Chapter 2059: Chapter 2059: Princess Trading Partners
The smell during the examination of the stomach contents made Shard and Mr. Benhart very uncomfortable. Fortunately, Mr. Albert quickly finished the process and then reopened the abdominal wound to show the traces under the flesh and tissues, which once existed in the abdominal cavity together with the organs.
The traces were not obvious and had to be pointed out by the professional coroner for Shard and Mr. Benhart to discover them.
"The shape of the thing that drained her blood is uncertain, but it should be about two-thirds the size of my fist. Armand, use the Echo of Blood and look carefully at the subtle blood distribution traces, and you might find that all the blood in her body once flowed here in a short period of time."
Mr. Benhart blinked, and Shard activated the [Echo of Blood] as well. Squinting to focus his spirit, the conglomerated bright red traces gradually revealed the "echoes" left at different points in time according to their depth:
"The blood seems to be circling an egg-shaped object."
He said softly.
"Oh? Mr. Watson, you can see it too?"
The coroner was somewhat surprised, but Mr. Benhart, who was still carefully observing, spoke on behalf of Shard:
"I told you, Mr. Watson is quite impressive. Yes, I also saw it; there once was an egg in her abdomen? It’s much larger than a chicken egg."
"We can’t prove if it’s an egg or something of a similar shape."
The coroner continued for the two, using tweezers to prod the corpse’s organs for further analysis and explanation.
Shard frowned slightly:
"Edward’s Eye."
The arcane technique learned on Green Island, used to discern whether there has been human modification, made the red vision of the "Echo of Blood" even more peculiar. Upon close inspection, probably because the egg-shaped object in the abdomen had disappeared, there was no abnormality in the corpse’s abdomen. However, observing other parts of the corpse revealed abnormal glimmers attached to her bones:
"Her bones seem a bit off."
Upon further examination, the hardness of the corpse’s bones was significantly above the normal human level. Shard confirmed this was not innate talent but formed after birth, but even such an autopsy could not explain the cause of bone abnormalities, only guessing it was also related to that egg-shaped object.
Shard and Mr. Benhart stayed in the morgue until three in the afternoon. After obtaining even excessively abundant information, they inquired about the location where the corpse was found, and only then did they part ways with Mr. Abel, who had other work.
"I’m somewhat regretting agreeing to the autopsy... Let’s go have a drink first."
After leaving the corridor behind the gated door, following Mr. Benhart’s suggestion, they returned to the Spider Tavern. The tavern in the Lower District seemed always to have sparse customers, under the dim yellow lamplight, Shard believed his complexion matched Mr. Benhart’s at the moment:
"I might have overestimated my adaptability. The impact of the scene wasn’t much, as I saw something more horrific this morning, primarily it’s the smell..."
Mr. Benhart quickly shook his head to stop his description:
"Please, don’t say anymore. I don’t want to recall. My sense of smell is equally keen... If there’s this kind of thing again, I must first get a talisman to temporarily numb my sense of smell."
The taste of inferior barley wine dissipated the stench of corpse and preservatives from the morgue. Both wanted to sit and rest for a moment, so they didn’t leave immediately.
"Speaking of which, how did you meet Mr. Ptolemy Albert?"
Shard opened a new topic, and Mr. Benhart didn’t mind revealing some privacy:
"I met him when I was studying in Velindale. He was a student at Velindale Saint York Medical College, and I was at the Royal Academy of Literature studying literature and political economics. During a school hike, I met this member of my clan. Don’t judge him by his current apparent downfall, he was quite famous during his school years. His grades need no mention, the projects and research accomplishments he participated in also led to published papers."
"Did he come directly to Moon Bay after graduation?"
"No, no, he went to the New World. Ptolemy was determined to become a doctor and loved various herbs and plants, so he joined the Carsonrick New World Exploration Legion as an army doctor. After he went to the New World, our correspondence lessened due to the inconvenience of letters. About eight years ago, I received another letter from him; he had already settled in Moon Bay by then.
After returning from the New World, he worked as a doctor in a small clinic, had friends introduce him to teach for nobles, and even briefly lectured in a local school. He told me if I ever came over here, we could sit and drink together like during our student days."
Recalling the past, Mr. Benhart mused a bit:
"I don’t know why he finally chose such a job, not to say a coroner isn’t good, but... Alright, the job is indeed not great. He says he enjoys this life, but in my view, his academic level is high, and even if he didn’t stay at the Academy, opening his clinic would be better than now."
Shard raised an eyebrow:
"Is it... I’m not doubting your friend, is it..."
