Chapter 474: [King's Secret Order]

Today, Miss Servit finally didn't wear that maid's long dress. When Xia De opened the door downstairs and saw the young lady outside, he was stunned for a moment before he dared to confirm that the person before him was indeed the maid.

Her long black hair was tied into a complex style with a wide purple hairband, bound and hanging behind her back. Only a silver-white four-leaf clover hairpin was pinned in her hair as decoration. The thick black hair was parted on the right side of her forehead, with the right side hanging down and the stray hair tucked behind her ear, while the left side was combed diagonally to the left, the ends of the hair almost covering her eyebrows.

She wore a blue ladies' fabric long dress with great texture. Except for some silver-white slender patterns dotted on the sleeves, there were no other colors on the whole. A discreet black belt was tied at her waist, and on her feet was a pair of small black flat leather shoes.

Seeing Xia De's surprise, Miss Servit looked down at her outfit, then raised her head and looked at Xia De with those beautiful brown eyes:

"Apologies, is there a problem with my attire?"

"No problem at all, it's just that I haven't seen you dressed like this before... It's very beautiful."

Xia De nodded, moved aside to let her enter the door, and the detective work for the whole day officially began.

After organizing the information obtained at home, Xia De left Mia to watch the house and took Miss Servit by carriage to Chant Square in the Lower City, then entered the Three Cats Inn located around the square.

Last time Xia De investigated the merchant selling spices, he had chatted here with the doctor and the doctor's friend. Today, the Three Cats Inn was no different from that day; guests from afar stayed here, while idlers sat on the first and second floors drinking and chatting.

The poet playing the lute sat on a high stool on the small stage on the east side of the inn, singing softly. This song was somewhat sorrowful, seemingly praising the love story of an ancient legendary hero.

If it weren't for the very bright gas lamp above her head, Xia De would probably have thought he had suddenly arrived in the distant medieval adventure era.

During the day, the Three Cats Inn would not have prostitutes, drunkards, or gamblers; now, it was running a legitimate business.

After Xia De and Miss Servit walked into the inn, they first ordered some drinks and sat down at a table near the counter on the first floor. Xia De introduced the features of this place to the maid, who rarely came to this area. After a while, the two stood up and came to the counter. Xia De stopped the aggressive female owner who was preparing to go to the kitchen in the back to lecture the noisy cooks.

This was a woman in her forties, wearing a reddish-brown cloth headscarf, with dull skin and a face full of small spots. She was slightly shorter than Xia De, but looked to have a large frame and a wide figure. Being able to open an inn of this scale in the bustling Chant Square, this woman was definitely not simple.

"Apologies for the disturbance, may I ask if you still remember Mr. Frank Bondi?"

Xia De asked while placing a one-shilling coin on the counter. The female owner accepted the coin very naturally:

"The blind man who lived nearby?"

She spoke very rudely, observed Xia De's expression, and then said very insincerely:

"Apologies, this wording might be a bit wrong, after all, his eyes are healed now."

Xia De signaled his assistant to start recording, and then continued to ask:

"Have you known that musician for many years?"

"Yes, he used to come here often to drink, and every time he only ordered the Coldwater Port light rum brewed from sugarcane pomace. Even though he was a blind man, he still looked for some cheap girls here every week. However, bachelors don't have much spending, so he was quite generous. A few months ago, after his eyes were somehow healed, he took a liking to playing Rod Cards with guests here, but the stakes were small, so he didn't owe... Oh!"

She suddenly widened her eyes, as if she understood something:

"Did Bondi owe money playing Rod Cards with you and then run away? I was wondering why I hadn't seen him for so long."

The female owner thought she had found the truth, but Xia De shook his head:

"I don't run a casino, and Mr. Bondi didn't run away. He committed suicide in the middle of last month."

Hearing this news, the female owner, who had just spoken very rudely, twitched the corner of her mouth, and the expression on her face was somewhat strange, seemingly wanting to show sorrow for a moment, but ultimately just said simply:

"How unlucky, another old regular customer of decades is gone."

