Chapter 99: Old John and Civilization

"Civilization?"

Xia De pondered the meaning of this word. Old John smiled and said:

"Yes, very close to your answer. Every item here has the imprint of society and civilization, and has traces of people from different classes. Every old object has experienced different stories beside different people. For me, this is the best commodity."

"Speaking of which, you are proficient in the brass-colored 【Enlightenment】 element?"

Xia De asked with slight surprise.

According to the common sense of Ring Mages he learned, although the 【Enlightenment】 element comes from civilization, people are more inclined to obtain 【Enlightenment】 through books. For example, Miss Louisa's Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi system is biased towards fairy tales, connecting the first four rings with a classic ancient fairy tale to construct the Sublimation Language, with a clear and simple context.

And Ring Mages who purely contact the 【Enlightenment】 element from the perspective of civilization itself are actually very rare.

Because this requires strong talent, wisdom, and perseverance, as well as a little bit of elusive luck, which is not something ordinary people can do. But generally speaking, Ring Mages who enlighten themselves with civilization itself are also quite powerful, possessing many unique secret arts that are hard to imagine.

"Yes, Detective. For an old man like me, this kind of life is the most beautiful. My hobbies can be satisfied, I can continue to make progress on the path of a Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi, and what could be better than this?"

The old man said contentedly, and then looked at Xia De before he wanted to ask more:

"Speaking of which, Detective, have you heard about the Lake View Manor incident?"

It seems that Ring Mages in the city like to talk about this matter.

"Of course I heard about it. That day I was even at Lake View Manor, playing Rod cards with others."

There was no need to hide this matter.

"You were there too?"

Old John said suspiciously, probably thinking of that 【Silver Moon Orb】, but Xia De was really too weak, so he did not make associations because of this:

"What a coincidence. The 13th-Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi who appeared in the rumors is also proficient in 【Silver Moon】 just like you. I heard that the other party showed the posture of a hanged man under the moon, and then seriously injured the Silver-Eyed One with a casual kick. I bet the posture of the hanged man is a specific posture required for casting."

"Hmm..."

It seems that the people of Tobesk have all kinds of misunderstandings about Xia De's performance that day.

"Probably, but the other party is really too strong."

He praised himself.

"Yes, 13th Ring, three complete sentences of Sublimation Language; this is a height that many people will never reach."

Old John sighed, put his reading glasses into the glasses case, and did not forget to exhort Xia De:

"Detective, since the other party acted so high-profile, maybe they are still in Tobesk. Perhaps, we will all have a chance to see him again in the future. Such a high-level Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi must be very rich. If you know him, remember to introduce him to me to buy things, and I can give you a commission. Old John's Pawnshop has everything."

After chatting about these things, they started talking about the reason Xia De came here. Of course, he came to buy things:

"I want to find a Relic that has the function of extracting energy from the life form itself or something similar, whether physical or non-physical, and then pouring it into the user's body. As long as it has this function, it is fine, whether it is the main function or whether there are serious consequences after use, these are not considered for the time being."

He described his requirements as detailed as possible.

Although this requirement sounded a bit strange, Old John did not ask much:

"Harm others to benefit yourself... Hmm, then what about the price this time?"

Touching his pocket, confirming that "the pocket has no money" was not his own illusion, Xia De said:

"You quote the price first, give me some time to raise money."

The price of a Relic will not be cheap. Even with the former detective's wallet, it is definitely not enough. Moreover, he just spent a large sum of money just now.

"Your new bargaining strategy? This is not bad, but wait, I need to check."

He turned and left the counter, entering the backyard of the pawnshop from the back door. This time he did not leave for too long, returning empty-handed in just ten minutes:

"It does exist, but it is not my thing; it is being sold by an acquaintance. The quote is 300 pounds. If you accept, I can arrange for you to meet, and you can talk about the price."

"300 pounds?"

Xia De calculated that this was equivalent to how many Mias, but if he sold the Founding Silver Moon, it should be enough. It's just that after the Lake View Manor incident, he somewhat wanted to keep that card, so he had not made a decision yet.

"Looking at your expression, I know you can't afford it."

Old John shook his head, and then said:

"Since this is the case, I will help you keep an eye on similar Relics during this time. If there is news, I will write to your address. Remember to raise money early, otherwise, I will sell it to others."

"This is of course... actually, I can accept anything under 50 pounds."

This is because after selling the furniture and detective Relics on St. Theresa Square, the limit that does not affect life is about 50 pounds.

"That makes it much easier, so wait for my news. This time it's not that I don't have what you want, it's that you can't afford it, so don't say my shop's goods are incomplete."

This sentence, instead, made Xia De suspect whether the "300-pound Relic" really existed.

Because the time was calculated just right, when he returned to St. Theresa Square, it was only six o'clock. Although he was in a good mood today, out of consideration for saving expenses, Xia De did not go to the restaurant to eat. He had already eaten very full at noon, so it didn't matter if he didn't eat at night.

But Little Mia's dinner could not be saved. Not long after Ms. Gao De remitted the money, Xia De had already prepared cat food for the cat. The high-end cat food of this era already exceeded the price of ordinary people's meals.

But Xia De wanted to be honest, so the cat food he chose for Little Mia was not bad. At least the young orange cat liked to eat it.

He was not at home for a day, so guests who came to visit naturally could not find him and could only leave messages. The letters Xia De saw stuffed in from the door were two in total. One was from Sir Lavender, who wanted to discuss the 【Ancient Fairy Tale: Match Girl】 card with Xia De; one was from Captain Lades, who regretted his performance at the banquet after sobering up. He wanted to apologize to the detective, but did not mention the antique revolver.

"How did the captain know I lived here?"

The suspicious Xia De thought, and then realized it was the business card he distributed at Lake View Manor that played a role.

This night, he did not arrange any travel plans for himself, but learned the secret art 【Satiated Food】. Learning this secret art was very simple, but the materials were complex. Among them, "the stomachs of three female viviparous animals that died of overeating" and "the fetal hair of a male infant born under the waning moon of the red moon" were the hardest to find, which was also the main destination for the material money Xia De spent. ===== CHAPTER 100 =====