The story of the black silk female knight

Valensa wasn't in a hurry; she remained calm and smiled.

"This……"

But the branch manager of the Nora Chamber of Commerce couldn't smile; large beads of sweat could be seen constantly running down his face.

"Actually, I didn't say that the auctioneer was the Red Fox Mask."

Valensa pressed her advantage:

“Think about it… Red Fox Mask once had free access to the royal palace. I have reason to suspect that she has some kind of special ability, such as the ability to disguise herself as someone else…”

"...So, Miss, you mean that Lady Lanzhi has been replaced by the Red Fox Mask?"

The man then realized what was happening, as if he had grasped at a straw:

"Yes! That must be it! Lady Lanzhi couldn't possibly be the Red Fox Mask; she must have been attacked by that cunning phantom thief! That's why she's been missing since last night! Then..."

"Yes."

Valensa nodded, her tone serious and earnest:

"If I'm not mistaken, that auctioneer is likely currently hidden away, just like your stolen paintings. A painting can stay buried for a few more days without any problem, but a living person..."

"We must rescue Miss Lanzhi as soon as possible! Otherwise, if the young lady blames me, it won't just be a pay cut and demotion... she might just punch me to pieces!"

Sweat poured down the man's face again, but he didn't bother wiping it away. He turned and strode off, beckoning Valensa to follow.

"Come on! I'll personally take you to Lady Lanzhi's room. From now on, I'll leave everything to you!"

Chapter 47 The treasure must be hidden there!

With the manager of the Nora Chamber of Commerce's Klar City branch personally leading the way, Valensa quickly arrived at the room of the beautiful auctioneer... also known as Miss Lanzhi.

The room was large and more luxurious than the 2-gold-coin-a-night inn room Valensa stayed in last night; it was probably one of the best rooms in Klar City that Nora Merchant Guild owned.

It seems that the beautiful auctioneer, Miss Lan Zhi, holds a very high position in the Nora Chamber of Commerce.

"This room was actually prepared for the young lady..."

After the branch manager ushered Valencia inside, he explained:

"But Lady Lanzhi and the young lady have a very close relationship and often eat and live together, so when she presides over auctions in various places, she usually stays in the young lady's room."

"Has your young lady stayed here recently?"

Valensa asked hastily.

If another unfamiliar young woman had stayed there, the smells could easily become mixed up.

"No."

Fortunately, the branch manager shook his head:

"The last time the young lady came to Klar City was about two years ago. Since then, she has only stayed here a few times when Lady Lanzhi came to preside over the auction. The rest of the time, this room has been empty."

"So, Miss Lanzhi has actually been staying in this room the longest? Then there's no problem..."

Valensa breathed a sigh of relief, looked around the room again, and went straight to the bedside.

Have these sheets and blankets been washed and changed?

She frowned slightly as she pointed to the neatly made bed. If these things had just been washed and changed, it would be difficult to find any useful clues.

"This... shouldn't be the case."

The branch manager thought for a moment before saying:

"Normally, the daily necessities in Lady Lanzhi's room should be changed every day, but everyone has been busy with the Red Fox Mask matter since last night, so they probably haven't had time to change them yet."

"Miss, when you ran into that laundry worker earlier, she was just about to do the laundry, right? Our cleaning procedure here is to wash the clothes first, then the sheets... Since she was still preparing to do the laundry, it means the sheets and blankets haven't been changed yet."

"That's good."

Without further hesitation, Valensa immediately opened the bed and began sniffing inside the sheets and blankets.

"……how?"

The branch manager waited anxiously for several days, but seeing that Valencia was just frowning and not saying anything, he couldn't help but ask.

"...I did find a young woman's scent in the bed."

Valensa pondered for a moment and said:

"The long dress the auctioneer wore last night also had the same scent, only slightly fainter than the scent left by the Red Fox Mask... Although I have never been in contact with Miss Lanzhi, this scent is most likely hers."

This means that Miss Lan Zhi wasn't the phantom thief in disguise from the beginning, but was switched out midway... probably during those two 10-minute breaks.

"During the break... then it must have happened in the restroom."

The branch manager was somewhat helpless:

"Lady Lanzhi usually has bodyguards with her, but going to the restroom is an exception... She doesn't like to get too close to anyone other than the young lady, even if they are women."

"It seems your young lady and this Miss Lanzhi have a rather unusual relationship..."

Valensa gave a meaningful smile, then got up and walked towards the door:

"Anyway, I'll start by following Miss Lan Zhi's scent... If I can find her, there's a good chance I'll also find the painting you lost."

"Miss, do you think Lady Lanzhi is very likely with that painting?" the branch manager asked.

"Probably, but this is just my guess."

Valensa smiled and nodded, then waved her hand, indicating not to disturb her, as she was about to focus on tracking the scent.

It was indeed Valensa's speculation that the beautiful auctioneer Lan Zhi would be with the stolen painting.

Having memories of her past life, she understands what a phantom thief is better than most people, especially since she has had contact with the phantom thief herself.

