As the vibration frequency of the wheels passing through the joints of the rails gradually slowed down, the train entered the capital of the Loen Kingdom, Backlund, dragging the slowly dissipating smoke.
This most prosperous city in the world has a population of more than 5 million. It is Land of Hope in the minds of all people in the kingdom, and is also reluctantly recognized as "City of Cities" by other countries.
In comparison, Tingen City, where Angel has lived for two months, is simply a small town.
Of course, Tingen City is not without its advantages, such as air quality, Tingen City is much better than Backlund...
Angel, who was wearing a simple long skirt and a hooded cloak, stepped out of the train carriage and was immediately startled by the pungent light yellow mist here.
Although she had long read various social comments in newspapers criticizing Backlund's air quality, and even made up many jokes to ridicule it, the environmental difference in this industrial capital still exceeded her wildest imagination.
Even on this semi-open platform, once people walk thirty meters away, they can only see a shallow outline. The gas lamps hanging along the platform have long been lit, but they can only barely dispel the dimness of the fog and prevent people from bumping into pillars or walls.
I remember Ms. Kavi from Enmat Harbor also said she wanted to come to Backlund for retirement because the environment at the port was so bad and the air was filled with industrial waste gas. I wonder if she misses her original home now...
After taking a breath of exhaust gas that was far "better" than Enmat Harbor, Angel silently lit a candle for Kavi's dream life, and then left the platform with his suitcase.
I bought a Dixie Pie at the station, a cup of coffee with extra milk, and a Backlund Daily of the day. Angel found an empty bench and enjoyed dinner while browsing the newspaper under the dim light.
She first turned to the last few pages and looked for information about house rentals in the advertising area.
When leaving the Church of Evernight headquarters, Angel received 50 pounds of "activity funds." In addition to the 1 pound 5 soli used to buy train tickets and the 5 pence she just spent on dinner and newspapers, the rest was all her cash.
Even if you add the 1,000 pounds in Backlund Bank's bearer account, you have to make careful calculations and use it after losing your job. It is impossible to buy a house in a place like Backlund where land is so expensive, not to mention I don't know how long I can stay here...
By the way, 350 pounds of the 1,000 pounds are to be given to Miss Justice. She helped me buy "all the blood of Black Abyss Demon Fish" needed to be promoted to "Witch"... Then there are only 650 pounds left.
Thinking of Justice, she couldn't help but think of Mr. Fool, and Klein who had become his believer at some point.
What other hidden secrets are there, and when did it become the Fool's Believer... I didn't know everything about him until he left.
Taking a deep breath and stopping her wandering thoughts, Angel took a bite of the grease-filled pie and returned her gaze to the newspaper spread on her lap. The brightness of the light in the station was not suitable for reading, but it didn't matter to her who had night vision.
"Housing Improvement Association, they definitely need proof of identity. Don't say I don't have it now. Even if I have proof of identity of Angel Granger, I will probably be visited by Nighthawks after registration... North Borough Welsh Street, a single-family house, only 2 minutes away from Saint Samuel Cathedral, forget it, you might run into Ms. Daly when you go out, how can I still have the nerve to see her..."
After looking at the information about the houses for rent one by one, Angel eliminated the formal intermediaries that required identification, excluded West Borough and Empress Borough that were crowded with aristocrats and Rich Merchant, and the rents were astonishingly high, and finally chose a location that looked good.
"Backlund Bridge Borough, two-story townhouse, furnished, rent starting from half a year."
Recalling the Backlund map she saw on the platform when she got off the bus, she confirmed the approximate location of the house.
The entire area around the only bridge Backlund is called Bridge District. It is adjacent to the Tussock River that crosses the entire city. It is surrounded by East Borough and Docklands, which have large population flows and extremely poor public security. Crossing the bridge to the south is the bridge South District, which is full of residential buildings.
There, even if you encounter any danger and need to escape at any time, you have multiple directions to choose from.
Now, unlike when she was at Tingen, she no longer has the status of a member of the official organization.
In order to complete Arianna's plan, she had to contact other secret organizations in Backlund, and even faced various arrests and pursuits. At that time, convenient transportation and complex environment were more conducive to escape.
After determining the goal, Angel no longer browsed other advertising information, but browsed other pages of the newspaper while eating pie to satisfy the information needs that he had not been exposed to the outside world for a long time.
"The follow-up interview on the death of 'Vice Admiral Hurricane' Qilingus... contained no useful information. Sure enough, his death was covered up by the relevant departments, and it was not even revealed that he was Beyonder."
"The parliament's proposal to form the 'Kingdom Atmospheric Pollution Investigation Committee'... It's time for environmental protection. Even the capital Backlund has become like this, almost catching up with the 'Smog City'. Maybe one day there will be a smog incident like London..."
Angel The corners of his mouth twitched, trying to smile, and then he saw the next news item.
"The Tingen City gas pipeline leak and explosion caused 85 deaths and more than 200 injuries. Councilor Maynard, who gave a campaign speech that day, has been confirmed to have died on the spot in the explosion."
