In the northern district of Tingen City, on Zotlan Street, a four-wheeled police carriage adorned with the emblem of crossed swords embracing a crown slowly drove into the parking lot beside the police station.
“Do you operate out of the police station in Tingen City?” Angel stepped down from the carriage only after adjusting her hood.
She looked around; the parking lot was next to the police station in the northern district, where five identical black carriages were neatly parked.
There were also several empty spaces, indicating that the actual number was far greater than what was currently visible.
“Of course not.
We’re just borrowing the police’s carriage.
They can’t handle cases involving Beyonders, so we often need to be on call,” Dunn Smith replied as he jumped down from the driver’s seat.
Noticing that the coachman watching over the parking lot had come over to tend to the horses, he abruptly changed the subject: “Our company is at No.
34, just diagonally across in that three-story building.” The coachman seemed familiar with Dunn and his companions, greeting several Nighthawks without even glancing at Angel before heading off to care for the horses.
The four of them exited the parking lot, with Dunn leading the way, followed by Daly holding a wine glass and Angel curiously looking around, while Leonard brought up the rear.
The northern district was indeed Tingen’s most prosperous area.
It was now morning, a peak time for foot traffic, with carriages frequently traversing Zotlan Street.
After waiting for a while, they finally found an opportunity to cross the road together.
The ground floor of No.
34 Zotlan Street was a shop facing the street, but its door was tightly shut and there were no signs around, suggesting it had been closed for quite some time.
Dunn led Angel up a side staircase and around a corner to the second floor.
On the wall hung a vertical sign: “Black Thorn Security Company.” This was indeed the name Dunn had mentioned earlier; it appeared that the Nighthawks operated from this location.
The name had a classic mercenary group feel to it.
Considering the long historical legacy of the Goddess of Night Church, it was likely that this name had been in use for many years.
Dunn Smith pushed open the main door and waited until everyone had entered before closing it again.
Before Angel was a spacious reception room that contrasted sharply with the simple sign outside; its interior was quite luxurious.
On the reception desk directly opposite the entrance were papers and pens for guest registration along with scattered documents and newspapers.
To one side stood a natural wood-colored coffee table surrounded by a set of sofas and soft-backed chairs.
A large gas lamp overhead emitted a soft glow; if not for the absence of staff at the reception desk, she might have thought she had entered a high-end hotel lobby.
“Today is Sunday; otherwise, there would be someone at the front desk,” Dunn explained when he noticed Angel gazing blankly at the reception room.
“So you’ll have to make your own tea.” He then turned to Leonard, who was trailing behind: “You go return the sealing item downstairs first, then go notify Frye and Royale at their homes that there’s an operation tonight; their leave has been canceled.” The young Night Watcher nodded and took the copper wine cup referred to as a sealing item from Daly’s hands before leaving through a side door.
“Daly, how do you plan to arrange things?
You don’t need to participate in tonight’s operation…” “I’ll stay here with you tonight, but I need to rest during the day; I don’t have your Sleepless privilege of not needing sleep.” Dressed in black robes, Daly yawned and appeared utterly fatigued after handing over the copper cup.
Dunn nodded in agreement: “Then you should go rest in the duty room on the third floor; I’ll wake you up before we act.” After Daly left through another door, only Angel and Dunn Smith remained in the hall.
“As for you,” Dunn seemed to just remember there was someone beside him; he patted his police cap and said to Angel: “Before we carry out our operation to capture Madam Sharon, it’s best if you don’t leave here.
This will ensure your safety as much as possible.
Even if Madam Sharon manages to escape capture, she wouldn’t dare come to disturb us Nighthawks.” He pointed towards a partition in the center of the hall: “The room in the middle of that corridor is a lounge; there won’t be many people there on Sundays.
You can rest on one of those sofa beds.
I’ll send a female Nighthawk to keep you company shortly; if you need anything, you can let her know.
But don’t wander into other rooms; other Nighthawks members don’t know you, and if they mistakenly think you’re an intruder, it could lead to unnecessary harm.” Accompany me?
More like keep an eye on me…
Angel muttered inwardly but nodded in understanding.
Seeing that Dunn had no further business with her, Angel prepared to leave the hall for the lounge he mentioned, hoping to catch up on some sleep during daylight hours.
“Wait!
There’s one more thing!” Just as Angel reached for the left-side door, Dunn called out behind her.
“I almost forgot; tell me everything you learned from Cole Granger about Madam Sharon’s extraordinary abilities—whatever you remember.” Dunn Smith pulled out a small notebook from his police uniform pocket and plopped down onto one of the reception room sofas.
“Are we not discussing this in dreams?
You trust me so much?” Angel returned to stand before Dunn and sat across from him on a soft sofa, relaxing her body.
Dunn’s gray eyes fixed on her as he slowly said: “I do trust you; besides, our interests align—you wouldn’t want Madam Sharon to escape punishment either.” Trust me or trust that sealing item…
I’ll play along for now…
From her earlier interactions with Leonard and Daly in the carriage, Angel guessed that this copper wine cup known as a sealing item likely functioned similarly to a lie detector—allowing its holder to judge whether what someone said was true or at least believed to be true by them.
However, she had no intention of lying now; Dunn’s judgment was correct—Madam Sharon indeed represented their common interest—but there were also some divergences: For Nighthawks, capturing Madam Sharon alive would be ideal as it would not only resolve her status as a Beyonder beyond legal reach but also provide information about the Witch Cult.
