Soaring Theater, Main Hall.
The performance on the stage continues, but the absence of Adèle for an extended period has started to stir discontent among the audience. During the intermissions between acts, many spectators begin chanting Adèle’s name, urging her to appear soon. Some more sensitive audience members even sense that something might be wrong.
Although the growing frustration among the audience due to Adèle’s prolonged absence is palpable, the quality of the current performances has managed to keep people in their seats. However, if Adèle doesn’t appear soon, the situation could take a turn for the worse.
The main hall is mostly filled with seating, but along the edges, farther from the stage, are private boxes reserved for those with significant status in Tivian—people who can afford to book a box for Adèle’s performances.
Byron is one such individual. He is the son of a major shareholder of the Pritt Seaborn Shipping Company, a wealthy young man with a handsome appearance. Having lived a carefree life, Byron seeks constant stimulation and pleasure, often frequenting nightclubs. One day, by chance, he stumbled upon the ultimate thrill and joy.
Dressed in a tailored suit with his golden hair slicked back, Byron sits on a sofa in his private box, sipping red wine while watching the performance on the distant stage. His expression carries a hint of indifference.
"Trouble must be weighing heavily on you, Adèle," Byron mutters to himself as he snacks on dried fruits. On the coffee table in front of him are fine wines and desserts, the luxuries that come with a premium box.
At that moment, the door to the box opens, and a servant enters. After closing the door, the servant approaches Byron and bows respectfully.
"Young Master..."
"How are things outside?" Byron asks, turning to his servant, who promptly replies."The police seem to have taken control of the scene. The area where Maria died has been cordoned off, and no one can approach it. Theater staff and police are patrolling everywhere. The theater’s main entrance is heavily guarded, and no one is allowed to leave until the performance ends."
The servant reports the information he has gathered. Byron nods slightly and continues, "What about Adèle?"
"I haven’t seen Adèle. Given the situation, she might be under heavy police surveillance," the servant responds. Byron hums thoughtfully.
"Probably. If she were to run or attack the police, her hard-earned reputation would be ruined. Although we failed to kill her this time, at least her reputation will take a hit. That’s the bare minimum.”
"Still, it’s frustrating. I spent so much time and money getting close to that woman, showering her with flowers and gifts, all to use her to get to Adèle and assassinate her. But at the critical moment, this thing just stopped working. How disappointing!"
As he speaks, Byron glances at the small, button-like accessory in his hand. On it is a circle of tiny figures holding hands and dancing. This is the mystical item he uses to control flesh puppets, obtained from his secret society.
Originally, the plan was to use this item to control Maria, a corpse marionette, to stab Adèle from behind. However, at the crucial moment, Maria stopped obeying his commands. Byron initially thought the button had malfunctioned or that Adèle possessed some mystical item that interfered with puppet control.
After the assassination attempt failed unexpectedly, Byron quickly directed Maria to stage a brutal murder in the restroom. This was his fallback plan to ruin Adèle’s reputation.
Having accepted the mission from his secret society, Byron knows how important reputation is to Adèle. Once Maria’s death is exposed, regardless of whether Adèle is convicted, the media will undoubtedly sensationalize the story.
"Famous dance star Adèle’s partner found dead in the restroom, with evidence pointing directly to Adèle herself."
Such a sensational headline is irresistible to journalists. Even if Adèle isn’t proven guilty, as long as the real culprit isn’t found, she will remain under suspicion, and the negative press will haunt her forever, severely damaging her reputation.
Byron can hardly wait to see tomorrow’s headlines.
"However, I arranged for Maria to be ’killed’ in a restroom near the audience area. The first to discover the body should have been unrelated spectators, causing a commotion and spreading the news quickly. But why was the incident suppressed so quickly?"
Byron continues to ponder. Since his goal was to create a scene, he chose a restroom near the audience area as the "crime scene," hoping to maximize the number of witnesses and quickly attract journalists. However, the incident was immediately contained.
"From what I’ve heard from some theater staff, besides the police, there’s also a detective involved in the investigation. It seems that after Maria was discovered, this detective was the one who immediately notified the theater staff and the police, suppressing the incident. The initial witnesses haven’t been released yet."
Hearing this, Byron frowns slightly.
"A detective? Hmph... Where did this detective come from? It seems it will take some time for the news to break. If only I could get more detailed information about the situation."
