The fairy maid cheers for her deceased master today.

Ex frowned.

Then continue to the next article.

……

Part Three: The Bridge in the Fog

As before, the man in black injected me with the drug and then immediately made me deduce the truth. My hand told me to keep it short.

The fog in London was as thick as milk. I walked in the fog, but I wasn't walking; I was in a room. The room was moving, like a boat drifting on the Thames. We passed many bridges, and each bridge seemed to speak.

London Bridge says, "I am ancient, I have history." Tower Bridge says, "I can open to let large ships pass." Westminster Bridge says, "There is Parliament beneath me, but Parliament is not in session; they are having tea."

There were fish in the river, but they weren't fish; they were mechanical fish, driven by a spring. They leaped out of the water, transformed into birds, and flew into the sky. The sky wasn't blue; it was yellow, like cheese.

I think the key clue is: the talking bridge tells me I'm locked under a bridge. But which bridge? Maybe London Bridge, because it's ancient, and ancient things always hold secrets.

The fog suddenly thinned, and I saw iron chains wrapped around the piers of London Bridge, with small bells hanging from them. The bells didn't ring "ding-a-ling," but "tick-tock"—like a clock ticking.

There was an iron cage under the bridge pier, and inside the cage was a rabbit. The rabbit was wearing a pocket watch, and the hands of the pocket watch were turning backwards.

It shouted at me, "Time is running out, the water is going to rise!" Water? Where is the water coming from? Water suddenly seeped from the floor of my room. The water was silvery and had pieces of paper floating in it.

I tried to catch the pieces of paper, but they turned into fireflies and flew into the fog.

A song drifted through the fog, a nursery rhyme: "The bridge is collapsing, collapsing, collapsing..."

The song included Catherine's name. Was that my own voice? No, it was another me, shouting from under the bridge.

The mechanical fish, transformed into a bird, flew back, carrying a blue rose in its beak—the same one as in the second story! It placed the rose in my palm, and the rose suddenly melted, turning into a drop of ink that wrote "5" on the back of my hand.

5? Is it the fifth floor? Or the fifth bridge pier? My head is spinning even more.

……

Part Four: The Shadow of the Tower

I live in a tower, a tower that's tall, but not very tall; it's underground. The tower has round windows that seem to watch me like eyes. The windows aren't made of glass, they're made of time; I can see the past and the future.

Looking out the window, I can see all of London. London is small, like a toy city, but it's also very real; I can smell it—smoke, horse manure, and hope.

The tower's shadow was long, stretching across the Thames. The shadow wasn't black, it was colorful, like a rainbow. At the end of the rainbow was a pot of gold, but the gold wasn't gold; it was a key that could open my door.

Let me summarize: the tower's shadow points northwest, and there are seven colors in the rainbow, so I'm in one of London's seven boroughs, where I can see the whole of London. Perhaps it's Westminster, because that's where Parliament, the British Museum, and the Tower are located.

Wait, what did I see next?

It's... a giant! No, it's an angel.

This is the first time I've seen what an angel looks like; they look like cotton candy.

Perhaps I could sneak a bite when the angel isn't looking. She probably wouldn't mind.

But I actually saw an angel. Does that mean I'm already dead?

Oh, I see. I'm already dead. It seems this letter can't be left for my detective friends.

My dear friends, especially Elena, I wish you all the best.

I'm doing well here and feeling quite comfortable, so don't worry about me. Remember, avenge me.

……

After reading them, Ax showed all the articles to Elena and Angel.

Each of the four mystery articles is more chaotic and more... insane than the previous one.

"This isn't a deduction message at all." Elena's voice trembled slightly. "This...this is complete nonsense! Sister Catherine, she..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but Ax understood what she meant.

How could Catherine, that intelligent, elegant, and always calm detective, possibly write something like this? The fact that she could write it means the hallucinogens are incredibly potent.

Elena was very worried about Catherine's health.

"Master, it says here that Sister Catherine is dead!" Angel pointed to the end of the fourth article, tears welling in her blue eyes. "She said she's dead, and told us not to worry about her..."

"...Calm down, Angel. Don't be scared. Think about it again." Ex quickly comforted her.

Angel sobbed twice, lowered her head to think, and finally realized what was happening.

"Yes, because it's all nonsense, it's invalid!"

After calming the two fairies down, X re-examined the articles.

He picked up the first parchment and read it carefully again.

Each piece of writing is tinged with a touch of poetry amidst its madness, but the content is like the ramblings of a drunkard.

