Chapter Summaries

Arthur realized the corpse case had been engineered as a one-man show to draw attention toward the Camille family and exact revenge on him and Maltz, so he hurried to act. Meanwhile, Truda waited in the interrogation room for rebels to arrive, but a voice emerged from the shadows behind him.

• Will Koss and Chelmi argued over Linda until Maltz drew his sword and forced them to listen.
• Arthur and Maltz searched the ice cellar at 22 Whitebird Street but found no blood, corpse, or useful evidence.
• Butler Orr prepared to show Arthur and Maltz around the villa after Maltz promised to explain the investigation.
• Arthur concluded that the Camille family was a smokescreen and that the corpse had been meant to enter the police station as part of a revenge plot.
• Simon left Truda alone in the interrogation room after beating him and hearing that he had stolen liquor and missed a delivery.
• Truda waited for rebels to arrive, but an unseen speaker called his smile ugly.

Arthur and Malinda watched Truda die after the Old Lion’s lion pride compelled him to reveal his allegiance and then stop breathing. Malinda explained the limits of the power and the Old Lion’s remaining followers, then offered Arthur more intelligence in exchange for 44 Whitebird Street or a share of the credit.

• Truda attacked the hidden speaker with acid, but the attack missed, and he died after declaring his loyalty to the Rebellion Suppression.
• Malinda told Arthur that the Old Lion’s lion pride could influence up to two thousand ordinary people or, at most, twelve people with spirituality, and that only three of his original seven followers remained.
• Malinda named the remaining followers as the Construct Maker, War Elephant, and Bloodshadow Thorn, and Arthur asked to learn more about Bloodshadow Thorn.
• Malinda demanded 44 Whitebird Street or a share of the credit in exchange for further details about the followers and War Elephant’s physique.
• Arthur proposed that they talk about the Death Poetry Society.

Arthur refused Malinda’s offer to share credit and helped her connect the Death Poetry Society’s activity in South Los to the Lion Pride. Just as he settled in for lunch with Maltz, Simon reported that Chelmi had died.

• Arthur rejected Malinda’s proposed deal, keeping the credit for stopping the plague for himself.
• Malinda explained the rivalry between the traditional and new factions of the Death Poetry Society and revealed that their agreement barred them from appearing in the same place.
• Arthur suggested that the Lion Pride could make members ignore the danger of breaking that agreement, prompting Malinda to hurry off and investigate.
• Maltz praised Arthur for supposedly seeing through Truda’s scheme, and Arthur accepted the praise before asking for a Second-Rank Police Officer’s lunch.
• Simon arrived and told Arthur and Maltz that Chelmi was dead.

Arthur investigated Chelmi’s murder at the Camille villa, where Will Kors was found beside the body in a locked room and denied killing him. After hearing evidence that Will feared blood and seeing the room for himself, Arthur announced that he understood what had happened.

• Orr told Maltz and Arthur that Will Kors and Chelmi had been alone in a locked sitting room, where Chelmi was found dead and Will appeared dazed with a dagger nearby.
• Orr explained that Will denied killing Chelmi, though the locked room and Will’s dagger made him seem responsible.
• Arthur and Maltz arrived at the Camille villa, where Linda said Will fainted at the sight of blood and would not have used a dagger to kill anyone.
• Maltz noticed that Will struggled to speak when Arthur arrived, while the Camille family looked to Arthur for help.
• Arthur paced through the sitting room, stopped by the desk, and said he understood what had happened.

Arthur exposed Dr. Chelmi as the killer of his son, Chelmi, and Maltz arrested him after he confessed that he had killed out of obsession with Ms. Camille. Arthur then led the villa’s residents to the gallery to reveal who had been using the sitting room without permission.

• Will Kors confessed to killing Chelmi, but Arthur said Ms. Anna had identified someone else as the killer.
• Arthur called the person hiding inside the armchair to come out, and Dr. Chelmi emerged from it.
• Dr. Chelmi admitted that he had killed his son for disrupting his voyeuristic routine and threatened Will Kors.
• Ms. Camille knocked Dr. Chelmi unconscious with two kicks, and Maltz and Simon tied him up and took him outside.
• Old Orr demanded to know who had been using the sitting room, so Arthur gathered everyone in the gallery and told them to wait; a cat meowed a few minutes later.

