Alice was watching the situation through the surveillance cameras. Seeing Clara completely stunned after opening the package, she stepped in to explain.
“You might have picked up the wrong thing. 113 is a cable used for server maintenance—a high-performance data cable.”
“Huh? Wrong thing?”
From the very beginning, had Clara mistaken the white cloth package for a relic?
No, that’s impossible.
‘Something is definitely off. There’s no way I (Rabbit) was carrying something like this just now.’
First, the weight doesn’t match. The surface of the coiled data cable was ridged, completely different from the feel of it against Rabbit’s back.
Moreover, Nyx could still sense the relic below. That was the key point.
This package…
It probably wasn’t the same one from before.
Kamui also objected, “Maintenance supplies? Would something like that be wrapped in white cloth? Frankly, this kind of fibrous fabric shouldn’t even be inside a clean room like the server room.”
Alice didn’t deny that.
She simply replied, “That white cloth isn’t from the server room. The relic we’re looking for was probably swapped out by the real culprit.”
“Swapped? Changed the relic? You mean after killing the Moon Rabbit, they went through all the trouble of using this coil of wire…”
“Invisibility?”
“Didn’t the drones in the server room catch the culprit?”
“No. The enemy might be invisible.”
Kamui frowned again and turned to look at Clara, who also possessed invisibility.
It wasn’t that she suspected Clara—she just wanted to know from which unfortunate victim Clara had stolen… or rather, extracted that ability.
“Fourth Calamity.”
Clara answered, “There’s an executive in the Fourth Calamity who can become completely invisible.”
“Naitemel has its eyes on the ‘God’s Legacy’ that World Tree Technology holds too.”
Alice said.
“The Fourth Calamity again? They’ve been active lately, seems like they’re…”
As rival companies, naturally if one side did something, the other had to follow suit—or even make the other pay an equal price if they lost something.
Clara lowered her head, pondering this possibility.
Come to think of it, Psycho did fit.
Not only could she turn invisible, but she also understood the technology. Most importantly…
During the resort incident, Nyx had scanned Psycho’s computer and found documents on the wormhole device—files stolen from the Association.
That meant this wasn’t her first time infiltrating the Association. She might even be a repeat offender.
She also had knowledge of the wormhole device, so it made sense that she could operate it.
[Even if it fits, there’s no evidence linking her to this.]
[Besides, all of this matches Bald Uncle’s profile of the suspect.]
[Even if it is her, what gives her the ability to command shadow soldiers?]
Nyx poured cold water on this baseless speculation.
[At the resort, she already took the blame once.]
The main culprit of the resort was Labi—Predator.
Psycho had been completely on the sidelines, yet initially everyone regarded her as the culprit.
“There are rumors that they’ve taken in the witch from the Expo Center.”
Alice said, switching the screen to display several photos.
Judging by the angles, they were taken from store surveillance cameras or the city’s Eye-in-the-Sky system.
The subject of the photos was a petite young girl in a red hood. Though she wore a wide hood, the shadows beneath it made her blue, snake-like pupils stand out even more.
“She looks very similar to the witch I sniped at the Expo Center… and she’s been seen acting together with members of the Fourth Calamity.”
“Hmm, yeah, she really does look alike…”
Clara nodded in agreement.
“But she’s much more youthful than the form back then.”
The “witch” in the photo looked even younger than Clara herself.
Maybe it was her daughter, or a clone of some kind?
After all, she had witnessed that witch being blown to pieces by Alice’s railgun.
“I’ve issued several bounties to capture her lately, but she always gets away. For her to move around like this, someone must be providing her shelter.”
“Psycho can also command shadow soldiers to act. Perhaps she’s assisting on missions or sharing the witch’s technology.”
“If the Fourth Calamity really did take in a witch who shouldn’t exist, then she…”
The clue Alice had thrown in at the right moment filled in the final piece of Clara’s conjecture.
Now, Psycho…
The Fourth Calamity as an organization could be considered the most suitable suspect.
All that was missing was a “button” that could link her to it.
“No, I can’t find it!”
Baozhatou scratched his afro and let out a wail.
At that moment, his drones had successfully entered the “hero network” server room, but no matter where they looked, there was no sign of the artifact.
“Drones are unreliable. Can’t we just go down and look directly?”
Kamui couldn’t help asking, “There are so many large pieces of equipment down there—there must be a freight elevator or something that can take us down, right?”
She had no intention of just waiting around any longer.
Alice replied, but also warned, “However, the elevator used during the server room’s construction has never been used since it was completed. You’ve both seen what it’s like inside—normal people simply can’t move in that cramped space.”
“There are no walkable paths below. Only small builds like the Moon Rabbit can squeeze in and move around.”
“You can crawl through the gaps between server racks, but once you get on top of them, there’s enough space to move.”
“The maintenance clearance is about 0.3 meters wide. For Clara and Miss Kamui’s builds, it’s barely enough to squeeze through sideways.”
Clara glanced at Kamui, then looked back at Alice on the screen.
Her petite lolita figure was finally useful.
In contrast, if the relic thief really was Psycho…
Then even sideways, she wouldn’t be able to squeeze through.
Her chest was too big.
From that standpoint, her suspicion seemed to be less.
“Let them go down, Miss Alice.”
Bald Uncle also spoke up, “Prioritize retrieving the relic. And the thief might still be in the server room, lying in wait. Don’t you want to check?”
“‘Nyx Radar’ can detect nearby relics. Once they go down, the relic won’t be able to hide.”
“The maintenance drones didn’t find anything.”
“That’s exactly why they need to go down.”
As a high-ranking official of the Association, Alice couldn’t refuse the management’s request in terms of her position.
“…Fine.”
She relented, but still cautioned, “However, even if you do find the thief, don’t start a fight inside the server room.”
“Mhm, I know.”
Clara had no desire to be the one who created a crater in Central City.