Night in Backlund always seemed to arrive slightly earlier than elsewhere. Although it was still the tail end of summer, the sky at 7:00 PM had already turned completely dark.
Within the pale yellow thick fog, street lamps slowly flickered to life, but even so, they failed to increase the visibility on the streets by much.
The recently settled Mr. Sherlock Moriarty, having applied a simple disguise, arrived in the Backlund Bridge District. Amidst the environment that couldn't help but remind him of the daily life on Iron Cross Street, he revealed a bright smile.
With a click, he pressed open his flamboyant gold watch. Seeing that the minute hand was still five minutes away from the dial's peak, he pushed open the heavy dark wood door. Under the gaze of the burly guards, he stepped into the tavern filled with the scent of alcohol and sweat.
Similar to the bars in Tingen, this tavern also featured dog-and-rat gambling. On the other side, two boxers were passionately pummeling each other amidst the cheers of the audience.
Gently pushing up his disguise,gold-rimmed glasses,Mr. Sherlock immediately spotted the man sitting at the bar. Although dressed in cheap work clothes, that handsome face was impossible to ignore, enough to make every scanning gaze linger.
"A glass of Southville beer, my treat."
As Mr. Sherlock approached the bar, he heard Mr. Devil order a beer. Before he could even speak, the glass was already placed in front of him, while Mr. Devil's magnetic voice sounded simultaneously, "I thought it would be some minor lackey, but I didn't expect it to be a subordinate of that Great Being. Talk about a twist of fate!"
"Mr. Snow, you recognize me?" Klein's heart skipped a beat. Snow had only met him once, yet he had seen through his disguise at a glance. Did that mean this face,
"Let's go. We'll talk elsewhere." Snow didn't answer his redundant question. He tossed a few coins onto the bar, stood up, and walked toward the door.
Klein hesitated for a moment, then, based on the principle of not letting anything go to waste, he chugged the Southville beer in his hand before following with an unrefined burp.
Snow led Klein to his safe house in the Cherwood District. After entering the study, he picked up a small box from the desk and tossed it to Klein.
Although he had performed a comprehensive divination before coming, Klein,who understood that "divination is not omnipotent",was still startled. However, once he caught the box and carefully opened it, he said in surprise, "A makeup kit?"
"Exactly. Your disguise is too poor. If you need it, I can give you makeup lessons,10 Soli per class, guaranteed results. Although you probably won't need it once you advance to a Faceless, that should still be quite a while away."
Snow rolled his eyes and sat casually in the chair behind the desk, then scrutinized Klein with an evaluating gaze, "Tell me, what intelligence are you looking for? But let me say this upfront: while you're a Blessed of that Great Being, faith is faith and business is business. I work as an information dealer. Unless you're carrying an order from that Great Being, at most I'll give you a discount."
'An order would be easy to give, but Mr. Fool's dignity wouldn't allow him to give such an order!' Klein felt his heart bleeding, but he still nodded:
"I wish to enter Backlund's Beyonder circles. I also need a gun,the kind that doesn't require a permit."
"That's all?" Snow gave Klein a strange look, then sighed. "You used a messenger to find me for such a small matter? Forget it. Go to the Braveheart Bar and find Kaspars. Just say Snow sent you. As for the payment, just give it to that old guy."
"..." Klein felt a bit awkward due to Snow's attitude, but for the sake of a Blessed of The Fool's dignity, he continued:
"Aside from that, I've come to Backlund under Mr. Fool's orders to track down a 'Spectator.' I wonder if you can provide some assistance?"
"!"
Right before Klein's eyes, Snow's expression instantly shifted from lazy to solemn. Subsequently, Klein felt a certain change in the surrounding air. As a wave of power spread out, everything returned to calm.
"You don't even have the common sense to mention matters involving a Spectator first?" Snow glared at Klein in annoyance, then slowed his tone, "Before coming to me, you didn't mention that Spectator's name, did you? That includes code names."
"No, but is there a problem with that?" Klein's perfectly played "newbie" look made Snow unsure whether to praise his acting or marvel at how this gentleman always managed to be reckless in exactly the right places.
He took a deep breath, feigning an attempt to suppress his emotions, and said in a voice he couldn't quite keep steady, "You dare to track a Spectator without knowing anything? No, that's not right... it's because you know nothing that you can track them..."
At this point, Snow tapped his head and said with some frustration, "High-sequence Spectators possess the trait: 'All things mentioned shall be known.' In other words, when you know of them, they know of you. While I can indeed help you block the perception of some Spectators, if you personally speak the target's name, you'll still be immediately detected."
"So that's how it is!" Klein suddenly understood why he could never find the house with the red chimney. With such a broken ability, no wonder Mr. Devil's ancestors hated the Spectator pathway so much.
"Alright, the basic lesson is over. Now for the pricing. Since it's Mr. Fool's intention, I'll give you a 50% discount. 300 pounds. What do you think?"
"Three hundred pounds?!" Klein almost shouted it out. After paying rent and for advertisements, his small treasury only had less than four hundred pounds left. If he spent another three hundred...
Klein wrestled with the headache for a long while before finally gritting his teeth and nodding:
"No problem. But I don't have that much cash on me right now. Tomorrow I'll go to the bank..."
"With Mr. Fool as a witness, just pay within a week." Snow waved his hand and pulled a charm that looked somewhat like a one-penny coin from his pocket, flicking it toward Klein. Simultaneously, a chant in ancient Hermes echoed from his mouth, "Subjective Veil!"
Under the trigger of the incantation, the charm instantly dissolved into a handful of white mist, covering Klein like fine rain and plating him with a barrier that isolated mental power.
' "Subjective Veil"? This activation phrase is so strange. Or is it just some other mysterious language that sounds like Ancient Hermes?' Klein didn't seem to realize the subtext of this charm's trigger, and Snow didn't care about this failed "persona deepening" either. He just gave serious instructions, "This layer of protection will turn you into a negligible passerby in a Spectator's sensing. As long as you don't actively 'perform,' the Spectator won't notice your existence. Even if they occasionally detect you, they won't pay you any mind. Of course, I'll say it again: do not speak the Spectator's name. Not even their code name."
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika Kagura]
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A/N: "Spectator" (观众) - High-sequence Spectators (Sequence 4 and above) possess the ability to sense any mention of their name or relevant titles, effectively creating a "global monitoring" effect for anyone investigating them.
A/N: 0-08 - The Sealed Artifact (quill) mentioned in previous chapters is an item of the Spectator pathway, which is why Snow is so cautious.
T/N: Subjective Veil (安知鱼) - Literally "How do you know the fish?". It refers to the "Hui Shi and Zhuangzi" paradox: "You are not a fish, how do you know the joy of the fish?". In Snow's Paradox pathway, it is used to denote becoming "undetectable" or "unknowable" to others.
T/N: "Southville Beer" (南威尔啤酒) - A common, cheap beer brand in Backlund.