Chapter 64: Silver Moon's Orb |
The Sunday evening banquet at Lakeview Manor was the most important event for Shad that day. Yesterday, he had asked Dr. Schneider about the appropriate attire for attending an outdoor banquet. The doctor suggested simply cleaning up; such open-air banquets that allowed strangers to attend were typically large in scale, so overly formal attire wasn’t necessary.
However, if one attended the banquet for the sake of charming young ladies, then naturally, dressing up a bit would be advisable. Shad still remembered Miss Luisa’s teasing tone when she said this—it seemed she was quite familiar with such customs.
Since Baron Lavender had agreed to reimburse travel expenses, Shad didn’t need to leave too early. He spent the morning playing with the orange tabby cat, Mimia, and reading books. Of course, he was also waiting for any potential clients to show up. Mimia was the kind of obedient pet Shad had always imagined. Over the past few days, the cat had adjusted well to life at 6 St. Derain Square, and Shad felt very comfortable leaving it at home.
After lunch, concluding that luck wouldn’t favor him with a client that day, he left the house again to visit Old John’s Pawnshop.
The address Miss Luisa had provided turned out to be a store not far from the Silver Parrot Milk Distribution Company. When Shad pushed open the door, the elderly man sitting in a rocking chair, half-asleep, immediately perked up:
“Oh, a regular customer. But I won’t…”
He stood up to welcome the detective, but Shad softly interrupted:
“Let’s not talk about the cane. This time, I’m looking for… something interesting.”
He glanced around the cluttered shop, its four walls covered with brass-colored wallpaper that reflected the dim light from gas lamps as brightly as possible. Gas pipes snaked along the walls, adorned here and there with items like broken lanterns and sword hilts.
The shopkeeper, Old John, had already returned behind the counter. To his left was a stack of old books; to his right, a small steam furnace, half polished clean while the other half remained covered in soot. It hadn’t been there during Shad’s last visit.
Old John didn’t seem surprised by Shad’s words.
“Everything here is interesting,” he said, standing quietly behind the counter, watching Shad.
The elderly man was slightly plump, but his sharp eyes were full of vigor. Shad cleared his throat and recited the “code” Miss Luisa had given him. Purchasing occult items or even relics here required an introduction from someone familiar:
“Because one plus one equals two, the sun rises in the west. Oh, my Maria, I’ll kick your… behind. Don’t go barefoot, or the curly-haired baboon will eat your rotten teeth.”
This strange phrase was the shop’s password, indicating that Shad was a referred customer and also a Ring Warlock. Yet, Shad couldn’t shake the suspicion that Miss Luisa had been joking when she provided it—possibly borrowing from the nonsensical ramblings of patients at Dr. Schneider’s clinic.
But Old John understood, waving Shad over.
“Oh, so you’re referred by Dorothy Luisa. I haven’t seen her in ages. How’s her new book, The Mystery of the Bloody Words, coming along? She said she’d send me a copy once it was published.”
The Mystery of the Bloody Words was the detective novel Miss Luisa had been working on. She planned to serialize it in the newspapers and had already made arrangements with a publisher. Unfortunately, exam season had interrupted her writing, leaving the novel at its opening chapters. Just yesterday, during a study group, the young author had lamented this to Shad.
“If I’d mentioned before that I was referred by Miss Luisa, would the price of that cane have been higher?” Shad asked.
“Of course not. That was already the best price. Detective, are you doubting my integrity? Old John’s Pawnshop never cheats its customers… Yes, never. No need to question it, that’s the way it is…”
Faced with Shad’s skeptical look, the old man coughed and quickly changed the subject:
“Speaking of which, Detective, I didn’t expect you to be a Ring Warlock. Very well, what do you need? Since you bought that cane last time, I can offer you a discount for your first purchase.”
Shad had given Old John his business card previously, so the man knew his profession.
Though clearly a Ring Warlock himself, Old John’s specific affiliations remained a mystery. Neither Miss Luisa nor Dr. Schneider knew whether he belonged to the True God Churches, the Arcane Academies, or some other organization. They only knew his shop served as a channel for reclaiming relics and rare items for a larger organization operating in Tobesk. Whether Old John had ties to St. Byrons Comprehensive College, no one could say.
While the smiling old man was tight-lipped about his identity, his professional ethics were impeccable, and his collection was extensive. Without a referral, his shop wouldn’t cater to unfamiliar Ring Warlocks—a privilege of joining Dr. Schneider’s group.
“I’ve been studying mysticism related to [Silver Moon], so I’m looking for…”
“Got it. What’s your budget?”
The old man asked, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together.
After paying off the first installment of his debts, Shad’s savings weren’t substantial. So far, his most significant earnings had been from Mimia-related commissions. But learning mysticism about [Silver Moon] was critical to building his self-defense capabilities. Even with the funds from selling the cane, he was worried it wouldn’t suffice.
After much hesitation, he decided to dip into Mimia’s £10 “living expenses.” Before leaving home, he had hugged the cat to apologize and promised to repay the money quickly. Naturally, the sleepy tabby hadn’t understood a word and showed no reaction.
“About £15,” Shad cautiously replied.
The old man nodded. “For that price…”
He flipped through a heavy ledger from under the counter, raising his head after a few minutes.
“I do have a Poet-grade [relic] suitable for your needs. But at a price around £15, you can imagine it won’t be very powerful. It’ll just help you sense the power of the Silver Moon.”
Understanding that [relics] were typically expensive, Shad nodded.
Old John left through a back door and returned about half an hour later, carrying a wooden jewelry box. Opening it on the counter, Shad saw a small round bead resting on red velvet. A fine gold loop at the top of the bead was attached to a thin string.
The bead was milky white, resembling a pearl but very small. Without the string, it could easily be lost if dropped.
[You have come into contact with “Whispers.”]
The late-arriving voice indicated the relic’s modest strength.
“This is the Poet-grade relic [Pearl of the Silver Moon]. Its last documented containment was by Circes High Medical Institute, one of the Three Grand Arcane Academies, during the late Fifth Epoch. So, even if it were seized, it wouldn’t be considered contraband.”
Old John slid the jewelry box toward Shad, who extended a finger to touch the tiny bead. A chilling sensation surged through him, and he suddenly saw the radiant Silver Moon.
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