Her voice suddenly dropped, and she lowered her head to fiddle with the cup on the counter. After a while, seeing Xia De not speaking, she asked again:

"Then who are you? What do you want to do? I think you shouldn't be here looking for girls; the one behind you is prettier than all the girls I know."

Xia De looked at the young lady beside him. Miss Servit smiled but didn't speak, instead continuing to record, maintaining the habit she had as a maid.

Xia De then handed over the prepared business card:

"I am a detective. Currently commissioned by the Noshan Opera Troupe to investigate the cause of the suicide of the blind musician Mr. Frank Bondi."

The female owner was clearly literate, and seeing the address on the business card, she raised her eyebrows:

"St. Deran Square? Tsk tsk, his friends are really rich. Alright then, what do you want to ask?"

"What was Mr. Frank Bondi's mental state during the last few times he appeared?"

The female owner picked up the rag on the table again:

"I remember this. During the period when his eyes were just healed, he was very keen on chatting and playing cards with the guests here. But during the last few times he appeared, he was like when he was blind, sitting alone in the corner drinking and brooding."

She pointed to the table in the corner of the first floor. Because there weren't many guests in the morning, the corner was empty now.

"Then, did Mr. Bondi have any manic expressions?"

Xia De asked again.

"That, he didn't."

The female owner shook her head while wiping the cup:

"He didn't talk to others, and of course, others wouldn't disturb someone drinking and brooding."

This made sense, but it also meant that there were no valuable clues at the Three Cats Inn.

"However..."

The female owner looked at Xia De hesitantly:

"Bondi had a girl he was very close to here, and most of the time when he spent money to relax, he would look for her. Because he often stayed overnight there, I think our girl not only knows Bondi's recent mental state, but might even have his belongings left behind."

"I need that lady's address."

"I can't tell you that directly; after all, we are in a sensitive business."

Xia De knew this was an excuse; the other party just wanted him to pay another information fee. So he took out another one-shilling coin, but the female owner shook her head:

"Not enough, it needs to be this much."

She extended her somewhat thick right index finger, which still had old scars, and shook it.

"10 shillings?"

"No, 1 pound."

"Oh, madam, I don't even earn that much from this business."

Xia De immediately shook his head, and the female owner laughed:

"I heard Bondi say that the Noshan Opera Troupe is very rich; you must earn a lot from this business."

But the problem was, Xia De hadn't received a commission from the opera troupe at all.

Miss Servit behind him wanted to speak, but was stopped by Xia De shaking his head. He wasn't unable to pay 1 pound, he just didn't want to be taken advantage of for nothing:

"How about this."

Under the surprised gaze of the female owner, he took out his Rod Card deck from his pocket and pulled out the 【Carsenrik Southern Folklore · Moon Dance Festival】 blessed by two ghosts to show her:

"Let's bet a round. If I win, you tell me that lady's address. If I lose, I give you two pounds, and you tell me that lady's address. I heard you are also a Rod Card master and like to play cards with players who have special cards. How about it, are you interested in playing a round with me?"

The fact that the female owner was a Rod Card master was told by the doctor's friend, that Mr. Madison who sold special spices. (Chapter 362)

The woman behind the counter showed a smile in her surprise:

"No, since we are betting on cards, we should naturally bet bigger. I really like playing cards with players who have special cards. How about this: you use this card of yours as a stake, and I use this card of mine as a stake. The loser hands over their special card. Regardless of winning or losing, I will give you the information for free."

She leaned forward slightly:

"Detective, do you have the guts?"

Xia De looked down at the stake the female owner took out—

【King's Secret Order · Substitute】, Flower 2: When drawing this card, you can swap this card with the opponent's unrevealed dark card, but you cannot stop drawing in this round. If the opponent has no unrevealed dark cards, this card has no effect. (Note)

On the card face, a man wearing a gorgeous robe and a crown sat on a throne, while a person seemed to be hidden in his shadow.

Seeing this card, Xia De raised his eyebrows. The 【King's Secret Order】 series of Rod Cards was issued about 120 years ago when Carsenrik and Delarion signed the first version of the "Continental Peace Treaty." This set of cards was to commemorate the hard-won peace.

