Ⅴ
How had Alvis's men managed to evade the ambush laid by Greisa's subordinates?
Naturally, Arthur had intervened.
Arthur had blocked some of the attacks, allowing one of Alvis's Death Warriors to reach Count Bette safely. Then the young South Los Medium had sent out his ravens and dogs to wait quietly.
Fuginn watched Alvis.
Kuliqi watched Swook Street.
Kili watched the Wharf.
As for Muninn?
Muninn circled high overhead, covering anything the others missed.
As Arthur's eyes and ears, the two ravens and two dogs performed their duties admirably.
In fact, they exceeded expectations.
Fuginn, for instance.
Through Fuginn's eyes, Arthur saw [Thief's Interstice] appear, and his [Spirituality] immediately stirred-the [Lockpicking Art] flickered, while the two Mystic Items, [Carmen's Wristband] and [Carmen's Leap], trembled.
Arthur's intuition told him that this [Thief's Interstice] held extraordinary significance for him.
Arthur trusted his intuition.
So, when the opportunity arose, Arthur immediately had Fuginn act.
The instant Fuginn swallowed [Thief's Interstice], Arthur's intuition proved correct-
Over a hundred meters away, Arthur stood in the shadows as the scene before his eyes suddenly changed.
A single step abruptly appeared before him.
Arthur looked up.
Magnificent. Enormous.
Those two words sprang straight to mind.
An Ascendant's "tier"!
Having seen the tiers once before, Arthur quickly identified it.
Was this Carmen's trial?
Arthur speculated as he walked toward the step before him.
Even from a distance, the step looked magnificent and enormous.
Up close, it resembled a city wall holding up heaven and earth.
Unlike the fourteen tiers Arthur had seen before, there was only one here. The rest lay concealed in mist. Clearly, he would have to climb this step before he could possibly see the others.
But that appearance made this single step look even more like a city wall.
It also made more