The Shapestealer stood up and examined the room she was in more closely. But as she was pacing around, she jolted back slightly as she heard Jeeves call out to her.

"Are you alright?"

Maya turned around and saw that the butler was standing a few feet behind her. "I'm fine."

"Do you need any assistance?"

"Actually, is there a basement around here?"

Jeeves tilted his head slightly. "Indeed, this mansion does have a basement. But I must ask why you seem interested in the basement in the first place?"

"Well, uh, I'm just…curious."

"Did the Master give you permission to explore?"

"He did."

The butler's eyes squinted slightly as Maya finished speaking. But after a while, he nodded.

"In that case, follow me."

Maya followed the butler as he led her to the kitchen. There, Jeeves knelt down and unlocked a wooden hatch before lifting it open, revealing a long ladder.

Jeeves then stood and handed Maya a set of keys. "I've unlocked the basement for you, once you've finished looking around, please lock the hatch again."

"Right, thank you." Maya said, grabbing the keys from Jeeves and putting it into her cloak.

"I'll be on my way then, Miss."

As the butler walked away, Maya went down the hatch and climbed the ladder to the basement. The place was almost pitch black, but thankfully, she could still see just fine in the dark ever since she got her Relic Class.

As she climbed down the stairs, the crying sound she heard only grew louder. As her boot touched the ground, Maya felt a chill run through her spine.

The air down here was stale and musty at the same time. And as she turned opposite to the ladder, she saw how surprisingly barebones everything was. There were only a few crates and barrels here and there, but nothing else seemed to be of note.

Maya slowly walked deeper into the basement, her eyes constantly scanning her surroundings. At the end, she saw a little girl huddled up in the corner.

She tried to call out to the girl. "Hello? Are you okay?"

The girl slowly looked up. Maya could see the tears that streaked down her reddish eyes. "Who…are you?"

"Just call me Maya."

"Why are you here?"

"I…don't know actually."

The girl chuckled and began to relax, stretching her legs out. "Can you come sit with me?"

"Sure." Maya approached the girl and took a seat on the ground, leaning back against a nearby wall.

"You seem nice." The girl said.

"Uh, thanks. What's your name?" Maya asked.

"Anna."

"Alright, Anna, how come you're all alone in this basement?"

"Hmm, not sure. I've kinda just been here."

"You're serious?"

"Yep."

"Is it because Jeeves or the Master doesn't let you out?"

The girl tilted her head in confusion. "They tend to just ignore me to be honest."

"So, they locked you in this basement?"

"Nah, I just like it here."

"Well, weren't you crying before?" Maya asked.

The girl smiled. "Only to get someone to come down and keep me company."

"Oh…alright."

"Hey, Maya, can I ask you for a favor?"

"Uh, depends I guess."

The girl chuckled. "If you can get me Jeeves's handkerchief, I'll give you something nice in return."

"Can I know what this is?"

"But that'll ruin the surprise! Besides, you don't have to if you don't want to."

Maya couldn't help but roll her eyes. Normally, she'd refuse such a ridiculous request. But part of her felt that there was something more to the girl. And it wasn't like she had better leads for now. "Fine, I'll get you the handkerchief, just wait here."

"I'll be waiting!"

Afterwards, Maya said goodbye to the girl before leaving the basement. Once she was back in the kitchen, she pulled out the keys that Jeeves gave her and locked the hatch again, just in case.

Resuming her search, Maya soon found Jeeves in the living room, who was adjusting the alignment of several paintings with his many hands. Approaching him, she asked, "Hey Jeeves, do you mind lending me your handkerchief?"

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Jeeves paused, turning his attention to Maya with a hint of reluctance. "I'm sorry, Miss, but I cannot do that. I keep my handkerchief inside my room at all times as it's a gift from the Master. I could, however, try to find a different one if you wish."

"Never mind, thanks," Maya replied.

As she left Jeeves behind, Maya's desire to find this handkerchief only grew. If anything, just to sate her own curiosity. She walked around the ground floor more until she found another room to the right of the kitchen: one that had a plaque with the word "Jeeves" emblazoned on it.

She tried to open the door, only to find it locked. Maya glanced around for a bit to make sure nobody was nearby. She pulled out her mithril dagger and got to work manipulating the lock. She had decent experience with lockpicking before she entered the Tower, having had to pick open a few lockboxes that she occasionally stole from the markets. After a few tries, she heard a click.

Maya tucked her dagger back in her cloak and gently twisted the doorknob, slipping into Jeeves's room. The butler's room was quite small, with only a single bed, a bed stand, and a wardrobe. Maya spotted the handkerchief almost immediately, resting on top of the bed stand. She grabbed it and stuffed it into one of her pockets before going out of the room.

But as she closed the door to Jeeves's room, she heard the man himself speaking from behind her. "And what do we have here?"

Maya spun around and saw the butler staring right back at her. Sweat beaded from her forehead. "H-hey there."

"To think this is how you repay the Master's kindness, pathetic."

Immediately, Jeeves dashed forward and curled each of his hands into fists. Maya barely managed to roll away as the butler's hands slammed into the door she stood in front of a moment ago.

Just as Jeeves was pulling out his hands from the door, Maya stood and closed her eyes. She felt dark energy twist and swirl around her as she assumed her Shadow Knight form. As she opened her eyes, she was greeted by one of the butler's fists hitting her face. He then continued pummeling her over and over again with his many fists before finally knocking Maya back with a bone crushing headbutt.

