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Lucius lifted his gaze as Margaret and Nai emerged from the adjoining room. Nai now wore a cream-hued blouse with delicate buttoned cuffs, layered beneath a tailored brown vest adorned with subtle golden chains and plaid accents. Her trousers, loose and gathered neatly at the ankles with matching plaid bows, swayed softly with her steps. Her hair, once tousled, had been tied into a neat ponytail, giving her an air of youthful elegance.
Margaret, with a hint of satisfaction, folded her arms as Lucius observed them.
"Margaret, you are a magician," Lucius remarked with genuine admiration. "You have crafted quite the convincing disguises for us."
Margaret chuckled lightly. "I take pride in my craft. I am a seamstress by trade—my boutique lies hidden amidst the bustling heart of the city," she said, gesturing toward the window with a graceful sweep of her hand.
Nai offered a small, grateful smile. "Thank you, Margaret."
Margaret's expression grew more serious as she addressed Lucius. "Now then, shall we strike our bargain? Serve me well, Lucius, and I shall reward you handsomely—with gold—and I vow also to aid in the rescue of your captured friends."
Lucius's face darkened with resolve. He rose from his seat and gave a curt nod. "You have my word."
At that moment, the door creaked open, and Liam entered, a folded letter in his gloved hand. His gaze flickered briefly across Lucius and Nai, visibly noting their transformed appearances, before stepping forward and bowing slightly.
"My lady," he intoned respectfully, offering the letter.
Margaret received it with a nod of thanks and quickly scanned its contents. Her brows furrowed.
"It seems," she said at last, "that we have another matter requiring our attention."
Nai tilted her head, a note of curiosity in her voice. "What sort of matter?"
Margaret inhaled slowly before replying, her voice more solemn. "This city, despite its glittering façade, is far from peaceful. Death haunts its streets—silent, unexplained." She paused, her hand tightening slightly around the parchment. "By day, I am a humble stylist; by night, I serve as an undercover detective beneath the guidance of our secret host. Yet thus far, I have found only corpses."
Liam, standing tall at her side, added grimly, "A rumor spreads among the lower quarters—a strange melody, they say, a song so haunting that those who hear it are soon claimed by death."
Lucius and Nai exchanged wide-eyed glances, the weight of the revelation settling over them.
Margaret's gaze sharpened. "Well, Lucius, Nai—what say you?"
Lucius looked down briefly, his thoughts churning, then lifted his head with steadfast determination. "...We will aid you."
Nai nodded firmly in agreement beside him.
"Good," Margaret said, her voice warming with approval. "You shall require arms for the dangers ahead."
Lucius straightened at once. "I prefer blades."
Liam, smirking slightly, interjected, "Then you shall carry firearms as well, should steel prove insufficient."
"They manifest beneath the veil of night, often within the shadowed alleyways," Margaret had warned, her voice low and grave.
The hours slipped by, and night had fully unfurled its cloak upon the Moving City. Lucius and Nai wandered through the deserted streets where silence reigned, broken only by the distant clink of guards' armor and the faint clatter of the few who dined late within hidden taverns.
Nai, clutching her arms against the cold, cast a wary glance toward Lucius. "Do you place your trust in Margaret, Lucius?" she asked softly.
Without a moment's hesitation, Lucius answered, "I do not. Yet, she has given her word to assist us in reclaiming Yu Xuan and Harriet. We have little choice but to place our faith where we must."
Nai's gaze swept the empty thoroughfares, her voice tinged with unease. "...I loathe this place."
Lucius smirked faintly. "As do I. But we must hear the cursed melody before—"
He turned mid-sentence—only to find Nai gone.
His heart thudded violently against his ribs. The alleyways around him had twisted unnaturally, shifting as though he had been thrust into a maze. Cold dread clawed at his spine.
"Nai?" he called, his voice tight with panic. "Shit...Nai?!"
A sudden, chilling silence answered him.
Lucius clenched his fists, taking a faltering step forward, when a soft sound—an ethereal lullaby—wafted toward him from the far end of the crooked alley.
The melody was haunting, sweet yet sorrowful, and it burrowed into his mind like cold fingers. The shadows danced at the corners of his vision, and there, emerging through the mist, stood the blurry figure of a little girl.
She was draped in white, her eyes obscured beneath long, disheveled hair. The song slipped from her pale lips in broken, ghostly whispers.
Lucius's breath caught painfully in his throat.
The girl's head tilted.
"Lucius..." she murmured, her voice stretching and warping into something unnatural.
"Lucius!!"
The cry shattered the nightmare.
Lucius jolted upright, gasping, to find himself back in Margaret's spare room. The thin morning light seeped in through the curtained window. Nai stood by the door, arms crossed, glaring at him.
"Why are you still abed?!" she scolded. "Margaret is summoning us. Compose yourself quickly!"
Without waiting for a response, she turned and disappeared down the hall.
Lucius sat still for a moment, pressing a hand to his pounding forehead.
"...Just a dream," he muttered under his breath, though the lingering chill in his bones suggested otherwise.
To be continued -