NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 31: 31
Chapter 161 Stay Out of the SpotlightTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 2940 words Update time: 2025-07-05 13:36:55
Thank you? Is that why you came here to thank me?
Caroline twitched her lips a few times, leaned a little closer to the door, and said:
"If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have noticed."
Bernhard raised his chin slightly and said coldly:
"That's because you can't read other people's faces."
"Oh, yes, yes."
Caroline answered casually, and Bernhard's cheek twitched slightly.
He no longer wanted to say anything else to the descendant of the Williams family. He didn't know why, but he always felt that the other party would trigger his annoyance as soon as they opened their mouths.
"Although you are rude and arrogant, I have to admit that you saved Ariel in that dangerous moment."
"I am not coming here as a Hanoverian, nor as a great noble of the kingdom. I am simply here to thank you as a father."
After a few breaths, Bernhard was finally able to talk to Caroline calmly.
Seeing the former's softened attitude, although her expression was already cold, Caroline did not intend to continue "provoking" him.
That's right, every word she said just now actually had a hint of provocation attached to it. This was the first active skill she gained after being promoted to a "provocateur".
The knowledge of potions that came with the power allowed Caroline to understand all of the abilities of the "Provocateur" without any instruction, which naturally included the mechanism and method of using "Provocation".
As a "provocateur", her insight has been qualitatively improved. Although she has not yet reached the level of an "audience", she is good at observing the emotional reactions of others. She can effectively detect which language, behavior, and things the target is more sensitive to, and react to them herself, that is, she can cleverly "provoke" the other party with unintentional actions and words.
This is just the natural effect of "Provocation". If Caroline uses it actively, the power of "Provocation" will be integrated into every aggressive word she says, which can easily ignite the target.
Of course, the basis of insults and humiliation is that they can indeed target the target. Even if you taunt for a long time, but the description of the taunt has nothing to do with the target, then the "provocation" will not have a strong effect.
The other party may be angered, but he or she will never be so angry as to almost lose reason as in targeted "provocation".
In other words, "provocation" not only tests the Extraordinary's eloquence, but also requires the Extraordinary to have a deep understanding of the target's intelligence and know what can hurt the target's heart and cause him real harm.
Caroline didn't know Bernhard's specific information, but she knew that he was the eldest son of the Hanover family. Great nobles like him attached great importance to the honor of their family. Therefore, Caroline just nodded casually, and Bernhard was almost detonated.
This was the case when she did not actively make any "provocation", it was just a sarcastic remark she made after her promotion.
"This sequence is tailor-made for all the netizens..."
Caroline suppressed her inner excitement and kept a casual expression on her face.
Listening to Bernhard's reluctant but sincere thanks, Caroline nodded, smiled at him, and said:
"As a parent, it is your duty to take good care of your children. I am not always there. You should be more careful next time."
"Well, I appreciate your kindness. Is there anything else? If not, goodbye, Mr. Bernhard. I'm about to cook. Do you want to have a meal with me?"
Caroline said this and pretended to close the door.
"Wait a moment."
Bernhard frowned and said in a low voice:
"I haven't said thank you yet."
"Thank you? What thank you?"
"You really have no sense of etiquette, Williams is really..."
Looking into Caroline's eyes, Bernhard reacted, stopped talking, and said:
"The more respectable a gentleman is, the more sincere the gift he will give when thanking someone."
"The gentlemen in Rune really have a tiring life."
Bernhard was halfway through his speech when he was interrupted again by Caroline's casual sarcasm. He closed his mouth and decided not to continue.
Tsk, why can't I control my mouth? Is this a side effect of being promoted for a period of time?
Caroline also realized that she was a little too flamboyant. What she said just now didn't go through her brain at all. It almost floated into her mouth and then flew out by herself.
I have to control myself, otherwise it will be bad if I subconsciously start to "provoke" Lao Zhou next time...
It's fine in a private setting between him and me, but if it's at a tarot party...
The Chariot suddenly spoke rudely to the Fool? The Fool just laughed it off without caring?
This scene is really unbearable...
After a while of thoughts churning in her mind, Caroline looked at Bernhard outside the door again and nodded and smiled at him very friendly and politely.
"I appreciate your kindness, but as a thank you gift, I still..."
"I am going to give you a plantation in East Balam as a gift."
"A thank-you gift really shows the dignity of a gentleman, Mr. Bernhard. You are indeed worthy of being a gentleman of the Hanover family."
Caroline suddenly changed her words midway through her speech, performing a show of speed and passion with her mouth.
An entire plantation! Are all nobles so generous?
Seeing Caroline's rapid change of attitude, Bernhard sneered as if he had half expected it.
"Don't be too happy yet. That manor was originally just a dispensable plantation under my name."
"That place is in the mountains of East Balam. Not only is it far from the civilized world, but I haven't sent many people to take care of it. The total value is estimated to be only 10,000 gold pounds."
Mr. Bernhard, do you know what you are talking about?
10,000 gold pounds... 10,000 gold pounds were enough to buy Qi Lingos' life in Loen, 10,000 gold pounds were enough to allow a poor family to leap into the decent middle class and live a good life for the rest of their lives, 10,000 gold pounds were enough to support a new entrepreneur, and 10,000 gold pounds could even allow the mysterious and great Mr. Fool to sell her a dick!
However, did Bernhard specifically mention this to show that I would not get much benefit from the estate he gave me?
After her last visit to Williams Manor, Caroline learned from Cole that it takes a huge amount of manpower and financial resources to manage an estate.
Not to mention the employment of plantation labor, the maintenance costs of the manor alone can make some small nobles bankrupt.
It turns out that he doesn't have good intentions...
Caroline thought for a moment and smiled at Bernhard:
"You are willing to give me such a great gift, what else can I say to that?"
Bernhard looked away and snorted:
"If you think you can bear it, then this manor will be yours."
"Of course, I think you should be able to bear it. After all, as an assistant who saved Duke Negan at the banquet, I heard that Duke Negan is also preparing to give you some gifts, and Qi Lingges's share of the bounty will also be divided equally between you and the lady of Earl Hall."
"I roughly estimated that you will get a reward of about 30,000 pounds, which should be enough to help you get out of the loneliness of your family."
Wait, what did you just say?
Caroline's expression froze for a moment. She seemed to have heard Bernhard say something about a thank-you gift and 30,000 gold pounds.
She took a deep breath, and the little bit of excitement that rose in her heart was quickly replaced by uneasiness.
Qi Lingos' bounty, Duke Nigan's gratitude...
The continuous rewards did not make Caroline lose her mind. Instead, she thought about the possible follow-up effects of this incident.
It seemed that she was being too conspicuous. How many people knew that she was involved in and to a certain extent caused Qi Lingos' death?
God knows clearly that at most she just made a report phone call and then fired a few shots at Qi Lingos without causing any harm. Not even a single shot hit him, all of them were hit by bullets. Can the credit still be attributed to her?
Why do I feel like this routine is a bit like someone just randomly pulling someone to take the blame in order to hide themselves...
Not good, things seem a little bad...
Seeing Caroline's stunned look, Bernhard thought that Caroline was dazzled by the huge bounty and gifts.
Then he felt a little bit of victory, and some of the coldness on his face turned into upturned corners of his mouth.
"Have a good life, then, Miss Williams."
After saying that, Bernhard turned and left without looking back.
...
After watching Bernhard leave, Caroline quickly closed the door, turned around, leaned against the door panel, and slowly sat down.
She originally thought that if Qilingos died, Backlund's situation might be better.
But now it seems that Qilingos' death may bring her more troubles.
