"We were attacked while we were squatting in the sewers guarding members of the Zigman Party..."
"The enemy was very cunning. He deceived Detective Zerrell and stabbed him directly in the heart..."
"This is how the whole thing happened." Klein leaned against a relatively clean wooden table in an ordinary restaurant in the Jowood District. There were several plates of finished food and a half-drunk glass of milk stacked in front of him.
Across the wooden table, Ian, who was silent and bowed his head, took a sip of dark brown coffee, looking a little depressed.
"The Zigman Party will not give up just like this. There is also Detective Zerrell's boss... He is indeed Fusac's spy, and he also has code words on his body that are used to communicate with Fusac's intelligence agency.
, for confidentiality reasons, they will definitely pursue this information."
"And, and, hey, my new identity is finished." At the end, Ian's tone became deeper and deeper, he laughed self-deprecatingly, and took another sip of the bitter-looking coffee.
New identity? His thoughts were clearer. Klein, who was not affected by the other party's emotions, raised his eyebrows and calmly changed his sitting position. He placed his left leg on top of his right leg familiarly and said in a calm tone:
"So that's why you served him. What was your original identity?"
The seemingly normal question accidentally hit Ian's wound, making this seemingly mature but underage boy feel a little helpless for a moment. It was difficult to speak and he had to keep drinking bitter coffee.
After a long time, Ian, who had probably adjusted his mood, broke the silence and said proactively:
"I was originally from the Southern Continent, a mixed race from the Southern Continent."
Mixed race?
It's not like that... Klein, whose interest was piqued, kept moving his eyes and carefully examined the other person's facial features. He didn't see anything that he had seen on the faces of Mr. Azik or various Southern Continent service staff.
The feeling of softness on the facial features.
Although Ian has a delicate appearance and can almost try to disguise himself as a woman after growing his hair long, his facial features are still deep, tough, and angular that are common among people from the Northern Continent.
Seemingly sensing Klein's confusion, the somewhat depressed Ian pursed his lips and sighed:
"Mr. Moriarty, not all people from the Southern Continent have brown skin and soft facial features."
"You should know about the Solomon Empire during the Fourth Age, right?"
Initially, he was quite surprised, but the topic suddenly involved his major. Klein suddenly tightened his thoughts and recalled the knowledge he had about the Solomon Empire of the Fourth Age.
Of course, in order to maintain his character, he could not directly tell Ian that he knew him very well. He could only pretend to be Sherlock Moriarty and nodded ignorantly to show that he was not an illiterate who did not even know basic history.
Of course, fortunately, I have set up this identity to be proficient in criminal investigation and good at using deductive methods to solve problems. If I really follow the prototype, Professor Guang's "Asteroid Mechanics" can make me give up directly...
Ian looked at Detective Moriarty and nodded in confusion, as if he had probably heard similar historical stories but didn't know them as well as a professional. He immediately lowered his voice and patiently explained:
"The Solomon Empire was the first unified country that emerged in the Fourth Age. Its territory was not just the current northern continental countries, but also involved part of the southern continent. It also established city-states long before the Balam Empire."
"At that time, immigrants from the Northern Continent had already appeared on the Southern Continent, which was also the source of the 'white goods' in the slave trade between the Northern and Southern Continents."
"My mother is a 'white goods' from the Southern Continent. She was bought by my father who went to the Star Plateau to do business. They developed feelings for each other during their long companionship, and finally gave birth to me..."
Ian, who has bright red eyes, recalled the distant past, and there was a trace of imperceptible nostalgia and softness in his eyes.
He paused for a moment, his body suddenly stilled, and then he quickly picked up the almost bottomed coffee cup on the table and drank the last residue in a slurping voice.
After doing all this, he barely adjusted himself and continued:
"In short, I have no legal status in the Northern Continent, and I belong to a mixed-race group that is more likely to be discriminated against. Originally, if Detective Zerrell succeeded, he promised to take me back to Fusac and give me an officially recognized identity certificate.
, a decent job.”
"Ha..." Another self-deprecating laugh, Ian moved his facial muscles and moved his neck a few times, "Maybe I am really more useful. He plans to let me continue to be his subordinate. I originally
Quite looking forward to it.”
Klein, who was sitting lazily against the back of the chair, listened to all the stories in silence without commenting. He just sighed softly, picked up the cold milk in front of him, and raised it halfway in the air.
"Then what are you going to do now? Leave Backlund to avoid the pursuit of the Zigman Party, or find another way out?"
"I want to follow you." Ian on the opposite side said his plan quickly without thinking much.
