Chapter 153: Turbulence on Nikola Street
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Coming out of the "Tingen City Specialty Shop," Hobert muttered to himself, "I used to make fun of Christian for buying those laughable gifts, but now I'm worse off—I forgot to buy any gifts at all."
Then Hobert realized a serious issue: could it be that Christian also forgets to buy gifts every time he returns and ends up visiting specialty shops like himself? The more he thought about it during the carriage ride, the more likely it seemed.
Hobert first returned to Blanca Street, where Fors was lounging comfortably in a recliner, flipping through a magazine.
Seeing Hobert enter, Fors lazily got up, saying, "You're back."
"Yeah, where's Xio?"
"She's out doing the task you gave her."
Hobert set down his luggage. "Is there anything to eat at home? I haven't had lunch yet."
"Neither have I."
Hobert blinked. "Have you really been lounging on that recliner since morning?"
"No!" Fors chuckled nervously. "I—I've been brainstorming for a new book!"
Hobert smirked inwardly: What a lie!
Under Hobert's unspoken scrutiny, Fors finally overcame his laziness and got up to order lunch from "Desi Flavor Restaurant" nearby.
After a satisfying meal, Hobert delivered the gifts for Fors and Xio, then said, "I'll be heading home tonight and will come over again tomorrow morning."
With that, he left with his briefcase and many gifts.
Fors responded with an "Oh" and glanced at the dishes on the table: Do I have to wash these too? So annoying, I hate washing plates and bowls.
Hobert walked to the law firm and first briefed Lawyer Barton on Mr. Dominic's case.
"This case is all thanks to you," Barton said. "Let me see... Oh, the commission fee totals 150 pounds. Instead of distributing your compensation according to the firm's 'Commission Fee Distribution Regulations,' the firm will only deduct 50 pounds for intermediary and material fees, leaving you with the remaining 100 pounds. However, your travel expenses for this trip won't be reimbursed."
Hobert joked, smiling, "If I had known this earlier, I would have bought you more expensive gifts."
Barton chuckled and shook his head. "No new cases will be assigned to you recently. Focus on winning the lawsuit you have."
Hobert nodded; he now only had Mr. Bob's case in hand.
Leaving Mr. Barton's office, Hobert distributed gifts to several colleagues he got along well with, then sat down at his desk and quickly calculated the expenses of this trip.
The expenses were minimal: damaged clothes in the battle—a shirt, a trench coat, and trousers—costing less than 2 pounds in total. The shirt was expensive, but it was from home and didn't cost him money.
Then there were round-trip tickets and money spent on gifts, totaling around 6 pounds.
However, his income was 130 pounds: 100 pounds commission and 30 pounds tip. Moreover, he could still use the identification card provided by the Nighthawks to evade taxes, and all 130 pounds was his.
This was the income on the surface; this trip to Tingen City also yielded the horn of the wicked creature, the "black eyes," and the umbilical cord of the offspring of the evil god.
These three things seemed high-level, but for now, they could only be used in the Nation of Disorder and only within the Nation of Disorder.
This made Hobert's methods in the Nation of Disorder more diverse, making him appear more like an evil god.
Because Klein had been lying in the coffin, the Tarot Club for this week was canceled. Regarding this, "Mr. Fool" had already made a prediction on Thursday. I wonder if Klein sensed something at the time?
Hobert stayed at the law firm until closing time and took a taxi carriage home.
His return was welcomed by the whole family, and Melissa had the chef prepare several more dishes.
While dinner hadn't started yet, Hobert handed the box Ulysses gave him to Christian.
Christian nodded with a smile. "Looks like he hasn't forgotten me as his old boss."
He put the box in the study before returning to dinner.
At the dinner table, the family listened to Hobert's stories of his business trip. They found the ending of the kidnapping case he was in charge of more bizarre than the stories in the newspapers.
After dinner, Hobert distributed gifts, and the whole family enjoyed themselves.
On Tuesday morning, Hobert, whose spirit body, spirituality, and physical strength had fully recovered, took the family carriage to work.
He sat in the chair for more than ten minutes before going out to "visit clients." In fact, he went to the rental house on Blanca Street.
With Fors and Xio present, the rental house now seemed lively.
Hobert entered and saw Xio making tea while Fors was on the recliner again. How much does she like the recliner? Hobert really doubted if this girl had spent the night on the recliner?
Xio smiled. "Thank you for the gift; I really like it."
Hobert smiled back. "I'm glad you do."
Fors struggled to get up again, and the three sat around the dining table.
Xio said, "I've found the addresses of the Nikola Shipyard and the Tuma Hotel."
She took out a note with the addresses written on it. Both addresses were on Nikola Street; the shipyard was at 1668, and the hotel was at the other end of Nikola Street, number 35.
Taking the note, Hobert found the address somewhat familiar and searched through his briefcase, finally finding the address Harvey Hayden had given him: Rex's former security guard, Dix, owned a company at 1899 Nikola Street.
Nikola Street was indeed bustling.
After taking a sip of tea, Fors said, "I didn't expect Qilangos to die so quickly; fortunately, we didn't rent a new house, otherwise, we would have wasted rent."
Xio said awkwardly, "Hobert, our rental house has a problem, and we won't be able to move out until the day after tomorrow."
Hobert smiled. "It's okay to stay a few more days; there are three bedrooms anyway."
In Backlund, mixed-gender renting is quite common.
Xio immediately said, "We'll pay you rent! And we promise not to bring any danger back."
"Forget about the rent; it's just a few more days." Hobert said, "While you're here, you're responsible for my three meals a day."
Fors immediately raised her hand. "I'll take care of it!"
Hobert immediately gave up hope for the next few days of dining.
Fors then asked, "Hobert, how much is the rent for a month in this row house?"
"It's usually rented annually." Hobert put away Xio's investigation results. "20 to 25 pounds per month."
Xio stuck out his tongue. "So expensive!"
Fors shook her head too, saying they couldn't afford it right now.
Xio then talked about the mission to find the cultists; she had used her connections to find the hiding places of two cultists, who were not hiding in the East Borough but in a factory by the port.
Xio wanted Hobert and Fors to help her catch these two cultists.