The news that she and Audrey had exposed Qi Lingos together must have spread among the upper aristocratic circles. The latter had the protection of his father, the earl, and he had the shade of a big tree behind him, but she was alone, and her cheap uncle, the major general, was still at the northern border.
After this farce, Williams' name, which had been silent for a long time, came to the fore again, and it is very likely that it has reached the ears of the royal family.
A bounty of tens of thousands of gold pounds, a gift of a manor, and the gratitude of Duke Negan, these things are certainly good, but she must have the confidence to be able to afford them, otherwise it would be like carrying gold through a busy city.
She had to leave here temporarily to avoid the limelight and see what happened next before making plans.Chapter 162 ChangesTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3104 words Update time: 2025-07-05 19:00:00
Although she said she wanted to go out and avoid the limelight, Caroline was actually looking for an excuse to go to Tingen again.
After all, compared to the subsequent effects that Qi Lingos' death would bring to him, the things in Tingen seemed a little more normal. At least he could insert himself into the situation from a third-party perspective.
After sitting on the floor for a while with her mind in a mess, Caroline stood up with the help of the door panel and sat down on the sofa in the front hall.
After being promoted to Sequence 8, one gains more abilities, but also more problems.
So she must confirm what abilities she has now and what these abilities can help her do.
She has already confirmed the power of the potion, and now what she needs to confirm is the "Void Cube".
Taking the pendant from her neck, Caroline tightly grasped the "Silver Spoon" which still had a cold touch, and softly recited the four honorific names.
The illusory cube emerged quietly. Caroline observed it and found that the appearance of the "void cube" did not change at all.
Then, she unfolded the cube. Unlike the hasty unfolding just now, this time she carefully felt the connection between the cube and herself.
The cube is still closely connected to her ideas, not much different from before.
If there is any difference, it is probably that Caroline feels that her control over the "Void Cube" seems to be a little more handy.
Expand the cube to the appropriate degree, and the silver-gray solid space slowly falls down and closes.
The "map" spread out in the void slowly rose up, and the stacked "reports" slowly emerged in the dim light.
The interior of the "Void Cube" looks the same as before, except...
Caroline stared at the barrier that separated the outside world from the inside after the "Void Cube" was unfolded. She had never had any direct feeling about this barrier before, but now, she seemed to be somewhat touched.
So she tried to mobilize her thoughts and control the "Void Cube".
At the same time, the solid gray space barrier began to slowly lose its color. It was no longer as rich and precipitous as before, and began to feel slightly transparent.
And it was at this moment that in the space flowing under Caroline's feet, the floor that was originally isolated by the cube began to appear faintly.
Not only that, the sofa under Caroline and the coffee table in front of her began to reveal a little figure.
"Previously, only living organisms could be displayed in a cube. Now, can non-living organisms be displayed as well?"
As she pondered, Caroline concentrated her mind and tried to make these things that were originally isolated outside appear in the "Void Cube" with her.
With Caroline's continuous efforts, the furniture did become clearer and clearer in the "Void Cube", but there was still a little bit of difference. There was still a layer of imperceptible transparent silver-gray barrier flowing on the surface of those objects, which was a sign that they had not yet truly entered the cube.
"Huh, it seems this is the limit..."
Caroline tried several times, always with the same result.
However, she still remembered that the "Void Cube" had changed when she had just become a "Hunter" and when the potion had been digested to a certain stage.
The functions of the "Void Cube" will expand as she improves. Perhaps when she has almost digested the "Provocateur" potion, she will be able to truly accommodate these things into the "Void Cube"...
"It's really strange. Clothes are obviously not living organisms, so why can clothes come in but other things can't?"
Caroline thought of this blind spot for no reason, but when she thought about it carefully, if the clothes were also separated, the picture would be too eye-catching.
Shivering, Caroline shook her head and changed the "Void Cube" back to a state where it was isolated from all external objects.
Then, she looked at the "map" floating aside.
I was so busy observing the situation outside the door that I didn't pay attention to it just now, but now it seems that in addition to the color differentiation of the dots representing the characters on the "map", the most obvious change is the expansion of the display range of the "map".
Following Caroline's consciousness, the scale of the map continued to shrink, and the range displayed on the map continued to expand until it reached the border.
The previous "map" could only show the approximate range of a single house, but the current map can show the range of an entire large block consisting of several streets:
It almost crossed the Tussock River, covered the entire Blythe Street and the street next door, accommodated a large number of houses, and even touched the subway station entrance on the other side of the Backlund Bridge. A corner of the dense but not chaotic Cherwood District appeared in front of Caroline.
When she zoomed in on the map again, she could still see the detailed structure of the houses, and could see those yellow neutral dots either walking on the street or busy in the houses.
"This is simply a magical tool for hunters!"
Caroline exclaimed, unable to hide her excitement.
There is no doubt that the map will expand after being promoted to Sequence 8, and as you continue to advance, the range displayed on the map may continue to increase.
Now it's a block, then maybe an entire district, then a city, a county, a country, a whole continent, or even an entire planet.
For a hunter, gathering intelligence is of utmost importance. With the insight of a "map", she can easily obtain a large amount of effective information.
However, if it later expands to the size of an entire country or continent, is it really still only suitable for "hunters"?
Perhaps this is more suitable for planning wars... Is this hinting at something?
"I have to find a way to learn more about the follow-up of the 'Hunter' path."
Caroline silently noted this detail, put the "map" aside, raised her hand and called for the "report".
Caroline picked up the top "report" and guessed its content at a glance.
"Provocateur"
"After a difficult performance and digestion, Caroline Williams finally completed her work in the "Hunter" stage. "
"After obtaining the Beyonder characteristics left over from Leonik Soran after his death from Ovis Wein, and with the help of The Fool, Caroline successfully prepared the next stage of the potion and took it to become a Sequence 8 Provocateur."
"The hunter steps forward, hunting the prey that awaits her. The fire burns little by little, and will eventually burn the whole world."
"Not many people are paying attention to a small Beyonder like her, just like no one cares how a pile of embers can ignite a pile of wood."
"A blazing future awaits her. The closer she gets to a higher sequence, the closer she will be to her desired goal."
"Let everyone wait and see!"
——"The flames are rising, but the firewood is still there!"
Compared with the significant changes in the "map", the "report" seems a bit lackluster.
There were no noteworthy changes to it. Since the content was still focused on trivial news in Backlund City, Caroline was not sure whether the scope of its information collection had expanded.
Changes are always limited. We cannot expect the "Void Cube" to evolve all of a sudden. That is not change, but cheating.
Saying this to herself, Caroline threw the "report" aside and prepared to take back the "Void Cube".
She glanced upwards inadvertently and suddenly discovered that there seemed to be something above the cubic space that she had overlooked.
There seemed to be a row of something on the fuzzy and unclear boundary, but they were integrated into the solid space, making it difficult for Caroline to see clearly.
Caroline tried hard to see, but it was still difficult to see clearly, just like how she couldn't bring the furniture outside into the space no matter how hard she tried. This was obviously her current limit.
"Is this a preview of the unopened areas?"
Caroline had this idea and she stroked her chin and observed the blurred things for a while, paying more attention. Then she took back the "Void Cube" and left the solid space.
...
Backlund, Queens, Hanover Residence.
Bernhard, who had just returned from Cherwood, slowly got off the carriage and handed his heavy, gorgeous coat to the servant waiting beside him.
Then he walked in through the front door, around the front hall, and prepared to go to the study.
"Bernhard..."
The old Count of Hanover's voice came from the side. Bernhard paused and slowly turned his head to look.
By the window of the front hall facing the garden, the old Count of Hanover sat on his favorite wooden chair, squinting his eyes, looking at the servants busy in the garden outside the window.
