What new goods a shop had stocked, which neighborhood had seen a dispute, where a new face had appeared... These scattered pieces of information were worthless on their own, but in the hands of someone who knew how to analyze them, they could be pieced together to reveal the outline of the city's undercurrents.
Besides, Carlo himself held an official position with the Joint Investigation Bureau. The intelligence network could operate entirely under the banner of serving the bureau, and even if someone noticed it existed, they wouldn't dare interfere with it lightly.
Isaac thought for a moment, then asked, "Have you ever heard the name Vilka?"
Ellie tilted her head and thought for a while, then shook it. "No. Does she live nearby?"
"No, and it doesn't matter if you haven't heard of her." Isaac didn't explain further. It seemed information about Vilka was hidden more deeply; at least, it wasn't something he could find out in this area. "Has there been any big news in Vista lately?"
Ellie's eyes lit up. She looked Isaac up and down. "Sir, asking that is very suspicious of you."
Isaac was taken aback. He gave a helpless smile. "I actually just came from out of town. I'm not familiar with Vista yet, so I wanted to learn more about the place."
"From out of town..." Ellie's eyes darted about.
Isaac thought his inquiries were surely going to end up in the "homework" those children handed in to Carlo.
"Big news..." Ellie returned to the subject. "I don't really know what counts as big news, but lately my parents have been talking all the time about repealing the Corn Laws. Even the neighbors often bring it up."
"The Corn Laws?" Isaac didn't know much about the laws in the Vista region.
"I don't really understand them either. Anyway, I can't make much sense of the things the adults argue about."
Isaac nodded and asked if there was anything else he should be aware of nearby. Ellie answered each question, showing that she knew the neighborhood inside and out.
When he had asked just about everything, Isaac stood up. "I have to get back. Thanks for the information, Ellie. It was a big help."
Ellie stood up too, brushed the dust from her skirt, and said with a smile, "Sir, if you ever want to do homework too, you can come tell me at the shop."
Isaac waved goodbye and continued home with Fenri in tow.
Carlo's practice of funding the orphanage to gather intelligence gave him a deeper understanding of the boss's methods. As for Ellie not recognizing Vilka's name, that was only natural. Someone Fenn called a "big shot" probably wouldn't be casually mentioned on the streets.
As for the debate over the Corn Laws... any subject that stirred up the entire city might involve a deeper struggle of interests. It wouldn't hurt to pay more attention.
When Isaac returned to 122 Red Maple Street and walked in, he saw Carlo sitting behind the desk in the living room, leafing through a newspaper. A cup of steaming coffee sat on the desk.
Carlo looked up and glanced at Isaac and Fenri, who was following behind him. "How much did you get for the frame?"
"Ten shillings." Isaac pulled the crumpled bills from his pocket and laid them on the desk.
"Not bad. At least it didn't go to waste." Carlo glanced at the money. "Keep it. Consider it payment for running the errand today."
If I'd known, I would have haggled with the person at the recycling depot, Isaac thought. Still, he didn't stand on ceremony. He took the money back and sat on the sofa beside the desk.
Fenri lay down at his feet, resting his head on his front paws.
"On the way there, I met someone. She said her name was Vilka," Isaac said.
Carlo picked up his coffee cup. "What did she say to you?"
"She said she wanted to see what I looked like. She mentioned those books and said they weren't safe in my hands, but were reasonably secure in yours." As Isaac spoke, he watched Carlo's reaction. "Before she left, she said a few things to Fenri and mentioned the Wilderness."
"Who's Fenri?"
"Uh, that's... its name." Isaac pointed at Fenri by his feet. "It said its name was Fenriskul. I call it Fenri for short."
"Oh." Carlo didn't react much to the name Fenriskul.
"Vilka also asked me to give you her regards," Isaac added.
"She really has too much time on her hands." Carlo put down his coffee cup. "But since she came all that way specifically to say hello, she must have a fairly good impression of you. At least she doesn't intend to deal with you as an enemy."
Carlo didn't seem surprised by Vilka's appearance, and neither of them had sounded particularly friendly when speaking of the other. Isaac had a few suspicions. "Boss, you and Vilka... have some sort of grudge?"
"Just a few differences. We're not at the point of beating each other's brains out. Pay her no mind." Carlo waved a hand. "What about you? What did you think after taking a look around Vista?"
Isaac thought about what he had seen and heard along the way. "This city is much bigger than Palmer, and it... feels much more complicated too."
"You went to the recycling depot, didn't you?"
"How did you know?"
"There were probably only two ways to get rid of that broken frame. One was to find a recycling depot. The other was to use your looks to hook a rich patron and have them pay for it out of love." Carlo leaned back in his chair. "Judging by the price, clearly no rich patron would be that stingy, so it could only have been the recycling depot."
Isaac was momentarily at a loss for words. Although the logic did make sense, something about it didn't sound quite right.
Still, since Carlo had guessed he'd been to the recycling depot and might also learn from the children that he'd been asking about him, Isaac figured he might as well bring it up first to avoid suspicion later. "A few other things happened on the way back."
"Oh?"
"I asked around and heard that a Mr. Schuster funds an orphanage. He also has the paperboys write down what they see outside and awards prizes based on a monthly evaluation," Isaac said. "That Mr. Schuster is you, isn't he?"
"Not bad. You even looked into me." Carlo shrugged, unbothered that Isaac had been asking about him. "What do you think of the arrangement?"
"The information paperboys hear might not involve anything too confidential, but they still hear far more than ordinary people do. If they record what they see and hear, putting it all together creates an intelligence network with very broad coverage. And the investment isn't that large, either."
"Looks like you have some understanding of how it works." Carlo nodded. "The value of a lot of intelligence isn't in how confidential it is, but in who can connect the pieces and read the hidden information behind them."
He stood up and tossed the newspaper back onto the desk. "Get ready. You're coming with me to the Joint Investigation Bureau this afternoon. We'll get your credentials sorted, show you where it is, and mooch a dinner while we're there."
Mooching a meal right out in the open, Isaac thought. But since the boss had said so, he had no reason to refuse. He also wanted to see what the Joint Investigation Bureau was like.
"Do I need to prepare anything?"
"Are you planning to bring a gift? Just bring yourself. We'll talk about the rest when we get there."