Backlund, Townshend Street.
Rafael Collins, disguised as a carriage driver resting by the roadside with his rented carriage, quietly waited for his target.
Today he was going to execute an extremely bold plan: kidnapping Miss Audrey Hall!
The south end of Townshend Street connected to Queens Avenue, while the north end led to Phelps Street.
Saint Samuel Cathedral of the Church of the Evernight Goddess was located on Phelps Street - the largest Evernight church in Backlund, where many nobles would pass through Townshend Street to pray.
For today's plan, Rafael had scouted this location multiple times, confirming that Miss Hall would pass through this street every Wednesday afternoon on her way to Saint Samuel Cathedral for prayer.
Sometimes she went with her mother, but most of the time she went alone.
This street was relatively quiet compared to Queens Avenue with its many police officers, and less bustling than Phelps Street, making it an ideal location for criminal activity.
Over an hour ago, Rafael's subordinate had reported that Miss Hall had already gone to Saint Samuel Cathedral, and according to her usual schedule, she should be returning soon.
Additionally, he had conducted extensive investigations, which showed that Miss Hall herself was not a Beyonder.
Moreover, she enjoyed attending mysticism gatherings, so when going out, she disliked having Beyonder bodyguards follow her.
Rafael intentionally watched the north end of Townshend Street, and finally, Miss Audrey Hall's carriage appeared.
"Why do you want to kidnap her?" An extremely pleasant female voice sounded near Rafael's ear.
Rafael looked left and right: "Who?"
At the same time, a flash of panic crossed his eyes.
There weren't many people on the street at this time. Near the lamppost by the carriage stood a man - that was Rafael's subordinate, Carter.
But the voice just now definitely wasn't Carter's.
Moreover, Carter was still intently watching Miss Hall's carriage, clearly having not heard the previous words.
That pleasant voice spoke again: "Don't bother looking, and don't think about calling for help, because others can't hear our conversation, nor will they notice you."
She paused and continued: "Answer my question."
The panic in Rafael's heart passed in an instant, and he quickly calmed down - this was the most basic quality of a criminal. However, he found it somewhat strange why that female voice sounded a bit like Miss Hall's voice.
Then he shook his head slightly, feeling that wasn't very possible, since Miss Hall was right there in the distant carriage.
He didn't immediately answer the other party's question, but instead used his special ability, immediately detecting that there was a "Mid-Sequence" Beyonder nearby.
However, they seemed to be in some kind of invisible state.
Rafael's special ability came from the mystical item he had obtained after transmigrating.
Yes, he was a transmigrator who had crossed over into the body of a "Prisoner" - Sequence 9 of the Chained Pathway.
After transmigrating, Rafael immediately gained a vast amount of Beyonder knowledge and basic information about this world!
He could confirm that this knowledge was something the original owner did not possess.
The original owner was a small-time gang leader, and the most valuable memory for Rafael was the current time.
It was now August 1350, tensions between the nations of the Northern Continent were extremely high, and more than half a year had passed since that heart-stopping Great Smog of Backlund incident.
Based on the additional knowledge and information gained after transmigrating, Rafael was able to determine his current situation.
The bad news was that the "Prisoner" pathway seemed to be a big trap, and the neighboring "Criminal" pathway of the Abyss also seemed quite problematic.
The good news was that besides the information gained, a jade-white pearl had appeared in his "mental world." This pearl looked naturally formed and carried a sense of historical gravitas.
After Rafael became a "Lunatic", when his body and mind would experience chaos and distortion due to the potion's effects, he only needed to visualize that pearl in his mind for the discomfort to immediately disappear.
Moreover, this pearl seemed to possess intelligence and could communicate during certain periods. It told Rafael that his constitution was special - he could consume potions from neighboring pathways simultaneously, gaining abilities from both pathways.
Rafael pondered for a long time before deciding to try it. After all, that pearl could absorb the chaos and distortion within his body, so he probably wouldn't die. Besides, doing so was quite mad, wasn't it?
As he expected, after drinking the "Criminal" potion, the "Lunatic" potion was digested considerably.
So he was now a "dual pathway" Beyonder - both a "Lunatic" and a "Criminal."
The ability to detect whether someone was a Beyonder and roughly what level they were at was another skill granted by the jade-white pearl, and it had never failed him so far.
At this moment, after learning the other party's level, Rafael remained very calm. As mentioned before, this was the basic quality of a "Criminal."
He was very clear that lying wasn't a wise choice when facing a Beyonder of this level.
So Rafael answered: "Kidnapping Miss Hall is to digest my potion."
After hearing this answer, that pleasant voice clearly paused before saying: "Digest your potion? Aren't you a 'Lunatic'? Why use kidnapping to digest your potion?"
Rafael's lips curved into a somewhat crazed smile: "Kidnapping 'Backlund's most brilliant gem' - isn't that mad enough?"
He could freely switch between the "Criminal" and "Lunatic" states, but essentially, he was a calm madman.
That pleasant voice said: "A 'Lunatic's' thoughts are indeed difficult to fathom with normal thinking."
This voice was, of course, Audrey herself. She had received a mission from Mr. Fool: to observe this young man named Rafael Collins.
But what specifically to observe? Mr. Fool hadn't specified.
However, Audrey could tell from His tone that Mr. Fool placed great importance on this mission.
The reason Rafael's special ability hadn't discovered that Audrey was a Beyonder during his previous preparations for the kidnapping was because Audrey was under Mr. Fool's protection. She was now a Sequence 5 "Dream Walker"!
Even her golden retriever Susie was currently a Sequence 6 "Hypnotist" who knew how to use "psychological invisibility."
The "Mid-Sequence" Beyonder aura Rafael had sensed earlier was actually Susie.
When he had been observing Audrey before, he hadn't noticed at all that this golden retriever would be a Beyonder... an extraordinary dog.
Earl Hall knew his daughter was a Beyonder who enjoyed attending mysticism gatherings, which was precisely why he hadn't assigned her any Beyonder bodyguards.
At this point, Rafael asked: "Are you going to kill me?"
"No."
"Are you a Beyonder bodyguard of the Hall family?"
"No."
"Are you going to stop me from kidnapping Miss Hall?"
That silver bell-like voice laughed: "I'm very curious how long you can remain mad after kidnapping her."
She paused and continued: "My companion Susie will stay by your side. If you have any ill intentions toward Audrey, she will immediately intervene."
Moreover, when Rafael was discovered by official Beyonders, Susie could also prevent him from being killed.
Then the silver bell-like voice disappeared, though Rafael could still sense a "Mid-Sequence" Beyonder beside him - presumably Miss Susie.
He really couldn't understand what that lady had wanted to accomplish.
But now wasn't the time to think about such things, because Miss Hall's carriage had already arrived.