Because the abandoned manor outside the city was relatively far away, even if he moved home through space, it would already be noon when Shade arrived home.
He calculated that the "Holy Grail", "Crown", "Philosopher's Stone" and "Heart" were all perfectly prepared, leaving only the "Endless Fountain of Wine" as a reluctant correspondence. After all, the relic [Bacchus' Stone]
Although the bottle can flow an endless stream of fine wine, it is not a fountain.
So while going out for lunch, Shade took Mia and went to Old John's pawn shop again.
Old John expressed surprise at Shade's second appearance today, but when he heard that Shade was looking for a nozzle that "can spray the liquid in the bottle like a fountain," he looked at it with strange eyes.
After a while Shade said:
"There must be a girl you have a very good relationship with, right?"
"Of course, why are you asking?"
"Haven't you seen the pressurized nozzles on girls' perfume bottles? Or rather, liquefaction nozzles. A purely mechanical structure that changes the pressure to cause the liquid to be pressurized and sprayed out. The steam pressurized water spray gun of the city municipal fire department
The structure of the gun head is similar."
Old John shook his head:
"Detective, detective, although we are magicians, we must not forget the era we live in, and we should not blindly seek to use extraordinary power to solve anything."
"What I want is not that kind, but... a continuous spray of liquid, and it is used on relics."
Shade introduced his wine bottle. Unexpectedly, Old John had heard of that relic:
"That thing is actually in your hands?"
His eyes widened, as if he suddenly knew that Shade was the "God Summoner":
"Even if you offer 10,000 pounds, there will still be people willing to buy this famous relic."
"Dad John, please stop joking, this is just a poet-level relic."
Shade said with a smile, but the old man behind the counter was very serious:
"You really don't know what to buy. This truly endless wine bottle allows the user to pour out any wine they have tasted. For those alcoholics who love alcohol, you can't imagine how tempting this is. And it's just right.
Because it is a poet-level, its risk is quite low, so it is more valuable. If the risk were higher, no one would care."
"No, I'm not selling it. I plan to give it to a lady."
Seeing that the old man really wanted to discuss this business, Xia De hurriedly shook his head and refused.
"Tsk, no wonder."
The old man was very sorry:
"You want to turn it into a fountain? Because the whisper element will affect the effect of alchemy items, I can only give you a nozzle that can be effective for two hours. I want to warn you that if you modify the relic at will, it will increase the loss of control of the relic.
possible."
This is also one of the common sense among ring magicians, and is mentioned in the first-year courses of the three major colleges. After all, the best way to "use" relics is to "contain" them.
"I know, I just use ten seconds to show the effect."
Father John also knew that Shade had always been cautious, so he gave him the brass nozzle. This thing was originally used to extract underground water through pipes and replenish the water supply during wilderness expeditions, so Old John could take it out immediately.
Thus, Miss Carina's commission was simply completed, and the time was not even two o'clock in the afternoon.
Since Tifa said it was best to go early, Shade did not waste any time. From the door of the pawn shop, he carried the cat who had eaten lunch and took a nap into the carriage and set off directly to the outside of the city.
Probably because he arrived too early, when Shade paid the fare at the gate of Miss Carina's manor, and then waved to the young blond-haired maid who was cleaning the courtyard inside the closed gate, what happened later?
As if he had seen something incredible, he dropped his broom, picked up his skirt, and ran quickly towards the manor house.
"Do I look scary?"
Shade thought doubtfully, then looked down at the cat in his arms:
"Or maybe Mia is scary?"
I thought someone would come to open the gate soon, but Shade stood in the cold wind of the early spring afternoon for ten minutes before finally seeing Tifa wearing a wind-proof cloak, leading a group of maids hurriedly along the courtyard.
The trail along the central axis came over.
The maid who had always been very kind to Shade had a rare angry expression on her face when she came to the door. Her black eyes looked up at Shade, and she said as if questioning:
"Xia De, how can you give up so early? Can't you try more and come back in the evening? For the sake of Miss, can't you try your limit?"
"What...give up?"
Shade asked hesitantly. Seeing his innocent look, Tifa blinked and took a step back. The head maid, who had always been capable and elegant, showed a rare hesitant expression:
"So, the task has been completed by you?"
"Yes."
Shade nodded and patted his chest:
"So after lunch, I came over."
"You actually still have time for lunch..."
An even more incredible expression appeared on Tifa's face, and then she lowered her head to admit her mistake. Because she lowered her head so fast, her hair behind her swayed:
"Sorry, I just..."
"Can you let me come in first? It's really cold outside."