"Father." Bernhard walked closer and bowed slightly to the old count.
"Hmm..." The old Count Hanover responded solemnly, then slowly turned his gaze to Bernhard, "Have you looked for that girl?"
"Yes, father. No matter what, she saved Ariel. As Hanover, I must go and thank her."
Bernhard admitted it generously, but then he changed his words.
"However, the return gift I gave her cannot help her prosper her family. If she is incapable, then the manor will drag down her only current assets."
"Good, good, as a Hanoverian, Bernhard, you have not forgotten your identity and education."
The old Count of Hanover nodded and slowly turned his head, his cloudy eyes revealing no specific emotions.
"If only Albert could be as sober as you..."
"Albert just didn't think clearly for a moment. Compared to the so-called blood relatives who he had never met before, we who gave him his identity, education, and current status are his family."
Bernhard comforted the old count, whose eyes slowly swept across the decorative paintings on the wall, and finally fixed on the majestic portrait of the Hanoverian ancestor.
"If...if Williams comes back again, what will Augustus do..."
"Bernhard, if that day really comes, you will be responsible for catching Albert. We can't let him make a decision that could ruin him and Hanover because of a momentary confusion."
Bernhard nodded and said:
"I understand, Father."Chapter 163: Tingen StormTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3073 words Update time: 2025-07-06 14:00:00
Friday morning, August 31, Tingenzotteland Street.
Klein, holding a file bag in his arms, pushed open the black wooden door and walked into the Blackthorn Security Company.
Although it was almost the end of summer, the temperature outside did not seem to be dropping yet. The inexplicably cool air in the security company made him feel light all over.
"Good morning, Klein."
Roshan, who was sitting behind the square table, greeted Klein enthusiastically and shook the Tingen Honest Man newspaper in her hand.
"Good morning, Roxanne."
Klein responded with a greeting and glanced at a report on the progress of the strike in the South District on the back of the newspaper.
Then he took off his top hat, hung it on the coat rack, and walked slowly toward the partition inside the security company.
Looking up, Klein discovered that Captain Dunn Smith's office door was closed early in the morning, so he turned around and asked Roshan:
"Has the captain not arrived yet?"
Luo Shan put down the newspaper, shook her head and said:
"No, the captain was in the office just now."
Klein nodded, then walked to the door of Dunn's office and knocked on it.
"Um?"
He hadn't knocked a few times when he suddenly noticed a different atmosphere around the office.
This feeling was very familiar, and he seemed to have experienced it once before.
"What is the captain doing in the office again?"
Before Klein had time to think about it, he heard Dunn Smith's low and soothing voice coming from the office:
"What's the matter?"
"It's me, Captain. I have sorted out the death investigation report on Senator Maynard." Klein tightened the file bag in his hand and replied.
After helping Caroline complete her promotion yesterday, Klein immediately followed an inspector to Congressman Maynard's home to investigate the congressman's death.
Since Councilman Maynard was related to factory owner Frensen, and Frensen was involved in the recent violent strike in Tingen, Councilman Maynard's sudden death at this critical juncture forced Klein to be more cautious.
But judging from the investigation results, Congressman Maynard's death did not seem to have anything to do with the strike or extraordinary factors. He died in bed in a very unspeakable way.
Well, to put it in the language of Earth, Senator Maynard died of a stroke.
Klein was only responsible for the preliminary investigation and autopsy of Congressman Maynard's death. After finishing yesterday's work, he compiled the findings into a report and prepared to hand it over to Dunn Smith today, and then let others take charge of the next steps.
"Okay, I understand, Klein. Please leave the report at the door first."
Dunn's voice was not very clear, and Klein frowned in confusion.
Put it at the door? The captain has something important to do and can't get away now?
What might he be doing?
Klein was going to make a guess, but he felt it was impolite to speculate about his captain, so he responded and prepared to put the file bag by the door to prevent Dunn from kicking it when he came out.
After putting down the file bag, Klein turned and headed towards the Nighthawks' entertainment room further inside.
He was not the first person to arrive at the entertainment room. Frye, who was on duty at the "Chanis Gate" last night, was already here, also reading a newspaper in his hand.
After greeting Frye upon entering, Klein walked to the other side of the round table, picked up a magazine and sat down.
He calmed down and flipped through the magazine for a while. Not long after, the door of the entertainment room was opened again, and Xiga Teong, with white hair and black eyes, walked in with a breath.
Three people gathered in the entertainment room. None of them had anything to do, so they decided to play a game of cards and "Fight Evil".
The debris on the table was put aside, and a complete stack of cards was shuffled and distributed to the three people.
Time passed little by little, and the sound of cards hitting the table was heard irregularly. There were more and more cards on the table, and fewer and fewer cards in the hands of the players...except Klein.
"Bang!"
Throwing the last pair in his hand onto the table, Xijia looked at Frye, who had a serious expression, and Klein, who was looking at the cards with his eyes open, with a victorious smile.
At this time, Klein still had at least ten cards in his hand.
"Klein, your luck seems to be really bad."
Xijia said to Klein with a smile.
"After all, I am a 'fortune teller', not a 'gambler'..."
Klein smiled helplessly, threw the bad cards in his hand back into the deck, and began to shuffle again.
"Hey, you really should let Old Neil teach you how to play cards. He's very skilled at it."
"Let's wait until Old Neil recovers from his injury, but by then we may just have to go underground and play cards with him."
Talking about Old Neil didn't change the atmosphere in the rec room much.
It had been several days since Old Neil was on the verge of losing control and was rescued. The Nighthawks had long since gotten over their initial shock, confusion and sadness, and were beginning to feel thankful.
After all, Old Neil survived and did not really lose control. Although he lost his freedom for the rest of his life, it was better than being killed after really losing control.
After reshuffling the cards, Klein put in all his effort this time, trying to calculate the number of cards in his hand and how to play the next card.
His hand was not very good, but as time went on, the cards he had were obviously getting fewer and fewer.
In this round, Xiga, who was still the "evil" one, looked at the cards in his hand in confusion. Each card looked good, but facing Klein's attack, he found it difficult to play them.
"I only have three cards left."
Klein waved the cards in his hand. He had never had any luck playing cards, but this time he could finally be proud of himself.
Just as he was smiling at Xijia who was hesitating, the door of the entertainment room was pushed open and Dunn Smith appeared at the door.
"Klein, come out for a moment."
Klein was stunned. He turned to look at Dunn, then looked at the cards in his hand.
With a sigh, he put down the cards, stood up and followed Dunn out.
The game was forced to end. Xijia looked at Klein's last hand and found that it was three scattered cards that could not be connected together at all.
Looking at the several pairs in his hand, Xijia shook his head and said:
"Klein is really not suitable for playing cards..."
…
Klein walked out of the entertainment room and greeted Dunn Smith, who immediately informed him that the person in charge of examining him at the temple had arrived.
We are finally here...!
Klein was delighted. He had been preparing for this for a long time, and now he could finally see the results.
Who would have thought that Caroline, who drank the potion later than him, was promoted to Sequence 8 yesterday. Although he had completed digestion long ago, he had to hide himself and wait until now because of the church's regulations to get the opportunity to be promoted openly.
From this perspective, although having an organization behind you does make you feel safe and confident, in terms of freedom, it is still not as good as working alone.
Following Dunn to the underground entrance, Klein glanced at the office door and found that the file bag placed there was gone, so he asked:
"Captain, have you received the report?"
"Well, I've already taken it into the office."
Dunn nodded and led Klein underground.
"Um...Captain, can I ask you something? Were you in the office just now?"
