Klein had already rehearsed Bishop Elektra's next question. He sighed and said,

"It was my father, a truly wise elder. Unfortunately, he passed away in an accident many years ago."

When he said this, he incorporated the feelings of the original owner's parents when they passed away, the emotions accumulated when he was in a foreign land and unable to go home, and the traces left by the experience in Tingen City. His tone seemed plain, with a little smile, but there was a kind of sad but not sad, lasting taste hidden in it.

"I'm sorry, he must have entered the Kingdom of God and is sleeping under the gaze of the Goddess," Bishop Elektra said sincerely, and drew a crimson moon by tapping four times clockwise on her chest.

Without waiting for Dwayne Dantès's response, he looked at him and invited him:

"There will be a moon mass for the dead the day after tomorrow to help them sleep in the goddess's kingdom and gain eternal peace. I wonder if you are interested in participating?"

There are not many Boxing Days in the Church of the Goddess of Night. The most important one is the Winter Boxing Day, followed by the High Mass at the full moon, also called the Moon Mass. After that, there are the normal Masses and prayers every Sunday. However, different dioceses and cathedrals have their own special Boxing Days because of their different patron saints or angels.

"This is exactly what I hoped for." Klein stood up and saluted, speaking sincerely.

This would allow him to have ample contact with the priests and bishops of St. Samuel's Church, and even establish a relationship with the diocesan bishop, laying the foundation for future entry and exit of certain areas of the church.

At the same time, he once again felt why the "Night" path could be interchanged with the "Death" path:

Both have the authority of peace, eternal sleep, darkness, etc., representing the end and the destination!

Next, Mori Macht did not discuss Dwayne Dantes' identity and experience, as if he had just asked a casual question. He and his wife Liana chatted about their experiences of vacationing in Disi Bay over the past few years. Klein, who had studied the relevant matters and lived there for two days, responded in the tone of a local native, focusing on sharing the Disi specialty grilled fish.

During this process, he even pretended to casually mention his hunting activities when he went to West Balam for business, and seemed to be very familiar with the primitive jungle there.

He was laying the necessary groundwork for Dwayne Dantès's second identity. Unlike East Balam, the colonial forces of Loen and Intis were equal and often in conflict. Even the areas they actually controlled changed from time to time. It was not easy to track down the activities of a merchant or adventurer there, especially since Dwayne Dantès might have used a pseudonym.

As for the hunting experience in the primitive jungle of West Balam, Klein did not make it up casually, nor did he copy it from any magazine or newspaper. He used the glorious deeds mentioned by Anderson, the strongest hunter in the Misty Sea, as a model, extracted details, abandoned the main body, and interpreted it himself. It is both true and false.

Hearing about the huge pythons in the jungle, the man-eating fish with sharp teeth, and the flowers that can catch their prey on their own, Senator Macht's wife Liana would exclaim from time to time, looking both scared and eager to learn more. The Senator and the Bishop were also very interested and could not help but interrupt Dwayne Dantès's description to ask about some details.

"You are such an excellent hunter! When I was serving in East Balam, I never had the chance to go into the jungle. I never thought it was so dangerous there." After the elegant middle-aged gentleman finished speaking, Mori Macht picked up a small piece of velvet cake and praised sincerely, "If there is a chance in the future, I would like to invite you to go hunting together."

While they were talking, the maid had brought afternoon tea and snacks, and a butler was serving them.

Hearing Senator Macht's half-serious invitation, Klein responded with a smile:

"I can't wait."

After chatting for a while and talking about Backlund's air quality control situation, the three guests said goodbye. Since they had just met and were not familiar with each other yet, Klein did not try to keep them. He took his personal valet Richardson and sent them to the door.

As he watched the bishop, the congressman, and his wife leave, the smile on Klein's face faded a little, but it did not disappear completely.

He was quite satisfied with the current progress. Bishop Elektra was connected to the Church of the Goddess of Night, which was his main purpose for returning to Backlund this time. Senator Mori Macht was a retired soldier and a current member of parliament. He undoubtedly belonged to one or several officer clubs, which would help him continue to investigate the Backlund smog incident.

The next step is to deepen the connection little by little... Klein returned to the small living room and saw that the maid had taken away the remaining snacks and tea.

He was going to eat some more...

——No matter how the other food is, Loen, especially Backlund’s desserts, are quite outstanding. The chef hired by Dwayne Dantès is particularly good at this field. Even Madam Liana praised him just now, and Klein also deeply agreed with it in his heart.

Retracting his gaze, Klein said nothing and walked calmly towards the stairs leading to the third floor.

