Chapter 296 : Locked In

West Tivian, Coal Ash District.

In the afternoon, the Coal Ash District, still reeling from the sandstorm, remains unsettled. The streets are bustling with noise. Inside a teahouse near the Coal Ash District police station, Adèle and Ed sit facing each other, gazing out the window at the distant police station building.

They continue to monitor the real-time situation and desires within the police station using the small corpse marionettes they’ve planted. They hope to uncover more useful information. However, after the informant they discovered was reprimanded by the mastermind, Alex, for contacting him under the influence of Adèle’s desire manipulation, the informant has remained inactive. To avoid raising suspicion, Adèle hasn’t attempted to manipulate the informant’s desires again.

Subsequently, Adèle and Ed decide to continue observing for a while longer, hoping to spot any new unusual desires within the police station. However, Adèle seems somewhat uncomfortable with the experience of simultaneously viewing multiple perspectives through her ability, her expression tense and her brows furrowed. Seeing this, Dorothy, through Ed, suggests.

“If you’re feeling uncomfortable, you can pray to that entity again and request to sever the connection. Continuing to monitor like this isn’t the best approach. We should consider other strategies.”

Ed speaks to Adèle, who, after a moment of hesitation, closes her eyes and prays again. As expected, the multiple overlapping images in her mind disappear instantly. After returning to normal, she lets out a sigh of relief and rubs her temples.

“Phew… what an unusual experience… seeing so many directions at once, hearing so many voices. Although I’ve used flesh puppets before, this is the first time I’ve connected to so many senses at once. Heh… Detective, you always manage to bring out something surprising.”

Adèle says this, as Dorothy has placed about six or seven small corpse marionettes inside the police station. This means Adèle is simultaneously receiving sensory information from six or seven different locations, which is overwhelming for her.

“A Beyonder who can control so many flesh puppets with such precision, allowing the one who prays to share their senses… a divine entity I’ve never heard of before. Although I don’t know the origins of this Rose Cross Order, it seems they have a deep connection with Revelation…”

Rubbing her temples, Adèle ponders this in her mind. After calming her mind a bit, she shifts the conversation back to the main topic.

“That informant, the police chief, has become much more cautious after being reprimanded. It seems long-term surveillance won’t yield any progress for now…”

“Indeed. So, we should try other methods to find this person.”

Ed responds casually to Adèle’s words. Hearing this, Adèle raises an eyebrow and asks curiously.

“From the tone of your voice, Detective, it seems you already have some ideas.”

“Of course… but whether it works or not remains to be seen.”

Ed says this, then pulls out a folded piece of paper from his coat. After clearing the table slightly, he unfolds the paper and places it on the table. Adèle immediately recognizes it as a map of the Coal Ash District. They had used this map earlier to locate crime scenes and pinpoint Charcoal Junction as a trap. The map still bears the many black dots they marked earlier.

“This map again… are you planning to use it to find someone? Last time, we paid a heavy price for it.”

Looking at the map, Adèle says with some confusion, but Ed responds directly.

“No, no… Miss Adèle, although the incident at Charcoal Junction was dangerous, I wouldn’t call it a loss. Despite the crisis, we gained a crucial piece of information.”

Ed says this, then pulls out more tools from his coat, including a compass. Hearing his words, Adèle asks in confusion.

“Crucial information?”

“At Charcoal Junction, that mastermind had flesh puppets stationed there.”

Ed says this, then adjusts the compass according to the map’s scale. Hearing this, Adèle’s confusion deepens.

“He had flesh puppets there for surveillance, that’s obvious… Can that really be considered crucial information?”

“Of course. Miss Adèle, you don’t know much about flesh puppets, do you? Generally, the range of control for flesh puppet artifacts doesn’t exceed a radius of three kilometers. So, that person’s location is within a three-kilometer radius of Charcoal Junction.”

Ed says this, then uses the adjusted compass to draw a large circle with a diameter of three kilometers on the map, centered on Charcoal Junction. The area within this circle is where the mastermind is hiding.

In this world, aside from Dorothy, who can control corpse marionettes up to a radius of ten kilometers, the control range for other corpse marionette artifacts is uniformly three kilometers. Dorothy’s Corpse Marionette Ring is like this, and Byron’s Corpse Marionette Button is the same.

“The maximum control range for flesh puppet artifacts is three kilometers? This is the first time I’ve heard such detailed information…”

Adèle nods thoughtfully, then looks back at the map.