Dunn turned around and glanced at Klein with his gray eyes, then winked at him.
"I'm entertaining guests from Backlund, just some small extra income."
"Is that so…"
Although he had long known from Dunn that the Nighthawks would take on some private work in the name of the Blackthorn Security Company, Klein still found it difficult to put into words when he heard this sentence from Dunn again.
The people from the temple were waiting underground, and the captain of the Nighthawks was taking extra money in the office...
So Klein stopped talking and followed Dunn obediently underground, all the way to the door of Old Neil's alchemy room.
Dunn winked at Klein, who understood and nodded. He walked past Dunn and pushed open the door of the alchemy room.
...
"jingle!"
The door of the "Dragon Bar" was pushed from the outside, but it didn't move. Only the crisp sound of the doorbell could be heard from inside the room.
As expected, the bar is not open in the morning...
Caroline returned to Tingen again and glanced at the "Closed" sign at the door, then looked at the dark room through the gap in the door, let go of her hand, and let the door return to its original position naturally.
Deciding to leave Backlund and stay out of the spotlight for a while, she packed her luggage early in the morning, bought a ticket and set off to Tingen.
After checking into the hotel and putting down her luggage, she went to the dock area first, wanting to see the strike situation in Tingen.
After all, it was she who instigated the strike, and she also gave Io Bronson some advice, so she was also involved in Tingen's strike.
Moreover, it seemed that this matter would take an unexpected direction because of the death of Councilman Maynard. Although she had no opinion of Frenson, she felt that she needed to investigate in case the matter really became a big deal.
Since she had no idea where Io Bronson was, she decided to go to the Dragon Bar to find out what was going on.
As a result, the bar had not yet opened in the morning and Caroline was very disappointed to be turned away.
"The bar probably won't open until the afternoon, so what should I do now? Go find Lao Zhou?"
"No, no, Lao Zhou is probably working in the Night Watch right now, so he probably doesn't have time to talk to me..."
"Why do I feel like everyone has something to do, but I'm the only one with nothing to do?"
After standing at the door of the bar and thinking for a while, Caroline decided to go directly to the strike site to see the situation.
All of Frensen's factories are in the southern area, and she is very familiar with those places where she has sneaked into several times.
If nothing unexpected happened, she would be able to see the situation more clearly there.Chapter 164: Piling up FirewoodTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3275 words Update time: 2025-07-06 18:00:00
The southern part of Tingen is full of factories, but it is also the place with the most public horse-drawn carriage lines and stops.
After spending some time with Klein in Tingen, Caroline gradually developed the habit of taking a public carriage when going out.
However, unlike Klein who took the public carriage to save money, Caroline had a different mood when riding the public carriage.
Caroline, who was sitting in her seat, glanced at the passengers around her. The closer they got to the South District, the plainer and simpler the clothes the people in the carriage were wearing, but they were still far from the level of those poor residents.
This is easy to understand. After all, the truly poor do not have the spare money to take a public carriage.
The public carriage arrived at a stop near one of the factories in Frensen. Caroline got off the car and looked in the direction of the factory in her memory.
The last time she came here was late at night, and the streets were only dimly lit by the red moon and kerosene lamps. Now she could really see the street scenes nearby.
Compared to the truly dilapidated slums like the East District of Backlund, the housing near the factory was not much better, but at least it could be considered neat.
After taking a look at the workers' dormitory of Mr. Mike Frazee in the distance, Caroline started walking towards the factory.
Soon, she approached the factory and found that there was a lot of debris and garbage on the ground, some of which could barely be confirmed to be fragments of some brands.
The mess on the street indicated the protest march that had been discovered here not long ago. Using the observation and analysis of the "Hunter", Caroline could conclude that these traces had been there for nearly a week, but no one had come to clean them up.
Caroline narrowed her eyes and walked towards the closed door of the factory.
"oh?"
Her steps slowed down slightly because she heard the roar of machines in the factory building behind the wall, and saw the factory chimney, which had been blocked by the houses and was not clear before, and was emitting smoke.
Is the factory back in business? Is the strike over?
That shouldn't be the case. That's not what was written in the Tingen Honest newspaper today...
Caroline frowned and walked to the door.
Inside the iron gate of the factory, two workers, whose clothes were dirty, old and torn but still worn neatly, were guarding the door.
Seeing Caroline approaching, a worker who had raised his hand to block the sun quickly called his companion across the street. The two of them then turned around, subconsciously held the door, and shouted:
"Stop there, don't come any closer!"
"No one can enter the factory until Frensen agrees to our demands! We will not accept negotiations!"
Caroline was startled. Judging from the tone of their voices, the two workers' words and expressions were obviously well-trained and very much in their style.
Until Frensen agrees to the demands... does that mean the strike is still going on?
No, it's not so much a strike as it is the workers taking control of the factory!
This, this is resuming production on their own after seizing the factory!
Yes, in this way, factory owners represented by Frensen can no longer criticize the workers on the grounds that they were deliberately instigated to maliciously sabotage production!
Was it Io Bronson's idea? Or did someone give him the idea?
Caroline's eyes widened, and a surprised smile slowly appeared on her face.
The two workers behind the door looked at Caroline without saying a word, and suddenly stood there and started laughing. They were trying hard to create momentum, but subconsciously they became worried.
"Miss, are you all right?"
Caroline came back to her senses after being called, smiled and shook her head and replied:
"I'm fine, don't worry, I don't represent any force, I'm just here to look for someone."
"Looking for someone?"
The two workers looked at each other strangely; they really couldn't imagine who Caroline might be looking for.
After organizing her words, Caroline deliberately avoided saying Io Bronson's name and said:
"I want to meet the person in charge here. Who is the leader of your factory now?"
"You want to see our leader?"
Hearing Caroline's request, the two workers became alert again, so she quickly added:
"I'm just looking for someone. I don't have any mission, and I'm not negotiating with you on behalf of anyone."
"I'll wait here. I won't ask to enter the factory. You can leave someone here to watch me."
The two workers listened and came together to discuss it.
Then, a slightly shorter worker left the gate and ran towards the factory, leaving behind the more muscular man who at least looked like he could easily subdue Caroline.
Caroline looked at the worker who was staring at her with sharp eyes and gave him a friendly smile.
The latter was stunned for a moment and looked away slightly, but his hands were still pressed hard against the door.
After a while, Caroline heard chaotic footsteps coming from inside the factory.
She looked inside and immediately saw the worker who had just left rushing over here with more workers.
And the person in front of them is...
Caroline's eyes lit up. Isn't this "Wood" Wood, one of the only four brothers in the Agnar Gang? It really was easy to get him!
Wood also saw Caroline at the door from a distance. After getting closer to see her face clearly, he quickened his pace and came to the door in a flash, saying in surprise:
"Ms. Xiliya, it is you!"
All he remembered was the pseudonym Caroline had used.
"I had some idea when I heard the people below say it just now. I didn't expect it to be you... Have you returned to Tingen?"
"Wood" Wood was obviously delighted, no wonder he started talking about nonsense literature.
"Sure, you are now the leader of a factory."
Caroline said with a smile.
"These are all orders given by our boss. We are just responsible for executing them."
"Wood," Wood said, looking around the street outside to confirm that there were no people, then he asked in a low voice:
"Miss Xilia, what can I do for you?"
"It's nothing. I just want to find out where your boss is."
Hearing this, Wood nodded immediately.
"Our boss is in the largest ceramic factory in Frensen, but you need a password to enter there now. Miss Xiliya, please remember it..."
After a pause, "Wood" Wood said in a lower voice.
"Agnar-Cherif."
