SHICK!
After a muffled sound that wasn't too sharp, the burly man slowly collapsed. His eyes were still filled with confusion and bewilderment. He seemed to want to cry out for help, but a slender, delicate hand gripped his throat so tightly that his struggles only produced a raspy, gasping sound.
"Simpler than I thought. Looks like he was only a Sequence 9." Dragging the large frame into a side alley, Trissy began to strip Grizzly Jon's corpse--or more accurately, she was stripping him of his clothes.
It wasn't that she had developed some twisted fetish; it was merely a precaution.
In the East District's security environment, as long as a corpse was left there, everything of value would be stripped within two hours by whoever found it.
However, considering the possibility that Jon's organization might find him first, Trissy decided to handle the task herself.
Pocketing a few soli and a pack of cigarettes, Trissy pulled out a pocket watch to check the time. Although women of this era typically wore waist-watches, Trissy still considered herself a man, so she opted for this more masculine timepiece.
She didn't have to wait long. A moment later, a crystalline, ruby-red drop of blood with a mercury-like texture seeped from Grizzly Jon's chest. Its seemingly solidified yet fluid nature possessed a strange, magnetic attraction.
'I haven't seen this Beyonder characteristic before. I wonder which pathway it belongs to... I'll check it with divination later. If I can't find a buyer, I'll just dump it on that cat.'
Trissy wrapped her hands in spirituality and picked up the drop, tucking it into the cigarette box.
As for the cigarettes themselves, Trissy had already wrapped them in the stripped clothes, intending to toss them into the Tussock River later. If she just threw them away randomly, investigators might find them and link the crime to a Beyonder.
...
While Trissy had easily completed a job worth two hundred and fifty pounds (including the characteristic), Klein had arrived in front of a residence.
This house wasn't a terrace house but a small villa with a courtyard. According to Klein's research, the rent for a villa like this was actually cheaper than his own townhouse at 15 Minsk Street, costing only two soli more than his old place at 2 Daffodil Street!
Thinking of Daffodil Street sent a slight pang through Klein's heart, but his lips curved into a bright, vacant smile.
Considering the "Beyonder power" that had appeared in his divination, Klein had no intention of barging in. Mr. Melas hadn't even given him a camera, so even if he found evidence of an affair, he would have no proof.
Rather than taking a profitless risk, Klein planned to head back and give the address to Mr. Melas the next day to see if the gentleman had further requests.
But just as he was about to leave, the front door opened, and a woman dressed in plain clothes stepped out. Despite her disguise, Klein recognized her immediately--it was Madam Melas!
'Good thing I didn't leave... It looks like this is just a safehouse for changing clothes?' Klein frowned but didn't plan on following her. He was certain that even if she had changed, she would still take a carriage. Compared to chasing her while divining, investigating the house was more likely to yield clues.
With a Clown's balance and agility, Klein nimbly scaled the wall. Though it was afternoon, Backlund's perpetual mist provided ample cover.
Crossing the garden, Klein reached the side of the house and quickly ascended a drainpipe to the second-floor balcony.
'No servants in sight... Are there none, or are they all on the first floor?' Klein peered into the room from the balcony. Confirming it was empty, he pulled out a card and deftly picked the lock.
Klein didn't rush inside. Instead, he carefully cleaned his shoes to ensure he wouldn't leave footprints.
'Why is there so much dust?' Klein frowned. The room was tidy, but a thin layer of dust coated everything. Given Backlund's air quality, this much dust would take at least a week or two to accumulate.
However, this made Klein bolder--it meant no servants were cleaning the place.
Using his Clown's dexterity, Klein did his best to avoid leaving tracks. After sweeping the entire house, he found only a single set of fresh footprints in the first-floor hallway. They were clearly a woman's tracks, some even partially covered by older dust. They led to a door with a brass handle. 'Based on the layout, this should be a guest room?' Klein muttered to himself, pulling a coin from his pouch and whispering, "There are mechanisms or traps behind this door."
As his pupils turned black, the coin CHIMED as it flew high.
It landed tails.
'Tails. Negative. No traps. It seems she isn't worried about intruders... or perhaps she never expected one?' Klein thought as he used a handkerchief to turn the handle. To his surprise, the room behind the door was remarkably free of dust.
'Does she only clean one room?' Klein stepped cautiously inside but found nothing of note. A jewelry box on the vanity held the set of jewelry she had worn earlier. Her outdoor clothes were neatly folded in the wardrobe, alongside a few cheap commoner's outfits.
'Is it really just a changing room? But Mr. Melas's mansion is in Hillston District. She could wear plain clothes out without an issue!' Klein was increasingly puzzled by her behavior. Suddenly, a possibility occurred to him. He unfastened a new blue crystal pendulum from his wrist--one he had made before coming to Backlund. Holding the pendulum in his left hand, he scribbled a line on a piece of paper with his right, "This house contains a secret room or hidden compartment."
Though he could use a coin, Klein preferred the precision of a pendulum in a stable environment.
Closing his eyes and chanting the statement, Klein let his spirituality flow into the crystal.
After seven chants, he opened his eyes.
The pendulum was swinging clockwise!
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]
T/N: "15 Minsk Street" (明斯克街15号) - Klein's residence in Cherwood District.
T/N: "2 Daffodil Street" (水仙花街2号) - Klein's former home in Tingen with his siblings.