At twelve o'clock at noon, the weather was sunny and hot.
Alice de Harcourt did not wear the hot attire she usually wore when working as a reporter. Instead, she put on a dress as cute as a princess and sat in a carriage.
The dark green dress had psalms written in the Elvish language sewn with gold thread, and the skirt was trimmed with white lace. She wore white stockings made by elves, and she looked like a giant
The doll... appears to be well-behaved and quiet, and looks a few years younger than usual.
She leaned against the car window and squinted her eyes, looking peaceful and beautiful.
Suddenly the carriage stopped for a moment, and the shaking sound woke her up.
"We're here, miss."
The coachman said so.
Alice got out of the carriage. The early summer sun was too bright, making her a little dizzy.
People were walking in the streets at noon, and there were performers singing loudly on the streets. It was a very standard opera aria. The children surrounded her, with stars in their eyes.
On another street not far away, you can see a bard playing the violin on a platform that was built up. It was originally a diversion platform used to prevent impact during riots, and there were many piles on it for
The sandbags in the bunker have now become a crude personal stage.
Behind the bard, among the people who stopped to listen to the music, you can see a young-looking pickpocket stealing some banknotes from the pocket of the old gentleman holding a civilized stick.
There were seagulls squawking overhead, and the smell of food wafted through the streets. Freshly baked potato wedges and crepes were accompanied by cheerful shouts, and Alice felt a little hungry.
"Miss, your box."
The coachman took down Alice's luggage from the top of the carriage and handed it to her. He was secretly surprised by the weight of the box - could such a heavy box be lifted by such a thin young lady?
He couldn't help but ask: "Is someone coming to pick you up?"
"some."
Alice smiled and handed the coachman a note.
This is three times the fare they agreed on.
This is not good, the coachman thought.
He could tell at a glance that this was a young lady who was inexperienced in the world. If other people saw such a rich and innocent young lady, they would immediately realize that the fat sheep was coming.
Here are iris flowers!
How many swingers and scammers pretending to be swingers roam every street. The former will deceive girls into taking their bodies, while the latter will take away their money along with them.
The driver looked at the children who were stealing and frowned slightly.
He knows those kids.
They were a group of street boys who called themselves the "Clay Party". They basically just came out of the orphanage, and some were still in the orphanage - because the Iris Law had a minor protection mechanism, and the gangs had evolved to hire children.
To the point of doing some dangerous things.
It starts with burglary - this is also the origin of the name "Clay Party", which means "key" in the iris language. Adult gangsters will help them to find houses that are wealthy and lack the ability to defend, or that
Inform these little brats when the owner is not at home, and they will skillfully pick the lock and steal the designated items based on the information.
Because they are young enough, even if the police come, they cannot be killed on the spot. Even if the owner comes back, it is the same. They can only catch them, but not hurt them. The children fled in all directions, and nimbly submerged themselves into the familiar places they were familiar with.
In the streets and alleys, you can only catch one or two at most, and in most cases you will be pulled repeatedly by them and easily shake off.
In Iris's law, "theft" is different from "robbery". As long as the thief has left the scene of the crime, he cannot legally fight back and harm others - it is also illegal to harm or even kill the thief, and harming children is also illegal.
It is a felony. If the child does not steal too many things, then trying to be ruthless in order to recover these things is not worth the gain.
And if the police are called for recovery, at most they can only get back the stolen items that have not had time to be sold. But in most cases, the items will be resold to gangsters as soon as they are obtained.
Compared with adults who choose to betray gangs because of fear of breaking the law, jail time and various punishments, these fearless little kids are very tough and extremely loyal - the cost of not being loyal is even higher than going to jail.
It's much more serious. Anyway, Iris Prison will always give them preferential treatment. The amount of theft is not large at one time, so they can get out within a short time of entering.
So these children gathered together... More than 80% of them were orphans, so they were fearless. So much so that "orphan" has now become a curse word in Iris, and many orphanages themselves are even associated with gangs...
…and even have connections with “those who cannot be mentioned”.
Therefore, even if these children's hiding skills are not good, many people would not dare to say anything even if they see them.
