Chapter 218: Susie's Day of Suffering
Lorne Disenk!
With just one glance, Audrey instantly recognized him: the young man in ordinary clothes, looking a bit out of place in the shop's environment, was none other than Mr. World from the Tarot Club, the target she had been commissioned to investigate!
How… how could he be here?!
Had her investigation of him been exposed?
Seeing Lorne's gaze turn towards her, Audrey's heart rate suddenly quickened.
No, Audrey, you must remain calm! He doesn't know you; you mustn't lose your composure first! Be like a true, elegant lady!
As a qualified Spectator, Audrey took only a moment to completely calm her inner emotions.
She quickly clarified the situation: she had only investigated indirectly through Fors and Xio, never personally appearing. Since Fors had not reported any unusual news, it was impossible for the other party to know her. This was just an accidental coincidence.
Yes, a coincidence.
She quickly adjusted her expression, meeting his potential gaze with a slightly curious and detached look befitting a noble young lady. She even hesitated whether to greet him according to etiquette, but Lorne's gaze had already casually swept past her, turning elsewhere.
Just an ordinary noble young lady, nothing worth looking at—
Susie, the golden retriever, seemed to sense her owner's emotional fluctuations. She gently rubbed her head against Audrey's calf, then looked up at her with a curious expression.
Audrey reached out and gently stroked her head, reassuring her with her eyes that everything was fine.
"Hello, esteemed Miss Hall. Welcome."
As soon as the shop manager, Bartoli, saw his big client arrive, he immediately stepped forward with a warm greeting.
"Hello, Mr. Manager. Is the gift I pre-ordered ready?"
"Of course," Bartoli said with a smile. "We have used the finest materials and had it handmade by our top artisans, exactly as you requested."
"That's wonderful! Mother will surely love this gift!" Audrey's face showed just the right amount of joy. "It really seems like a genuine noble young lady," Lorne thought to himself, listening to their conversation.
But, Hall? Is it the Hall family, who are both bankers and hereditary grand nobles?
I seem to have some funds and shares related to their family. Should I—take this opportunity to go say hello and make their acquaintance?
He hesitated for a moment, then dismissed the idea.
No, forget it. At this time, it's better not to look for trouble. Besides, I heard those grand nobles are all more arrogant than the last.
"He didn't pay special attention to me—" Audrey carefully observed Lorne out of the corner of her eye, secretly letting out a sigh of relief.
"Sir, your items have all been packaged."
At this moment, a waitress handed him two beautifully packaged gift bags.
"Would you like us to deliver them to your residence?"
"No, no need. I'll take them myself."
Lorne took off his monocle, put it back in his pocket, then took the two bags, ready to leave.
Oh no! He's leaving!
As soon as Audrey saw Lorne preparing to leave, her heart instantly grew anxious. She still wanted to take this rare opportunity to investigate him thoroughly!
While the manager was away getting her things, she reached out and stroked the golden retriever's head, whispering to her:
"Susie, I need your help! It's your time to shine!"
"Woof?" Susie tilted her head.
Lorne carried the two gift bags, walking back to the hotel, while pondering his visit to his pen pal tomorrow.
Fortunately, his pen pal lived in Backlund. He wouldn't have to travel far again.
After some time, I might visit Tingen again. And also verify my idea. Sherlock might really be that acquaintance—
"Someone is following us."
Sharon's ethereal, emotionless voice suddenly rang in his ear.
"I know."
Lorne snapped out of his thoughts.
The Calamity premonition had no reaction—it shouldn't indicate any danger.
He maintained his original pace without a change in expression, then, at a fork in the road, he swiftly accelerated, turning into a narrow alleyway.
"He—he's gone!"
Susie, who had been secretly tailing him, was momentarily bewildered when her target suddenly vanished.
"What do I do? I lost him—"
She subconsciously twitched her nose.
Oh right! I'm a dog!
Susie stuck out her tongue, carefully sniffing the lingering scent in the air, and trotted forward, chasing after it.