He saw Klein's surprise, but did not give time for refutation, but continued to state his thoughts quickly:
"Since you can escape from the killers of the Zigman Party, it means that you have a certain ability to protect yourself, and you may be an extraordinary person like Detective Zerrell."
"And judging from your previous behavior, you should have just arrived in Backlund and are not familiar with the various channels here or the secret channels here. I can help you with these."
"And as detective Zerrell's assistants, no matter what our identities are, we have already entered into the sight of the Zigman Party. They have risen rapidly recently and are definitely capable of tracking down the participants in this matter on a large scale. But if
With me helping you, you can at least be well prepared and not rush into it."
One reason after another was laid out, and Ian analyzed it in a clear and logical manner before Klein's eyes. In a few words, he explained his current needs and upcoming threats.
In fact, what he said is absolutely correct. What Klein lacks most now is the local power of Backlund. Although there is Miss Justice, a member of the aristocratic party at the Tarot Club, he certainly cannot use the identity of "The Fool"
Make a request.
Even though Miss Justice mentioned last time that contacting other potential friends who may participate in the party may be able to add some channels to the Tarot Club to deal with Backlund's middle and lower-class groups, but Klein wants to truly mobilize and take the initiative to obtain
Information and items are also very passive.
Considering reality, Ian's proposal turned out to be the optimal solution... After carefully weighing his own resources and considering all parties, Klein hesitantly stretched out his hand, rubbed his chin, and said silently
After two seconds, he slowly said:
"Okay, I think you will be a good helper."
...
"Am I not a very good helper?"
In Viscount Grayling's home in Queens, the door to the study was tightly closed, completely separating the four people inside from the outside guests attending the salon.
Audrey, who had just smiled and asked a joking question to her friend, sipped her black tea, her beautiful green eyes revealing youthful vitality and playfulness.
"No, Audrey, of course you are a good experimental assistant, but in terms of medicine, I think you still need more practice." Viscount Graylingt, who was sitting in a more casual posture and wearing a dark green shirt, raised the corners of his mouth slightly and smiled.
responded.
His eyes stayed on his friend across from him, taking a look at Audrey's fluffy cake skirt and the layered lace hem. He nodded in approval, and then turned sideways to look at the other two guests.
"Forsi, sometimes I also wonder why you don't wear more colorful clothes. What you wear now is always too serious."
Forsi, who was suddenly mentioned, glanced at his clothes decorated with ruffles, and then curled his lips. His voice was hoarse from smoking too many cigarettes while working on a manuscript a few days ago.
"Writers should always be serious. If you are too light-hearted, you may lose your inspiration."
She ignored the teasing gazes of her friend who lived next to her, and her lazy temperament showed no restraint as she continued:
"Also, the various rituals and potions used by extraordinary people are very expensive, so I can only reluctantly give up."
This sentence is well said, and he did not directly ask for money... Compared to his friend, Xio, who has less experience in this area and usually deals with people more directly, nodded imperceptibly and said to his friend
Today's smart guy was very satisfied, and it was rare that he didn't expose the other person.
After hearing this, Gray Linte, who was sitting on the side of the sun, cast his gaze towards Audrey next to him. He found that this young lady who was never short of money and was good at observation had indeed taken out the paper bag in her hand and said in a sweet voice.
:
"This reminds me, Hugh, Forsi, this is the commission I entrusted you to investigate for me last time."
"I'm sorry to put you in danger. This is the reward you deserve."
Xio, who had previously written to Audrey the story of his encounter with Chillinges and his narrow escape, excluding His Highness Ambrosius, involuntarily bent forward and caught it with his hands faster than his mouth.
Got the package of banknotes.
Feeling the weight of the gold pound, she thanked her very sincerely:
"Miss Audrey, thank you for your generosity, your integrity will make you more beautiful."
While he was talking, Forsi, who was sitting lazily on the sofa, had straightened up, his bumpy figure pressed against the side of Xio's slightly thin body, and he almost couldn't wait to open the paper package.
While laughing, Xio, who felt that her friend was a little embarrassed, glared at her, and then together they untied the thin thread wrapped around the surface of the paper bag, and saw the banknotes inside, as well as a book with a simple cover.
"What is this?" Forsi, who was relatively well off financially, picked up the book underneath a pile of banknotes and carefully opened the cover.
Audrey, who was sitting aside with a reserved posture and a slight smile on her pure face, explained in an ethereal voice:
"This is an ancient document about the history of the Quaternary Age that I received on my previous birthday. It records some content about mysticism. I plan to use it as compensation for the danger you encountered this time."