Arthur discovered that a cat had hidden inside the armchair, leading the private physician to mistake it for Mrs. Camille and fueling his obsession. Mrs. Camille then told Arthur he should call her Grandma, leaving him stunned.

• Haha, Lily, and Anke came into the sitting room, and Arthur explained how Haha's hiding in the armchair had deceived the private physician.
• Linda Camille picked up Haha while Arthur searched the armchair and found ether hidden inside it.
• Maltz inspected the armchair and agreed that the private physician must have been mad.
• Arthur asked Mrs. Camille about the armchair's origins, and she took him to the garden to speak privately.
• Mrs. Camille told Arthur to call her Grandma, and he froze in shock.

Arthur learned that Old Charlie had a romantic history with Lady Camille, who believed he had saved her and remained unaware of his deception. After Camille left to check on Charlie in Barney, Arthur and Maltz connected the Hite Furniture Store to Room and planned to retrieve evidence from 44 Whitebird Street.

• Arthur concealed his shock when Lady Camille revealed her past with Old Charlie and praised his supposed Medium bloodline.
• Lady Camille described how Old Charlie had rescued her and asked Arthur whether Charlie had finished his business in Barney.
• Arthur redirected Camille's attention to the suspicious armchair, and she left after learning Old Charlie was in Barney.
• The old butler explained that Hite Furniture Store had grown popular in South Los, while worrying that its furniture might pose a danger to the villa.
• Maltz told Arthur that the store belonged to Room, the Chief of the Dort District, and they decided to retrieve ornaments from 44 Whitebird Street to use against him.

Arthur and Maltz planned to lure James into revealing himself by retrieving the counterfeit-check paper and ink, using the Hite Furniture Store to make the setup believable. Arthur vanished from the carriage to carry out the first step while Maltz remained behind.

• Maltz gave Arthur the address of Aeron’s home at 10 Clara Street, and Arthur deduced that Jenkin’s hiding place and the stolen ornaments and counterfeit-check supplies were likely there.
• Maltz ordered Simon to bring the owner of the Hite Furniture Store back, while Linda Camille went to speak with Will Kors.
• Orr gave Maltz an envelope for Dr. Chelmi’s fair treatment, and Maltz split the Gold Tickets with Arthur according to their agreement.
• Arthur handed Maltz Pendragon and wrote that he needed to retrieve the paper and ink in advance so they could make James believe the supplies had gone missing.
• Arthur and Maltz silently agreed on the next crucial person, then Arthur vanished from the carriage.

Arthur sneaked into 10 Clara Street and found the special paper, ink, and prepared checks that Aeron had hidden beneath the floor. He took everything and planned to use the checks to revive the Black Cat Followers, but someone else entered the house as he was leaving.

• Dico beat two men who had been watching 10 Clara Street while the patrol officers stood by.
• Arthur used the [Hand of the Void] to enter the house without alerting the officers outside.
• Arthur found a hidden chamber beneath a hatch and discovered special paper, ink, and prepared checks bearing various seals and signatures.
• Arthur put all three boxes into the [Athos Box] and planned to make those who had taken from the Black Cat Faction repay tenfold.
• As Arthur replaced the hatch, he heard someone sneak into the house above.

Arthur killed two intruders at 10 Clara Street and concealed their bodies before rejoining Maltz. Chief James arrived at the police station, and Arthur concluded that the Hite Furniture Store mattered greatly to him and resolved to act accordingly.

• Arthur heard two intruders enter 10 Clara Street and hid in the shadows.
• Auben broke into the house, but a figure clinging to the ceiling killed him as he opened the hatch to the underground chamber.
• Arthur shot and killed the second intruder, concealed both bodies, and left before the patrol officers could investigate.
• Arthur returned to Maltz and withheld details about the second intruder in case the man belonged to an organization.
• Chief James arrived from Dort District, and Arthur inferred that the Hite Furniture Store mattered more to him than expected.

