Old days, dice and investigator's manual

The shop owner glanced at the note, then at Carlo, and hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but didn't.

Isaac understood what he was worried about: a casually written note, without a stamp or certification, would it really work?

However, since it's supposed to be a FBI mission, it should be reliable, right? The shop owner carefully folded the note and put it away.

"Where did you put the ashes of that burned garment?" Isaac cut to the chase. "Take us to see it."

The shop owner led the two to the back door, where they arrived at a backyard. In the corner of the yard was a rusty iron bucket, which was probably a trash can.

The shop owner pointed to that area, and Isaac looked over. Half a month had passed, and the ashes were probably long gone.

While Isaac was still trying to find any clues worth noting, Carlo turned to the shopkeeper standing at the door: "There's no point in you standing here. Go back and wait."

The shop owner nodded, turned and went back into the shop. Carlo then looked at Isaac: "The pricing just now was acceptable."

Isaac breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't really sure what he was getting when he made the offer; he just estimated a number based on his intuition. At least he didn't embarrass himself.

"According to the contract, the money should be split 30/70," Isaac said.

"Seven-thirds split, you take 70%."

"If it's the 100 pounds for hiring you, should it also be split 30/70?" Isaac thought for a moment. If the shop owner hired Carlo directly, wouldn't he get even more?

Carlo shrugged: "That was my own side job, it has nothing to do with the agency's contract."

"...Can it really be like this?"

"Of course," Carlo said matter-of-factly. "The contract stipulates the agency's commission distribution method, which requires members to divide the work. My personal time and abilities belong to me and I can use them as I see fit. If all the work goes through the agency's accounts, then I'd be working for you."

Isaac smirked. When he first looked at the contract, he only noticed that the firm could split the commission 30/70, with him taking 70% and making up the lion's share. He never expected that he could also do private work.

"If I can handle the commission myself, I won't have to give you 30%?"

"Of course, if you get a commission in the future, as long as you don't use my name or the firm's name, and don't involve the FBI, you can keep whatever you earn. I'm not going to take a cut of the extra money my employees earn on their own."

Isaac thought about it and realized that although it was very informal, it was still fair. If it went through the firm's accounts, it would be a division of labor between the two of them. He would be responsible for investigating and collecting evidence and putting in the work, while Carlo would be responsible for providing support and consultation. The commission would be split 30/70.

However, if Carlo solves all the problems by himself, then he really has no right to share the money. Conversely, if he can resolve the issues independently without relying on the firm's resources, then all the money is his, and he doesn't need to share it with Carlo.

This statement also implies that although the commission is nominally handled by Isaac, Carlo will not completely abandon it, since the firm will still receive a share of the profits.

Having figured this out, Isaac confidently asked, "Boss, do you have any ideas on which direction to investigate next?"

"Two angles," Carlo said. "One is the stench itself, and the other is the guy who wouldn't give a refund for a returned item."

"If we can find that person, we should be able to figure out why he did it and what the purpose of the curse was, but it will require a more extensive investigation and visits, and the time and effort involved will be far beyond the scope of a £20 or £100 commission fee."

"So we only need to resolve the curse on the shopkeeper," Isaac said knowingly.

If it were just about resolving the shopkeeper's curse, Carlo could probably just roll a die—that would be a 100-pound service, of course. But now that he's in charge of this commission, it's not so straightforward; no wonder Carlo said it would be a bit more complicated.

"Let's try using clairvoyance first, and see what you can perceive."

"Spiritual vision?"

"Close your eyes, relax, and try to sense what's different around you. Since only the shop owner can smell that stench, it means it's not something physical, but more likely something spiritual."

Isaac did as instructed, closing his eyes, relaxing his breathing, and trying to shift his attention away from sight and hearing to feel the subtle changes that he wouldn't normally notice.

Air currents, muffled sounds, sunlight casting a warm reddish glow on my eyelids...

Aside from that, I didn't have any particular sense of clairvoyance.

"I can't sense it." Isaac opened his eyes.

"That's normal, you haven't studied it."

"...Then what's the point of you letting me try this?"

"Let's familiarize ourselves with the basic steps." Carlo took out a die and tossed it to Isaac. "Then, before you truly master clairvoyance, I'll give you a hand."

"Can Isaac Lessing sense the lingering curse through his spiritual vision? Check value 50, psychic bonus 15, final value 65."

Isaac caught the die and threw it; 44. Check successful.

He immediately sensed a subtle change, something he couldn't quite put his finger on, like a normally closed sense being gently touched, as if he could catch some subtle fluctuations that he wouldn't normally notice.

"The blessing time wasn't long. Let's try again following the steps we just went through," Carlo said.

Isaac closed his eyes and relaxed his breathing.

This time, he sensed something different.

In the darkness after he closed his eyes, a faint wisp of grayish-green mist appeared, like floating dust, but thinner and more elusive than dust.

"Boss, I see a fog."

"Let's go to the place where the residue is strongest and take a look," Carlo said.

Isaac hesitated for a moment: "If I open my eyes..."

"Spiritual vision is a temporary exchange of physical vision for spiritual vision. Before you master the technique of 'dual perception,' you will naturally not be able to see what spiritual vision can see when you open your eyes."

"How am I supposed to walk with my eyes closed?"

...and so the cane was put into Isaac's hand.

"Boss, was this something you expected?"

"Of course, it wasn't prepared specifically for this event, but since you're going to learn clairvoyance anyway, people who use clairvoyance usually carry a cane or a long-handled umbrella, so I prepared it in advance," Carlo said. "Hmm, next time you can bring your dog along and have it help you scout the way."

Isaac had no choice but to grip his cane tightly, tap the tip of the cane on the ground, and then try to sweep it back and forth.

Judging obstacles ahead by touch was more strenuous than he had imagined. The tactile sensation from the tip of the cane was limited, and he could only tentatively move forward step by step.

He followed the changes in the fog's density, walking from the backyard back to the shop. The closer he got to the interior, the thicker the fog became, floating like wisps of ribbons, converging in a certain direction, and finally stopping at one spot.

He stopped, and in front of him stood a white humanoid silhouette, with gray-green mist swirling around it like vines clinging to a tree trunk.

The man looked puzzled: "...Sir?"

That was the shop owner's voice.