Detective

"Are ordinary people and awakened beings divided according to different realms?"

Linsey sounded somewhat doubtful:

"Everyone lives in the same city, and the lower-level Awakened don't have any abilities that are too far beyond common sense. Won't this approach cause a lot of trouble?"

Wala Wala explained, "These are the rules set by the Art Association, and they are responsible for handling any problems that arise."

Savat, who was walking ahead, noticed the conversation between the two.

He turned around and said in a complicated tone, "Social stability, the operation of cities, the supply of materials, and even that tiny probability of awakening—all of these require a large population base to support the current development."

"You guys know absolutely nothing about this, so don't spill all your ridiculous ideas!"

Wala Wala said without hesitation, "You seem to have forgotten one thing."

"For artists, ordinary people are an indispensable and important part of life."

Savat did not reply, but continued to lead the way.

Linsey recalled the specific categories of artists and then suddenly realized:

"Wala Wala, is that the kind of artist you were telling me about?"

"They want to create works to show to the public, so a very important aspect of skill advancement is having people who appreciate and recognize their work?"

Wala Wala nodded:

"That's right, that's exactly it."

"Therefore, the two are interdependent, and many of the city's regulations were born out of this relationship."

Linsey raised a question, "Has no one thought of using methods like mind control to accelerate the process of gaining recognition?"

Wala Wala shook his head:

"The approval given by a person under control cannot help an artist improve their skills."

"But that's precisely why this type of artist is the most popular and the largest group in the city."

"..."

So, someone tried, but failed, which led to the current situation?

Linsey learned about the situation in the City of a Thousand Sails.

Meanwhile, the group continued southwest and arrived at a private collection before noon.

[Qingfeng Collection Hall]

This building is a two-story structure that stands along the water.

The main body of the house is built with reddish-brown bricks, and the top is covered with a layer of neat blue tiles, resembling the scales of a green snake, but it is not without its charm.

The house is rustic, reflecting the owner's excellent taste.

These images can be embodied in the design itself in the first impression of the house.

The owner here is actually a Sixth Stage collector.

However, due to this incident at home, he temporarily changed his residence and stopped contacting the outside world.

So when Linsey and the others arrived.

Apart from the maid who maintained the house, there was no other trace of anyone else.

"Linsey, right?"

"Come upstairs with me to the second floor; that's Miss Lina's residence."

Savat led the way.

Stepping onto the luxurious carpet and the intricately carved wooden staircase, they reached the second floor, to a mahogany door at the very end of the corridor.

call--

A sea breeze blew in from behind the door, instantly invigorating the senses.

The room's front door faces a window, and you can see the bright, sunny street view from the entrance without even going inside.

Linsey went inside.

A luxurious goose down bed, a delicate red cherry wood wardrobe, an exquisite lacquered dressing table, and a two-meter-high floor mirror all come into view.

"This is truly luxurious..."

Linsey's eyes searched the room.

Then, on the oak table piled with books by the window, he saw an open sketchbook filled with lifelike stage sketches. The handling of light and shadow in the drawings was exquisite, almost like handwritten photographs! "Wow, the Fimbul Theater."

Wala Wala immediately recognized the scene in the painting. "This is the most famous theater in the City of a Thousand Sails lately."

"Miss Yao Xing in the film is very popular in the theater because of her excellent acting skills. She is also very beautiful and is said to be a beauty that comes along only once in a thousand years!"

Linsey immediately picked up on the subtle change in Wala Wala's tone:

"Wala Wala, do you know her?"

Wala Wala put on an air of complete indifference. "Oh, we wouldn't say we know each other."

"It was a few years ago that I beat her in a performance, so our relationship has never been very good."

"..."

So, in your previous remarks, while you were praising the actor, were you actually praising yourself?

Linsey fell silent for a moment.

Savat broke the ice between the two. "Did you come here just to flirt?"

"The Kuwait Family lady is still missing!"

"..."