"Agnar-Chirif?"
Caroline repeated it in a confused whisper, thinking about how this sounded nothing like the language of the Northern Continent.
Without thinking too much, she nodded to Wood and said:
"I see."
After saying this, she turned and said goodbye, and immediately headed towards the ceramic factory where Io Bronson was.
Watching Caroline leave, Wood heaved a sigh of relief and said strangely:
"Why do I feel that Miss Xilia seems to be more elegant?"
"Boss, who is that lady?"
"Muto" Wood looked back and saw a group of workers looking at him with great curiosity.
After thinking for a while, Wood said in a tentative tone:
"She is our boss... uh, the boss... oh, our boss's boss!"
...
Caroline, who inexplicably became the boss of the Agnar gang, moved quickly.
She was quite familiar with the ceramic factory that "Wood" Wood pointed out, because that was the last factory she had just investigated on the night Leonik attacked her.
About ten minutes later, Caroline successfully arrived outside the ceramic factory.
Just like the factory before, production has resumed here. The hum of machines running could not be concealed from the building behind the high wall, and thick smoke was puffing out from the chimney above.
Compared to other places, the air here seems to smell a little worse, but it is better than the air in Backlund anyway.
Caroline glanced at the chimney that was spewing black smoke and walked to the factory gate.
On the inside of the black iron fence gate wrapped with iron spikes and supported by a baffle, several unarmed workers were guarding the door.
Caroline came forward, and the workers were about to ask questions cautiously when they heard her say:
"Agnar."
The workers were confused for a moment, and Caroline took the opportunity to repeat the so-called command again.
"Agnar."
"Chirif!"
After the commands were exchanged, the workers relaxed. One of them, who should be the leader, came over and asked:
"Miss, what can I do for you?"
I feel like many people will ask me this question today... Caroline thought inexplicably and said:
"I came from Mr. Wood's factory and wanted to see your leader. He told me the password."
The leading worker nodded and asked others to open the door.
"Our leader is in his office now, he..."
As the worker was talking, Caroline heard exactly where Io was, and she took off on her own, heading precisely in the direction of the office.
The workers looked at Caroline in confusion as she was walking in the right direction. Without giving it any time to think, they quickly assigned two people to follow her.
Going a little deeper into the ceramic factory, Caroline walked past the firing and glazing workshops and entered a not-so-large factory building. She bypassed the huge steam-powered machine that stirred the clay slurry and went straight to the office at the back.
The office door was open and Caroline walked straight in.
In the room lit by a gas lamp, all of Frensen's original belongings were piled up in the corner like garbage, leaving only a desk and a few chairs.
Io Bronson, who was wearing a linen shirt and overalls, was looking worriedly at the lists in his hands. When he heard some noise at the door, he looked up and saw Caroline coming in at first sight.
"Shiriya?!"
Io exclaimed, quickly standing up from his chair.
"Boss!"
Two workers shouted and rushed into the office following Caroline.
"It's okay, this is my friend, you guys go on with your work."
Io waved his hand, and the two workers let down their guard and left the office.
Caroline looked back at them leaving, then turned back and said to Io with a smile:
"You are truly a genius, to be able to carry out a strike to this extent."
"Hey, I just thought of something. The key is the suggestions you gave me."
"I didn't teach you how to resume production during a strike. You learned it on your own."
Io scratched his head shyly, walked out from behind the desk, and excitedly pretended to hug Caroline.
Then he suddenly reacted, stopped what he was doing, and stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do.
Caroline looked at him, laughed out loud, and took the initiative to extend her hand and shook hands with Io warmly.Chapter 165 Dirty (First Update)Title of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3051 words Update time: 2025-07-07 13:30:00
"I can't believe you've managed to organize a strike to this extent..."
Caroline sat down in Frensen's former office, and she sat down quite naturally, but Io Bronson chose to continue standing aside for some reason.
"I never thought that Frensen would last until now without responding."
Io shook his head and smiled bitterly, then took a cup and poured Caroline a glass of water.
"At first we just stopped working and organized a march to demand that Frensen pay back the unpaid wages and that the city government make a statement."
"Who knew that old bastard Frensen hadn't shown up since the start of the strike? After a while, my brothers and I thought about it and felt that if we just went on strike, we wouldn't be able to quickly make up for the workers' losses, so we led them to reorganize the factory."
"Now the several factories under Frensen's name have resumed operation, but the products they produce now belong to us."
"That way at least we won't be left without a source of income until Frensen responds."
"Io, you are simply a genius." Caroline smiled and took a sip of water.
After a pause, Caroline continued:
"What does Agnacherif mean?"
"This is the language of my hometown. Didn't I say Agnar before? It means 'fire'. When combined with the word 'Chilifu' at the end, it actually means 'burning flames'."
Caroline nodded thoughtfully, then she looked at the desk where Io had just sat, and at the several lists on the desk.
"What were you looking at?"
Io followed Caroline's gaze, said "Oh", and said:
"Those were a few orders left in the factory. After occupying the factory, I tried to contact these sellers and told them that the factory had been transferred from Frensen to us. If they were willing to continue to implement the agreement, I could lower the price and let them pick it up themselves."
"Although some buyers chose to cancel their orders after hearing about the factory's change of ownership, there are still a few buyers willing to continue trading with us."
"But the number of orders is decreasing. After all, we have no source of raw materials and no stable sales channels. Now that production has resumed, it will only slightly relieve the pressure on the workers. The key lies in what Frensen says next."
There was a hint of fatigue in Io's words. This kind of work, which was far beyond his current ability, was really too much for him to cope with.
That's right. If Io can handle all these things so well, Caroline would start to suspect that he had traveled from the Earth in the 20th century.
Temporarily resuming production, compensating the workers by completing the remaining orders, and keeping the strike going is the best Io can do.
However, without raw material supply and sales channels, and with the workers' enthusiasm likely to wane at any time for one reason or another, it would be difficult for Io to maintain this situation for too long.
After all, this was just a strike caused by the inaction of unscrupulous factory owners, and the direct conflict had not yet developed to a more fatal level.
The specific situation here is different from that on Earth. In Britain at that time, strikes were always suppressed, and the capitalists and the government were completely in cahoots.
However, the current attitude of the Tingen city government is very ambiguous. If the city government stands on Frensen's side, then Caroline should have seen reports of the police suppressing the workers.
But the current situation is that no one came to stop the workers from occupying the factory. The possible explanation for this is that those MPs who saw the opportunity to suppress the New Party in the strike chose to take a laissez-faire attitude towards the strike in order to put pressure on the New Party from a humanitarian perspective.
And Frensen did not show up. Either he had found a way out, or he was competing with the workers to see who could be more patient.
But now it seems that Frensen is about to be the first to lose his patience.
After all, his greatest reliance, his uncle, Congressman Maynard, died suddenly a few days ago!
After thinking for a while, Caroline asked Io out of curiosity:
"If Frensen is not going to respond, what are you going to do next?"
"Next... next words..." Io scratched his head in confusion. His curly hair was very thick, and it seemed unlikely that he would go bald.
After closing his eyes and thinking for a while, Io finally gave up thinking, sat on the chair in front of Caroline and sighed:
"I don't know what to do next. Although I told my brothers not to accept any compromise conditions, if the situation remains like this, we may have to make some concessions and negotiate with Frensen."
As expected... But let alone Io, even I don't know what to do next. After all, I was just a talker at best, not a real researcher of the workers' movement...
Caroline complained in her heart, then turned to Io and said:
"Do you know about the sudden death of Councillor Maynard?"
Io raised his head and nodded slightly.