“But even though we’ve narrowed down the mastermind’s hiding spot using the maximum control range of flesh puppet artifacts, it’s still not easy to find him. Look at how large this circle is. Searching within such a vast area is still quite difficult…”

Adèle continues, and she’s right. A circle with a radius of three kilometers covers a significant area, and finding someone within such a large urban district is no small task.

“Indeed, three kilometers is quite long, and this circle is quite large… but Miss Adèle, don’t forget, we’ve found more than one circle. Earlier, at the police station, that informant contacted the mastermind through a flesh puppet. This proves that, aside from Charcoal Junction, the Coal Ash District police station is also within the mastermind’s control range. So, we can draw another circle.”

Ed says this, then picks up the compass and, after locating the Coal Ash District police station on the map, draws another large circle with a radius of three kilometers. Now, there are two circles on the map. Seeing this, Adèle’s eyes light up.

“Right… the police station also has that person’s flesh puppets. This means the mastermind’s location must be within a range that allows him to control puppets at both Charcoal Junction and the police station. Since the police station and Charcoal Junction aren’t too close, the area where both points can be controlled simultaneously is much smaller than the area where only one point can be controlled.”

Adèle says this with understanding, and Ed smiles and nods in response.

“Yes, to be precise… he’s in this area.”

Ed points to the map, where the two circles intersect. Only points within this overlapping area can draw a three-kilometer circle that includes both Charcoal Junction and the police station. In other words, the mastermind’s hiding spot must be within this overlapping region.

Hearing Ed’s words, Adèle’s gaze focuses on the intersecting area of the two circles on the map. Her eyes gleam as she speaks.

“Indeed… this trap was set by that person from the beginning, so he must have already chosen the best hiding spot, waiting for us to fall into it. It’s unlikely he’s moving around.”

“This area is smaller than the previous single large circle, but it’s still quite large. Detective, if we want to find that person within this area, it’s still going to take some effort.”

“Yes, it’s smaller, but not small enough. In that case, perhaps we can think of a way to narrow the range further.”

Ed responds this way, and hearing his words, Adèle immediately asks.

“Can we narrow it further? How do you plan to do that?”

“Simple. If we can determine the location of another one of his flesh puppets and draw another circle on the map, the mastermind’s location will be the intersection of the three circles, further narrowing the search area.”

Ed shrugs and continues, while Adèle immediately follows up.

“Oh… so, Detective, how do you plan to find the location of another one of his flesh puppets?”

“Simple. We can put ourselves in his shoes. Miss Adèle, if you were him, given the current situation, how would you use your flesh puppets?”

Ed poses this question to Adèle, who frowns, places her hands on the table, interlaces her fingers, and begins to think while attempting to answer Ed’s question.

“The main purpose of flesh puppets is reconnaissance. That person is undoubtedly trying to use them to find and monitor us. After the black dog stirred up the sandstorm, he lost sight of us. The Coal Ash District is large, so using flesh puppets, he wouldn’t be able to find us quickly.”

“Indeed… there are only two of us, and we’re a small target. If we hide in a house or alley during the sandstorm, he won’t be able to find us. So, if he can’t find us, what target would he focus on instead?”

Ed sips his tea and offers a hint. Hearing this, Adèle quickly responds.

“The black dogs. Those black dogs are different from us. They’ve brought a lot of people, even a large carriage. That carriage is a big target. If he has flying flesh puppets, he should be able to find them easily.”

“Exactly, the Hunters. If he can’t find us, keeping an eye on them is the best option. After all, he needs to know if the Hunters have already captured us.”

“I still have a flying flesh puppet circling above the Coal Ash District, monitoring the Hunters. They’ve moved their carriage near the storage yard to detain the recently captured ‘ordinary person.’ My flying flesh puppet also spotted a suspicious bird there, perched on a streetlight, staring at the Hunters’ carriage from a distance, unmoving, neither approaching nor leaving.”

Ed says this, and hearing his words, Adèle asks in her mind.

“So, both you and that person have bird-like flesh puppets monitoring those black dogs? Why can you spot his puppet, but he can’t spot yours?”

“It’s simple. I’m controlling three bird-like flesh puppets, taking turns to fly over and monitor that area. It looks natural. That person only has one bird, just standing stupidly on a streetlight without moving. From above, it’s very obvious, so naturally, I can spot it, but it can’t spot me.”

