9 Nine Hope Street, West End, Prime Minister's Residence. Agushide Nigan stood behind the wide table, solemnly gazing at the Earl across the room: "My secretary should have informed you of what has happened. You were the first noble I thought of at this hour." The leading Conservative, now serving as Prime Minister, looked several years older at once. His slender frame slightly leaned forward, as though struggling to bear the weight of the news, and he had to rest his hands on the table. Yet his eyes remained sharp, and his demeanor remained calm. Count Holbe, with his two neat, attractive whiskers, sighed, "I'm truly sorry to hear this—it comes as a great shock to me. I had just planned to visit the Duke in the coming days to discuss several matters we've both been eager to address, only to find out he's been attacked..." Having his youthful elegance marred by deep lines and a slightly rounded figure, he first expressed his condolences, sorrow, and heartfelt empathy, before composing himself and saying, "The Duke has passed away. Rather than weeping or being furious, we now need to be careful and calm—only then can we manage the aftermath and prevent the kingdom's heavy steam locomotive from derailing." "This is precisely why I came to you first. The other nobles will only cry out to the gods, trembling with fear, unable to accept what has happened, demanding immediate justice, a swift pursuit of the murderer, and the identification of the mastermind. In their eyes, it's inconceivable that the Duke—so well protected—could be struck down, let alone one of them?" "The Prime Minister said in a steady voice, 'This is a normal, natural, and understandable reaction—but not the one we need.' Lord Hall nodded and then asked, 'Who is the murderer? What is the motive?' 'A demon who has been posing as a banker for over a decade—the real demon, by the way, your Bavarian Bank just acquired his assets.' The Prime Minister stated this with no change in tone. 'Patrick Jason?' Lord Hall immediately recalled the name. This very bank acquisition case had been approved by him." Prime Minister Agushide did not level any charges, but reflected, saying, "He has a sequence 5, yet suddenly sells off his enterprises, abandoning the identity he has cultivated over more than a decade, and risks his life to assassinate my brother. Based on this, we can make a strong inference: he was acting under the direction of someone or some powerful force. Unfortunately, he was killed during his flight, even his spirit taken. According to the night watch reports, it was the noble thief known as 'Black Emperor' who carried out the act." "Involving an extremely secretive organization, one we are unable to unravel within a short timeframe?" Lord Hall asked. "Indeed. That so-called noble thief leaves no trace at all. We can only begin our inquiry through those who have interacted with Jason over the past few months. This will take considerable time, and the results are not guaranteed," Agushide confirmed. Lord Hall paced a few steps, then asked, "What is the King's stance?" "Grieved, but without clear plans." "Aguchide replied. Count Holber thought for a moment, then said: 'Then what matters most is no longer who the driving force behind this is, but rather what purpose we wish to achieve through this event. If we wish to initiate war and rekindle the competition for our colonies, we should inform the people that it is the Fasak Empire behind Patrick Jason, and present them with a detailed narrative, along with evidence that appears credible—something that seems authentic. Over the past several hundred to thousands of years, our northern neighbor has consistently played this very role. I believe the people have grown accustomed to such occurrences and will not question them. It is entirely normal, indeed, extremely normal, for the barbarians to act in this manner.' 'Moreover, the people are afraid of them,' Aguchide, the Prime Minister, said, with little expression, tugging at his lips. 'Yet we are undergoing a series of reforms, and it will not be until next year's second half that we will stabilize enough to possess the capacity to launch a war.' "Count Holbein mused, "Then let's find someone acceptable to everyone. The Robin Hood, 'Black Emperor,' is too enigmatic, and even his secret organization behind him remains shrouded in mystery. If we reveal this now, it will undoubtedly cause widespread panic—people are inherently afraid of the unknown. "What about the 'Aurora Society'? They only recently eliminated the pornophile Indistis, and now it's not surprising if they do anything else. "Their reputation is already tarnished; their story has been repeated in newspapers and magazines time and again, even becoming a staple element of horror novels and a classic villain. This will effectively dispel any suspicion people might have about us—some still believe the earlier assassinations were orchestrated by us through the Aurora Society. "Also, while we're targeting these terrorist and illegal organizations, we can use this opportunity to clean up Beckland. There are too many dangerous players hidden within its ranks." "Aguside" nodded. "The Aurora Society is a solid target... We should begin with them. Once we're ready by next year, we can reveal our findings and charge the Fasak Empire with orchestrating the society's actions. I'm certain no one will pay much attention to the terror organization's or the northern barbarians' explanations." Count Holberg paused and said, "That goes even further than my own plan." Aguside said no more, straightened himself, and declared, "I'll now go see the King." As he spoke, he glanced at Count Holberg. "Take care—our motives for their assassination of my brother remain unclear. Hmph. The Storm Church has agreed to appoint a new archbishop for the Becland diocese. Snell is always late at critical