Surprise!

Arthur did not like the fact that the conversation was slowly led away by Doctor Patrick so he demanded with seriousness, "Don't try to change the subject, I asked you, how did you know my name and who I am?"

This only made Doctor Patrick smiled even larger and Arthur more enraged... or at least that was how Arthur wanted the man to think. This Doctor Patrick seemed to have a penchant for toying with people's emotion and Arthur was playing the role of an offended young man perfectly. Arthur wanted the man to believe that he had the upper hand, so he would not notice the Jade Rabbit that was creeping closer to target.

"Now, now. We sure have a feisty one with us," Doctor Patrick said with amusement. Arthur had to admit he did not appreciate the feeling of being treated as a plaything. Seeing the anger on the young man's face, Doctor Patrick chuckled, "Fine, I'll tell you the truth. There's no need to get all enraged over something like this. I found out all about you at Armana's local business online registry."

Well, Arthur definitely did not anticipate that answer. He expected the source to be something magical like a crystal ball or a dark abyss, not something as mundane as a government department's website. Although now that Arthur gave it some thought, it did make sense. As weird as the place was, The Midnight Emporium did count as a store and would be fair to have it registered at the local merchant registry.

Then again, that begs the question, who registered it because Arthur definitely did not... The previous store owner?

"Now that I've answered your question, it's your turn to answer mine," Doctor Patrick said. "It's only fair."

Arthur hated to admit it but the man had a point and he had to keep the conversation going so the man would be distracted. "Fine, what is your question?" Arthur assumed the man would repeat the same question that he asked earlier about why he was there. He was busy trying to come up with a reasonable excuse when Doctor Patrick surprised him with a completely different inquiry, "Are you the man who demanded to see me? What kind of cooperation are you proposing?"

"Huh?!" Arthur was slightly confused by the sudden turn in the conversation when he remembered the lie that he told using Melissa's voice earlier. He did mention something about a stubborn customer seeking collaboration with Doctor Patrick. It seemed like the man had bought that lie and associated that customer with Arthur.

"Oh? Are you not that person?" Doctor Patrick commented when he saw the flash of confusion on Arthur's face. Then he added with a sigh, "This is such a waste because I see a bright future if a cooperation is possible between us."

Right then, the Jade Rabbit hopped and it ended up dangling by the edge of the table in a cartoonish manner. Its hind legs kicked rapidly in the air as it struggled to climb onto the table. If this wasn't such an intense moment, Arthur would have burst out laughing.

Even though Arthur had no interest of a collaboration, he played along so the Jade Rabbit could proceed with the plan, "I mean, don't decide that so soon. I can be persuaded, what kind of cooperation are you suggesting?"

"Oh?!" Doctor Patrick demurred. "Looks like I've spoken too soon then. The terms of the collaboration is perfectly simple. I can provide you with all the money in the world, more than you can ever spend as long as you give me one single thing from the Midnight Emporium."

"What is it?"

"It's a yellowing book with the insignia of a full moon on the cover. Perhaps you've seen it lying around the shop somewhere. It's just an old tome, a collector's item if you may. It is of sentimental value to me but it is practically useless to anyone else. I would be over the moon if you're willing to part with it. Of course, a life of endless riches await you if you do, don't forget that."

Arthur's heart skipped a beat when Doctor Patrick named his condition. It was quite clear that he was talking about the Book of Thoth. Even though Arthur saw the book as even more unreliable than a normal phone, people that he had met on his journey seemed to value it a lot. Even Miss S. was caught flipping through it earlier. Just what kind of secret was it hiding that all these individuals were trying to lay their fingers on it? Arthur doubted Doctor Patrick would come clean and tell him even if he asked.

Other than that, there was another detail that caught Arthur's attention. Doctor Patrick mentioned the sign of a full moon on the cover of the book but last time Arthur checked, the moon on the cover was of a crescent. Why the discrepancy in that particular detail?

"Well, what do you say? Do we have a deal?" Doctor Patrick prompted.

Arthur did not really know what to say. Things were also winding down on the other half of the plan. The Jade Rabbit had got its hands on the mortar and pestle.

According to the plan in Arthur's mind, now was the time to run. However, instead of heading towards the open window like the young man expected, the Jade Rabbit held the mortar and pestle and hopped towards Doctor Patrick instead.

'Abort! Abort! Mr. Rabbit, what are you doing?!' Arthur screamed internally and the anxiety in his heart must have reflected on his face because Doctor Patrick asked, "Arthur? What's wrong with you?"

"No! Everything's fine! I've not seen the thing that you mentioned at the Midnight Emporium before. Perhaps you might want something else instead..." Arthur started to blabber and this only aroused the man's suspicion even more.

Doctor Patrick noticed the young man's gaze kept wandering to the space behind him and he turned around with a confused frown. He definitely did not anticipate what was coming.