Inside the speeding train in the dead of night, within a narrow compartment, the body of Gregor, controlled by Dorothy, was conversing with a man belonging to the Eight-Spired Nest. Under the guise of Adelin, a Black Earth-rank member of the Eight-Spired Nest, and with the effects of The Queen’s Procession, the man had no doubts about the identity of "Mr. Adelin" before him. Watching this scene, a smile couldn’t help but form on Dorothy’s lips.
"It seems Gregor can turn this crisis into an opportunity."
For Dorothy, Gregor’s encounter on the train was a significant opportunity. She wasn’t just aiming to extract valuable information from this low-level lackey. If she could have Gregor take on Adelin’s identity and become a spy embedded within the Eight-Spired Nest, the intelligence he could gather in the future would be immensely valuable.
When Dorothy had searched Adelin’s body earlier, she hadn’t found any mystical items other than the Flesh-Dissolving Sigil. At first, she thought the man was simply poor, but the conversation between Gregor’s true self and the little fox in the dream reminded her of something.
When Gregor arrived in Tivian, he would be taken directly from the station to the headquarters for a basic inspection, which would likely include a search of his belongings. Therefore, Adelin, in disguise, couldn’t carry any mystical items or sigils on him to avoid detection.
This raised a problem: as a spy, Adelin couldn’t carry any mystical items during the initial inspection in Tivian, making it difficult for him to contact his organization using mystical means. Without a means of communication, a spy couldn’t relay information in real-time. So, after the inspection, the Eight-Spired Nest would inevitably arrange a secret meeting to provide Adelin with the tools to contact his organization and to assess whether he had passed the inspection.
Dorothy had anticipated this and deliberately had Gregor mention that the inspection might take longer, suggesting a change in the meeting time and location. After all, Dorothy didn’t know the original time and place of the meeting.
After completing this series of maneuvers, Gregor would be able to reconnect with the Eight-Spired Nest after finishing the Serenity Bureau’s inspection. He could then gather intelligence from both the Eight-Spired Nest and the Serenity Bureau.
"Alright, it’s time for me to return to my compartment. Make sure you keep the items safe."
In the compartment, after a few more words from Gregor, Dorothy stood up from the sofa, patted the suitcase on the table, and said. The man nodded respectfully."Yes, Mr. Adelin. I’ll keep the items safe."
"Also, my current identity is Gregorius Mayschoss. On the surface, we have no connection, so don’t approach me during the rest of the journey. Just wait for the meeting later."
Gregor added, and the man nodded without any objections.
Under the man’s respectful gaze, Gregor opened the compartment door and walked out, making his way back to his own compartment. After sitting down on the sofa, Dorothy stopped controlling Gregor.
In the dream space, seeing his body finally stop moving on the screen, Gregor’s true consciousness, in the form of a black hound, couldn’t help but speak up.
"Detective! Why didn’t you just interrogate him for clues instead of making things so complicated? The other party’s strength and status are clearly lower than this assassin Adelin. We could have easily captured him. Even if we couldn’t get any information, we could have handed him over to the headquarters in Tivian."
In the dream space, the black hound form of Gregor asked with confusion. He had remained silent earlier while the detective was controlling his body to negotiate with the other party, not wanting to interfere. But now, he couldn’t hold back any longer.
"He’s at most an Apprentice. Even if you capture him, you won’t be able to extract any valuable information... It’s better to play the long game. If you continue to interact with him as Adelin, you can continuously gather more intelligence about their organization."
New text appeared in front of Gregor in the dream space. After reading it, Gregor was momentarily stunned, then quickly spoke.
"Ah... I think I understand what you mean... You’re saying I can go undercover in their organization. But, but I’m not good at lying... I’ve only been a Hunter for a little over a year. I have no experience with undercover work. What if I get discovered? That would be trouble..."
Gregor continued anxiously. Although the mysterious detective had helped him greatly, they had unilaterally assigned him an undercover identity, leaving him feeling somewhat lost.
As for Gregor’s concerns, Dorothy responded lightly.
"It’s fine. If you’re not confident in your ability to improvise, you can silently pray to Aka for my help. As long as you have that mark on you and don’t resist, I can take control of your body again through Aka and handle the situation for you."
Dorothy’s response was simple: if you’re not confident in your acting skills, let me handle it. Seeing the text before him, Gregor’s expression turned peculiar.
