Chapter 1 The Land of Hope

Woo!

The sound of the siren echoed in every corner of the platform, and the huge monster-like steam train dragged more than 20 carriages to a slow stop.

Wearing a tuxedo and a half-height silk top hat, Klein carried an exaggerated suitcase that didn't match his figure, and stepped steadily on the ground of Backlund, the capital of the Loen Kingdom.

The city is divided into two parts obliquely by the Tassock River, which flows to the southeast estuary, and is connected by the Backlund Bridge and ferries. It has a population of over five million and is the most prosperous city in the north and south continents.

Klein looked as far as the eye could see, only to see pale yellow mist everywhere, with extremely poor visibility. The gas lamps hanging on the platform had already been lit one by one, dispelling the gloom and darkness.

"It's only half past six, right? It's like ten o'clock at nine..." Klein shook his head invisibly, and suddenly remembered a joke he had read in the "Tasoke Newspaper" before:

"A gentleman who had just arrived in Backlund lost his way in the thick smog, so he had to ask the wet gentleman who passed by, and asked him 'how to get to the Tussock River', and the gentleman was very friendly. Replied: 'Go straight, don't stop, I just swam up from there.'(Note 1)

Every time I read a newspaper or magazine in Backlund, those reporters and editors are ridiculing the air pollution here and the increasing number of foggy days... Previously, the "Becklund Daily" made a special statistics , said that the similar weather has increased from about 60 days 30 years ago to about 75 days at present... For this reason, many people of insight have established "Soot Emission Reduction Association", "Smoke Emission Reduction Association" and so on. Organization... It is said that one of the proposals in September proposed the establishment of a "Kingdom Air Pollution Investigation Committee"... Klein put down his huge suitcase, stretched out his hand and pinched his nose to relieve the sudden discomfort.

Then, along the golden watch chain, he took out a gold watch from his vest pocket, snapped it open, glanced at it, and confirmed the time.

After saying goodbye to his brother and sister, Klein made a special trip to the department store and bought a gold pocket watch for 4 pounds 10 soli, which was paired with a 1 pound 5 soli gold chain.

--to him,

Failure to grasp specific and clear time at all times will lead to a sense of panic.

Originally, Klein planned to buy a silver pocket watch, thinking that it suited his temperament, but considering the true meaning of "clown", he finally chose a gold watch that was more ostentatious and flamboyant.

"6:39...not that much late..." Klein put away his pocket watch, his cane and suitcase, followed the crowd, and slowly walked out of the steam train station.

Suddenly, he turned a corner without warning, and someone who followed quietly and reached into his pocket found nothing.

Klein didn't pay attention to this episode. He walked along the cement-paved avenue, mixed in with the crowd, and walked towards the intersection ahead.

There were square lawns and gardens surrounding a column that rose like a chimney.

"No, it might be the chimney..." Klein saw the thick smoke gushing out from the top of the pillar.

Part of the smoke floated high into the sky, and part of it turned into tiny water droplets and sprinkled around.

Klein paused again, put down the suitcase, and unfolded the newspaper and map in his other hand.

——When he took the steam train, he had already planned where he was going and what he was going to do next.

The experience of this period of time and the experience of pretending to be a clown in the morning made Klein finally understand the true meaning of "clown", that is, "Although he can predict the fate slightly, he still feels helpless about the fate, so he hides all the sadness with a smiley face." , pain, confusion and depression".

At that moment, he clearly felt the digestion of the "Joker" potion, and he believed that if he continued to act like this, he would be able to try to be promoted in a short time.

But the problem is that he still doesn't know what the corresponding Sequence 7 potion is called, let alone the specific formula.

"How do I get the formula? The Secret Society rarely appears, and they seem to be only interested in the items of the Antigonus family... This is why others know little about them, um... Consider two aspects, one One is to contact the local Extraordinary circle to see if we can find clues, and the other is to take the initiative to use the treasures of the Antigonus family as bait to catch people from the secret order. The weird vertical pupils formed."

"But the risk is too great, and we must be cautious enough. The bait placed should not be too 'good', nor too 'bad'. If it is too 'bad', others will not be interested. If it is too 'good', it will be easy to catch giant sharks. A giant shark that could swallow me... Zaratul, the leader of the Secret Order, was the one who guided Emperor Roselle, and maybe he even got the biggest piece of cake in that era-changing feast... Of course, he may not survive Up to now, this is almost two hundred years ago..."

While thinking about it, Klein felt the coldness of Backlund, couldn't help shivering, and decided to find a place to live as soon as possible.

Flipping through the newspaper, he browsed the housing rental section again, and saw the one that was circled before:

"15 Minsk Street, Jorwood... townhouse... 18 soli per week..."

