This time Lu Ning stayed up all night in the alchemy laboratory.
Lilian's foundation was already good. Her perseverance in not giving up even in such a difficult situation allowed Lu Ning to obtain enough memory information. Coupled with Lu Ning's own understanding, she has actually gradually reached the end of the apprentice level. .
As a piece of parchment slowly turned into black and white ashes under high temperature, a small egg-sized bead with a brassy color remained on the pile of ashes.
Apart from potions, this is the only thing that can be refined through a one-time refining transformation. The simplest alchemy prop, the alchemy bomb.
This kind of thing is a one-time item made with unstable exchange as the core. Every alchemist, and even the bombs made every time are actually different, and the power is also very different. The bomb in Lu Ning's hand It doesn't have much explosive power.
"But in this way, I am actually a junior alchemist." Lu Ning picked up the bomb and squeezed it gently. It was not as hard as it looked on the surface, but felt a little soft.
She smiled, put the bomb in the drawer, turned and walked out of the laboratory. Pierre had already prepared breakfast, and sitting in the shop eating were two brother and sister thieves who had been out for a day and a night.
"Good morning." Bai Meigui chewed a piece of fried meat and raised her fork to say hello to Lu Ning.
"You are back? How is the investigation of the news?" Lu Ning sat down next to the two of them. Pierre also gave her a breakfast of fried bacon and fried eggs. Lu Ning took out a piece of toast from the bread basket. I didn't eat the crispy bread in a hurry, but waited for the brother and sister's response.
"We asked people in the hotel about the guy's whereabouts after he came here. He arrived about three days before the exchange meeting. Because he always came in and out wearing that kind of clothes, the boss was quite impressed." Black Rose spoke. , "He always goes out very early before the exchange meeting starts, comes back around dusk in the evening, and eats in his room. We searched his house and found some traces."
"What trace?"
"Ahem, some methods commonly used by thieves."
Lu Ning realized that this probably involved some professional secrets, so she didn't ask further. That wasn't what she wanted to ask.
"Then you should have found something?"
"Yes, we basically walked around half of the underground den in Evarang." Black Rose touched her chin, "It turns out that some notorious guys actually sneaked in."
"notorious?"
"People's impression of thieves is getting worse and worse nowadays, and it's mostly because of them." White Rose held her chin, her tone a little unhappy, "Flying Hook, Silver Hand, and Razor, these three gangs are no longer thieves. It’s about the robbers.”
Lu Ning's heart moved slightly when she heard these three names, but she didn't show any expression on her face and asked, "What's the situation with these three gangs?"
"Killing people and setting fires." Black Rose's face also felt uncomfortable. "The profession of thieves is indeed disgraceful. We often steal things, but we rarely kill people, unless we encounter something like a wizard duel. Usually we only want money and nothing else.”
"So these three gangs infiltrated into the city?"
"And it seems to have been planned for a long time, and there are a lot of people. There seem to be more than a dozen people in each gang."
Evarang is usually relatively closed, but it is not that there is no communication with the outside world. After the opening day, there were still only a few people sneaking in, so the inspection work was considered good.
"It's not that Evarang's supervision is unfavorable. After all, there are always ways for high-level magicians to get in, but this also means that the people who come in are all magicians with good level, and they can be regarded as the elites of those groups."
"Are these gangs behind that Mai Master?"
"That's the problem. The clues are scattered. I very much suspect that these gangs are just acting as middlemen." Black Rose put down her knife and fork. "From what I know, although these gangs are all human beings, It’s a place where scum are mixed together, and they don’t like each other very well, so it’s impossible to cooperate on this matter. There must be someone controlling it from above, maybe it’s the parliament or there are some insiders around.”
Lu Ning thought for a moment and then asked: "Don't they know each other? Don't they know that other teams have also entered the Ewa Gallery?"
"The areas where the strongholds are located are different." Black Rose quickly replied, "They are not from Evarang. It is not easy to move around like outside, so they each set up a stronghold. Fei Gou is in the Peridot District, Silver Hand In the emerald area, the razor is in the amethyst area. These areas are far apart, and it is difficult to reach them unless you have to travel the entire Evar Gallery."
