In the medical school building that was about to be abandoned, Audrey, who had ended the gathering and was leaving in a circle, was suddenly in a trance. She saw the familiar thick gray fog and the blurry figure in the middle of the gray fog.
"This is a clue."
Accompanying Mr. Fool's deep voice was a picturesque scene, and it was a colorful picture!
A two-meter-tall man in a black priest robe stood in the shadows. His light yellow hair was soft and slightly curly, and his dark brown eyes were cold but fierce. The corners of his mouth were slightly drooping, and he was as eccentric as a wolf.
Clues? Clues to the East End Dharavi Street bombing and Gavin's drowning? Was this the murderer? Audrey stared blankly for a moment before understanding dawned upon her.
Mr. Fool has a clue just like that … He's really impressive. No, he's omnipotent … After sighing inwardly, she turned to look at Fors.
Just as Fors took off her mask and surgical cap and sat in the carriage, she noticed Miss Audrey's strange gaze. She immediately asked in puzzlement,
"Is there something on my face?"
"No." Audrey retracted her gaze, sat down, and removed her disguise.
Fors recalled the gathering from before and asked curiously, "What happened?
"Miss Audrey, why didn't you ask to buy the Spectator formula? Only in this way can you establish a connection with Psychological Alchemy. "
She remembered that the generous Miss Audrey had remained silent for almost the entire time, listening most of the time. She had only sold some materials with spirituality and bought other varieties accordingly.
Audrey smiled faintly.
"This is my first gathering in this circle. I think it's more important to observe and wait."
"I'm really looking forward to the potion formula, and I'm even more looking forward to the mystical items. But I tell myself that there's no need to rush. It's better to familiarize myself before taking action."
This is also a "professional habit" of the Spectator pathway. Furthermore, there aren't any Beyonder ingredients like Dark Patterned Black Panther Spinal Fluid or Spring of the Elves Marrow Crystals that Mr. World wants … Audrey silently added.
Fors looked at the girl who was not even eighteen years old and suddenly felt that she was more mature than ever.
She suddenly laughed at herself.
"If I had been like you back then, I wouldn't have wasted such a precious opportunity."
Audrey smiled reservedly and replied, "That's right.
"I'll ask some special friends tomorrow morning to see if they have any clues to the Dharavi Street explosion. You and Xio will wait for news at the usual spot."
"Okay." Fors nodded without any doubt.
…
Klein didn't return to Minsk Street at night. Instead, he slept in a one-bedroom apartment on Black Palm Street in East Borough.
He was afraid that the man in the black priest robe who was suspected to be the murderer had accomplices who were looking for him all over the street.
Although the chances of encountering them weren't high, and he had disguised himself, making it unlikely for the other party to recognize him, since the divination indicated that there was a certain possibility, he decided to be cautious and make do with sleeping in East Borough for the night.
At dawn, he changed into another dark blue worker's uniform and put on a light brown cap. He left the room, walked down the stairs, and entered the street.
At that moment, a pale yellow fog filled the surroundings. The figures coming and going were blurry, and the coldness of the morning seeped into his clothes.
Klein lowered his head and hurried on his way, just like the people around him who had woken up early for work.
As he walked, he saw a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties in front of him. He had white sideburns and was wearing a thick jacket. He was pacing on the spot, trembling as he took out a cigarette and an empty box of matches from his inner pocket.
Just as he opened the matchbox, his right hand suddenly trembled. The wrinkled cigarette fell to the ground and rolled in front of Klein.
Klein stopped in his tracks, picked it up, and handed it to her.
"Thank you, thank you! This is my old partner. I don't have many left. "The middle-aged man thanked him sincerely and took the cigarette.
His face was pale, and his beard looked like it hadn't been shaved in a long time. Exhaustion was revealed from the corners of his eyes.
He sighed and added, "I haven't slept for another night. I don't know how many days I can last. I hope the Lord will bless me and allow me to enter the workhouse today."
He's a homeless person being chased away … Klein asked casually,
"Why don't the king and ministers allow you to sleep in the park?"
"Who knows? However, in such weather, it's very likely that you won't wake up again if you sleep outside. It's better during the day. You can find a warmer place. Sigh, this way, I won't have the time or the strength to look for work. "The middle-aged man lit his cigarette and took a deep puff.
His energy seemed to recover a little as a result. He walked alongside Klein, walking towards a place that seemed to be the end of the fog or its depths.
Klein had no intention of exchanging pleasantries. He planned to speed up and shake him off, but at that moment, he suddenly saw the middle-aged man bend down and pick up a black object from the ground.
It seemed to be an apple core that had been nibbled clean.
The middle-aged man swallowed a mouthful of saliva and stuffed the dirt-covered apple core into his mouth. He chewed on it before expertly eating it without leaving anything behind.
Seeing Klein's surprised gaze, he wiped his mouth, shrugged, and smiled bitterly.
"I haven't eaten for almost three days."
This sentence struck Klein's heart, leaving him indescribably touched.
He sighed silently and smiled.
"Sorry, I didn't introduce myself just now. I'm a reporter. I'm doing a report on homeless people. Can I interview you? Let's go to the cafe up ahead. "
The middle-aged man was taken aback for a moment before he smiled.
"No problem. It's much warmer inside than the streets."
