Chapter 450: Distribution of Money
With the help of a bestowment ritual, Klein handed 2,500 pounds in cash
and the gold mask provided by The Hanged Man to Miss Justice, and he
used the image of The World to urge her to close the deal as soon as
possible.
*I've spent almost 5,000 pounds in the past two weeks. If I didn't leave
Tingen, this amount of money is enough for me to maintain a lifestyle
just like my landlady's family... A doll ruins one's life, consuming
potions bankrupts you for three generations[This is a meme in Chinese, where the "doll" and "consuming potions" change depending on the joke.]*... Klein looked at
the vast fog and the ancient palace, which had returned to silence. He
was a little upset, as though he had lost something important.
He was quiet for a few seconds before returning to the real world. He
picked up the remaining 830 pounds on his desk, and he counted out six
five-pound notes.
Then, Klein put the thirty pounds of cash in his now deflated wallet and
stuffed it solemnly into the inside pocket of his clothes.
He divided the other eight hundred pounds into two stacks, placing one
stack in each of his side pockets.
After that, Klein opened the drawer and took out two of the five
Deep-sea Naga hair strands that he had brought back to the real world.
He wrapped them in layers after layers of paper and carefully put them
into his pocket.
When he was done, he took his hat and cane, and he headed for the street
corner under the glow of the street lamps at night. He got on a carriage
and headed for the Bravehearts Bar in the Backlund Bridge area.
In the heated and noisy environment, Klein insisted on finishing his
glass of Southville beer before he slowly made his way out of the bar
and into a rental carriage through the thundering cheers for the boxers.
Taking in the rumbling of the wheels, he intentionally closed his eyes.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of the window being lightly tapped.
Klein's facial muscles twitched slightly as he opened his eyes and
looked in front of him. He saw the pale and exquisite Miss Sharron
sitting quietly across him.
Without waiting for her to question him, Klein smiled and said, "I sold
the information you gave me last time for a good price, the one about
the Amon family tomb."
Sharron looked at him silently.
Leaning his cane to the side, Klein took out two stacks of cash and a
small clump of paper from his pocket.
"Eight hundred pounds plus two strands of Deep-sea Naga hair, for a
total of about a thousand pounds; that's what you deserve." Klein took a
silent breath and smiled as he handed over the cash and paper clump.
Sharron glanced at him and reached out her hand to take both items.
She lowered her head, looked at the items in her hand, and asked in an
ethereal voice, "How much did you sell it for?"
"Two thousand pounds, so we split it equally." Klein chuckled.
*If the Machinery Hivemind had only paid me 1,500 pounds according to
the original plan, then I'll have to first owe you a portion of
it...* he thought gladly.
With a flip of Sharron's bloodless hand, the cash and the paper clump
disappeared without a trace.
She raised her head and tersely acknowledged before asking succinctly,
"What's in the tomb?"
"I don't know, I didn't go." Klein didn't disclose the help he had
received from the magic mirror, Arrodes.
For an instant, he felt that if he described the experience in detail,
Miss Sharron would've listened attentively with one hand on her cheek,
as she had done before.
*This Wraith lady seems to have a hobby of watching situational scenes
and dramas or listening to all kinds of rumors...* Klein summed
up.
Sharron's expression didn't change. After a few seconds of silence, she
said, "Someone is digging a tunnel to the underground ruin."
"Huh?" Klein wasn't able to react for a moment to what Sharron was
talking about.
However, he soon understood which underground ruin Sharron was referring
to.
There was only one underground ruin the two of them knew of, and that
was the Fourth Epoch Tudor Dynasty ruin.
Someone is digging their way into the underground structure?
Klein pondered for a few seconds, then he suddenly came to a
realization.
"Is it that baronet?"
He had already forgotten the name of the hidden Tudor Dynasty
descendant, other than knowing that he had an aristocratic title of a
baronet and that he lived on Sivellaus Street where the Backlund police
station was located.
"Yes." Sharron gave him a positive answer.
"What is he looking for? Doesn't he know that there's an evil spirit
inside? Doesn't he know that all the Beyonders from his family died in
there?" Klein asked himself a few questions.
Sharron sat up straight and replied seriously, "I don't know if he knows
or not."
"...How much longer will he take to dig through?" Klein asked in
deliberation.
"Another two to three months, for the time being, he's doing it on his
own." Sharron provided her own judgment.
Phew. Klein let out a small sigh.
"There's no need to rush. When I'm ready, then we can go 'visit' him
together."
At this point, he explained with a smile, "As you know, I like to make
sufficient preparations in advance."
I won't get involved in anything until I advance to Faceless!
He warned himself inwardly.
"Alright." Sharron didn't ask him what he was going to do, but her
figure faded quickly, and she disappeared from the carriage.
Klein leaned back against the wall, feeling relaxed.