"Playing card castle", "Popping candy floor", "glass marble medal", "sighing cloud", "cotton candy angel"... these chaotic images cannot point to any specific location at all.

Catherine's mind was already in a mess when she wrote the letter.

Therefore, conventional logical reasoning methods cannot be used to deduce the location where Catherine was imprisoned.

"Then there's simply no solution!"

Irene clenched her fist tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.

"The kidnappers never intended for us to find Sister Catherine! They were just playing a trick on us!"

Is it true?

No, judging from their previous actions, they followed the rules.

The placement of each clue was also carefully planned.

The other person is playing this game seriously.

Put yourself in their shoes. If the other party really was just teasing you, there would be no need for them to go to such lengths to create a puzzle, design the location of each clue according to the puzzle, and place the clues in the designated locations without alerting the aliens or guards.

Thinking about it this way, the person who set the question really went all out.

If the other party really doesn't want to be reasonable... then they should turn on you at the last minute, not now.

"Master..." Angel suddenly tugged at X's sleeve, her little face full of worry, "Sister Elena looks terrible!"

Ex immediately looked up and saw that Irene's face was as pale as paper, her forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat, and her body was swaying slightly, as if she would collapse at any moment.

"Elena!" Ex exclaimed in surprise and quickly stepped forward to support her.

"I...I'm fine..." Irene shook her head weakly, "I'm just...just a little dizzy..."

"You're too stressed and overthinking."

Ex immediately realized the reason and said softly.

"Let's go back to the detective agency first, so you can get some rest."

"But... Sister Catherine..." Elena still wanted to insist.

"Catherine wouldn't want to see you like this either," Ax shook his head. "Let's go back first, and once you've recovered, we can continue to think of a solution. We still have time."

There's still a whole day left.

Seeing the concern in X's eyes, Elena finally nodded.

Ax helped Elena, with Angel following behind, and the three of them left the secret room in the White Tower. The rain was still falling outside, the cold rain stinging their faces, making Elena slightly more alert.

"Can we walk?" Ax asked.

"Okay..." Elena nodded, but her steps were still a little unsteady.

X thought for a moment, then squatted down: "I'll carry you on my back."

"No...no need..." Elena quickly refused.

"Don't push yourself." Without waiting for a reply, AX asked Angel for help, and together they carried Irene on their backs. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible."

Irena's body stiffened for a moment, then slowly relaxed, gently resting her head on AX's shoulder. AX could smell the faint scent of herbs in her hair and feel her soft breathing.

"Master..." Angel whispered, her tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible jealousy.

"Angel, keep an eye on our surroundings," X said. "We also need to be careful of other unexpected events."

"Oh... okay!" Angel immediately straightened her little body and cautiously observed her surroundings.

She's still so easily fooled.

With Irene on his back and Angel following beside him, the three of them quickly left the Tower of London.

"Master, there's a carriage ahead!" Angel suddenly pointed ahead and said.

A carriage stopped by the roadside, and the driver, seeing them, immediately came forward: "Sir, Madam, would you like a carriage?"

Ax nodded: "Go to the Miss Detective Agency on Shuk Street."

"Yes, sir," the driver said, opening the carriage door.

X helped Elena into the carriage, then got in himself. Angel sat close beside X, her little hands gripping his clothes tightly.

The carriage traveled through the rain, its wheels making a dull thud as they rolled over the wet streets. Axe watched the street scenes rushing past the window, his mind filled with a multitude of thoughts.

Catherine has been kidnapped, and all they have now are two articles written by Catherine in a hallucinatory state, and two misleading articles written by the kidnapper in imitation.

These articles were a jumbled mess, offering almost no useful clues. Moreover, the kidnapper clearly knew Catherine well, had been monitoring her for a long time, knew her detective agency, and knew her friends.

Therefore, when imitating, one can write in a very decent manner.

"Master..." Angel suddenly called out softly.

"What's wrong?" Ex looked down at her.

"Sister Elena is asleep..." Angel pointed to Elena, who was leaning on X's shoulder.

Ex turned his head and saw that Irene had closed her eyes and was breathing evenly, clearly exhausted. A trace of worry lingered on her face, and even in her sleep, her brows were slightly furrowed.

"Let her rest," Ex said softly. "She needs to recover."

"Hmm..." Angel nodded, then asked softly, "Master, can we really... find Sister Catherine's location?"

Looking at Angel's worried face, AX gently patted her head: "Do you believe your master?"

"I, I will always believe in my master!"

"Then it is," X said confidently. "I never lie to my angel."

Angel smiled upon hearing this, and then, like a contented kitten, leaned against Ex's shoulder.