Chapter 47: Cash-Strapped Old Neil

Chapter Forty-Seven
Cash-Strapped Old Neil

Old Neil rubbed his temples.

“The reason you three killed yourselves is now more or less clear. The notebook has also reached Ray Bieber’s hands, and the matter has already been exposed. Whether you are alive or dead, you can hardly affect what follows. I think—I believe—that the strange existence or mysterious power responsible for all this will no longer pay special attention to you. It would be like you not caring about ants on the ground. Heh. So long as you do not try to make ‘Him’ remember you.

“And word that we are hunting Ray Bieber will very quickly reach the Secret Order. They should be able to guess that this is connected to the whereabouts of the Antigonus family notebook. Trust me: secret organizations that have survived for more than a thousand years surely possess all sorts of information channels. Therefore, their focus will shift to finding Ray Bieber and trying to seize the notebook before we do. They will not—and cannot—come harass you, follow you, or deal with you anymore.

“Young man, congratulations. You are about to escape the shadow of the past and welcome a new journey filled with sunlight.”

Klein nodded again and again, both delighted and relieved.

“I hope so.”

The gloom that had covered him ever since he transmigrated into this world seemed as if it might finally disperse…

Still, to be honest, Klein remained somewhat uneasy. There seemed to be some degree of bond between himself and that notebook, to the point that even while performing an ordinary hostage rescue mission, he had coincidentally discovered traces left behind by it.

He was truly afraid that one day a postman would suddenly deliver a parcel, and when he opened it, he would discover the Antigonus family notebook inside.

I hope everything develops just as Old Neil described…

He prayed silently.

Hearing his answer, Old Neil immediately gave a scoffing laugh.

“You do not seem like a devout believer of the Goddess. At a time like this, should you not draw the crimson moon over your chest and say, ‘May the Goddess bless us’?”

“Mr. Neil, you do not seem like one either. A true believer would not say ‘welcome a new journey filled with sunlight.’”

After these days of mysticism lessons, Klein had established a fairly good friendship with Old Neil, and so he fired back without politeness.

The two looked at each other and laughed with tacit understanding. Almost simultaneously, they tapped their chests four times and said, “Praise the Goddess!”

Just then, the sound of mechanisms, tumblers, and little metal balls turning rang out. The door of Blackthorn Security Company was opened.

Refined and elegant Mrs. Orianna, her fashionable curls pinned up, walked into the reception hall with the light-green hem of her dress swaying. She carried a calfskin handbag and greeted them with a smile.

“Good morning, Mr. Neil. Good morning, Klein. Today is another bright day. A fine day.”

“Good morning, Orianna. You are as beautiful as you have been for the past dozen years,” Old Neil replied cheerfully.

Orianna’s eyes swept sideways. She straightened her expression and said, “Mr. Neil, your compliments are as infuriating as they have been for the past dozen years.”

She placed special emphasis on the words “past dozen years.”

“Are they?” Old Neil looked toward Klein in great confusion, his face full of bewilderment.

Never mention anything that reminds a lady of her age…

As a keyboard powerhouse who understood a little of everything, Klein instantly grasped what Mrs. Orianna cared about. He chuckled and said, “Good morning, Mrs. Orianna. You are beautiful every day.”

“Thank you, our outstanding Khoy University graduate.”

Orianna gave a shallow smile and nodded. Then she said, “That old butler has already paid the commission fee. According to the Captain’s rules, half belongs to additional funds, and half is for you and Leonard. Since you are not an official member, you can only take ten percent of that half. You may come sign and collect it later.”

“How much did he pay?” Klein asked, both happy and pained.

“Two hundred pounds. He said, ‘Lord above—Storms be with us—I truly cannot imagine it, cannot believe it. This matter was resolved just like that! It was no harder than having a dream! Why does your security company have no reputation? That is a disgrace to the entire profession!’”

Mrs. Orianna imitated old Butler Klee’s slightly southern accent.

Klein thought seriously for a few seconds, then said humorously, “That was not especially fair to the kidnappers.”

Two Beyonders had solved the matter in a manner that could only be described as relaxed and comfortable. It was rather like fully armed adults bullying a few small children.

“They were too unlucky. They must have lost the gods’ blessing,” Orianna said with a low laugh. “I told that old butler that this commission was completed only because we were fortunate enough to have an informant who happened to see the kidnappers carry the child into their hiding place. So please, do not hold too many expectations toward us. We really are a very ordinary security company.”

Generally speaking, the more someone emphasized that they were ordinary, the less ordinary they were…

Klein smiled silently and watched Mrs. Orianna pass through the partition and enter the accounting office.

Beside him, Old Neil smacked his lips. With envy hidden in his voice, he said, “You truly are a lucky lad. How long has it been since you joined us? And you already encountered a commission worth two hundred pounds.”

“Is that very rare?” Klein asked in puzzlement.

Previously, he had either been studying history, learning mysticism, or wandering outside searching for clues through inspiration.

“According to Orianna’s statistics, we may not even get one commission in a week. Most commissions are valued below twenty pounds,” Old Neil answered with a sigh, rubbing the white crystal pendant wrapped around his wrist.

Then he looked toward Klein with a trace of expectation.

“If you encounter a similar commission in the future, please be sure to notify me.”

