Meanwhile, at 20 Jade Street, not far from Edward's rented home.
The woman in the black dress stood serenely before the dressing mirror, a hint of puzzlement in her voice. "Even if it was Zaratul, he would certainly have countless ways to keep people from seeing or remembering his appearance, or simply turn Marcia into a marionette. Now Marcia remembers nothing else, only Zaratul's face. It's too deliberate."
"Hehe, deliberately using Zaratul's appearance was meant to make people go looking for trouble with Zaratul. If we find Zaratul and ask who he's been at odds with recently, perhaps we can work out who the real culprit behind this is~"
The woman in the black robe nodded in understanding. "I see."
After a pause, she asked, "One of the Intis Brass Pillars is now missing, its whereabouts unknown. Should we still proceed according to the original plan?"
"Hmm, let me think~"
With that, she fell silent.
Twenty minutes later, the woman in the black robe coughed softly. "Ahem."
"Ah, sorry, I fell asleep. You know the state I'm in now. I fall asleep if I let my attention slip for even a moment. Where were we?"
"We were discussing whether to proceed according to the original plan."
"I don't know either! How about... we decide after we find Young Zaratul and question him?"
"All right!"
"Then I'll go back to sleep. Thanks for your hard work~ Little Chrismona~"
The woman in the black dress broke into a smile. "You're welcome, Mom~"
The next day.
At breakfast, Edward approached Dubois and said, "Dubois, I need to buy a batch of gemstones as quickly as possible. Gather them before the next full moon."
"The next full moon?"
Dubois thought for a moment. "That's in the next few days, boss. What kinds