"Thanks."
Arthur first glanced around the room, which looked like an iron cage, then thanked Jing Nan before meeting her eyes again and smiling.
"Then tomorrow, Miss Jing, I'll have to trouble you to show me around your lighthouse and change my impression of it."
"Mm."
This time, Jing Nan actually responded to Arthur with a smile of her own. Then, as she turned to leave, she did not forget to remind him:
"Nine tomorrow morning. Don't sleep in, or someone else will be showing you around the lighthouse... I'm very busy, you know."
"Haha, don't worry." Arthur smiled at Jing Nan's back.
Once Jing Nan had left their sight, Arthur immediately wiped the smile from his face. He looked completely different from his easygoing self just moments ago.
Seeing this, Heros, who had seemed almost invisible and had remained silent all this time, wanted to ask:
"Uncle, what do we do next..."
Before Heros could finish, Arthur signaled with his eyes for his nephew not to speak carelessly. He raised his left hand, extended his index finger, and poked his cheek beneath his left ear.
Although they had been separated for several years, the understanding between the uncle and nephew had not faded. Heros immediately understood what Arthur meant.
Heros nodded, then held out his right hand. Lightning materialized in his palm, and he touched the crystalline tip of the lightning to the metal wall.
"Bzzzt~" A faint crackle made the lights in the passage flicker for several seconds before stabilizing.
Then.
Heros withdrew the lightning and said quietly to Arthur, "Uncle, there were listening devices here, but I've taken care of them."
"Mm, nicely done. Come on, let's go inside and talk."
"All right."
After the uncle and nephew finished speaking, Arthur and Heros entered the room beside