"Ah... Is that possible? If they think I’m Adelin... then we could indeed gather more intelligence... Hmm... If you can really help me to this extent, then it’s worth a try. Let’s do this: after I report the situation on the train to the headquarters in Tivian, I’ll let my superiors decide."
Gregor thought it over and decided to report to the Serenity Bureau headquarters in Tivian first, letting his superiors make the decision. But Dorothy immediately stopped him.
"No, you cannot disclose any information about what happened on the train tonight to the headquarters in Tivian. Not a single detail."
New text appeared before Gregor, and his eyes widened in surprise.
"Why? A Hunter assigned to the headquarters was attacked, and they tried to replace him to infiltrate us. This is important intelligence!”
"Yes, it’s important. But have you considered, Hunter, how these people knew you were going to the headquarters at this time? How did they know your name, appearance, rank, and even your train schedule?"
Dorothy’s new text appeared before Gregor. Seeing this, the black hound form of Gregor was stunned, frozen in place. The little fox beside him answered Dorothy’s question.
"Obviously, there’s a mole in their dog headquarters~”
The little fox wagged her tail and spoke in a teasing tone. It was obvious that there must be a mole in the headquarters who leaked Gregor’s information. The Serenity Bureau had ample anti-divination resources, so the likelihood of Gregor’s information being divined was low. Therefore, it was highly probable that someone had leaked internal intelligence.
"Right... They know so much about me. There’s probably a mole in the bureau. If I report what happened on the train, the mole might find out, and the undercover operation would fail..."
Realizing this, Gregor’s eyes widened as he muttered to himself. Dorothy’s further response appeared before him.
"Exactly. If you report it, the other party might get your report through the mole in the Serenity Bureau and learn that the plan on the train has failed. Not only would our undercover operation fail, but you might also be marked by them and targeted in the future.”
"But if you don’t report it, the mole in the headquarters won’t know the truth about what happened on the train tonight. They might even think you’re the real Adelin, a spy infiltrating the Serenity Bureau. They might try to contact you secretly in the future. At that point, you’ll be able to find out who the mole in the Serenity Bureau is and help the bureau eliminate the threat. Wouldn’t that be a greater contribution to the Serenity Bureau?"
Dorothy’s words floated before Gregor’s eyes. After reading them, Gregor was stunned, then the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Indeed, with a mole in the headquarters, it was better not to report tonight’s events. Instead, he should keep it hidden, letting the mole believe he was the real Adelin. Then, when the mole contacted him, he could expose them and eliminate a hidden threat for the bureau.
"Hmm... You’re right, Detective. Now isn’t the time to report this. What happened tonight is an opportunity for me... a chance to find the mole in the headquarters."
Gregor muttered to himself. He had now decided to keep his encounter on the train a secret and not report it when he arrived in Tivian. This was exactly the outcome Dorothy wanted. She didn’t want her existence to be known by the Serenity Bureau. She wanted Gregor to become a double agent embedded in both the Serenity Bureau and the Eight-Spired Nest, so she couldn’t let Gregor report tonight’s events to the bureau.
"Thank you for your help tonight, Detective. But I’m curious... I’m just a stranger to you. Why go so far to help me?"
Gregor asked Dorothy with some confusion. In his eyes, the detective had been sent by the Dragon Lord to save him. While they had indeed saved him, helping him find his accomplices on the train and arranging an undercover identity seemed to go far beyond the scope of a simple rescue.
Being helped so much by a stranger he had never met, even having his future plans in Tivian laid out for him, left Gregor feeling uneasy.
"It’s nothing. You don’t know this, but the organization that tried to harm you is called the Eight-Spired Nest. I’ve had some dealings with them in the past. By helping you deal with them, I’m also helping myself."
Dorothy responded calmly. Seeing the new text before him, Gregor felt a sense of understanding.
“The Eight-Spired Nest? So they’re enemies of my enemy. No wonder... But the mysticism world in Tivian seems quite chaotic, with various forces intertwined... And I seem to have been dragged into it without realizing it…”
Gregor thought to himself with a sense of clarity. At that moment, new text slowly appeared before him.
"Alright, it’s getting late. Everything has been taken care of. It’s time for me to go…”
"Hunter and Miss Fox... You have a connection with Lord Paarthurnax. Since he instructed me to help you, if you encounter similar situations in the future, you can pray to Aka to contact me. For now, it’s getting late. I wish you a good night’s sleep. Goodnight."
