Throne of Steam

The sound of the 'pop' of a bottle of wine opening echoed from a nearby table eventually managed to drag Garett's mind back to the present situation, the cold sweat that somewhere in time started to coat his forehead easily noticeable amidst the well-illuminated saloon.

'I'm a hunter now! Wel... I'm almost a hunter! I shouldn't be afraid of little kids...' He adjusted his conduct before wiping the sweat on his forehead with the sleeves of his robes, a sharp look of determination gradually replacing the fear on his face.

"Do you like dogs, Vincent?" Garett successfully suppressed his urges and probed.

"Uh... No... I'm afraid of them, one of my father's hounds didn't like me..." Vincent lowered his head and mumbled, his eyes fixated on the bowl of candies. "But Father says I will inherit his lands one day, so I can't be afraid of the hounds forever..."

"That's very harsh of him, how old are you?"

"I'm seven! Or I'll be, in..." He stopped to count on his fingers, Garett could notice that his hands trembled slightly for each finger he stretched. "Nine weeks!"

'Why the trembling? Does he have some kind of disease? He does look paler than one would expect...' Garett had done his research on the last couple of days, and he ascertained Alice's information, there had been no news regarding Vincent's birth or adoption! It was very uncanny for someone so high profile like Eddison Almir to suddenly have a child and not to get to the papers.

"Nine weeks? That's still far, don't you think?"

"No! I'm already a grown-up!" Vincent appeared indignant at Garett's remarks, his chubby cheeks puffing in defiance.

"Of course... Of course..." Garett quickly tried to change the subject after placating the young boy. He slightly lowered his back, acting as casual as possible. "Hey, Vincent, how do you know about that man who likes to whistle?"

"Oh... Mom said I shouldn't talk about him..." Vincent lowered his tone and approached his face while covering his mouth as if trying to prevent others from hearing. "He can hear when you address him."

'Does he really? Or is it just your mother making up excuses to keep you quiet? I'm more inclined towards the latter...' Garett could conclude that Vincent behaved as a normal child would; even if there were a lot of irregularities surrounding him, nothing conclusive would come out of his lips.

"Then we should refrain from talking too much... Just one more thing, you said he follows those who whistle?" Garett creased his eyebrows as he asked. This could be vital information! If they needed to find the whistler, it would be far easier if it came to then on its own volition!

"Yes... I had just learned how to whistle, but Mom said we were being followed because of it..." The young boy sounded very dejected, his eyes turning downcast once again.

"I'm sure you will be able to whistle soon enough, pray to the goddess and she'll take care of things for you."

'Of course, that's on the premise that the hunters will take care of things...' Garett was only a recruit, and after what happened earlier that night, all the confidence he had on acting without reinforcements had completely vanished! Nonetheless, he had already decided on asking the church for support before engaging in any more investigations.

"Okay..." Vincent still sounded dejected, but Garett figured it wasn't his job to continue comforting the boy. The effect would be a lot better if the church took care of things anyway.

'Is not like the boy is out of suspicion. In fact, I still think that the plush toy has something to do with him, even if the initials don't match...' Garett exchanged a few more pleasantries before leaving, even if it was a child, Vincent was accustomed to the etiquette used by the high class of the society!

Leaving the boy behind, Garett trod across the saloon and looked for an empty table on the opposite side, as he didn't want to stay on Vincent's presence any more than he had to!

"Sir, may I ask if you possess anything particular in mind? Our chefs are always eager to serve you." A stern but soft voice sounded just after Garett took his seat, a young man wearing formal attire stood with his back slightly bowed in his direction.

'That's why I want to be rich... Ah, the power of money...' Garett's lips gradually curved up in a satisfied smile, he took his time to answer, as if deliberating his choices.

"I've heard that there's a new dish called Soufflé, I haven't had the opportunity to prove yet." Garett had just heard Vincent talking about it. Even if the child couldn't order something like that, he could! "I've heard it's sweet, so bring me a glass of red wine as well."

"As you will, sir. Do you have any preference for the wine? I'm sure our selection here at Brilliant Chateau can attend to your distinguished tastes."

'Huh? Selection? Preference? I've only tasted cheap wine in my life, so I have no idea what you are talking about! I need to keep appearances...' Garett's mind blanked while looking at the patient eyes of the attendant, he greatly focused only to keep his face from portraying his confusion!

"Surprise me, please." Garett warmly smiled, burning every brain cell just to come up with the response. His erect posture imitating that of the other guests at the saloon, he looked like a high-ranking member of the Goddess clergy with the eye-catching symbol hanging from his chest!

"I will do my best, sir." Saying no more, the attendant bowed once more and left in a show of formalism.

'Uff! I escaped... It's not easy to be rich...' Garett let out a sigh of relief before letting his thoughts wander, waiting for the dish.

...

'Wasn't that just milk and eggs with cream? I bet my mother can do this! Is this really what the upper-class eats? It would have been better if I had ordered a steak...' Garett grumbled internally after eating the soufflé, his every thought focusing on the wine in his hands.

'This, on the other hand, is pretty good... What was its name again?" Garett stretched his arm and grabbed the bottle to look at the label. 'Lá Effigy' It read on old cursive letters, eighty years of service.

"Huh, I have no idea how much it costs, but it's really good." Throwing the subject to the back of his mind, Garett finished the meal and returned to his room satisfied.

...

Remembering every detail of the plush toy, Garett took advantage that Alice was asleep and materialized the toy in his hands. Every detail minutely replicated in the materialization.

"That's pretty useful, huh..." Garett mumbled to himself, he wondered if he could replicate details from his subconscious. If that was possible, his investigative job would be a lot simpler! The toy in his hands looked perfectly similar to the real thing!

"Urgh! Even the smell is the same!" He rapidly covered his nose, the smell of sewage spread and covered the whole room! The suddenness of the act almost caused Garett to puke!

'And it's unlikely for me to find something anyway... It's just a projection I created from my memories...' He quickly dissipated the materialization and focused on the information he had at hand.

'Vincent said his father had hounds... And he seemed very afraid of it... But even if it's connected to him, how did the plush dog gather such powerful spiritual energy? That's unscientific...' Garett rambled to himself, reviewing every information that he came across.

"Wait... I've only seen madame Cecile, but I didn't even hear about Eddison being in the hotel..." Garett quickly noticed the incongruency, how could the whole family be fleeing from something but the patriarch not be present? Every servant in the hotel would be talking about Eddison if he was here!

"He is not here? I need to confirm that..." Garett didn't know if the reception would openly divulge information of the guests, even if it was for someone working for the church's patrol team. But he figured that only asking if Eddison Almir was really in the hotel would be fine.

Just as he was about to get up and make way for the reception, a wave of sleepiness washed over him. His every thought turning sluggish.

'Yeah... I will do that tomorrow...' Eventually, the tiredness got the best out of him. Believing that he had plenty of time, and it would be best for him to have Alice by his side when continuing the investigation.

Just after he closed his eyes, the sound of whistling came from the corridor outside. Instantly jolting Garett awake of his dreams, and with a reflex, he instantly materialized a revolver in front of him and jumped towards his suitcase looking for the church's special ammunition.

'F**K! Does it really follow those who whistle? Is it coming for me!?' Garett grimaced while running towards the wall, the adjacent room was where Alice was sleeping! He put all his strength and banged the wall with force!

"Wake up, Alice! Please be reliable just once!" He mumbled to himself in despair as the sound of whistling gradually became louder.