Mori Tsukisa couldn't be bothered to discuss the definition of a madman with Jonathan; she didn't want to deal with this bad person right now.
As for Evelyn, having been kissed, she returned in a daze and stood there for a long while before remembering what she had been asked to do.
"We have to get him out! He's been to Hamunaptra!"
The process afterward was quite straightforward—the male prisoner was to be hanged, Jonathan proposed a ransom, the warden named a price, Evelyn bargained, and Mori Tsukisa paid.
A small gold bar.
Although Evelyn repeatedly insisted that her brother should pay and that she would never let such a young Child use her personal assets to pay for her, Mori Tsukisa didn't really care about such things.
Besides being a happy little rich girl herself, there were several small mountains of gold bars stored in the Wabi-Sabi Courtyard. After becoming familiar with modern rules, Arrietty and her group of Little Sprites always found ways to get money.
It got to the point where every time Mori Tsukisa saw them, she had to emphasize that she was rich and happy to buy things for them, telling them not to do anything bad, and so on—but that little mountain still grew slowly and steadily.
Jonathan's focus was different; he was curious about where Mori Tsukisa had pulled the small gold bar from.
"Teach me, teach me how you hide it." He adjusted his hat and leaned over, carefully sizing up Mori Tsukisa. Upon discovering she was wearing a 'lady's dress' with absolutely no hidden pockets sewn in, a thirst for knowledge he'd never shown before began to flicker in his eyes.
"A girl can only hide two." Mori Tsukisa held up two fingers. "As for you..."
Mori Tsukisa looked at him.
"You can only hide one."
"Why?" Jonathan thought for a long time before understanding. "Hey, are you talking about things that are beyond what someone your age should be talking about?"
...Having agreed to depart from Port Giza in a few days, Evelyn hurriedly pulled Mori Tsukisa back to the museum.
For this young female scholar obsessed with mummies, this was bound to be an interesting adventure. Before that, besides paying Mori Tsukisa back for the gold bar, the girl had endless clothes and cosmetics to pack and organize.
Mori Tsukisa actually had nothing to pack; in this regard, she was quite like Jonathan—both were the type who only brought themselves.
Thus, under Curator Terence's hesitant gaze, Evelyn happily requested a leave of absence. After telling her brother not to get arrested by the police before boarding the ship and asking Mori Tsukisa to keep an eye on him, she dove headfirst into her rented room.
"She's practically floating as she walks; she must be thrilled. Do you think it's because..." Jonathan sighed as he watched his sister's retreating back, but when he turned around—Mori Tsukisa was already about to disappear around the corner of another street.
Jonathan:...Can you please listen to what other people are saying?
—
Mori Tsukisa skipped along, humming a song.
She had just bought two local pastries, eating one as she walked and putting the other in a bag.
After bypassing the bustling marketplace and walking for another twenty minutes, the area became much more sparsely populated. Passing through a semi-dilapidated slum, deeper in was the mine.
That Child Baru lived here, working and living in this place.
Men, women, oil stains, a foul stench, ditches filled with black sludge, flies, and indifferent eyes.
Along the way, whether young or old, the faces, clothes, and fingertips of the men and women were all blackened with oil. Most were hunched over, staring as Mori Tsukisa hummed her way past.
Their eyes were full of envy.
Only a few young Boys, seeing several ill-intentioned fellows sneakily following Mori Tsukisa, wanted to speak up and warn her—but they were stopped by the older, more experienced hands.
Here, if you didn't mind other people's business, you could live in peace.
Mori Tsukisa walked and stopped, stepping over muddy, glistening puddles. Gravel rustled against leaves in the wind. Ahead was a very long and narrow alley.
Under the system of savage growth here, there were no uniform standards for streets and alleys. If someone wanted to build a house or have more living space, they had only to look at their fists and the scimitar at their waist.
If they were hard and sharp enough, you could even move into someone else's house—this also resulted in very low visibility in this long, narrow, and damp alley, with the space being severely squeezed by haphazardly built wooden boards, making the path only wide enough for one person to pass.
The young girl in a dress stepped into the abyss under the setting sun... at least, that was what Abdullah thought.
This youth, not yet twenty, led several subordinates, following the girl openly all the way. Several of them wore copper rings through their lips; Abdullah's copper ring was particularly large and bright.
—Because his ears were sharp enough to hear the crisp clinking of the silver accessories on the girl's long dress.
—Because his eyes were keen enough to have long since fixed on her fair, tender body and the tops of her feet that were occasionally revealed.
—Because his arms were strong enough, with bulging muscles; the Boy, already brown from years of sun, looked even darker, his thighs solid and powerful, enough to hunt down an opponent during a fight or drop his weapon and flee.
—Because his mind was... Ha, only that part wasn't true.
Rahman, the old guy who had once stopped him from joining the organization, had said as much.
While he was still alive.
"Yes, Abdullah, you see far, hear keenly, and are strong and powerful, just like a natural-born thug. But do you know? You can't join that organization; it'll be the death of you."
"Because you're not smart enough."
Bullshit. His mind worked faster than that wealthy Sheikh's. While that man was still slowly sipping his drink, he would have already kidnapped three decent-looking girls to sell for money.
Decisiveness, talent, and brains—all were indispensable. He was destined to rule this place.
"This is a big job." The Boy excitedly touched the copper ring on his lip and turned to instruct his subordinates: all young fellows around his own age.
"Don't use knives, understand?"
"We can enjoy ourselves first, then strip off everything valuable on her... right, the dress, the shoes, and the hairpins; those can all be sold. Afterward, I'll contact a buyer. Don't let it be like last time!"
Abdullah's bony finger poked the short Boy's head hard. "That girl you killed could have sold for at least this much!"
He held up four fingers and warned with an ill-tempered expression, "You'd better be careful. If you mess up again, you'll pay for it yourself!"
Last time, that girl who looked even younger than this one was incredibly frail; she was already dead by the time he found her. In the end, he had to give her a quick wash and use her as rations—
She did taste a bit more tender than an adult woman.
"Go, she's gone in. Follow her."
"I've rarely seen one this beautiful. Look at her... she doesn't look like she's that age." Joking with his subordinates while hitching up his waistband made of roughly sewn rags, Abdullah waved his hand. "Maybe she'll fetch a high price. We might be able to buy two guns."
Mr. Abdullah, dreaming of the future, followed the young girl in the dress into the abyss they had set.
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