Three gazes fixed upon the empty box, and for a moment, the expressions on their faces were remarkably strange.
Knight Rick, the escort and a mid-tier Soul Severer with a rank six authority, felt his face flush a deep crimson. The muscles in his cheeks twitched, and he gripped his fists tightly, suddenly whirling around to scan the surroundings.
Yet, the plaza remained bustling with the usual crowds, and on the sea, several ships drifted away with their sails raised. In this vast world, it was impossible to tell who among them was an enemy participating in this operation.
"I, you, this..."
Every confident word he had spoken just moments ago now felt like a heavy slap to his own face. Rick's skin burned, and he did not even dare to look at Lynch, unable to utter a complete sentence.
However, seeing Rick get slapped down in real time, Lynch could not find it in himself to laugh.
It was his property that had been lost, and his mind was now entirely occupied by a single thought: did this world have shipping insurance?
Of course, he knew that an entity as massive as the Church of the Black Night would not let him suffer a loss due to a mishap during transport. But this item was tied to his own path of immortality, and its importance could not be replaced by anything else.
Furthermore, Trinlais had already made it clear that this was the only one available. It was unlikely the Church of the Black Night could produce another one quickly. While they would certainly try to scour the world for another to protect their reputation, such items were rare by nature, and who knew when one might be found.
More importantly, Trinlais was right—this item was meaningless to anyone else. Why, then, had someone targeted it?
"My apologies, Mr. Levive." Archbishop Trinlais looked somewhat embarrassed. For the Church of the Black Night, this was a rather humiliating affair.
"This is not the time for self-reproach, your excellencies," Lynch sighed. "The most important thing to do now is find a way to recover the item. While we cannot change what has already happened, we can at least attempt a timely remedy."
As he spoke, Lynch crouched down beside the box to examine it closely. At the very least, he needed to figure out how the item had been stolen.
It was a very sturdy metal box, much like a portable safe with walls three fingers thick. It would be impossible to breach through conventional means, and there were no signs of tampering around the exterior.
The lid was of equal thickness and required a combination and two keys used simultaneously to open. The keys had remained in the keeper's possession until the moment of handover, and there were no signs that the keyhole had been picked.
There were no signs of damage whatsoever. And since the escort claimed he had not even slept during the entire journey, how could it have been stolen?
Lynch felt momentarily perplexed. Together with the other two, he inspected the box inside and out, and only then did the three of them notice that it was not entirely empty.
A small piece of paper had been stuck to the wall of the box, only falling off when the container was tilted.
What was it?
Lynch did not dare to touch it directly. Instead, he found two thin sticks and used them like chopsticks to lift the paper, only to discover a bizarre pattern drawn on the back.
A toad-like body supported by six legs, with a human face for a head. Just looking at it sent a chill of trepidation through his heart.
Lynch felt a headache coming on. He was all too familiar with this—it was an old friend, the avatar of the Great Old One, the Ancient Flicker. He had thought that after using the opportunity to erase the sacrificial mark, he would have no further dealings with it. He never expected to see this thing again after only four days.
"Is this... the Ancient Flicker?" Knight Rick's face turned as grim as if it were freezing. He gritted his teeth and said, "Its cultists rarely cause trouble in public. Why would they suddenly do something like this?"
"You know of it too?"
"Of course. Church documents record it as an ancient evil god that slumbers eternally in an ancient city called Enkai, usurping divine authorities related to slumber, teleportation, and the dissemination of information," Knight Rick replied casually. "The cultists who follow it are usually merchants who need to spread information, and they have never had a conflict with the Church. Why, hm? Your expression... have you had contact with it?"
"Mm. It is a good person—no, a good god. It clashed head-on with the Abyss Weaver to protect my soul. I am very grateful to it, though it seemed a bit reluctant to leave in the end."
Lynch sighed softly and recounted the events of those two days briefly. His listeners' expressions became quite spectacular; after all, there were not many people who could pit two evil gods against each other and still act so righteous about it.
"Well, I admit it might not be very happy. It seems its followers are coming for me. Nothing else was missing, only my payment disappeared. They are here for revenge. It was clearly they who provoked me first, yet they have the audacity to seek vengeance. Besides, their intelligence is far too sharp."
While he muttered this, Lynch realized that there was likely more behind their precise information. It was highly probable that the Shadow Alliance had leaked it to them. It was evident that their goal went beyond merely sacrificing him to an evil god; they must have had other objectives to be this persistent.
Although I do not yet know what they are planning, I must not let them have their way. Since they want to steal my holy mystery, even if the Church of the Black Night finds other memories, I must recover this one. I cannot let them succeed. However, does this not mean I will be working for free? That simply will not do.
Muttering to himself, Lynch suddenly put on a serious expression: "These cultists are far too rampant. To dare to openly attack a supply ship of a major church is not only a contempt for the law but also a blasphemy against the Goddess of the Black Night. We must root them out as quickly as possible so that everyone can see that the Church is inviolable. But as for official channels, if they had a way to handle them, we would not be waiting until now. In this moment, as a private investigator with a sense of justice, I am willing to help you find the culprit and recover the lost item."
The Archbishop was stunned for a long time before he said in a strange tone, "Mr. Levive, do you not think you should have said that before determining their true target? Surely, we should be working together to recover the stolen property now?"
"I did not think of it until just now. I am merely filling in the gaps. For the professional ethics of a private investigator, the deserved compensation must be calculated," Lynch said righteously. "Besides, while their target was me, the item was stolen from your hands, and it is you who have been humiliated. Do you wish for this matter to be handled publicly by official authorities, or handed over to other private investigators, letting everyone know that the Goddess of the Black Night has been provoked by a few cultists? Surely, it is better to secretly hire someone who already knows the situation."
He could even scam a payout in the middle of this? Archbishop Trinlais looked at Lynch with considerable surprise and marveled, "I underestimated you, Mr. Levive."
"I will take that as a compliment."
"However, you are right. This is a provocation against the Church, and it is better to resolve it as quietly as possible. Very well, I will give you two days. If you cannot find a lead by then, we must issue a public bounty. If you can find a lead in time, Knight Rick and I will gift you a mystery relic in our private capacity. Rest assured, it will certainly be useful to you."
"Deal."
Lynch stopped rubbing his fingers and nodded with satisfaction. Knight Rick, however, flushed deep red and finally whispered, "Thank you."
Hm? Lynch was slightly surprised. In reality, his performative negotiation with Trinlais was intended to help Rick make up for his error without causing him to lose face, which was the only way he could avoid punishment for dereliction of duty. He had not expected this seemingly arrogant knight to realize that.
"For this man, rather than a thank you, it would be better to give him a few more pounds in payment," Trinlais patted Knight Rick on the shoulder and pointed to the box. "Lynch, you are the professional here. Do you have any leads?"
"First, we need to determine how they managed to steal the item," Lynch said, tapping the box thoughtfully. "You mentioned earlier that this evil god's authority includes teleportation?"
"Correct. However, I have been holding the box the entire time and it has never left my person. For anyone to use an ability on the box is equivalent to using it on me. It would have to pass through a confrontation with me first, and it would be impossible for me not to notice."
"I see. Yet the event has indeed occurred. Are you truly certain it never left your person? Not even for a moment?"
"Hm?"
Rate on N.U.
