After Allen and Talym filled out their recommendation forms, they left the Cragg Club. It wasn't the weekend, and they had two surgeries to perform that afternoon, plus they had to teach Viscount Conrad's youngest son horseback riding, making sure the newly adult wouldn't embarrass him during the Backlund social season later in the year.
Klein watched as the male servants in red vests and the beautifully dressed maids went back and forth several times before finally receiving his membership card and a badge engraved with the White Frost Constellation symbol.
"The membership fee is 50 pounds, and there are still three and a half months left in the year. The annual fee is 4 pounds." The valet in the red vest pushed the two items in front of Klein.
Klein took out the £57 in cash that Mary Gale had given him, counted out £54, and gave it to her.
The amount beyond the membership fees and annual fees was Mary's first reward; she was very pleased that Klein had quickly figured out who Doras Glaint's mistress was and taken photos of her.
A membership fee of 50 pounds... Lady Mary is truly a generous lady! Klein watched as the male servants and maids verified the authenticity of the banknotes and confirmed the exact amount, while thinking about Starling Summer's private remarks:
Mary's father was a co-founder of Coim Company, holding a 20% stake. Originally, it was just a small company that could barely make a little money, but as pollution in Backlund worsened and the demand for anthracite and charcoal increased, Coim Company rapidly expanded and became one of the top ten companies in the industry in the capital region, and Mary's net worth skyrocketed.
The only problem was that when she married Doras Glaint. Her father didn't pay much attention when he gave her the shares as dowry, and instead of "protecting her property through a gift," he opted for the more popular "bequest" method.
The former refers to the dowry existing as independent and separate property of the woman, with ownership not belonging to the man, and even the right to use it depending on the woman's mood. The latter refers to the dowry belonging to the entire family, but the man must make a valid will promising that if he dies before his partner, when dividing the remaining property, he will give priority to paying his wife two to four times the dowry, and then proceed according to normal inheritance law. This can effectively guarantee the widow's livelihood.
If Mary files for divorce before obtaining evidence of Dorag's infidelity, the shares of Coim Company will be split equally between the two parties.
Klein remembered that Starling said with great envy at the time:
"This share alone is currently worth close to 20,000 gold pounds. Add to that other assets, and Mary is a truly wealthy woman. Once divorced, she will definitely become the object of pursuit for many men in Backlund, including some nobles."
This money was barely enough for "Miss Justice " to assassinate Ambassador Bakerland twice... Klein suddenly made a connection, seeing the red-vested male servant and the pretty maid bowing to him:
"Mr. Moriarty, welcome to the Cragg Club."
Upon hearing this, Klein picked up the membership certificate and White Frost badge in front of him.
The former was made of very flexible cardboard, resembling a card, on which Klein's name and the date of his induction were written.
After pressing your index finger, this membership certificate is officially ready for use.
The latter is the unique coat of arms of the Cragg Club, named after the fact that it was founded in early November, corresponding to the White Frost Constellation. The obverse features the symbol and the number "192", while the reverse bears the inscription " Sherlock Moriarty ".
"The club currently has 192 members?" Klein asked casually.
"Yes, our club doesn't accept people without a referral," the red-vested waiter explained with a smile. "On the first floor, there's a buffet restaurant, bar, library, squash court, meeting room, and card room—all free for you to use, and you can also sample the food and drinks for free. On the second floor, there are 16 lounges and two small meeting rooms, also free; you can use them whenever they're available."
The pretty maid pointed behind her and said:
"There are two tennis courts on the lawn, completely free of charge, and two shooting ranges underground; you only need to pay the equipment rental price."
"If you're not satisfied with the simple buffet, you can order your own food. We have a dedicated chef, and you only need to pay for the ingredients."
All-inclusive: food, lodging, entertainment... truly a high-end club... Klein sincerely thanked Mrs. Mary in his heart.
He smiled gently:
"Send someone to show me around and familiarize me with the surroundings, then give me a rest room for a nap."
"Okay." The male servant in the red vest gestured for him to proceed.
After familiarizing himself with the environment of the Cragg Club, Klein entered the lounge and carefully studied its layout, discovering that it resembled a hotel room from later times, supposedly in the Intis style.
I need to think about how to get evidence of Doragu's affair tomorrow. The camera Flash are impossible to hide... which means there's only one chance... and doing it this way will definitely get me kicked out of the club... I need to think of a safer approach... I'll go look through the newspapers later and try to figure out the progress of the Ian incident from the news so I can determine which three days to protect... Klein paced back and forth, lost in thought.
Just then, he suddenly felt a pang of anxiety, and his whole body tensed up.
