The instant she saw the unfamiliar man, Xio moved. Rather than trying to force her way past him and rush out the door, she immediately ran toward the attic's only window, jumped up, and drove her elbow hard into the center of the wooden frame.
Her elbow strike, heavy as a thousand pounds, seemed to hit invisible cotton, all its force dissipating as she was bounced back.
Yet the thin wooden window did not budge.
"I never expected to encounter an Arbiter working alone. Are you Sequence 7? No, you should be Sequence 8."
The man in the trench coat spread his hands slightly in an embracing gesture and walked forward step by step, a faint smile on his face.
"Don't bother trying again." Looking at Xio, who was still attempting to open the window, he advised, "This place has been completely sealed off. No one can leave except me, and no one can enter either. Once I've dealt with you and dealt with this idiot, the doors and windows will naturally open."
He looked at Baelen, who was tied to a chair, with icy eyes as though looking at a dead man. Yet Baelen still wore a terrified, bewildered expression, utterly ignoring the man's words.
"Then who exactly are you, and why are you helping this human trafficker?"
After patting the wooden window again and confirming that not even the slightest sound could get out, Xio gave up and turned to question the man by the door.
She was not panicking, because she was not alone.
"You don't know who I am, yet you came after one of my men and even tried to pry information out of him?"
"I was hired. Just making a few Gold Pounds."
Xio answered casually, her eyes darting around. Still seeing no movement