Outside the Backlund steam train station, Benson skillfully protected both his sister and his wallet as he efficiently located the exit.
Suddenly, they both felt a gaze sweep over them.
Following the sensation, Benson and Melissa saw a young gentleman wearing gold-rimmed glasses.
The gentleman adjusted his top hat, his eyes passing over them to settle briefly on another young man walking beside them, before brushing past and entering the station.
At that moment, Melissa instinctively followed his gaze and looked at the brown-haired young man walking parallel to her and her brother. She first found him somewhat familiar, then recalled the source of that familiarity—he had been in the newspaper!
That person looked like the "Hero Detective"!
Back when Klein was still alive, we even debated whether this detective's feats were real…
If he were just an ordinary person, then his legendary exploits would naturally seem fabricated… But if he were a Beyonder, then perhaps what the reports published—along with any omissions—might not be so far-fetched…
Having personally witnessed supernatural powers, Melissa had come to Backlund with her older brother not only for school, but also with a hidden purpose—to seek out the "Beyonder world"...
And in her mind, this famous detective had a high probability of being a Beyonder.
Besides, even if he isn't… having been involved in so many bizarre cases, he must have encountered the extraordinary!
Melissa had never been a girl lacking initiative. Once the thought was formed in her heart, she immediately approached and spoke in a tone tinged with "pleasant surprise":
"Are you Mr. Ebner Bryan?"
She sounded like a fangirl who had just recognized her idol.
On the other side, Ebner, who had just crossed paths with the Fool's new alias, was withdrawing his gaze when he heard Melissa's question.
He was slightly stunned, then turned toward the voice and responded politely, "I believe you haven't mistaken me, beautiful miss."
Although it was his first time meeting Melissa, Ebner had seen her image in Xio's dream, where it was shown within the Sefirah Castle. Coupled with the current location—a well-known scene from the original work—and the man beside her with the notably receding hairline...
A few guesses immediately formed in his mind.
At this point, Benson had also stopped walking. Though slightly surprised that his sister would take the initiative to strike up a conversation, he warmly greeted Ebner:
"Didn't expect to run into you here, Detective Bryan.
"My sister and I greatly admire your heroic deeds."
As he spoke, he took half a step forward to shield Melissa behind him and extended his hand.
Ebner also reached out and shook hands with him, smiling as he said, "Thank you for still remembering this 'washed-up' detective."
After a few polite exchanges and trading business cards, they went their separate ways—one side heading toward the carriage Mr. Skard had sent to pick them up, along with Helene and Leon, and the other moving toward the smoke-emitting pillar in the central garden, eager to experience Backlund's underground transport.
Ever since Melissa had initiated the conversation, Klein—who had crouched down pretending to sort luggage—also stood up again and murmured softly, "If it's not too much trouble, please look after Melissa."
"Alright," came Sharon's ethereal voice in his ear.
—Due to having experienced the fifth level of the Dream Labyrinth Tower, which replicated the Tingen scene, Sharon knew the true background of Sherlock's original family.
.....
Having purchased second-class tickets, Benson now sat in the subway car. Watching his sister looking over the business card she had gotten from Detective Bryan, he teased with a smile, "Melissa, I thought you weren't interested in anything outside of machinery."
Melissa held the card carefully, memorizing the address on it, then suddenly asked, "Benson… where exactly is the house you rented?"
"Cherwood Borough, No. 26 Kinster Street.
"The agent said it's a nice big house, with a great environment. The neighbors are all middle-class families, well-mannered… The rent is only so cheap because of a few incidents that happened there…"
Benson responded offhandedly, but halfway through, he noticed that his sister's expression had become a bit odd and asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Melissa handed the business card back and pointed at the address on it.
Benson looked down and saw the words "No. 28 Kinster Street" printed on it.
"So the luxurious mansion next door the agent mentioned is actually Detective Bryan's residence... What a coincidence!" Benson couldn't help but exclaim with emotion.
Meanwhile, Melissa's heart stirred with excitement: Is even the Goddess favoring me, letting me draw closer to the world of the Beyonders?
.....
On the other side, after boarding the carriage, Ebner heard the lion Leon click his tongue and say, "You were criticizing me for fooling around in Bayam, yet the moment you arrive in Backlund, women are already hitting on you. What I did for you back in Bayam might have been too modest."
Having experienced this lion's terrible personality over the past days, Ebner was already used to it and simply ignored his comment, changing the subject instead: "You promised to figure out the activation incantation for the 'Blasphemy Card.' Any progress?"
"You already tried 'Isabella' and 'Bruna'? Their names didn't work either?" Leon scratched his head with a paw and asked in return.
As for their conversation, Elaine, who was sitting across from them, knew nothing of it. Whether it was Ebner's "Tudor Emblem" or Leon the Lion, both possessed enough power to seal her five senses without her noticing.
"No, they didn't work... And I feel that if the answer were as simple as being the name of one of Roselle's women, Panatiya, who previously held the card for so long, would've activated it already." Ebner shook his head as he spoke.
"That makes sense... Let me think... Hmm... When Roselle forged this card, I think it was on the night of a full moon... He seemed to glance up at the moon at the time," Leon muttered after swaying his head for a while.
"A full moon? Could it be that 'Mr. Door' was involved in the creation of this card? But I already tried words like 'Crimson,' 'Bethel,' 'Abraham,' and none of them worked..." Ebner frowned, having no real leads, and could only continue speculating aimlessly:
A full moon... What else could a full moon symbolize?
Heightened spirituality? The Evernight Goddess? Lilith? Even the Primordial Moon?
Hmm... By the time the Emperor forged the Blasphemy Card, he had already set foot on the moon and realized this world was actually Earth, but he could no longer return...
Wait a minute!
At that moment, Ebner suddenly remembered another layer of meaning tied to the "full moon"—one known only to the Chinese:
"Raising my head, I gaze at the bright moon; lowering it, I think of my hometown..."
If he placed himself in the Emperor's mindset at the time—if he hadn't yet learned the truth about "transmigration"—then the authority represented by "Door" might well have been his only hope of returning home.
Unfortunately... time had already moved on...
With a sigh, a vague and inexplicable premonition surged in Ebner's heart. As a "half-prophet," he had a rough idea of what the Blasphemy Card's activation incantation might be.
"Hometown!"
After casting "Ivans' Veil of Secrecy" to enshroud the carriage, Ebner took out the Blasphemy Card and recited the incantation.
.....
At 2:55 in the afternoon, Emlyn had already come up with an excuse and left the Church of Harvest to return home.
He held his favorite doll in one arm while anxiously awaiting the arrival of three o'clock.
Soon, a burst of sudden crimson light swallowed him whole. He once again arrived in that ancient and mysterious grand hall, where many people were already seated on both sides of the central bronze long table.
Before Emlyn could look around, a lady whose face was blurred stood up on the opposite side. She respectfully bowed toward the mysterious being at the head of the table and said:
"Good afternoon, Mr. Fool."
The other members also stood up and greeted him in unison.
Only then did Emlyn belatedly realize he had missed something. Just as he was about to say something to save face and cover up his "disrespect," he heard that same woman who had first stood up speak again with a voice full of emotion:
"Praise be to you, Mr. Fool.
"You've saved Backlund once again!"