Prelude

The news about Qilingos was not long. It merely made clear the time, place, people involved, and outcome. In contrast, Detective Braine's heroic deeds occupied several pages... Was the government deliberately downplaying the course of events?

I hadn't expected Ms. The Tower to have been at the ball yesterday too... But she couldn't possibly have missed what even Miss Justice noticed. Just as the newspaper described, she must have seen through Qilingos's disguise beforehand.

But Ms. The Tower hadn't reported to me like Miss Justice had... Hmm, judging from her attitude at previous Tarot Club gatherings, Ms. The Tower didn't think much of Qilingos, nor was she particularly interested in that very important item he had been trying to obtain...

That meant Ms. The Tower was likely an expert even stronger than Vice Admiral Hurricane. That was why she hadn't needed the Fool's assistance—she was confident she could handle the threat Qilingos posed!

But after advancing to Sequence 8 and deepening my connection with Above the Gray Fog, I could already determine that The Tower was only Sequence 7...

Then, by that logic, she must possess a very formidable mystical item, perhaps even a holy relic of the Contract! That was why she had disdained the item Qilingos so desperately wanted—because she had no need for it...

However, Ms. The Tower probably hadn't fought Qilingos head-on yesterday. Otherwise, the news would not have omitted every trace of it...

And the account of Qilingos's death was so brief that it could only mean the person who killed him and the method used were both unsuitable for media exposure... Therefore, there was a high chance Mr. Azik had done it.

Klein's thoughts drifted as he thought, and he gradually calmed down:

"Since Vice Admiral Hurricane Qilingos is dead, that means Mr. Azik