17 Fors

Looking at Xio's conflicted expression, Ebner roughly guessed who wanted to see him.

"If I'm not wrong, it should be the future Miss Magician. She has a rather languid personality, so she's… more casual in her daily life?" Combining the plot in the novel, Ebner guessed most of what Xio hadn't said. Therefore, he didn't let her continue struggling as he directly said, "Then, let's meet here at 12 noon."

"Alright, we will definitely be there on time." Xio heaved a sigh of relief and hurriedly nodded.

"It's getting late, I still have things to do. See you at noon!"

Ebner bade Xio farewell, got up, paid the bill, and took the public carriage to Cherwood Borough. He had accepted Detective Isengard's suggestion to buy a suit for himself. His first choice of clothing store was naturally his public school classmate, Miss Jian's store. Instead of letting others take advantage of the money, it was better to increase his friend's business turnover.

Since it was not too far away, Ebner soon arrived at the street where the clothing store was located. Just when he was about to reach the entrance of the store, he suddenly saw Jane's father, Charlie, and a middle-aged gentleman with black hair and brown eyes walking out of the store together. The former seemed to be very respectful to the gentleman and personally opened the door of the carriage parked by the side of the road for him. He watched the other party's carriage slowly drive away, and only when he could no longer see it did he turn around and enter the store again.

Ebner, who had been watching the entire scene, was somewhat surprised. He subconsciously guessed the identity of the middle-aged gentleman, for him to be treated so humbly by Jane's father. However, he immediately laughed self-deprecatingly, feeling that he had an occupational disease even before becoming a detective. After all, there were so many important figures in Backlund, and there were probably thousands of existences that could make a fashion businessman bow down to them. How could he guess?

When he entered the clothing store, Ebner immediately saw the little girl, Jane, sitting behind the counter, drawing something out of boredom. His playful heart immediately rose. He looked around and saw that there were no other customers in the store at the moment, so he quietly walked up to her and knocked hard on the counter.

Jane was shocked at first. When she looked up and saw Ebner's narrow smile, she pouted and complained, "Ebner, how dare you come again? If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been grounded by my father for a week. Hmph, you're scaring me again! Tell me, how are you going to compensate me?"

Ebner deftly changed the subject. "You're grounded by Mr. Grant? Because of Mr. Kapusky?" Jane's father's full name was Charlie Grant.

"Yes, Father was afraid that I would secretly go to Teacher Kapusky's club… I clearly promised not to go!" The little girl didn't feel like she had been changed. Instead, she asked curiously, "Ebner, what are you doing here today?"

Ebner had already found an excuse for this and replied, "I found a job and paid an advance, so I'm here to buy a suit."

Jane's eyes widened in surprise. "A full suit costs at least 10 pounds. What kind of job did you apply for that you can pay so much in advance?"

"I'm now the assistant of the great detective, Isengard Stanton. My weekly salary is currently three pounds. Yes, I have an advance of a month's salary," Ebner fabricated.

"I've heard of Detective Stanton. He's indeed a famous detective. It's said that he has a deep relationship with Sivellaus Yard! Young man, there's a bright future for you to follow such a detective." At this moment, Jane's father, Mr. Charlie Grant, walked out of the room and said with a smile.

"Good morning, Mr. Grant," Ebner greeted first, then modestly said, "I'm still in the learning stage and haven't been exposed to specific cases."

"The learning stage is the most valuable asset in life!" Mr. Grant exclaimed. Then, he said in a reminiscent tone, "I used to work at Mr. Bryan's clothing factory as his assistant. It was through the accumulation of knowledge, connections, and wealth that I was able to open such a shop. So, work hard, young man!"

"Mr. Bryan?" Ebner felt that the surname was familiar. On second thought, wasn't this his own surname?!

"Mr. Bryan is a big businessman. He owns many clothing factories in Backlund. Yes, he even came to my shop to patrol and told me that he supports my opening of a chain store… Heh heh, in fact, although this store is my property, 30% of the shares are in his hands… He is very generous and benevolent. Not only he never ask about specific operations, but he also always support my ideas," Mr. Grant explained with a look of reverence.

So the gentleman who just came out of the store was Mr. Bryan… Mr. Grant's attitude when he mentioned that gentleman was very… Hmm, he gave off a very sincere feeling. Perhaps the gentleman had given him a lot of help and made him grateful? That's right. From his original assistant to his current boss, it would be very difficult for Mr. Grant to succeed without the help of someone important, Ebner thought to himself.

