Suppressing the nervousness in his heart, Charlotte quickly found his office following Secretary Pascal's directions.
It was a private office, spacious, and even had a large window that allowed a view of the street outside Kilmainham Prison. Although most of the space was occupied by file cabinets, Charlotte was quite satisfied.
Working among file cabinets was clearly more relaxing than working with colleagues—at least there wouldn't be any office politics.
File cabinets are "well-behaved."
He placed the two items he had chosen on his desk.
Charlotte didn't know how to use a flail, let alone a multi-headed flail.
He was interested in it because it was made of meteoric iron, a rare material. Even if sold as scrap metal, it would be worth dozens of écus.
Charlotte planned to sell the multi-headed flail on the black market and purchase other weapons.
A standard military pistol costs no more than two or three florins, a rapier is slightly more expensive, but a cane can be bought for a few centimes.
By selling the multi-headed flail and buying a few standard weapons, Charlotte would still have dozens of écus left over, making a small profit.
It was obvious that not every new recruit at Kilmainham Prison got this kind of bonus.
It was clear that Miss Meniherman's favor allowed Charlotte to enjoy this privilege. Whether he would have similar opportunities in the future depended on whether he could win her favor and be assigned special tasks.
Charlotte didn't spare another glance at the multi-headed flail but spent a good while admiring the bloodsucking hand axe, growing increasingly fond of the weapon.
That day, Miss Meniherman didn't arrive at Kilmainham Prison until noon and immediately assigned Charlotte an extremely heavy workload, keeping him busy on his first day in the new position.
Initially, Charlotte had looked forward to working overtime with his senior, but by evening, he just wanted to find a place to sleep, even if it was on a stone floor.
This hectic state continued for a week and three days. When the workload finally eased, Meniherman gave Charlotte a day off, allowing him to go home from his new job for the first time.
As Charlotte left Kilmainham Prison, he deeply felt that, whether on Earth or in another world, being able to leave work on time was a form of happiness.
Back at the Savings Union Apartments, he slept soundly.
The next day, after getting up and having a light meal, Charlotte left the apartment and headed straight to his alma mater—Sheffield University.
But Charlotte wasn't going back to reminisce about old times.
He intended to visit the weapons market near Sheffield University.
As a prison guard, it was impossible not to carry weapons; that would make him stand out. The weapons market near Sheffield University was known for its relatively affordable prices.
Charlotte rarely chose to walk instead of taking public carriages.
The weapons market near Sheffield University mainly catered to the students of the university and nearby residents.
During his university years, Charlotte often wandered around here. Although he rarely bought anything, he was familiar with the place. Back then, there was no need for personal weapons because the school provided training weapons, and he wasn't a combat enthusiast with a need for personal weapons.
Upon reaching the weapons market, Charlotte, familiar with the area, wandered around for a while, lingering in front of a shop that sold second-hand weapons before stepping inside.
He remembered that this shop often had good second-hand items, but the owner had a reputation for being a swindler, with a rather poor reputation.
The shopkeeper didn't remember Charlotte as a customer since he had never bought anything. Nevertheless, the shopkeeper greeted him with a broad smile and said, "We have the best weapons in Strasbourg. Whether you need rapiers, sabers, knight's lances, or shields, we have it all, and the quality is the best."
Charlotte inwardly sneered, thinking, "Your shop mainly buys and sells second-hand weapons and sells low-quality items at inflated prices. You don't even have your own weapon workshop. What nonsense about the best quality? You're just trying to trick outsiders."
He didn't expose the shopkeeper's act and instead smiled and said, "I need a pistol, and maybe a cane. Do you have any recommendations?"
The shopkeeper immediately lost interest. Second-hand pistols were hard to sell at a good price because new pistols were inexpensive, with transparent pricing.
As for canes, why would anyone care about a sale worth just a few centimes?
He called over a clerk and said, "This is our best assistant; please let him recommend some suitable weapons for you."
This was exactly what Charlotte wanted. The shopkeeper was too cunning to deal with easily, but his assistant would be more manageable.
Charlotte ignored the assistant's constant chatter recommending junk items and wandered around the shop, feeling slightly disappointed that there didn't seem to be any good deals to be found this time.
Just as he was about to leave and visit another weapons shop, something caught his eye—a dull gray rapier casually placed in a corner with about a dozen others.
He quickly walked over, grabbed the rapier, and gently drew it from its sheath. After just one glance, he chuckled and said, "A fake antique?"
The assistant hastily said, "This is a genuine antique, sir; you have a good eye!"
Charlotte couldn't help but smile and said, "If it were really an item from the Sherlock Dynasty, it would be priced in écus. Are you really going to sell it to me for just a few écus?"
The assistant hesitated awkwardly for a moment before saying, "It really is genuine; there's no way you could take it away for less than five florins."
Charlotte tossed the rapier back where he found it and said, "I'll offer fifty centimes at most."
Seeing that Charlotte wasn't particularly interested in the "antique sword" and was ready to leave, the assistant reluctantly said, "Even if it's a fake antique, it shouldn't be that cheap. Three florins and fifty centimes is our best offer; it can't go any lower."
Charlotte waved his hand and turned to leave, but the assistant gritted his teeth and called out, "One florin, one florin! Sir, this is already a discounted price; it can't go any lower."
Charlotte left an address and walked away confidently.
As a government official with a fixed address, he could place orders and pay upon delivery; there was no need to pay on the spot.
As a graduate of Sheffield University, Charlotte had received a rigorous education.
The Sherlock Dynasty, also known as the Magic Dynasty, was famous for its magical rapiers, but the kingdom was destroyed by King Axel, and the art of forging Sherlock rapiers was lost.
Today, any surviving antique rapier from the Sherlock Dynasty is a valuable treasure, priced in gold écus.