Byron mutters, his biggest frustration being his inability to grasp Adèle’s current situation or how far the police investigation has progressed. He considered using his mystical item to control small corpse marionettes for reconnaissance but abandoned the idea, remembering that Adèle is a high-rank Chalice Beyonder.
At the White Ash rank, Beyonders gain spiritual perception related to their path. Adèle, as a Chalice Beyonder, can easily detect the Chalice spiritual traces on flesh puppets. Larger puppets can be equipped with Shadow mystical items or use Shadow sigils to mask their spiritual presence, as Byron did with Maria’s necklace.
However, small puppets cannot be equipped in the same way. Passive-effect mystical items require proper use or wearing to function, and most items designed for humans cannot be worn by small puppets. Byron’s puppets also cannot perform complex actions like using sigils.
For these reasons, Byron has almost no information about Adèle and the police’s current situation. But he isn’t overly concerned.
“You can’t keep a lid on this forever. No matter how much they try to suppress it, this case will eventually blow up. If they can’t find the real culprit, Adèle will be detained, and that alone will attract media attention. The police are probably trying to avoid causing a panic in such a crowded place. Once the performance ends and the witnesses are released, I’ll leak some ’inside information,’ and the whole thing will explode. They won’t be able to contain it.”
“Hmph, I wonder what headlines the media will come up with? ’Famous Dance Star Adèle Kills Partner Out of Jealousy?”
“Although Maria was disgusting, at least her death served some purpose.”
Byron thinks to himself as he watches the performance on stage, calmly waiting for the show to end and the scandal to erupt.
In the small box, Byron occasionally checks his watch and snacks on the treats provided. Unbeknownst to him, a pair of eyes is watching him from the ventilation shaft.
It is a rat, hidden in the narrow ventilation duct. Dorothy is using the rat’s senses to see, hear, and smell everything happening in the box.
“Finally found you, the murderer, Mr. B.”
Sitting in her own seat, Dorothy thinks to herself. After Ed obtained the Scent-Tracking Sigil and the spiritual storage from Adèle, he found an opportunity to transfer them to Dorothy. She then used her spiritual vision to confirm that there were no tracking sigils or similar items on them.
After obtaining the Scent-Tracking Sigil, Dorothy released two rat corpse marionettes from her magic box. She activated the sigil and, using her Marionettist ability, spent 4 points of Chalice to transfer the sigil’s effect to the rat marionettes, granting them unparalleled olfactory senses.
Dorothy then had the rat marionettes identify the scent of the true culprit from a stack of letters and sent them to various parts of the theater to sniff around in secret.
Having previously studied the theater’s floor plan and knowing the range of Adèle’s murderous intent detection, Dorothy had already mapped out the areas to search, primarily the edges of the audience seating and the private boxes.
Using the theater’s ventilation ducts, Dorothy’s rat marionettes quickly located a young man named Byron in one of the boxes, whose scent matched the one on the letters.
Unlike Byron, Dorothy’s small puppets are protected by the Concealment Ring’s cover effect, transferred through her Marionettist ability, so she doesn’t have to worry about being detected by Chalice spiritual perception. Thus, she successfully pinpointed Byron’s location without a sound.
“The murderer has been found... Now, it’s up to Adèle to handle this. Since this is her matter, she should deal with it herself.”
Thinking this, Dorothy once again takes control of Ed, who has been waiting in a corner, and sends him to Adèle’s room. When Ed enters, the first thing he sees is Adèle sitting on the sofa, smoking a cigarette.
Seeing Ed walk in, Adèle is slightly surprised and immediately asks, "You found him? That quickly?"
"Of course. Your sigil worked wonders. I’ve located the guy," Ed says, closing the door behind him and walking over to sit across from Adèle.
"Box number seven. He’s in there right now. The scent matches the one on the letters perfectly. As you said earlier, it’s your turn now."
Ed speaks calmly, and Adèle gives him a playful look before stubbing out her cigarette in the ashtray.
"Box seven... That’s indeed far from the stage, an area my abilities can’t easily reach. Heh... I didn’t expect you to be so efficient, Detective. You found him so quickly. Now, it’s my turn."
With that, Adèle stands up, seemingly ready to leave. Dorothy, controlling Ed, quickly asks,
"Wait, can I ask how you plan to deal with him? If you two fight and make too much noise, it’ll attract the Serenity Bureau. And with so many people here, if any innocent spectators get hurt or killed, your reputation will be beyond repair."
