Learn one small skill every day

"Okay, let's go in and take a look."

What did I just see?

Bai Miao was certain that what he had just seen and felt was everything inside Abyss Street.

Could this place be connected to Abyss Street in some way?

With this conjecture in mind, Bai Miao felt even more strongly that he had to stay here.

As a result, Bai Miao became much more serious when inspecting the house, using his spot-the-difference skills to compare it one by one with the plague doctor's house in his memory.

Unfortunately, the layout and size of the two houses are completely different.

But thinking about it, Abyss Street isn't just one street; it's several blocks connected together. Maybe Vic Street is just a part of Abyss Street.

The house is highly functional, with commercial space on the first floor and residential space on the second.

After looking around, aside from the possibility that this place might be connected to Abyss Street, Bai Miao was quite satisfied.

I don't know how much longer I'll stay in this instance, but having a nice place to live is good for my mind and body.

Are you planning to rent it?

The young landlady asked while watering the flowers, without even glancing at Bai Miao.

"I changed my mind."

"Oh... then see them out..."

"I want to buy it."

"what?!"

The white-haired girl suddenly turned her head: "You want to buy it?"

"That's right, how much echo would it take to buy 13 Vic Street?"

"A flat price of 25."

Hmm... that's roughly the sum of the two smallest bloodstones.

"no problem."

Seeing Bai Miao agree so readily, the landlord asked, "Do you have that many responses? Or are you still planning to pay with bloodstones?"

"I might need an empty space."

“Perfect, I have plenty of land. Come with me.”

The landlord wheeled himself out the back door, and Bai Miao followed, discovering a large grassy area near the back door.

There was a well on the grass, and besides that, there was a pile of building materials such as wood and stones.

Is this enough space?

"can."

Bai Miao took out the two bloodstones and placed them on the grass.

Two bloodstones, each about five meters in diameter, were covered with sharp spikes and were dazzling in the sunlight. But the landlord stared intently at the two bloodstones.

"These two bloodstones are worth about 300,000 echoes, and after processing, the actual echoes we can get are estimated to be over 200,000, which is not bad. You can use these two bloodstones to pay for the house. I will have someone draft the house purchase contract, and we can complete the handover within half an hour."

During that half hour, the landlord didn't keep Bai Miao waiting; instead, he invited him to the living room for a chat.

The servant brewed the finest black tea, prepared exquisite pastries, bowed politely, and then left the reception room.

“Mr. Moriarty, let me introduce myself again. My name is Angelina Hearst. Welcome to Vic Street. Now you are also a resident of Yar City who owns property on Vic Street.”

“Miss Hearst, it is an honor to see a property that I feel so at home at first sight. Coming to Vic Street feels like coming home, and I hope we can get along well in the future.”

Hearst was now quite interested in this mysterious, wealthy hunter.

"Mr. Moriarty must be a hunter with a hunting space to be able to produce such a large bloodstone, right? A hunter must have killed a lot of prey to produce so many bloodstones."

Bai Miao simply smiled at Hearst, determined not to be tricked into revealing anything.

Whatever you say goes.

"Mr. Moriarty, you bought this place. Do you not plan to continue being a hunter? Earning enough money to get rid of the hunter identity would be a very good ending for a hunter."

"Whether or not one becomes a hunter is entirely a matter of interest. Miss Hearst is quite interested in hunting?"

To own so many properties at such a young age, this girl is definitely not an ordinary person.

Actually, Bai Miao had another question.

Hearst using his aura-gazing technique on both feet seems perfectly normal, so why is this guy in a wheelchair? Is he just bored?

Hearst looked somewhat nostalgic: "If you can produce so many Bloodstones, you must be an excellent hunter, and the prey you hunt must be extraordinary. So I'd like to ask if you know a hunter named Favre?"

"Oh? Miss Hearst, do you know Favre?"

Hearst simply picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and said, “Mr. Moriarty, I think it’s best if we stop using questions to answer questions; it’s very inefficient.”

In fact, the fact that she said those words already showed that she couldn't hold back any longer.

Hearst was eager to know who this mysterious hunter was.

"Okay, I agree. Let me answer the question about Favre first."

Bai Miao also took a sip of tea: "Actually, I am looking for Faful. Out of personal admiration, I have great respect for this mysterious senior hunter and want to see him in person."

Hearst nodded thoughtfully: "I met Favre once, on my wedding night."

