[The Next Day]
Mikhail heard the chiming of the bells as he entered the office building.
There were no classes today so he had slept a little longer before getting there in time.
'Hm?'
The inside of the building was a little different now and Mikhail immediately noticed it.
Ronda, Matt and Felix all three of them stood close to the left wall where a new TV was hanging.
Mikhail was sure it wasn't there yesterday.
Ronda looked at him and smiled. "Good morning~"
"Good morning, Miss Ronda." Mikhail replied, smiling back. "Good morning to you two."
Matt waved his hand. "Good morning."
Mikhail shifted his gaze back to the TV which was showing nothing but a static black and white screen.
"A new TV?" He asked, looking at Ronda.
"Yeah." She replied. "We had one before but it got destroyed so we had to buy a new one."
Mikhail nodded, looking at Felix who was fixing the antenna, trying to fix the channel.
"That won't work." Mikhail said awkwardly. "That's just for show."
Felix clicked his tongue and walked back, placing his hands on the sides of his waist.
"What do you know?" He replied. "You are just a young child."
"I do know though." Mikhail replied in an annoyed tone. "I have done my studies on TVs."
He turned around and looked at Ronda. "Can I take a look?"
Ronda nodded with a bright smile. "Sure."
Mikhail walked closer and fixed the antenna just as it was before.
"You see, the antenna was once used in old TVs to catch radio waves but after a sudden birth of a rift the frequency of the world changed."
Mikhail explained as he gently looked on the side of the TV where a cable was put inside.
"After that incident there was no way to catch the radio waves so the government had to opt for cable wires to send coded information that was later turned into videos."
He took out a cable that was placed in the imperial slot and put it in the local slot.
The two slots were the connections for two different channel lists. The local was significantly cheaper and people used that much more.
Mikhail took a step back and pressed the power button and a clear image appeared on the screen.
With a smile, he looked at Felix. "See, wasn't too hard, right?"
Felix gave him a look but didn't say anything as he looked back at the screen.
Mikhail walked towards Ronda who leaned closer. "Thanks for the help."
"Mention not."
When Mikhail first transmigrated here, he really wanted to own a smartphone as he had been addicted to doomscrolling in his old world.
But the more he studied to make one, the more he understood why this world only had landlines.
'Ah, good old days of addiction when I used to rot in bed.'
He shook his head and looked at the door.
And as if on cue, the door of the office opened up.
The entire group immediately turned towards the door as a lady wearing a long blue skirt and a white shirt walked inside.
With her was a small young child that looked just like the lady.
Ronda with her professional smile walked towards them. "How can I help you?"
"I wish to see detective Daniel." She said, her voice harsh like she had been dehydrated.
Ronda nodded her head and turned towards Mikhail.
He understood the assignment and walked towards Daniel's office and opened the door.
The middle aged man sat in his chair reading a book.
"There is a client." Mikhail said, making him look up.
"Send them inside." He said, closing the book. "And you come inside as well."
Mikhail nodded, turned towards the lady and brought them inside.
The lady sat down with the child sitting on her lap, looking at Mikhail who stood by Daniel's side.
"How can I help you?" Daniel asked, looking at her.
The lady took off her cap and showed her black hair.
"My husband…." She said quietly. "He has gone missing."
Daniel took out his small notebook from his pocket and picked up his pen.
"Tell me your name." He asked.
"Vina."
"How long has your husband been missing?"
"It's been a week now." She replied. "I have already gone to the police but they have yet to find him."
Daniel nodded his head. "Can you give me more details?"
Vina brought her purse up, took out a list of papers before passing it to him.
"Actually, he didn't just vanish." She said. "He even took all the jewelry and accessories from our home."
Daniel looked at the papers that had all the items along with the man's details and photo.
"Did he leave you?" Daniel asked in confusion. "Perhaps you know if he had any mistress?"
"I don't know." She shook her head. "I don't think so."
"….This is weird." Daniel mumbled. "What about the border patrol."
"We talked to them." She replied. "But they are saying he didn't get past the border."
Daniel hummed in response as he kept on looking at the list of items.
"Was there any change in his behaviour before he vanished?" Daniel asked again.
Vina thought for a second before she frantically nodded her head.
"Yes!" She replied. "For some reason, he became religious all of a sudden."
"Religious?"
"He said he was having weird dreams that he couldn't explain." She responded. "He began going to churches because of it."
Daniel nodded his head and looked at the picture of the man.
Mikhail peeked from behind and found the man just an ordinary guy.
"Any idea where he was last seen?"
"At home." She replied. "After that, he was just gone."
Daniel put down the papers and looked at her with an assuring look.
"Don't worry, ma'am." He said. "We will look into the matter and get back to you as soon as possible."
The lady nodded her head and smiled gently. "Thank you."
She stood up and walked out of the room with her daughter who smiled and waved at Mikhail.
Daniel leaned back on his chair and asked. "What do you think?"
"On the surface, it looks like just a case of a husband running away with money." Mikhail replied from his observation. "And I think the lady is not entirely truthful."
"You are right." He said, standing up. "Both mother and child must have been physically abused by him."
Mikhail blinked in surprise. "How do you…?"
"I see no concern for her father in the daughter's eyes." He said, walking towards the coat stand. "And even the lady had anger and concern in her eyes."
"Why concern?"
"Perhaps for her daughter's future." He replied, getting ready. "He did run away with all the wealth."
Mikhail frowned upon hearing that. "But still hiring a private detective…"
"She must be wishing her husband is dead." Daniel said, wearing his vintage cap. "So she could inherit the insurance money."
Mikhail nodded in realisation as he understood the situation more.
"Let's go." Daniel said, walking out. "Pick up the papers."
Mikhail did as asked as he looked through the details.
But as he read the name he froze in place.
'Robin Varbin.'
He thought grimly.
'Wasn't he the guy who bought a custom coffin from father?'