Chapter 2061: Chapter 2061: Black Hand Gang
Since the attic appeared, as Shard walked down the stairs, he heard the excited sound of Mia running up. But upon seeing Shard, Mia sniffed, then turned around and wagged her tail as she left the way she came, reminding Shard once again to take a bath soon.
After a day out and coming home, life was still so pleasing. After taking Mia out for dinner, Miss Galina, who had arranged to meet via mail this morning, visited No. 6, Saint Delan Square again with the maids at seven in the evening.
"I hope you’re not going to tell me that right after I informed you about witches in Moon Bay, you’ve already met one."
When she saw Shard, the Duchess couldn’t resist teasing him.
"Of course not, but the Moon Bay Region is indeed quite interesting."
Shard gave her a hug and tried to sit down, but was instead pulled by the Witch to go out.
"So late, where are we going?"
"The Opera House, I’ve already booked tickets for a private box. Lecia can invite you to the Opera House for a date, so why can’t I?"
Shard felt there was a peculiar sense of rivalry in this.
The date was at Queen Maria’s Opera House, a place Shard was very familiar with. As for the opera performed that night, Shard didn’t pay much attention. Of course, it wasn’t that he and Miss Galina did anything in public, but rather they talked about the new Time Key:
"I hope you can help me investigate the ’Dawn Messenger Ship’, from 5180 in the late Fifth Era, where over 3,000 people died."
Shard had already generally explained the trouble he encountered this time, so Miss Galina also knew what he intended to do:
"You want to find out the truth about that ship’s sinking at our current time point?"
"Yes, I need to be prepared for two outcomes."
"Then what do you plan to do with the wishes and desires of those ladies from the Fifth Era?"
She asked again.
"Most of the things in the notebook are trivial, I just need to prepare some items in advance.
There are only two matters that need solving: First, Miss Teresa’s maid, Miss Maxim, wanted to see a book during her childhood but never had the chance due to various reasons, ’Mirror Fairy Tale’, which is said to be a popular fairy tale book from the late Fifth Era. Miss Maxim heard stories from it but never got to read it herself; second, Professor Ivins from Zaras Literary Academy, in her youth, heard of a wine known as ’Black Flame Ice Wine’. However, this rare ice wine from the extreme cold regions of the Northern Continent in the Fifth Era is hard to obtain, which is a small regret."
"How come it feels like you’ve become a traveler fulfilling wishes for ancient witches?"
She leaned on Shard’s shoulder, her hair lightly brushing against his chin.
Shard reached out to wrap an arm around her:
"Fulfilling wishes might be a stretch, but this task gives me a strange feeling, the ladies I encountered might be hiding something. I’ll find a way to acquire that book myself; the black market merchant I know in Tobesk is formidable. As for the wine, although I’ve never heard of it, since it relates to the Far North, I fear it might require troubling Miss Danester."
"It seems like you have a pretty good relationship with your mentor?"
"The relationship is great."
"Oh?"
This exclamation was clearly questioning Shard, and as Shard wanted to refute, the Witch who sat up straight covered Shard’s mouth with her hand, her beautiful golden eyes gazed at him:
"Tonight is our date, let’s not talk about others."
She wrapped her arms around Shard’s neck, took a deep breath:
"It would be wonderful if every day could be like this."
"I..."
"I’m not complaining about your infidelity, but rather about having endless tasks at hand. I’ll be staying overnight at your place tonight, I mean nothing else, just so tomorrow morning, although I still have to go to Yordle Palace, I can sleep in a little."
Every time he spent a night with the Duchess, Shard would be asked not to get up so early the next morning. Although witches themselves tend toward perfection and as long as they don’t stay up excessively late, they don’t have to worry about skin and wrinkle problems, Miss Galina still strongly opposed the habit of waking up early.
It was the same on Friday. At six-thirty, the cat that spent the night downstairs with the maids punctually appeared at the second-floor bedroom door, scratching relentlessly. Shard intended to get up at that moment, but the red-haired witch under the quilt pulled him back:
"Do you dislike me that much?"
Even in the early morning without makeup, her bright red hair in disarray on the pillow, with a blend of charm and weariness in her eyes, she was still stunningly beautiful.
Meanwhile, the cat outside the door stopped scratching, and from the sound of it, Tifa had taken it away. So Shard dozed a bit longer, getting up only at eight.