Just then the little girl, Jane, cut in. "Ebner, your last name is Bryan too, isn't it? Is that gentleman your relative?"

Ebner shook his head and smiled. "I can't be associated with such a rich relative. Besides, the surname Bryan is quite common. How can all the people with this surname be relatives?"

After this conversation was over, Ebner began to choose his clothes seriously, and finally, at Jane's suggestion, he bought a full suit worth eleven pounds.

After putting on his clothes in the fitting room, he placed the pair of glasses on his nose bridge again.

When Ebner walked out of the fitting room, Jane and Mr. Grant's eyes lit up. The former ran to his side and sized him up before exclaiming, "Ebner, you look amazing in this! Especially when you're wearing glasses, you look so… so scholarly like what Emperor Roselle said!"

"That's right. With this outfit, he really became a handsome young man!" Mr. Grant also complimented him, but Ebner felt that he was more likely praising his family's clothes.

All in all, aside from a few minor incidents, Ebner's purchase of formal wear was a rather satisfactory conclusion. After bidding farewell to Grant and his daughter, he took the public carriage back to East Borough.

However, as soon as he stepped into East Borough, Ebner, who was dressed in a formal suit, felt a series of malicious glances. Only then did he realize that he was dressed like this to come to East Borough as if he was delivering food to a robber…

Thankfully, the restaurant he often met with Xio was in a more secure location in East Borough, and Ebner had taken out his revolver from his holster, revealing a corner of it through the gap in his clothes. Only then did he temporarily intimidate those with ill intentions.

It was only when he walked into the restaurant and saw Xio standing in front of the bar counter, only slightly taller than the bar counter that Ebner let out a sigh of relief. After all, in East Borough, Miss Xio's authority as an arbitrator was much stronger than a revolver.

Xio was ordering food when she heard the door open. She subconsciously turned around and frowned. "Ebner, why are you dressed like this to come to East Borough?"

"…I wanted to meet your friend. That's why I'm dressed more formally. This is courtesy." Ebner found an excuse for his negligence.

Xio nodded and said in annoyance, "If I knew, I would have arranged to meet elsewhere." With that said, she sighed and said seriously, "Don't worry. After we meet, I'll personally send you back to Detective Isengard."

Ebner was speechless. Did they really think he was weak?

After they had ordered, Hugh led Ebner to a table at the far end of the dining room. A lady was already seated there, and he saw that she was looking at Hugh and Ebner with a teasing expression. Clearly, she had overheard their conversation.

"This is my best friend, Fors Wall." Xio was already immune to Fors's gaze, so she only introduced her to Ebner solemnly.

"It's an honor to meet you, Miss Wall." Ebner had a deep impression of this salted fish lady in the novel, so he was not reserved.

"What a handsome and magnanimous gentleman. Xio's taste in choosing friends isn't bad!" Fors first commented with a smile before saying formally, "There's no need to be so formal. You are Xio's friend, so you are my friend. Just call me Fors."

Ebner obeyed without hesitation. After nodding, he asked directly, "Fors, I heard from Xio that you wish to see me? Is there anything?"

Fors was stunned when she heard that. Then, she said helplessly, "As expected of Xio's friend. The way you speak is exactly the same as Xio… Yes, just as Emperor Roselle described!"

Ebner was actually a little annoyed with Roselle. Recently, he seemed to be able to hear him anywhere.

Xio interjected, "Is there anything wrong with asking?"

Fors held her forehead and said weakly, "Logically speaking, shouldn't a man chat with a lady first before inadvertently asking for her motives?"

"That's just a plot in your novel. Ebner and I don't have the time to chat with you!" Xio exposed him mercilessly.

"It's over, it's over. You've completely fallen to Ebner's side. You don't care about my feelings at all!" Fors exaggeratedly shouted.

Ebner looked at this scene in amusement. However, he didn't know if it was an illusion, but he had a nagging feeling that Fors was deliberately putting on such an act to make the atmosphere between them more harmonious, or perhaps to make the relationship more natural… However, this was done deliberately, as though she couldn't wait… Why was that?

After some serious thought, Ebner finally had an idea. Could it be that the worsening ravings of the full moon made Fors feel uneasy about the future? She didn't know that The Fool would come to save her in the future, so she thought that if there really was a day when she lost control, could there be someone reliable to take care of Xio on her behalf? After all, Miss Xio might seem powerful, but she was actually rather rash in certain matters. It was really worrying…