Arthur used a staged prophecy and the appearance of two crows to frighten James and make him retreat. When Dico reported a death at 10 Clara Street, Arthur and Maltz headed there, learning James had sent someone to watch the scene and deciding to adjust their plan while keeping their goal of placing their own person in Dort District.

• Arthur refused James's handshake and warned that calamity was following him, while rustling sounds and two crows made James and Cook believe the prophecy.
• Arthur drove James back, then Dico arrived and reported that someone had died at 10 Clara Street.
• Arthur, Maltz, and Dico rode to the scene, where Dico revealed that James had sent someone to keep watch.
• Maltz suspected James had learned something from the newspaper and considered changing their plan, but Arthur signaled that they should still plant their own person in Dort District and pin everything on James.

Arthur covered up the events at 10 Clara Street with a story that turned James against Auben, then returned to 2 Kirk Street and found Malinda waiting. Two ravens perched on her carriage as he arrived.

• James saw the blood-soaked room at 10 Clara Street, where Arthur claimed Auben had betrayed him and killed an intruder.
• Arthur accused James of trying to divert suspicion, then left Maltz to handle the cellar goods and the scene.
• James blamed Auben, while Cook followed him and understood Maltz's signal to stay alert.
• Arthur returned to 2 Kirk Street and spent experience to advance [Bluff] to Lv6.
• Arthur found Malinda's Lada Carriage outside his house, with two ravens perched on its roof.

Arthur received the Raven Feast ring from Malinda, named its two ravens Fuginn and Muninn, and learned about the Blood Marquis’s family. After Arthur told Malinda what had happened at 10 Clara Street, she rushed there to investigate, while a mysterious figure appeared outside the address.

• Malinda gave Arthur the damaged Raven Feast ring as his reward, and Arthur named its ravens Fuginn and Muninn.
• Malinda explained the Blood Marquis family’s unusual bloodline powers and their bloodthirsty reputation.
• Arthur told Malinda about the events at 10 Clara Street, and she hurried there to investigate.
• Arthur stayed at 2 Kirk Street to prepare dinner, while a figure appeared outside 10 Clara Street and Malinda’s carriage entered the Harbor District.

Two Harbor District patrol officers traded rumors about Auben and the blood-filled scene at 10 Clara Street, while a mysterious figure investigating the murder suspected a hidden descendant of the Blood Marquis. Malinda destroyed the house to stop the figure, then used a cracked thighbone that revealed a snake-shaped pattern and suggested the mastermind was nearby.

• Two Harbor District patrol officers guarding 10 Clara Street discussed rumors that Auben had arranged the attack and could control and drink blood.
• A shadowy figure examined the blood at the scene, inferred that someone had bitten Orville’s throat, and suspected a descendant of the Blood Marquis.
• The figure realized the attack might have a deeper motive and tried to leave, but Malinda’s smoke filled the house and summoned shambling humanoid figures.
• The figure shouted that they meant no harm to the Lady of the Long Night, then ignited an explosion that destroyed the house and erased evidence.
• Malinda used her smoke to track the figure and examined a cracked jade-white thighbone, whose fractures formed a snake and suggested the mastermind was close to her.

Malinda destroyed a snake shadow, while Arthur stopped a stranger from interrogating Maltz and Dico by triggering a cat’s warning. Later, the stranger tried to attack Maltz at home, but Maltz’s old Matchlock and saber unleashed a battlefield vision that killed him, bringing the Matchlock’s tally to one hundred.

• Malinda shattered the leg bone and the serpent shadow that sprang from it, then left the matter at 10 Clara Street to the proper specialists.
• Maltz promised to help Dico win back little Ellie’s affection by buying her a cat, and they went to Amanda’s Cat Friends’ Home.
• A passerby questioned Maltz about the incident at 10 Clara Street and Arthur, but a cat’s growl interrupted his Mystic Art and drove him away.
• Arthur watched Maltz and Dico leave the shop with their cats, while Maltz named his black-and-white cat Chief.
• Maltz opened his old case and reminisced over his Matchlock, saber, and medal as the passerby began casting Mystic Art outside his window.
• Maltz’s Matchlock conjured a battlefield volley that killed the attacker, adding the hundredth notch to its stock.