Mr. Benhart nodded to indicate understanding:
"I know what you mean, I’ve also read the ’Hamilton Detective Stories’, the story from the third issue of the Month of Rising Wind talks about a case where the coroner himself was the murderer. But Ptolemy is a righteous person, he’s been like that since he was young, enthusiastic, friendly, and likes to stand up for others. Although this has caused him some trouble, no one would doubt that he is a truly good person."
"Righteous... I understand."
Shard slowly nodded, choosing to trust his friend:
"I have some other matters this afternoon, but afterward I will help investigate this case. I didn’t expect to hear about such things as soon as I arrived in the Moon Bay Region; I think my adventures here will be interesting."
"I hope you encounter fewer interesting things like this."
Mr. Benhart said helplessly, raising his glass to clink with Shard:
"Then let’s celebrate our reunion in a foreign land and thank you for being willing to assist in the investigation."
"It’s nothing. Oh, that reminds me, I don’t have a fixed address in the Moon Bay Region for now, if you need to find me, you can come here."
Shard took a sip of barley wine, then took out a notebook and wrote down an address by hand, and Mr. Benhart also told Shard his temporary residence.
Seeing the address on the torn-out page of the notebook, the middle-aged Vampire Kind was quite surprised:
"Princess Trading Partners? Is this a trading company in the Dock Area? Is it your own business?"
Shard shook his head:
"No, no, I have ties with their boss... very good ties. You know, I wander everywhere, so it’s convenient to have my correspondence address there for receiving and sending mail."
Mr. Benhart nodded knowingly, yet unaware that "Princess Trading Partners" was actually the local contact for the Northern Princess. After all, this is the United Kingdom of Carsonrick, so establishing a legitimate company to facilitate their people’s actions was necessary.
"Princess Trading Partners" is nominally a business run by a group of partners, mainly dealing in the import and export of raw materials, industrial products, and agricultural products. Such small import-export trading companies are numerous in the Moon Bay Region, making them seem quite inconspicuous. The company’s premises are located on Golden Harbor Street in the Dock Area, a name that signifies wealth and prosperous commerce.
The company has an independent three-story building, one side of which is a small shipyard, with a slope leading directly to the densely docked and pier-filled sea surface at the front of the shipyard entrance. The other side of the building is the company’s warehouse, so its small scale is clear at a glance.
After bidding farewell to Mr. Benhart, who was busy with the investigation, Shard set off for there. However, after getting off the carriage, he did not immediately pay a visit but stood at the end of the pier, with his back to the stack of cargo boxes and busy sailors, taking a deep breath toward the sea, hoping to wash away the strange scent on him with the sea breeze.
The bustle at the Moon Bay City Dock is no less than that of Coldwater Port, with ships of all sizes next to the pier unloading cargo rapidly, while countless other ships wait to dock on the dim sea surface. Forming an "L" shape with an angle greater than 90 degrees, the general layout of Moon Bay City Dock correlates with the crescent coastline of the "Moon Bay". If not for the bad weather, the scenery here would be quite pleasant. But sacrificing the scenery for trade exchanges seems to have little opposition in this era from only a few.
Descending from the pier, he arrived at 45 Golden Harbor Street, the doors of the three-story building tightly shut, and Shard turned the handle and entered only after hearing a response following his knock.
Although the company was established as a front for smuggling, the internal decor of "Princess Trading Partners" was not inferior. There weren’t many people on the first floor, no counters were present, and the sofa suite was used for receiving guests. Maps of Moon Bay City and the West Coast coastline adorned the walls, and bathtubs and shell specimens were on display on a cabinet in the corner.
Various business certificates were hung on the wall by the door, and the person receiving Shard was a woman who had lost an eye and whose height even surpassed Shard’s.
Her black hair was braided, her skin rough, and her eyes large, a typical feature of the tribe people from the Carsonrick central desert area. Although she appeared fierce, her speech was quite courteous, and after the two had seated themselves on the couches, Shard stated his purpose:
"The lady sent me; she’s unhappy that the goods haven’t been shipped out yet."
"The lady is...?"
The one-eyed woman asked curiously, and Shard reached into his pocket:
"Ms. Annie Bonnie. I think there’s no need for us to probe each other. The lady’s name is not something we can mention lightly, here is the letter she wrote to you, and the contact token she gave me."
He handed a letter and a silver-plated chess piece symbolizing "Knight" to her. After reading the letter carefully, she looked up and said to Shard:
"As per the rules, we still need to verify the codeword. Cough cough — How’s the situation at home?"
"The wheat harvest failed, but the orchard’s apples did quite well."
"Were they red apples, green apples, or blue apples?"
"None, they were rotten apples. But the lady believes that even rotten apples, you can still ship out."
The one-eyed Ms. Annie Bonnie immediately stood up:
"Please allow me to express apologies to Her Highness, the batch of goods will be shipped out as soon as possible."
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