually. Aisinger drew out his pipe but merely sniffed the tobacco: 'This is how we internally refer to the Storm Sovereign.' 'Well, let me now return to today's events. The individuals who attacked me and sent the threatening letters to you—those are the stewards of the murderer from the series of connected homicides. Ah, you should know that the murderer was a black dog of the 'Demon' sequence—particularly Sherlock, who was the first to suggest that the Demon might be an animal.' Kline smiled, neither confirming nor denying. Kaslanara simply clasped her hands together and said nothing. Esgarrouth shook his head and smiled: "You needn't worry. I'm not a judge or enforcer. As a devoted follower of the gods of knowledge and wisdom, I'm unable to preach or formally establish organizations in Beckett. I can only rely on you and people like you to help me." In other words, can you take the heat for us? Caine thought to himself with a quiet chuckle. Seeing that they still hadn't acknowledged it, Esgarrouth continued: "The master of that demon hound is a Sequence 5 powerhouse. As far as I know, Sequence 5 in the 'Demon' path is called the 'Apostle of Desire,' someone who can harness and manipulate the emotions and desires of every individual, leading them to fall. When facing an Apostle of Desire, one must remain emotionally steady—no strong emotional fluctuations, no clear expressions of desire—otherwise, they will be instantly controlled remotely, or have seeds planted within them, or even directly catalyzed." "This would expose a host of issues, gradually leading to decline, or causing emotional collapse at critical moments, making it impossible to resist... This is only part of the extraordinary abilities of the 'Apostle of Desire,' which I confirmed during our battles." Hearing this, Caine suddenly understood the reason behind the other's delivery of the threatening letter and his provocative actions: he aimed to anger Caine, provoke a significant emotional surge, thereby sowing the seeds of decline or catalyzing emotional instability that would eventually erupt! This would make his subsequent attacks far easier and more effective! Fortunately, as a remarkable individual with extensive experience, I had only remained vigilant and cautious at that moment. It was likely when the Stuarts first saw the threatening letters that they exhibited more pronounced emotional shifts, thus planting the seeds for the "Apostles of Desire." If I had failed to stabilize them promptly, the scene would have become internally chaotic, leaving the surrounding official extraordinary individuals without time to react, and giving the "Apostles of Desire" ample opportunity. Previously, at the Esingstad household, I had perceived time as slow—was it due to the sudden amplification of emotions such as alertness, tension, and caution? Now, reflecting on that, I felt a deep sense of relief. "Ah, so it makes sense," Caslanara also seemed to have gained a clearer understanding. Esingstad rubbed his temple and said, "I had nearly been manipulated by him, resulting in injury. Then, using a magical object, I played hide-and-seek within the house until Sherlock's arrival brought the three parties into a stalemate, allowing me to finally regain my footing." "My poor assistant, who had still been looking forward to attending Mass in Lübeck at the beginning of the year." With that, he took a long, deep breath. "When the police arrived, I managed to make my escape and then used the river to break off the pursuit." Eichinger added, shifting to say, "Sherlock, Kaslan, what are your plans?" Kaslan paused and then asked, "Mr. Stanton, do you have any suggestions?" Eichinger replied, "First, accept official protection so that the 'Apostle of Desire' won't be able to act and hopes he will either be captured or killed soon. If that doesn't happen, the authorities will eventually stop sending protectors, and then we'll have only two options: either, with their help, change our identities and those of our families and relocate to a new place—though no one can guarantee that the 'Apostle of Desire' won't eventually discover us—and second, join one of the official organizations directly as a peripheral member, which would also involve changes in identity and residence, but would be safer." Join an official organization? The Heart of Machinery? Or go to Lunburg, and join the Church of the Divine Deities of Knowledge and Wisdom? Wouldn't that make me a triple allegiance—no, a follower of three distinct faiths? Klein found the situation rather absurd. He thoughtfully asked, "Is there no other option?" Meanwhile, Caslanara's expression remained unchanged, as if pondering something deep within. Esgarrouth, Stanton, stroked his pipe and said, "Yes, that's the path—we collaborate, create opportunities, and swiftly locate and hold the 'Apostle of Desire' in place. Of course, the ideal outcome would be to eliminate him outright."