"That was precisely your flaw, stranger Cremator," Black Swan said sternly:
"The Annihilation Gang is accustomed to showing itself openly. None of its members are mysterious; every one of them would love to carve the mark of Destruction onto their face."
"And Grand Duke of Blazing Flames Aflit never had a daughter named Constance. Though the names of his children are not widely known, they are no secret to the Garden of Recollection."
"The music box bears your traces. What exactly was your purpose in infiltrating Eternal Flame Manor?"
In an instant, the shadows in the corner of the room seemed to come alive.
After a faint distortion, Dahlia's figure emerged behind Black Swan as though surfacing from water, standing extremely close.
Her long black hair cascaded down her back, an alluringly wicked smile on her face. Her voice sounded almost against Black Swan's ear:
"What if... I was simply too fickle, unable to resist betraying anyone? Whether it was [Destruction], or anything else."
"That is impossible." Black Swan swiftly turned around and faced Dahlia at point-blank range. Their gazes collided in the air, her tone solemn and certain:
"The Antimatter Legion has always been looking for her."
Dahlia smiled brightly, black strands of hair sliding over her shoulder.
"Aren't you the same? Garden of Recollection."
"To erase me, the Garden of Recollection carried out fourteen hunts. And during the last one, I clearly died before your eyes, didn't I? Dear Miss Black Swan."
"So it really was you." Black Swan stood as if facing a great enemy, and the air throughout the guest room seemed to grow heavier.
Just as the two stood at sword's point, the old-fashioned rotary-dial telephone on the bedside table suddenly rang without warning.
Ring-ring-ring—
The crisp, abrupt ringing shattered the room's dead silence.
Dahlia