After putting down the dark red round-bellied fountain pen, Klein picked up the piece of paper with the divination sentence written on it and leaned back against the chair back.
He moved his lips and began to repeat "the time of Kapin's dinner today" over and over in a low voice.
The words rippled through the silent and vast gray fog, and Klein's eyes quickly deepened while his eyelids slowly lowered.
In the fragmented dream, he saw that spacious and elegant dining room, the gold-inlaid ceramic tableware, and the caviar, roast chicken, braised lamb, fried beef eye, fried dragon bone fish, cream soup, and other foods.
These foods were placed in front of several diners in a certain order according to certain needs. Among them were the slightly chubby Kapin, the middle-aged gentleman Horras in a white wig, Katie in only a thin shirt, and
Looking diagonally outward from the end of the table, one could see a decorated glass window. Outside the window, the clouds were sparse, and the red moon was faintly visible in the sky.
Klein opened his eyes, noted the position of the moon in the dream, and quickly calculated the approximate time based on his common sense of astrology.
"Somewhere between 7:30 and 7:45... Considering that in several images, Kapin and the others were already halfway through dinner, it could be adjusted forward by 15 minutes. In that case, 7:30 is a better choice..." Klein muttered to himself, interpreting the revelations from the "dream divination."
Having dinner at 7:30 was not too uncommon; it was even the norm in the Ruen Kingdom and even the Northern Continent. Because many middle-class people, either due to environmental issues or cheap rent, lived in the suburbs and took short steam train commutes to work every day. By the time they returned home, it was often past seven in the evening, so 7:30 to 8 was the normal dinner time.
Klein had experienced this when he was in
This was why commoners and the poor often had dinner between 7:30 and 8.
And because the gap between lunch and dinner was so long, afternoon tea, originally a thing of the upper class, gradually became popular among the middle class and the poor.
After finishing the interpretation, Klein recalled the revelation he had just received and noticed a problem: Where were Kapin's wife and children?
They did not appear in the dining room... Could Kapin be an extreme follower of the Storm Lord, so women and children had to eat in the living room? Or was there another reason? Or was Kapin not married and had no children? He was a middle-aged man after all... Klein tried to divine but could not get a valid answer, so he had to give up.
"7:30." He repeated the time to himself and immediately returned to the real world.
…………
In the evening, Kapin, who wore a formal bow tie even at home, squinted at the subordinate in front of him and asked in a slow but chilling tone: "
"Yes, boss." Even though he was a longtime associate of Kapin, the subordinate still felt fear and trepidation.
"Odes, call me 'sir,' 'sir.' In a few years, it will be 'lord.'" Kapin tugged at his tie, leisurely handling a large cigar. "When did Fabian die? How did he die?"
"This afternoon, I sent him to the East End to do something, and he got into a conflict with the Zimangel gang and got stabbed in the neck..." Odes described tremblingly.
Kapin, toasting his cigar, asked in a flat tone: "Fabian is really an idiot.
"But don't the Zimangel gang know he's an idiot under me?"
"Sir, you know, mountain people often come to the East End to join the Zimangel gang. They are wild and reckless and don't care about who's who at all," Odes quickly explained.
Kapin snorted: "They forgot this isn't the highlands? Or they forgot me, Kapin?
"Odes, I want the corpse of the Zimangel gang leader in that neighborhood. Can you do it? If you can't, I'll sink your wife, children, and you into the Tosok River."
"Sir, no problem!" Odes immediately raised his voice.
Then he asked in a low voice: "Which men can I gather?"
Kapin was about to answer when the door suddenly opened, and the middle-aged gentleman in a white wig, Horras, walked in.
He coldly glanced at Odes, then shifted his gaze to Kapin: "I heard one of your men got into a conflict with a gang in the East End and died?"
"Yes, Mr. Horras." Kapin stood up with his cigar.
Horras stared into Kapin's eyes: "You want to retaliate against them?"
Kapin's forehead suddenly beaded with sweat: "No, no, Mr. Horras, you misunderstand."
Horras nodded slightly: "You must remember, we are in a critical period. If not necessary, try not to make trouble."
He paused for a second, observing Kapin's reaction, and said: "You are not the only human trafficker in
"We chose you because you are ruthless and shameless yet extremely cautious, not because you are already the biggest human trafficker."
Odes, listening nearby, wished he could be just a puff of air, so he wouldn't have to see the humble attitude of his boss Kapin.
Kapin showed no anger on the surface and smiled obsequiously: "Mr. Horras, my main concern is that Fabian's death might not be simple, and it might disrupt your plans."
"No, his death is not suspicious," Horras said in a confident tone. "I haven't received any feedback on that."
"I see..." Kapin pretended to be relieved. "Then I am reassured."