Mr. Oxenfurt shook his head and put the ring back on his rough finger:
“Thank you for your kindness. Something happened between Hela and me. Did she not let you talk about it? She is always like this, but I still feel sorry that you didn’t tell the truth. I thought we could be friends.”
Listening to his words, Shade looked at Mr. Osenfurt's friends who were setting fires, trying not to show too much contempt:
"To me, you and your wife are just strangers. I met her first, so I agreed to her request."
"You feel sorry for my wife? Guess there's something wrong with our relationship?"
Mr. Oxenfurt asked with a frown, his gray-blue eyes turning a little red because of the firelight.
Shade smiled:
"I am not someone who likes to meddle in other people's affairs, and your wife obviously knows you better than I do. Of course I will pity a woman who has suffered emotional setbacks, but I don't know you at all, and I don't know any information about you except your names. In this case, using your own thoughts to speculate on other people's situations, or even actively reaching out to help others, is behavior that only appears in knight novels."
For Shad, at least someone has to ask him for help clearly and offer a clear price - even if it's only 1 penny, then he will consider whether to help.
Last summer, when you helped that woman find her child, you didn't consider the price.
"She" suddenly said with a smile.
"That time it was for psychological satisfaction, and besides, that woman wasn't weird at all."
Shade responded in his mind, and Mr. Osenfurt nodded:
"I think I understand what kind of person you are. You are more suitable to be a detective than a novel writer."
"It just so happens that I'm thinking of a detective novel. Just like Delarion's Hamilton Detective Stories, it's really enviable to have one book to live on for a lifetime."
After saying that, Xia De narrowed his eyes slightly:
"Mr. Ossenfurt, did you really ask me to come here today to discuss the matter of the Founding Earth?"
He looked at the increasingly intense fire scene again:
"If nothing else, I think it's time to leave."
"It is indeed about the origin of the earth."
Mr. Oxenfurt called him, took back the ring, and folded his two strong arms across his chest again:
"The Founding Earth is not in my hands, but I know who has it. Help me do something, and I can tell you how to find him."
"I won't set a fire."
"No, it's not arson."
"Why me?"
Shade pointed to himself:
"I said, I'm just an ordinary writer."
"But you beat me, twice."
Oxenfurt held out his hand again, his face extremely serious, which greatly enhanced his ferocious look:
"You beat me, which proves that you are better than me. If you don't believe it..."
He looked at the horses he and his companions rode on, which were equipped with guns and swords.
"I'm not going to fight you with a gun or a sword here. I'm not good at that."
Shade said immediately, and Stone Oxenfurt took a dice from his pocket:
"Let's guess the number and see who can guess closer. I guess 1."
Xia De frowned:
“6.”
The ivory-like dice was thrown and fell directly to the ground. After bouncing a few times, it hit the crack in the ground and stopped. The side facing up was 5.
Shade remained silent, and Mr. Oxenfurt snorted:
"Sure enough... Help me find something. When I married Hela two years ago, in addition to this family ring, I also gave her the ancestral 'Carsenrick Third Class Battle Hero Badge' - which my ancestor obtained in the battle with Delarion about 300 years ago, and a pair of sapphire earrings inlaid with glass. The main body is sapphire, and the glass pendant is sealed with a drop of my blood..."
This sounds very romantic.
"All three items were lost. Don't ask why. That's my family affair. Now that the ring has been found by you, if you can bring me the other two, you will know who holds the Creation Earth. And I am confident that I can convince the other party to give it to you."
"Were they thrown into the river, too?"
"It could be in the river, but it could also be anywhere in this city. I can only guarantee that the badge and earrings are still in the Randall River Valley. I originally didn't plan to bring them back, but since you found the ring, I think you might also find the other two items."
Xia De pursed his lips and was silent for a moment:
"I accept the deal, but I can't guarantee that I can find it. After all, I'm the writer John Watson, not the famous detective in the storybook, Riddle's Hamilton."
"It doesn't matter. Whether I can find them or not is not particularly important to me. I will send someone to deliver photos of the two pieces of jewelry to the Land of Plenty Inn later."
"Okay, then it's a deal. Happy working together."
Shade held out his hand to him, and Mr. Oxenfurt was a little surprised, but he also held out his hand and shook it.
Just as Shade thought, Mr. Osenfurt's hands were unusually rough. Shade certainly didn't have the ability to judge someone's profession by shaking hands like Director Anros, but he could still tell whether the other person was more suitable for holding a knife or a gun.