Linsey activated her skill and entered the state of a 'detective'.

He took in the entire surrounding scene, observing the materials of the furniture, the signs of use in the room, and the wear and tear on the floor—all of which Linsey could discern at a glance.

But most importantly, there was a string of red footprints on the ground.

The footprints were dark red, indicating they were left close to the time of the incident.

Linsey followed the footprints and bumped into the window, whereupon the footprints disappeared from the windowsill.

"He jumped?"

Linsey raised an eyebrow, concentrating intently.

[Human footprint – weight 54kg. This mark is obscured, making it impossible to determine the sex of the person.]

Savat followed him to the window. "Well? Can you see anything?"

Linsey only stated what she saw, without offering any further speculation:

"I'm looking for clues; at least I'm certain someone jumped out of this window..."

Savat suddenly interrupted Linsey: "Of course I can see that too!"

"I can even tell you that the footprints ended up on the water's edge below, and the person jumped into the sea."

"The real problem now is—how do we track him down!"

Linsey asked meaningfully, "You can also see this footprint?"

Savat replied, "I am a painter! Of course I can see these footprints!"

"But it even erased details of its own identity. Apart from the only condition of jumping into the water, the kidnappers left no information at all!"

Savat's tone became impatient:

"Linsey, you asked me to bring you here, is this all the information you can provide?"

Linsey shook her head:

"I'm not talking about the direction of the footprints, but the information left by the footprints themselves."

"Information?" Savat remembered Linsey's behavior at the manor and naturally shut his mouth.

Linsey then said:

"The weight of this footprint is wrong."

"The other person disguised their identity, but the weight left on the dust didn't hide it. I can tell you with certainty that the owner of these footprints weighs 54kg; two adults couldn't possibly be that light!"

Savat stared blankly at the windowsill:

"Weight..."

Linsey continued her deduction, "If Miss Kuwait intended to climb out of this window herself—then she wouldn't need to conceal details of her identity. Therefore, these footprints couldn't have been left by her!"

Linsey's words were resolute.

He had paid attention to the weight information on the footprints during his previous adventures.

This does not refer to the weight of a person, but rather the total weight of the person, clothing, and equipment carried.

Upon hearing this assessment, an unbelievable thought surfaced in Savat's mind:

"Could it be that the Kuwait Family lady really eloped with that ordinary man?"

Linsey shook her head:

I don't think so.

"Anthony only arrived in this city yesterday, and spent most of his time visiting his Kuwait Family. How could an ordinary person like him possibly find his lover in such a vast city and then elope with her overnight?"

Linsey returned to the room and continued to intently examine the floor.

Besides the fresh footprints leading to the outside river, he quickly discerned some older marks.

[A young girl's footprints—59kg, a healthy adult woman.]

"That's right, this footprint should be Miss Kuwait's."

"She weighs 59kg. Even if she took off her clothes and ran naked, she couldn't possibly be as light as the footprints on the window!"

Suddenly Wala Wala reminded her, "Linsey, girls' clothes can be quite heavy too."

"That's not what I meant!" Linsey retorted, then continued tracing the footprints. "Look, these are the last traces she left yesterday."

"The Kuwait Family lady neither ran to the window nor went back to bed, but sat at the table, flipping through this picture book..."

Savat asked Linsey:

"So you mean she sat here and then vanished into thin air?"

Linsey then looked at Wala Wala: "Wala Wala, in your kind of art spaces that can accommodate living things, can you also put people in there and then just take them away?"

The girl shook her head:

"This can happen, but it doesn't apply here."

"This kind of independent space will cause obvious fluctuations in the Essence when it is opened and closed, which cannot be hidden from people."

In Linsey's view, the investigation has reached a stalemate at this stage.

But the matter clearly did not end there.

After Wala Wala finished explaining, all the locals of the Seven Seas Alliance in the room simultaneously thought of one thing, "The Impression Channel!"

"The only way to take someone away so secretly is through Impression Channel!"