Cloud Stone Market in the Holy City of Okhema
Following the guidance of the "Phantom Thief's Letter," Xing and Castorice found the first riddle left by Cipher —the "Golden Short Spear."
"... This is Trickery she left behind."
Xing stroked her chin; clearly, the Cat Phantom Thief wanted to play a little game with them—two short spears, one correct, one wrong.
Indeed, only a golden dagger engraved with the truth can lead them to the Cat Phantom Thief.
The short spear on the left is inscribed with the words "Don't be fooled," while the short spear on the right is inscribed with lies.
The words engraved on the short spear on the right are. "Believe me, Huizi, both of these short spears are engraved with the truth."
" Huizi? What does that mean?"
Xing tilted her head; since arriving in Amphoreus, she had accumulated quite a few nicknames.
Xingli analyzed the situation Reason; the words on the scroll were likely true. The question then became: which short spear should she repair?
Hmm... something to think about... I've decided on you, the golden spear on the left!
Then, as if it had gained superhuman speed, the golden spear vanished in a flash before Xing and Castorice.
"What an unruly character... Sir, come with me!"
Xing clicked her tongue. If she could, only children would make choices; she wanted them all!
After chasing the fleeing golden spear, Xing and Castorice finally caught the Earth Beast.
"Whoosh..." The Earth Beast let out a heavy groan.
Cipher —if this Earth Beast really is her—then she seems quite content, her eyes filled with three parts sincerity, three parts approval, and three parts triumph...
"There are still three points left. Haha, Huizi, you'll lose if you take it seriously."
"So the Earth Beast is a cat! I've learned something new!"
"Buzzing..."
Based on initial assessment, the Earth Beast seems to be saying, " Aha, Cipher doesn't know."
Castorice couldn't stand it anymore. Although the interaction between Xing and the Earth Beast was very interesting, it was more important to get down to business!
"... Your Cipher, please come out." She said, pointing to the empty corner.
"You're still so careless. Shouldn't you be holding an important gift close to your body and protecting it carefully?"
Cipher's voice clearly reached their ears.
"Since you know this is a gift, please return it to me," Castorice said across the distance. "Don't let it travel thousands of miles in the crowd."
"Since I know it's a gift—I'll naturally ask for a high price! The people of the wind don't stay in one place for long unless your sincerity can make the wind stay."
"How so, hmm?"
"I'll give you as much as you want, just name your price."
At this moment, Xing stepped forward and offered a price on behalf of Castorice: "Unlimited desserts at the ' Pink Fairy ' milk tea shop!"
"And..." she turned to look at Castorice, "If you don't need the money, you can donate it to me..."
"Ah... sorry, I'm not good at bargaining..."
"Hahahaha--The nickname ' Shut-in Princess ' is truly well-deserved--!"
"Then you two, come to my residence as guests. Let's discuss business in a more formal setting. Follow the wind I've sown, and you'll find my place. Is that alright?"
"Being able to sense your soul is enough... it's a piece of cake," Castorice replied.
"Okay, it's a deal. Oh, right--"
"Before we reach an agreement, I'd like to collect a deposit first, no objections? Hey, let's go—"
A gentle breeze blew by, and Xing's eyes widened as she suddenly felt as if something was missing from her body.
The signature mimicry baseball bat is still in my hand, the hourglass necklace is unharmed, and the "New Flipping Coin " is also there. So what was stolen...?
Oh no, her milk tea!
Castorice looked at the extra letter in her hand; it was the sequel to the Phantom Thief's Letter left by Cipher.
Dear " Shut-in Princess " and Huizi:
As you probably already guessed, I had no intention of showing my face at the Beast Pack Workshop. Of course, this also means that I had no intention of returning the gifts there. This was just a warm-up for the "cat and mouse game."
But as you probably guessed, the Cat Phantom Thief's goal wasn't actually to 'steal a cheap handmade item,' right?
--What I'm going to steal is your hearts.
Just kidding.
I have no interest in your hearts. Since the " Shut-in Princess " can track my tracks, then go ahead and try. I'll be waiting for you at the finish line. Don't worry, this time we'll talk face to face.
P. S.: Huizi, where did you get this little drink? Did the seamstress and the elf priest give it to you? Let me try it for you.
The Cat Phantom Thief, Your Majesty!
After reading the letter from the phantom thief, Xing felt a mix of emotions and still didn't know what to say.
The allure of milk tea is truly boundless; Cipher fell in love with it immediately upon her first encounter with it.
"Here! What are you looking at? It's over here~" Cipher patted Xing on the shoulder from behind, hands on her hips. "If I really wanted to hide, why would I show up in front of you?"
"Hey everyone, don't act like a cat with its fur standing on end. I'm not that scary, meow?"
Xing covered her mouth, "Here it comes! A character who talks with 'meow'..."
A closer look reveals that Cipher has quite a few "cat" elements on her outfit: a cat-ear hoodie, cat-shaped coins, and... cat-shaped milk tea?
"Haha, how could that be? Maybe people liked this verbal tic a thousand years ago, but it's not popular anymore," Cipher explained.
Wow~ You put cat stickers on the milk tea so quickly, that's so cool!
Xingchao Cipher gave a thumbs up, thinking that she would have to put anti-counterfeiting labels on her items from now on.
"Come on, relax, let's talk business."
"Give me back my jewelry first... or there's nothing more to discuss."
"And my milk tea!" Xing chimed in, even making a gesture as if she were about to pull out a baseball bat.
"Hey, hey, don't be so tense. Relax, relax..."
Cipher took a few steps back and changed the subject. "Look! This place has a great view, right? Everyone's doing and going there is clearly visible, and no one will notice."
"Now that we've warmed up enough, let's get straight to the point: what I said earlier was just a joke. I invited you two here mainly for three things..."
"First, the seamstress found me and said she hoped I would take you to Styxia to find the Titan Death."
"Second... Ah, the Senate also came to me, asking me to ensure that the Core Flame of Thanatos is delivered into their hands."
Xing clapped her hands. "You're managing both of them without neglecting either one."
"Finally, the third thing..."
"I have found you two and I am telling you: I have no intention of doing either of these things."
Cipher spread her hands. "Don't go looking for the Death Titan, it's that simple."
"Oh right... there's one exception. Boss Ye, also came to me to pass on a message to Huizi."
Xing instantly perked up. Having stayed in Amphoreus for so long, it was truly rare to hear Ye Yan's name from the local Chrysos Heirs.