Strange, the scent suddenly stopped here.
Susie arrived in an empty, narrow alley and stopped, looking a bit confused.
Just as she was wagging her tail, preparing to turn back the way she came…
"Hey."
A somewhat cold voice suddenly sounded from behind her.
Lorne's figure flipped down from the tall wall beside them, landing right behind her. He extended his foot and lightly nudged her rear with the tip of his shoe.
"Whimper!"
Susie was so startled by this sudden turn of events that all her fur stood on end! She immediately cowered on the ground, covering her head tightly with her two front paws!
"It's actually this dog?"
Lorne stopped behind Susie and raised an eyebrow. He had thought the gift shop was a trap and that he had been set up.
It turned out to be the dog belonging to that Miss Hall.
He cautiously scanned the alley entrance and whispered to the air beside him, "Bodyguard Miss, please check around to see if there's anyone else."
A barely perceptible cold gust of wind blew by, and Bodyguard Miss left.
Now, only he and a suspicious dog remained.
Lorne slowly approached. The golden retriever seemed to sense his intention; its entire body stiffened, trembling as it lay on the ground, its front paws even covering its head, looking exactly like a thief caught in the act.
"Hey, little dog," Lorne squatted down with interest, meeting its gaze. "Why are you following me?"
"Woof—" Susie peeked at him through the gaps in her paws, letting out a tiny whimper, then buried her head even deeper.
"Do you really need to be this scared of me?" Lorne couldn't feel any malice from her, only a pure, almost overflowing fear. He extended a finger and tentatively poked her fluffy head.
"Whimper—"
Perhaps sensing that Lorne's actions held no intent to harm, after a moment, Susie slowly raised her head, looking at him with those exceptionally innocent eyes.
Lorne carefully observed her. Smooth, shiny fur, a strong physique, and those overly human-like eyes.
Is this really just an ordinary, silly dog?
One person and one dog stared at each other like this.
"Woof." As if to break the awkwardness, Susie suddenly barked, then lunged forward, quickly licking Lorne's cheek with her tongue.
"This—" Lorne recoiled as if shocked, instinctively touching his face. "Is it dirty—?"
Just as he was distracted, a figure rushed into him from behind, with considerable force.
"Excuse me!" The person mumbled an apology, then left the alley without looking back, disappearing at the end.
Lorne frowned, but didn't pay much attention, his focus quickly returning to the "culprit" in front of him.
"I didn't see any other Beyonders," Sharon's voice seemed to seep from the air, ringing in his ear. "That noble young lady is still in the shop."
"Woof woof ~" Susie looked at Lorne timidly, trying hard to play the role of a startled, big, silly dog.
"Alright, little dog," Lorne rubbed her head, his tone quite "amiable." "I'll just assume you mistook me for someone else—"
However, when he stood up and casually picked up the gift bag from the ground, his movements suddenly paused.
It was lighter!
He immediately opened the bag; inside, there was only a box containing a camera. The other gift box, containing an expensive fountain pen meant for his pen pal, had vanished without a trace.
Damn it! I've been robbed!
The camera box and the pen box were similar in size, and the camera was even heavier. Yet, the thief had precisely stolen the more valuable fountain pen.
No—Lorne's thoughts raced. If it were just the pen, my Calamity premonition shouldn't be so agitated.
His expression changed, and he immediately checked himself. The crucial playing cards were still there, but—the monocle in his pocket, the item that could assist in appraising Beyonder items, was gone!
He had specifically brought it because it was his first time in such a shop, fearing he might be scammed. Later, because Bodyguard Miss was present, to avoid exposing his spatial pocket, he had simply put it in his pocket.
It was that bump just now!
"What's wrong?" Sharon's voice carried a hint of inquiry.
"I lost something." Lorne quickly summarized the situation.
Clearly, he had been so distracted by this suddenly appearing dog that the pickpocket had seized the opportunity.
