272 Observing Each Other (1/2)

Detective? A colleague… However, the fact that he's able to assist the police in dealing with such a serious case shows that he truly is a well-known detective, at least within Sivellaus Yard… Eh, isn't the serial killer involved in devil worship supposed to be handed over to the Nighthawks, Mandated Punishers, or the Machinery Hivemind? All the police department needs to do is send a few assistants, so why would they need to seek the help of a private detective?

Yes, the eleven serial murders must've caused a sensation. Sivellaus Yard is under a lot of pressure, and they aren't willing to just wait in misery?

Many thoughts flashed through Klein's mind, but on the surface, he revealed a smile.

”Alright.”

He boarded Isengard Stanton's rented carriage and saw a young man with brown hair inside.

”This is my assistant,” Isengard, who had a thin and angular face, introduced. ”Please, have a seat.”

He didn't close the carriage's door, nor did he let the carriage driver drive the horse forward to show that he meant no harm.

Klein deliberately sat down uneasily and asked worriedly, ”What would you like to talk about, Mr. Stanton?”

Isengard took out a dark pipe and said, ”I want to know what you've learned from following Ma'am. Lopez. Did you hear or discover anything?”

”This… I'm also a detective, and you should know that we have confidentiality agreements in this business,” Klein deliberately replied as though he was in a dilemma.

”I'm asking you on behalf of Sivellaus Yard. This has nothing to do with a confidentiality agreement.” Isengard rubbed the pipe with his thumb. ”A pound, um… How about two pounds?”

Having learned a lesson from the previous incident with Meursault, together with the fact that there was no need to keep it a secret, Klein replied without hesitation, ”Sure.”

”Alright.” Isengard smiled and took out two one-pound notes from his pocket.

Klein acted as though he was recalling something before frankly saying, ”We only heard one sentence. Ma'am. Lopez attempted to order her subordinates to tell Capim that he's not to send anyone over in the next few days.”

”Capim?” Isengard nodded, seemingly enlightened. ”Got it.”

”You know Capim?” Klein didn't hide his surprise.

Isengard handed the notes over and said with a faint smile, ”He's one of the most controversial magnates in Cherwood Borough.”

”In Backlund, innocent girls often go missing along deserted streets, and after a long time, they might be chanced upon in all sorts of legal or illegal brothels. A lot of rumors point to Capim as the criminal honcho filled with blood and filth on his hands, but due to a lack of evidence, he remains free to this date. Furthermore, he knows a lot of important people.”

If that's true, then this fellow should die a thousand times over… Klein nodded, sighed, and said, ”This is Loen, this is Backlund, Mr. Stanton, I shall bid you farewell.”

”Thank you for your cooperation.” Isengard got up midway as a polite gesture to send him off. ”By the way, your fighting skills are excellent. Maybe we'll have a chance to work together in the future. How should I address you?”

”Sherlock Moriarty,” Klein answered briefly and got off the carriage.

Only when he boarded a newly arrived tracked carriage did Isengard Stanton instruct his assistant to close the door and order the carriage driver to head towards Hillston Borough.

Turning his head to the side, he looked out of the window. The gray-haired elderly gentleman had put away his dark pipe, pulled out a brass ornament from his pocket, slowly stroking it in his hand.

The brass ornament was a pocket-sized open book with a vertical eye in the center.

”The appearance and getup of Mr. Moriarty from just now were a bit out of place. He wore very cultured gold-rimmed glasses, but he had deliberately grown a beard around his mouth, making him look crude and barbaric. This is not quite in line with the norm. In this day and age, people who wear gold-rimmed glasses tend to care a lot about their image, the image of having knowledge and bearing. Maybe he's trying to hide something… Of course, it's also possible that he's a gentleman with an unusual aesthetic sense…” Isengard seemed to be talking to himself, but he also seemed to be teaching his assistant.

At that moment, Klein who was sitting on the carriage mumbled to himself silently as he leaned against the wall, That Detective Isengard Stanton is problematic. Ever since I activated my Spirit Vision, he had a blue color of rational thought and indifference and maintained a purple color of spirituality dominance. There weren't many other colors of emotion appearing.

For normal people, unless they're wholeheartedly focused on studying a difficult problem, it's very difficult to maintain similar states for extended periods of time. Other emotions will inevitably appear, the difference being the issue of how long they can remain in that state.

Yes… Either Detective Isengard Stanton is one such genius at observation and reasoning with extraordinary talent, or he's a Beyonder?

The tracked public carriage had two floors as it ferried more than forty passengers towards the Backlund Bridge area. Klein gradually reined in his thoughts and cast his gaze out the window and admired the two to three-story buildings on the other side of the road.

Occasionally he could see brown houses five or six stories high, a sign of Backlund's latest trend and of the kingdom's most advanced construction technology.