In the old house on Riverside Road, Saint Callen East District.
A sudden knock on the door startled Evelyn, who was lounging on the sofa doing her daily beauty routine.
"Hold on a moment..."
She shouted toward the door, stretched lazily, and then sauntered over to open it.
Standing outside was Helena, dressed in a coat, her expression blank.
"Oh," Evelyn glanced at her, "You're right on time, aren't you?"
With that, she turned and walked back lazily.
"Remember to take off your shoes when you come in. The slippers are in the second cabinet on the left. Oh, and don't forget to close the door."
"I know! Do you think I need you to tell me?" Helena rolled her eyes at Evelyn's back.
Then, she silently gazed at the threshold of the door.
After hesitating for a moment, she stepped into the living room.
It had been a long time since she had returned since the battle in this old house.
She quietly surveyed her surroundings. Except for the broken furniture that had been replaced with new ones, everything else was as she remembered it, still familiar.
Looking at the familiar scenes before her, it felt as though everything had returned to the days when she lived here with her brother, and Helena felt an overwhelming sense of nostalgia.
However, when her gaze fell on the sofa, there was something that made her eyes sting with irritation.
That woman...
She was lounging on the sofa in her pajamas, barefoot, with no socks, and the coffee table was cluttered with all sorts of human snacks, a chaotic mess...
And she herself was even wearing a face mask, humming a little tune while reading a newspaper!
Helena felt a surge of unidentified anger rising within her.
Did she really think this was her own home now?
Just as Helena was about to erupt in anger, Evelyn, noticing that Helena hadn't moved for a while, casually added:
"If you want something to drink, help yourself. There's black tea in the cabinet."
Her tone and demeanor were incredibly natural.
As if she were the lady of the house, and Helena had become the guest.
Helena's gaze turned icy, and a chill spread through the living room.
She forced a smile and asked, "Not bad, huh... You're really comfortable living here, aren't you?"
Evelyn could certainly feel the sarcasm in this remark and immediately sat up.
She tore off the face mask and smiled back, asking:
"Otherwise? I'm the tenant of Room 001, but you..."
Her smile carried a hint of mockery, "You haven't even dared to let your brother take you in, let alone return to live here. If he were here, I doubt you'd even dare to step through the door, would you?"
Seeing Helena becoming more and more agitated, Evelyn's lips curled into a mischievous smile.
"If that's the case, who are you to talk? You know, the relationship I have with your brother is even deeper than yours~"
As soon as she finished speaking, Helena's tentacles almost shot out.
But she clenched her fists and managed to suppress her anger.
Helena stared at the face of the annoying woman, struggling to control her killing intent, constantly reassuring herself.
Today's visit was for the purpose of researching a way to save her brother...
Let this woman be arrogant for now. Once her brother returns...
There will be a time for her to suffer!
After some self-comforting, Helena sat down as far away from her as possible and asked coldly, "How's the investigation going on finding my brother?"
When it came to business, Evelyn finally toned down her lazy demeanor and slapped the newspaper onto the coffee table.
"Isn't it under investigation right now?"
"Investigation?" Helena gave her a suspicious look, "Eating snacks and reading newspapers counts as investigation?"
Evelyn gave her a disdainful glance, "That's where you're ignorant. Even your brother always maintains the habit of reading the new newspapers every day. You know, a lot of potential information is hidden in these vast amounts of text."
Seeing her serious expression, Helena nodded, half-understanding.
So she was really investigating...
It seemed she wasn't as indifferent and unconcerned about the matter as she had imagined...
Helena quickly asked again, "So, have you found any clues?"
Evelyn looked at her with an incredibly serious expression, and Helena immediately became solemn.
"Well?" she asked expectantly.
Evelyn shook her head, "No clues."
Helena jumped up in anger, feeling the urge to kill this woman.
"I know you're anxious, but first, calm down..." Evelyn smiled wryly, trying to soothe her.
"The other side has power and influence, making it all too easy for them to hide their tracks. I've already contacted the friends I've made over the years, from all walks of life, and I've also asked my family for help. Once there's a lead, she'll come find me immediately."
Thinking of Evelyn's noble background, Helena's mood finally calmed down a bit.