Arthur investigated the strange aura surrounding Maltz’s old matchlock and wondered what had happened to Maltz’s company years ago, then prepared to draw out people connected to the Blood Marquis Family. The next morning, after Haywood delivered Arthur’s commission payment and invited him to dinner, Arthur asked about haunted houses in South Los.

• Maltz heard a noise outside his window, searched for an intruder, and returned to writing his letter after finding no one.
• Arthur hid in Maltz’s room and wondered why the matchlock’s aura resembled Fuginn’s and Muninn’s, then reflected on the massacre of Maltz’s Musketeer Company.
• A shadowy figure approached Kirk Street at night, saw Fuginn and Muninn on the rooftop, and fled while Arthur pretended to sleep.
• Arthur paid a paperboy five Los to deliver a message to Wiggins on Rat Street, then bought the morning newspapers.
• Haywood gave Arthur thirty Gold Tickets and invited him to a Pine Street neighborhood dinner; Arthur declined tactfully and asked Haywood about haunted houses in South Los.

Arthur planned to buy haunted houses in South Los, have Haywood investigate properties in Shire District, and profit from the coming boom without provoking the Countess. After gaining XP from newspaper coverage of the Human Chair case, he answered the door and recognized an unexpected visitor.

• Arthur decided to acquire haunted houses, exorcise them, and sell a few to demonstrate their safety while signaling loyalty to the Countess of South Los.
• Arthur asked Haywood to gather detailed information on haunted houses in Shire District within three days, and Haywood eagerly agreed.
• Arthur read newspaper coverage of the Human Chair case and received XP from the reports and the public attention they brought him.
• Arthur considered writing horror fiction to gain more XP but rejected the idea because the occult was real.
• Arthur heard the doorbell, looked through the peephole, and was surprised to see someone who was not expected at that time.

Cook sought Arthur’s protection after his father advised him to secure the Dort District Chief position and offer Arthur his loyalty. Arthur accepted Cook’s service through a magical contract, leaving Cook startled by proof of the supernatural world.

• Cook recalled his father’s advice to seek Arthur’s protection and become Chief after James and James’s other confidant were gone.
• Cook visited Arthur at 2 Kirk Street and asked his view of the incident at 10 Clara Street.
• Arthur said the incident was an accident and that he intended to remain neutral.
• Cook offered to serve Arthur and swear an oath, and Arthur proposed a binding contract instead.
• Arthur summoned a parchment and pen, and Cook signed the contract before it burned away and a force tapped his forehead.
• Arthur told the startled Cook that the contract was sealed.

Arthur used a convincing fake contract to secure Cook’s loyalty and plans to take control of James’s assets after his death. When a woman from the mystical side returned to test him with a powerful item, Arthur confronted her coldly.

• Arthur assured Cook that their contract would protect him as long as he stayed loyal, then told him to wait for James to die.
• Arthur promised Cook that James’s assets would fund his men, and Cook left intending to deal with James’s trusted officers.
• Arthur credited [Hand of the Void] for making the fake contract convincing and considered how to improve his abilities.
• Fuginn and Muninn alerted Arthur that the woman from the mystical side had returned in a carriage, and he inferred that she carried a powerful item.
• The woman stepped out and apologized to Mr. Credos, but Arthur replied that he had already given her one chance.

Arthur used Bagua's corpse to frighten two members of a mystical group and make them believe he had killed their companion effortlessly. Jennifer collected the body, while Wallace waited outside with his own plans, and Arthur's mocking remark left the encounter unresolved.

• Arthur confronted Jennifer and Wallace, told them Bagua was dead, and ordered them to take his corpse and leave South Los.
• Jennifer and Wallace realized Bagua had likely been killed instantly and feared Arthur's strength, while Wallace decided he would abandon Jennifer if necessary.
• Arthur used his skills to stage the scene and reinforce their belief that he was a powerful Medium.
• Jennifer entered 2 Kirk Street, saw Bagua's corpse, and became more intimidated by Arthur and the objects in the Medium's Hall.
• Jennifer picked up Bagua's corpse after Arthur dismissed her, then heard him call the dead man disgusting.