Twenty minutes later, Shard and Dorothy had returned once again to No. 6, Saint Delan Square. The sky was even more overcast than when Shard had gotten up this morning, and the gas lamps remained lit inside the house, leaving the room still dim and gloomy.
Shard sat alone on the sofa, holding Mia, while Dorothy, who had gotten drenched in the rain, had gone to the bathroom to take a bath.
Playing with the half of the Red Butterfly Pendant in his hand, Shard never expected that a spur-of-the-mont attempt would actually succeed.
Of course, it could not be considered a complete success. Because now Dorothy and Lecia could only make eye contact from a distance for a short ti and could not maintain it for long, let alone get close to each other.
But being able to "make eye contact from a distance" was already a significant improvent over not being able to make any contact at all, indicating that Shard's thod was effective.
"Am I this lucky? It was just a casual inquiry at Professor Dunn's in Midshire Fort, then finding Professor Manning, and Old Man John just happened to find the right approach... I should thank Granny Cassandra for everything."
The sound of carriages rolling over puddles was particularly noticeable on rainy days here. Although Saint Delan Square was not as bustling as usual, there were still no lack of pedestrians.
Dorothy's emotional fluctuation had been very intense just now, probably because it was the first ti she and Lecia, the two girls who could exchange souls and knew each other's secrets, had made direct eye contact. Going to the bathroom to bathe, aside from being drenched by the rain, was also because she didn't want Shard to see her discomposure.
Shard actually understood her emotions at the ti, so he also understood why she didn't want to co ho with him right away, but instead stood opposite Yordle Palace, gazing for a long ti until the pain in her soul forced her to close her eyes.
[Do you think you understand the girls' hearts that well?]
As he pondered, a voice suddenly sounded in his ears.
"Hmm... maybe. But, if I go to Old John to make better alchemical items, it might be more effective. Didn't he say that what I'm holding in my hand was just made with scraps, and he didn't even charge for the materials?"
While Dorothy was taking a bath in the bathroom, Shard held the cat and went to the study room; under the gas lamp, he wrote down all the information he had obtained in Midshire Fort about the Twin Gods and their faith. Even though he had already recounted it to Dorothy once, it was still better to write it down and pass it to Lecia to investigate with her influence.
After all, compared to the power of Her Highness the Princess, the detective of Saint Delan Square was pitifully weak.
When Shard returned to the living room, mulling over the docunts in his hand to see if he had missed any details, the door to the bathroom finally opened.
The blond girl was drying her fluffy blond hair with a new towel Shard had taken out, wearing a white shirt that Shard had washed for her but she hadn't taken back (Chapter 443):
"Shard, don't you have any other ladies' clothes at ho?"
She seed to have returned to her normal mood.
"Apart from a garter belt and a pair of red high heels (Chapter 486), you'll have to make do with your own clothes for now."
Fortunately, it had rained today, so Dorothy had worn an extra coat when she left. Now it was just that coat that had gotten wet, so she still had clothes to wear.
"ow~"
Dorothy sat on the small sofa to the side, and the cat on Shard's lap glanced at her, then lazily owed.
"Wait!"
Shard imdiately put down the docunts in his hands and sat up straight, becoming alert:
"Are you Lecia?"
The blond girl curved her lips into a smile, glancing at Shard's cat:
"It's , your cat is really amazing. So far, it is the only one who can accurately distinguish between us."
Saying so, she touched her right earlobe.
"Good morning, what brings you here?"
Shard asked, handing over the handwritten docunt to her. Lecia took it, glanced at it, and then placed it on the coffee table:
"Of course, it's to thank you."
"Oh, don't joke! It's nothing..."
"It's no small matter."
The young lady with hair still damp looked at Shard, and through Dorothy's body's eyes, Shard felt he really could see Lecia's soul.
"Really, I'm very grateful to you. I had imagined that one day Dorothy and I could get closer, but I really didn't think it would co so quickly."
Her Highness the Princess said softly. Although she seed calr than Dorothy earlier, it was obvious that this calm was just a customary disguise over her emotions.
"Thank
when you can touch each other," Shard said, looking away and pouring her a cup of tea. Lecia gave a smile, shaking her head slightly:
"eting you really was our luck."
"Then go thank the doctor, as it was the doctor who t ," Shard humd, moving the seemingly asleep cat from his lap to the sofa. The cat wriggled a bit and curled up as if afraid of getting cold:
"As for the matter of the Red Butterfly Pendant, you should go find Old John yourself, I only know so much. Old John might be able to make a better Red Butterfly, let
know when it's successful."
