absurd deduction game.

Having lost so much that he had to pay in kind, he couldn't play anymore. Yu Xing was a little thirsty, so he took his cup and went into the kitchen.

The kitchen was quite dim, and the light placed in the corner was not very effective, only able to outline Yu Xing's silhouette with a blurry halo.

He stood by the sink, the water in his cup swaying slightly, reflecting his expressionless face. The relaxed smile from the card game had long since faded, leaving only a quiet, somewhat dazed sense of detachment.

The sound of light footsteps stopped at the kitchen doorway.

Yu Xing didn't turn around, but simply tilted her head back and took a sip of water. The icy liquid slid down her throat, bringing a brief moment of clarity.

He put down the cup, the bottom of which made a crisp tapping sound as it hit the table.

"What are you doing following me here?" He turned his head and looked at Carlos, who was leaning against the door frame.

Carlos's fingers were unconsciously caressing the newly acquired, deep-colored sapphire pendant, the gem spinning on his fingertips, occasionally refracting a faint light.

This is definitely something he would like.

He has always been drawn to things that are unconventional and dazzling, both in the past and in the future.

Carlos's usually playful emerald eyes held little emotion at this moment. He looked at Yu Xing, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"It's nothing," he said in a low voice, with his usual composure, yet with something more enigmatic than usual. "You really haven't changed at all."

These words, spoken out of the blue, startled Yu Xing slightly.

He turned around, leaned lazily against the table, raised an eyebrow and smiled, "What do you mean?"

Carlos did not answer immediately.

His gaze shifted from Yu Xing's face to the sapphire on his fingertip, as if it were some extremely interesting object.

For a moment, only the faint sound of carriage wheels belonging to some wealthy person could be heard coming from outside the window into the kitchen.

After several seconds, he seemed to have finally studied the gem enough. He loosened his grip, letting the pendant fall naturally and gently tap against his belt buckle, making a soft sound.

He raised his hand and slowly tied the knot of the pendant to his belt, making sure it wouldn't come off easily.

After doing all this, he met Yu Xing's gaze again, glanced at Qu Xianqing in the living room out of the corner of his eye, and snapped his fingers lightly.

Instantly, the space on both sides was silently divided, and sound could no longer travel between them.

"Sigh~" Carlos let out an exaggerated long sigh, reverting to his usual tone. He casually flicked the sapphire at his waist with his fingertip, watching it sway slightly. "It's nothing, Captain. I was going to pretend I didn't know anything, just like how you treat me."

"But after thinking it over and over, I still couldn't hold it in."

Yu Xing narrowed her eyes slightly.

Carlos chuckled and raised his hands in surrender: "I won't cause you any trouble. I understand your reason for sending this out. I just wanted to give you a heads-up."

Before Yu Xing could speak, he tilted his head, as if joking, and said, "Captain, be kinder to yourself."

These words were even more vague, carrying a kind of ambiguous admonition. Yu Xing's eyes flickered slightly, but her expression remained unchanged. Only her lips, pressed into a straight line, revealed a hint of headache from being seen through.

“You know exactly what this is.” He closed his eyes. “That means you’ve seen what it looks like after it’s been used? The future…”

"Hey hey hey!" Carlos rushed over and covered his mouth, half-jokingly but seriously reminding him, "You can't say it, okay? I don't know, I don't know anything, haha."

The two were very close, and they both saw the chaos of fate in each other's eyes.

"However, I will accept it."

Carlos suddenly added, his smile genuine: "It is indeed quite beautiful."

Yu Xing pulled his disrespectful hand away from his face, a half-smile on her face: "Is this considered a little hint?"

"I was just complimenting your taste," Carlos said. Before Yu Xing could speak again, he turned around, put his hands in his pockets, and swaggered back into the living room, leaving Yu Xing with a relaxed back view that was no different from usual.

Yu Xing stood still.

His eyes were slightly unfocused, and his fingertips tapped lightly on the cold glass, making a rhythmic, subtle tapping sound.

If his guess is correct, Carlos had already undergone some kind of transformation after the catacombs...

So this magician from the future had seen him use [Puppet Life], which is why he took pity on him and came specifically to remind him.

