Nancy's death was indeed regrettable, as Kelvin could see. The glimmer of guilt and reluctance in her eyes just before she passed away was evident. At that moment, she had wanted to be a kind person, at the very least! However, the specifics of what she said, "be careful," were untraceable, which left Kelvin furrowing his brows in frustration.
Meanwhile, the other half of the hall resonated with cheers. "Great, another dance!"
"Yes, one more, we haven't had enough yet."
"..."
His gaze instinctively swept across the room, revealing a young woman in a silver and white robe with red-trimmed cuffs under the ever-changing, colorful lights on the stage. Her attire shimmered under the rotating lights, exuding equally splendid hues.
Judging from the fabric of her robe and the golden family emblem on her fan, the woman's identity seemed far from simple, and she shouldn't have appeared in such a mixed establishment.
In response to the crowd's requests, she gracefully danced amidst the melodious music, the fan seemingly alive in her hands as she gracefully swayed and twirled, displaying a perfect balance of strength and softness.
Kelvin had no interest in this ethnic dance. He had been fixated on this woman due to the Miller family emblem on her fan. He had seen such a pattern at the banquet.
And the woman, if he remembered correctly, should be the famous geisha, Linda Gilbert, he had seen at the Miller family banquet that day. He was certain that this high-ranking, well-known geisha was from Chulae, despite speaking fluent Jostranan.
After the dance, the woman gracefully exited amid thunderous applause. Observing this, Kelvin stepped forward to follow her, but unfortunately, the woman was extremely vigilant. She seemed to have detected his presence and swiftly lifted the curtain at the instant the lights changed, making her escape from the establishment's entrance.
Witnessing this, he was about to give chase when he was suddenly blocked by a drunk middle-aged man.
Due to this small interruption, the woman disappeared in the blink of an eye from his sight.
"Get lost!" Under his mask, Kelvin's face tensed, pushing the drunkard away and then following her out of the establishment's entrance.
The entrance connected to the restaurant's kitchen. While the outside exuded cleanliness and splendor, its interior was grimy and oily. There was a small half-meter-high door near the air conditioner, and Kelvin had a hunch that she had escaped from there.
"What are you doing?" The young chef boy, humming a tune, was diligently cutting the salmon with a short knife.
Kelvin's sudden intrusion startled him, and the sharp edge of the knife instantly nicked his finger, causing a large amount of fresh blood to well up.
On the chopping board, the half-skinned salmon widened its mouth, sucking in the fresh blood, one gulp at a time.
The man did not answer his question; instead, he pulled open the kitchen door and walked out.
Sure enough, beyond the door lay an entirely different world. The quiet, pitch-black alleyways twisted and intertwined, illuminated only by a dim and dilapidated street lamp on its last legs.
He glanced around but did not spot the woman from earlier. However, Kelvin was certain she hadn't gone far, especially wearing clogs in such a quiet environment. The sound of someone walking would definitely be audible. Thinking this, Kelvin immediately crouched his tall frame down, pressing his ear to the ground.
Clack, clack, clack-The clogs' urgent tapping on the ground resonated loudly in his ears. Someone was just ahead.
His figure moved swiftly, like an agile panther, dashing through the narrow alleyway, his dark form melding into the shadows.
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