The Secret Master

 Klein nodded and said: "OK, but I still don't know exactly what my task is." "It's not a dangerous one. At least, no dangerous signs can be seen now." Dunn emphasized the key point first and then said, "This is a case transferred from the Police Bureau of Jinwutang District. The famous philanthropist Sir Deville has been receiving strange harassment for a month, but neither his bodyguards, hired security personnel, nor the police couldn't find the culprit. Inspector Tole in charge of this matter highly suspected it was related to supernatural forces, so he submitted it to us." I saw Sir Deville in the library before and found that he was in a bad mood and mentally weak. It turned out that he was disturbed by harassment... Klein frowned slightly and asked: "What kind of harassment?" This case has not caused any substantial harm yet, so it can't be called dangerous. "Sir Deville hears crying and moaning every night, no matter where he sleeps or whether he is in Tinggen. This makes his sleep quality very poor." Dunn flipped through the materials on his desk and said, "He went to see a psychologist and also asked the housekeeper and servants around to confirm that it wasn't an illusion. So he suspected someone was harassing him." Closing the documents, Dunn looked up at Klein: "Go to the lounge and change into your trainee inspector uniform. Meet Inspector Tole in the shooting club hall. He will tell you more detailed information." "Trainee inspector uniform?" Klein asked subconsciously. Dunn rubbed his forehead and smiled: "We have half of our salary paid by the police department. The name of trainee inspector doesn't only exist in the files. When you first saw me and Leonard, we were also wearing uniforms. This is a benefit for every official member, well, the kind of benefit that Emperor Rosel said." Unfortunately, you can't wear it usually, otherwise you could have an extra set of changeable clothes... Klein took the walking stick, bowed and left the captain's office. He came to the lounge on the opposite side and saw a set of black-and-white checkered uniform with leather boots, a soft hat with the emblem of "two swords crossed and surrounding a crown", and a badge with black and white stripes as the background and a silver star shining on the shoulder. "Is this the trainee inspector?" Klein glanced at it and noticed an inconspicuous number below the silver star: "06-254". He has already preliminarily understood the police rank division of the Kingdom of Ruan. He knows that at the top are the Police Minister and the Chief Police Secretary, followed by the directors, deputy directors, and assistant directors of each police department, in the middle are the police sergeants and inspectors, and at the bottom are the police captains and officers. Closing the door, Klein took off his formal suit, removed his hat, and changed into that uniform. After hanging up the original clothes, he pushed the door open and entered the civilian office, took a full-length mirror from Rosan to look at himself. The young man in the mirror had vibrant black hair, gentle brown eyes, and the uniform made him look more heroic than usual. "Good job." Klein self-admired happily and left the office with his walking stick, walking out of Blackthorn Security Company. There were not many police officer certificates in his pocket. ...... In the hall of the shooting club. Klein saw Toole the inspector because he was the only person there wearing a police uniform. Of course, now it would be me too... Klein added silently. Toole the inspector's epaulets had two silver stars, his clothes were stretched by his belly, and his face had thick brownish-yellow whiskers. He was tall but not imposing, or he had been imposing before. "Moretti? Klein. Moretti?" Toole sized him up from top to bottom and smiled and came over. "Hello, Inspector Toole. I'm sure you didn't mistake me," Klein replied with a wry smile and raised his right hand, making a salute according to his impression. Toole chuckled: "Obviously, you are a person easy to get along with. So I'm relieved. Shall we go to Sir Deveril's house now?" Although his police rank was higher than Klein, there was a clear questioning tone in his voice. "Sure," Klein thought for a moment and said, "You can give me a detailed account on the carriage." "OK," Toole touched his thick brownish-yellow whiskers, leading Klein out of the shooting club and onto a horse-drawn carriage parked on the other side. The carriage had the emblem of "Two swords crossed, surrounding a crown" painted on it, and was driven by a professional driver. "Sir Deveril is a devotee of the goddess, so we transferred the case to you," Toole said as he sat down, eager to explain something. "I know, Sir Deveril is a frequent visitor to newspapers and magazine covers," Klein smiled gently. Toole picked up the file bag beside him, untied the knot, pulled out the materials, and said as he flipped through them: "Whether you know it or not, I need to give you a detailed introduction." "Sir Deveril is a wealthy man in the town of Tingen. His business started with a lead factory and a porcelain factory, and now it has spread to steel, coal, shipping, banking and securities. He is also a highly praised philanthropist by the king and has established the Deveril Charity Fund, Deveril Trust Company, Deveril Library... and was granted the title of Lord... If he wants to run for mayor, I don't think anyone in Tingen will be a good opponent for him." "However, his goal is in Beckland. He wants to become a member of the House of Lords of the kingdom. We once suspected that he