Is this the Clown's premonition? But no image comes to mind... Klein only feels the air around him become heavy, as if a storm is brewing.
Soon, the feeling disappeared, as if nothing had happened.
Could danger be imminent? But when I was attacked by Meursault, nothing like that happened... Klein, puzzled, took out a coin to Divination whether he would be attacked in the next few days.
The answer is no.
After thinking for a few seconds, Klein drew the curtains, pretended to take a nap, took four steps backward, and entered the Gray Fog.
He sat down, pondered for a long time, and then murmured to himself:
I will be in great danger in the next few days.
As he repeated the recitation, he flicked the coin again, watching the brass-colored object tumble and fall into his outstretched palm.
This time, the king's portrait is facing upwards!
This means yes!
My reaction just now was truly a harbinger of impending danger... Klein narrowed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.
He was quite puzzled by this matter.
Neither the " Seer " nor the " Clown " had ever demonstrated similar abilities before. Even if they could Danger Premonition, it was because the target was right in front of them, right beside them!
There's no one around me... Judging from the interference and misleading results of my Divination, this matter definitely involves a higher- Sequence individual, most likely Bakerland's assistant... But it actually triggered my premonition? This isn't scientific, uh, this isn't mysticism... There must be some other factors hidden here, but I can't figure it out yet... Klein looked around and saw only boundless Gray Fog, deep red tranquility, and the palace standing unchanged since ancient times.
He suppressed his doubts, temporarily setting aside the question of why, and focused his attention on the impending attack.
After several more Divination, Klein found that he could only confirm that there would be great danger in the next few days, but could not shorten it to three days, two days, or five hours.
In other words, he could only receive a rather vague revelation.
In the Dream Divination, he saw Ian, wearing Ian old coat, standing on the street, with elegant gas streetlights and a blurry red moon behind him.
There's nothing there except this picture.
"How should this be interpreted?" Klein thought for a while and could only conclude that this was a prelude to danger.
Without further delay, he immediately returned to the real world, left the Cragg Club, and rushed to the nearby Hillston Borough of Bank of Backlund to withdraw the remaining 100 gold pounds from his account. The 1,000 pounds given by " Justice " had not yet been cleared and reconciled, and the corresponding information had not been sent out. The account status was not synchronized. Theoretically, there was a loophole: Klein could withdraw 100 pounds and then withdraw it from another branch, taking advantage of the time difference in account synchronization.
However, this is only in theory. In order to avoid similar behavior, banks have many regulations for anonymous accounts. First, they strengthen the transmission of similar information between cities. Second, they limit the amount of a single withdrawal, with a maximum of 500 pounds. Third, if the last withdrawal Record is not in the local area, a telegram must be sent to inquire. Klein encountered the third situation today.
After putting away the money, he took a carriage to the Backlund Bridge Area and entered the Bravehearts Bar.
Led by Kaspars, he saw Maric sitting in the card room, still alone, without Living Corpse surrounding him.
Klein abandoned his idea of enveloping the Azik Copper Whistle in Spirituality, slammed the 100-pound note on the table, and said to the pale-faced Maric:
"I agree to the deal."
"I will pay £100 upfront, and then £300 for each day of protection."
"Protection begins now!"
Maric's gaze passed over him, looking behind him, and he nodded slightly.
"Okay, she agreed."
Huh? Klein looked back in astonishment, only to see the door panel, and then he saw nothing but thin air.
He silently activated his Spirit Vision, but still found nothing.
Maric pocketed the 100 pounds and said indifferently:
"You can go back now. She's already started protecting you, in a covert way."
If I hadn't done the Divination beforehand, I would have definitely thought you were scammers... Klein looked around and made a gesture as if he was about to leave through gritted teeth.
Throughout the journey, he would activate and deactivate his Spirit Vision Spirit Vision, constantly observing the area outside the car window, but he still couldn't find his so-called bodyguard.
Back at 15 Minsk Street, Klein closed the door, went into the bathroom, turned on the tap, and washed his hands.
The splashing sound stopped, he shook off the water droplets, dried his hands with a towel, and looked up at the bathroom mirror to examine his current appearance.
Just then, he saw his reflection in the mirror suddenly sway and transform into a woman wearing a black court dress.
The woman had light blonde hair, azure eyes, and exquisite features, but her face was unusually pale.
She wore a small black soft hat, lifted her skirt, and bowed slightly to Klein.
This... Klein didn't hide his surprise, and deliberately took a few steps back, bracing himself against the wall.
He had just realized that this might be the bodyguard he had hired for 1,000 pounds.
The image in the mirror quickly dimmed, and Klein saw himself again; everything returned to normal.