——Children hold grudges the most.
If you dare to offend the Klays, just wait to be followed home. Every kid on the street may be a Klaysman, and they can bring in more gang members at any time.
In order for these children to gain something and leave with satisfaction, people often put some change in the shallowest pocket of their clothes when they go out. As long as they succeed, they will leave with satisfaction, and at least the surrounding streets will be safe.
; and if they fail to succeed, they may want to snatch watches, jewelry, glasses, pipes or other more valuable items.
The Clay Party is very hostile to rich people. As long as they have the opportunity to attack, they will definitely choose the person who looks to be the richest within the range. For them, "making rich people lose their property" is a matter of
The fun and meaning in itself is far greater than the little money they get after selling the stolen goods. After all, these children never starve to death - there are gangs to support them, and stealing is just their job, not the helplessness they feel when they can't survive.
The driver didn't know whether this naive young lady understood these "social rules".
In order to prevent her from meddling in other people's business, saying something she shouldn't say, or being targeted by these villains because she couldn't afford the money... He decided to stay here for a while.
Just think of it as an additional service for three times the fare, he thought.
"In that case," said the coachman, "then I will wait with you for a while before he comes."
He did not ask whether the person who came to pick her up was a man or a woman - based on his many years of experience in soliciting customers, the girl must be waiting for her sweetheart.
With this thought in mind, the driver, who was in his forties or fifties, straightened his beret and his woolen vest.
He stared at the child who had succeeded in stealing intimidatingly, and the other child stared back without fear.
The child looked Alice up and down, a hint of amazement flashed in his ignorant eyes. He thought for a moment, didn't know what he was thinking, and then quietly retreated.
At this moment, a hearty voice sounded.
"Miss Alice, I've been waiting for a long time."
It was a man wearing a high hat.
His high hat is black, and the shadow covers half of his face. Only the lower half of his face is exposed, which looks clear and charming. He is wearing a black tuxedo and is tall.
"Mr. Yassen!"
Alice greeted him with a smile.
Seeing someone coming, the coachman nodded knowingly, put the box down, got in the car and left.
Yasen took the box and walked towards a nearby bar.
Alice walked over affectionately and took "Mr. Yassen's" arm.
She whispered: "Where's my money, Arsene Lupin?"
"Don't worry, little girl."
Yassen Luoping smiled lowly: "That's not how the rules came about. We have to follow the order."
With that said, he took Alice into a nearby bar.
This bar has no name and no sign outside. In other words, it once had a sign, but now it has fallen off, and you can still see traces of it that are considered fresh.
There were not many people inside at noon, but the sound was unexpectedly noisy. Gray smoke filled the air, making Alice cough repeatedly. Rude laughter, conversations, and bards telling stories vividly could also be heard.
The sound, and the snap of playing cards.
All this is so new to Alice.
She opened her eyes wide and looked around, trying to remember it all in her heart.
But at this moment, she suddenly saw a man in a white robe in the corner.
He suddenly raised his head and stared at her. Their eyes met for a moment, and a chill ran down her spine and she broke into a cold sweat.
It was a man in a white robe with long white hair, blood-red eyes, and a gloomy and dangerous temperament. He was sitting in the corner, with an empty circle around him. He was the only one on the entire table.
For some reason, Alice felt that this person seemed familiar. It was as if she had seen him before somewhere.
The white-haired man seemed to notice Alice's gaze. The corners of his mouth raised slightly, revealing a cruel smile.
The next moment, Yasen took half a step forward, blocking the man's sight.
He took off his hat, revealing a head of thick black curly hair.
He stared at the white-haired man, and under Alice's horrified gaze, he slowly walked forward and sat in front of him.
"Sir, is there still room here?"
Yasen's calm voice fell and he put his hat on the table.
"ah……"
A low, hoarse voice sounded.
The pair of scarlet eyes stared at Yassen, showing an unconcealable smile: "Of course... His Excellency Yassen de Vendôme."
At that moment, Alice saw Yassen's left hand pressing the hat suddenly hard, and the bones were clear.
