An ordinary parking space in Coiling Cradle Street was occupied by an ordinary carriage. A chubby man got off the carriage and looked around. The coachman nodded at him and locked a wheel of the carriage.
"Tom, why we back again. I bet ya we get put off again", the chubby man said.
"Why ya worry when tha young master gonna be at home now", the coachman said.
The coachman led the chubby man along the street. All the corners still looked inky in the dark night salvaged by street lamps. Just as the two men turned around the corner the fortune teller shop entered their eyes.
Bright light from second floor of the shop was casting a shadow of the words 'Detective Agency X Fortune Telling'. No flickering ensured the shadows stuck on the road like ghastly crows.
"Brothers! Such ah job only young master can do. Didn't me tell ya how he spin round the house and open tha door", the coachman said.
"Now we hire yer young master", the chubby man asked.
"Ya still no trust my master. Me, Thomas Kluth, readily throw my life at young master feet", the coachman exclaimed.
"How much we pay?" the chubby man questioned.
"Ya got shower in coins, pay for carriage in tha morning. And yer still complaining? Is Rose precious or yer damn coins."
The chubby man looked towards the glass painted with 'Detective Agency X Fortune Telling'. He gave Thomas a deep look before walking towards upstairs. A thought surfaced on his mind but to his surprise it was said by the person following him.
"Brother, ya see tha damn painting on tha wall. I shamed coming here in tha day. But anything for Rose."
…
On the second floor, Trace was excitedly waiting for the customers. He jumped up as the door opened and stepped forward to greet them. But one of the men rushed to stop him.
"We don't deserve young master's greeting."
"You are that coachman from before, what happened," Trace questioned.
"Young master remembers me," the coachman's face lightened up and he looked towards his brother.
Master instructed the men to sit. Trace offered the guests water before standing beside his master. Finally the first customers, Trace smiled and looked towards the men.
"Young master, my niece, beautiful Rose, kidnapped by damn fools. This, her father Lucas Klutch," Thomas said.
Thomas stood up and steered the focus on the person next to him. He looked encouragingly towards his brother. Then sat down at 'the seat of honor for tha customers', as put by the Master earlier.
"Find and rescue my little Rose", Lucas said skeptically.
This little boy can't even recuse himself, Lucas thought. If not for his brother's repetitive praises about the boy, he would already have spurted words of discontent.
"I will try my best," Trace said nervously.
"Is this yer first case?" Lucas said.
Seeing Trace nod, Thomas jerked his head towards Lucas. Then threw an apologetic look towards the powerful Level 2 Sorcerer and his master.
"You can count on my apprentice", Master got up at this moment.
He walked around the room and extended his hand upwards to turn off the lamp. The customers were surprised but their eyes were attracted to the shining crystal ball instead. An air of mysticism spread around the room seemingly mixed with the low lit atmosphere.
"May the powers of this universe show us the way. Future will be in sight, just by the endless bay".
Master waved his hands around the crystal ball. Alternating color spread throughout the room. Colorful streams of light danced before settling peacefully on blue.
"I have deviated that the perfect time to start investigating would be 10 in the morning," Master's voice echoed around the room, "everything will resolve itself and your daughter will come back safe."
…
"Trace, are you ready for the detective work?" Master asked.
"Yes," Trace slowly nodded.
"Do you think its the job of a detective to rescue people?"
Trace nodded again.
"Rescuing people is a far simpler matter. You only need a reason, big or small, to save someone. Extending a helping hand is all about your heart. However, being a detective is a much complicated matter. Humans are short sighted creatures, can they still claim to know the truth?
"When you have not seen the complete picture, will the things you know still be true?
"Remember, you cannot see the world as it is. Answers today can turn into questions of tomorrow.
"Follow the trail of evidence with open eyes. Question everything you see. When you have your answers, a glimpse of truth will appear. Hold on to it but never cling to it."
Trace's eyes lit up, the words were many but his master had stopped many times in between. He repeated his master's teaching in his head. Before sleeping, he arranged a few things that might be necessary for the case tomorrow.
…
The time of beginning was nigh. Four people assembled in the room and patiently waited for clock to hit 10. The day was divided in 4 parts in total with a total of 24 hours.
Clocks were painted with a total of 4 arcs forming a circle. 2 long arcs with 2 tiny arcs between them. And 24 stripes were marked at equal distances. Four needles were fit inside the clock to point at - part of the day, hour, minutes and seconds.
