The crew stepped out of the trees into a quiet, unassuming street—too quiet. The buildings were in disrepair, their paint peeling and windows boarded up like something was hiding behind them. No cars passed by. No one called from an open window.

  Alice frowned as she scanned the area cautiously: "This...doesn't feel right."

  Chie immediately dropped into a combat stance, her eyes narrowing as they darted between doorways and alleyways alike: "Something's watching us."

  Tenzing stiffened beside her, her fingers twitching toward where she'd normally keep weapons (if not for being on this stealth mission). "We need to move. Now."

  Juniper opened her mouth to joke about paranoia, until something shifted in the shadows of an abandoned storefront down the block...

  A flicker.

  Gone before anyone could point it out.

  Silence swallowed all sound wholeheartedly after that brief movement occurred...and then? A smooth voice suddenly whispered from behind them:

  "Don’t trust what you see..."

  Upon whipping around, the girls were met with a petite catgirl wearing an all black catsuit under a matching hoodie with a mask. Her emerald eyes scanned the group as if meeting familiar and not total strangers, before stepping up to them confidently.

  The catgirl—who was clearly not just any ordinary street urchin, despite her small frame and ragged appearance—tilted her head as if amused by the tension in the air.

  "Hmph. Still on edge after everything? I’d expect better from you lot." Her voice carried a strange familiarity, like an old friend speaking in riddles.

  Juniper narrowed her eyes: "Uh…we don’t know ya?"

  Alice remained wary but curious: "You seem to know us." "Who are you?"

  Tenzing stepped forward slightly, studying the cat with suspicion mixed with cautious recognition: "...You're not from around here."

  Juniper narrowed her eyes: "And uh…we don’t know ya either."

  "...Buuut I do know YOU guys though," A slow smirk curled at the corners of this stranger's mouth beneath that mask before she extended a hand towards Alice for a shake. The girls immediately notice what looked like a tattoo of a pyramid with the infamous "All-seeing Eye" at its apex.

  "Yooo, Illuminati!" Juniper and Chie exclaimed simultaneously, bringing a grin to the catgirl's masked face.

  "Nyahaha, likely nyot the 'Illuminati' you two are thinkin' of. We're nyot a coven of devil-worshipping celebrities who sold their souls for fame, nyor are we a clan of billionaire businessmen plottin' world domination. We're an organization of knowledge-seekers aiming to encourage freedom of thought across the universe!”

  The crew exchanged confused (and slightly weirded-out) glances at one another. Juniper was the first to speak up: "Okay, that sounds cool and all but uh…" She glanced around at the rundown town, then back at this mysterious catgirl. "...Doesn't seem like you're doin' a great job of that."

  The catgirl shrugged nonchalantly, her hands in her pockets. "It's a work in progress. But we're getting there."

  "Uh huh…" Tenzing remarked with heavy doubt, folding her arms. "Still haven't given us a name yet."

  The catgirl smirked, her ears flicking with mirth. "Pfft, d'ya really think secret society members give up their REAL names, meow? Call me by my codename: Lupa!”

  "...Lupa," Tenzing repeated with a skeptical tilt her head. "Like the Wolf?"

  Lupa grinned beneath her mask: "Good catch! You're a sharp one, Tenzing!"

  "...And you apparently know us," Alice interjected, her attention now fully focused. "Which raises some questions."

  Lupa chuckled, clearly unbothered by the implied accusation: "Fair enough. Ask away then, if ya think you can handle the answers."

  Juniper stepped forward again, arms crossed with a smirk: "Alright, alright, let's start with the basics. How the hell do ya know us?”

  Lupa's smirk softened slightly as she studied the group, her cat-like eyes glinting with something unreadable.

  "Hah! Too late for that," she said, flicking an ear dismissively. "I knyow everything about you—who you are, where you came from… even why your souls got tangled up in this mess."

  A pause. Then:

  "...But I'm nyot here to expose secrets. I'm here to warn ya." Her voice dropped lower, suddenly serious beneath the playful lilt. "This city? It eats people who don't remember it right."

  Chie stiffened beside them: "What does that mean?!"

  Lupa shrugged one shoulder casually, but her next words sent ice down their spines:

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  "It means if ya keep walkin’ around like tourists? You won’t leave Euphoria alive. Now… still wanna go forward?”

  "Face reveal or no deal.”

  Lupa smiled wryly, her green eyes fixed on Chie: "Oh? And what were ya expectin', hmm?"

  Chie smirked back, clearly unfazed by the cat-girl's mysterious aura. "Honestly? A shadowy old man, probably."

  Lupa threw back her head and let out a musical laugh. "Nyo! Not even! Nyot my style!"

  Alice shifted her weight from one foot to the other, her brow furrowed in thought. "You're clearly more than an average street dweller, though.”

  Lupa's smirk widened, sharp, like a predator enjoying the chase. "Ooooh~ Very well then, I'll show ya, meow!"

  Lupa pulled down her hoodie before removing her mask, revealing her beautiful, healthy, dusky skin. Her raven hair was tied up in a neat bun. The hair clip? A fish's spine.

  The girls were taken aback by her sudden show of trust…and also by her undeniable beauty.

  Juniper let out a low whistle of admiration as she looked the newcomer over: "Damn, girl. You could pass for a supermodel."

  Chie smirked: "Seriously, what's your diet? I mean look at that flawless skin, not even a pimple in sight!"

  Even Alice looked moderately impressed: "You…definitely take care of yourself."

  Tenzing stayed quiet, studying Lupa intently.

  Lupa chuckled softly as her green eyes glittered in the dim light: "I'm a firm believer in self care, especially in this line of work."

