Hearing the fat chef’s demand, Hade frowned. He looked at the man collecting the money, known as "Mr. Neat," who shook his head
"This is a matter between the two of you. The club won't stop him from leaving, but you have to convince Fat Jack."
"I'm out of money."
Hade pulled out the pockets on both sides of his overcoat. Indeed, there was nothing in them but a keychain and a notebook, as his money was in the inner pocket
"I never expected him to owe this much money."
Little Franklin had already stood up, head bowed, standing silently beside Hade. Although he was a bit of a scoundrel, he knew that his only chance of leaving now depended on this person who looked no older than himself.
"No money?"
The fat chef angrily bent down to pick up the four scattered Tarot cards on the floor, showing Hade their suits: Sun 1, Sun 8, Star 13, and The Emperor.
The Emperor and The Empress were independent cards outside the four suits, somewhat similar to the Jokers in Hade's world, but they played a very interesting role in Tarot games similar to "Blackjack."
"Pick one from the four. If you draw The Emperor, you take him with you. If you don't, he leaves all his clothes behind, and you leave your jacket."
Speaking in a muffled voice, the fat chef put his hands behind his back and began to shuffle. Then, with hands marked by bloody tooth prints, he held out the four cards face-down, fanned out
"Don't say I'm a bad guy; he's the one who bit me."
He said huffily, gesturing for Hade to draw quickly.
Hade blinked and reached out to stop Little Franklin, who was about to reach for them
"If you're lucky enough, you won't need me to bail you out here."
As he spoke, the ring of light in his soul rotated slowly. Spiritual power fueled the elements, and the elements influenced reality. A subtle red trace appeared in his right eye; the Echo of Blood caused the bloodstains to reflect in Hade's vision.
The world in his eyes changed, everything taking on a strange halo. Even though Little Franklin had only sprayed a tiny amount of blood onto the cards—and mostly on the front—the spell "Echo of Blood" still allowed Hade to see the faint red traces in the air and the different red mist glows around the four cards in the fat chef's hand.
He had seen just moments ago that the "Emperor" card had the highest concentration of blood on it, so he knew almost immediately that the card he needed was the second one from the left.
"Does this count as bullying? Doing this right after becoming a Ring-術士 (Ring-wielder)? This isn't right."
He thought absentmindedly, examining his own morals and values.
Then he extended a finger and rested it on the rightmost card. He didn't look at the back of the card, but stared intently at the fat chef's face. The fat chef immediately tightened his fat face, trying hard to remain expressionless.
Mr. Neat and Little Franklin, standing to the side, were both drawn to this scene.
"Not this one."
Hade said softly, moving his finger to the second card from the right, staring at the chef's face for a few more seconds
"Not this one either."
He shook his head and moved to the correct card. After several seconds, he slowly pulled it out amidst the fat chef's irrepressible expression of surprise
"This is the one."
The card was slowly flipped over; it was indeed "The Emperor."
"This should count as bullying an ordinary person," he thought to himself.
"Damn it, I didn't realize you were such an experienced gambler."
The fat chef was stunned for a moment, then threw the other three cards on the ground in a fit of pique
"Take this damn kid and get out. If he owes money and doesn't pay again, be careful not to fall into my hands."
A look of relief appeared on the accountant's son's pale face. Hade nodded; he didn't judge others' behavior, only knowing that the spell [Echo of Blood] was indeed a great help to his detective work.
After giving Hade the receipt, the man insisted on escorting them out of the club to prevent Hade and the dejected Little Franklin from wandering around. But just as the three of them reached the second-floor staircase, they were stopped.
It was a woman around thirty, dressed as a maid. Her features were plain, but she had a very refined temperament.
She walked down the stairs from the third floor
"That lady wishes to see you."
She looked at Hade and nodded slightly.
"Is there someone behind me?"
Hade thought, immediately looking behind him, but there was no one there
"Me?"
"Yes, sir. Please come with me. Your friend can wait for you on the first floor for the time being."
The woman said. Hade was confused and looked at the man who had led them, who shrugged
"There is only one distinguished guest on the third floor tonight. If it is that lady, you had better go up; she is a very noble lady. As for him, I will keep an eye on him and ensure he doesn't get near the gambling tables."
As he spoke, he patted Little Franklin's shoulder quite hard. The latter was almost knocked over but dared not object to Hade's departure.
"May I know who that lady is?"
Hade asked hesitantly, suspecting it might be someone like the club owner, or even fearing that Mrs. Lassoya, Mr. Lawrence's "mistress," had discovered him.
But he didn't understand why she would be looking for him. The previous detective's only connection to this place was coming to pick someone up last time; other than that, Hade had no social relations that could possibly link him to this club.
He was still thinking about the cat at home and wanted to return as soon as possible to prevent the new cat from defecating on his bed or desk.
"That lady is a titled aristocrat and our most distinguished guest tonight. For the sake of her reputation, you cannot know the lady's identity for the time being."
The woman dressed as a maid said in standard Delarion common tongue. Hade nodded slightly
"Then what is the matter? I'm sorry, I don't believe I know anyone of such noble status."
"Please follow me."
The woman leading the way turned and walked upstairs. Hade hesitated for a moment before following.
Compared to the relatively quiet second floor, the third floor was absolutely silent. Judging by the decor, if he hadn't walked up from downstairs, Hade would have believed this was a floor in an art gallery.
He followed behind the maid, looking at the oil paintings on both sides of the wall as he walked along the carpeted corridor. They stopped in front of a set of golden double doors. The maid helped push the left door open just enough for Hade to enter
"That lady is waiting for you inside."
Hade nodded again and waited for a second. When he didn't hear the woman's voice in his head prompt him that an "element" had appeared, he entered the room.
The maid closed the door from the outside. Hade stood with his back to the door, looking at the empty reception room.
The layout of the room was very similar to the doctor's reception room and clinic.
Bookshelves occupied an entire wall, and the floor was completely covered by carpet. The desk, coffee table, sofa set, and cabinet were all brown wood, looking very much like a business office style.
Only the brass-colored metal box on the coffee table was somewhat eye-catching. It looked like a so-called gear puzzle box, which required rotating the gears of various sizes on its six faces into a specific sequence to open.
The steam and gas pipes on the walls blended well with the paint color of the walls. There were two gas lamps shaped like angels blowing horns on each of the surrounding walls, but their warm yellow light was no brighter than the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling.
The three windows on the wall facing the door were all covered by heavy, embroidered reddish-brown fabric curtains, but Hade did not consider the possibility of someone hiding behind them.
It was extremely quiet, which made Hade feel a sense of horror. Someone was watching him, but they were definitely not in this room.
PS: A reminder, remember the captain from the previous chapter. This shouldn't count as a spoiler.