"Don’t worry~ I know what I’m doing. I’ll handle him in the most discreet way possible, Detective," Adèle says with a mysterious smile. Ed pauses for a moment before continuing.
"Alright, suit yourself. But just so you know, if you can leave his body intact, I might be able to help you deal with the police."
"Help me with the police... Your skills never cease to amaze me, Detective. As for leaving him intact... I’ll do my best."
With that, Adèle heads for the door. When she opens it, she finds two police officers stationed outside, tasked with keeping an eye on her.
"Miss Adèle, you can’t leave yet," one of the officers says as soon as she steps out. Adèle responds with a charming smile and a wink.
"I just remembered some clues that might help solve the case. Detective Ed is taking me to investigate. We’ll handle it ourselves. You don’t need to follow us, okay? Officer~"
As Adèle speaks, the two officers’ expressions momentarily glaze over. In that instant, they feel Adèle’s already striking beauty intensify severalfold. Her entire being captivates their attention, and a surge of desire clouds their judgment.
"Alright... Miss Adèle, but please make it quick."
"Thank you~ Officer."
Adèle quickly leaves, with Ed following closely behind. Dorothy, curious about what just happened, has Ed ask, "What was that? Hypnosis?"
"No, it’s Charm. It’s not as effective as a vampire’s hypnosis. It can’t deeply control people, but it lowers their judgment, makes them more susceptible to persuasion, and increases their fondness for you. Unlike hypnosis, which requires eye contact, Charm can be triggered with just a glance, a word, or even a light touch. It’s very convenient~"
Adèle explains. Hearing this, Dorothy wonders if Adèle has ever used Charm on Ed at some point.
The thought is fleeting, and Dorothy quickly refocuses on the task at hand. Ed asks, "By the way, how do you plan to deal with the murderer?"
"Of course... by dancing~"
"Dancing?"
"Yes, as a dancer, I must dance. The audience must be getting impatient after my long absence..."
With a faint smile, Adèle quickens her pace, heading straight for the theater’s backstage.
…
Main Hall.
Another act concludes, and the audience responds with scattered applause. Adèle’s continued absence has deepened the audience’s disappointment, and some are even considering leaving early.
In the distant Box Seven, Byron eats another dried fruit from the coffee table and checks his watch. It’s 9:06, and there are only about twenty minutes left until the performance ends.
"Soon, soon... It’s almost over. Let’s see how you keep suppressing this, Adèle. Your absence for so long... Everyone must be wondering what’s going on."
Byron mutters as he watches the host on stage trying to placate the disgruntled audience. He isn’t worried; time is on his side.
“Although I failed to harm Adèle this time, I’ve at least damaged her reputation. Without an audience, her dances won’t be able to accumulate spirituality as quickly…”
Byron thinks to himself as the host finishes calming the audience and introduces the next act.
"Ladies and gentlemen, although Miss Adèle is not with us at the moment, many of tonight’s performances bear her touch. For example, the next act, ’Cotton White Joy Dance’, invites you to dance along with the performers!"
After the host’s announcement, the curtains part once more, revealing a line of female dancers on stage.
The dancers are dressed in identical white short skirts and dance attire, wearing half-masks and small horn-like props on their heads. Their identical outfits and concealed faces make it impossible to tell who is who.
As the dancers take their positions, the music begins. To the rhythm of a lively tune, the white-clad dancers move in unison, their steps tapping lightly on the stage as they leap and twirl. Their coordinated movements, combined with their costumes, make them resemble a flock of sheep.
The white dancers captivate the audience, who quickly realize that this performance is more engaging than the previous ones. Applause begins to ripple through the crowd.
Just as the audience is engrossed in the dance, the white-clad dancers suddenly gather at the edge of the stage and leap down. At first, the audience thinks it’s an accident and gasps in surprise, but they soon realize that the dancers continue to perform, splitting into groups and dancing down the aisles, weaving through the audience. The spectators get a close-up view of the dancers’ movements.
This is a dance that descends from the stage and interacts with the audience!
Realizing this, the audience erupts in applause, praising the creative performance.
"Hmph... Quite the spectacle..."
In his box, Byron watches the dancers enter the audience and snorts dismissively. He continues to snack on the treats provided in the luxurious box, his pace unconsciously speeding up.