Miss Galina headed to Yordle Palace, and Shard began a brand new day. He first went to Old John to acquire ancient books. Although they were books from the Fifth Era, due to their massive print runs, Old John reassured Shard that he should be able to acquire them:
"We have a collaboration with the Apna Library; they should have this book. The price will be a bit higher, but haven’t you recently decided to live off that Duchess?"
Old Man John would likely joke about this for at least half a year.
For the matter of the "Black Flame Ice Wine," Shard bothered Miss Danester. He had already sent her a letter via a manuscript page last night. The reply had not yet arrived, and he hoped the librarian wouldn’t mind his disturbance.
After returning from Old John, he set off again for Moon Bay City. It was drizzling in the city today. Shard, carrying a black umbrella, entered the city from Saint George Stone Bridge. After getting off the carriage, he gazed once more towards the under-construction "Bridge of Moon Bay" by the Taton River under the rainy sky.
"It’s really spectacular."
Workers as small as ants were still working on the bridge gradually coming together across the wide river. Shard couldn’t help but feel the urge to visit the bridge to take in the view, but that’s not what he was there to do today.
The visit to MI6 agents could wait. Shard decided to first investigate what secrets the "Black Hand Gang" in the Dock Area held.
Miss Annie Bonnie had provided the location of the well-known gang headquarters in the Dock Area. Similar to Rot-Eye Barry of Green Lake, they operated casinos and underground boxing arenas for illegal ventures. This time, without a Grand Witch like Megan accompanying him, Shard didn’t plan to dismantle the vibrant social organization just upon arrival in a new city.
He lingered by the river for a while, then turned into the winding alleys of the Lower District in the rain.
The sewer system of Moon Bay City could be considered the oldest still in use along the West Coast. Most of these complex pipes still served the city, but some had assumed other roles.
For instance, a section was used by the morgue in the Lower District, and the underground boxing arena operated by the gang was also within the sewers.
The sewer entrance was hidden in an inconspicuous corner of the Lower District. From the outside, no one could tell what it was for. A wrought iron gate blocked the entrance, but the guards here were much more diligent than those at the morgue.
Fortunately, entering didn’t require a special invitation. Just pay up and mention who referred you.
Although Shard lacked a referral, he tipped a bit extra, and the guards, not making it difficult, opened the gate to let him in:
"Don’t roam aimlessly, don’t cause a ruckus; you wouldn’t want to spend the night at the bottom of the Taton River, would you?"
"So blatant—is this place also part of legitimate taxable industries?"
Thinking to himself, he walked down the wide corridor of the sewer, guided by gas lamps on the walls, without fear of stepping on something filthy. At the end, sounds of lively cheers could already be heard. Turning right, under the watchful eyes of guards playing Roder cards against the wall, Shard proceeded forward. After another descent, at the sewer crossroad ahead, he chose to continue forward.
The right-side pipeline at the junction was blocked by all sorts of debris, while the left led deeper underground where the entry area for boxing match participants was located.
The smell within the underground pipes wasn’t too strong, though it was particularly damp and cold. The cheering and jeering grew more distinct. By the time Shard reached his destination, he saw a crowd, dressed in various clothing, surrounding a square formation of railings, watching two men bare-chested, fighting below.
The venue resembled an atrium. The audience watching the match comprised both ordinary citizens of the Lower District and well-dressed businessmen.
No one noticed Shard’s arrival, so he edged up to take a closer look. Then he scanned the bystanders, failing to spot any gang leader types:
"But in such a lucrative place, it’s unlikely there’d be no key figures guarding it. Could it be they haven’t come to watch the match, or are they concealed somewhere I haven’t discovered... Enhanced Spatial Awareness."
In scenarios like underground pipes, the arcane technique of spatial perception worked particularly well. Once Shard grasped the layout of the convoluted surroundings, he employed "Heart of Stone" to listen to nearby heartbeats, soon determining where his target was:
"The ’arena’ below counts as the first floor. The audience area here is the second. But there’s actually a third floor above."
Quietly coming, quietly going. Using illusion technique for concealment, he returned to the sewer junction from before, bypassing the debris-blocked section to enter the right pipeline. Continuing forward past a turn, he encountered two men at a square table playing Roder cards, albeit not his targets. Pushing further ahead, he noticed an iron ladder, scaling it to the upper floor, ducking through a doorway to finally enter the "third floor."
Here too mirrored an atrium, a square railing circle, though much smaller than the second-floor stands.
Three tables were scattered here—one unattended, six individuals drinking and playing cards around the other two. Keys and weapons, mostly cold weapons like machetes, but also three small-caliber firearms, hung on the walls.
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