Chapter 429: Chapter 429
As he pulled the slip of paper with the address from his pocket, his coat inadvertently shifted, revealing the baron's medal pinned to his chest.
"Please wait a moment, Mr. Baron. I'll go make some inquiries for you."
The middle-aged police officer gave a flustered bow before quickly turning and hurrying inside.
Five minutes later, a detective in a yellow trench coat and a black hat walked over with the officer. He gave Jenkins a polite nod and said,
"Sir, if the person you're looking for is a Mrs. Caroline Hill, age fifty-three, the residents say she hasn't been home for several days. Apparently, she went to Vixinka Village on the outskirts of the city to visit a friend. According to our records, the lady was the victim of a scam some time ago, and her financial situation is quite dire..."
Jenkins had already braced himself for the news that the elderly Mrs. Caroline had met with some misfortune. Learning she was still alive filled him with a wave of emotion. Before hearing this, he had been genuinely worried that the old woman had been caught up in his own string of bad luck.
"So I'm not some kind of 'walking Grim Reaper' after all," he thought. "Death and disappearances are better suited for detectives, not writers..."
It was probably all the death he'd encountered recently that had led him to such a morbid thought. In any case, after asking for the specific location, he took a carriage out of the city.
Vixinka Village was a small hamlet that existed in the shadow of Bel Diran. Aside from the villagers' convenient access to the city, it was as unremarkable as any other village in the kingdom.
The villagers were perplexed by the arrival of a stranger, but a few pence were all it took to secure enthusiastic directions. Mrs. Caroline's friend lived right in the village, and when Jenkins called out from beyond the simple fence, the owner was at home.
"Excuse me, is Mrs. Caroline Hill here? I have a letter to deliver to her!"
An old woman emerged from the house, cupping a hand to her ear and shouting back in an even louder voice,
"Oh, young man, she just left here a few hours ago! I imagine she's heading back to the city. If you can't find her at home, then Caroline is sure to be at Spencer Square. She told me a circus came to town today and is performing there! You'll know her by the brown beaded flower she wears. She always did think that thing was beautiful!" For origınal chapters go to NovelHub(.)net
Coming up empty again, Jenkins had no choice but to head back to the city. It was only when he reached the village entrance that he remembered he'd forgotten to pay the driver to wait for half an hour. Now he had no way of getting back.
Chocolate tapped his neck with a paw, and a look of realization dawned on Jenkins's face as he took out the bone whistle.
The path back to the city was flanked mostly by farmland, so the chances of being seen were slim. Still, Jenkins maintained his usual caution, altering his appearance before putting the bone whistle to his lips.
As a piercing sound cut through the air, a thick black mist drifted from the whistle and swirled before him. When the mist dissipated, a skeletal horse stood there, impatiently stomping its front hooves on the ground, waiting for the man and his cat to depart.
The journey back to the city was remarkably smooth. It being a Saturday, the citizens were out and about. Spencer Square was the second-largest public plaza in Bel Diran, a place where different performances and events were held every month of the year.
A massive tent had been erected in the square, and a clown in a comical outfit was collecting tickets at the entrance.
Jenkins found himself swallowed by the crowd, with no choice but to shuffle along with them. Before he knew it, he'd been jostled to the front. There was certainly no way to retreat now, and remembering that this outing was supposed to be a leisure trip anyway, he cheerfully paid his ten pence.
A clamor of voices filled the air both inside and outside the tent. To look after his lovely cat and keep it out of reach of jumping children, Jenkins found a spot in a corner, higher up in the stands. Beside him sat a young man scribbling in a notebook and a woman with a melancholic expression.
The performance in the ring was an acrobatic display. First, a clown with a painted face rode out from behind the curtain on a unicycle and began juggling five oranges.
He was calling out to the audience in a shrill voice, but Jenkins's seat was too far back, and all he could hear was a faint buzzing.
"Do you like it here?"
He lifted his right hand and gently rubbed under the cat's chin.
Chocolate purred, its eyes narrowed contentedly, and rubbed its whiskers against Jenkins's cheek.
The morning circus performance would last until about noon, and anyone who wanted to stay for the afternoon show would have to buy a new ticket. Jenkins had arrived at ten past eleven, just in time to catch the grand finale of the morning program.
It featured three clowns in identical costumes, distinguished only by their hair, which was colored red, green, and blue. Each held a slender sword, and they were engaged in a duel within a circular ring cluttered with all sorts of props.
For the sake of showmanship, the so-called "duel" was more of an acrobatic routine with the added sound effects of clashing blades. But that was enough to get the audience excited, especially since they were always on the edge of their seats, thinking someone might actually get hurt.
Jenkins felt his money had been well spent, but he hadn't forgotten the purpose of his visit. There were at least a few thousand people in the circus tent, and finding an old woman wearing a brown beaded flower among them would not be easy.
The performance came to an end. The clowns, the magician, and the animal tamer with his furry partners all took a bow, but Jenkins still hadn't found the person he was looking for.
He stood his ground, waiting for the crowd in front of him to thin out. Then, with a casual glance, he spotted an elderly woman—wearing a brown beaded flower—slipping quietly backstage.
"Could that be her?" he wondered. "What is she doing?"
Jenkins raised an eyebrow. He blinked, and a special glimmer appeared in his vision.
"What kind of circus is this? One, two... nine Enchanters?"
A bad feeling crept over him; it seemed he had stumbled into trouble yet again. He covered his face and shrank back as a fluid shimmer of light washed over his body. His build, clothes, and facial features underwent a subtle transformation with the shifting light.
Chocolate's fur rippled as it, too, began to change color, its gaze fixed curiously on the backstage area.
Jenkins's premonition proved correct. Just as the last fifty or so audience members were bottlenecked at the exit, a muffled explosion echoed from backstage. A lion with singed fur burst through the wooden wall, flew through the air, and came to a tumbling stop in the center of the ring.