Chapter 55
Chapter 55: Car Accident
Charlotte didn’t spend much time preparing to go out. She’d already gone out once before Funis woke up, so she just tidied her hair and touched up her light makeup before finishing.
And besides simple washing up, Funis had nothing else to do, so she lifted her skirt hem and trotted quickly behind Charlotte as they went out together.
Charlotte’s rented apartment was in one of the most prosperous areas of Georgetown District.
Various restaurants, cafes, and fashion stores lined both sides of the street. Shopkeepers used colorful signs to attract customers, and suspended kerosene lamps with metal wings illuminated the gloomy city under the clouds.
Horse carriages and city trains appeared together in one scene—transportation from the old and new eras still shared the same stage, with whistles not yet able to completely replace the sound of hoofbeats.
Well-dressed gentlemen and ladies walked together on the sidewalks. They were elegant and not troubled by financial difficulties, chatting and laughing about which exhibition or auction they would attend next.
Not old nobles who inherited titles from their parents, the revolution had brought a new aristocratic class to this world. They’d seized enough profits from trade and factories, controlling industries and economic entities that could be called the nation’s lifeline. Graycliff Fortress’s strength or decline depended on them.
Compared to the lifeless, oppressive, and gloomy Blackwater District, as the center of Graycliff Fortress’s Black City, this place was obviously much more vibrant.
None of the four major gangs dared claim this area as their territory. All the prominent figures in parliament kept their apartments in Georgetown District. Even though they themselves lived on sky fortresses, the gangs had to give face to these “honored guests of old Joseph.”
The most advanced mechanical workshops, the most learned alchemy workshops, the most luxurious bars, the most crazy casinos, the most avant-garde exhibitions…
Everything you could imagine in a free city-state appeared here—both the bright and glamorous side and the filthy, dissolute side. Georgetown District encompassed everything, accommodating all people and matters.
A year ago, when Funis first set foot in this district as Enforcer Sera, the extravagant scenery so different from the Holy Capital Vatica had nearly made her lose herself.
Some said this was Graycliff Fortress’s charm. Every year, so many people with nothing were willing to break into this place to try their luck. Among them, some eventually left with full pockets, while others rotted in unnoticed alley corners, giving off their stench alone.
Opportunity and danger coexisted, order and chaos walked together.
This was how Funis summarized this city. She didn’t deny Graycliff Fortress and Georgetown District’s prosperity, but she couldn’t tolerate everyone here’s extreme pursuit of material greed.
Like being possessed by money—that was the trap the great demon Mammon set for humans. Pursuing wealth was a path of no return.
These so-called new nobles, though they’d never drunk Greed Path potions, had long been devoted believers and followers of the demon Mammon. Their efficiency in digesting Greed Path potions would surely be higher than ordinary people.
Though factory owners and their wives dressed glamorously and appeared elegant, when golden-haired, blue-eyed Charlotte with her classical noble beauty walked hand-in-hand with Funis, dressed like a princess in magnificent gowns, everything else paled in comparison.
The two of them were too eye-catching, yet no one dared approach.
Charlotte wore a silver-handled sword with a golden guard at her waist. She was from the Church’s Temperance Court, and almost no one in Georgetown District didn’t recognize her.
When Michelle brought the first delegation to visit Graycliff Fortress, Joseph had received them with great fanfare, and Charlotte had stood beside Michelle as a guard then. She had the appearance of Lorenzo nobility and was part of the delegation. Now, as a Temperance Court branch enforcer frequently handling cases in various districts, few brainless individuals would actively provoke her.
But Funis felt uncomfortable being stared at by all these miscellaneous gazes.
Some eyes were pure, simply appreciating beauty. Some were infatuated, perhaps stirred by innocent feelings. Some were filthy, looking at her like an expensive luxury item…
After becoming a girl, this was the first time Funis experienced this feeling. Cessia usually protected her too well—she should have realized earlier that this treasure-like appearance was both wealth and curse.
But according to Charlotte, the branch wasn’t too far from her residence—just through two streets and around a corner.
Walking on the bustling street with her adoptive daughter like this reminded Funis of the past.
Back then, Sera stood beside young Charlotte, towering like a mountain. He’d extend one finger for Charlotte to hold, keeping his pace infinitely slow just so Charlotte could keep up.
Now the situation had reversed again.
Funis, in her heavy dress, found it difficult to keep up with Charlotte’s light steps. Charlotte would also slow down like Sera had, waiting for Funis to catch up. Looking up at her now-grown adoptive daughter, Funis felt somewhat complicated.
When Cessia turned her into a witch, Funis had prepared never to meet Charlotte again. Being able to recreate their past in a different form now made her quite satisfied.
But was such a false relationship woven from lies and deception really appropriate?
“Little Celie, see that dessert shop?” Charlotte pointed to a store across the street with a cream cake sign. “A colleague of mine tried it last week—strawberry and berry mixed ice cream, quite unique! Want to try it, little Celie?”
“Yes, thank you, Sister Charlotte!” Funis smiled and nodded, happily agreeing.
Nothing inappropriate about it.
After working so hard to raise this girl for nearly ten years, it was time to enjoy some benefits.
Like everyone else, Charlotte and Funis waited for the city train to pass through the street center, but just as they were about to cross the street, a commotion suddenly arose nearby.
A runaway carriage.
The horse that should have been well-trained was acting like it was fleeing from something terrible, charging wildly through the pedestrian-filled street. Screams rose one after another as people scrambled to escape and get away.
With a seventh-sequence supernatural’s dynamic vision far exceeding ordinary people, Funis focused on the driver’s seat.
The driver who should have been gripping the reins tightly was now pinned to the carriage wall by a curved, blood-red strange dagger through his throat. White lung tissue and bright red blood mixed and flowed from the corners of his mouth, his eyes nearly bulging from their sockets filled with despair and terror.
A supernatural murder.
Happening in Graycliff Fortress’s most prosperous city center.
In the crowded flow of people, in just the blink of an eye, Funis was separated from Charlotte.
The uncontrolled carriage galloped, trampling and crushing those who couldn’t escape. The worn wheels climbed the curb and leaped into the air, heading straight toward Funis.
In just seconds, the situation took a sharp turn.
It was hard not to suspect this was a premeditated attack, with the murder on the carriage seeming merely a cover.
Vengeance Absorption was still cooling down and temporarily unusable. Leaping over people’s heads would be too conspicuous and would quickly expose her skills to Charlotte.
No matter what, Funis would find it difficult to continue her disguise in this situation.
And just as she was about to act…
A streak of blood suddenly cut through the air, staining the entire world crimson.
Like a blade slicing through a movie screen, the scene before Funis’s eyes was abruptly torn apart, twisting and rippling. After brief tremors, blood splattered through the air like paint.
The carriage passed through her like a phantom, but struck the pedestrians behind and beside her. The sounds of painful wails and breaking bones seemed muffled through thick flesh.
This carriage and those pedestrians seemed to exist in two different spaces from Funis.
Funis could see the outside situation and hear outside sounds, but couldn’t touch them, while the people outside seemed unable to see or touch Funis in this space.
What strange supernatural characteristics—was this to save her?
But who could it be?
Funis’s confusion instantly turned to an ominous premonition. That person came to mind the moment the thought formed, with no other options or possibilities besides her.
Outside the space, the horses and carriage finally stopped after smashing through a fashion store’s glass and walls, leaving devastation everywhere.
But Funis had no mind to focus on the chaos at the accident scene. She looked around seriously in this boundaryless blood-colored space.
That familiar cold, elegant voice echoed from all directions, surrounding and enveloping her.
“Are you looking for me, little cake?”