was harassed and related to this matter, but couldn't find any clues." Klein nodded gently: "I don't rule out this possibility, but I can't determine anything now." Toole didn't dwell on this issue for long and continued: "Since the 6th of last month, Sir Deveril has heard painful moans that make the scalp tingle every night when he goes to sleep, like a dying patient struggling desperately. He checked the surrounding rooms and found no abnormal situation, and the housekeeper and servants also confirmed that there were similar sounds, but they were heard very faintly." "At first, Sir Deveril thought the matter would pass soon and didn't pay much attention to it, but the painful moans became more frequent, even during the day, and there was also heart-stopping crying." "This made Sir Deveril lose sleep again and again and had to leave Tingen for the country house, but it didn't help. The moans and crying still haunted him. Similarly, even if he went to Beckland, the matter didn't calm down either, it was just less serious." "He hired security personnel to investigate the surroundings, but found no clues, and our initial investigation also yielded no results." "This month-long torture has brought Sir Deveril's spirit close to collapse. He went to see a psychologist again and again, but still couldn't get rid of the trouble. He told us that if the problem couldn't be solved within this week, he would move away from Tingen to Beckland. He believes there must be someone there who can help him." After listening to Toole's description, Klein quickly analyzed various possibilities: Who did you offend? Did you fall under a curse? No. If it was a curse, the master and the servants couldn't have heard the voice at the same time... Was there an extraordinary person lurking among the servants and the bodyguards, for some unknown purpose? But the problem is, during these past few months, no one has ever made a request to Sir Deveril... Perhaps Sir Deveril accidentally got in touch with some "dirty stuff" like evil spirits of the dead? This possibility cannot be ruled out... While Klein's thoughts were swirling, the carriage entered the Golden Chestnut District and stopped in front of Sir Deveril's house. There was a flourishing garden enclosed by iron railings, a hollow iron door with two statues standing on it, a fountain constantly spouting water to wash the marble statues, a two-story house covering a large area, and a road wide enough for three carriages to pass side by side. "Sir Deveril's house only has two floors... The newspaper said that Beckland is trying to build an apartment building with up to ten floors..." Klein got out of the carriage and saw a police officer with a shoulder badge featuring three Vs approaching quickly. He glanced at Klein, raised his hand and saluted: "Good morning, sir!" "Good morning." Klein smiled and nodded. Toole said beside him: "This is Police Chief Gatt, you can give him any instructions you have." "This is Mr. Morretti, an assistant inspector in training, a historical expert and a psychologist of the county police department." Toole introduced Gatt again. ... I can't handle this... Klein felt ashamed. After the pleasantries were over, Gate pointed to the second-floor house behind the fountain and said: "Sir Deveril is waiting for us." "OK." Klein reached out and touched the revolver at his waist. This was his greatest reliance in dealing with enemies at the moment. - Because in his police uniform, he could place the gun holster on his waist openly, making it easier to draw it. While speaking, the three of them walked along the wide road, around the fountain, and arrived outside the main gate. At this time, some servants had already opened the door and were respectfully waiting. Klein took the opportunity before entering the house to pretend to straighten his hat, pinched his brow twice, and activated "clairvoyance". In the bright living room, Sir Deveril, with a square face, was rubbing his forehead, looking rather tired. His dark gold hair and blue eyes were either dry or dim, and the entire person seemed to be much older. "Good morning, Sir," Klein, Torle, and Gate all bowed. Sir Deveril stood up and forced a smile in response: "Good morning, officers. I hope you can solve my problem." At this moment, Klein narrowed his eyes and slightly frowned. Apart from being in poor spirits, he didn't notice any other problems with Sir Deveril. This was quite strange... He thought to himself: "Sir, in which room did you first hear the groans?" "My bedroom." Sir Deveril shook his head. "Can we go and have a look?" Klein asked. "Have you checked it several times already?" The middle-aged butler frowned and asked in response. Obviously, he didn't recognize Klein as the kind-hearted companion of the "returning lost property". Klein smiled gently: "That's my colleague, not me." "Sir, this is an expert sent by the police department." Torle seized the opportunity to introduce. Sir Deveril gave the young expert a deep look and said: "OK, Karen, you take them to my bedroom." "Sir, I hope you come with us." Klein said seriously. Sir Deveril hesitated for a few seconds and said: "If this can help solve the problem..." He picked up his cane, walked with a shaky step towards the stairs, and the butler Karen and several bodyguards surrounded him, ready to assist at any time. Klein looked around, silent but calm, following behind. One step, two steps, three steps... They reached the second floor and entered the master bedroom. Before they could examine the surroundings, Klein's hair suddenly stood on end. This was the feedback from his inspiration!