Valensa was certain that her senior sister was not the kind of ordinary thief who bore the name of a phantom thief, nor was she the kind of vain person who sought fame.

Red Fox Mask truly embraces the aesthetics of phantom thieves; she treats her actions as a form of enjoyment, the kind where she only enjoys the process and doesn't care about the outcome.

In many of Valencia's previous works, people with this mindset and ability would not merely send out notices before taking action; they would even leave clues to hint at their pursuers, thereby further highlighting their own excellence and the pursuers' folly.

Therefore, Valensa believes that there must have been some clues in Miss Thief's actions last night.

Thinking back carefully, besides succeeding in stealing the item and battling the adventurers, the only other thing Miss Phantom Thief did last night was send out the announcement letter as the auction was coming to an end.

Miss Lan Zhi should have been replaced by someone else at that time. The beautiful auctioneer who was attacked on stage was actually Miss Phantom Thief staging the whole thing.

If that's the case, then why did she stuff the notice into her collar?

Is it just to show off her figure?

No, this must be the clue given by the phantom thief... The stolen painting is most likely hidden in the collar of the real Miss Lanzhi.

This is Valensa's deduction, and she believes she is very likely right.

"How is it, Miss?"

Valensa was following Miss Laneige's scent, and the branch manager seemed impatient again:

"Have you found anything? Should I call some more people to help you?"

"Please do not!"

Valensa glared at her, slightly annoyed.

"Miss Lan Zhi's scent was already very faint. If you call more people... are you trying to make things worse?"

"...I'm sorry, I was too hasty."

The branch manager realized he had said the wrong thing and gritted his teeth:

"I just hope to rescue Lady Lanzhi as soon as possible... In short, I'm begging you, Miss! If you can help me find Lady Lanzhi and that painting this time, in addition to the reward promised by the Chamber of Commerce, I will also personally send you a token of my gratitude!"

"Don't worry, I will try my best."

Valensa nodded and did not refuse.

She is still very short of money, and this is the compensation she deserves.

For the next half hour or so, although the branch manager was still in a hurry, he wisely refrained from bothering Valensa and simply followed behind silently, offering a few prayers from time to time.

Finally, Valensa made her discovery upon arriving at the art gallery on the second floor of the Nora Chamber of Commerce.

"What is this thing...?"

She stopped in front of a display case.

This is a vertical rectangular glass case containing a lifelike white jade sculpture, which appears to be perfectly fine.

Moreover, this thing was in a very conspicuous place in the exhibition hall, so any problems should have been discovered long ago.

But Valensa circled the glass case several times and nodded firmly:

"This should be it... Miss Lan Zhi's scent is strongest here, even stronger than in her room!"

Chapter 48 The painting and the beautiful woman have both been found

"Miss, you mean...this place?"

The branch manager looked very surprised.

Because it's a transparent glass display case, you can see it clearly from the outside. There's nothing inside except the white jade statue, so how could there be a living person hiding there?

"That's right right here."

Valensa, however, looked very confident.

"Let's have someone open this glass case and check it; we're sure to find something!"

"This……"

The branch manager really wanted to say, 'Are you kidding me?' But considering Valencia's previous behavior, he gritted his teeth and made a decision:

"I understand... I'll have someone come and open it right away."

The young noblewoman adventurer, who appears unreliable despite being only at the Candlelight level, is actually the one who currently possesses the most clues.

The branch manager ultimately chose to trust Valensa.

Several staff members from the Nora Chamber of Commerce quickly arrived, greeted the person in charge, and began preparing to open the glass case.

"what?"

As soon as they started working on it, the staff discovered the problem.

This glass cabinet is not the glass cabinet they are familiar with.

What appears to be a transparent glass cabinet has actually been completely replaced.

The cabinet is made of large, specially made crystal rather than glass. The white jade statue seen through the glass is not the real thing inside the cabinet, but a magical image preserved in the crystal.

"Open it!"

If the branch manager still couldn't figure out what was going on at this point, he would really be an idiot. Without Valencia having to remind him, he continued to give orders for the staff to keep opening the cabinets.

However, several staff members worked around the cabinet for a long time but to no avail... The crystal in the entire cabinet was a single piece without any gaps, and they couldn't move it.

"Let me do it."

Valensa then drew her shield and glanced at the branch manager:

"I don't have to pay for the damage, right?"

"Of course not!"

The branch manager quickly put on a smiling face:

"Not only will you not lose money, but you will also receive the gratitude and reward you deserve."

"That's no problem."

Valensa's eyes narrowed, and she used her mental powers to further strengthen her arm strength before raising her shield and slamming it down on the crystal cabinet.

Bang!

Surprisingly, the crystal cabinet was quite sturdy. Valensa felt like she could kill a bear with that blow, but she only managed to create a tiny crack in the cabinet.

But if it can create cracks, it means the attack is effective. If one attack isn't enough, then try a few more.

Thud thud thud!