Listening to Old Neil, Klein suddenly sensed something odd and asked directly, “Mr. Neil, do you seem to be short on money? How much salary do you receive each week? If it is inconvenient, please ignore the question.”

Old Neil leaned back against the sofa and chuckled.

“It is not something that needs to be hidden. I have been here for many years, and at present I receive a salary from both the Church and the police department each week. Together, they are worth twelve pounds.”

“Twelve pounds a week?”

Klein blurted out in astonishment.

A weekly salary of twelve pounds meant that over fifty-two weeks, the annual amount was over six hundred pounds!

When he had read the Tingen Morning Post and the Honest Man, he had seen introductions saying that a senior barrister earned roughly eight hundred to one thousand pounds a year. And that was a senior barrister!

Meanwhile, the manager of Benson’s import-export company earned only six pounds a week, and that already made him an extremely respectable person.

“Yes. Such a salary is actually quite generous. And we do not have to pay income tax,” Old Neil added with a smile.

Klein had heard Benson mention that anyone earning more than one pound a week had to pay Schedule E tax: the income tax on salaries of government and company employees. The portion from one to two pounds was taxed three percent, from two to five pounds five percent, from five to ten pounds ten percent, from ten to twenty pounds fifteen percent, and above twenty pounds twenty percent.

Beyond that, he had seen four other types of income tax mentioned in the newspapers. Schedule A was tax on profit and appreciation from land, housing, and other physical assets, including ground rent and house rent. Schedule B concerned agricultural income. Schedule C dealt with profits from bonds, funds, and stocks. Schedule D covered income from business, finance, and professional occupations.

“That is indeed admirable,” Klein agreed.

“However.”

Old Neil shook his head.

“For Beyonders like us, who often need to explore hidden matters, practice frequently, and attempt rituals, salary is never enough.”

“Can’t materials be applied for and collected?” Klein asked in surprise.

Old Neil gave a scoffing laugh.

“There are quotas. Sometimes, you must also provide a sufficiently proper reason. If you wish to practice more in the mysterious domain, to try more things, you can only spend your own money buying materials. You can buy them internally, or go to certain underground markets.”

Klein’s spirits immediately lifted. He asked at once, “There are underground markets for extraordinary materials? I thought—I thought the Churches would definitely not allow them to exist.”

He currently lacked sufficient channels to obtain materials.

Behind him, after all, stood the embryonic form of a secret organization. He could not possibly resolve everything through the Nighthawks.

“There is simply no way to control such matters completely. Mm, in mysticism, all things have spirits, and all things share the same source. The materials we use do not come only from extraordinary species, but also from ordinary animals, plants, and minerals. For example, in your bottle of Seer potion, poison hemlock, golden mint, and night vanilla can all be encountered frequently in daily life. They may not possess extraordinary traits, but each has its own characteristics. After blending and harmonizing them, one can achieve certain effects. Therefore, this is not a kind of trade the Churches can ban merely because they wish to,” Old Neil explained in detail.

Without waiting for Klein to speak, he continued.

“And extraordinary species are not useful only in their core parts. Take the Lawa octopus, for example. Aside from its blood, its eyes, skin, and tentacles are all decent materials. Unless the Churches use only their own people to hunt and capture them, attempting to hoard everything completely and prevent any outflow would be an enormous financial burden. The lower the grade of the extraordinary material, the more true this becomes. At most, they can make sure the more special ones do not circulate.

“Another important reason,” Old Neil added with a sudden laugh, “is that underground markets we know about are better than ones we do not. Before secret organizations are completely eliminated, this is a decent strategy. They can also help us obtain materials we lack. Of course, once such markets exist, forbidden goods will inevitably appear. As long as they are not too outrageous or too dangerous, we pretend not to see them. At most, we use them to enrich our own vaults.”

“And there is also the fact that the major Churches restrain one another, making excessively drastic methods impossible?” Klein guessed.

Old Neil gave an “mm” but did not elaborate.

“I am a Seer. In the future, I will certainly need repeated practice and more materials. Mr. Neil, could you take me to one of those underground markets to have a look?” Klein requested, using an entirely proper reason.

Old Neil revealed a troubled expression.

“In truth, most of the people active in those places are not Beyonders. There are nobles who like mysticism, wealthy people who long for this field… Uh, all right. I have a thirty-pound bill coming due soon, so it is not convenient for me to go there for the time being.”

“All right…”

Klein had not expected unpaid debt to be the reason at all.

A moment later, he considered his words and said, “Mr. Neil, do you need to borrow money? I have ten pounds in reward.”

“Haha. No need. I have a way to solve it.”

Old Neil patted the sofa and slowly rose.

“Ah. Aging truly is the most unconquerable enemy of living beings. Last night’s duty has made me very tired. Mm, review the previous lessons by yourself this morning and read more documents. Tomorrow, I will begin teaching you the basics of ritual magic.”

“All right.”

Klein rose with him and removed his hat to see him off.

By afternoon, seeing that Captain Dunn had still not returned, Klein pretended he was still searching for the notebook and once again wandered through the streets.

Now that he had a ten-pound reward, he no longer needed to wait for funding approval.

He could go directly to the Divination Club.

The whispers and visions that appeared from time to time during meditation and spirit vision made him impatient to begin “acting.”