White Cliff Town, on the banks of the Stratford River.
Dressed in a black trench coat, Lorne stood on the riverbank, carefully surveying his surroundings.
"Is it somewhere around here?" he asked.
"Yes." Sharron's cool voice sounded beside Lorne.
Wearing a Gothic court dress and an exquisite little bonnet, she hovered quietly beside him in the form of a translucent spirit body.
"Hmm... my spiritual intuition is reacting a little, too."
"That mausoleum might be more dangerous than we imagined."
Lorne turned his head and looked at Sharron's exquisite yet largely expressionless face.
"If anything goes wrong, we retreat."
Sharron nodded lightly in agreement.
But then she asked, "You seem unusually interested in this mausoleum. Why?"
Isn't it a little late to ask that now...? Lorne grumbled inwardly before explaining, "It has to do with an item of mine."
He took the crack-covered Monocle out of his coat.
"Maric once found a Marauder beyonder characteristic in the mausoleum. And this item of mine seems to be connected to the Marauder pathway. I want to figure out where it came from." Since they were about to fight side by side, Lorne felt that some things needed to be explained clearly.
"I think that mausoleum might have a connection to Marauders, so I want to see if I can find any clues."
"Of course, that's just my guess...
"But even if there aren't any clues, getting some beyonder characteristics or items related to the Marauder pathway would still be worthwhile."
"Mm."
Sharron accepted his explanation. But then, as though something had suddenly occurred to her, she tilted her head slightly. Her voice remained cool and even, yet the question she posed caught Lorne completely off guard.
"Hazel Macht seems to be a Marauder, too..."
"And she's quite close to you."
She paused,