“I am Milton Hearst’s wife, a famous wealthy woman in Yar City. However, on our wedding night, Favre came to my room and hunted Milton.”

Hearst's face didn't show much sadness: "Milton and I hadn't even had any marital relations before he was hunted down right in front of me, leaving me with his enormous inheritance, you know, Mr. Moriarty, that inheritance sometimes suffocates me."

You fucking must be laughing so hard you can't breathe.

Bai Miao really wanted to curse, but his good manners made him hold back.

Please continue your performance.

Hearst saw that Bai Miao simply smiled and nodded at him, so he continued, "I remember it was a night with a very full and bright moon. Favre entered the room like a ghost and used that death-like scythe to cut off Milton's head..."

"Then Favre left through the window with Milton's head in his hand, his cloak, which seemed to conceal the stars, obscuring the sky."

What does Favre look like?

"Unfortunately, all I know is that he was a very tall and thin man; I didn't get a clear look at his face."

Hearst sighed and took a sip of tea: "If Mr. Moriarty knows Favre, could you please ask him for me why Milton was hunted down? He is in good health and has a dedicated medical team that takes care of his health. He is definitely not suffering from any incurable disease. He should not have been the target of the hunt."

“Hunters have different criteria for choosing targets, and I don’t know Favre, so this question is probably difficult to answer.”

Hearst shook his head: "It's alright, Mr. Moriarty. You're looking for Favre, and I'm actually looking for him too; many people in Arles are looking for him. Perhaps we can help each other?"

Everyone wants to meet this Favre, who is he?

Bai Miao was still unsure whether finding Favre would help him in his search for the dark side of Arl.

There's still no progress on the main storyline.

No, there is still a connection. It at least shows that where I live now has a tiny bit of connection with Abyss Street.

Could Abyss Street be the dark side of Yar City?

Bai Miao was also uncertain about the progress of the main quest.

Is it enough to simply know what the dark side is, or is it necessary to actually enter the dark side?

Bai Miao knew that Hearst's attention to him was only because he was a wealthy hunter.

The hunters were perceived by the people of Yar City as poor, earning at most one or two bloodstones a day.

Hunters who can produce a large number of Bloodstones must be among the top hunters.

However, Bai Miao felt it was worth it to be able to get in touch with the Lord of Vic Street through this identity.

Why would this guy pretend to be a cripple when he's not?

Bai Miao did not believe all of Hearst's words.

Who knows if Milton was killed by Favre?

What if this was all a show orchestrated by this woman herself?

After all, the inheritance is just too much.

So Bai Miao neither agreed directly nor refused.

“Miss Hearst, we’ll be neighbors from now on. Neighbors should help each other out, but since this is our first meeting, we need some time to get to know each other, don’t we?”

“You’re right, Mr. Moriarty. May I ask what you plan to do in the future? Once you have the title of living on Vic Street, you can raise the prices of whatever business you do and you won’t have to worry about not finding buyers. The most typical example is Mrs. Sandra, who was just a small-time seamstress, but after moving to Vic Street, she transformed into a fashion designer. That’s the magic of Vic Street.”

"A little tailor? I'm afraid a little tailor wouldn't be able to move into Vic Street."

Hearst's eyes held a hint of confidence: "To me, Mrs. Sandra's previous businesses were small."

"Are there any other examples? I'd really like to know what kind of people my neighbors are."

“There are many people on Vic Street who have grown their originally insignificant businesses into very large ones, whether they are flower sellers, fur sellers, painters, musicians, or doctors.”

Bai Miao hadn't thought much of it when he first heard the word "tailor," but after his experience in Abyss Street, he started to feel something was off when Hearst gave his example.

A tailor who sells flowers... a tailor who sells furs... a tailor who sells cloth... and a doctor.

Doesn't this configuration look a little too familiar?

"Do you have... meat for sale?"

"Butchers are not allowed inside."

Hearst said firmly, "Hunters are allowed, butchers are an exception; they should be out in the suburbs outside Yar, keeping company with pigs and cattle."

"..."

Seemingly realizing he had been somewhat out of line, Hearst took a sip of his red tea: "This is also for the sake of the neighborhood's environment and atmosphere, so I don't recommend that you do any businesses that might affect the neighbors in the future."

"I actually wanted to be a doctor too."

Hearst nearly choked on his tea.

From hunter to doctor?

This gap is too big.