She sat back down and glanced at the newspapers on the coffee table.
The headline news was still the airship explosion case she had personally experienced.
"You've been focusing on this case?" she asked confusedly, "What does this have to do with saving my brother?"
Evelyn immediately revealed a mysterious smile, "Of course—it's related."
"What relation?" Helena looked at her, puzzled.
She remembered her brother mentioning that this should have been an assassination attempt on Ophelia, but since the assassination failed, the crisis was over. What did this have to do with rescuing her trapped brother?
"A guest will be coming to the house soon. When he arrives, you'll know."
Evelyn's smile was enigmatic.
Helena became even more confused. Seeing her look as if everything was under control, it seemed she already had a plan.
"At a time like this, why are you being so cryptic..." she muttered irritably.
After that, the two sat in silence in the living room for quite a while, waiting for the guest Evelyn had mentioned.
Occasionally, they would exchange a few words, but they were all about Luo Wei.
Finally, as the evening rush hour approached in this steam-powered city, there was another knock at the door.
Helena ran over to open it.
The visitor turned out to be Captain Raymond.
"Oh? You're both here!" Captain Raymond didn't stand on ceremony, hanging up his hat and coat before walking straight in.
"Good evening, Captain," Evelyn greeted with a smile.
"Sorry for being late."
Captain Raymond looked very tired. He sat on the sofa and sighed, "I've been working overtime lately, checking suspicious characters in the city, inspecting flammable and explosive materials, and dealing with those accountability councilors... If I hadn't taken leave to come here, I wouldn't know when I'd get a chance to rest..."
"You've worked hard, Captain," Helena said with deep gratitude, pouring him a cup of hot black tea.
"Oh, thank you..." Captain Raymond held the teacup, curiously glancing at Helena.
He remembered her from the restaurant where he had looked for Luo Wei. At the time, he thought she was Luo Wei's girlfriend or something.
But after returning, he suddenly recalled that he had seen her four or five years ago, Luo Wei's sister. It was just that the little girl had grown up and matured, so he hadn't recognized her at first.
So it seemed he had misunderstood, almost thinking they were a couple.
If that was the case, Luo Wei's real girlfriend should be the young woman on the sofa.
He had met her once before, and he didn't expect she would actively seek him out, asking him to investigate Luo Wei's disappearance.
Captain Raymond glanced at the young woman on the sofa, thinking to himself that Luo Wei was quite the lucky fellow...
Although there was a bit of an age gap between them, it didn't seem like much. Recently, wasn't there a trend for age-gap relationships?
"Well... about your boyfriend's case, I've been keeping an eye on it privately..."
Captain Raymond continued, "He disappeared on the night of the explosion. The carriage he was riding in, I couldn't retrieve the exit registration, since the other party has royal background... However, my informants reported to me that several high-level black carriages left the city south that night, so the general direction of his departure can be determined..."
As he finished speaking, both Evelyn and Helena stood up excitedly.
"The south?"
"Boyfriend?"
The two women seemed to be focusing on different things.
“Since they left the city from the south...” Evelyn thought silently. Based on the subtle connection between them, Luo Wei should be relatively close to her. He was most likely in the south of Saint Callen, perhaps in the southern suburbs, or maybe in the rural areas and neighboring cities to the south.
Meanwhile, Helena was thinking, *Boyfriend? How could my brother be this woman’s boyfriend??*
Her gaze darkened as she slowly shifted her eyes toward Captain Raymond.
Captain Raymond had no idea what was going on. He only felt the temperature in the living room suddenly drop.
“Did you open the windows? Why is it so cold in here?” He shivered and took a sip of his hot black tea.
But before he could finish, Helena snatched the cup away.
She glared at him angrily. If it weren’t for her brother’s situation, she wouldn’t be so accommodating!
Hmph! If it were before, the captain wouldn’t be drinking this black tea! He’d be drinking the kind I served Evelyn the first time!
Captain Raymond was taken aback. He looked at Helena with confusion.
What did I do to offend her? Luo Wei’s sister has such a strange temper.
Evelyn covered her mouth and laughed, her eyes full of amusement.