Fisher couldn’t shake the feeling that the name sounded somewhat familiar.
He looked baffled as he reached into his pocket, producing the business card Keken had left with him before leaving. The identity information written on it was,
"Saint Nali Children Relief Charity Foundation Bai Cui Bank Chief Director—Keken Bai Cui"
Fisher opened his mouth, and Anna leaned over simultaneously to look at the card in his hand. When she saw the business card Fisher held, she too was stunned into silence.
Previously, he had thought Fisher was just a scholar who lived off a woman, but now it appeared that he had quite expansive connections—how else could he have the contact information for the chief director of the Bai Cui Bank charity fund?
After a silence of one second, Anna asked in a dry tone,
"Are you on good terms with this director?"
"...Not bad, asking him for a favor shouldn’t be hard. First, tell me how to enter the Inner District after getting into the outer area?"
Anna hadn’t finished speaking when, suddenly, the voice of a middle-aged man came from behind the tombstone, interrupting her about to speak,
"Who’s there talking?!"
Fisher’s face changed as he instinctively stepped in front of Anna, embracing her and quickly retreating to the trees next to the tombstone. The light of the Handcane also went out at once, replaced by a weird purple light.
That purple light emitted a thick Blinding Black Fog, reflecting the scenery of the trees behind Fisher and Anna.
Ring Magic, "Blinding Black Fog."
In the dark, Anna clutched Fisher’s coat tightly, nervously watching the Tomb Guardian walking out from the back with a lamp. The middle-aged man raised the lamp in the direction of Fisher, but as if he had seen nothing, he then turned elsewhere.
Upon seeing the sacrifices laid on the ground, the Tomb Guardian’s body shivered slightly,
"May the Mother Goddess bless us, surely no ghost has come to pay tribute this late..."
His lips quivered, and he quickly left the place, carrying the lamp, afraid that some evil spirit might follow him.
Anna’s heartbeat accelerated slightly. She was tall, so her fragrant breath fell onto Fisher’s collar. At the same time, her body was soft and well-proportioned, delicate and light as cotton candy.
The Tomb Guardian had walked far away when Anna finally whispered in Fisher’s arms, reminding him to hurry and distance himself, to not always be holding her.
But Fisher wasn’t about to indulge her. Instead, he looked down at Anna and said somewhat speechlessly,
"So let go of my coat."
After Fisher finished speaking, Anna belatedly realized she was clutching his coat.
She quickly let go of Fisher’s clothes and moved several steps away from him, adjusting her dress in the process.
The atmosphere was slightly awkward. Anna glanced at Fisher, changing the subject unnaturally,
"How come he didn’t notice us just now?"
Fisher brushed her off casually, and Anna’s mood settled a bit as she continued the previously interrupted topic,
"...After you enter the outer area, you need to find a room called the ’Sanatorium Room.’ The entrance to the Inner District is in there. But as soon as you open that entrance, Kachina will know..."
At this point, Anna coldly smiled,
"But it will be during the charity ball then, and she cannot afford to chase after you with much ado. That way, you will be much safer. Just find the location of the hidden treasury..."
Fisher sorted through the information he got from Anna, asking a few questions that might arise until he felt more at ease.
"The charity ball is this weekend, you better hurry and see if your friend can help you get in... If not, you can even try Princess Elizabeth."
Hmm, Anna was actually more anxious than Fisher. Before leaving, she made sure to repeatedly remind Fisher to mind the time.
She didn’t quite trust Fisher’s execution capabilities as a scholar, fearing any slip-up or mistake during the action, which might cause her grand plan to regain freedom to fail—making it look like Fisher was the one dragging his feet.
"I know, I’ll handle it."
Fisher nodded, ready to take his leave, but just as he was about to walk away, Anna called out to him again.
He turned, looking at Anna confusedly, only to see her pull out a small handkerchief from her bosom, then dabbing it with some water from the flask she took out of her bag, approaching Fisher.
She pulled at Fisher’s collar, wiping it with one hand while saying,
"I forgot to say earlier, my lipstick stained your collar..."
It turned out that in their haste to avoid the Tomb Guardian’s gaze earlier, she had accidentally rubbed against him, and Anna, meticulous as she was, came over to clean off the potential hazard off Fisher’s collar.
"It’s a good thing it wasn’t deep, came off..."
Anna gave him a glance, confirming the mark was cleaned after which she didn’t move away from Fisher’s side but instead softly said,
"There’s no need for thanks, helping me regain my freedom is the greatest gratitude. As long as I can be free again, whatever I have to do doesn’t matter... If you feel indebted, I can be yours too."
As she spoke, she leaned gently against Fisher, her hand delicately touching his back, a beautiful face gazing directly at him. There were no traps in her eyes, only the simplest of requests.
As if seducing Fisher into sin, her body fragrant and soft.
As mentioned before, she was the most beautiful woman Fisher had ever seen, but facing her offer, Fisher merely reached out, grabbing her wrist gently, removing the hand that touched his back,
"The old rules of Nali, whether attending weddings or memorials, you have to bring gifts... I didn’t today, so once this is done, consider it an afterthought for your partners. Rest assured, I’ll handle it well."
Having said that, Fisher waved at her, extinguishing the Handcane’s light, and walked toward the graveyard’s gate.
His figure became more and more distant and soon vanished into the darkness.
Anna, left behind, pursed her lips, looking at the tombstone standing in the corner of the cemetery, gently covering her chest as if her heart had started beating for the first time,
"May the Mother Goddess bless..."