Chapter 8: Madam Nancy Caves
Su Xiao tossed the black card in his hand. The world had just begun, so he wasn't in a hurry to exchange it for Codex Merits.
After disposing of Lucas's body, Su Xiao continued walking through the nighttime streets. Before dying, Lucas had revealed a crucial piece of intelligence: the one who sent him was actually Ghost Ring. If Su Xiao wasn't mistaken, Ghost Ring should be an organization composed of Wraiths. The man-eating ghosts hadn't come knocking, but the Awakened had come to kill Su Xiao first.
Su Xiao had initially thought it was Madam Nancy who sent someone. Of course, although Lucas claimed to be sent by Ghost Ring, he was in the middle of demonizing at the time, so the information he spat out wasn't entirely reliable.
The Wraith-formed organization Ghost Ring, Madam Nancy, the deceased Royal Descendant, Wraiths attacking civilians in the streets, Awakened intercepting him at night.
It could be said that the situation was now very chaotic. Unfortunately, Su Xiao wasn't Sherlock Holmes reincarnated, nor could he channel Conan. He excelled at cutting people down, not at deduction. As for Bubu Wang, he was even worse than Su Xiao at reasoning. Amu was a direct pass. Mao Beini could count money, but reasoning? That wasn't her forte.
Unknowingly, Su Xiao arrived before a three-story villa. The villa was surrounded by a scenic courtyard, and there was even a small garden. After all, it was the residence of the Deputy Legion Commander of the Execution Agency, so it couldn't be too shabby.
The villa was brightly lit inside, with no one else present except Amu, who was snoring loudly on the sofa.
Su Xiao didn't wake Amu. He took off his coat and shoes, lay down relaxedly on the sofa, and began to think.
Su Xiao's greatest strength was his self-awareness. He wasn't good at deduction. To figure out the connections between 'Ghost Ring,' 'Madam Nancy,' 'the deceased Royal Descendant,' and 'Wraiths attacking civilians in the streets,' Su Xiao needed to find someone skilled in reasoning, and someone relatively trustworthy.
A name appeared in Su Xiao's mind: Isevi Bonnie. A highly intelligent brat, only twelve years old, once crowned the Empire's Star by Monarch Harold. Of course, this wasn't a position of real power; it was more like a certificate. As for Monarch Harold, 'Monarch' was equivalent to the king of the Zuer Empire, a king elected through an electoral system.
According to the memories of the previous Deputy Legion Commander, Isevi Bonnie's IQ was at least 170 or higher, far exceeding that of a normal person. However, she was also a super brat. When she met Monarch Harold, this brat intellectually dominated the Monarch brother. But Harold, as the empire's leader, naturally wouldn't hold a grudge against a child.
If it were just high intelligence, Su Xiao wouldn't think much of Isevi Bonnie, this brat. But this brat was a renowned detective in Zuer City. Basically, you could think of her as a female version of Conan.
Lost in thought, Su Xiao drifted into sleep. He didn't know how long he slept before being awakened by the faint sound of footsteps from several dozen meters away. Without even opening his eyes, he had already grasped the blade beside him.
Thump, thump, thump.
A knock came. Su Xiao used the sheathed Dragon-Slaying Flash to poke Amu, signaling him to open the door. The honest bull, Amu, had no choice but to go.
Three people entered. Leading them was Madam Nancy, this venomous snake. Behind her followed a pretty boy—not a derogatory term, but this guy's face was indeed very pale, as if dusted with flour.
The last person was dressed like a priest, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. What was somewhat horrifying was that this guy had no lips; his teeth and gums were completely exposed.
"I was assassinated."
Madam Nancy rolled up her sleeve. The bandage wrapped around her arm faintly showed traces of blood.
"Last night?"
Su Xiao looked up at Madam Nancy.
"That's right. How did you know?"
Madam Nancy stared intently at Su Xiao, her meaning unspoken.
"I was also assassinated last night."
"..."
Madam Nancy showed a moment of surprise, then asked, "Was it an Awakened who had reached their limit? Also... one of our former own?"
"Lucas."
"Him? He would actually assassinate you?"
"Nothing is impossible."
Su Xiao's answer made Madam Nancy frown deeply. She had been assassinated last night and nearly died in her own home. As for Su Xiao... he didn't look like he had been assassinated at all. He was too calm.
"Ghost Ring. Heard of it?"
"Never heard of it."
"An organization composed of Wraiths. If I'm not mistaken, the Awakened who assassinated you was sent by them."
The room fell into dead silence. After a moment, Madam Nancy sat on the sofa opposite Su Xiao.
"Whether or not you did that thing, I'll find a way to keep those hounds off your back. Find Ghost Ring and wipe them out clean. Those filthy man-eating beasts."
Madam Nancy was furious. Just last night, while she was bathing in the bathroom, an Awakened suddenly appeared behind her. If not for the strange beast she raised, she would already be a corpse.
The strange beast Madam Nancy raised died in her place, blocking the attack. This completely enraged her. That was why she came to find Su Xiao early in the morning. Her conflict with Su Xiao was an internal struggle—they looked for opportunities to push each other out without actively harming one another. But last night's assassin was a much cruder enemy.
Half an hour later, Madam Nancy, her face very grim, left with her people. The pretty boy and the lipless man following her were both Awakened, now temporarily assigned as Madam Nancy's guards. Interestingly, compared to Madam Nancy's orders, those two were more willing to follow Su Xiao's commands, even though Su Xiao was the Deputy Legion Commander. It was precisely because of this that Madam Nancy, this venomous snake, caved. Unfortunately, Su Xiao's attitude was unclear.
After Madam Nancy left, Bubu Wang appeared. He had a camera in his mouth. Su Xiao opened the camera, and an extremely steamy scene appeared—a recording of Madam Nancy bathing, with angles so devious they'd make a cameraman want to add extra chicken legs.
After watching the entire process of Madam Nancy's assassination, Su Xiao could basically confirm that the matter of the Royal Descendant's death wasn't plotted by Madam Nancy, this bitch. She was also one of the victims now.
Clearly, someone wanted to eliminate the high-ranking members of the Execution Agency. First, a frame-up, and when the frame-up failed, direct assassination. Moreover, that clumsy framing method clearly wasn't the work of an old yinbi.
The matter was becoming more and more complicated. Su Xiao looked at Bubu Wang and Amu, sharing the known intelligence with the dog and the bull, preparing to pool their wisdom.
"Moo?"
Amu looked at Su Xiao with a bewildered expression, innocent and naive.
"Woof?"
Bubu Wang also tilted his head to look at Su Xiao, his meaning being: "What's for breakfast? I recorded all night. I'm so hungry."
"Let's go find... Isevi Bonnie."
Su Xiao walked out of the villa. Amu looked at Bubu Wang with a questioning gaze, meaning: "What's wrong with Master?"
"Woof~"
Bubu Wang shook his head, meaning: "The world of old yinbis, we don't understand."
After having breakfast at a restaurant, Su Xiao took Bubu Wang and Amu straight to the south of the city. Two hours later, they arrived before a two-story building.
This was a detective agency, without a sign. In this line of work, detectives relied on reputation to do business.