“Are these three groups the only ones?”
"These are the only three we know. After all, their reputation among thieves is bad. As for whether there are more, I don't know." Black Rose grabbed a piece of bread, "Miss Lillian, we hope this matter can Solve it properly, Evarang... is a holy place for every magician, at least we brothers and sisters don't want to be destroyed by people with ulterior motives."
"But since you think that there may be insiders among the top officials, you should know that this cannot be changed by what we do here. Natural disasters can be avoided, but man-made disasters are difficult to eliminate."
Black Rose was silent.
"Then can we influence the top management? For example, make this matter bigger and uncover the hidden culprit?" Bai Meigui asked.
"younger sister!"
"Brother, if you want to treat the rotten wound, you have to cut out the surrounding flesh until you can see the healthy part. If the problem in Evarang is really that deep, it will inevitably take a drastic change before it can get better again."
"Let me say something." Pierre came over and leaned on the counter to look at the three of them. "It doesn't matter how big you take this matter, but what will happen to so many residents in Evarong? Once it spreads, There are still countless important people visiting here due to various connections. If something goes wrong, it will be a disaster that shakes the entire continent, and it may lead to war."
"That's right, we shouldn't act rashly." Black Rose nodded.
It is true that the thinking perspectives of locals and tourists are different. At least Lu Ning does not have much sense of belonging, and does not consider the long-term impact when considering problems. But since Pierre and Black Rose have expressed concerns...
At this time, she felt a little warm in her pocket, so she said "Sorry" and walked to a narrow passage outside the store. She took out the heating gem, but it was not Xue Ni, but Catherine.
"Lillian! Do you know where Xue Ni went?" Catherine asked loudly as soon as the call was connected.
"Miss Catherine... I think your relationship should be better. If you don't know, it's even less likely for me to know."
"Stop talking nonsense! I went to ask old Howard. He said that Xueni paid your rent, so you must know where she went!"
This young lady is really hard to fool.
Lu Ning could only sigh: "I think Miss Catherine must know some of Miss Xue Ni's business?"
"What? Isn't there someone taking care of those things for her?"
"First of all, you should have discovered that Miss Xue Ni was missing yesterday."
"It's normal for her to disappear for a day occasionally, but it's not normal for her to disappear for two days without notifying us!"
You have such a good relationship that even if you don’t see each other for two days, you start asking where the person is?
Lu Ning stared at Gemstone for a moment before replying: "Well, it's actually her business that needs to be handled personally..."
"How do you think we are talking now? Can't we just tell our subordinates what to do in this way? Do we have to go by ourselves? What happened? Don't try to deceive me! Tell me!"
Catherine's tone was vaguely oppressive, and Lu Ning was not annoyed. She could tell that Catherine was really anxious. Under such circumstances, knowing some vague affairs of her friend and suddenly disappearing, she would naturally be worried about her safety.
"You should know that since Miss Xue Ni didn't leave any information, she didn't want you to know. So even if I said it now, please don't tell her that I said it, otherwise I will have a headache."
"I just want to know her current situation!"
"It's like this... With the opening of the exchange meeting, it is inevitable that some people with ulterior motives will mix in. The fields that these people are familiar with overlap with part of Miss Xue Ni's business. The night before yesterday, when some thieves' gangs were causing trouble, it happened to be in her On the territory. The people who can sneak into Evarang are high-level magicians. Even if Miss Xue Ni gives instructions remotely, it may not have immediate effect. She must handle this matter personally."
"A gang of thieves?" Catherine was confused.
"As far as I know, Flying Hook, Silverhand, and Razor have all infiltrated the Eva Gallery."
