Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

This time, their target is all passengers.

That's too late!

Upon seeing this, Grey's heart sank to the bottom, and her clenched teeth rubbed a bloody mark against her cherry lips.

hum!

Just as the tomb keeper was facing his predicament and was almost in despair, red and black light patterns rose from behind him, forming a tight circle that enveloped the entire carriage.

The chains that had entered the carriages hung limply on the ground like withered vines, lifeless.

"Phew, finally finished."

At that moment, a sigh of relief came from the aisle behind her. Gray subconsciously turned around and saw her theoretical teacher squatting on the floor, drawing out a complex magic circle diagram.

Grey's grades in ancient languages ​​were average, but it was still clear that the language seemed to be a protective boundary constructed from Old Gaelic and Ogum.

"Leave this to me!"

Samael raised his hand to wipe the fine beads of sweat from his forehead, a forced yet determined look on his face. He looked up at the black dog and the messenger outside the window, who seemed poised to return, and solemnly gave a warning.

"Don't get distracted, do what you're supposed to do!"

The reason I seem to be struggling so much is mainly because I want to slack off.

I don't want those tigresses to come knocking on my door so soon and drag me back to work overtime until I die. I still need to be careful.

But the innocent young apprentice, kept in the dark, was naturally unaware of the sinister intentions his teacher harbored. He simply bit his cherry lips, nodded vigorously, and chanted the final incantation, unleashing the power of the weapon in his hand to its fullest extent.

"Holy Spear, anchor! — Shining in the Rhongomyniad!"

In an instant, the spiraling band of light suddenly contracted, and before Gray could raise her arm, it swung out like a sharp spear, instantly piercing through a veil of gloom and illusion, allowing the sunlight of reality to shine into the train, both inside and out.

The undead, the black dog, the messenger, and everything else from the nightmare vanished without a trace, like bubbles.

woohoo~~

The train whistled as it arrived at the station, and the passengers who had been dozing off suddenly opened their eyes, their foreheads covered in cold sweat and their hearts pounding wildly.

They had just experienced a nightmare.

In the boundless darkness, they saw themselves being chased by monsters and torn apart by hunting dogs, while outside there was a group of strangely dressed, black-robed messengers wielding chains and iron hooks...

But when the passengers regained their senses, they saw the shattered windows and the shards of glass that had fallen on them. Their relief froze, replaced by a look of surprise and fear in their eyes.

Could it be that it wasn't a dream?

Meanwhile, in front of the ruins of Bethlehem Mental Hospital, Artoria, who was surveying the scene, seemed to sense something and turned her head to look at a certain place in the city, her brow furrowing.

That's my gun?

Chapter Thirteen: Holmes and Watson's Brainstorming Session 4

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On a bench in a corner of the municipal park.

Grey sat properly to one side, and while waiting, she habitually took out a thick book from her bag, placed it on her lap, opened it, and began to read quietly to pass the time.

"Here, have something to drink to warm yourself up."

Soon after, Samael emerged from the bustling crowd in front of the beverage shop, smiling as he handed a cup of hot coffee to his young apprentice before sitting down beside him.

Grey accepted the hot coffee, thanked him shyly, and then, as if remembering something, quickly rummaged through her clothes and found the silver pendant, which she respectfully handed to Samael.

"Teacher, these are your things."

"This? It's for you."

Samael glanced at the pendant, chuckled, and waved.

Upon hearing this, Grey waved her hands repeatedly in refusal.

"No, this is too expensive!"

To be honest, Grey couldn't help but feel a surge of joy the moment she came into contact with it. She could feel a wonderful resonance and a connection with it, as if they had formed a deep bond long ago.

But the object in his hand was beautifully designed, and the divine patterns engraved on its surface exuded an ancient and sacred aura, clearly indicating that it was of considerable value.

Moreover, the power it contains, capable of easily tearing apart such a layer of barrier with a single strike, should not be underestimated.

