The culprit behind the series of deaths was a witch?
Hearing this answer from Ma'am M, Silas felt a jolt run through him. Not only because he'd obtained a lead, but because he was currently searching for a witch himself.
They were vital materials for crafting special mystical items.
Stay calm! Don't let her see anything wrong!
Silas shouted inwardly, suppressing his emotions.
On the surface, he merely glanced at Ma'am M and repeated with mild curiosity, "A witch? I think I've seen something in the internal files about an organization called the 'Demoness Sect.'"
"The Demoness Sect, heh."
A contemptuous smile appeared on Ma'am M's face. "Nothing but a bunch of twisted, pathetic creatures."
Pathetic creatures? From the sound of it, there was something seriously off about this sect.
But then again, you're a mindless fanatic of an evil god. Where do you get off mocking others?
Silas thought to himself.
"But how can you be sure it was a witch?"
He remembered the main issue and steered the conversation back on track.
"This method of spreading curses and stealing lives is clearly a witch's signature style."
Ma'am M glanced at him with a smile. "The technique is somewhat crude, though. This should be the work of a rookie who just advanced to Witch."
"Witch?"
"Yes, Sequence 7 of the Assassin pathway, called 'Witch.' If a man takes this sequence's potion, he'll transform from male to female."
"Hm?"
Silas nodded reflexively, then suddenly processed what Ma'am M was saying.
He asked in surprise, "You're saying that drinking the potion turns a man into a woman?"
He was genuinely shocked, nearly forgetting his disguise for a moment.
"Although it's only a Sequence 7 potion, it does indeed have such miraculous effects."
Ma'am M said.
This is really...
Silas couldn't help but pull out the portrait he'd drawn earlier using the ritual, looking at the beautiful woman in the picture.
He found it hard to imagine that such a delicate young woman might have actually been male before drinking the potion.
"Alright, we seem to have gotten off track. Let's get back to the point."
Ma'am M picked up a slice of white bread and spread butter on it with a knife.
"I don't know what she's planning, but with so many deaths, she's accumulated a massive amount of life force and the resentment of the deceased.
We need to find her quickly, before she consumes it all."
Silas looked at Ma'am M.
"You want to stop her plan? Since when are you so kindhearted?"
He asked bluntly.
"As if."
Ma'am M smiled gently. "I want that resentment for myself. It's excellent ritual material. If she uses it up, what a waste that would be."
As she spoke, she pulled out the small black vial again. She'd given this vial to Silas before, having him use it to absorb the resentment of the newly deceased.
"Go find the altar, and just like before, use this to absorb..."
"Snap."
Ma'am M's words cut off as her arm suddenly detached at the elbow joint, dropping to the ground without warning.
"Clang."
The black vial slipped from the hand on the floor and rolled away.
Silas's eyes narrowed.
He saw Ma'am M's complete forearm and hand lying on the ground in one piece, pale as a plaster statue.
The cross-section was fresh and vivid red, without a single drop of blood flowing from it.
Ma'am M's face darkened briefly, then quickly recovered its smile. She bent down and picked up her severed arm with her other hand.
Silas lowered his eyelids, but inside he was overjoyed.
As expected, she's injured!
And she's badly hurt. Even the Shepherd sequence, famous for its tenacious vitality, can barely support her and can't fully heal!
Silas recalled the abnormality he'd heard from Ma'am M's body the night he drank the "Listener" potion.
Her body was like a broken doll temporarily glued back together, constantly tearing and repairing itself.
With such serious injuries, my chances are even better!
Silas encouraged himself internally.
Just then, he heard Ma'am M's gentle voice:
"I'm like this because of you, you know."
Huh?
Silas couldn't help but look up, seeing Ma'am M holding that section of arm with no anger on her face.
"Uh..."
Silas's scalp tingled.
He'd almost forgotten that it was he who'd used the Grade 1 Sealed Artifact to stab Ma'am M into the True Creator's shell, triggering the explosion that left her in this state.
But then again, the fact that she survived even that proved Ma'am M was truly hard to kill.
Still, hard to kill or not, she had to die. If once wasn't enough, he'd kill her again.
"No need to feel awkward. I'm just stating facts."
Ma'am M said indifferently, taking her pale arm and pressing it against the stump.
Moments later, her arm was restored, fingers moving normally with all functions intact.
"In fact, quite the opposite. I should thank you."
Thank me?
Silas felt like the explosion had scrambled Ma'am M's brain.
Ma'am M's golden eyes stared straight at him, that fervent gaze appearing once more.
She smiled, then lowered her head before Silas could show his disgust, picking up the black vial from the floor and placing it in his hand.
"Help me find the altar the witch prepared, and collect all the life force and resentment of the dead she's gathered. Understand?"
She said gently but with an air of finality.
"Alright."
Silas nodded.
"As a reward, I'll give you some valuable mystical knowledge, the kind ordinary Beyonders have no channels to learn."
Ma'am M dangled another carrot before him.
"Or, helping your sister become a Beyonder isn't impossible either."
***
Pocketing the vial and finishing lunch, Silas boarded a trackless carriage and returned to the Blackthorn Security Company.
"Silas, you've already rested. Why are you back this afternoon?"
In the hall, Klein said in surprise when he saw him.
There's a lunatic pressuring me. I had no choice but to come back.
"I'm a bit concerned about the case's progress, so I came to check on the situation." Silas smiled and asked, "How's it going? Have you narrowed down the target?"
Hearing his question, Klein shook his head. "Not yet, but there aren't many areas left to search. We'll definitely find them today.
Oh, right, Leonard said he has a new idea and wants to report it to the Captain. Do you want to listen in?"
"Sure."
Silas was eager to find the witch quickly, so naturally, he wouldn't refuse.
They walked past the partition together into the Captain's office, where they saw Dunn holding two pieces of paper, comparing them side by side.
One of the papers came from Silas, the portrait he'd drawn of the suspect.
The other was a wanted poster with a man's photograph on it.
The man had a round face and a shy smile, looking nothing like someone who'd have anything to do with a wanted poster.
Wait, these two pictures... they look somewhat similar.
Silas's expression shifted slightly. No way, is this guy the one who changed from male to female?
And how did Leonard figure it out?
He looked toward the handsome "Midnight Poet." His hair was disheveled, giving him a unique air, but his attention was fully focused on Dunn.
Dunn looked at the two papers, pondered for a moment, and slowly said, "So... you think these two people might be siblings?"
Uh...
Silas was speechless, seeing Leonard's face show a rare expression of helplessness.