Zero

When she arrived at the door of the storage room, Catherine noticed that the door was ajar, so she opened the door and walked inside.

She saw Beth sitting on the sofa, still watching the football game.

"Mary is spying on Wellings."

Catherine's heart skipped a beat, then she blurted out in a low voice, "What does she want?"

"Don't worry, she doesn't know that you work here yet."

As if she was bored by the football game, she turned off the TV and continued, "She wants to find a job for her 'niece' that would match their family status."

"So... That's why she called Johnson herself?"

"Oh? Maybe they've reached an agreement?" Beth gloated, "You guys are really something. You've already gone your separate ways but still ended up in the same place. It's like fate."

"You should admire the Kate family for their persistence instead."

"Either way, I'll think of a way to help you. If Millie Kate doesn't end up here, then great. If she does, I'll try my best to smooth things over for you. After all, you two are sisters."

"... Some sister she is," Catherine added indignantly. She only had to wait for the inheritance to be brought under her name. Even if she was found out to be a fake daughter after that, she could still damage the Kate family from within.

However, things had gone awry. Millie's sudden arrival disrupted all of Catherine's plans.

"Forget it, I'll feel guilty if I let you deal with this alone. There are some things I have to deal with eventually."

"Is that sympathy I hear from you?" Beth asked with a wicked smile.

"Humph, I guess so. Oh right, next time, get some passwords or something. Your fancy handwriting is wasting paper."

Although Catherine already had a plan, Beth's notes still risked exposing her cover.

"Don't worry, I'm good with codes."

After saying goodbye to Beth, Catherine decided to go out for a walk. On the way here, Catherine was very interested in some graffiti near the building.

She chose not to return to the office. Instead, she left the office and walked in the direction of the bus stop.

The bus stop sign was so covered with dark paint the original sign underneath was unreadable.

When Catherine wanted to get closer, she felt someone approaching her. She quietly looked behind and saw somebody coming closer from behind. Just as her assailant was about to make his move, he was stopped by a big, strong, hand on his shoulder.

Catherine turned around in surprise and found that it was a young, tough-looking policeman. The man smiled at her in a comforting manner. He took out the handcuffs and took the thief away. Catherine came back to her senses and looked at the man's name tag with a chuckle. 

Justin... Justice? That was an interesting name.

As the policeman walked away, Catherine turned back and continued to observe the bus stop sign. She did not notice that the policeman turned back and gave her a long stare.

Catherine stretched out her hand and wiped off the thickest part of the paint, then took a closer sniff. It didn't seem to be different from ordinary paint.

"The smell of this diluent can be found all over the street, so there's actually no need to do any research on the ingredients."

Catherine turned around. A man in a comically large windbreaker stood behind her, trying to tell Catherine something.

"I have my own way of doing things, my dear." Catherine was not surprised by the rude words of the man. "At least I don't think I need anyone to teach me how to do things."

"Even if it's ineffective, godmother?" The man pulled Catherine to the side, then took out his cell phone and snapped pictures of the sign from different angles. Then, he handed the phone to Catherine. "Do you need some advice?"

"Oh? Sure."

"From the traces, it looks like it was done by a delinquent. From the style of his drawing, the patterns he drew are basically similar to the totems I use."

"... But?"

"But he neglected two important details. First, totems only appear on certain important occasions, and each totem represents a different meaning. For example, the meaning of the imitated drawing of totems is opposition. This meaning appearing near the bus stop obviously doesn't conform to our communication rules, and –"