It turns out that the official claim for the incident that Evil God's Offspring happened was a gas explosion...
She blinked and read the report carefully.
It was already seven days after the incident, another Sunday. Since the incident occurred a week ago, this report did not detail the situation at that time, but only followed up on the subsequent casualty statistics.
Interestingly, the report mentioned the survivor's statement, saying that before the gas pipe underneath Street Park exploded, a woman fired several shots at the scene and threatened to kill people randomly, causing chaos at the scene.
Some people think that this action caused people in the park to escape the scope of the explosion, objectively reducing the number of deaths, but others think that she was the culprit of the leaked gas explosion.
"You have no idea how much Catastrophe you have escaped..."
Although he sneered at those who misunderstood him, Angel could also understand their feelings. After all, topics like Sacrifice Ritual and the coming of evil gods were impossible to report in the newspapers, and he did behave mentally abnormally in Street Park. It was not surprising that people thought he was the creator of the disaster.
If I had lit a few Black Flame flowers instead of using a gun, I might have been more like the person who detonated the gas pipe...
Angel smiled bitterly, and suddenly felt that a small part of the "Witch" Potion in his body was digested silently.
Catastrophe in front of the public, the person who caused Catastrophe to happen, the reputation spread widely...
Angel immediately thought of these key points.
Should we say that he is worthy of being Pathway who caused death and tragedy... Even the vague "Witch" in the name of Potion can absorb part of this behavior?
However, this is consistent with the experience I gained from playing Instigator. The act of being published in newspapers and being seen by more people will be more helpful for digesting Potion.
Keeping these experiences in mind, Angel put away the newspaper, drank the last sip of coffee, threw the paper cup and the paper bag containing the pie into the trash can, and left the station with his luggage.
After arriving at Backlund Bridge Borough via the subway lines extending in all directions, and then changing to a hired carriage, Angel finally arrived at Red Rose Street before the sky completely darkened.
This is a street facing the river, but this is not an advantage of the nearby residences. The river that crosses the city is full of steamships traveling back and forth day and night, as well as oil and garbage floating on the river. There are even corpses floating from time to time, so most of the windows on the river side are closed.
They are also Tussock River and Tingen, but the ones there are much better than here...
After taking a look at the busy river, Angel knocked on the door of Red Rose Street 25.
This is a three-story single-family house. Half of the first floor is a shop. The sign "Wallis Grocery Store" hangs on it, which is old and faded.
After a few knocks, the side door next to the store was opened, and a brown-haired woman about 30 years old wearing an apron came out and looked at Angel warily.
"It's closed, what do you want?"
Angel put down his hood and said with a kind smile:
"Sorry to bother you, I saw the house rental information on "Backlund Daily". Is there a two-story townhouse for rent here?"
When she saw Angel's appearance, the woman had already put down most of her vigilance. After listening to her words, she even smiled:
"Yes, please wait."
She closed the door, and then hurried footsteps left and returned. The brown-haired woman opened the door again and invited Angel into the house.
Since the shop occupies a large area on the first floor, the actual living room of this house is located on the second floor. Angel followed the woman upstairs to the living room furnished with a life-like atmosphere, and met the real owner of the house, Ms. Wallis.
She is about fifty years old, and her black hair has a lot of silver strands in it. Although it can be seen that she has been taking care of it regularly, there are still some wrinkles on her face and the back of her hands.
"I heard that you want to rent my house?"
After Ms. Wallis invited Angel to sit down, Door Opening asked bluntly.
"That's right, the two-story apartment, I saw it written in the newspaper, is 15 soli per week?"
"Hmm, the minimum rent is half a year. There is no additional fee for furniture, but you have to pay for the water and gas bills yourself. The total is..."
"20 pounds 5 soli."
Angel finished the calculation quickly and replied.
Wallis raised his eyebrows and praised:
"You calculated quickly. At least this time the tenant is a cultural person."
"This time?"
Angel asked curiously.
"Haha, the last person who rented a house was Feysac people. He was rude, arrogant, and disappeared before returning the rent. I was worried that he would come back and left the house vacant for a month. I haven't seen him until now."
Mrs. Wallis complained endlessly about the last tenant, and then asked the maid to bring the contract that had been prepared long ago.
Angel I took a quick look and found that the contract was very formal. Apart from renewing the lease one month in advance and paying the rent, there was no other Special Requirements.
"By the way, I haven't asked for your name yet. You also need to show me your identification."
Mrs. Wallis asked casually while flipping through the contract and signing his name in several places.
"Sorry, I forgot to bring my ID when I came here from Tingen. If you need it, I can ask my family to send it over." Angel squeezed out a smile and said "Persuasion" to the other party.
"It's okay, I'm just asking casually. Only Sivellaus Yard people like to check other people's IDs all day long."
Listening to Wallis's response, Angel smiled slightly and signed his pseudonym on the contract, which was also the name he would use in Backlund in the future.
Irene Watson.