Only when Arthur was completely out of sight did Matilda's posture change.

The soft, lovestruck look faded away, replaced by her usual sharp, business like demeanor.

She looked down at the flowers in her hands, and a soft smile touched her lips for just a second.

Then she tucked them carefully into her bag.

Seth chose that moment to deactivate [Null Presence], stepping out from the shadows as if he had just walked up.

"You look happy."

He remarked, his tone flat and neutral.

Matilda jumped slightly, placing a hand over her heart.

"Jeez! Can't you appear like a normal person? Give a lady some warning."

She glared at him, but there was no real anger in it.

She recovered quickly, her professional mask snapping back into place.

"Never mind. Here."

She reached into her bag, past the flowers, and pulled out a small stack of folded papers.

"This is the second part of the information you asked for. Everything I could find on the names and locations you asked from me."

Seth took the papers, glanced at the top sheet, and then reached into his own coat.

He pulled out a small bundle of cash and handed it over—one hundred Bathalas.

Matilda took the money, counted it swiftly with practiced fingers, and nodded in satisfaction.

She tucked it away.

Seth nodded, tucking the papers into an inner pocket.

"In the future, if I need your help again, where can I find you?"

He asked.

Matilda shrugged, looking around the alley.

"Winter is still a bit far off... I'll be loitering around these same streets."

"The pawnshop, this alley, maybe a few of the cheaper cafes nearby. I don't exactly have a fixed address for appointments..."

She gave him a sly look.

"But you seem to have a talent for finding me when you want to."

"That's true," Seth admitted.

"Just don't interrupt my private time again..."

She said, her voice softening slightly as she glanced in the direction Arthur had gone.

"A woman my age doesn't get many quiet moments."

"I'll try," Seth said, though it wasn't really a promise.

He turned to leave, then paused and looked back at her.

"Well then, I wish you luck in your romantic escapades, madam."

Matilda let out a short, genuine laugh.

It was a warmer sound than her usual customer-service chuckle.

"Thank you, dear. I might need it. Now go on, before you scare off any more of my potential suitors with your gloomy lurking."

Seth gave a slight, almost imperceptible nod.

Then he turned and walked out of the alley, blending back into the flow of the early evening crowd without a sound.

Matilda watched him go, then pulled the wildflowers back out of her bag to smell them once more before heading home...

A small, contented smile appeared on her face.

...

Seth turned into a quiet alley and activated [Null Presence].

These days, he preferred to move using his own two feet.

He could run much faster than a pedicab, and he could take shortcuts no vehicle could... scaling walls, jumping across narrow gaps, moving over rooftops.

This wasn't the modern age with perfect roads.

The streets here were a maze of old cobblestones and dead ends.

Pedicabs and the few authorized modes of transportation had to stick to main routes.

For someone who could ignore walls, running was simply more efficient.

He moved like a silent wind through the districts, his enhanced speed making the buildings blur.

He stopped at the edge of the Zerep District, behind a small store that was closed for the day.

The area was isolated, away from the evening foot traffic.

There, leaning against the store's back wall, was Miss Brown.

She wore her usual mask, waiting patiently.

Seth deactivated [Null Presence] and simply walked towards her.

She noticed the black, grinning mask immediately in the dim light.

"Good evening, Mister Black," she said, her voice calm.

"Have you found out who the other demonic traders are? The ones connected to Darius Velon?"

Seth nodded.

He pulled a small, cheap notebook from his pocket.

"Yes. I observed two contacts. I've listed their appearances, and the location and time of their meetings."

This was half true.

He had accurately described the man who worked as a school janitor... the one who gave Darius the key at the public school.

But for Rose, he had altered the information.

He changed her description and gave a vague, false location for her hideout.

He didn't want Miss Brown and her employers to find and kill his sister.

Not yet at least... Rose still had too many answers he needed.

Miss Brown reached out a gloved hand for the notebook.

"Let me see."

Seth pulled the notebook back, just out of her reach.

