Chapter 81 Case File 2: Witch Carnival (2)
Jiang You looked at another group of foreigners: "What about those?"
The aliens were tall, with faces resembling animals yet not quite beasts. All had sharp, upward-pointing lower molars. They were all between 2 and 3 meters tall, and their skin was as wrinkled and thick as an elephant's, with a brown, oily sheen.
Their heads are hairy but they don't have animal ears. The thick hair extends from the top of their heads to their spines. The men only wear a tiger-skin skirt, while the women have an extra piece of tiger-skin cloth on their chests, and that's all.
"Trolls," Andrei said succinctly. "Although they look scary, they're actually quite docile. Oh, and don't mention the word 'stinky' in front of them. They really mind being told they have body odor."
"Oh," Jiangyou nodded, suddenly remembering what these trolls looked like: "Their faces look like caracals!"
"Huh?" Andre was confused.
Jiangyou did not continue the topic, as the lich's attention had already been attracted by the amusement stalls in front - swinging a sledgehammer, throwing darts, hitting balloons, three cups to find the ball...all kinds of entertainment games commonly seen at carnivals can be found here.
She watched the excitement intently for a while, and suddenly remembered that she should be able to pick up a lot of "soul fire" in such a happy place - dissipated emotions are also energy, but no one said that absorbing these "unwanted" energies requires the consent of others.
So Jiangyou temporarily put away her spiritual wood pendant and took a deep breath. Unexpectedly, she did not smell any sweet or fragrant scents, but instead smelled a foul odor. She could not help but retched and said, "Ugh—it stinks!"
The troll that happened to be walking past her let out an "owl", like a dog passing by that was suddenly kicked. It showed an extremely aggrieved expression and even raised its arm to sniff the smell on its body.
Jiang You: "..."
Andre: “…”
"No, no!" Jiang You quickly waved his bony claws and explained hastily, "I'm a lich, a failure! You see, I can't smell normal scents! I just smelled the scent of emotions! I'm not talking about you!!"
The troll then stopped moving, nodded as if accepting Jiangyou's explanation, patted his chest with relief, and followed his companions.
Jiang You breathed a sigh of relief, and Andre came closer: "What do you smell?"
"The smell of malice." Jiang You whispered, "It stinks!"
As she spoke, she took out the spiritual wood again. The dog sniffed furtively and pulled Andre into the alley. "This way! There's the smell of kerosene!"
Andre instantly became serious. Malice plus kerosene was not a good thing in this crowded carnival scene.
They ran along the alley for a while. The crowds here became fewer and fewer, and Jiang You could smell the stench of malice more and more clearly. She suddenly locked her eyes on someone and said, "That's the guy! A man with gray-brown hair, shifty eyes, and a big bucket on his back!"
Without her having to say anything, Andrei had already pounced on the gray-brown-haired human and wrestled him to the ground. The large barrel on his back fell off during the struggle and rolled to the side. The barrel lid was shaken loose, and thick kerosene oozed from the crack.
Andrei pressed his knee against the suspect's back and twisted his hands behind his back. He raised his head and saw the unlit fire in the square not far from the end of the alley. His emerald green eyes suddenly narrowed.
—This person wants to tamper with the bonfire?!
"Deputy Colonel?" Pacha, who was patrolling the square, noticed the unusual commotion and hurried over. He also saw the kerosene being poured nearby and gasped, "What's this?"
"He's suspicious," Andre said. "He's carrying a large barrel of kerosene, so he looks suspicious. Arrest him and interrogate him. Inform the witches and have them check the bonfire to make sure it's not tampered with."
The bonfire is a symbol of Midsummer Carnival. Once lit, it burns for three days and three nights. The bonfire is already filled with a large amount of wood, so it can burn normally without any kerosene or other accelerants. Once these accelerants are added, the flames are likely to get out of control!
The man was taken away for questioning by Pacha, cursing. Andrei picked up the spilled kerosene barrel, replaced the lid, and sealed it tightly. He even used magic to remove the oil stains on the ground. "Little Bones, you might have done a great deed."
"Hmm?" Jiang You tilted his head. "That person wants to attack the bonfire?"
"Probably. We'll investigate." Andre looked around. "Smell it again. Is there any malicious odor?"
Jiangyou followed Andre for several more rounds, but this time she didn't smell any bad smell, only various pleasant and sweet scents.
Seeing this, Andrei could only shrug his shoulders and say, "Then leave the rest to us. You go back and prepare the stall... By the way."
He pulled out a crystal ball from his pocket. "This is a photo crystal. When you sell food, don't forget to test it in front of the customers and record the results with the photo crystal. There are all kinds of people at the carnival, and there are also those who want to cause trouble and take advantage of the food, so it's best to be careful. If you have any problems, tell Jericho to come to me."
"Great! You are such a reliable partner." Jiang You couldn't help but praise him. She took the crystal ball, opened her skull and put it in.
The two parted ways. Andrei took the barrel of kerosene to find the other Kingdom knights, while Jiangyou went to Uncle Wolf's butcher stall and bought a large piece of premium pork belly. To her surprise, Uncle Wolf's pork was carefully divided into two types: castrated and uncastrated. Jiangyou happily ordered the former, which was less fishy and tasted better.
When she returned to her stall, it was almost dusk and Jericho was already waiting in front of the warehouse door.
Takumi took out his key, opened the door, and took out his snack stand. Jericho brought out the tables and chairs and set them up quickly.
The crayfish in the barrel were still alive and kicking. Jiangyou quickly deveined them and fried them in oil. The aroma soon wafted across the evening breeze. Jericho, along with Lolisa, who had hurried over, tactfully picked up a flyer and began to hawk: "Braised Crayfish! Perfect with wine! 20% off drinks! Novelty treats and delicious sauces, all at the Lich's Brewing Workshop!"
Jiang You watched them diligently serving customers, and couldn't help but smile again, moving his jaw with a click. As she poured the sauce into the pot, the braised crayfish gradually exuded a charming and overbearing aroma, and the first customer appeared in front of her stall.
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