"I heard about it! At least two sections of yesterday's newspaper were talking about this matter."
"Frensen's biggest background is Senator Maynard. You should be aware of this, right?"
"Well, what I find strange is that, not only did Frensen not respond, but Congressman Maynard also did nothing." Io frowned, his eyes full of confusion. "You know, Congressman Maynard has always regarded the Tingen Poor Residents Subsidy Act as his most commendable political achievement. I don't believe he would completely disregard his own image and focus on protecting his nephew."
Not to mention, now Congressman Maynard has died quietly… Caroline added silently.
Then, she changed her tone slightly and said with a little smile:
"I think I can add some fuel to the strike and roast Frensen out of his shell."
"Huh? Really?!"
Io's eyes lit up, he leaned forward, got in front of Caroline and asked curiously.
"What's the solution? Is there anything else we need to do?"
"You don't need to do anything, just keep producing and continue to refuse to compromise until Frensen shows up."
Caroline didn't answer directly, but she did see where the strike could go.
...
Tingen, Golden Sycamore District.
In a room with all the curtains drawn in a detached villa with front and back gardens.
Frenson Maynard, the protagonist who was hated by a large number of workers in the South District and reported continuously by the Tingen Honest Man for many days, looked tired, his eyes were red, and his shirt and hair were messed up. He sat on a chair, and no one knew what he was thinking.
The table in front of him was covered with various papers, including his bills and many letters, but more of them were drafts written by Frensen himself, full of all kinds of incomprehensible words.
Suddenly, he seemed to sense something and quickly stood up and looked back.
Footsteps so light that they seemed silent were heard from outside the room, and the door was opened silently.
Behind the door, Mrs. Sharon, wearing only a white veil that was so transparent that it could not cover her body at all, walked towards Frensen with elegant steps and graceful posture barefoot.
"How is it, how are things going now?"
With red eyes, Frenson hurried forward and grabbed Mrs. Sharon's shoulders.
"Don't be so anxious, dear."
She raised her hand and gently pressed it on Frenson's chest. Her soft, boneless palm easily pushed his body onto the bed beside him.
"How can I not be anxious? Don't you see? That group of lowly poor people actually occupied my factory, using my equipment and materials, and selling my products!"
Frensen shouted furiously, like a wild animal that has completely lost its mind.
"Those things were originally mine. The money they earned, theirs, and their things should all be mine!"
"It's all that damn guy's fault. If I find out who took my account book, I will definitely...!"
Frensen uttered a terrible gasp.
From a perspective he couldn't see, a hint of inexplicable indifference flashed across Mrs. Sharon's eyes, but in the next moment she threw herself coquettishly into Frenson's arms.
"It's okay. Now that John is gone, the workers can only wait for your response."
"As long as you wait a little longer, those workers won't be able to hold out for too long. Won't they accept your terms by then?"
Mrs. Sharon's gentle voice echoed in Frenson's ears, like a lullaby, gradually calming his emotions.
"Yes, yes, those workers don't understand what business is at all, they won't understand..." Frenson murmured, his eyes were dazed for a while, and then he regained a little clarity.
"Uncle... no one will find out about John Maynard's death, right? Will they find out about you?"
"Don't worry, dear. They won't know." Mrs. Sharon chuckled. "I did it very secretly. The police can only know that John died suddenly because he was too happy. What does this have to do with me? I am obviously the one who was 'bullied'."
"Yes, yes, yes, they can't possibly find out..."
Frenson nodded stupidly. Mrs. Sharon, who was lying on top of him, raised her lips slightly and whispered in his ear:
"My dear, I would rather you bully me..."
Frenson, who had been in a daze, seemed to come back to his senses suddenly, but in fact, it was just his emotions and instincts that completely controlled his body.
He forgot about the factory affairs, the strike, and even the death of his own uncle. He pushed Mrs. Sharon onto the bed.
Unspeakable noises soon echoed in the room. Outside the gap in the curtains, on the sunny streets of Jin Wutong District, no one noticed the filthiness in the shadows.Chapter 166 Dinner at the Moretti Family (Part 2)Title of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3089 words Update time: 2025-07-07 18:00:00
After passing the church's test, Klein took the potion under the watchful eyes of Senior Deacon Mr. Crested Cecima and successfully completed his promotion to become the Sequence 8 "Joker".
Klein actually didn't like the names of this sequence of potions. When he thought about introducing himself to other Beyonders and saying "Hello, I'm the Joker", he couldn't imagine the scene.
But there is no other way, the promotion of potions is the only way. According to the information in Roselle's diary, only by obtaining a high sequence can it be exchanged with some special methods.
Now, he can only try to digest the potion as quickly as possible and advance to the next stage, so as to get rid of the embarrassment of being a "clown".
The role of a "fortune teller" is to discover one's destiny through multiple divinations and learn to respect destiny. What about a "clown"?
Do you choose to go with your fate after you discover it? Is it like choosing to give up on life after you discover you have become a clown?
Klein was so focused on thinking about how to play the role of "The Joker" that he almost missed the time to get off the public carriage.
After the promotion, Captain Dunn Smith granted him a day off. Klein did not waste this time and went to visit his fighting teacher Gawain in the afternoon.
The "Joker" potion brought a powerful improvement to Klein's physique. He felt it and confirmed that although his strength was not as good as that of the "Hunter", it was already higher than that of a normal human.
Therefore, during the afternoon combat practice, poor teacher Gawain was repeatedly suppressed by Klein's strength, to the point that he began to doubt whether the skills he had worked hard on in the first half of his life had become somewhat ineffective.
In the face of absolute power, all skills are nothing but clouds...
Klein couldn't help but think so, with a slight smile on his face, and walked back to No. 2 Daffodil Street.
It was already past four in the afternoon when he got home. Although it was not yet dark, the house was already a little dim.
Even in this situation, the lights were still off in the house. As soon as Klein walked in, he saw Bella, the maid hired by the family, holding a newspaper and reading it attentively in the sunlight outside the window.
Klein looked at her frowning expression, took off his hat, and said with a chuckle:
"You could have turned on the light earlier. Reading in the dark is bad for your eyes."
Maid Bella quickly put down the newspaper and replied timidly as if she had done something wrong:
"Mr. Klein! I, I just don't think it's necessary to turn on the lights yet…"
Klein turned around and dropped a copper penny into the gas meter.
There was a crisp sound of a coin falling into a pipe, and after a few seconds of waiting, the gas lamps connected to various pipes slowly lit up.
"From now on, you can decide when to turn on the lights."
Klein reminded him that his current financial situation was "luxurious" enough to allow him to keep the lights on all day!
Moreover, after becoming Sequence 8, his weekly salary at the Nighthawks would definitely increase, not to mention that he now had a huge sum of 300 pounds transferred from Miss Justice in his anonymous account!
After walking through the living room, Klein went back to the bedroom and took off his formal coat.
It was almost time for Melissa to finish school. She had said yesterday that she would bring back dinner for today, so although Klein felt a little hungry, he could still wait and prepare to enjoy dinner with his family in the evening.
Klein walked downstairs in his shirt and was about to get a glass of water when he heard a knock on the door.
Huh? Is Melissa back?
No, Melissa took the key with her when she went out this morning, and she has never lost anything before, but the original body has lost something before...
Who could be knocking on the door at this time?
Klein thought about it and since he happened to be closest to the door, he walked over and reached out to turn the doorknob.
As the door opened, Klein first saw a mass of red and purple, and then he saw a hint of light gold occupying his entire field of vision.
"Good afternoon~"
Caroline said with a grin, handing over a large bouquet of flowers.
Klein stared blankly for a moment with his eyes open, and then he looked around the door in extreme suspicion.