As for where to live, Klein has repeatedly thought about it. Although Backlund has a population of more than five million, he still has to beware of the possibility of encountering local nighthawks—whether it is Daly who is newly transferred here, or Lolotta, Al Hasson, and Borgia, who belonged to Backlund before, would definitely recognize him.

Therefore, Klein ruled out the North District where the Backlund Parish Headquarters of the Church of the Evernight Goddess "Samuel's Church" is located, and excluded Queens District and West District, which have the best law and order and strictest supervision-these two districts belong to the nobility and the top Wealthy businessmen, while the former is more inclined to Queens.

After excluding several factory districts, dock districts, the East district where poor people gather, and the Backlund Bridge area, Klein doesn't have many choices. The Hillston District is home to the headquarters of large banks, various trust funds, various railway companies, and various bulk cargo trading companies. It is known as the economic, commercial, and financial center of the Kingdom of Loen. Second, there are many small companies and many residences. the Jorwood area.

These two districts have a lot of traffic, and the law and order are relatively good, making it easy to hide. After careful consideration, Klein chose the Jowood District, which has cheaper rent.

——The reason why he didn't look for organizations such as the "Metropolitan Housing Improvement Association" and "Metropolitan Working Class Housing Improvement Corporation" is because these require certain identification, which he currently cannot provide.

"If you can't rent a house today, find a small hotel that doesn't require ID to stay temporarily..." Klein put the things in his hands together, put on his suitcase, and followed the instructions on the map, towards a door that looked like a department store. place to go.

That was the entrance to the Backlund subway.

Yes, subway!

When Klein first saw the term "subway" in newspapers and magazines, he was really taken aback. He didn't expect this kind of transportation to become a reality before entering the electric age.

It was born twenty-five years ago. It first connected the two sides of the Tussock River, and now it has expanded to major urban areas. Of course, there are not many stations.

Through the gate, Klein followed the people in front and walked towards the ticket office step by step.

After queuing for a few minutes, he finally saw the conductor with beautiful blond hair.

The girl didn't look up, and pointed to the price wooden sign hanging near the window:

"Peak hours (from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm) every 10 minutes, and in the remaining 15 minutes, the first-class seat is 6 pence, the second-class seat is 4 pence, and the third-class seat is 3 pence. 6, 5 pence, the annual ticket is 8 pounds for the first class seat, 5 pounds 10 soli for the second class seat, and no annual pass for the third class seat.”

Cheaper than I imagined... There is no distance limit... Melissa must like this better than a carriage, this is the crystallization of machinery... Klein thought about it, and suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.

He smiled brightly, took out 4 copper pennies, and handed them to the conductor:

"second class."

Snapped! The conductor tore up a ticket, stamped it, and handed it to Klein.

After finding the line leading to the Jowood area, Klein walked down the stairs after passing the not-so-strict inspection, and soon came to the platform. According to the signs on the ground, he found the location corresponding to the second-class seat.

Whoooo!

After waiting for a long time, he heard the siren sound like thunder, and saw a huge steam locomotive break through the gas lamps on both sides with a sense of majestic power, and stopped with a bang.

Its huge shape, winding body, black iron color and complicated machinery are mixed together, giving it a unique aesthetic feeling.

Backlund's subway still uses steam trains. Under the unique design, the puffed out smoke passes through the upper pipe, enters the chimney, and rushes to the outside world.

This is the "real use" of street lawns and gardens.

Amidst the sound of metal rubbing against each other, Klein waited for the passengers in front to get off, then walked up slowly with his cane and suitcase, and accepted the flight attendant's ticket inspection.

Unlike the third-class seats, the second-class seats are for one person, so there is no need to worry about being robbed. Klein had just sat down, put away his suitcase, and leaned on his cane when he heard hurried footsteps.

He subconsciously looked sideways at the door, and saw a thin boy with a green face hastily entered the carriage.

The boy was dressed in an old overcoat and a bowler hat that did not suit his age, and carried a battered satchel, with his head buried low.

"I'm sorry, I got into the wrong car. I'm in the third class..." He showed his ticket, apologized to the flight attendant, and then walked quickly to the third class seat.

Klein looked away, reconfirmed his destination, and waited for the carriage door to close.

At this moment, he heard another messy and hasty footsteps, and then saw several men in black coats and top hats rushing into the carriage.

Chasing that fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy just now? Klein intuitively came up with such an idea.

He shook his head slightly, and continued to read his newspaper and map, no different from other passengers in the carriage.

Note 1: This joke comes from a former British magazine, "Clumsy".

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