Charlot let out a long sigh and said, “I still haven’t thanked you, Venie!”

  Venie Arsenault whispered, “I initially wanted you to offer some cash as pensation to the families of those detectives and resolve this matter peacefully. I didn’t expect Aubrey Tildon Atwood to have already sent assassins. In the end, we still had to settle it with a duel.”

  Charlot asked, “Who are my likely oppos in the duel?”

  Venie paused for a moment before asking, “Mr. Meburg, you tell me holy—are you a low-rank, mid-rank, h-rank Transdent?”

  Without hesitation, Charlot replied, “Rank Four!”

  On the Old ti, ranks oo six are cssified as low-rank Transdents, ranks seven to twelve as mid-rank, and ranks thirteen to eighteen as high-rank. Above raeen, special titles apply.

  Venie Arsenault shook her head and said, “Then you had better avoid this duel!”

  “To my knowledge, your challengers include at least two mid-rank and one high-rank oppo!”

  Charlot couldn’t help but curse in frustration, “Aubrey Tildon is such a sdrel. How could I possibly defeat mid-rank challengers, let alone a high-rank one?”

  Venie Arsenault couldn’t e up with a solutioher and suggested, “I heard you practice Blood Glory. Perhaps you could purchase a Vampiric on at a high price.”

  “However, Vampiric ons are extremely rare. If you io buy one now, you must hide your iions, or people will drive up the price maliciously.”

  Charlot didn’t think this was something worth hiding and said, “I already have tiric ons!”

  Venie Arsenault let out a sigh of relief and said, “With Transdent ons, you might stand a ce against two mid-rank Transdents, but that high-rank…”

  “He’s Addison’s older brother. There’s no way to bribe him.”

  Charlot thought to himself, “I’ll have to pick Machubi as the duel site, so these avengers will have no way out.”

  He had inally inteo ask Venie Arsenault for help, but now there was no need. He stood up to leave, saying, “Thank you, Venie. I’ll head baow. Please take care of Sylvie iure!”

  “She’s toht and too… kied!”

  Venie Arsenault nodded and said, “Sylvie is a good detective. I’ll look after her.”

  Charlot pushed open the door and saw Sylvie Martin standing outside. He smiled faintly and said, “I’m off now.”

  Sylvie asked anxiously, “What about the duel?”

  Charlot froze for a moment. He hadn’t activated Eye of Insight and hadn’t realized Sylvie had been outside the eime. He could only reply, “I’ll deal with it.”

  As he brushed past Sylvie Martin, he left her with the words, “It’s not so easy to kill me.” He then strode out of the Cat Detective Agency with posure.

  After Charlot left, Venie Arsenault said softly, “e in.”

  Sylvie ehe director’s office, still looking anxious. Venie smiled faintly and said, “Your cousin still has cards to py. Don’t worry too much. Get back to work.”

  Sylvie left the director’s offid returo the records room. As a newly inducted appreective, she had spent the past few days reading case files to broaden her knowledge. She thought to herself, “Am I really toht and too kied?”

  “Bah! Charlot has nht to say such sacred words.”

  ...

  Charlot felt much more rexed. He returo Elysée Avenue, first stopping by the Cat and Four-Leaf Clover Café to pick up his three kittens.

  The three clever kitten cubs were fluffy and not the least bit afraid of strangers. Their small eyes were filled with energy and curiosity about the world. Even after being taken from their mother, they hardly struggled and instead snuggled tentedly into their new owner’s embrace.

  For the sake of these kittens, Charlot even bought some goat milk. Although cat milk would have beeer, the semi-grown mother cat clearly couldn’t ehe “milking” process.

  While at the café, he also ordered another batch of coffee. During his ret “seard seizure,” everything in his house had been taken, and items like coffee and fruit wine, which are easy to pocket, had been thhly looted—even the empty bottles were gone.

  The older dy who ran the café sent him off with a few cheerful blessings, which put Charlot in a good mood. He left ara time as a tip.

  No sooner had he returo 58 Elysée Avehan Annie Bretagne came to visit. Their retionship had been progressing quite well tely.

  Charlot was overjoyed and asked, “I just bought some coffee. What fvor would you like?”

  Annie replied, “Cappuo!”

  As Charlot brewed the coffee, he asked with a smile, “What shall we eat ter?”

  Aook a deep breath and said, “You’re about to duel someone, yet you’re still this calm.”

  Charlot was slightly surprised. He wao ask how Annie knew about the duel, but he wisely decided against it. Instead, he smiled and said, “It’s just a duel, nothing serious.”

  Aole a g him and said softly, “In the Fars Empire, you hire helpers for such group duels. I tact a high-rank Transdent for you—my cousin. He’s a raeen knight. Aubrey Tildon is only a rank fourteen knight, so you’d be guarao win.”

  Charlot khe Bretagne family was one of the Empire’s top noble families, but he hadn’t expected Ao have a cousin who was a raeen knight.

  Across the entire Empire, high-rank Transdents were incredibly rare, and each romi figure of great status.

  Even Menielman Soumet, the Empire’s foremost “Rose,” was merely a high-rank Transdent.

  Knights were the most widely practiced Transdent path and the easiest to achieve, but they were also the hardest to advao high-rank.

  Otle energy reached rank ten, it could no longer be improved through training alone. No matter how profound the breathing teiques, how refihe meditative arts, or how talented and diligent the knight was, they could not advance further without experieng the “Knight’s Proof” in bat. Only by obtaining the Knight’s Proof could they asd.

  A raeen knight was just oep away from colleg all eight Knight’s Proofs.

  Any knight who collected all eight Knight’s Proofs could prefix their title with “Saint,” achieving unparalleled status.

  Years ago, Zimourman Axel Robin quered the Seven Seas and slew the Pirate King, earning the title “Saint” and being known as the you Knight King in the Empire!

  Annie’s cousin was undoubtedly a heavyweight in the Fars Empire’s political se.

  Charlot hesitated for a moment before saying, “This is such a big matter. Should I expin it to your cousin in person?”

  Charlot wasn’t foolish enough to refuse her help. He definitely needed someoo assist him. A high-rank Transdent was simply uable for him. Even with the Machubi byrinth, success wasn’t guaranteed—unless he summohe evil god again, but that would be a death sentence!