For a teacher, this must be a very precious thing. If it can stay on his person, it should provide him with more security.

"Take it. This was originally intended as a coming-of-age gift for you, but since we've met earlier than planned, let's pay for it now."

However, Samael smiled, somewhat unconcerned, and resolutely placed the pendant into Grey's hand.

The Holy Lance Rungomminiad, though precious, was still dispensable to him.

The Spear of Victory in Athena's hand, the Star Sword in Artoria's hand, the Flaming Demon Sword Lyvadin in the Ninefold Seal, Charlemagne's Iron-Blooded Holy Sword Juvayus, Marduk's Old and New Covenants and the Primordial Holy Grail, the Alien Key that preys on the wandering star Wilpa... these famous divine weapons are all things he has used.

But now, most of these are either given away or left to gather dust in the warehouse; he doesn't even bother to touch them.

After all, as the god of trickery and intrigue, his greatest reliance is not weapons, but his mind.

Now that the Age of Gods has returned, the Tower at the End of the Earth, which is anchored to the surface, has long lost its original value. Giving the Holy Lance, which he has grown tired of playing with, to Gray is nothing to him.

On the contrary, this thing has a special meaning for Gray, and a more obvious improvement effect.

Faced with her teacher's insistence, Grey, who was not good at refusing, could only silently accept this precious gift with gratitude.

To prevent this shameless little apprentice from getting bogged down in this matter any longer, Samael glanced down at the book that Gray had opened on her lap, his eyes sweeping over the chapter titles, and raised an eyebrow in slight surprise.

"A Study in Scarlet? What, still reading this Sherlock Holmes story? Didn't you finish it a long time ago?"

"Because it was a gift from my teacher, I really like it!"

Grey answered instinctively, but then realized she might have said something she shouldn't have. She quickly hugged her copy of "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes," glanced at Samael, and then lowered her blushing cheeks to whisper the rest of her sentence.

"I mean, the stories inside are so exciting that I take them out and reread them from time to time."

"As long as you like it."

Samael smiled and remained noncommittal at the apprentice's attempt to cover up the truth.

"Speaking of which, you and Ritsuka Shuse do have quite a few things in common."

"Ritsuka Shuse?"

"Oh, a friend of mine who also loves detective novels lives in Misaki City in the Far East. It seems he's planning to open a detective agency soon to satisfy his detective fantasies."

During their conversation, Samael couldn't help but recall an interesting friend and his experiences in Misaki City.

Grey listened intently, her pure eyes revealing intense envy.

As a country girl from a remote area, she has always been filled with longing and yearning for the colorful world and bizarre events outside.

Therefore, she enjoys reading detective and adventure novels and fantasizes about playing a role similar to Watson in Sherlock Holmes novels, becoming a participant in the story, and contributing her own strength to solving the mystery.

And the Sherlock Holmes of my own mind...

Grey, holding the book in her arms, couldn't help but steal a glance at someone next to her.

"Never mind that, there's something I'd like to ask you for help with."

Just as Grey was lost in thought, looking to the side, a deep murmur in her ear startled her awake, and she pointed to herself in surprise.

"I?"

She couldn't understand how someone as clumsy as herself could possibly help this teacher.

Samael nodded and looked solemnly at Grey beside him.

"Well, strictly speaking, I haven't completely resigned from the association; I'm just carrying out a secret mission. Therefore, concealing my identity and whereabouts is extremely important..."

"Understood, I have never seen you in Lentinion!"

With just a glance, Grey immediately understood and stood up with her books in hand, making a solemn promise.

Seeing the potential danger eliminated, Samael smiled with satisfaction, then leaned back and assumed a pose.

He adopted a more relaxed posture, his deep eyes looking at the station entrance where the police and the stern guards were entering and exiting, and asked casually.

"Grey, what do you think about what happened at King's Cross Station?"

