Chapter 101: The Baron and the Captain

Xia De met Baron Lavender in the study of the detective office. Xia De handed the card to the Baron. The middle-aged man with a beautiful mustache seemed to be trembling as he took the card:

"You have finally returned to my hands."

The Baron was probably that kind of senior Rod card fanatic.

But due to the request of the other party in the Lake View Manor gambling game, that is, Baron Lu Anda, out of consideration for face, this card could not be held by Baron Lavender for the time being. Thus, after he tested Xia De's meaning and confirmed that the "honest and kind" detective had absolutely no intention of possessing this card, he signed a detective commission agreement with Xia De.

The agreement period is half a year. Within this half year, Detective Xia De Hamilton is responsible for keeping 【Ancient Fairy Tale: Match Girl】 and can use it at will without lending, renting, damaging, or losing it. During the agreement period, once Baron Lavender has a request, the detective must temporarily hand over the card to him for use, and promises to sell the card to Baron Lavender at the price of 5 pounds after half a year.

And the commission fee for this agreement is 5 pounds, which is to say, Xia De can obtain a generous remuneration of 10 pounds from this matter.

Although the real price of the card exceeds 50 pounds, winning the gambling game at Lake View Manor was Xia De's promise, so the ownership of this card should have belonged to Sir Lavender originally. Thus, it would be traded at an extremely cheap price instead of the real price of the card after half a year. Baron Lavender explained this point many times, fearing that Xia De would go back on his word.

In short, when the Baron paid the commission fee in one lump sum and happily came to the first floor with Xia De, shaking hands and leaving, Xia De stood in front of the open door, looking at the flock of pigeons parked on St. Theresa Square and pondering:

"So I not only obtained the temporary right to use the Rod card, but also have a profit of 10 pounds... Does this count as me cheating Baron Lavender... but this was his request originally, and I did nothing. It seems that having a few more noble friends is really not bad, and Rod cards are indeed a good means of making friends... Still, go back and keep accounts."

Bending down, he picked up the orange cat that was poking its head at the door, both afraid and curious about the world outside the house. After standing up, he happened to see the middle-aged military officer Captain Lades walking over with his head hanging low along the Ring Square Avenue, brushing past Baron Lavender's carriage.

He wrapped himself in a black coat, a wide brown leather belt circled the hem of the coat, and the second button from the top of the coat was hanging on the thread, swinging on his chest:

"Hello, Detective, are you waiting for me specifically?"

Even though it was morning, he still had a feeling of not having woken up yet. The captain's situation did not look good, and the expression on his face was the exact opposite of Baron Lavender, who had come here happily.

But at least the beard and hair on his face were well-groomed, and his clothes were considered neat. This showed that this middle-aged military officer, who had suffered reputational damage because of the Relic 【Gun of Kindness】, had not lost confidence in life.

"... Yes, Captain, please come in."

The captain came here purely to apologize; he did not have the intention of asking for that antique pistol. He felt extremely embarrassed about what happened in Lake View Manor and advocated compensating Xia De for that black formal suit.

But this decadent middle-aged man looked even poorer than Xia De, and his mental state was not good, so Xia De, who had obtained benefits from the Gun of Kindness, did not ask for compensation, but instead kindly gave him the business card of Shi Nai De's psychological clinic and introduced him to Priest Ao Gu Si of the Dawn Church:

"These two are friends I met during commissions. Perhaps you can find them to talk."

Xia De said very kindly, and suddenly realized that the two professions of psychologist and priest were so compatible with a detective.

At the same time, he was also very curious about the channel through which Captain Lades bought the Relic 【Gun of Kindness】, wanting to see if there was any secret behind it.

But the captain told Xia De very embarrassedly that it was won from a gambler in a tavern in front of the Wind-Rising Path on the southern front line when he was drunk a few years ago.

Because he did not want others to know that he still gambled, he told friends that this was an antique bought. But after the unseemly incident at Lake View Manor, the captain no longer wanted to hold that pistol:

"To tell you the truth, after it left me, even my sleep became sweet, as if I had suddenly unloaded a heavy burden. Detective, just leave this gun with you; handle it however you want."

The middle-aged man said so, but Xia De knew that this was the feeling after an ordinary person had been affected by the power of a 【Relic】 for a long time.

He comforted the captain a few words and encouraged him to live well. Captain Lades probably hadn't heard such words for a long time, and his favorability towards Xia De increased greatly, and he thought of another thing:

"However, what I won from that down-and-out guy back then was not just that revolver; I remember there was also a small accessory."

Xia De raised his eyebrows, speculating in his heart about the possibility that the accessory was also a Relic:

"What kind of accessory? Can you let me see it? This gun is very good; I think that accessory might also be a valuable thing. I am willing to buy it."

The 5 pounds just obtained from Baron Lavender seemed to have found a use.

The captain thought for a while, touched his hair with a thick palm, and his tone was not very certain:

"You also know, I just returned to this city as a released prisoner from Karsinrick. When looking for a rental apartment, many of my previous belongings were lost. I didn't care much about that thing before; after all, only girls... *cough cough*, after all, only girls like to wear small accessories. It might still be in my rental apartment now, but I need to look for it."

"It doesn't matter. Do you mind if I go with you? It just so happens I have nothing to do this morning."

Xia De asked, and the captain readily agreed.

Captain Lades just returned as a prisoner from Karsinrick, and his situation recently was not good. Even with the help of past friends, his current economic situation was not very good.

He now rents in Pig Tail Alley in the north of the city. Although it does not belong to the slums, it can also be considered the lower city of Tobesk. That place is very far from St. Theresa Square in the city center, but neither Xia De nor the captain mentioned taking a carriage.

Two men who had nothing to deal with walked together in the Tobesk city area. They actually had many common topics to talk about, because the captain was a person who did not have too many thoughts.

Xia De only needed to mention the southern front line, and he could get a lot of military information from the captain's mouth. Captain Lades was truly a brave and loyal officer. If it weren't for that Gun of Kindness, he might have already successfully shot himself... So looking at it from this aspect, that gun should actually be considered to have saved the captain. ===== CHAPTER 102 =====