He pointed to the docunts on the coffee table:
"Also, the investigation about Lieutenant Houghton you asked
for, I've got it all figured out. He did have significant expenses lately and even took up cigars, but the official story is that he won big in a card ga in town."
The gentleness on Lecia's face vanished, she turned cold and snorted:
"As expected, it seems I've been shalessly betrayed."
"Do you need
to..."
Shard made a throat-slitting gesture, which elicited a chuckle from Lecia. Shaking her head slightly, she said:
"It's not that serious. It's just soone smuggling my goods. The damage those little mice cause isn't significant, but I must make them understand what the price is. Actually, I have so side businesses. In a warehouse in Midshire Fort, there's a batch of goods waiting to be shipped to Carsonrick next month."
Shard nodded in understanding. The princesses and princes of Carsonrick wouldn't miss an opportunity to use their power to earn Gold Pounds.
"Do
another favor, will you? Check the inventory in the Midshire Fort warehouse for . It doesn't need to be too detailed, just count the number of boxes. Your involvent ensures there's no funny business, and I want to give them a good warning."
Lecia could have done this with her local influence, but Shard doing it would be faster.
"No problem, I was planning to go to Midshire Fort this afternoon anyway. Where is it? Should I sneak in, or should I contact your people using a certain identity?"
Shard asked. To him, this was rely a bit of extra legwork.
"Sneak in. This ti, I must let them know the cost of betraying ."
A cold smile that Dorothy would never have flashed flickered across her face, and seeing Shard look at her in surprise, she laughed and asked:
"What's the matter?"
She was indeed adept at controlling her expressions.
"Oh, nothing. Where exactly is it?"
"19 Punjab Street, right in the center of town. Go next Tuesday, which is the first day of the Month of Withered Leaves. They'll have a holiday that day, and after the morning inventory, there will be almost no one in the warehouse."
"Alright, no problem."
Shard nodded, then hesitated. The warehouse on Punjab Avenue, he had heard of it from another source.
The information passed on by the Grey Hawk about Vigil Caron from the Duchy of Seth was: "On the last day of this month, your goods will be in the warehouse on Punjab Avenue in Midshire Fort City, with a red door sign." And that warehouse with the red door sign, Shard had made sure to check, was number 18 on Punjab Street, just a wall away from Lecia's goods warehouse.
"What a coincidence."
"Shard, how can I thank you? I rember Dorothy saying that you seem to have so major expenses lately, so you're in need of Gold Pounds?"
Lecia inquired tentatively.
"No, no, no, don't give
Gold Pounds."
Shard wanted to avoid being seen as a man who relied on his partner's money. He didn't feel that running an errand for Lecia was worth much:
"If you don't mind, I'd rather see the initial communication diary between you and Dorothy. I've always been curious about that."
"Oh, that won't do."
Lecia shook her head slightly, quite resolute:
"That's not sothing you should see. Instead, how about... I'll prepare so autumn clothing for you. I've noticed all your clothes are old, and you can't go out dressed like that."
Lecia's definition of "old clothes" must have been different from Shard's, as the autumn wear in Shard's wardrobe had been prepared for him by Detective Sparrow before his death, purchased on discount during springti as new clothes.
"Okay."
If it was just so clothes, Shard didn't mind.
"Also, have you ever kissed a blond girl who's just taken a bath?"
Lecia asked again.
"Certainly not."
Then Lecia, her hair still damp, sat beside Shard wearing only that thin lady's shirt, and hugged him.
Perhaps Angelina was right; Lecia did indeed enjoy kissing.
"ow~"
Mia, curled up into a ball, suddenly opened her eyes, looking suspiciously at the two. After owing, she pawed at Shard.
"Hm?"
Shard pushed away the girl in front of him, his face startled as he called out:
"Dorothy!?"
Those green eyes looked closely at him, sowhat reproachful:
"Really, I should get rid of your cat first before trying to see if you can actually tell us apart."
"That's not my…"
"Shut up, Shard."
The female writer said, wiping her lips with her finger, and she looked at Shard tenderly:
"Lecia said she would personally thank you, which is why I agreed to the soul exchange with her. I didn't expect this to be how she thanked you."
Her gaze was shy again, but she boldly gave Shard a brief kiss:
"That one was hers, this is my thank-you gift."
With flushed cheeks and biting her lower lip cautiously, she was still not as bold as Lecia. That might have been the only difference between them.
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