Chapter 70: “2-049” Arrives

Chapter Seventy“2-049” Arrives

Clip-clop. Clip-clop. Clip-clop.

Hooves struck the road; wheels rolled forward.

Klein, who had activated spirit vision and turned around to look, failed to see the gentle, sweet-looking young lady as he had wished. All that filled his eyes was the brown body of the carriage moving away.

At that moment, all the passengers waiting at that stop had already boarded the public carriage. Its door shut tight as it gradually receded into the distance.

Inside the carriage, twenty or thirty humans sat too close to one another. Their auras overlapped and masked each other, appearing to Klein as a riot of colors, dazzling and crowded to the point that distinguishing anything was genuinely difficult.

He shook his head soundlessly, raised his hand, and tapped the space between his brows, closing his spirit vision.

For him, what had happened just now was a simple, plain impulse: since he had encountered someone, if he could help, he would help. But if he had already missed the chance, and the situation was not especially clear, there was no need to keep brooding over it and delay his own affairs.

Bathed in crimson moonlight, he strolled along Daffodil Street, which was still fairly lively at this hour, and returned home. There he saw Melissa sitting at the dining table, bent over the exercises assigned by her school beneath the bright glow of the gas lamp.

She lightly bit the end of her fountain pen, brows slightly drawn together, lost in hard thought.

“Where is Benson?” Klein asked casually.

“Ah…”

Melissa raised her head. After several seconds of blankness, she answered, “He said he walked through several districts today and sweated all over. He wanted to take a good bath and relax.”

“All right.”

Klein laughed softly. Only then did he suddenly notice that Melissa was wearing a dress he had never seen before.

Its overall color was a creamy white. It had fashionable leg-of-mutton sleeves, and the neckline and the edges of the front were trimmed with thin gauze ruffles. Aside from that, there was no overly complicated design. It was light and suitable for daily wear, perfectly setting off the youthfulness of a girl of sixteen or seventeen.

“A new dress?” Klein asked with a smile.

This was an expenditure he and Benson had insisted upon earlier.

Melissa gave an “mm.”

“I just picked it up from Mrs. Rochelle. Since I would have to wash it later anyway, I thought I might as well try it on first.”

Klein listened in some confusion.

“Mrs. Rochelle?”

Isn’t she our former neighbor?

Melissa nodded and seriously explained, “Mrs. Rochelle is actually a seamstress. She has simply been unlucky and has had to make a living mending and sewing for others at home. Her circumstances are, mm, a little difficult. I know her skill is good, her prices are cheaper than buying from a ladies’ hat and dress shop, and the fit is better too. So I ordered the dress from her. It cost only nine soli and five pence, and it took only a few days. The same style of dress at Harold Department Store costs a whole pound and a half!”

So thrifty and good at managing a household… Sister, I know at least half your reason is sympathy for Mrs. Rochelle…

Klein did not criticize Melissa’s decision. Instead, he smiled and said, “When did you ever visit Harold Department Store?”

It was in the Howes Street area, near the Divination Club, and belonged to places that only the middle class or above could really afford.

“…”

Melissa was at a loss for words for a while. Only after a long time did she say, “Selena and Elizabeth insisted that I go with them. Actually, mm, I actually prefer gears. I prefer places with steam and machinery. Mm.”

“It is perfectly fine for girls to occasionally visit a department store.”

Klein smiled, soothing his sister.

After chatting idly for a few more sentences, he, eager to wash away the mixed smells from the bar, quickly went up to the second floor.

Just as he was about to return to his bedroom to…