"When was the last time you saw beautiful Rose?" Trace asked.
"2 days ago", Lucas quickly replied.
"Young master, it tha evening before we met at tha pub", Thomas added.
Trace took out a small notebook and penned it down. The trio headed towards the carriage. Lucas tried to walk beside Trace but was pulled back by Thomas.
"Where shall we go young master," Thomas asked respectfully.
"Let's go to her friend's place," Trace said while climbing up the carriage.
"It be better if we go to my home," Lucas resorted.
However, his words were quickly dismissed by Thomas who pushed Lucas towards the driver seat. Thomas gave warnings to Lucas before climbing on the carriage to sit on the opposite side of Trace.
"Young master is a great detective, Rose be holed up in her friend's house and we look at other side," Thomas said.
All along the way, Thomas saw Trace in deep thought. Thus, didn't utter a single word. Quiet inside, the carriage slowly made its way towards a place unknown to both men inside.
…
"Is this tha correct place?" Thomas questioned.
"The only place I ever saw her go. I don't know no friends of her," Lucas said plainly.
Trace smiled wryly. The Paporcean Palace bookstore… will I really find something in here, he questioned in this mind before going inside. Thomas followed him whereas Lucas stayed beside the carriage.
Again between the wall of posters. Trace couldn't help but look to the side. A huge poster depicted a half dog, half human face. Oddly enough, both of them had long hair. In furry characters, the title of the book said.
'Born As a Dog But My Bitch Is An Injured Immortal - Acaricide'
Trace didn't wish to look at another poster. But still turned hoping the next one would make him forget the memory. And surprisingly it did! There was nothing fancy or catchy about this poster.
Sakura blossom were floating like snow flakes. A tree in the background but two girls were the focus. In smiles they were casually walking under a transparent umbrella. The beauty of the simple painting was difficult to describe in words.
'Bloom Into You For Eternity - SunshineSmiles'
"Young master," Thomas called.
Trace came back to reality, for a moment he thought the pink flakes were around him. He organized his thoughts before moving forward inside the store.
The bookkeeper was the same woman from a month ago. She was still wearing the same purple high-neck top with a wide cutout. And was busy reading a book.
"Excuse me," Trace called out.
"Ya miss pay attention here," Thomas knocked on the desk when there was no response.
"Y-yes how can I help you?" the woman panicked on seeing the big Thomas.
"We are looking for her, she is missing for a few days from home," Trace held out a sketch of Rose.
The sketch was drawn in blue. A pair of hands in V shape were holding the face. The hair had a single large curve drawing from the head and flowing down beneath the cheeks.
"Yes, I know her. She is a regular but has not visited us…
"For more than a week now," the woman said looking into a register.
A week was divided into three halves of 3 days each making a total of nine days The first two halves were the workdays whereas the last half were holidays. There were three weeks in a month and a total of 9 months made up the year.
When Lucas came to know that no clue from the show was found, he snorted and drove the carriage towards his home. Inside the carriage, Thomas was anxiously looking over to the person in front of him. Seeing Trace still in a deep thought made his ease up a bit.
…
The more you go towards South the lesser life gets. Trace looked outside the window. A notebook was till in his hands but his mind was filled with scenes from the outside. Most of the buildings were only one story tall.
Air in large spaces between the houses and lone roads sung a soundless desolation song. Raised street lamps gave the place a ghostly vibe. The carriage stopped in front of a house that resembled a hundred other houses present in the area.
"Young master, this is my brother's house," Thomas pointed.
Trace got out and looked at Lucas before following him into the house. Immediately after entering they found themselves in a small closed space. The room beyond was hidden with a curtain. A shoe rack was placed in the small space.
Beyond the curtain was the largest room of this house. A sofa was placed near the window diagonal to the door. At the side, was bed with unfolded sheets. Additionally, the room was filled with small trunks for storing items, and table topped with clothes.
The window, despite being small let in enough light to lit up the entire room. Opposite to the window an open door led to the kitchen. Trace only looked around once before following Lucas into the next room.
Lucas turned on the lamp located at the upper corner of the room. This room was only a little bigger than half the size of that of previous room. No windows made the room temperature warmer compared than the previous.
The floor and the only two furniture present- a bed and a table, were littered with various objects. The trunk sticking out from below the bed was open and clothes were scattered all over.
"This is Rose's room," Lucas said.
"Bother, did ya tell anyone about the fortune ya received," Thomas asked on seeing the room.
"What was the fortune you received?" Trace asked.