"Who are you?" Klein asked, his calm masking a tangle of emotions.
The woman in the plain robe inclined her head slightly.
"Arianna, Servant of Concealment."
Servant of Concealment... Arianna... Klein's eyes narrowed. He knew who stood before him.
She was the head of the Evernight Cloister, foremost among the thirteen archbishops, and a possible future pontiff!
Klein had read the title "Servant of Concealment" in Emperor Roselle's Diary. Comparing it with titles of similar meaning, such as "Mystery Attendant," he suspected it referred to an angel. And under the Beyonder Characteristic Conservation Law, Arianna could not be a Sequence 1 angel while a Sequence 0 existed. He therefore believed "Servant of Concealment" was most likely Sequence 2 of the Evernight pathway.
So... the Goddess sent her own "servant" here?
Klein felt his scalp prickle.
Arianna was nothing like an impostor such as Alice. She was truly an angel serving the Goddess. As a former Nighthawk and now a blessed of the Goddess, Klein felt a surge of respect. Wondering why the Goddess had gone to such lengths, he bowed.
"Good evening, Your Highness Arianna."
Arianna tapped her chest four times clockwise and replied with devotion.
"May the Goddess bless you."
She added, "I am an ascetic. You may simply call me Lady Arianna."
"Yes, Lady Arianna." Klein had no intention of insisting otherwise.
Arianna regarded him calmly for two seconds, then asked directly, "Is Qonas Kilgor nearby?"
"No." Klein shook his head and pointed in a direction. "He was some distance from here... and he used an item to disappear from where he stood."
After a pause, Klein asked, "What should I do next?"
Arianna nodded slightly. "Wait for him to come out, then find an opportunity to capture him."
*...Is this how all you angels solve problems? Isn't