Chapter 206

Chapter 205 Action

Royal Sacred Crown University, King Campus.

At dusk, in a certain stone room at the meeting point of the Secret Knowledge Society.

The gas lamp on the table illuminated the dim space, and next to the table, there was an elegant chair. Sitting on that chair with a mask on was Thistle, holding a small box. Inside the box were two small black spiders.

“North Pine Forest Campsite 38? Nine o’clock in the evening? Hmph, we still have some time…”

Looking at the two small black spiders in the box, Thistle coldly snorted after obtaining intelligence from them. This reconnaissance mission did not disappoint him; he had obtained important information about the mysterious organization called the Rosy Cross.

‘After so many days, these guys finally settled their base. And they’re planning some kind of gathering to finalize plans against us.

‘According to the intelligence, there are no more than five core members near the King Campus, and the others aren’t even Extraordinary Beings. So, these guys are only at the Apprentice tier, with maybe one Black Tier leader at most. Their overall strength isn’t much. I wonder why they would use such little power to oppose us?’

Thistle thought this with some confusion, but then realized that the best way to answer these questions was to disrupt their gathering and capture a core member for interrogation.

Fortunately, all the core members of that Society were gathered together, with no lackeys, and the number didn’t exceed five… This was the perfect opportunity to act.

“They want to devise a plan to catch us all at once? Then let’s take them down first before they can do anything…” murmuring, Thistle stood up from his seat and looked around slowly. Now, he started preparing to gather people to give the so-called Rosy Society a surprise.

“It seems I can request some additional manpower to solve this problem once and for all.”

…

Outside the East Gate of King Campus, Green Shade Town.

At dusk, Dorothy stood alone outside Green Shade Town 37. Looking at the seemingly old stone house in front of her, Dorothy gently knocked on the door and waved at the mirror installed on it.

Soon after, the door in front of Dorothy opened. Unlike her previous visit to 37, this time the main door wasn’t automatically opened but was opened by someone.

The girl who opened the door wore a white nightgown and had short gray hair. She was Beverly.

“Opening the door yourself? Aren’t you doing experiments downstairs?”

Seeing the girl, Dorothy felt somewhat surprised and said. The other party replied with eyes half-closed.

“Experiments? I’ve been working for eight hours straight. I’m exhausted. I’m resting now.”

“Do your wind-up dolls get tired? Don’t they just need to be wound up twice? If there’s enough fuel, trains can run continuously for a day.”

Listening to Beverly’s words, Dorothy asked with doubt, and the other party replied irritably.

“Come on… After working for a long time, many parts of the body wear out. I’m a high-precision mechanism doll. Don’t compare me with those big, clunky steam engines. Let me rest now, drink some tea, and relax. If I don’t maintain myself regularly, I’ll have to replace parts more often than underwear.”

With a teasing tone, Beverly waved her hand and then turned to enter the house. Dorothy closed the door and followed her inside.

Soon, Dorothy arrived at a tea table inside the house. Beverly sat down here, drank a cup of heavy oil-scented “tea” floating with iron filings, and then said to Dorothy.

“You came at the right time today. The postal fee I collected from the An Yin Bureau has arrived. According to what we agreed, three-tenths of it is yours.”

“Oh wow, the money finally arrived. How much did you get?” Dorothy sat on the sofa and asked. Beverly immediately replied.

“Not much, just three hundred pounds. We finally reached an agreement after several talks.”

“Three hundred pounds? Wow, you managed to extort so much?”

Listening to Beverly’s words, Dorothy said with surprise. After all, when Beverly asked her for the postage fee last time, she only asked for fifty pounds.

“Tsk, sending back important documents from the An Yin Bureau, how could this be considered extortion? It’s rightfully earned.”

“By the way, they asked who sent the package. As you requested, I told them the sender’s name was ‘Detective.’ They said if you want a reward, you must personally meet them. They have some questions for you.”

Beverly said slowly while drinking her “tea.” Sitting on the sofa, Dorothy raised her eyebrows and said.

“I have to meet them… That might have to wait until another day. I’m quite busy lately…”

“Still busy and you came specifically to find me? You must want my help, right?” Listening to Dorothy’s words, Beverly put down her teacup and looked at Dorothy, to which the other nodded and said.

“More or less… But before that, I want to ask, is King Campus part of your territory? If something secret happens there, will you intervene?”

“King Campus? That area is mainly the royal family’s domain. In matters of secrecy, the An Yin Bureau oversees it. I just hold shares and collect money for the old man. If something happens there, it’s not my concern but the An Yin Bureau’s.”

“I belong to the White Stone Craftsmen Guild, and our guild’s base in Tivyan is in the city. That’s my territory. I just like the environment here and live here occasionally. Only two people in Tivyan, including you, know I live here. Without sufficient referral, I completely refuse strangers.”

Beverly said this. Hearing her words, Dorothy was slightly stunned and began to think.

‘The Royal Sacred Crown University is the royal family’s territory… In matters of secrecy, the An Yin Bureau is responsible. But the Eight Pinnacle Nest has been causing trouble in King Campus for so long, and the An Yin Bureau hasn’t taken any action. Could it be they haven’t set up surveillance?’

Dorothy thought with confusion. According to Nephnis, the Secret Knowledge Society had caused trouble and been disbanded before. Normally, when they caused trouble, the authorities would handle it. Given that the An Yin Bureau knew that the young masters and mistresses of Crown University might occasionally cause trouble, they should have some monitoring system in place. Yet, with the Eight Pinnacle Nest having done this much, there was no response from the supposed monitoring system. Wasn’t this odd?

Dorothy thought with confusion, but quickly focused on the current issue.

‘Since they know nothing about the Eight Pinnacle Nest, I need to warn them. According to Beverly, she won’t interfere with school affairs. So, in the end, we can only deal with it ourselves. Also… we need to prepare for tonight.’

Thinking this, Dorothy looked at the present Beverly and said.

“First, I want to ask if you have any props here that can check for nearby extraordinary traces, defend against non-detection, especially small extraordinary puppets? Preferably suitable for a base.”

“There is, it’s the Radiance Lamp, the most common extraordinary detection tool. Our Craftsmen Guild and Church can produce them. There are many on the market. A single ‘lamp’ can last for a long time. Any abnormal extraordinary traces within a certain range will trigger an alarm. Many societies like to use this to prevent detection, even the An Yin Bureau uses it. It’s reliable and durable.

“But there are downsides too. Each Radiance Lamp has a limited detection range, and they’re somewhat conspicuous when lit. It’s easy to avoid detection if you know the range. It works well for small areas, but if a large area needs to be monitored, multiple lamps are required, which consumes a lot.

“Higher-end ones have a larger detection range and can even detect hidden extraordinary beings without revealing traces. For detecting ordinary extraordinary puppets like ghosts and visible traces, regular ones suffice.”

Beverly said this. Hearing her description, Dorothy pondered for a moment and then asked.