Strange footprints

Carrying a Iron-Black Carbide Lamp, Franca glanced at the road sandwiched between Stone Pillars and asked the Smuggler Fernandez, who was leading the way, with a hint of doubt:

"Is this the road to the Observatory District?"

Although no one can fully grasp the entirety of the Underground Trier, the Tunnel on this level are marked with street names that correspond to those on the surface. After a brief moment of recollection, Franca realized that she was going the wrong way.

--Smuggling must have been from outside the city to inside, and the Observatory District was closer to the center of Trier than the Honest Market District, and was separated from the Boulevard District by the Serenzo River.

Fernandez, Smuggler for "Rat" Christo, turned slightly to the side and explained with a smile, "That hidden route has to get to the Observatory District first; we always get the goods to the warehouse there."

"I see." "Red Boots" Franca slowed her pace, putting more distance between herself and Fernandez was wearing a brown felt hat.

Since they hadn't yet entered the smuggling route, she idly chatted with Lumian beside her, keeping her voice down:

"I remember you traded 18,000 Felkine from Gardner for the ' Pugilist ' Beyonder Characteristic."

"You know that's Beyonder Characteristic, right? Or rather, you understand the true meaning of Beyonder Characteristic, right?"

"My Older Sister told me about it." Lumian attributed this knowledge to Aurora's teachings.

Franca is tall and has long legs, so she doesn't need to exert too much effort to keep up with Lumian.

She exclaimed sincerely, "It's so good to have someone to guide you. Back then, we were all blind, figuring things out on our own. Otherwise, I wouldn't have chosen this path..."

Her voice trailed off, finally settling into a long, drawn-out "Sigh."

This reminded Lumian of a famous quote from Emperor Roselle, which she was unsure whether Aurora herself had said or whether she had relayed it:

"Once a serious Error is made, it will become a lifelong regret."

Franca quickly composed herself and whispered a reminder to Lumian:

"You're new to the field of Mysticism, and you lack much more than just knowledge."

"You'd better not be stingy with that money. Use it to buy a Mystical Item or Beyonder weapon to make up for the ' Hunter's' lack of Mysticism. Otherwise, if ' Black Scorpion ' Roger really wants to take revenge on you, he won't need to go through too much trouble; he can just send a few Undead to find you."

"If you're interested in that, I'll keep an eye out for you."

Lumian chuckled immediately:

"I've already bought it."

"So fast?" Franca almost lost her voice, prompting the Smuggler Fernandez to turn around and glance back.

The two were quite far apart, and the interplay of light and shadow from the Carbide Lamp made it difficult for Lumian to see Fernandez's expression or what he might be thinking.

Lumian "honestly" replied, "Before Savoie Gang, I found a circle of truly Beyonder through information about Mysticism Enthusiasts' Gathering published in the magazine ' Spiritism,' where I traded a Mystical Item for Felkine given to me by the Boss."

"No wonder..." Franca showed a knowing expression and praised Lumian, "Your mind is even more agile than I imagined. Hmm, it's an item that can enhance your Mysticism skills?"

Lumian said "frankly," "A pair of glasses from the ' Lawyer,' but they seem to be Corruption by some strange force."

As he spoke, he took out the Tea-Brown "Mystery-Peering Glasses" and demonstrated them:

"It helps me see many things I can't normally see..."

"That's dangerous." Franca's brown eyebrows furrowed slightly as she interrupted Lumian.

"I know," Lumian explained with a smile, "But as long as the environment is chosen well and protection is in place, it's not that dangerous, and it can also provide excellent camouflage and Mysticism techniques..."

Lumian briefly explained how wearing the "Mystery-Peering Glasses" caused him to have the urge to draw.

Franca's ponytail at the back of her head gradually fell back to its original position.

"It's really useful. If I were in your situation, I would choose it too."

"In other words, none of the Stinger Gang's leaders and Thug have ever truly interacted with you. Their only impression of you is your strange hair color. Otherwise, they would have already recognized your true identity and wouldn't need to lift a finger. They could simply send your information and arrest warrant to the Police Headquarters and the two Church to complete their revenge."

Lumian smiled:

"Yes, I can now pick a time to ask Officer Everett out for coffee."

Franca's bright, Lake-Colored Eyes crinkled with laughter as she turned and said, "You actually told me about the Occult Gathering and your trump card. Jenna kept telling me you were cunning and treacherous, good at deception, but you're actually very sincere and open! Hmm, that's part of why our relationship is different from others."

"I knew it! The ' Muggle's' brother wouldn't be that kind of person!"

Lumian felt a pang of guilt and said sincerely, "Yes, she completely misunderstood me."

After chatting for a while, the two finally arrived at the edge of the Underground Area corresponding to the Observatory District and turned into a Tunnel that extended southward.

Not long after, Fernandez stopped in front of Auxiliary Shaft belonging to an Cavern Quarry.