  Alice took a step forward, eyes narrowed. "Speaking of your 'line of work', I'm guessing you're one of the…how did you put it…ah, knowledge seekers?"

  Lupa's smirk didn't waver, but her voice dropped to something colder, almost a purr. "Ooooh~ Now that is the real question, isn’t it?"

  She leaned in slightly, her gaze flickering between them like she was testing their reactions. "We don't just collect knowledge. We...cultivate truths others would rather forget."

  A pause. Then:

  "...But I'm nyot here for lectures. You're all standing at a crossroads right now—walk one way and you learn things that will burn your mind; walk another? And maybe you wake up tomorrow as someone else entirely."

  Juniper whistled low under her breath: "Damn, dude."

  Chie crossed her arms skeptically: "And why should we trust anything coming from your mouth?"

  Tenzing stepped forward quietly before anyone could answer that question further by stating simply:

  "...You already know who we are," she murmured with quiet intensity.

  Lupa finally grinned wide enough to show fang-like canines peeking out from behind perfect human teeth when replying smoothly:

  ”Nyo wonder.”

  The girls exchanged looks of surprise and concern at Tenzing's observation. Chie shifted her weight, her arms staying firmly folded across her chest.

  "Fine—say you know who we are," she replied with a slight tilt of her chin. "The question is, how?”

  Lupa's grin sharpened—too sharp, like a cat that just spotted prey.

  "Hah! Because another fellow Illuminatus knows all about legends and myths!"

  Lupa pointed at Alice first, "From the Ephemerals..." Then she pointed at the other girls. "...to the Shadows Searching in the Night! Ya may have been erased from Irminsul and the history books, but codename Aurora knows all about ya, meow!”

  The girls paled as Lupa's words sunk in, realization and dread dawning at the mention of Irminsul.

  Alice took a step towards Lupa, her expression stoic. "How do you know about that?”

  Lupa's smirk vanished in an instant. Her ears flattened against her skull, and for the first time since they'd met her, there was no playfulness, just cold focus.

  "Nyo." Her voice dropped to a whisper so quiet it barely carried over the wind: "That's not something I can say out loud. Not here."

  She glanced around warily before leaning in close enough that only they could hear: "...Because if ya repeat my next words? Something will come looking for you. And trust me…you do nyot want that."

  Juniper let out a nervous chuckle: "Uh oh, this sounds serious—"

  Lupa cut her off with a sharp gesture of one hand while keeping eye contact on Tenzing specifically as she whispered:

  "...Aurora is what keeps us all alive right now. Now shut up about it before we're all dead."

  A beat passed where even Chie stayed silent.

  Then Alice exhaled slowly through gritted teeth: "Right then...so uh, where are you headed, anyways?”

  Lupa straightened up, some of the playfulness returning to her eyes—though her expression remained guarded.

  "To the central library, of course," she replied with a small smile. "My boss needs something from there, stat."

  Chie's eyes widened slightly at the mention of a 'Boss' but her voice stayed neutral. "Your boss, huh? And their name is…?”

  Lupa smirked again, clearly enjoying having the upper hand here. Again.

  "I can't tell you that either," she replied breezily. "Nyot here, at least."

  Chie crossed her arms again, her expression skeptical but her tone almost amused: "...Then how can we trust you're even telling the truth?”

  Lupa's smirk didn't waver. "I thought you might ask that, meow."

  She stepped back a few paces and spread her arms wide like she was offering a silent bargain. "Conjure your weapons," she said calmly. "Right. Here. Right. Nyow."

  The girls exchanged looks again: Tenzing looked skeptical but ready, Alice seemed wary, while Chie raised an arm, a dark grin on her lips.

  Juniper looked uncertain: "Uh…. are you sure about this?”

  Lupa kept her gaze focused on Chie, her eyes gleaming with something almost challenging.

  "Do it," she whispered. "If you're really as brave as ya say, then do it."

  A beat passed. Chie's hand clenched, her eyes never leaving Lupa's—a silent challenge.

  Then she grinned.

  "Well...if you insist…"

  Chie drew her twin katanas, doing a few tricks with them.

  Lupa blinked then burst out laughing, the sound sharp and unguarded. "Hah! You're right."

  She wiped a mocking tear from her eye before gesturing grandly at the empty street around them. "This city? It eats weapons on sight if you don't have a permit. I was just testing how much ya knew about Euphoria's little…quirks."

  Chie scowled: "That's not funny!"

  Lupa shrugged, still grinning: "Nyo joke~ Just facts." Her tone shifted slightly as she added with quiet intensity: "...But ask me again in private and I'll show ya something that'll make your blades look like toothpicks."

  Alice narrowed her eyes, suspicious but intrigued.

  Juniper leaned toward Chie to whisper loudly enough for everyone to hear:

  "...Okay but low-key? That was kinda hot.”

  Chie reluctantly lowered her weapon, though her grip stayed as tight as ever.

  "And we're not here to make friends either," she retorted, her voice laced with sharp suspicion. "If you're going to the central library, then we're coming with you—no questions asked.”

  Lupa's smirk softened slightly, almost like she respected the blunt demand.

  "Hah! Alright, fine," she said with a shrug. "But just so we're clear: I'm not your tour guide."

  She turned on her heel and started walking down the street without another word, leaving them to either follow or stand there all day.

  Juniper blinked after Lupa’s retreating form before muttering: "Uh…she is literally already leading us though."

  Alice sighed and rubbed at her temple as if warding off an incoming headache.

  Tenzing simply dispelled her brush in silence—and fell into step behind Lupa without protest.

  Chie scowled but finally moved too, grumbling under her breath:

  "...This better be worth it.”