"Payment first."

Miss Brown was silent for a beat, then let out a soft sigh.

She pulled a worn leather wallet from inside her coat and tossed it to him.

Seth caught it, flipped it open, and quickly counted the thick stack of Bathala notes inside.

Satisfied with the amount, he gave a single nod.

"Will you give me the information now?"

Miss Brown asked.

Seth shook his head.

Miss Brown's posture stiffened, a clear sign of her frown behind the mask.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"The prophecy," Seth said, his voice calm and steady.

"You offered knowledge of a prophecy as part of the payment. I want to hear it."

Miss Brown was quiet again.

She seemed to be weighing her options.

Finally, she relaxed slightly.

Telling him this part of the deal cost her nothing...

"Very well. I do not know if you are well-informed, but the prophecy was spoken by the being known as the Great Liar."

Seth didn't react.

He had never heard of the 'Great Liar.'

But he also didn't ask, afraid that showing his ignorance would make him seem weak or inexperienced in Miss Brown's eyes.

Miss Brown continued.

"I will quote the prophecy directly and frankly.... It is quite short."

"'It said... A pillar of the old world will crumble into the earth. This city will become a pit. Rot will bloom in its heart. And from the deepest love, the greatest despair shall be born.'"

Seth listened carefully, his mind immediately working to break it down.

'A pillar of the old world will crumble into the earth.'

That could mean the downfall of a being, or an organization... either way it indicated something foundational being destroyed.

'This city will become a pit. Rot will bloom in its heart.'

For this part, Seth already had his own guesses.

Matamisan was going to face a major disaster.

The "rot" likely pointed directly to the Sin of Filth and the Coven of Abomination.

They were going to unleash something terrible at the city's center...

'And from the deepest love, the greatest despair shall be born.'

This was the most puzzling line... Love causing despair?

It could mean a betrayal by someone trusted... Or a protective act that leads to catastrophe.

Maybe a sacrifice made out of love that backfires horribly?

Seth shook his head, intending to analyze the prophecy further on his way back.

After finishing his analysis of the prophecy, Seth handed over the small notebook.

Miss Brown silently took it.

She opened it, her eyes quickly scanning the pages.

She paused for a second on the entry about Rose, then closed the book with a soft snap.

"No one else knows about this information, correct?"

She asked, her voice low.

Seth nodded. "Only me."

"That's good," Miss Brown said.

For a brief moment, her tone softened, as if the matter had truly ended.

Then her lips parted again, this time sharper and colder.

"Don't move."

The moment those words left her mouth, a burst of sin energy surged toward Seth.

His body stiffened instantly.

It felt as if his entire body was too afraid to refuse the woman's statement, locking him in place.

He could only watch as Miss Brown reached into her coat and pulled out a small, sleek pistol, aiming it directly at his chest.

'Not good!'

His instincts screamed danger!

He forced a single word from his throat.

"Silence."

The command was 'Don't Move,' but it didn't stop him from speaking!

His ability, [Word of Silence], activated.

A wave of absolute, profound quietness rolled out from him.

The faint sounds in the background vanished and the air itself seemed to still.

The effect washed over Miss Brown, and for a split second, the intense focus in her eyes blanked out, replaced by a serene, empty calm.

Her grip on the gun loosened.

The weapon clattered to the ground between them.

Seth tried to lunge forward to grab it, but his body was still partly locked by her earlier command.

More importantly, Miss Brown recovered from the silencing stupor far faster than he expected.

[Sin of Arrogance, Second Circle Ability]

[Blessed Body and Mind]: Gains a tough body resistant to physical attacks, and a mind with strong immunity to manipulation powers.

His mind was supplied instinctively by the notification of the [Authority of the Meaningless].

Her mind had shaken off the serenity of Silence almost instantly.

She did not hesitate at all to stop Seth from reaching towards the gun!

Instead of going for the gun, she lunged forward herself, her fist snapping out in a sharp, powerful strike aimed directly at Seth's throat.

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