Shade said, so the maid behind Tifa opened the gate, and the black-haired maid took off her cloak and gave it to Shade, and the group walked towards the mansion:
"The reason we made you wait so long is because the manor is still preparing. We didn't expect you to come so soon."
"what to prepare?"
"Well...you'll find out soon enough."
Entering the room, Shade still didn't find any unique arrangements here. The floor was still so clean, and the light in the room was still so bright.
Shade originally wanted to go directly to Miss Carina to complete this strange but simple commission. But the maids stopped Shade together, and Tifa grabbed Shade's sleeve directly, preventing him from walking upstairs.
Chance.
The girls chatted and led Shade to the restaurant on the side of the first floor. Of course, this was not the restaurant where the owners of the manor ate, but the restaurant where the maids ate.
They pushed Shade into it, then closed the door and blocked the way out.
The girls wearing the standard black and white maid skirts all looked at him, and the leader Tifa asked:
"Before going to see the lady, detective, please prove that you have completed the commission. This is not because we don't trust you, but the noble Duchess is not something you can see just because you want to."
What she said did make sense, so Shade first put the cat, whose body was extremely soft after falling asleep, on the dining table, and then took something out of his pocket:
"crown."
The toy crown was taken out and restored into a real crown. Shade casually handed it to the young maid with long black curly hair who he saw every time he came here. This is Miss Martha, who also followed Jialin.
Miss Na went to Randall Valley.
After getting the crown, the young maid was at a loss and hurriedly handed it to another girl beside her, until she passed it to Tifa. The latter looked at it and nodded hesitantly:
"no problem."
"Then the Holy Grail, the endless fountain of wine, and the Philosopher's Stone."
Shade casually placed the Holy Grail and wine bottle on the table, and placed the nozzle on the wine bottle to demonstrate its function. The last piece of Philosopher's Stone he took out was hung on his chest and embedded in silver jewelry.
He took out the small stone with scarlet light from his arms, but did not untie the rope. The stone actually shone under the light, and the girls in the restaurant held their breath.
Relics have strange properties that attract anyone to usurp them.
"As for the fifth treasure, which is my heart, I want to show it to Miss Carina in person."
Shade said, picking up the cat that was sniffing the bottle of wine to prevent it from getting drunk:
"Is this okay?"
So the young girls all looked at Tifa, who nodded as if she had made some determination:
"Yes, but we need to take these things for appraisal, so you can't see the Duke for the time being."
Shade heard that they were going to delay him no matter what, so he didn't object:
"No problem, but when? Since I can't go upstairs, can you find me an empty room? I have a few books with me, so I can write a book report after reading them."
Xia De, who is in fourth grade, has not fallen behind in his studies.
"Detective, it's not okay to ignore a guest like you. This is not the etiquette of the Duke's estate."
Tifa shook her head and looked at the two maids of the Duke beside her:
"You have been standing outside for so long. In order to prevent you from getting cold, why don't you take a hot bath first? There is a special bath in the manor. You will like it."
Of course Shade knew that there was a bath here, and that the bath could even be called a hot spring, which was enough to swim in.
"You'd better be able to wash until four in the afternoon."
The black-haired maid added, Shade calculated the time and found that it was only after two o'clock, which was enough for him to sleep.
But since it was the client's request, he did not object. So he followed the maids, as if being monitored by them, to the large bathroom on the side of the first floor.
As for Mia, this cat would never go into a wet environment, so Tifa arranged for a special maid to watch it to prevent it from accidentally getting lost.
The water in the bath is actually hot. Brass steam pipes are laid in circles on the walls of the bathroom and extend into the floor. At the end of the pipes is the side wall of the bath, with more than a dozen rose-shaped faucets slightly above the water.
While the pipes transport hot water, the heat they emit also makes the water vapor in the room heavier. All this seems to have been prepared in advance, but taking a hot bath in this weather is indeed a good way to relax.
"Luxurious enjoyment, it's great to have money..."
Shade changed his clothes, declined the help of the maids, and entered the bathtub alone. After entering the water, he leaned against the edge of the bathtub, closed his eyes and took a rest, while thinking about what Miss Carina wanted to do.
However, after a while, there were very clear footsteps behind him. Because Shade had his eyes closed, the thaumaturgy [Heart of Stone] made him very clear, and he could almost "see" circles beating in the dark.
The ripples are the traces of heart beating. Judging from the frequency, the heart rate of the girl who entered the door is obviously too fast.
"Who is it? Oh, I really don't need help from others, please leave me alone..."
Shade turned around and said, and then turned his head suddenly again, as if he saw some evil ghost:
"Tifa, what are you..."
She did not answer Shade, but the sound of the soles of her feet touching the wet ground got closer and closer. Until the figure stood behind Shade.