Ed says casually. The upper limit for ordinary corpse marionette artifacts is two marionettes. The mastermind is currently using the same marionette to monitor both the Hunters and Charcoal Junction. He doesn’t have the luxury of a high marionette limit like Dorothy.

“Three bird-like flesh puppets taking turns to monitor, with none staying in one place for too long… that does sound much more natural. But earlier, in the police station, he had at least four puppets deployed. Adding this one, that’s seven puppets. Being able to control so many flesh puppets at once… not to mention the ability itself, the mental strength required is incredible.”

Hearing Ed’s words, Adèle marvels inwardly, increasingly realizing how formidable the intelligence-gathering capabilities of this Detective from the Rose Cross Order are. She also feels a sense of relief that he doesn’t seem to have any ill intentions toward her.

“Such powerful reconnaissance abilities… truly befitting the codename Detective. I wonder if the other members of the Rose Cross Order also possess such formidable abilities…”

Staring at Ed, Adèle speculates in her mind, growing even more intrigued by this mysterious organization.

At this moment, Ed picks up the compass and draws another large circle with a radius of three kilometers on the map, centered on the storage yard. Now, there are three large circles on the Coal Ash District map.

The area where these three circles intersect is much smaller than before. Within this area, Adèle and Ed spot only one building: a mansion.

“Steak Mansion.”

Only from this mansion’s location can one simultaneously control corpse marionettes at the police station, Charcoal Junction, and the storage yard.

“Finally, we’ve found it…”

Adèle murmurs as she looks at the newly marked location on the map. Then, she turns to Ed and asks.

“Detective, should we head there now?”

“Not so fast, Miss Adèle. After finally finding this place, it would be rude to go alone. There are others who are also trying hard to find this location. We can give them a heads-up.”

Facing Adèle, Ed says with a smile.

…

West Tivian, Coal Ash District, near the storage yard.

Inside the storage yard, countless people are busy inside and out. Panicked merchants inspect their goods, lamenting their losses and cursing the sudden sandstorm that caused so much damage. At the edge of the yard, a large black carriage is parked, with several plainclothes Hunters standing guard around it.

Inside the spacious but dimly lit carriage, a young man sits blindfolded and bound tightly. Facing him is Edmond, who looks at the young man with a stern expression.

“I’ll ask you one last time. Tell me the truth about your situation, the organization you belong to, and your plans in the Coal Ash District… If you cooperate, you may receive a reduced sentence during your trial. If you continue to resist, I’ll have no choice but to send you to headquarters. The people there aren’t as lenient as I am, young man.”

Sitting with his legs crossed, Edmond interrogates the young man, who responds.

“I’ve told you! I won’t betray the organization! No matter what you do to me, I won’t say a word! You black dogs!”

“Quite the tough guy, huh? Too bad your loyalty is misplaced. Those cults aren’t good for you. Don’t you realize you’ve been abandoned? It’s best to come clean here. At headquarters, few have any sympathy for cultists.”

Edmond continues to persuade, but the young man remains unmoved.

“No! The organization won’t abandon me! The mentor will send someone to rescue me! The organization won’t betray me! And I won’t betray the organization! So I won’t say a word… Ugh…”

Just as the young man is about to continue, his words suddenly stop. His face turns pale, and he opens his mouth wide, his expression twisted in pain.

“Ah… ah… no… stop… Mentor… I won’t betray you… don’t do this… don’t abandon me! Don’t kill me!”

The young man screams in agony. Seeing this, Edmond frowns and immediately restrains him.

“What’s wrong? What’s happening? Is your mentor interfering with you?”

“Ah… Officer… I… I…”

The young man continues to writhe in pain, his body trembling as he stammers incoherently. Faced with this situation, Edmond’s first thought is that the young man’s mentor, fearing his capture, is using some method to silence him.

“Hold on. I’ll take you to headquarters. They should be able to save you there!”

“Save… save… it’s too late… Officer… I… I’ll talk…”

Gasping for breath, the young man, in his final moments, utters his last confession.

“Alex… Steak Mansion…”

After uttering these final words, the young man slumps in his seat, lifeless. Seeing this, Edmond remains silent for a moment. After checking the young man’s pulse, he sighs, lights a cigarette, and stares at the now-deceased young man.

“If only you had realized this sooner… May the Three Saints forgive your sins…”

With that, Edmond steps out of the carriage. He now has a new mission.