Chapter 423

Chapter 338: Meeting

‘The three coachmen have no souls; they seem to be some kind of puppets. The only living person in this carriage team is inside the last carriage…’

Larina stared intently as the three carriages moved to the open area at the top of the small hill. After the small passenger carriage stopped, its door opened. Under the watchful eyes of the Underworld Coffin Cult members, a figure stepped down from the carriage and stood before Larina and her group.

This figure wore a long gray-black robe that almost completely concealed their entire body. A hood covered their head, casting a shadow over their entire face, and a black mask was tied over their face beneath the hood. Only the faint light reflected in their eyes could be seen clearly.

The figure, whose features were almost entirely hidden, descended from the carriage. The eyes under the hood scanned the surroundings for a moment before the figure spoke, emitting a female voice.

“It’s quite lively here, whether in the visible or invisible places…”

Her tone was indifferent, as if merely commenting casually. However, as she spoke, her gaze swept over the ghosts lurking around. This action made the members of the Underworld Coffin Cult stop momentarily in their hearts, realizing that this woman had the ability to see ghosts. She might be an “Existence” or another extraordinary being who used ghost-seeing methods.

“Are you… Thief K?”

After carefully examining the woman in the gray-black robe, Larina suppressed her emotions and asked. The woman paused for a moment before nodding and responding slowly.

“Respected lady of the Underworld Coffin Cult, as you can see, I am the despicable thief mentioned in your letter. In accordance with our agreement, I have brought the goods.”

The woman, who called herself a thief, spoke to Larina and glanced at the cargo on the two nearby carriages. Listening to the thief’s words, Larina snorted coldly and responded.

“The tone in your letter was full of arrogance yet despicable… Heh, I never thought that someone so young would dare steal from us in the Underworld Coffin Cult… Thief K, which society do you belong to? Where are the other members of your society now?”

Larina asked the thief in such a manner, and after a while, the thief replied softly.

“Lady, why do you think I belong to a society? Why do you think I brought others here with me?”

“Otherwise? If you don’t have others backing you up, how can you stand against us with just yourself and these two puppets? Don’t you fear we might take advantage of you and snatch everything?”

With a fierce tone and a dangerous expression, Larina stared at the thief. Hearing this, the thief shuddered slightly and then spread her gloved hands, smiling lightly.

“Of course not. I believe none of you would dare act rashly against me here.”

“Huh… How can you be so sure we wouldn’t dare touch you? For us, taking both your soul and the goods back would be the best outcome.” Larina threatened the thief with a pressing tone. The thief then slowly stretched out her hand, pointing towards the massive fortress standing in the distance.

“Because of that.”

Following the thief’s finger, the members of the Underworld Coffin Cult, including Larina, felt a hint of confusion in their eyes. The thief continued speaking.

“The people from Dantold haven’t realized what place that is yet, so allow me to introduce a famous local landmark to the travelers from afar—Fort Strongwind. It is a crucial military facility guarding the capital of the Prit Kingdom. Of course, that’s only on the surface. In secret, it has an even more important function—it centralizes and coordinates the covert operations department of the entire Prit Kingdom government.

“In other words, it is the heart of all covert departments in Prit. To put it simply, it is the headquarters of the Anonymity Bureau of Prit.”

When the thief said this, Larina’s subordinates couldn’t help but be stunned, then looked incredulously at the distant fortress. Many of them showed surprise in their expressions. Although Larina had anticipated something like this, she still felt a slight shock when hearing the thief’s words.

“That place… is the lair of the Prit Black Dog?”

“Yes, you’ve been scouting this area for some time, right? You must have noticed the unusual nature of that fortress. It is not just any place—it is the headquarters of the Anonymity Bureau. There are several White Tier commanders stationed there, and possibly even Red Tier figures. No one in Tivyan dares to cause trouble here.”

Pointing to the distant fortress, the thief continued, placing her hand on her chest.

“I came prepared beforehand. Though I may not be able to beat you, if you directly attack me, I guarantee I can create a significant commotion, leaving obvious traces of my extraordinary abilities. That will surely attract the big shots inside the fortress.”

The thief said this to Larina, and hearing her words, Larina’s expression darkened, and she responded coldly.

“You plan… to threaten us by using the Black Dogs as leverage? Do you think those Black Dogs can catch up?”

“Of course they can. Members of the Underworld Coffin Cult from Dantold, you should know what our Prit Anonymity Bureau is famous for, right? The Wind Path inherited from the Prit royal family is a group of individuals capable of flying. They are among the fastest extraordinary beings. Though we are still several kilometers away from the fortress, I believe that if anything major happens here, the White Tier commanders inside will be able to fly over quickly. If there are Red Tier figures, they might arrive in an instant.

“No matter what, nothing can outrun flying, whether on two legs or four. If you truly want to harm me, I won’t mind us both going to the bureau for a cup of tea.”

The thief said this to Larina, and hearing her words, Larina finally understood the reason behind choosing this location for the transaction. It was to use the Anonymity Bureau as cover to ensure that forceful actions couldn’t be taken.

Indeed, this strategy was effective. The extraordinary beings of the Underworld Coffin Cult had virtually no speed advantage. If a few White Tiers flew out from the fortress to capture them, they would definitely not be able to escape. Not to mention, the Anonymity Bureau would certainly have Red Tier figures stationed there.

Larina could tell that the thief wanted to successfully complete the transaction. Her side indeed didn’t need to risk a hard confrontation.

“Heh… Fine, let’s keep the societies’ transactions clean of Black Dogs. Come on, Thief K, let’s start our transaction.”

As Larina walked to a small table on the empty ground, signaling that no force would be used, the transaction would continue. Seeing this, Nephnis, under the hooded cloak, sighed in relief slightly and approached.

Seeing Nephnis approaching, Larina’s heavy expression revealed a hint of gloom. She glanced at Kale, who nodded subtly in understanding.

After seeing Kale’s reaction, Larina focused her gaze again on the approaching Nephnis.

Don’t think you’re safe just because we’re not in direct conflict, thief.

Larina thought to herself, and at that moment, Dorothy’s voice echoed in Nephnis’s mind.