She is not an investigator.

What she has in abundance is probably her approachable appearance.

"Um... ma'am, would you like a newspaper...?"

After noticing Igris's gaze, a newsboy nervously raised his newspaper and said timidly.

This is not because the moon is looking at the neighbor (too scary, also) not because it is her Qi gaze too bold? It is just that an immature child is unconsciously nervous when faced with something beautiful.

"Could I have one, please?"

"Oh well!"

The newsboy hurriedly handed a newspaper to Igris, then stood there blankly, somewhat at a loss.

"...How much is this newspaper?"

"Oh, right... a copper coin!"

He was so nervous that he even forgot about collecting the money.

"May I ask you about something?"

Igris placed two copper coins in the newsboy's hand and said with a kind smile.

Do you know where I can buy a talking bird?

The newsboy stared blankly at the two copper coins, then stammered out his answer.

"There's a shop behind the newspaper office...there's a very beautiful bird there that can talk, but they probably don't sell it..."

It's a very beautiful bird that can talk; I guess it's a parrot.

The newsboy hesitated for a long time, but still took out the extra copper coin and handed it to Igris.

"One newspaper is enough."

"That's your intelligence fee. Thank you for your help."

Igris didn't accept it, but just smiled slightly and turned to walk towards the nearby newspaper office.

She always had more patience with children, especially the sensible little ones.

"Thank you!"

Igris hadn't gone far when the newsboy behind her seemed to realize what was happening and shouted loudly at her.

She didn't turn around, she just waved.

This meant little to her, but for the newsboy, that one coin would probably make him happy for a long time.

Igris arrived at the back of the newspaper office and saw the shop the newsboy had mentioned.

This wasn't a pet shop; it seemed to be a watch shop. The door was open, but it looked rather deserted. Looking through the window, I couldn't see anyone, and I didn't see any parrots either.

Perhaps Igris should go in and take a look; she does indeed have a pocket watch.

The man did give the mysterious pocket watch to Igris, but it was broken, and Igris didn't really need it, so she never bothered with it.

Since we're already at a watch shop, perhaps we could ask them to take a look?

But this kind of thing with an unknown origin should be considered a mythical item, so wouldn't it be inappropriate to give it to an ordinary person?

"…never mind."

At least Igris has carried it with her for so long without any problems, so we should just tell them to be careful.

Igris still went into the pocket watch shop, a beautifully decorated but empty and deserted place.

Is anyone home?

Igris called out, and the next moment, a commotion arose from somewhere, and a figure hurriedly darted out.

"Oh! Welcome, sir. How can I help you?"

He was a... seemingly reckless young man.

He was probably an apprentice here; at least in terms of his demeanor, he didn't seem like the owner of the shop.

Are you the boss?

"Ah, no, the boss isn't here right now, but if there's anything you want to buy, I can make the decision. However, if you want it repaired, I'm afraid you'll have to wait a while."

Sure enough, he was indeed an apprentice; otherwise, given his unreliable demeanor, no one would likely entrust him with such intricate repair work.

"That's right. I have a broken pocket watch. When the shopkeeper comes back, could you please ask him to take a look at it for me?"

Igris placed her pocket watch on the counter and asked a question.

"When I came here, I heard that the shop kept parrots. Is that true?"

"Indeed, that was the shop owner's pet, but it was taken away."

He picked up Igris' pocket watch, glanced at it briefly, and his gaze changed slightly. He also became much more respectful towards Igris, probably because the pocket watch was indeed quite remarkable.

"What a pity... I also wanted to raise a parrot, and I was wondering if its owner knew of any ways to do so."

"The shopkeeper's parrot was bought in the countryside, and as for Molkens..."

He touched his chin, seemingly trying to recall something, and quickly remembered.

"You could try checking out the underground black market; there are many places that sell these strange things."

He wasn't worried about Igris being in any danger; after all, the watch itself spoke volumes about her extraordinary nature.

"…Thanks."

