In the late morning, Mikhail sat on the public mana bus heading to the 38th Street bus stop.
The trackless bus was one of the main public transports used by the people of the City of Sparrows.
It cost only 10 Bali, which equalled a tenth of 1 Telen.
Mikhail usually didn't use the bus because it was mostly expensive and crowded with people.
But today he had left school late so he had no choice but to take the ride.
After a few minutes, he arrived at the stop and got off along with a few other passengers.
He walked a short distance before he arrived at the building.
'Hmm?' Mikhail's steps slowed down when he saw a carriage placed on the side. '…A police carriage?'
It was his first time seeing one around this area as it was relatively much safer than the lower street districts.
He walked towards the door and walked inside as the bell chimed softly.
Ronda, who sat at the reception desk, smiled at him. "Good morning, Mikhail~."
"Good morning." Mikhail replied, smiling. He looked around and found the other two weren't there.
"Where are they?" He asked, pointing at the empty seats.
"Off duty." She replied. "Both of them are devotees of the Undying Sun and today happens to be the monthly mass prayer day."
Mikhail tilted his head. "You are not a devotee?"
"I follow the teachings of the Faceless Moon." She replied with a smile. "I take my leave on a different day."
Mikhail nodded his head and glanced outside where he could see the edge of the police carriage from the window.
"Do we have guests?" He asked, looking back at Ronda.
Ronda nodded her head and leaned forward. "We have Inspector Brown." She replied in a suppressed voice. "Apparently there is a case in which the police need Sir Daniel's help."
Mikhail nodded his head and looked towards Daniel's office.
'Looks like the case is really hard for them to hire a private detective.'
Mikhail talked with Ronda for a while before he moved towards his chair and sat down.
He didn't have anything to do so he just took the magazine that was placed on the side and began skimming through it.
His body still felt the pain from yesterday's fight but because of his level he was able to recover more quickly.
The magazine mainly had pictures and advertisements in it but also had some interesting information.
'They are hiring young workers for the mining in the Mount Razeen Valley.'
As far as Mikhail remembered, the Mount Razeen Valley was the mountain range that divided the Aegon Kingdom from the Republic of Freena.
The mountain range was filled with raw minerals such as iron, lead, copper and many more.
Because of its value, both parties had been ferociously trying to get as much land there as possible.
Right now, almost two thirds of the mountain was ruled by the Republic of Freena.
'…They are paying them 15,000 Telen which is enough for one person to live comfortably.'
'Then again, the entire mountain range is practically a war zone. Death in such a place isn't unlikely….'
Mikhail kept on flipping through the pages as he looked through pictures of ladies promoting branded clothes.
His gaze lingered on the 'Azuzel family' opening another jewellery store. He thought of buying something from there but decided against it.
'…Mother doesn't have any attachment to jewellery anyway.'
Just as he was looking through the last page of the magazine, the door of Daniel's office opened up.
Three men wearing police uniforms walked out with solemn looks on their faces.
The one leading them was a man in his thirties with short grey hair and the demeanour of someone familiar with power.
Ronda slightly bowed at them as the three of them walked out of the building.
Daniel walked out of his office and searched around until his gaze met with Mikhail.
"Come in." He said softly, walking back inside.
Mikhail stood up, tidied his clothes and walked inside the office.
For once everything was in place and not scattered around.
"How is your body?" Daniel asked. "Any problem?"
"I am recovering fine." Mikhail replied.
Daniel took his seat and leaned back with a tired sigh. He looked much more exhausted than normal.
"Is the case that hard?" Mikhail asked, standing on the other side of the desk.
"…Not hard." He replied, passing a file towards Mikhail. "Just really tricky."
Mikhail picked up the file and began to read the contents of the first page.
'The students of Nero Middle School of Arts have been complaining about weird things that have been happening to them.
A considerable number of students have complained about noises during class hours. Many girls have also come forward with harassment done by an unseen force….'
Mikhail looked back at Daniel who chuckled just by looking at his face.
"Don't laugh, Sir." Mikhail grumbled. "Is this real?"
"Yeah." He nodded his head, taking out a cigarette from his drawer. "Apparently there is a ghost that has been terrifying the students for a while."
"...."
Mikhail opened his mouth and closed it again, unable to respond.
He had heard of cases like this before but he thought they were all fake!
'….Are there really ghosts and evil spirits in this world?'
"The police department is doubtful of the witnesses so they hired us to look into the case." Daniel explained, taking a puff of his cigarette.
"Though, I think the students are not lying."
Mikhail slowly sat down on the chair and said in a low voice. "So, there are really ghosts?"
"You can call them resentment spirits." Daniel corrected him. "Because of our reality being so fragile, they are often seen by normal humans."
Mikhail rubbed his temples as he wasn't sure how to react to such information.
Daniel, however, wasn't much concerned about him. He stood up and walked towards the stand to take his overcoat and vintage hat.
After cleaning himself with a brush, Daniel looked at Mikhail. "Come with me." He said. "We have things to do."
Mikhail remained rooted in his place and didn't move even a bit.
Daniel looked at him in confusion. "Mikhail?"
Mikhail turned and looked at him with an embarrassed face.
"Can I not be part of the case?" He asked politely. "Actually…I am not comfortable around ghosts."
'I am afraid of them!' He screamed in his mind. 'My heart isn't made for horror, I don't even watch horror movies!'
Daniel understood and looked at him with amusement.
"Still, come along." He said, fixing his hat. "This place will help you sooner or later."
Mikhail frowned in confusion. "Where are we going?"
"To the black market."