"Detective, you go first. This is my enemy."
Having clearly seen the enemy's appearance, Miss Bayes stepped fully in front of Shade and urged him to leave.
"Is it still Blood of Mercury from last time?"
Shade asked quietly.
"No, but this guy is connected to the Silver-Eyed One. He belongs to another organization. Don't worry, he's a wanted criminal—and a disgusting grave robber."
Miss Bayes spoke softly, her eyes never leaving the man beneath the lamp.
"All right, I'll go first. Be careful."
"Detective, you be careful too. I'll come to your home later."
As she spoke, she could already hear Shade's footsteps receding.
"The detective sure acts decisively."
With no more worries behind her, Miss Bayes rolled her neck.
"This time, I won't let you get away. Balance!"
She walked toward the man beneath the street lamp, whose body was gradually developing corpse spots.
Shade moved swiftly through the alley. Since it had nothing to do with Blood of Mercury, there was no need for him to intervene in a battle between such high-level Ring Arcanists.
Of course, he had no intention of leaving immediately. Instead, he planned to find somewhere safe nearby and wait for the battle to end. If Miss Bayes found herself at a disadvantage, he could jump out at once; and if she was injured, he would have a suitable reason to reveal his identity as a Ring Arcanist.
The alley was not very long, with no other exits in the middle. Its two ends connected to different streets. Just as he could see the glow of Gas Street Lamps ahead, another figure appeared and blocked the alley entrance.
Shade stopped, clearly seeing that it was a somewhat decomposed corpse. If the man who had appeared beneath the street lamp earlier still retained some