Whispering Verse

"You can tell something is wrong as soon as you hear this kind of last words and requests."

There was not much expression on Shade's face as his hand was being held in front of the bed. But he knew clearly that the detective accurately predicted death and took in a homeless man with a brain that was not very useful before he died. He even left all his property behind for a simple-sounding request. Well, this simple request is anything but simple.

I'm afraid the other party is more than just a detective, but Shade, who has taken over the new body, is not the same guy as before. Even if the original Shade didn't know the truth, the current visitor from a foreign land also understood that he shouldn't easily get involved in something that he knew was wrong at first sight, otherwise...

"If you don't agree, I guarantee that after I die, you won't get even a penny from me, and everything here will not belong to you. You will become a homeless man again, without gaslights, no fireplaces, and no day." With three meals and not even a bed, you will go back to your old life..."

But Shade must agree, he has nothing in this world. Compared to becoming a tramp and working his way up from scratch, getting involved in a troublesome business and gaining property, Shade knew that neither option was good, but he had to choose one.

Moreover, if you have already stood here and heard these words, you have already participated, so it is impossible to withdraw. Shade knows how to assess the situation and how to evaluate his own situation.

"But, is the death of Mr. Sparrow Hamilton related to the supernatural? Is it related to the voice in my head?"

He thought to himself, but was unable to analyze any further conclusion. Unexpectedly, the voice in his head appeared again at this time:

[Related to the extraordinary, he died because of a [relic]. This has nothing to do with you. 】

The voice was still so elegant and calm. Even though the amount of information is short, the murmuring voice still sounds like reciting poetry.

"[Relic]?"

It is a proper name in the ancient and elegant language of women. Different languages ​​have different information content, and in the language used by women, this proprietary vocabulary has a huge amount of information, and has meanings such as "sealed object", "contained object" and "cursed object".

Shade was glad that he understood this language. He read the meaning of "special items that can exercise extraordinary power but are extremely dangerous" from the vocabulary.

This gave Shade a rather bad suspicion about the world.

"So, who are you anyway?"

The voice didn't explain the term, so Shade asked in his mind. From the other party's answers to his questions, he understands that the other party is also an individual who can think.

【I am you. 】

The murmuring voice answered softly, and the whisper-like way of saying it made Shade's back feel hairy.

But Shade snorted softly. He was very sure that the body was male, and the voice in his head was not the original owner.

Seeing the glow of the bedside lamp illuminating the horribly wrinkled and inactive skin of the man on the bed, Shade said to him:

"I understand, sir."

"Shade, I still have ten minutes to live. If you have any questions, please ask them together."

The other party said something very remarkable, and his tone was full of fatigue. But Shade knew that if what the other party said was completely correct, then the next question would be the key to his foothold in this world. He must be cautious:

"Your death...seems unusual."

Pretending to speak in a slow voice and making it look like your brain is not working properly is quite strenuous. The first question concerns his own situation after the other person's death. Shade must ensure that the cause of the detective's death will implicate him.

"We have indeed not talked about this in the past. I also know that you have been worried...Don't worry about this. My death in a while may scare you, but don't worry. My death will not affect you. I need you to complete the task in three months, so I can guarantee this. The person who killed me will never appear again. After all, we ordinary people are not worthy of each other's attention."

The amount of information obtained was quite good, and the man on the bed had no intention of hiding anything.

"Ordinary...people?"

Shade was really hesitant this time.

"You don't need to know, in fact, even I don't understand very well. Those ring magicians, mystics who use the four elements of [miracle], [enlightenment], [blasphemy] and [whisper], the five major righteous churches and the three major thaumaturgy academies, this terrifying world... Forget what I just said, and you will live a better life. Remember, you don’t understand anything.”

The man on the bed tried his best to emphasize. Shade could only write down these nouns and then nodded:

"Okay, I don't understand anything."

He guessed that "Circle Warlock" is the title of the mystics in this world, and [Miracle], [Enlightenment], [Profanity] and [Whispers] are a link in the power system. The Orthodox Church and the Academy of Thaumatology are the main forces of the mystics. .

It is impossible for an ordinary detective to know so much. Detective Hamilton really has many secrets.

But Shade did not continue to ask about this topic. He had to make the other party willingly tell more information within a limited time, instead of being suspicious of each other and trying to find out the lies and the truth:

"How am I going to... live after you die? I don't understand detectives, and I don't know much about reading."

