When Sherlock entered the room, he subconsciously raised his eyebrows.
He noticed at first glance that there was too little food on the table and that too much was eaten.
Avalon is different from Star Antimony. The country founded by knights does not promote the virtue of frugality. Here, holding a banquet is an honor - and if the food and wine are almost finished and drunk, but the banquet is far from over, then this
It would be considered disrespectful.
It was because the host prepared too little food that the guests had to leave early to end their trip. Therefore, when the guests realized that they were about to finish eating, they would deliberately eat less to save some face for the host.
So this can't be the first round of meals. It should be the second round.
In the same way, if finishing the meal is a kind of disrespect, then replacing and serving a second round of dishes is a kind of attention and retention. The implication is: "I have replaced you with another table of fresh and hot meals.
Isn't it rude of you to leave now?"
"...Good evening, Mr. Sherlock."
Isabel was the first to speak: "Nice to meet you."
——Why are you suddenly happy?
Sherlock was a little confused, but there was still nothing wrong with the etiquette.
"The Silver Crowned Dragon is above."
He did not dare to raise his head to look at the princess, so he knelt down on one knee respectfully, put one hand on his chest, and lowered his head in a knightly salute: "Your Royal Highness, I wish you all the best."
"Please get up, Mr. Sherlock."
Isabel made a clear voice.
Only then did Sherlock dare to stand up and say hello to Yanis, who was still sitting at the table, and Aiwass, who was sitting in the wheelchair.
Yanis smiled and nodded in response. Aiwass, who was unable to move, let Lily behind him bow lightly on his behalf and return the favor.
Soon, after standing up, Sherlock's sharp hawk-like eyes glanced at Princess Isabel's slightly tipsy face.
——Did you drink so much?
He was a little surprised.
It seems that Master Yannis quite values ​​Mr. Aiwass.
Otherwise, she should have prevented Her Royal Highness from drinking too much - from a formal point of view, the average big shot would not drink too much wine at a banquet, but would only take one or two polite sips. If you finish one glass and then add another drink, then
It will appear that you are too close and take this banquet too seriously.
And this itself is a political signal.
If Master Yanis thinks Aiwass is an unimportant guest, he will signal Isabel to keep her distance.
But now I'm afraid it's not a matter of drinking one or two cups.
Look at the two empty wine bottles on the table...the three of them actually drank two bottles of wine?
The servants in the Palace of Silver and Tin will definitely sell this information. Sherlock knows that... some of them are related to a certain minister or knight family. Sometimes, he himself will learn from them.
Buy some information in hand.
That is to say.
Tomorrow morning at the latest, the information that Princess Isabel is very fond of Aiwas Moriarty will be sent to the desks of several ministers.
Young and promising...
When Sherlock thought of this, a thought suddenly came to his mind:
...speaking of it.
Her Royal Highness the Princess has played the role of little Aiwass's mother in the ceremony before... Isn't she not in the role yet?
"Speaking of which, Mr. Sherlock. I heard that you and Inspector Edward went to handle some cases? Are you going to eat at night? Why don't you sit down and eat some."
"...dare not."
Sherlock politely refused.
But he still symbolically took a piece of bread in his hand to indicate that he accepted the food given by the princess.
He knew that it was already the rest time for Her Royal Highness the Princess, and she must have finished eating. He did not dare to let Princess Isabel accompany him to eat for his own reasons.
If his father knew about this, he would probably have to give him a beating.
Thinking of this, Sherlock suddenly saw the slightly raised corners of the little princess's mouth and realized that she might have had a little too much to drink.
...Now I am afraid that I am deliberately making fun of myself.
In the dream before, as the only experienced senior in the team, I scolded the naive "Lulu" several times.
Basically, it was only what he said, and there was no room for her to refute. As a result, now in reality...in the Palace of Silver and Tin, the two people's positions were completely reversed.
There's nothing we can do about it.
After all, she was the one who took the initiative to expose her identity... No wonder she was.
But Sherlock soon ran into trouble.
If there were only the princess and Master Yanis, he could speak directly. By the way, he would like to remind Master Yanis about the dangerous and mysterious Mr. "Fox".
...but Aiwass is still here.
Although Sherlock is very optimistic about Aiwass, he cannot take the initiative to leak Princess Isabel's private information in front of outsiders.
After all, this is something only he and Isabel know.
If he says it here, does that mean that he will also leak or even sell the little princess's personal information outside? Sherlock is loyal to Queen Sophia, so it is naturally impossible for him to do such a thing that harms the royal family.
...but here comes the problem.
Sherlock, who has always spoken his mind outright, how could he now explain his motivations for tracking down the Sweater Brotherhood?
So Sherlock thought for a while and came up with an answer that only Isabel could understand:
"I accidentally learned about the gathering point of a strangulation party in Lloyd District from an unreliable gentleman."
Sherlock hinted in a deep voice: "They may be related to the mastermind behind the Pelican Bar. I considered that it would be risky to go alone, so I invited my friend Edward Moriarty to accompany me."
"So, what are the results of the investigation?"
Aiwass suddenly interjected, looking very interested in this topic.
"It went very well. That is indeed where a gang of stranglers called the 'Sweater Brotherhood' gather. We also found a batch of alchemy bombs."
"It seems," Aiwass said with a smile, "that 'unreliable gentleman' seems to be quite reliable."
Sherlock was noncommittal, and after a moment of silence he added: "However, after a brief interrogation, they themselves didn't know it was a bomb. They just took the money and looked after the goods for others.
"I suspect that the person behind them has contact with the people at the customs. Because this batch of bombs came from the customs through formal channels - I went to check with Edward in the afternoon. This batch of goods has a formal signature and affixed
Label that passed the inspection."
Mr. Detective, who has curly black hair and always has a lazy expression, seems confident at this moment: "This is very important information and a critical breakthrough.
"Following this clue, we immediately grasped the logistics batches and arrival time of the remaining bombs. If we continue to investigate, we can trace all the acceptance personnel of the customs department that day from this time.
"Your Highness Isabel, I can even say this - this case has now been solved. The remaining work is just repetitive, investigation work with no technical content."
He didn't hide Aiwass because there was absolutely no need.
Another party involved in this case is Aiwass's eldest brother. He is not the type to follow rules in everything. If Aiwass asked, he would definitely tell him.
"...In addition, Your Highness Isabel, the identity of the 'Bone Sculpture' has basically been locked, but the 'Fox' has not yet started investigating."
Sherlock asked respectfully: "Should we look for the bone sculpture or the fox first?"
He hasn't written the report yet.
But when he writes the report and gives it to the Queen, the Queen will probably let him refer to Her Royal Highness the Princess's opinion... After all, this also involves Isabel's own advancement ceremony. Only she and Sherlock know what happened in it.
The Queen's wisdom, she will definitely not dictate.
At that time, you will still have to ask Isabel for her opinion when doing your own investigation - it is better to ask the question proactively now and leave yourself some initiative.
"Go find the bone carvings. We need to eliminate the unstable elements that may harm Avalon as soon as possible. I will support your investigation. If there is any link that needs to be signed, you can come to me."
Isabel thought for a moment, glanced at Aiwass, and replied vaguely: "As for Mr. Fox... we can put it aside for now."
Aiwass blinked.
To be continued...