"How dare those bastards who reek of rotting flesh and blood enter the Ewa Gallery!?" Catherine's voice suddenly rose two tones, "They should all hang on the city wall from top to bottom for three years! Xueni This guy……"
"It is precisely because of your temperament that maybe she is unwilling to tell you. They are indeed worthy of death, but if the situation is tight now, a group of high-level magicians have to fight hard, and it is easy for the exchange meeting and the upcoming public lectures to Causing damage and possibly even injuring some of the distinguished guests who came to the Ava Gallery. Miss Xue Ni should now be trying to use some safer means to solve the matter. If it cannot be solved, she will ask for the assistance of the Magic Council. You can rest assured. "
"Huh...Okay, I will wait for two more days. I apologize to you for my attitude just now, Lilian, in this matter...you have nothing wrong."
"It's human nature, Miss Catherine."
"Thank you. In addition, Liz and I will prepare the matter about me in the past two days, so if there is no particularly important matter, we will not come to you and you can move freely."
This was very much what Lu Ning wanted. After she thanked Catherine, the communication was cut off.
Finally got over it...
Lu Ning breathed a sigh of relief. Catherine was quite smart. If she hadn't thought of all the possibilities, she would have been confused by her questioning her.
"Lillian, do you want to discuss our actions tonight?"
At this time, Pierre came out of the store.
"Well, Pierre, how many people can I have at my disposal here?"
Hearing this, Pierre suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
"This... plus the black rose and the white rose, there are twelve of us in total."
There are not enough manpower...
===================
In an alley, a short and thin man was rolling on the ground in pain. He didn't want to scream, but he couldn't make any sound from his mouth. The reason that caused him so much pain was that his wrist was broken.
Juno, also known as Fujii Yukine, was standing nearby, unfolding a very ancient-looking letter found in the man's pocket.
"It's a cover-up..." She nodded slightly and looked down at the man again.
This person's strength is too weak, and his whole body should be pushed out as a misleading signal. There are probably many such people scattered in Evarang. In order to divert the energy of the guards and parliament, the best bait should be...
She tore open the slightly thick letter paper, and sure enough she found that it was two layers of letter paper that were delicately pasted together, with a thin plastic-like piece sandwiched in the empty part in the middle.
"It can be inferred that the orders issued by the top are carried out independently, so the methods of committing crimes by these gangs are different. Yesterday's incident in the Moonstone District and the subsequent movements of the guards... that should be obvious. These are It's an attempt to move out secretly, so there should be some tracking methods on it."
Fujii Yukine blinked, a flash of blue flashed in his pupils, and then nodded.
"It's a trigger. It seems they don't want to get involved with this thing more than they thought. Well, since this guy hasn't met him yet, consider him lucky."
She took out a little animal blood from the material bag at her waist, dotted it on the letter paper, then dropped the two pieces of letter paper and left with the thin piece of paper. After she left, the magic that sealed the mouth of the man on the ground was also lifted. He ignored the pain and hurriedly rushed over to pick up the letter.
Below the original text, a line of small dark red characters appeared.
[I created a trap and ended up like this. I shouldn't blame heaven and others, but my skill has nowhere to be passed on, and it is sealed in a secret scroll. If future generations have the chance to get it, they will promote my method and they will smile even under the Nine Springs. 】
He hurriedly held the letter and checked it, but the space between the two layers was already empty, and there was nothing left.
After being stunned for a long time, he stood up with his arms crossed and chased Fujii in the direction he left, but where could he find her?
========================
Dusk was approaching, and Lu Ning had already put on a black robe that was easy to move around. This was something that Pierre found with great difficulty. After all, he didn't have a robe suitable for Lilian's age.
"Lillian, do you really want to act together? To be honest, they are all intermediate and advanced magicians. It would be a bit unsafe for you as an apprentice to follow." Pierre asked cautiously.
"I will not fight with you." She is the only person here who wears this kind of robe, and even a glance will not connect the two parties. "I have other things, and my more important task is to observe your actions. People and things, you just need to control the scene and don't let suspicious people escape."
"Okay, anyway, please pay attention to your own safety. We may not take care of you in the event of a fight." Pierre waved his hand. There were nine people standing next to him, all of whom were store clerks. These people were all intermediate or intermediate level. Senior magicians have different skills, but their actual combat skills are all the same.
"Then act now." Lu Ning raised her hand and pointed to the ruby area.