"Could you please tell me the address? If there's anything wrong with this table, I'll contact you immediately."

"Central Avenue, Rose Detective Agency."

This is Olivia's shop name, and Iglesias thinks it suits her quite well.

"Okay, I'll let you know as soon as I have any information."

Igris nodded, didn't linger, and left the store.

Unfortunately, she did not get the result she wanted.

However, once you get to the outskirts, there probably won't be as many people around, so the Mirror Demon won't need to disguise itself as an animal anymore.

"...Wait a minute, I remember you can impersonate other people, right? You could just change into anyone, wouldn't you?"

The castle used to have so many servants—Buzer, Nanko, Lager—and even Olivia could transform into them. Why insist on a talking animal? Even if it transformed into someone else, no one would sue it for infringing on their personal image.

"I've already retired from this life. Only your body is the most suitable for me, so don't even think about making me look like anyone else. Becoming an animal is the biggest concession I can make."

"Okay...okay."

Normally, Igris would probably want to shoot it, but it's been so long, and Igris is indeed a little reluctant.

After all, it can be a great help, whether it's reading memories, impersonating someone else, or even turning into a rabbit.

Such a helpful assistant is probably hard to find again.

The Gods' Fool - The Last Knight: Chapter Eleven, The Strange Mark

Southern suburbs of Molkens.

Unable to find the talking bird, Igris went directly to the vicinity of the factory in the southern suburbs to begin her investigation.

Unfortunately, it rained.

However, she had anticipated this and opened the black umbrella that she happened to have brought with her.

Every time Iris uses the umbrella, she feels that she didn't get it for nothing.

The southern suburbs are not the city center, so there are far fewer people around, and the roads have become bumpy and uneven. In addition, with the rain, Igris's boots quickly became covered in mud.

And because Igris was wearing trousers, her trouser legs inevitably got some mud splattered on them, which made her feel a little sorry for them.

After all, she washes all her clothes by hand, and she scrubs them carefully for a long time if they get dirty.

However, Olivia doesn't seem to have this problem. At least Igris has never seen her do laundry, but her clothes are always very clean.

However, if it were a muddy hill, the traces of the so-called horse riders would probably be easy to spot, since hoofprints are definitely more obvious than normal human footprints.

But it's too early to say anything, since Igris is still quite a distance from the factory.

"I'll need to wear more layers when I go out from now on..."

Although it was still autumn, Igris still felt a bit cold.

She was afraid of the cold, and with the recent sharp drop in temperature, her old clothes were no longer suitable for the current climate, so it was time to buy new clothes.

After earning so much money over the years, Igris can finally enjoy a little bit of her own life.

Moreover, Olivia should have paid her salary by tomorrow (a full twenty or thirty silver dollars), which would be enough for her to spend for a long time, and she wouldn't have to worry about the price of clothes anymore.

It feels really good to have money.

Igris suddenly frowned and couldn't help but sneeze.

…Her cold hasn’t gotten better yet.

Perhaps I should take some time to buy some medicine.

……

"It's really terrible... I've been here for two days straight, and I haven't been home at all. I don't even know if my salary is enough to pay for my child's medical bills every month."

Inside the workshop, a robust old man was squatting on the ground, his forehead covered in sweat, resting.

"Alright, old man, stop complaining. You can rest after you finish this set, or you'll get your work hours deducted again."

A worker who looked younger helped the man up and patted him on the shoulder.

“In this day and age, it’s good enough to make money. Look at that young man.”

Looking in the direction he pointed, a young man was struggling to carry steel.

“He’s only seventeen, not even an adult yet, but he’s done just as much as we have.”

“My child is almost the same age as him.”

Old Boer sighed and returned to the conveyor belt.

"I didn't say hello to him. How come he's starting work at such a young age?"

“His mother ran away with another man, and his father was buried in the mine. Only he and his sister are left alive. His sister is only fourteen years old, so he has no choice but to come out and find a way to make a living. Who would dare to hire him except for a black factory like ours?”