"What are you looking at? Do you suspect that I have betrayed you and brought the Japanese here?" Caroline raised her eyebrows and said with a little dissatisfaction.
"What the hell? Where did these devils come from?"
Klein was a little slow to react and just followed Caroline's nonsense.
Then, he came back to his senses and asked in confusion:
"Why are you here?"
"Didn't I tell you that after I take care of Backlund's affairs, I will find time to return to Tingen this Friday."
"That's not what I'm asking. How did you come to my house, and what's more..." Klein frowned and pointed at the flowers in Caroline's hand. "How can a normal person bring flowers to my house..."
"When I passed by the market, I saw someone selling flowers. I thought I had to bring something when visiting someone, so I bought some."
Caroline said as she stuffed the flowers into Klein's hands.
"Don't worry, these flowers are very cheap. I even bargained a little."
After accepting the flowers, Klein felt a little confused.
He could see that Caroline's style of doing things depended entirely on her own wishes. The last time she visited old Neil, she brought a bouquet of flowers, and this time she even brought flowers again.
Caroline seemed to have noticed that Klein's mind was in a state of stagnation. She patted his shoulder comfortingly and picked up the things in her other hand.
"I also brought some food. You probably haven't had the food from your hometown for a long time, right?"
Klein looked carefully and saw that Caroline was clearly holding a bundle of fresh beef in her other hand, and there were also some side dishes wrapped in oil paper, but they could not be seen at the moment.
"Are you planning on having dinner at my place tonight?"
Klein asked in surprise.
"Why, you're not welcome?"
Caroline smiled, moved a little closer to Klein, and spoke in a low voice.
"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about Councillor Maynard and some recent developments in Tingen."
Klein listened, slightly suppressed the surprise on his face, and nodded.
However, he still asked in a somewhat incomprehensible way:
"Then why don't you just tell me directly? Can't we chat online?"
Caroline smiled and said:
"Those are the main things. The secondary thing is just stopping by for a meal."
...
At No. 2 Narcissus Street, noises slowly began to come from the kitchen.
The maid Bella hid behind the wall curiously, looking at Caroline who was cutting beef in the kitchen, and Klein who was helping her.
Klein was washing the green peppers while feeling the gaze coming from behind.
He glanced back quietly, then moved closer to Caroline and whispered:
"You came too suddenly. According to the rules of Loen, guests who want to visit usually contact the host first, and then the host sends an invitation. And they should be a little late for ten to fifteen minutes after the host prepares the food."
"Oh my god, Lao Zhou, why do you have more rules than the nobles? I don't care about these... although I'm the only one at home now."
Caroline yelled in a low voice and threw something that didn't look like ginger but had a similar effect to ginger to Klein.
No matter whether it is ginger or not, Caroline just treats it as the ginger of this world.
"Cut a few slices for me and mix them with the green onions to make some onion and ginger water. I'll use it to marinate the beef later... You should know how to make green pepper beef, right?"
Including the green onions, they also did not look the same as they were familiar with before. Although the scientific names were different, they tacitly called them by the old names.
"Of course I know. I used to cook..."
Klein tried to clear his name while his hands kept moving. He took out a new cutting board, pulled out a kitchen knife and began to chop green onions and ginger.
"So, why do you want to ask about Councilman Maynard? Is it related to the strike in the South District?" Klein asked Caroline, using the sound of the knife chopping on the chopping board to cover his voice.
"Yes, production has resumed there now. If it can continue to develop, I'm afraid the world's first workers' cooperative will appear."
"A tiny red dot in the vast landscape... Do you want to develop in this world...?"
"How is that possible? You don't want to risk your life? I'm only a Sequence 8 now. These big countries must have high-sequence experts secretly supporting them. How could the workers' movement develop to the same level as ours?"
Caroline glanced at Klein and dodged the knife in her hand.
"I am ready to put the brakes on this strike. The core demand of the workers in the South District is still to get their wages back, and they cannot go any further now."
"Frensen has not shown up, which is very disadvantageous to the strikers. Now that Councillor Maynard, who could have been a bridge of communication, is dead, those with ulterior motives can make a big fuss about it."
"Whether it's attacking the New Party or the striking workers, Councillor Maynard's cold body is about to become a warm gun. Delaying it will only bring greater chaos."
"So, I want to start with the death of Councilman Maynard and investigate what Frenson has been doing during this period."
Listening to Caroline's words, Klein nodded in understanding and said:
"If you put it that way, I didn't see him at the scene when I went to check on Senator Maynard's body that day."
"The people present included Councillor Maynard's widow who had rushed back, and the guests who had attended his banquet that day, but not his nephew Frensen who was in Tingen."
"Oh, this is going to be interesting..."
Caroline pursed her lips and changed her mind and asked.
"What was the cause of Congressman Maynard's death?"
Klein replied expressionlessly:
"The wind is coming."
"clatter!"
Caroline's meat knife dropped to the side, unfortunately cutting a whole piece of beef of even thickness in half.
And at this moment, the sound of the door opening was heard at the front door of the house.
Klein was startled when he heard the sound and quickly turned around to see Melissa, wearing a sun hat and holding a bag of vegetables, walking into the house.Chapter 167 Klein's Crisis (Part 3)Title of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3609 words Update time: 2025-07-07 21:01:04
As soon as Melissa walked into the house, she saw Klein in the kitchen with his sleeves rolled up and an apron on.
But the maid Bella stayed aside and did not help him in the kitchen.
She took a few steps forward curiously, and just as she was about to ask, Bella turned around, looked at Melissa in surprise, and pointed at the kitchen a few times.
Melissa followed the instructions and saw Caroline next to Klein.
She opened her mouth in surprise and stood there in a daze, even forgetting to put down the ingredients in her hands.
Klein twitched his lips awkwardly and said hello reluctantly:
"Welcome back, Melissa..."
As he spoke, he poked Caroline's waist several times with his elbow.
Caroline, who was stunned by the mysterious death of Councillor Maynard, turned around quickly and saw Melissa standing in the middle of the living room. She greeted her in a friendly manner:
"Hi, we meet again."
"Hello..."
Melissa hesitantly asked hello, then realized that this was her home, why was she so nervous?
Well, I should be a little nervous, after all, this is about my brother's lifelong event...
Then again, why did Klein bring her home directly? He didn't even mention it this morning?
Melissa quickly put down her school bag, walked quickly to the kitchen door, and handed the bag of ingredients to Klein.
Klein took the paper bag and said to Melissa calmly:
"We need to add an extra serving of tableware tonight."
"Yeah, yeah... OK, OK, I understand..."
Melissa nodded stiffly, looked at where Klein and Caroline were standing, and immediately understood what was going on. She quickly left the kitchen without saying anything extra.
After calming his thoughts, Klein restored himself to a normal state.
He exhaled, and then took out the ingredients from the bag one by one. The ingredients bought by his sister were limited, and all that could be seen were vegetables.
"Why did you only buy these things?"
Caroline leaned in and saw a lot of green.
"Melissa is still relatively frugal, and hasn't fully adapted to life after my salary increase." Klein said as he stuffed the vegetables into the sink.
"Then you have to change her habits. Children of this age really need to grow up."
Caroline nodded.
"Um... so you've stopped growing?"
Klein glanced at Caroline and said something with a hint of meaning.
"Zeng——!"
Caroline pulled the kitchen knife in her hand away and looked at Klein with a slightly cold gaze.
Klein wisely shut his mouth, put the chopped green onion and ginger into a bowl, squeezed them a few times, added water to soak them aside, and then began to wash the vegetables.
