Chapter 491: Chapter 491

"Oh, so it's a pocket watch chain!"

Jenkins had a moment of realization, while Chocolate, having already lost interest, flopped down.

"When the owner of this item is about to encounter danger, there's a certain chance the chain will emit a warning signal by vibrating at a high frequency. Although the probability of it activating isn't high, it's still an extremely precise divinatory item, very practical."

"It's certainly rare. A diviner I know once said that among all the categories of special items, divinatory ones are even scarcer than weapons."

He held the two ends of the silver chain in his hands, then turned to look at his cat. He'd long wanted to hang a bell on Chocolate's neck so he could always tell if it had slipped into the kitchen.

This thing was thin, light, and the perfect length...

Lunch was at the church. The bishop wasn't in the city today; it seemed he had gone with a group to preach in the Nolan countryside.

Miss Bevanna wasn't at the church at noon either, but since he had his combat lesson with her tonight, she would at least be back by dinner.

Jenkins was wise enough not to reveal his idea of putting a bell on Chocolate, and even made a show of attaching the chain to the lady's pocket watch. Consequently, Chocolate showed no signs of annoyance during lunch, and its quiet, dignified manner of eating drew constant light laughter from the nuns.

The old priest looked cheerful. Dipping a piece of bread into his thick soup with a fork, he said, "This is truly a good thing. I've been complaining for a long time that the city nights are too dangerous. Young people, in our era, we have steam-powered ships crossing the oceans and steam trains connecting the continent, yet our cities still don't have gas streetlights. That's just not right! Urban development should keep pace with the progress of steam industry, so that the citizens can truly experience the advance of the times!"

Jenkins happened to be sitting next to him and asked casually,

"I heard that in the past, whenever the installation, maintenance, and operating costs of streetlights were discussed, the council members would just point fingers at each other. So who's paying the gold pounds now? Even for a prosperous city like Nolan, that's a huge sum of money."

"It's not coming from taxes, nor from those council members. Someone came up with an excellent idea—a really good idea! I'm not sure about other dioceses, but here in the Nolan diocese, our church is putting up half the gold pounds!"

"So, when will the streetlights be fully installed?"

Jenkins asked again, feigning amazement.

"It's already the end of November... At the very least, most of the main roads, like Fifth Queen's Avenue where Pops Antique Shop is, will have them installed before the end of the year!"

This time, Jenkins was genuinely surprised. Since when was City Hall so efficient?

"When someone's footing the bill, things naturally move fast!"

the old priest remarked sarcastically.

In his heart, Jenkins attributed a small fraction of the credit for advancing the city's infrastructure to himself, and so he remained in a rather cheerful mood throughout lunch.

After lunch, he listened to mass in a side chapel for a while before leaving the church with Chocolate. It was the cat's usual naptime—a time it would normally spend lost in sweet dreams on Old Daddy's counter—so it was a bit listless.

He planned to visit the alley where the murder occurred that afternoon. Although he now had the Ouija board, the place was certainly under the tightest surveillance. He just intended to take a look; if he wanted to investigate more deeply, he'd have to wait until things calmed down.

It was another foggy day, but at least it was much better than yesterday. Since the distance wasn't great, he didn't plan on taking a carriage. Just as he rounded a street corner, mulling over the quickest route, he saw a girl of about twelve or thirteen ahead of him—the very same one he had met at the church that morning.

She had changed out of the clothes she wore at church and was now in the patched cotton coat she'd been wearing when Jenkins first met her on the street. Her hair, its color now restored, was wrapped in a headscarf, and she carried a small basket on her right arm. Since whatever was inside clearly wasn't flowers, Jenkins felt no psychological discomfort.

"The priest said her name was... Oh, I remember now, Fini Faithford!"

As this thought crossed his mind, he quickened his pace to catch up, curious to know what the girl was doing out on her own after leaving the church.

"Oh, Mr. Williams, it's you again!"

The girl was happy to see Jenkins too. Since they were both heading in the same direction, they fell into conversation as they walked.

Chocolate's paw emerged from Jenkins's collar, followed by its fluffy head, which used the grip of its claws to pull itself out for a look.

After walking together for some distance, with the Westminster River visible far at the end of the street, Jenkins finally remembered he had other business to attend to:

"I need to cross the river. What about you?"

"Oh, me too, sir. I'm going to Pork Tail Alley to visit my relatives. It's my mother's cousin. Sometimes when I had nothing to eat, they..."

"Pork Tail Alley? Isn't that where the murder happened...?"

Jenkins quickly suppressed the expression forming on his face and pulled the girl aside to avoid a speeding carriage. The fog was so thick today that without his glasses, even he found it hard to notice a vehicle rushing out.

"Why are they driving so fast in this fog?" ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by NoveI-Fire.ɴet

The girl craned her neck to look at the carriage. "They must be in a hurry. Did you know, sir, back when I was still selling flowers on the street, one time..."

Jenkins had to interrupt her, unsure how to break the news of the tragedy to the girl. "I'm sorry, I read last night's evening paper. It seems Pork Tail Alley..."

He wanted to be tactful, but when it came to the crucial part, he didn't know how to say it. "Hey, there's a dessert shop over there. How about I treat you to some cake? I don't think they served dessert at the church lunch."

"No, thank you, sir!"

The sensible girl quickly waved her hands and replied in a clear voice, "You don't have to buy me anything. Sir, I know what you're talking about, but my aunt's family happened to be away from home that night. It's because of that awful thing that I wanted to go see them. Besides, I can live on my own now, and I want to let them know I'm doing well so they don't have to worry."