"If it were just the work of the dead, it would be understandable, but the appearance of the black dog and the messenger together is not a coincidence. It is more like something is awakening on the land."

Grey frowned, thought for a moment, and then gave her guess.

"I think so too."

Samael nodded, but then sighed, his brow furrowed, as if he had a headache.

"But even if we want to find the root of the problem, it won't be that easy."

"why?"

Grey asked instinctively, looking somewhat puzzled.

"Because there are countless heroes, gods, demons, mythical beasts, and strange divine beings who have died here, who knows who is being resurrected now? There are no real names, no clues, and we have to use the process of elimination to find them bit by bit, which is like looking for a needle in a haystack."

Samael rubbed his aching temples, looking somewhat helpless.

Britain was the final battlefield of the Covenant War, and countless gods were buried there, including divine cores, divine remains, dragon corpses, angel remains, and fragments of giant weapons. Almost any one of them could cause a great upheaval. With such a few thin clues, in such a complex atmosphere, it was simply unrealistic to pinpoint the instigator of the chaos.

Otherwise, Artoria and Morgan would have already sent people to get that thing out and physically exorcise it.

The enthusiastic young apprentice clenched his fist and earnestly made his suggestion.

"Can we try to narrow down the scope? Even if our approach is wrong, it's better than doing nothing."

"Yes, that makes sense. Let's start from the beginning."

Samael nodded, tapping the back of the bench with his fingers, and began to add information about the recent situation in London. Grey also reported on everything she had seen and heard while she was away.

"About two weeks ago, there were sightings of black dogs in several areas of Brent, Merton, and Sutton..."

"Around this time, the number of resurrected spirits increased in cemeteries in Surrey, Cornwall, Oxfordshire, and other areas..."

“A week ago, Hillingdon, Greenwich, and Richmond submitted similar reports…”

"Similarly, signs of black dogs appearing in the Fairy Forest have also emerged..."

"Three days ago, pedestrians in Soho, Westminster, and the City of London also began encountering black dogs at night..."

"Recently, ghosts in various places have become vengeful spirits, scattered among the gravediggers in different locations, making the work increasingly difficult and the workload ever-increasing..."

Grey held the Sherlock Holmes stories in her hands, sat up straight, and answered seriously with a serious expression on her face.

Samael raised his hand and stroked his chin, giving a brief summary.

"Up to this point, neither the ghost nor the black dog has shown any strong intention to attack."

Grey nodded, but her brow furrowed and her expression grew increasingly serious.

“But recently, we have discovered that evil spirits from various places seem to be intentionally converging near London and attacking the gravediggers who try to stop them.”

"In London, starting last night, there was a riot at Bethlehem Mental Hospital, widespread power outages in SoHo, and many nighttime venues are going to be closed."

Samael quickly added, then looked back at the station entrance, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"And this morning, King's Cross Station was pulled into the barrier, nearly killing a whole trainload of people..."

"That thing is probably growing stronger, and it's already starting to show obvious aggression."

Grey murmured to herself, then snapped out of her reverie and gave a serious reminder.

"Teacher, it seems we must find its location as soon as possible, otherwise it will cause more casualties!"

"Isn't that what we're looking for?"

Samael rubbed his temples, muttered a weak complaint, and muttered something under his breath.

"From the outer city, to the transition zone, and then to the inner city... a pattern... a pattern..."

"From the outside in? Could it be that it's right outside the city, gradually encroaching on Lentinion, planning to gather strength to attack this place?"

Upon hearing this, Grey's eyes lit up, and she gave the answer she had in mind.

In an instant, Samael slapped his forehead, a flash of inspiration struck him, and he suddenly understood, his gloom vanishing from his face.

"This is it!"

"I...I guessed right?"

Upon hearing this, Grey was half shy and half delighted, her face slightly flushed, happy that she could help her teacher.

Samael looked gently at his young apprentice, raised his hand to stroke Grey's head, and a hint of teasing appeared in his bright smile.