#kjhgjdkfsljhj

[caramelcuniculus]

Oh.

Well, that'd settle that, huh? He flew too close to the sun and now it was about to burst. Realistically it already did, and the Masked Gentleman's plans were about to succumb and shatter. Maybe the man, unmasked, would reach that same fate. Hera-Lee looked agitated; this was no longer a game he was winning.

And the old saying goes… a magician never reveals his secrets.

"Randall," the Masked Gentleman rephrased, the man underneath doing his best to sound confused. Regardless, his gloved hand took hers gently, as if he was actually going to follow her. "I've never heard of such a name in all my life."

Quickly, the Masked Gentleman pulled Hera-Lee's hand and arm down with a great force. With the professor stunned and startled, the Masked Gentleman threw down one of his smoke bombs, making the local area very foggy. When the smoke cleared, Hera-Lee was left entirely alone with fading chuckles from the Masked Gentleman.

Tucked behind a nearby building, the man underneath the mask let out shaky breaths. Too close… he had to get back. Using his swiftness, he was on his way back towards his current place of residence. Only one more thought entered his mind through the adrenaline rush.

Oh, they were going to be very angry.

A bit uncomfortable, she took a step back, her smile fading away in the blink of an eye. She held back a sigh before bluntly explaining, "I believe you are mistaken. If this is still about puzzle-solving, I can assure you, there is no part I do not enjoy. But enough about that. I can tell you're speaking of something greater than just that..."

Her glare suddenly grew intense as she adopted a very grounded stance. She stared up at him with her head tilted slightly downward, the brim of her hat casting a shadow over her eyes. "I've been able to piece things together here and there all throughout this little adventure, but recently, you have made the solution to this puzzle painfully obvious. So..." she loosely held out a hand in an inviting gesture "...why not finally end this charade, Randall?"