It has been a few months since Hawkmoth was finally defeated, and soon after his death, Chrysalis swiftly came onto the scene as his replacement. Their schemes were much more cunning, more intellectual, and even more manipulative of their akumatized victims. Marinette knew she had to be more careful around Chrysalis’ villains because they were growing more and more powerful under Lila’s tutelage.

It wasn’t until she found herself fighting a secondary villain that Marinette realized who she was up against. The first villain had been defeated, she could still see the purified butterfly drifting away— this person in front of of her was not an akumatized villain; they couldn’t be. It had to be a Miraculous holder. The battle went on for a long time, but eventually, the villainous Miraculous holder soon realized they were backed into a corner and swiftly made their escape.

The cycle continued for the next couple of months, with the villainous holder taking advantage of Ladybug and Cat Noir at their most vulnerable moments to seize their Miraculous, but it always failed. Soon enough, Marinette grew tired of the routine and thought she should investigate.

After her latest battle with Chrysalis’ ally, Ladybug stealthily planted a tracker from her Lucky Charm on their back, waiting almost an hour to track all of their movements before finally following them to some shady hotel along the Seine.