*The ingredients for the Faceless potion has been reserved, and I'm just
waiting for the "delivery"... My debts have all been paid off, so
there's nothing to worry about...* His mood was like a fizzy
wine that had settled. Occasionally, there would be a little bit of joy
that would silently surge upwards.
The only problem is... Klein touched his left breast, where
there was a shriveled wallet.
He sighed and said to himself silently, "Only thirty pounds in cash,
five gold coins, and some change..."
Thursday afternoon.
Audrey Hall was waiting in the study for the arrival of Miss Escalante.
After receiving The Hanged Man's and The World's replies, she had
immediately sent a servant to send a letter to Escalante.
The content of the letter was very ordinary. Audrey hoped that the
second psychology class this week would be brought forward to Thursday.
In reality, Audrey had already made an agreement with Escalante. Once
she expressed such an intention, it would mean that the other party had
agreed to the conditions.
Tick. Tock. The wall clock on the wall moved briskly, and
Escalante with her waist-reaching long hair entered the room with
several teaching materials in hand.
Audrey immediately gave Susie a look. The big golden retriever somewhat
reluctantly leaped out, lay down in the nearby shadows, and observed the
people coming and going.
Escalante closed the study door, looked around slowly, then sat down
across the small white round table and put down the teaching materials.
"Are they paying for it in cash, or with some kind of mystical item?"
this member of the Psychology Alchemists asked in a low voice.
"One directly gave 2,500 pounds, and one provided a mystical item."
Audrey flippantly took out a white cardboard box from her medium-sized
orange handbag. The outside of the box was covered with a wall of
spirituality.
After removing the wall of spirituality, she opened the lid of the box,
revealing the simple golden mask.
Then, she recounted the flaws and effects of the mask.
To be honest, she was very curious when she received the mystical item.
She had wished to test its effects since it was her first time coming
into contact with a mystical item. However, she finally resisted her
urges, as she didn't wish to turn cold.
"It's basically the same value." Escalante tried it and breathed a sigh
of relief.
After two seconds, she pulled out the thickest textbook and flipped to
page 48.
The middle part of the textbook had been hollowed out. There was an iron
box about the size of a palm and a rolled up piece of parchment.
"Human-skinned Shadow characteristic... Wind-blessed potion formula..."
Escalante showed and introduced them to her.
Audrey's gaze cast towards the characteristic which resembled a diamond.
The face inside left her head spinning.
*This... This has the ability to restrain a Spectator's powers... Is
this the Sequence pathway of Mr. World? No wonder...* Audrey
looked away and studied the formula.
"Sequence 6: Wind-blessed. Main ingredients: Six crystalline feathers of
a Blue Shadow Falcon, a pair of Dragon-Eyed Sea Condor eyes..."
Before Audrey could examine the supplementary ingredients, Escalante
rolled up the parchment in time.
After that, she set up the wall of spirituality around the metal box
again, closed the textbook, and pushed the thick book towards Audrey.
Audrey held the book, but she didn't hand over the gold mask and 2,500
pounds to Escalante in a timely manner.
Seeing the look of puzzlement in Escalante's eyes, the prepared Audrey
smiled and said, "The other party is worried that the characteristic
doesn't match and that the formula is fake. They hope to verify it
first.
"And before the verification, the money and items will all be held under
my custody. All of them believe in my trustworthiness, and I do not wish
to lose this reputation."
"I understand their concerns." Escalante paused for a moment before
saying, "We trust you, too."
Since the money and items were in the hands of one of her own members,
she wasn't worried about being cheated despite feeling upheavals.
*Besides Miss Audrey is rich and powerful. She can be trusted to be a
guarantor...* Escalante thought with relief.
In the ancient palace above the fog.
Klein held a spirit pendulum in hand, divining the authenticity of the
Wind-blessed potion formula.
He didn't wish to inadvertently lose the most experienced and powerful
member of the Tarot Club, Mr. Hanged Man.
When he opened his eyes and saw the topaz pendant turning clockwise,
Klein heaved a sigh of relief and sent his thoughts to the crimson star
that symbolized The Hanged Man.
City of Generosity.
Alger first saw the endless gray fog before hearing Mr. Fool's low but
distant voice.
"Miss Justice has completed the deal."
An illusory piece of parchment appeared in front of Alger. On it was the
Wind-blessed potion formula.
With the potion going through Mr. Fool's hands, he had no qualms about
the authenticity of the formula. He bowed his head respectfully and
thanked him.
When the "illusion" dissipated, he immediately found a pen and paper to
jot down the potion formula.
Then, he paced back and forth in excitement, muttering to himself, "Blue
Shadow Falcon... That primitive island has it..."
After finishing the matter regarding The Hanged Man, Klein finally had
the time to check his Human-skinned Shadow characteristic.
After confirming its authenticity, he relaxed and leaned back in his
chair, exhaling happily.
Finally...
After three seconds, Klein suddenly sat up, and he decided that there
was no time to lose. Tonight, he would concoct the Faceless potion!