"If you can stay a little longer after the interview, allowing me to sleep for half an hour, no, fifteen minutes, that would be even better."
Klein opened his mouth, but he was at a loss for an answer. He decided to silently lead his "interviewee" into the cheap cafe at the end of the street.
The cafe's tables and chairs were rather greasy, and due to the walls and windows inside, there were many customers. The average temperature was indeed much higher than the streets.
The middle-aged man scratched his throat to hide his squirming Adam's apple from the aroma.
Klein gestured for him to sit down and went to the ordering counter. He ordered two large cups of tea, a plate of lamb stewed with tender peas, two loaves of bread, two pieces of toast, a serving of inferior butter, and a serving of artificial cream, for a total of 17.5 pence.
"Eat up. You can only interview after you're full." After the food was served, Klein brought them back to his table.
"For me?" the middle-aged man asked in anticipation and surprise.
"Other than a piece of toast and a cup of tea, everything else is yours," Klein replied with a smile.
The middle-aged man wiped his eyes and choked with sobs.
"… Y-you're really a kind-hearted person."
"Don't eat too quickly when you've been hungry for a long time," Klein exhorted.
"I know. I had an old buddy who died like this." The middle-aged man tried his best to slow down his pace of eating. From time to time, he would pick up the cup of tea and gulp down a mouthful.
Klein simply finished his toast and watched quietly, waiting for the other party to finish eating.
"Phew, I haven't eaten so much in three months, no, half a year. In the workhouse, the food was just enough." After a while, the middle-aged man put down his spoon. In front of him was an empty plate.
Klein pretended to be a reporter and asked casually,
"How did you become a tramp?"
But a few years ago, a contagious disease took them away, and I was hospitalized for a long time. I lost my job, my wealth, and my family. From then on, I often couldn't find a job, rent a house, or eat. I could only wander around different streets and parks. This made me very weak, and it was even more difficult for me to find a job … "The middle-aged man said with some reminiscence and sorrow in his numbness.
He drank a mouthful of tea and sighed before speaking again.
"I can only wait for the opportunity to enter the workhouse, but as you know, every workhouse has a limit on the number of people. If I'm lucky and queue up in time, I can live a good life for a few days, recover some strength, and then find a temporary job. Yes, a temporary job. Soon, I'll be unemployed again and repeat the previous process. I don't know how long I can last like this."
"I was supposed to be a good worker."
Klein thought for a moment and asked, "How many cigarettes do you have left?"
"Not many." The middle-aged man smiled bitterly. "These are my last possessions, the only things I had left when I was chased out by the landlord. Heh, I can't bring them into the workhouse. I'll secretly hide them in the gaps of my clothes. Only when I'm in the most difficult situation will I take one out to smoke so that I have something to look forward to. I don't know how long I can last. Let me tell you, I was a good worker back then. "
Klein wasn't a professional reporter, so he didn't know what to ask.
He turned his head to look out the window and saw faces filled with obvious hunger.
Some were relatively awake — they were the residents of East Borough. Some were numb and exhausted — they were vagrants.
There wasn't a clear gap between the two. The former could easily become the latter, such as the gentleman in front of me … Klein turned around and found that the middle-aged man had fallen asleep, curled up in a chair.
After a few minutes of silence, Klein went over to pat him awake and gave him a handful of copper pennies.
"This is the interview fee."
"Okay, okay. Thank you, thank you!" The middle-aged man didn't snap back to his senses for a moment. When Klein walked to the door, he raised his voice and said, "I'll go to a cheap hotel to take a shower, have a good sleep, and then look for a job."
...
At noon, Klein attended a banquet at the Sammers' house. There were a total of ten guests.
There was apple juice with steak, roast chicken, fried fish, sausages, cream soup, many delicacies, two bottles of champagne, and a bottle of red wine.
On the way back from the bathroom, he met Mrs. Stelyn Sammer and thanked her profusely.
"It was a sumptuous lunch. Thank you for your hospitality."
"It cost a total of 4 pounds 8 soli. The most expensive were the three bottles of wine, but they're all part of Luke's collection. He has a wine cabinet," the rather pretty Mrs. Stelyn replied with a smile.
Without waiting for Klein to speak, she said, "Just from the matter with Mary, you earned 10 pounds. If you can maintain such good luck, you'll soon be able to hold similar banquets. For people of our class, we have to invite friends once a month, as well as be invited by friends."
Klein was already used to her style and politely complimented her.
"Yes, but I'll have to wait until I have a stable annual income of 400 pounds before I can be like you."
Stelyn immediately raised her chin and tried her best to make her smile appear faint.
"430 pounds. You have to have 430 pounds."
...
Dock area, East Balam Dock, Workers Alliance Tavern.
Xio wore boots that were much higher than usual and stuck on a thick beard to make herself look like a short man.
She recalled the portrait she had seen from Miss Audrey, trying her best to imprint the man's appearance into her mind.
If he was the one who killed Gavin, then it's very likely that he frequents this tavern … Xio ordered a cup of rye beer and a lunch. She curled up in a corner and ate slowly. From time to time, she would secretly look around in search of a target.
After a while, the tavern's door was pushed open again, and Xio reflexively looked over.
Her pupils constricted to the size of needles, and she nearly turned into a stone statue.
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