[Translator/Editor: otwentyfirst]

[Host: justreads.net]

[Feb. 21st, 2019]

I was twelve at the time. A hostile takeover was waged against my family’s business and we lost nearly everything. In fact, the only thing we managed to keep is this inn here. It has seen better days I’m afraid,” said Pierre. The inn was small and shabby but it still had a steady stream of repeat customers, which allowed them to stay in business. It helped that Matron La was very good at drumming up business.

Pierre continued to tell them how despite the disparity in wealth, the two families still maintained close ties, so close in fact that Clara’s family even helped them financially. However everything changed when Ms. Dusha entered the scene. Her appearance strained the relationship between Mr. Wenda and Mrs. Malin, eventually resulting in the couple splitting and Mrs. Malin moving out. Sometime afterwards Clara had a fall out with her father and she too moved out, leaving to live with Mrs. Malin, at her maternal grandparents’ villa.

It was at the villa that Mrs. Malin mysteriously died. The murder three months ago was a sensational case in part because Clara was the primary suspect.

“Of course most people don’t believe Miss Clara Wenda did it. The likely culprit are Mr. Wenda and his mistress.” Pierre shook his head. “But there’s no evidence. All anyone has are suspicions. On top of that, the knife found in Miss Clara Wenda’s room matched the type of weapon used to murder Mrs. Malin. Add to that, Mr. Wenda and Ms. Dusha’s maid will vouch for their whereabouts at the time of the murder, so they have an alibi. They aren’t even considered suspects.”

Pierre continued to tell them how the investigation failed to find any evidence to support Clara’s innocence. This led the two of them to put a request in at the Adventurers’ Guild in hopes of finding someone who would be able to apprehend the real murderer. Unfortunately the adventurer that accepted their request couldn’t solve the case. It was at this moment of hopelessness that Jier walked in.

They were still talking when the lady from earlier brought over several delicious looking dishes.

Feng Wu sat quietly eating the snacks as everyone else chatted.

Jier had a better understanding of the situation after Pierre’s explanation. He asked, “Pierre can you show us the room Mrs. Malin was found?”

Pierre had antic.i.p.ated the request. “Of course. The villa has been empty and cordoned off since Mrs. Malin’s death but there is still a way we can sneak inside.”

Jier nodded his head without asking any further.

They rested a bit after the meal before walking to Mrs. Malin’s villa. Pierre had wanted to call for a carriage but Jier refused, citing the need to for a const.i.tutional walk.

The temperature in Rime-Frost was much colder than Zhongyong and there were piles of snow all around. The shops were mostly empty with few if any customers inside. The streets were quiet with few locals around, those they encountered were mostly adventurers on missions. It gave the place a deserted feel.

Jier wondered aloud, “How do you guys stay in business? The place seems really dead.”

The blunt comment made Pierre smile. “The town is actually pretty lively. It’s quiet right now because everyone is out watching the event.”

“What event? Is it fun? Are there a lot of people there?” Jier asked in rapid fire succession. He was always interested in having a good time, and something attracting a crowd had to be fun.

“It has to do with an egg. The way I heard it a master from the spiritual world stole the egg of a holy beast. He stored it in his pocket dimensional ring, but he lost it sometime while traveling from the spiritual realm. A lot of people are in there right now trying to find it. It may not seem like it, but there are actually quite a lot of people in Rime-Frost right now.”

Jier’s eyes lit up. “Holy beast egg?” He questioned his hearing for a moment. To hear news of a holy beast egg in place like this was unexpected. They only forayed into the mortal realm if they were bound by a strong contract, because of this it was nearly impossible to see one.

Magical beasts were divided into three tiers: ordinary magical beasts, holy level magical beasts, and G.o.d level magical beasts. Ordinary magical beasts weren’t exactly common but compared to the other two, they were much easier to find. Holy and G.o.d beasts lived in the spiritual realm, a paradise for n.o.ble beasts of all kinds. Although they lived together, G.o.d beasts, because they were so powerful, held a higher rank than holy beasts. Higher level magical beasts even had the ability to take on human form.

A person had to be very powerful to force or convince a magical beast from the spiritual realm to form a contract. Any contract between a human and a beast from the spiritual realm was essentially a life-long companionship. Contracted beasts were only freed to return to the spiritual realm and resume their lives after the death of their contracted human.

If you wanted a holy or G.o.d beast you had to go to the spiritual realm and subjugate one, however in order to enter the spiritual realm, you had to be a master. If you were too weak then you had to settle for contracting with a low level magical beast. No one wanted that. Fortunately there was one other method open to those ambitious enough but without the strength, and that was to get their hands on an egg. Any child worth his salt would give up an arm to get one; Jier was no exception.