moments! The Storm Church's followers are always so impatient, irritable, stubborn, self-important, and easily influenced!" "Don't judge them too harshly—Lurmi, for instance, is quite wise." Count Holbech first chuckled, then tapped his chest four times. "Thank you, the goddess will protect me." ... "The Twilight Hermitage... that sounds quite impressive." Returning to the real world, Caine stood up and pressed the mechanical button on the toilet. As the steady flow of water filled the room, he stepped out of the bathroom, reflecting on the information he had just received through his spiritual communion. He suspected that the Twilight Hermitage was the ancient organization to which Emperor Roscel was affiliated—the one that possessed the second Tablet of Profanation. It seemed absurd that, in pursuit of some historical narrative, they would choose to assassinate Duke Negan—yet there was also a certain logic to it. Were they aiming to revive or awaken the original Creator? This notion bore a strong resemblance to the ideals of the Silver City, where the small "Sun" faction never accepted the doctrine that the Supreme Being had passed away; instead, they believed He had simply abandoned that region and had consistently sought a response. Caine paced back and forth, allowing his thoughts to unfold. 不知 how long had passed, he suddenly heard a steady knocking at the door. Outside were neither the stewards nor the maids of the Crag Club, but Carlson—a member of the "Heart of Mechanism" whom Klein had seen before, wearing thick glasses. "How did you get in?" Klein asked casually, as though it had just come to mind. Upon seeing that Klein was indeed in the room, Carlson visibly relaxed. Seeing no one else around, he smiled and said: "As a remarkable being, one always has various ways of doing so." He had received a message from the butler, Ikonser, about the death of the "Apostle of Desire," and had come to verify your condition. Your performance had been successful—the "great resurrection" had not been exposed, and your past had been effectively concealed. Klein thought to himself: "Your expression tells me there's good news." "Yes," Carlson said, "Patrick Jason Beleia has been killed. You are safe now and no longer require our protection." In this feedback, Klein felt as though the potion within him was digesting even faster. He asked in both surprise and delight, "Are you certain?" "Certain," Carlson replied. "That's wonderful!" Klein exclaimed with genuine enthusiasm. Carlson glanced at him and sincerely praised, "Your detective intuition and logical thinking have been our most valuable contributions. The butler mentioned that he will quietly pay you a bonus afterward—around one thousand pounds." One thousand pounds... that's quite good, quite generous! Yet, even if the cash beneath Jason’s suitcase were all five-pound notes, and even if his jewelry weren’t particularly valuable, the total would still amount to roughly fifty thousand pounds—about the same as Lady Mary of the Air Quality Investigation Committee, including the value of her shares in Coym Company. Well, Jason’s accomplice, the one who assumed human form to distract the 'Song of the Gods,' probably took away a portion of it; the remainder might be somewhere around twenty to thirty thousand pounds—still far short of a thousand pounds, which is truly disappointing. Yet, one shouldn’t think that way—perhaps Jason’s accomplice had already taken all the assets with him. Klein felt a mix of disappointment and joy. The fact that the 'Heart of Mechanism' had offered him a reward further underscored the success of his recent performances, giving him the sense that he was now only one step away from fully absorbing the 'Magician’s' elixir. "This is what I should have done, after all, since it was people under threat that I was protecting," Klein said, smiling. He wasn't worried about his allies retaliating afterward, because this very retaliation was merely a pretense—more importantly, by then he would certainly have reached Sequence 6. Carlsen adjusted his glasses and said thoughtfully, "Sherlock, as a believer in the divine, we hope to build a strong relationship with you. Should you encounter any issues or gather any intelligence in the future, please feel free to share it with us." That's developing me as a source for the 'Mechanical Heart'... now I've got another channel for reimbursement. Kline drew the triangular saint's emblem seriously on his chest. "Understood." ........ After no longer being protected by the 'Mechanical Heart,' Kline stayed at the Crags Club until dinner, then took a slow carriage ride back to No. 15 Minsk Street. He habitually opened the mailbox and found a new letter there—unstamped. This letter was left after the late afternoon visit by Detective Aethelstane Stanton, who wrote: “…I heard from the Heart of Mechanism about your recommendations. Your sharpness and precision are astonishing—had you not already become an exceptional one, I would have thought that the path of the Reader might have been more suited to you. ‘You are the most accomplished reasoner I have ever encountered!’ … Klein stood in the living room, reading the letter by the glow of the gas wall lamp. This performance lacked novelty; it followed a steady, predictable pattern, repeating what had been done before, and exerted only modest impact… yet the strength lay in the large number of spectators, many of whom were seated close to me, allowing me to receive immediate feedback. Klein held the letter in his hands and suddenly felt a profound sense of resonance. He half-closed his eyes, and felt as though something within him was rapidly fracturing and dissolving. He perceived numerous phantom stars appearing around him, each one faintly drawing toward the others. By the last month of 1349, his "magician's" elixir had finally been absorbed.