The fact that he used such tactful wording to remind him might prove that he did not put himself in an irreversible situation after using [Puppet Life], and that the consequences were not so serious.

Because Carlos would not openly state that he would leave behind a puppet life when he knew that the puppet would be risking his own life.

Magicians aren't like that.

Yu Xing pondered for a moment, then chuckled softly and murmured, "Interesting."

Just then, a knock on the door broke the silence of the office. Qu Xianqing lifted her eyelids, quickly stood up from the sofa, and hid in a blind spot.

Carlos went to open the door, and Yu Xing also came out of the kitchen, looking over with some surprise.

Who would come looking for me at this time?

Could it be a fortune teller seeking an alliance with them? Or perhaps a performer...?

His sensory tentacles rapidly extended outwards, and at the same time, Carlos had already opened the door.

The visitor outside was indeed unexpected.

She was a middle-aged woman with a calm demeanor, impeccable attire, and a meticulously styled hair bun; she was none other than Martha, Mrs. Funer's personal maid.

At this moment, however, her usual composure was broken by an undisguised anxiety; her face turned slightly pale, and her hands were tightly clasped in front of her.

"Please help us, Mr. Carlos!" Martha spoke much faster than usual, her voice filled with pleading.

Yu Xing also walked to the door, stood beside Carlos, calmly met Martha's gaze, and nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

His senses had already spread out like an invisible spider web, sweeping across the area outside the door.

Not far away, a lavishly decorated enclosed carriage was parked, its interior bearing the coat of arms of the Fernaire family. The driver sat uneasily in the driver's seat, frequently glancing toward the entrance of the agency.

Carlos's nonchalant expression softened slightly, and he raised an eyebrow: "Ms. Martha? Hold on, tell me slowly, what happened?"

He stepped aside to let the maid into the room, but Martha just shook her head anxiously, indicating that the situation was urgent.

“It was Madam who sent me to find you immediately!” Martha took a deep breath, trying to make her story clear. “Mr. Anthony… he… he returned from outside town this morning after finishing a two-week research project.”

Oh?
Yu Xing's mind stirred.

He remembered the name: Fernal's husband, a history professor at Yolikev University. Carlos had previously collected a lot of information about Anthony when investigating the affair, but Anthony had already gone out to conduct research with his students before the deducers entered the instance, and they had never met him.

Tomorrow is the final day of the story, and Anthony is back at this time?

Martha took a deep breath, her speech still rapid: "Mrs. Fernale has decided to divorce him, but things are too dangerous lately. She doesn't want to spend her energy dealing with the reputational and financial troubles that divorce would bring, so she's pretending not to know about Mr. Anthony's infidelity and intends to spend this time peacefully with him before making further plans."

“A very rational decision.” Carlos tilted his head. “So, something unexpected happened?”

"Yes! Because Mr. Anthony is often away from home, and he and Mrs. Funnel have long lost their passion for each other, they have been sleeping in separate rooms for a long time. But just now, Mrs. Funnel wanted to ask Mr. Anthony about the situation outside the town, to find out if it was safe and suitable for travel, so she went to Mr. Anthony's room."

“I was right behind the lady, and we both heard… women laughing and joking coming from Mr. Anthony’s room!”

"Madam's face was very pale. After listening for a while, she confirmed that she could hear Mr. Anthony and a strange woman's voices coming from inside at the same time. So she angrily pushed open the door... Sure enough, Mr. Anthony was hiding a woman in his room. Mr. Carlos was Mr. Anthony's student and the woman Madam had asked you to investigate for her affair!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Xing's eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly.

This news was unexpected, even somewhat absurd.

In this town of Yolikef, where tensions are high, strange events are occurring frequently, and an unknown disaster may be looming tomorrow—though the last bit of ordinary proof is unknown.

In short, how could a university professor have the audacity to bring a female student home for an affair? This behavior is less audacious than rather strangely inappropriate.

Martha continued, her tone indignant: "Mr. Anthony was caught by his wife, but instead of feeling ashamed, he argued that he was just discussing important academic topics with a female student!"

"Madam is really angry. Although she has known for a long time that Mr. Anthony was having an affair, it is still too much to bring his lover home. This is Madam's property!"