Ordinary people, at least judging from the current contact, they are ordinary people.
The two men did not shake hands and then let go. Mr. Oxenfurt suddenly exerted force:
"When you find the other two pieces of jewelry, just give them to me directly. You don't have to give them to my wife. In addition to the Founding Earth, I can give you an additional reward."
"Thank you for your generosity. Also, next time you invite me, please don't invite me to a place like this. I will think you are trying to threaten me."
Feeling the force on his palm, Xia De also exerted a little force.
The firelight illuminated the profiles of the two men shaking hands. Stone Oxenfurt frowned slightly, while Shade stared at him. The fire made the faces of the two men in the shadows appear to be shaking. The setting sun had already fallen below the city, and the increasingly clear shadows also swayed with the firelight.
Five seconds later, both Shad and Mr. Osenfurt let go of each other's hands. Shad had not used his full strength, so he was slightly at a disadvantage. But considering his self-proclaimed profession as a writer, this "slight disadvantage" was also normal.
"You have great strength. You don't look like a writer."
“If a writer traveling in the Old World didn’t have the strength, he would have been buried somewhere long ago. I never underestimate the risks of traveling alone.”
"Then I'll wait for your good news."
Mr. Oxenfurt said, and Shad nodded, turning and walking towards the horse tied in the woods.
When riding back to the city, Shade was still thinking about Mr. Osenfurt. There was definitely something wrong with this man, this was the hint given by Shade's sixth sense. Besides, every time someone was associated with the Vientiane Impermanence card, none of them was a normal person, so he would not have any luck.
The only question now is what his problem is:
"Is he the chosen one? But Luvia said that the chosen one can't be an ordinary person."
It was already completely dark when Shade rode back to the city. As he rode past the street lamps, the dim lights lit up one by one, providing illumination for the city at night.
At the Oscar Wilde Opera House, Miss Benedict is directing the young girls in the troupe to rehearse a new opera, and Shad notices that she uses the Unicorn Song he brought back from the Fifth Age.
"Is Miss Lathers here?"
Shade also walked into the small hall on the second floor. Miss Benanis asked the girls who were singing loudly on the stage to rest for a while, and then asked Shade to sit down in the first row and talk:
"Why, do you have something to do with her? What private matters could there be between you and Hillis?"
The tone of voice sounded a little off, but fortunately Xia De didn't hear it at all:
"I'm trying to track down a perfectly carved stone sculpture that may be related to the Stonemasons Guild."
He took out the photograph of the statue, and Miss Benanis looked at it:
"It's so vague that I don't have much impression. She went to a banquet on my behalf. This time it was the local Earl Johnson, who invited William of Anjou and Margaret to the banquet. It seemed that he wanted to introduce his daughter to William of Anjou. If you are in a hurry to find her, just go directly. I have another invitation here."
"Don't worry, I'll need to use a time key later. It'll be the same if I come back tomorrow morning."
Xia De said with a slight ease:
"After all, today is Sunday, so there's no need to push myself too hard."
"I always feel like you're busy, always running around with a serious look on your face. If you have nothing tonight, how about staying here and watching the rehearsal? If you want to hear me sing, I can sing for you like I did last week."
The blonde witch smiled and wanted to return the photo to Shade, but after taking another closer look, she felt that the face of the statue was very familiar:
"This is a bit like Owen Lathers, the father of Shiris. You can ask her."
The last time Shad took out the photo of "Mr. Thomas Granger", Miss Benanis also asked Miss Lathers to take a look to see if it was his missing father.
"Are they similar?"
"I have never met Mr. Owen Lathers, I have only seen old photos. Besides, your photo of the statue is too vague, I can't be sure. Besides, in my opinion, men of this age generally look like only a few types, and without the distinction of height, weight, and clothing, it is difficult to determine their identities."
Witches are not interested in men at all:
"So, I can only say it's very similar, but I can't be sure."
Shade nodded, wondering why the statue of Miss Lathers's missing father was in the church, so he asked casually:
"I've always heard that Miss Lathers is the leader of a certain Old God cult. Which Old God does she believe in?"
After asking the question, Xia De suddenly blinked, wondering why he had never asked this question in such a long time. But thinking about it carefully, this question didn't seem to be important.
"Um?"
When he realized what he had subconsciously ignored, and the impact of "forgetting" and "ignoring", he felt like he was struck by lightning, or like he was hit in the face by Xiaomia. His thoughts were quickly cleared, and the thoughts that had been ignored time and time again finally became completely clear at this moment.