Trier, Southwestern District.
At night, gas lamps lit the smooth road on Connor Street, and the Crimson Moon hung high overhead.
A three-person Machinery Hivemind team vaulted over the wall of Councilor Alice Kemp's home, using their agility to cover one another without making a sound.
They hurried through the garden to the side of the house, then worked together to climb onto the second-floor balcony.
"Captain, there doesn't seem to be anyone here..." Pierre, the bearded man in the group, said softly after using a Tarot Card to lift the window latch.
"That's not normal. Even if Ms. Kemp went out on business, her servants should still be here!" the short-haired captain said with a frown.
According to an informant nearby, Russell had visited Councilor Kemp that morning for some unknown reason and left in the afternoon.
The Machinery Hivemind team had been keeping Russell under surveillance, and they wanted to use the cover of night to investigate and see whether they could find any new clues.
Alice Kemp was a member of parliament. She was also the public identity of Daphne, a Scholar of Yore... Of course, the Machinery Hivemind team knew nothing about that.
"Could something have happened? I remember the informant saying he hadn't seen any of the Kemp household's servants leave since Russell's visit..." said Lisa, the only woman in the group and a Warlock, her expression grave.
The young captain said nothing more, but he chambered a round, prompting his two teammates to go on maximum alert.
Yet after the three slipped into Councilor Kemp's home, they found no bloody scene. The entire house was empty, but there was half-finished coffee in the parlor, an open book in the sitting room, and potatoes cut but not yet put in the pot in the kitchen...