"Madam berated Mr. Anthony, who initially cowered and remained silent, but after being scolded a few more times, he said Madam was being unreasonable! Madam was furious and argued with him, and then... and then Mr. Anthony actually... actually dared to lay a hand on Madam!"

Her voice trembled slightly from lingering fear: "Madam immediately told me to leave through the side door and instructed me to find you as quickly as possible, Mr. Carlos! Please take the evidence you found earlier to testify for Madam! Also, please protect Madam's personal safety. The whole thing is too strange. Mr. Anthony's condition is also very strange, much more irritable than usual. I'm worried that Mr. Anthony might harm Madam."

Now that things have come to this, the situation couldn't be clearer.

A family drama unfolds abruptly against an apocalyptic backdrop. Mrs. Furnel needs Carlos, a detective with solid evidence, to expose her husband's lies, and also needs an outsider to keep things in check and prevent the situation from escalating further.

Yu Xing and Carlos exchanged a glance.

Any other strategist might not have had the time to bother with Fernail, but luckily they had nothing else to do anyway, so they could go and see what was going on with Fernail and Anthony.

A look of understanding flashed in Carlos's eyes, and he nodded to Martha: "Understood, we'll go with you now."

He turned around and deftly took a thin, numbered brown paper file bag from a drawer in the living room. Inside was a backup of his previous investigation results.

"Let's go." Yu Xing said succinctly. Qu Xianqing, who was in a blind spot, waved to him, indicating that they could leave without worry.

The three of them quickly went outside and boarded the luxurious carriage.

The coachman had clearly been instructed beforehand. Once they were seated, he immediately turned the reins, and the carriage smoothly and quickly drove away from the street where the office was located, disappearing into the quiet and tense night of Yolikev.

The atmosphere inside the carriage was somewhat awkward.

Martha gazed worriedly at the rapidly receding street scene outside the window.

Yu Xing leaned back in the soft velvet chair, her gaze fixed on Carlos.

"Tell me about Professor Anthony," Yu Xing began, her voice exceptionally clear in the enclosed carriage. "Coming back at this time, and with this scene unfolding, do you think it's a coincidence or..."

Carlos weighed the file bag in his hand: "Anthony Howard, a history professor at Yorick University, specializing in ancient folklore and mysticism. He has a good reputation at the university and is considered one of the academic authorities."

He paused, then continued, "When Mrs. Fernell came to me to commission the investigation, Professor Anthony had just left Yorickf Town under the pretext of 'leading students on a field research project.' As far as I know, the girl he took with him was the one who appeared tonight, and who is also his most likely affair partner, Sarah Jones."

Martha interjected, "It's not the most likely, I also saw him meeting with this woman in secret!"

“…Alright.” Carlos agreed, then changed the subject, “So, after Mrs. Fernail received my investigation report, although she was furious, she said she could only wait for Anthony to return before confronting him. Unexpectedly…”

He shrugged: "He just happened to come back at this time, and instead of comforting his wife or paying attention to the chaos in town, he brought his mistress home and got caught red-handed."

Yu Xing tapped her knee lightly with her fingertips: "It doesn't sound like something a smart person would do."

Regardless of right or wrong, it is inherently contradictory for a reputable professor to make such an irrational move when the town is on the verge of collapse and his wife has leverage over him—even if he is unaware of the detective's investigation, infidelity itself is leverage.

“Unless…” Yu Xing’s gaze turned slightly cold, “he has a reason to do this, or he is being coerced, or he knows something and decides to bring his mistress home to show off to his wife before everything becomes meaningless, to satisfy some desire of his.”

Was Anthony a cultist?
Or perhaps the focus isn't on him at all... His lover, Sarah Jones, could make Anthony abandon his beautiful and wealthy young wife for a high-risk affair. Could a female student who could do such a thing be a cultist?
There is a third possibility.

Mrs. Fernail was the cultist, and regardless of whether the affair was true or not, she could use this opportunity to fulfill her duty of "creating chaos".

However, there's no need to say these things in front of Martha.

The carriage sped through the night, its wheels churning over the stone pavement with a rhythmic, rapid sound. (End of Chapter)