Seeing Klein calm down, Caroline put down the knife and threw the cut beef into the bowl while redirecting the conversation back to business:
"Horse-struck? Maynard's death was too hasty, wasn't it? Are you sure?"
"To be sure, I did some divination."
Klein turned on the faucet, making the sound of running water a little louder.
"The result of the divination allowed me to directly see the scene of his death that night... Well, not only the male protagonist, but also the female protagonist..."
"Good boy, you are so lucky. You even got to watch a movie."
Caroline teased, but suddenly, she seemed to think of something and stopped putting soy sauce into the big bowl.
"Could the person who was doing it with Maynard before he died be a socialite named Mrs. Sharon?"
Klein paused and turned to look at Caroline in confusion.
"Do you know Mrs. Sharon?"
"More than that, I've also seen short films of her and other people's phenomena before... through a telescope."
Caroline seemed to have figured something out and added some white pepper to the bowl.
"Do you know who the leading actor in that little movie I saw was?"
Caroline's question was very targeted, especially in the context of such a topic. Klein only thought about it for a moment and came up with the most likely person.
"Could it be...Frensen?"
"If you answer correctly, I will reward you with an extra bowl of rice tonight."
Caroline spoke calmly, without a hint of joy in her words, and instead added a little more sugar to the large bowl of beef.
Since there was no baking soda, Caroline had to use sugar and onion and ginger water flexibly to make the beef tougher.
"Madam Sharon is a famous socialite in Tingen's upper class. It is said that she has ambiguous relationships with many dignitaries, including but not limited to her stepson, the current Baron Hoy, some nobles in Backlund, and some senior government employees..."
Klein recounted Mrs. Sharon's love history with Binghe, and Caroline was amazed.
"Under such circumstances, it is not incomprehensible that Mrs. Sharon had an affair with Frenson, but..."
"But now Councillor Maynard's widow has accused Mrs. Sharon of murdering her husband. And her nephew Frenson has not shown up, and Maynard had an accident at the critical moment of the strike..."
"Combined with my divination results, and my feeling that Madam Sharon is not some innocent little white rabbit, she may have played a role in the death of Councillor Maynard..."
Klein said, making room for Caroline a little so she could wash her hands.
Then, Caroline began to stir the beef with her bare hands and asked:
"Did you do the divination in real life?"
"Yes, at the scene of Congressman Maynard's death."
"Have you ever done divination there?"
"you mean..."
Klein turned around and met Caroline's eyes.
…
As the sky gradually darkened, Benson, who had been busy all day, finally returned home under the kerosene lamps on the lit street.
As soon as he opened the door, he smelled a strong fragrance, and then he saw his sister Melissa and the maid Bella standing in the living room in the same posture, with expressions as if they were looking at some rare treasure, and their eyes were fixed on the kitchen.
"Have I missed anything exciting? You look like there are curly-haired baboons cooking in our kitchen."
Benson habitually began to tell her curly-haired baboon joke. Melissa hurried over and said seriously with a frown on her face:
"Benson, stop talking nonsense!"
Facing his sister's harsh words, Benson blinked, then hurried forward a few steps, and then saw the two-person theater in the kitchen.
"This, this!"
Benson's eyes widened. He suddenly felt his scalp itchy, as if he was about to grow hair.
The two people in the kitchen were concentrating on cooking and didn't pay any attention to what was happening in the living room.
Although the pot had a flat bottom, Caroline still showed Klein her flipping technique.
Watching the beef and green peppers mixed with oil, water, and aroma swirling in the smoke and flames, Klein, who had been promoted to the "Joker" and had a very strong body control ability, could naturally do it. However, he just smiled and said nothing, providing emotional value to Caroline on the side.
"This is the Maillard reaction. The beef can actually be eaten after a little stir-frying. Otherwise it will become tough."
Caroline said, taking the pot off the stove with one hand.
"Are you sure you're not Daliyuan React?"
"If you'll get me a little Dalli Garden bun, I'll buy you as much beef as you want."
Caroline glanced at Klein unhappily and put the stir-fried beef with green peppers on the plate.
"Okay, the final hard dish is ready, go wash the pot."
Caroline washed her hands and wiped them on Crane's apron.
"Can't we eat first?"
Klein tried to dodge but failed.
"Ahem!"
Suddenly, a polite cough was heard outside the kitchen. Klein turned around quickly and saw Benson, who had just returned home, staring at him humorously.
"Benson, you're back too."
Don't look at me like that, there are two people in the kitchen!
Please don't get me wrong, I'm just enjoying the intimacy of cooking with my fellow villagers... Benson, put away your smiling face, or I really won't be able to eat today...
Klein stood there like a wooden man. Caroline wiped her hands and turned around. She saw another person in the living room and immediately remembered that this was Klein's brother.
"Nice to meet you! You must be Klein's brother, right? I'm Caroline!"
She took a few steps forward and extended her right hand to Benson.
Is it a handshake?
Benson did not hesitate, and immediately put on a smile that was more friendly and kind than when he was facing a client, and shook hands with Caroline.
"I've heard about you from Klein and Melissa a long time ago. You are such a beautiful young lady."
"Haha, it's just so-so, just so-so."
Caroline took a few steps back and subconsciously returned to Klein's side.
Klein wore an awkward smile, gnashing his teeth, looking outside, but his lips trembled slightly as he whispered to Caroline:
"Shaking hands seems to be a gentleman's etiquette..."
"What does it matter? I am a man..."
"But you are not now..."
While Caroline was arguing with Klein, Benson in the living room winked at Melissa and said to Klein:
"Klein, come with me to get the tableware?"
Aren't the dishes in the kitchen? Klein was confused for a moment, but after seeing Benson's eyes, he realized that his brother had something to tell him in private.
So he quickly responded and left Caroline.
At this time, Melissa quickly came up and started talking to Caroline enthusiastically.
Benson took Klein to the storage room. Of course, the tableware they were looking for was not there, but it was hidden enough.
"Klein, why didn't you tell us in advance and just invited them to your house? We haven't made any preparations yet!"
Benson frowned, showing his brotherly authority in front of Klein for the first time.
"You will make Miss Caroline think that the Moretti family has no family manners! Look, I haven't even packed my clothes, and Melissa hasn't prepared anything either. This is too abrupt!"
I really didn't invite them. They clearly came on their own…
Klein's cheek wanted to twitch, but he controlled it with his "Joker" ability.
"Watch your hair Benson, Caroline doesn't care about that..."
"People may not care, but you can't really do nothing!"
Benson held his forehead and sighed.
"We have ruined our first impression. We can't let people think that the Moretti family is a group of curly-haired baboons who have just entered society."
"Tell me about Miss Caroline's situation so that I can speak for you at the dinner table later. You have to trust my eloquence."
"Well, actually… I'm not very clear about Caroline's family situation…" Klein looked away guiltily.
"What? You're dating someone, but you don't know their family situation?"
"We're not dating...Benson, don't talk nonsense."
Benson crossed his arms and said seriously:
"Klein, I know you've been shy since you were a kid, but this is no joke."
"I don't know her family situation, but you should know Miss Caroline's other conditions, right? Melissa said before that she is from Backlund, so her conditions should be better than ours..."
As Benson rambled on, he had already sketched out the image of a highly educated young lady who was born into an upper-middle-class family.
But this was only the limit of Benson's imagination, not Caroline's current limit as Klein knew it.
Klein's eyes shifted slightly, and he said with his lips moving slightly:
"I don't know about the rest, but Caroline owns a manor with an annual income of around 20,000 pounds..."
"...What did you say?"
Benson was stunned, his half-open mouth opened wider and wider.