No, even if my attention was diverted, an ordinary person would never be able to steal something from me without alarming me.
Definitely a Beyonder!
He immediately pulled out a penny coin from his pocket and skillfully performed a divination.
The answer given by the divination was that the thief was still in this block.
But the specific location was vague; the other party clearly possessed some anti-divination ability.
Seeing Lorne standing there talking to himself, his expression changing erratically, Susie stealthily moved her paws little by little, preparing to slip away.
"You're not allowed to leave."
A cold voice sounded above her head; Lorne quickly stepped in front of Susie, blocking her path.
"Woof?" Susie's steps suddenly halted, freezing in place.
"I can tell you're not an ordinary dog, right?"
"Woof woof?" Susie's heart jumped at the words, and she worked even harder, panting with her tongue out, adopting a posture of "I'm just a silly dog, I don't understand anything."
"Your acting is terrible." Lorne deliberately said, then a smile suddenly appeared on his face, and with the most amiable expression, he uttered the coldest words, "If you keep pretending not to understand, I'll kill you, you know~"
A menacing aura, mixed with danger and killing intent, instantly enveloped Susie.
"Whimper—" Susie's fur bristled all over, letting out a mournful cry.
"You understand what I mean, right?" Lorne's smile remained unchanged.
"Woof." Susie nodded frantically.
Good. The curve of Lorne's lips widened. This dog wasn't as smart as Lachi; she gave herself away with just a scare.
Probably some kind of Beyonder creature with considerable intelligence, capable of understanding human speech but not speaking. A noble young lady keeping a Beyonder pet, hmm, luxurious and reasonable.
"Why were you following me?" Lorne asked.
"Did you perhaps sense something unusual around me, which is why you followed?"
"Woof, woof." Susie nodded repeatedly.
Hmm—a dog's senses are naturally keen. Did she sense Bodyguard Miss? Wait, a dog's senses—a dog's nose!
A flash of inspiration struck Lorne, and he looked at Susie with a wide smile.
"As you can see, I was robbed."
"A large part of the responsibility for this lies with you. So, I want you to use your dog's special talent, your nose, to help me find that thief."
He said, gently stroking Susie's head, his movements tender.
"If you don't agree, I'll get rid of you~"
"Woof! Woof woof!" Susie nodded repeatedly, indicating her complete agreement and absolute cooperation.
"Very good." Lorne stood up, clapping his hands in satisfaction. "Until we find the thief, you'll stay with me."
"Oh no, I'm doomed, Audrey, please come save me."
"That's strange, why hasn't Susie returned yet? I asked her to secretly follow Lorne Disenk to see if she could find his residence."
Could it be that Susie was discovered?
Audrey, waiting for Susie's return in the gift shop, grew a little anxious. To buy time, she patiently listened to the manager introduce one item after another.
But too much time had passed—
Although she had instructed Susie to come back quickly if something felt wrong.
Still, Lorne Disenk was, after all, marked as a dangerous individual by Mr. World.
No, I have to go find her.
In the alley, Susie was lying on the ground, diligently twitching her nose, conscientiously playing the role of a tracking dog (albeit under duress).
Not bad. In a situation where divination is unclear, a dog's nose, a physical method, is indeed more effective than mystical means, Lorne mused.
Sigh—if Lachi had been here just now, I probably wouldn't have been robbed. When did I become so negligent?
"Woof, woof!"
Before long, the golden retriever reacted, barking wildly at a manhole cover.
"Oh, found it." Lorne was surprised by its efficiency.
"You mean the thief is in the sewer?" Lorne pointed to the manhole cover beneath Susie.
"Woof, woof." Susie nodded.
"Alright then, you and I will go down together to find him."
'Go into the sewer? No, I don't want to! My fur will get messy, and the sewer smells too much. I'm a dog!'
"Hmm?" Lorne saw the big dog's face full of reluctance, and his smile became even more "amiable." He slowly asked, "What, you don't want to?"
"Woof whimper—"