With that, all the text in the dream space disappeared. The little fox, seeing this, immediately spoke.
"I can feel it... The detective’s presence is gone. Phew... You lucky dog, you got to see quite a bit today thanks to this."
The little fox, who controlled Gregor’s dream, let out a long sigh. After hearing her words, Gregor also thanked her sincerely.
"Thank you too, Miss Fox. Without your sleepwalking ability, the detective wouldn’t have been able to take control of my body."
"Ah... It’s nothing. You’re my underling, after all. And this time, I also..."
As the little fox spoke, she suddenly sensed something and paused, then quickly added.
"Ah... It seems my time in this form is almost up. I should go now. Goodbye, black dog. See you next time.”
With that, the little fox opened a portal and left Gregor’s dream. Gregor wanted to say goodbye, but she left too quickly for him to get the words out. Seeing the empty dream space, Gregor could only let out a long sigh.
"Phew... It’s finally over. Time to get some proper sleep..."
With that, Gregor, in his black hound form, curled up on the ground and closed his eyes. As the dream space gradually blurred, he slowly drifted into a deep sleep.
…
In the real world, in a small, dimly lit room.
Intricate carpets covered the floor, and wisps of incense smoke curled through the air. In the center of the room stood a reclining chair, on which lay a girl around fourteen years old, wearing a white nightgown. Her slightly chubby face and long hair gave her a youthful appearance. She seemed to be in a deep sleep, but her twitching eyelids suggested she was about to wake up.
"Mmm..."
Rubbing her eyes, the girl woke up with a groggy expression. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw a pair of golden eyes staring intently at her. The eyes belonged to a black cat standing on her chest, its expression serious.
"You’re finally awake, Saria. Your state in the dream was a bit unusual this time. Did something happen?"
The black cat’s face was close to Saria’s as it spoke sternly. Saria was momentarily stunned, then jumped up in shock.
"Ah... Grandpa! Don’t stand on my chest! I won’t grow properly!"
Saria shouted as she sprang up from the reclining chair. The black cat, caught off guard, was swatted away and hit the wall, letting out a pained meow.
"Meow! You brat! I was worried about you! I thought something had happened and was about to force you awake!"
The cat, lying on the floor, grumbled as it stood up. Saria, realizing she had been too rough, quickly ran over and crouched down to stroke the cat’s fur, comforting it.
"Oh... Sorry, Grandpa. I overreacted. Don’t be mad, don’t be mad. Here, let me pet you~"
"Hmph~ Fine~ Since you apologized so quickly, I’ll forgive you~"
The black cat, enjoying the petting, spoke in a satisfied tone. After being petted enough, it glanced at Saria and resumed its serious demeanor.
"But Saria, what exactly happened in your dream? It looked like you used your ability?"
"Ah... About that. I was originally planning to go hunting with that black dog I mentioned last time, but he ran into some trouble..."
Saria then recounted what had happened in the dream to the black cat. When the cat heard that Saria had voluntarily used her sleepwalking ability to help Gregor, it bristled again.
"What! You revealed your Dream Intruder ability to a stranger! Didn’t I tell you never to reveal your abilities or pathway to others casually?!"
The black cat’s fur stood on end as it scolded Saria, who scratched her head in response.
"Well... I’ve known that black dog for a while now. He’s a complete novice in the hidden world, and he doesn’t seem malicious. It shouldn’t be a big deal... Besides, he really needed help, so I used my ability to assist him."
"Hmph! You brat! Do you just ignore my warnings?!"
The black cat was still furious, but Saria continued to soothe it.
"Don’t worry, Grandpa. In that black dog’s eyes, I’m a subordinate of Lord Dragon. He wouldn’t dare cause trouble. Plus, he’s not the sharpest tool in the shed. I saw him get completely outplayed today. There’s no way he could scheme against anyone..."
As Saria spoke, she grabbed the black cat’s front paws and flipped it onto its back.
"You..."
"Alright, Grandpa, I’m back safe and sound, aren’t I? No need to worry so much. Here, let me scratch your belly."
With that, Saria began scratching the cat’s belly and chin, causing it to flail its limbs.
"Ahaha~ Stop~ Stop scratching~ Saria, just keep talking... Stop scratching, meow~"
Seeing the black cat’s pleading, Saria laughed and let go, then continued recounting the events of the dream.