Before dinner, butler Walter finally returned home and reported to him about the 10% stake in Backlund Bicycle Company:

"Sir, we are lucky enough. Someone has already hired professional lawyers and accountants to investigate the situation of Backlund Bicycle Company and provided a quote to the seller before the advertisement was posted. However, during the subsequent negotiations, a buyer with a higher bid intervened. He was unable to continue and had to give up.

"This way, we don't have to wait for the investigation report and can directly hire the original team."

Klein nodded and asked without disguising:

"What's the price now?"

"The buyer who gave up offered 6,000 pounds, and his psychological bottom line is 7,000 pounds. The seller did not disclose the other buyer's situation, but from the feedback from various sources, it is at least 8,000 pounds."

8,000 pounds, not bad... Do you want to raise the price a little more? If I raise the price a little bit, and the other party gives up directly, wouldn't it be embarrassing? Klein nodded slightly and said:

"Give me the relevant report and I'll consider it."

After reading the report and finishing dinner, in order to establish the image of a wealthy but shrewd pragmatist, Klein turned his head and said to Richardson:

"Prepare the carriage. I want to go out for a while."

He thought Richardson would be surprised and ask why it was a two-wheeled carriage, which was not decent enough, but the valet only flashed a hint of doubt and responded respectfully:

"Yes, sir."

Obeying orders and not asking why is also an advantage... Klein sighed to himself and waited for Richardson to come back and help him put on his coat.

After getting on the two-wheeled carriage, he directly ordered:

"Let's go around the Backlund Bridge area and the edge of the East District."

Richardson still didn't ask the purpose, but just asked the coachman to drive the horses carefully.

The carriage passed through the Cherwood District and arrived at the Backlund Bridge area under the illumination of gas street lamps.

Klein didn't say where he was going, but just asked the driver to drive around the nearby streets.

He leaned against the wall of the compartment, looking out at the street. He saw pedestrians walking along the street, wearing worn clothes and looking tired, as if they had just finished a busy day and were in a hurry to go home for dinner. Occasionally, a bicycle with its bell ringing would pass by, rushing nimbly into the distance. Compared with the pedestrians, the rider's expression was more energetic, and he exuded an indescribable pride.

It was a very intuitive division of levels, although it was only the difference between skilled workers and ordinary workers, the difference between a weekly salary of 1 to 2 pounds and less than 1 pound... Klein exhaled slowly and subconsciously looked up at the sky.

Backlund was now completely plunged into darkness, but the smog was not severe enough to penetrate it and see many bright stars.

After the smog incident, environmental governance has really been getting better day by day... But the situation of the lower-class workers in the East District does not seem to have changed much. Although their salaries may be higher and their working hours have been improved to a certain extent, the former has been largely offset by the influx of a large number of people and the rise in prices in all aspects. The latter has changed to a very limited extent, at most shortening from 15 or 16 hours to 11 or 12 hours...

Focus on solving whatever problems arise, and just ignore the others if they haven't erupted yet... Well, the kingdom is still undergoing internal reforms, and many things haven't been sorted out yet... Klein watched with his mind wandering until the carriage left the Cherwood District.

…………

On the "Future", "Admiral of the Stars" Cattleya stood behind the window of the captain's room, watching Frank Lee push a wooden barrel into the shadows, put something in it, and then cover it tightly.

He seems to have been studying plant growth in the dark recently... How come it suddenly became normal? Cattleya frowned in confusion, always worried that Frank Lee was brewing a big "invention".

Let Nina go ask later... Just as this thought flashed through her mind, inspiration suddenly struck her. She turned around and saw an extra letter on the desk.

With a faint smile on her face, Cattleya walked over, opened the letter, and quickly read it:

"There are two Obonis who do not belong to the Church of Storms near the 'Abyss Whirlpool' due north of Sonia Island...

“To find the direct descendants of Abraham’s family…

“Well done.”

"Abyssal Whirlpool" is the name of a dangerous sea area, not the abyss.

Abraham family... Cattleya thought about it for a while but couldn't find any clues, so she decided to ask at the next Tarot gathering.

…………

The next morning, after carefully divination on whether to raise the price, Klein said to the butler Walter:

"Hire that team and continue negotiations. My bottom price is £9,000."

"Okay, sir." Walter immediately apologized, "Something happened at home. I hope to have a half-day holiday in advance."

"No problem. Do you need help?" Klein asked gently.

"Thank you for your kindness. I can handle it, and there is no rush. I will deal with the equity negotiations first." Walter said sincerely.

Klein didn't ask any more questions, but nodded and approved his vacation.

After the butler left the room, Klein turned his head and said to Richardson:

"Did Walter see anyone this morning?"

"Mr. Butler received a letter." Richardson answered without hiding anything.