He placed the Carbide Lamp at the well's opening, pointed downwards, and said, "Let's go in."

Using the blue-tinged light, Lumian looked down into the well and found that the secondary Auxiliary Shaft had been abandoned for a long time and appeared to be completely blocked by rubble.

Using the indentations in the well wall, the ropes hidden in the shadows, and the makeshift iron ladder nailed to the moss, the three climbed down and soon reached the bottom of the well.

Smuggler Fernandez moved several seemingly heavy stones, revealing Tunnel large enough for one person to pass through at the edge of the well.

After walking through this rather polluted Tunnel, the space suddenly opened up, as if we had entered another Quarry Cavern.

It was even more desolate and dark here, the cave ceiling was quite damp, and there was hardly any moss around.

Lumian and Franca, each carrying a Carbide Lamp, slowed their pace and carefully examined the various traces along the smuggling route.

After traveling for an unknown amount of time, Fernandez pointed to Tunnel not far away. "Our Boss and Baron Brignais didn't come away empty-handed; they discovered that the caravan's footprints had vanished into thin air there."

It was a Tunnel connecting two Cavern Quarry, the road full of gravel and potholes, and the distance was pitch black with no light.

Lumian and Franca quickly found the places where the fresher footprints had suddenly disappeared, and squatted down to examine them carefully.

"Only the footprints from the way here remain; the return path abruptly ends here."

"Most of the people returning were carrying heavy loads, and their footprints were deeper than those they had left behind... This rules out the possibility that they turned around, stepped on their own footprints, and retreated step by step..." Lumian quickly made a series of judgments.

Franca turned her gaze away from her surroundings and said as she stood up, "There were no signs of a fight either."

"That's really weird!"

Then, she gestured for Fernandez to go a little further away and wait in the Quarry Cavern they had just come from.

Once Fernandez's Carbide Lamp had completely disappeared into the distance, Franca produced a small Makeup and a white handkerchief with blue checks from somewhere.

The latter was an item frequently used by Elken, Christo's Rat brother, who also disappeared during this smuggling operation.

Franca then put down the Carbide Lamp, opened the pale gold box, and reached out to touch the mirror inside.

At the same time, clutching the handkerchief, she repeatedly chanted in Hermetic, "Elken's current location, Elken's current location..."

The already dark Tunnel became even more oppressive. The light from the two Carbide Lamp was pushed back slightly by an invisible force, and the palm-sized Mirror quickly reflected Waterlight, as if it were showing the Gloom riverbed.

Before Lumian could even count to three, a scene appeared on the Mirror's surface:

Smuggler carrying Wooden Box crates and smugglers with Pistol and rifles walked slowly through the Tunnel. As they moved forward, the darkness behind them filled the places where the light had been taken away. Finally, the light from the Carbide Lamp disappeared at the end of their sight, leaving the mirror surface completely black.

"They did indeed disappear in this area." Franca stopped her Divination and pursed her thin, red lips. "But I can't discern anything."

Lumian didn't suggest trying the "Mystery-Peering Glasses." In his view, the Underground of Trier was full of dangers, hiding all sorts of things: Fourth Epoch relics, smelly and filthy old bones, Catacombs that had to follow specific rules, and the Montsouris Ghosts that had lingered for many years without being cleared. All of these were things that made people afraid to explore the truth. If he really tried to look around here with the "Mystery-Peering Glasses," he would most likely explode on the spot.

Then, another legend involving the power of Evil God will be added to the Underground of Trier.

Therefore, Lumian might help out of respect for the Savoie Gang Boss, but he wouldn't go all out or take any risks.

Anyway, the one who lost this time was "Rat" Christo, what does it have to do with "Lion" Charles?

Breeze Ballroom still has plenty of alcohol in stock!

Franca glanced at him, but didn't make things difficult for him.

The man in the Red Boots put away his Makeup and Elken's handkerchief, picked up the Carbide Lamp, and said to Lumian, "Let's go back to Fernandez and have him lead us forward; perhaps there are clues left elsewhere."

"Okay." Lumian felt that Franca was just fulfilling her duties as a member of the Savoie Gang.

The two turned around, carrying their respective Carbide Lamp, and walked towards the former Quarry Cavern, disappearing into the darkness.

After taking a dozen or so steps, Lumian suddenly stopped, his expression turning serious.

"What's wrong with the 'book'?" Franca asked, puzzled.

Lumian pointed to the ground, which was full of gravel and potholes, and said in a deep voice, "There are no footprints."

"The footprints of those Smuggler leaving the city and the footprints of ours coming here are gone!"

But there were also many footprints left by people carrying heavy loads forward!

Franca was startled and looked down to find the ground in disarray. All the footprints of herself, Lumian, and Fernandez that led into the Tunnel had vanished, while the footprints of the missing caravan had reappeared out of nowhere!