The thought kept swirling around Subaru's head until the faraway chime of the cathedral bells woke him out of his stupor.
"No use thinking about it now." Subaru remarked to himself before standing up
He went to the clothing rack and was about to take the police uniform, but stopped himself.
"Wait…I'm not going to the station. I will just buy some ingredients for my luck enhancement ritual…" He trailed off suddenly, a thought forming on his head "Although I wonder….how would I feel wearing this?
Although he had Heinkel's memories, the details seemed to always slip out of the drunken man's mind. Subaru clicked his tongue, as he felt a compulsive, if not slightly childish desire to wear the outfit.
It would look cool…
"Screw it. I will try this out!"
After a moment, Subaru looked at himself in the mirror. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt with a similarly black vest. There are many pockets on the outfit, likely for tactical purposes, and an insignia on his shoulder with the image of a two-faced lion, likely reflecting his rank as deputy captain. His pant, similarly, has numerous pockets. The outfit overall had a durable and professional feeling.
Subaru tried to fix the patrol cap on his head. The cap has an insignia of a front-facing roaring lion, which in Subaru's opinion is a solid aesthetic choice, although it likely carried cultural meanings, too.
"I looked…kinda badass, actually." Subaru came to the conclusion after looking at the man in the mirror. He captured that rugged and tired look of a veteran policeman. Despite his rigid expression, Subaru willed himself to smile, showing his teeth. However, this expression looked out of place for Heinkel.
"This outfit reminded me of those in the Victorian Era…I would have thought that this was that past…if not for the fact that I didn't recognize any of those 'orthodox' gods."
Subaru promptly took off his outfit, switching to a brownish faded coat after that. A similarly brown fedora was adorned on his head.
With his outfit done, Subaru made his way to his bed and felt under the pillow for the ornate dagger. He was surprised to feel something smooth under there, too.
"Oh…this is the money Heinkel was saving up…"
He quickly stuffed the dagger into his right pocket and then moved on to search the bed more thoroughly. When he retracted his hand, there were about eight notes with dark green colors on them.
"I wondered how much of these were spent on alcohol…no, Heinkel is not that stupid. I must give him some credit." Subaru reminded himself…this man was pushed to a state like this solely because of his unfortunate circumstances, after all. It didn't make Heinkel a saint, but he at least deserved sympathy.
Subaru looked at the money in his hand again. This is, sadly, all they have for the moment. Two of them were five-soli notes and the remaining were one-soli notes.
In the Loen Kingdom's currency system, soli was ranked second. It originated from ancient silver coins. One soli was equivalent to twelve copper pence. They had denominations of one and five soli.
At the top of the currency system was the gold pound. They were also paper-based but were guaranteed by gold and pegged directly. A gold pound was equivalent to twenty soli. They had denominations of one, five, and ten gold pounds.
Subaru sniffed the note a bit…a unique smell of ink was present.
This will run out in a few days…Subaru suddenly felt contemplative.
"Don't think about it. Let's just focus on my current objective."
Subaru inspected the design on the note. The youthful face of Queen Capella was on it with her eyes closed. He didn't know if it was intentional, but the slight curl of her lips made her appear cute and innocent.
Perhaps this is the strategy of the queen? Make the common mass fall in love with her cuteness? Not sure how a starving person would care, though.
"A one-soli note should be enough. No, let's take two just in case!" Subaru then rolled up the remaining notes and stuffed them back under the pillow, but tried to make them less inconspicuous this time. "Since Heinkel is a policeman, perhaps thieves won't steal from him. However, being careful never hurts."
Subaru folded the two notes he had taken out and placed them in his left pocket. With everything all done, he placed a key into his right pocket, brought a paper bag along with him, and walked toward the door.
It wasn't until he placed his hand on the doorknob did he had a startling thought.
"With the strangeness around this guy's death…it does make me feel uneasy to go out like this." Subaru felt the dagger in his pocket, providing himself some courage
Heinkel knew how to fight at least. He thought of himself as inadequate not necessarily because his talent was lacking, but his parents were simply too excellent. The key point was that Heinkel definitely knew how to defend himself. Although his instinct might have dulled from the alcohol and Subaru currently inhabiting his body, he won't be taken down easily.
"Remember to stay with the crowd…and I will be fine," Subaru reassured himself.
Subaru thought about Reinhard. He wouldn't want to encounter him on the way. It would make things hard to explain.
He pressed down on his hat with his right hand and opened the door before leaving.
The corridor during the day remained dim as there was only one window at the end of the corridor. Reinhard made his way down the stairs and left the apartment before taking in the brilliance and warmth of the sun.
"Father..."
His usually drunk father with an irritable temperament, was gentle this morning. A feeling of warmth filled his heart as he recalled how his father ruffled his head.
I remember his kind voice...
"Leave the worrying to me, okay kiddo?"
