Only after Eleanor returned home did she let out a sigh of relief.
She didn’t know what had just happened, but the way Anderson looked at her was exactly like how he used to look at Ainola.
That focused and gentle gaze, while comforting, sent a shiver down Eleanor’s spine when she considered he might have seen through her disguise.
“Hah…”
“Did you really have to scramble back here like that?”
Spark said, puzzled.
“Anderson probably didn’t discover your identity.”
“Of course I know he didn’t, but you don’t understand this feeling.”
Ainola shed her disguise, sat on the sofa, and gulped down several mouthfuls of ice water before gradually calming down.
Although she had escaped, she hadn’t obtained any useful clues.
Running away wouldn’t solve the problem.
Ainola understood this perfectly well.
“So, what do you plan to do?”
Spark crossed her arms, flying up to float in front of Ainola.
“Either you seduce Anderson and use the opportunity to get the key, or you just have to steal it by force. Two options, take your pick.”
Faced with Spark’s suggestion, Ainola thought for a moment.
The first option was indeed relatively safer. After getting the key, breaking the barrier, and obtaining the Eye of Wite, she could just disappear again.
The latter method was more dangerous, but at least she wouldn’t have to deal with Anderson, reducing the risk of her identity being exposed during the mission.
At most, he’d just know Ainola was in this city.
After weighing the pros and cons, Ainola spoke.
“I’ll try the latter first. We act tonight.”
Having been a nun in the Temple Knights for five months, Ainola was quite familiar with the layout of most patrols.
She was confident she could bypass these defenses and find useful clues in Anderson’s room.
Hearing Ainola’s choice, Spark couldn’t help but sigh.
“Ainola, you’ve regressed.”
“Why do you say that?”
Ainola looked utterly confused. She didn’t feel she had regressed in terms of ability, nor in her disguise skills.
To this, Spark explained.
“The old you could seduce people without batting an eye, then strangle them with stockings. Why can’t you do that with Anderson?”
“……”
Hearing Spark dredge up her dark history, Ainola’s eyes instantly turned dangerous. She smiled sweetly.
“Oh my, I’m running low on ingredients lately… How about…”
“I didn’t say anything! I didn’t say anything!”
Spark immediately covered her mouth.
Even though she didn’t have a physical body, Ainola, as the contractor, could forcibly grab her using their pact.
“Hmph. That time was different from now. If I hadn’t been broke, who would have wanted to do that?”
“It’s not like you’re rolling in money now either…”
Spark ultimately failed to control her mouth, and then she was snatched up by Ainola, who proceeded to viciously pinch her cheeks.
In that “gruesome” scene, Spark kept protesting.
“I’m not your doll! Mmmph! Don’t… don’t pinch my face like that!”
Unfortunately, her body, only about the size of a laptop, was no match for Ainola’s clutches.
After thoroughly teaching this mouthy little spirit a lesson, Ainola finally spoke.
“Back then, I did it because I knew those nobles would become dead men. But Anderson is different. I… can’t bring myself to kill him.”
Ainola sighed. She had thought hiding for five months would harden her heart a little, but the result was obvious.
She even missed that big bed a little.
Now, in this one-bedroom apartment, she either had to squeeze in with the Contact to sleep, or sleep on a hard plank bed.
Fortunately, the Contact usually didn’t come back at night, so Ainola could often have a bed to herself.
But it still wasn’t as comfortable as having her own room.
“Expected.”
Spark knew Ainola’s personality. While a bit of a scoundrel who liked to mess with people, her nature was relatively kind.
As an assassin, her skills were undoubtedly excellent.
It was just a shame that, because of this personality, she ultimately wasn’t suited to be a cold-blooded killer.
“But infiltration is pretty dangerous too, right? What if you get caught?”
Spark looked at Ainola with concern and suggested.
“Maybe just go with the first plan after all. Seduction, while slower, emphasizes safety.”
“Let’s try to steal it first.”
Ainola stubbornly wanted to give it a try.
Seeing this, Spark stopped trying to dissuade her, knowing it was pointless.
***
Time came to night.
To keep her public identity safe, Ainola did not disguise herself as Eleanor.
Instead, she donned a full set of black clothing and, taking advantage of the pitch-black night, stealthily infiltrated the outer perimeter of the Temple Knights.
Due to last night’s incident, the Temple Knights’ security was extremely tight now.
Even Spark couldn’t help but pop out and say.
“So many people… Ainola, are you sure you can do this?”
“Trust me, it’ll work.”
Ainola was very confident in her infiltration skills. Combined with her familiarity with the environment, getting into the Saint Church wasn’t particularly difficult.
The only hard part was getting into the deeper areas of the church.
Here, she was just an ordinary nun, usually unable to enter the high-ranking personnel areas deep within the church.
So, for that part, she could only take it one step at a time and adapt on the fly.
While talking, Ainola crouched low and entered the interior of the church through an area with no guards and no surveillance.
Facing the heavily guarded posts and dense network of surveillance zones, Ainola still found a path through the cracks.
“Is this the confidence of a veteran assassin?”
Watching Ainola’s light, nimble steps, Spark couldn’t help but applaud.
“You got in just like that. Impressive.”
But Ainola had no time to respond to Spark now.
Her gaze was fixed on the second large door of the church.
Passing through this door would lead to the residential area for high-ranking personnel.
As a Judgment Executor, Anderson naturally lived behind this door.
But since Ainola wasn’t familiar with the environment beyond the door, she had to muster all her focus, cautiously approaching it.
Ainola pushed the door, finding it wouldn’t open.
She then pulled two wires from her pocket.
Seeing her actions, Spark exclaimed in surprise.
“Wow, I didn’t know you could pick locks, Ainola?”
“As an assassin, I know a little something.”
Ainola’s tone held a hint of pride as she continued focusing on the lock.
However, after picking it, she pushed again and found it still wouldn’t open.
“Strange… I definitely picked the lock…”
“Is it possible,” Spark couldn’t resist commenting, “that this door pulls open?”
At that moment, for some reason, Ainola felt the urge to make spirit soup.