At Old Man's vague answer, Leonard wanted to press him further, but Cindy came in carrying a fine suit. Her long wine-red hair swayed as she said excitedly:
"Leonard, we got an invitation to the Twilight Day Festival through an MI9 intelligence station in Feysac...
"The captain wants the two of us to slip in. Once we find the target, we'll mark him with Sealed Artifact 2-098 so we can make our move tonight..."
Leonard took the suit without thinking, then asked, puzzled, "Why us?"
"Because we won't arouse suspicion, of course... Someone like Captain Soest looks suspicious at a glance..." As Cindy spoke, she failed to notice the figure in the doorway holding a black cane inlaid with gold.
It was Captain Soest. Hearing Cindy go further and further, he could not help coughing. "Ahem... What's suspicious about me?"
Cindy froze. She glanced back at her captain, then turned to Leonard and accused him, "You could've warned me..."
You were talking so fast I couldn't get a word in... Leonard grumbled inwardly, but he did not dare say it aloud.
"You two seem to be in good spirits. Not nervous at all... Good. In Feysac, you need to stay relaxed on the outside and alert on the inside." Soest adjusted his flamboyant hat and warned them, "Be careful. If anything goes wrong, run immediately. I'll have the rest of the team waiting outside the hotel to cover you."
Cindy and Leonard stopped smiling and answered solemnly, "Yes, Captain!"
In a small inn in Indo Port's Dock Borough.
Ince Zangwill stood before a mirror, carefully applying makeup. He had dark blond hair, deep blue eyes, a high-bridged nose, and one blind eye.
He had learned the trick from Despair Nightingale Panatiya. Unfortunately, she had disappeared after the Great Smog.