It felt as if he had turned back time, to when his grandma was still there, and his mom still smiled and greeted him home every day. To when his grandfather looked at him proudly instead, and his father wasn't pushed to such limits.
His father's changes in attitude were surprising, but Reinhard didn't mind it all. Even if it was temporary, Reinhard was glad to find that his father still cared for him.
Reinhard knew that his father was working himself ragged so they would have something to eat. He knew he was a burden, and he shouldn't ask for more, yet he couldn't help himself.
"I must finish my task..."
Reinhard mumbled to himself before taking in the sun. It was warm and bright. Although it was almost July, in Tingen it was still considered the middle of summer. Reinhard had studied in school and found out the reason was that Tingen was situated north of the Loen Kingdom, so it had unique climate characteristics. The weather was kinda cold in the morning, but Reinhard has gotten used to it.
He glanced around the trash-ridden street, and Reinhard had to slow down his step so the filthy water didn't splash on his clothes. It was nothing strange anymore. Despite his own circumstances, Reinhard acknowledged that there were many people like them trying to survive.
"Come and try our delicious roasted fish!"
"Fresh fish from the port for just five pence a piece!"
"Muffins and eel soup make the perfect combination!"
"Vegetables freshly plucked from the farms outside the city. Cheap and fresh!"
…
The mobile hawkers flaunted their ware and shouted along the streets, beckoning the rushing pedestrians to their stalls. There are vegetables, fruits, hot food, and even some local delicacies…although they are quite expensive. The aroma was tantalizing, although Reinhard pursed his lips at the occasional noxious smell of fumes.
In populated areas like this, there were bound to be thieves. Desperate people, ranging from adults who had just lost their jobs and children who were starving, were not rare to see. Reinhard thought of himself as mildly fortunate, since his situations hadn't hit rock-bottom like them.
That was a very depressing thought…
Luckily, Reinhard had been in this place countless times, so he knew the way around. He carried himself in a way so as not to attract attention, and avoided shadowed alleyways and shady peoples. There was even a hood on his head to hide his distinct red hair.
He proceeded forward until he reached a point where the crowdedness waned. He saw a petite lady with brown skin waving at him. Her hair was tied in two tails, and her similarly colored eyes winked at him. Despite her cheerful expression, the faded skirt she wore was dirty, and there was a slight dullness to her skin.
"Heya there, Rein! Coming to hear my music?" She flashed him a grin
"Thank you, Ms. Liliana, but I'm afraid I had to run an errand."
"For that deadbeat dad of yours?" She raised her brows "Someday, I will write a song just to shame that man!"
"…please don't."
"I merely jest, little Rein. Come on, run along!"
Reinhard bowed at her, before going on his way and finally stopped at Suwen Bakery.
The owner of the bakery was an old granny named Elise Suwen. Her hair was a grayish-white, and a gentle smile adorned her wrinkled face. She had been selling bread and pastries even before Reinhard had been born.
Reinhard gulped as the fragrance of the bakery filled his nostrils. Ms. Elise was exceptional at baking, her Tingen biscuits and lemon cakes were especially delicious. His mother used to let him buy these treats here occasionally before…
Reinhard shook his head at the memories.
"Ms. Elise, eight pounds of rye bread, please?"
"Oh. It's you, dear Reinhard! Ah…wait a second!" With the clacking of something in the bakery, she came out and gave him a package "Here you go."
"Thanks." Reinhard counted the money in his hand and gave it to the old woman
"Oh? Why did you bring so much money?"
"Ah, my father told me to buy some meat and peas, too."
"He told him that? Heinkel? For whatever reason?" Ms. Elise raised her brows, seemingly quite skeptical
"My final exam is coming, so he said he was going to make me stew." Because Ms. Elise was a familiar and trustworthy person, Reinhard didn't mind telling her that.
Suddenly, her expression turned sullen, something akin to pity in her eyes.
"Is that so?" She muttered, then whispered to Reinhard "Did he get promoted at his job, then?"
"I don't think so…" Reinhard trailed off, clearly uncomfortable "But he said I shouldn't worry and focus on my exam."
"I see." She pursed her lips "Come to think of it, buy some extra meat for your meal. This one is on the house, kid."
Ms. Elise said before giving him back his money
"What?! I can't take this!"
"Don't worry about it, kid. Just think of it as a bonus for being my loyal customer!"
"But…"
"Besides, many people had been protesting on the streets for the repeal of the Grain Act. The price had been going down for a while, so I didn't lose that much, actually."
Reinhard had heard about the Grain Act. It was created to protect the prices of domestic agricultural products. Once the prices rose to a certain level, grain imports from Southern nations like Feynapotter, Masin, and Lenburg were stopped. His teacher had some ideas about the reason why, but Reinhard just didn't think it was convincing.