Although time is tight, I can't speak faster. Not just because of the disguise, but because Shade is not yet fluent in the language. The fact that he could only walk during the race made him quite anxious. But he couldn't show his anxiety, so he felt even more anxious.

"It doesn't matter, it's enough to follow what I taught you. You only need to stay here for three months. After three months, sell all your things and go to live in the country. It will be more suitable for you there and enough for you to live a peaceful life. ....After all, prices are lower.”

Probably because he really ran out of energy, the man on the bed did not say more complete words. But Shade had no past memories at all and had no idea what the other person had taught him. He asked the voice in his head for help, but the voice did not appear.

"Is there anything else you need to explain to me?"

Shade asked for the third time. This question was also spoken after careful consideration.

"Remember what I told you in the past three months; remember the simple commission I left in the memo that you can try to do to maintain the operation of the detective agency; and, the cards in this diary. ....."

The weak man pointed to the bedside. He let go of Shade's hand, and Shade bent down and picked up the diary. Brown leather cover, fastened with magnetic buckles, this diary is well protected by the user.

Shade handed the diary to Mr. Hamilton on the bed, but the latter shook his head, he was almost speechless.

So Shade opened the diary himself and flipped through it roughly. Each page contained different consecutive dates, and both front and back sides were used. Most of the pages only have one sentence: "Nothing to do today, not much deposit left." A few pages record the progress of the commissions received by the firm.

Turning to the middle of the diary, the page turning stopped, and a hard card was sandwiched there. Shade controlled not to raise his eyebrows and saw that it was a rectangular card that was less than the size of a palm.

After taking it out, it feels like there is a layer of completely transparent wax on the surface of the card, protecting the card itself from environmental damage. But after rubbing it carefully, it felt like it was a layer of transparent skin. For some reason, Shade suddenly thought of human skin.

The cards are not thick and can be seen by the light in the room.

The reverse side that Schade thinks is an abstract pattern of the sun, moon, and stars, a strange combination of shapes superimposed on top of each other; the front side that Schade thinks is a picture of a person who turned his head and couldn't see all the features, sitting sideways on a high stool. Above, a lady holds the moon in her hand.

Silver hair, a smile on his face, and wearing a robe. But the colors of the playing cards are not rich enough, only white, black and cold colors near the two colors.

The upper right corner of the front is marked with the number 3, and the upper left corner is a small sun symbol. Between the two, in the center of the front of the card, there is a black vertical line drawn in a white circle.

Right below the picture of the woman, that is, below the front, there is a slight blank space, and there is a line of small words written there:

[When using this card, you can adjust the number within the range of 1 to 5. 】

The playing cards do not look very new. Looking from the side against the weak light in the room, you can see the damage that is not easy to detect, but you can also see that the owner has worked hard to preserve it carefully.

Shade actually completely understood the words on the cards, just like he could understand men and women talking.

"It's really strange. After time travel, I can understand and understand, but I can't speak."

He was thinking in his mind and asked softly:

"What's this?"

"A very valuable playing card. It is the same as the 54-card set of ordinary playing cards we usually use. It is a card representing [Sun 3] in the four suits of sun, moon, star and flower. But this card is specially issued. The patterns are rare and have great collection value. Keep it in a diary, do not get it wet or fold it in half, and do not show it to others easily. But if you are really desperate, go to the Birmingham Collection in Tobesk City, where People know its value... Rhodes cards are the most important collection in my life..."

Shade nodded and wrote down the term "Rhode Card", understanding that this is a relatively common card game in this world, and that [Three of the Sun] is of the same nature as commemorative coins and commemorative stamps. So he put the playing card back into the diary. Although this playing card was a little more refined, judging from the productivity of the times judged by the decoration of the bedroom, it can be inferred that this world can produce such things, so there is no need to have too much suspicion.

"Sir, do you have anything else to say?"

Shade asked again. It was better to let the other party take the initiative now than to ask the question himself.

"Shadow."

Mr. Hamilton held Shade's hand again and looked at the young man beside the bed with softer eyes:

"I know I've never been a good person, but I'm really sorry for getting you involved. Leave Tobesk City in three months. This kind of capital city is not suitable for you...

But I think if you can understand, you will also think that I made the right choice by taking you away from the homeless life. Your brain is not working well. Remember, don’t easily believe other people’s words in the future, especially don’t easily believe the words of guys who try to make you pay... I have contacted the Tobesk Public Cemetery and made my choice. tomb. The corpse carrier will come soon, you don't have to follow. Live in this house for three months, following the life skills I teach you.

Shade, I'm so sorry...good luck. "