This could potentially expose more collaborators behind her and disrupt all Witch Cult schemes within Tingen.
But for Angel, capturing Madam Sharon alive wasn’t necessarily good news.
The worst-case scenario would be if Madam Sharon escaped amidst their siege—the likelihood of which was very low given Dunn Smith’s involvement as a Beyonder—but should such an event occur, Angel would undoubtedly face endless retribution from Madam Sharon and her forces.
Next was if Madam Sharon were captured alive as expected by Nighthawks.
With just a bit of inquiry, her fabricated identity as Angel Granger would inevitably be exposed.
What awaited her next would be an uncertain fate.
The best outcome would be if Madam Sharon died while resisting capture.
This was quite common in conflicts between Beyonders; once both sides stopped holding back and fully unleashed their powers in battle, it usually ended with one party’s death.
This was also why Angel attempted to participate in combat—armed with Storm Convergence bullets and Assassin-like combat abilities—though she couldn’t control how battles unfolded, she could find an opportunity at battle’s end to kill Madam Sharon if needed.
Unfortunately, it seemed that Nighthawks didn’t want her involved in capturing Madam Sharon—perhaps out of concern for not wanting witnesses harmed or simply due to distrust towards outsiders.
At this point, she could only settle for ensuring that Madam Sharon wouldn’t escape.
If she held back and led to failure during capture operations—not only could those fighting against evil Nighthawks face casualties but also subsequent retaliation from hidden forces would be unbearable for Angel.
“I’m not sure if she has retained some abilities; so what I tell you are just what Cole has seen.” Angel preemptively cautioned Dunn against placing too much trust in her information during combat.
Dunn Smith nodded seriously as he listened attentively.
“First off, she advanced from Assassin, possessing all extraordinary abilities associated with Assassins, which are enhanced upon promotion—this includes dark vision, enhanced sight, agile limbs, a light body capable of explosive power in close combat.
If your Nighthawks lack similarly skilled close-combat fighters among your ranks, it’s best not to engage her directly.” Dunn diligently recorded notes while occasionally asking questions about specific abilities for further clarification from Angel.
“Next is Instigator.
It doesn’t provide additional combat abilities but enhances those inherited from Assassin.
However, Instigators excel at charm and misdirection—using eloquence to incite desires within others and create conflict among them.
If she fully utilizes these abilities during battle among your team members…
well…
how do you counteract this?
You shouldn’t worry too much about this; it’s not significant during direct combat—as long as she’s busy dealing with fighting without opportunities to speak.
You can enter others’ dreams directly—trap Madam Sharon within dreams while your other team members sneak into her room and shoot her ten times or so; any incitement or misdirection won’t matter.” During their conversation, Angel recalled memories of several violent incidents instigated by Cole Granger using Instigator abilities against both deceased Cole and currently living Madam Sharon—her hatred deepened further towards them both while introducing Instigator’s capabilities carried some emotional weight.
“Ahem…
The ability of Nightmare isn’t quite so powerful; however, thank you for your suggestions—they’ve given me plenty of inspiration,” Dunn Smith said with an odd expression as though recalling something unpleasant before pausing momentarily before jotting down notes again.
“Please continue.” So your potion is really named Nightmare…
Is it Sequence 8 or Sequence 7 of the Sleepless pathway?
After pondering briefly under Dunn’s urging, Angel continued explaining Madam Sharon’s abilities.
During this time, young Night Watcher Leonard Mitchell returned from next door into the reception room, looking intrigued by their discussion but was promptly sent by Dunn off to gather other team members instead.
He appeared lively and spirited—not showing fatigue like Daly did after staying up late—more akin to Dunn himself, leading Angel to suspect he too belonged to the Sleepless pathway, working through nights like it’s routine.
“Next is Sequence 7 Witch; for Assassin sequence, this stage marks a qualitative change—just by looking at the potion name alone indicates it provides various mystical offensive and defensive capabilities.
Madam Sharon has previously demonstrated conjuring frost weapons like spears, using the enhanced physicality granted by Assassin to throw them effectively with great power; then there’s invisibility capability along with Mirror Doppelganger, though it’s unclear how these are manifested but we can guess their uses by name alone; Witch also excels at casting curses through others’ blood or hair, requiring preparation items which likely holds little use on a direct battlefield…” By Sequence 7, knowledge regarding Madam Sharon’s capabilities became scarce even for Angel—or rather, for Cole Granger—as prior knowledge stemmed mostly from being merely an apprentice and companion rather than an equal opponent.
Cole had rarely witnessed higher-tier combat skills from her.
Finally summarizing: “That’s about it!
However, Madam Sharon has been an extraordinary individual since before Cole met her, likely nearing or even promoted to Sequence 6 by now!
You better treat her like she’s at Sequence 6 level; don’t harbor any false hopes—it’s dangerous!
Bring more people…” Dunn Smith swiftly finished writing the last few lines, closing his notebook before smiling and saying: “Thank you for your reminder—we’ll pay attention during battle!
In fact, I initially planned treating Madam Sharon according to methods used against Sequence 6 individuals—we will deploy four Nighthawks equipped appropriately with sealing items, ensuring we capture her alive!
Please wait patiently for good news!” Hearing this made me feel uneasy instead…
Angel hoped tonight would yield genuine good news such as “Madam Sharon unfortunately perished while resisting capture,” yet such thoughts couldn’t be openly expressed—she could only respond with a bitter smile.