The whole series has 15 special cards, one for each number from 1 to 13, and one King and one Queen. Five were sent to the Delarion royal family, five to the Carsenrik royal family, and five were issued normally. More than a century has passed since the first version of 【King's Secret Order】 was issued. Most of these fifteen special cards are treasured in the hands of the nobles of the two countries. Besides their intrinsic value, they also have historical commemorative value.

Only three cards in the series are unaccounted for. Xia De didn't expect to see one here:

"Genuine?"

"Of course, the appraisal certificate is in my hands."

"This card is worth more than my Moon Dance Festival."

Xia De pointed out, but the female owner laughed:

"It doesn't matter. I like betting on special cards with others. This card itself was also won. In my eyes, all special cards have equal value."

"No, I won't take advantage of you. I'll bet with this."

Xia De pulled out the Moon 9 【Devil · Soul Stealer Bishop】 (Note). This time it was the female owner's turn to be surprised:

"The legendary Devil series? Genuine."

"Of course, but the appraisal certificate is at my home. I think you shouldn't doubt that a detective from St. Deran Square would lie at such a time; I have a reputation to maintain."

"This card of yours is worth more than the Substitute."

"To me, the value of special cards is also the same."

Xia De answered with a smile, shuffling the two cards back into the deck.

Actually, it was because he thought the possibility of him losing was very small.

"What an interesting opponent... Detective, the registration for next month's Dacheng Player has officially begun. Have you registered?"

The woman behind the counter seemed to have her interest piqued.

"Of course, and it was the Prophet Association that gave me the invitation. I am a specially participating player."

Xia De said.

"That's good, then let's treat this as a warm-up match before the Dacheng Player starts. This is truly interesting; I didn't expect such an interesting thing to happen early in the morning. Detective, wait a moment. Since I'm playing cards with a veteran Rod Card player like you, it should naturally be more formal. Also, you can call me Mrs. Madame Sangmei."

Saying this, she left the counter, calling the waiters in the inn to help clear the table in the center of the first floor of the inn, and pieced together two other large tables to make a Rod Card gambling table.

Xia De and Miss Servit stood by and waited. The idlers drinking in the Three Cats Inn early in the morning heard that someone was going to challenge the owner, and that they were using their respective special cards as stakes, so they all excitedly gathered around.

The maid held her notebook and asked softly beside Xia De:

"Mr. Hamilton, the conversation just now was truly wonderful, exactly like the descriptions in detective novels. However, do you often obtain information by playing cards?"

"Not often, because not everyone plays Rod Cards. And, ordinary detectives don't obtain clues by playing cards either."

Xia De said, then turned to look at the black-haired young lady beside him. Although her eyes were very ordinary brown, like black, they were still very beautiful. This was not only because the eye shape made her eyes look slightly charming, but Xia De thought more importantly, there was a rare light in Miss Servit's eyes, clear and pure.

"And I actually don't play cards often, at least I have never taken the initiative to find someone to play cards with."

Xia De explained his habits, and the black-haired young lady laughed softly beside him:

"I even thought you were the kind of gambler who plays cards everywhere and collects special cards."

Perhaps because she wasn't wearing that maid's dress, she could also joke with Xia De.

"No, no, although I like special cards, I'm not to the point of playing cards everywhere. For example, when I went to Coldwater Port some time ago, during those two weeks, I only played cards with one person. This Devil series was won there."

"So that's how it is, this also seems to be a very legendary story."

Miss Servit said. At this time, the table was set, so Xia De walked over and sat on the chair on the west side, taking off his coat and hanging it on the back of the chair behind him. Miss Servit, as before, stood behind him, placing her hands on the back of the chair as well.

Mrs. Madame Sangmei, the female owner, sat on the chair on the east side, and people gathered around, but according to etiquette, they could not touch the card table, nor could they stand directly behind the players.

"This is a fair gamble between 【King's Secret Order · Substitute】 and 【Devil · Soul Stealer Bishop】."

She announced loudly, and this sound even attracted many guests staying on the third floor and above of the inn.

Daylight shone from the skylight on the second floor through the window on the east side onto the table in the center of the first floor. Xia De touched his nose, a smile hooking the corner of his mouth; he still liked this kind of matchup very much. ===== CHAPTER 475 =====