"If you say so…thank you, Ms. Elise!" Reinhard bowed his head
"It's nothing, kid. Just be well, ok?" Ms. Elise said, a glint of something in her eyes as she waved him goodbyes. Reinhard waved back before closing the door behind him.
However, he didn't go away but hid behind the wall near there.
"Oh, dear Framir, that poor boy. You heard that, right?"
Soon enough, the voice of another woman responded.
"Yeah…that poor boy. Is Heinkel going to…you know?" The voice was uncertain
Reinhard realized that was Ms. Framir, Ms. Elise's daughter speaking.
"I think so…their family had been struggling for a while. And Louanna…that was really unfortunate."
Reinhard's breath hitched, an unsettling premonition wormed its way into his heart
"So…about these ingredients?"
"Perhaps Heinkel felt guilty…it could be his way of saying goodbye, you know?"
Reinhard is a smart boy. He knew what the old woman implied, and he felt as if a bucket of cold water was poured directly over his head.
It all made sense. How his father was so gentle with him this morning, how he told him not to worry.
I'm going to be sold.
"…it's a shame. A few more years and that boy could have become someone exceptional."
"May Evernight protect him."
Reinhard's body trembled violently. He ran toward his home as fast as he could.
"Please…"
Heinkel was physically capable, which was unsurprising. As Subaru ran all the way to the market, he barely felt tired at all.
"Still...I'd better make this quick."
After buying his ingredients, Subaru noticed many tents were erected at the intersection of Iron Cross Street and Daffodil Street, on a municipal square. There were also clowns dressed in odd and funny attires while distributing fliers. A woman with blond hair was sitting on the sidelines, painting her face in a rush.
"A circus performance?" Subaru glanced at the fliers in their hand as he tried to make out its content "Tomorrow night, huh?"
Will Reinhard like it? Subaru couldn't help thinking about it.
How much is the entrance fee?
With that thought in mind, Subaru went closer.
Just as he was about to ask a clown with a red and yellow painted face, the woman, now with a painted face, called out to him.
"Would you like to try a divination?"
Subaru turned back and saw the woman hastily putting a pointed hat on. She wore a long black dress, pointing at a short tent near there. Her face was smeared with colorful paint, and her golden eyes bore into him. The paint glisten on her face unsurprsingly, given her hasty demeanor.
"No." Subaru responded coldly. He didn't want to waste the money on things such as divination.
"Hah…try it, please? My tarot divination is very accurate." She seemed flustered at his response, yet she kept begging him
"Huh…" Subaru was dumbfounded. Could this tarot…be the same as that on Earth?
Subaru searched his memories, and found that tarot divination didn't originate from the seven orthodox gods nor was it an ancient legacy. Instead, it was created by the Intis Republic's Consul of that era, Flugel, more than 170 years ago.
This Flugel invented the steam engine, improved the sailing boat, overthrew the Intis Kingdom's imperial rule, and was recognized by the God of Craftmanship. He also became the first Consul of the Intis Republic.
Later, he invaded other nations and placed Lenburg and other nations under his protection. He made the Loen Kingdom, Feynapotter, Feysac Empire, and other powerful Nothern Continent nations bow down to the Intis Republic. Following that, the Republic was then changed to an Empire, but strangely Flugel didn't assume the title of Emperor, but instead gave it to his apprentice, Shaula, who became the self-proclaimed 'Emperor Caesar'. Flugel held an advisory role in the emperor's court, and was referred to as 'The Sage of Seven Stars'.
It was during Flugel's rise to power that the Church of Craftmanship received its first public holy revelations since the Fifth Epoch. Ever since the God of Craftmanship was changed to the God of Steam and Machinery.
Flugel was the one to invent tarot divination. He established the contemporary system of paper-based cards and their playstyles. Subaru's eyes twitched at the familiar styles such as Upgrade, Fighting the Landlord, Texas Poker, and Quint…
In addition, the marine fleets he sent out discovered a sea route that led to the Southern Continent through the stormy and turbulent seas. This also began the era of colonialism.
Unfortunately, Flugel seemed to have disappeared into thin air when his apprentice and the king were betrayed. In the year 1198 of the Fifth Epoch, Shaula was assassinated by the combined forces of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, the former Intis royal family-the Sauron family, and other aristocrats. Strangely enough, the Pleiades, the tower Flugel built near the palace seemed to have disappeared as well, although there were arguments about whether the Tower existed or not.
Seven Star…Pleiades…what a coincidence.
Subaru suddenly felt an urge to facepalm at the recalled knowledge.
Could this Flugel guy be a transmigrator as well?
With this in mind, Subaru was intrigued to see what the tarot cards looked like. He sighed and nodded at the woman in a pointy hat. "I will give it a try…should the price be reasonable."
"Hah…don't you worry about that. Since you, my good sir, are the first one here today, it's on the house!" She winked at him while twirling her blond hair in her hand