Naturally, Tina didn't believe him right away. Even Edric himself wasn't too confident in the information, he was only considering it because of the weird nature of the dealer.
In any case, a restaurant wouldn't be the best place to discuss something like a possible crime, especially in front of kids. So they decided to talk about this later.
At least his objective was complete, Edric had successfully escaped Tina's intuition.
Yet he himself couldn't stop thinking about it, he wanted to take advantage of this so-called heist. But how? Well, that was the thing; He had no idea.
At first the idea of sending a letter to the Rivenditoris seemed pretty good. He had thought that perhaps he could win a favor from them and grow his influence in the region, even if for a little, but thinking carefully now, that probably wouldn't happen.
The Rivenditoris were loyal to the Farben and naturally respected and were loyal to Lloyd, either because they feared him or for some kind of historical obligation. But the same couldn't be said for his children.
Just like the Duke, the Rivenditoris also had a favorite child to win the succession, Lynce.
The heir of the Rivenditoris, Tyler, was deeply in love with her…at least that's what he said. Though he couldn't prove it, Edric believed he had been enchanted by Lynce's powers. Which, for all that he knew, were from the Psychic Realm.
Because of that, bringing the information to them wouldn't have any gain to him. Of course, one could argue that it was his moral duty as a person to warn them and arrest the criminals, and sure, probably it was, but he couldn't care less.
His second idea was to go there one day earlier and whip the casino himself…gambling, of course. That wouldn't stop the robbers though, but it was fine. He wasn't trying to stop them anyway, just get a little of an advantage.
But would Tina allow it? Surely not.
So there was only one option: Ignore it and live on. Seemed reasonable.
"Can I have a little bit of this Ice Cream?" Edric asked, eyeing Raquel's ice cream. The easiest target.
The poor girl looked at her chocolate ice cream with cereal, then at Edric with a hesitating expression.
"Sur–"
"No." Tina interjected, "Haven't you already ordered?"
"I did, but I didn't see any ice cream on the menu."
"That's because you have to ask for the desert menu."
"And how was I supposed to know that?"
"Perhaps you shouldn't have ordered alone."
Was that why she seemed so angry? Because he ordered alone? Unreasonable.
Perhaps thinking she had done something wrong, Raquel said a little nervous:
"I can give it a little of mine, no problem."
But Tina shook her head.
"No, you can't spoil him, Kelly."
'Kelly? Since when are they in nicknames terms?'
Left defeated by Tina's unreasonableness, Edric could only sigh and sink on the chair. With nothing to do, he simply watched as Tina devoured every piece of food on the table. It was incredible how she could eat that much and that fast, without getting fat.
'Perhaps that's a boon from being in the Physical Realm.'
Soon enough she had already finished everything and they were already at the front counter to pay. The cashier was a mundane woman that Edric barely even registered.
'Thinking now, why is this place called 'Juu's Garden'? It doesn't even have anything related to a garden and who is Juu? Does she know they have dealers in the bathroom?'
A great mystery indeed.
***
When they got back to the van, Tina instantly went towards the back and kicked Galleon out. The poor butler was in deep sleep when he suddenly was sent flying towards the concrete ground outside.
"What's eating you?"
She didn't respond, simply closed the door and locked herself and the girls inside. Without an answer, Galleon looked at Edric with a confused expression.
Edric returned his look and shrugged.
"Don't look at me. She is your daughter, shouldn't you be the one to tell me why she is acting like that?"
Galleon turned and looked back at the door.
"...Perhaps she really is on her period."
They both nodded.
"Right, hear me out, Galleon. I overheard something that can make our life a lot easier."
"Oh, I sure love making life easier, but coming from you, I am sure that it wont…"
"What's with that criticism?" He raised an eyebrow, "I didn't even tell you yet."
Galleon sighed.
"Fine then, what's on your mind?"
"Someone is planning to heist the Perola."
Galleon raised an eyebrow, stayed silent for a few seconds, and rubbed the nose bridge.
"...Now I know why she is so stressed." he murmured. "You just happen to hear that someone is going to rob the Perola, are you serious?
"Of course, as you must know, I never lie." He cleaned his throat.
"And how trustworthy is that information?" Galleon leaned against the van.
"I am not sure. A random guy said to me, in a bathroom, while he played cards, betting knowledge. He said he never lies, but I don't know, not everyone is as trustworthy as I am."
"...Your story only gets worse the more you talk." He sighed. "Fine, let's assume it's true. What do you want to do?"
"Just hear me out," Edric's eyes were sparking. "What about if we whip out the casino before they can?...Legally, of course."
"Of course that's what you want; Gambling." Galleon shook his head.
"No, no, no, we are saving the casino from getting robbed, not gambling." He took a step back.
"Look, Edric. I know you–"
Suddenly the back doors of the van opened, making Galleon stumble forwards.
"What are you two talking about?"
Tina had changed her usual uniform to a dark purple gown decorated with black stripes. The dress was elegant and cute, yet Edric could see that it had been slightly modified. It wasn't as long as it should be, probably to give her a little more mobility in case something happened.
The two little girls had also changed into two elegant blue dresses. Rachel's blue was slightly darker, while Raquel's was cyan.
'Where do these clothes keep coming from? Does she have an entire tailor shop stuffed in that bag?'
Recovering his balance, Galleon straightened his posture and then turned back.
"Why are you three dressed like that?"
With a mix of annoyance and tiredness, Tina stepped out of the van.
"Why else? We are going to the Perola."