Maya crashed through the wall with a thunderous roar, her body shattering through several wooden tables and chairs in her wake. Debris scattered across the room in a cloud of dust and splinters. She then steadied herself and struggled back onto her feet; only to soon find Jeeves charging toward her, his six hands clenched into fists.

With little time to spare, Maya summoned a shadowy sword in her right hand and swung it toward Jeeves. But the butler snatched the blade effortlessly between two hands, his other four launching a barrage of punches. Each blow drove Maya back until her grip on the sword loosened, causing it to dissipate back into shadows.

Before she could recover, Jeeves delivered another brutal headbutt, sending Maya crashing to the ground. Still dazed, Maya felt the world spin as Jeeves hoisted her up by her feet, twirling her in a dizzying whirlwind before hurling her through the window.

Glass shattered and rained down as Maya tumbled into the decrepit garden outside. She felt pricks on her armor as she landed on a flower bed filled with thorny plants.

Maya rose and began to yank the thorny plants that had attached themselves to her armor. At least the barbs weren't quite sharp or strong enough to do any real damage to her.

As Jeeves appeared at the shattered window, Maya prepared herself. Just as he lunged towards her, she activated [Phantom Stride], turning herself both invisible and intangible. Jeeves stumbled forward, his momentum carrying him through the space where Maya had stood moments before. He crashed into the same thorny flower bed; his own body ensnared by the prickly plants.

Taking advantage of his vulnerable state, Maya manifested herself back, her right hand once again summoning a shadowy sword. Without hesitation, she plunged the sword into his back.

The eerie silence of the garden was shattered by the sound of bones cracking. Jeeves used several of his hands to grasp the hilt of Maya's shadowy sword. Maya watched with disbelief as the sword was inexplicably lifted upwards, Jeeves's head twisting around in an almost unnatural manner to glare at her with cold, unyielding eyes.

The butler shattered Maya's shadowy sword, its pieces dissolving into the air. Maya took several steps back as she observed the monstrous butler rise from the thorny flower bed. Despite the blood seeping from multiple wounds and the thorns embedded in his flesh, Jeeves seemed unaffected.

Then, the butler charged at Maya again. In response, Maya conjured another shadow sword and swung it sideways in a desperate attempt to fend off the butler's relentless assault.

However, Jeeves contorted his body in an almost serpentine motion to dodge the attack. He then unleashed a barrage of punches, each one landing with the force of a sledgehammer.

Maya's armor cracked under the onslaught, the sound of fracturing metal accompanying her grunts of pain. Yet, when Jeeves attempted another devastating headbutt, Maya, through sheer willpower, managed to resist some of the impact, the blow pushing her back but not down.

As Jeeves rushed to strike again. Maya waited until he got close to execute a precise kick. Her foot connected with Jeeves, sending him staggering to the side.

Maya clenched her fists and delivered two swift punches to Jeeves's head, first with her right, then with her left. The butler staggered under the assault, his body shaking.

The Shapestealer then gathered all her strength and unleashed a powerful uppercut. The force of her attack sent Jeeves soaring through the air, before he came back crashing to the ground with a heavy thud.

Exhausted, Maya slumped to her knees, her body trembling as she reverted back to her human form. She panted heavily as she fought to recover from the exertion of the battle.

Yet, the respite was short-lived. Before long, Jeeves began to stir, slowly pushing himself off the ground with an uncanny resilience.

Seeing this, Maya tried to use the chance to activate [Copycat] with a quick glance towards Jeeves. However, to her surprise, nothing happened. Confusion turned to alarm as she realized that her vision was incredibly shaky due to exhaustion.

She soon realized that what she was staring at wasn't Jeeves: but just air. An intense pain then spread throughout Maya's head, forcing her to clutch it with a hand.

Despite this, she could still hear the sound of Jeeves getting up as he slowly recovered. Maya forced herself to stagger to her feet and drew her dagger as she prepared for one last clash with the butler.

As Jeeves charged towards her, Maya's vision remained blurry at first. But after a quick breath, she strained her eyes and forced herself to focus on the butler as he approached. She knew she needed to wait for just the right moment to make a move.

Even with her blurred vision, Maya noticed that Jeeves's movements had also become slower and sloppier than usual. As he came close, she made a quick sweep using her left leg: causing Jeeves to stumble over her leg and fall to the ground.

As the butler fell to the ground with a heavy thud, Maya turned swiftly on her heel and buried her dagger deep into Jeeves's neck, the butler's body thrashed violently despite this. He even briefly managed to rise. The Shapestealer quickly dashed back, putting distance between herself and the flailing butler.

Jeeves prepared to charge at Maya, blood dripping from the dagger still embedded in his neck. However, his movements slowed, and his body began to grow limp. Soon, he collapsed to the ground. And as he fell, he muttered his final words, "Master...forgive me."

Once Jeeves had completely ceased moving, the garden fell into an eerie silence. With cautious steps, Maya approached Jeeves's still body. She carefully retrieved her dagger from his neck, the blade slick with blood. Taking a moment to clean it on a piece of cloth, she cleaned it up before securing it back into her cloak.

But then, a set of notifications appeared in front of her.

[Transformation penalty applied: Sunlight Vulnerability]

The notification elicited a groan from Maya: she had just finished a pretty difficult fight after all. Still, a part of her hoped that whatever "sunlight vulnerability" meant wouldn't be too detrimental for her. So far, she hadn't seen any source of sunlight, but having a sun within the Tower wouldn't even surprise her at this point.