In this City, known as the Northern Pearl, which is perpetually shrouded in fog, various newspapers are published. The University District, where Xia De currently resides, not only houses most of Tobesk City's higher education institutions but is also a hub for newspaper and publishing houses, so the journey was not actually long.
The rhode cards obtained from Professor Manning had not yet been sold, so even though Xia De had found the Detective's wallet, his options remained limited.
He certainly wouldn't dare to consider national newspapers like The Tobesk City Morning Post, The Terraril River News, and The Kingdom Morning Post, all subscribed to by Sparrow Detective.
But he still took the business card to a newspaper office to inquire, and was shocked by the insured price given by the accountant, which completely made him give up.
"These are all nationally best-selling newspapers, and my business is limited to Tobesk, so there's no need to advertise in such places."
He even comforted himself this way, and then felt that his idea was very reasonable, convincing himself.
However, for The Three Penny Newspaper or The Delarion Business Daily, which have decent local circulation in Tobesk, it was possible to secure a small square space in the newspaper's middle seam or below the obituary section, squeezed in with advertisements for inventors seeking investment, factories recruiting workers, or lost and found notices.
The newspaper offices were very busy, so when Xia De visited them, his visits were not given much importance. Editors and reporters came and went; in just twenty minutes that Xia De spent in the smoke-filled editorial office on the second floor of The Delarion Business Daily, three people rushed in, waving their hands and shouting, "Big news!"
New developments in local child trafficking cases, unexpected appearances of royal family members at auctions, someone dying on the streets in Tobesk's northern district... Then, some people followed the ones with news and rushed out; this bustling steam City would never lack fresh happenings.
The prices for advertisements in such newspapers were also not low, and they charged by the number of times. Xia De considered that his Detective agency had limited capacity and couldn't handle too many clients, so he only purchased advertisements for this Sunday and next Sunday, wanting to see the effect first.
As for the tabloids that published gossip, such as The Textile Daily and The Tobesk Citizen's News, the advertising prices were lower. However, Xia De worried that too many advertisements in such newspapers would make him, like Sparrow Hamilton, an expert specializing in infidelity and mistress investigations.
But he didn't have many choices and could only pray that other commissions would come his way because of these tabloid advertisements.
The good news was that when Xia De, holding his business card, found the office of The Steam Bird Daily, which had the fourth-highest newspaper circulation in the entire City, on Saint George Street in the Tobesk University District, the middle-aged man in a black buttoned suit who received Xia De in the office glanced at the business card placed on the grand solid wood desk, then put down his fountain pen, clasped his hands together, and inquired curiously from behind the desk:
"Sir, may I ask who gave you this business card?"
"Miss Louisa. She commissioned me a while ago for research for her new Detective story. Later, when she heard I wanted to advertise in a newspaper, she directly introduced me to this place."
Xia De said, half-truthfully. He and others in his group all had such "reasonable" experiences of acquaintance.
"Louisa, huh... The advertisement is no problem. On the bottom edge of the second page, next to the date, we can reserve about thirty words for you. If you want to advertise long-term, it can be cheaper... How about ten shillings a month? You can pay us at the beginning of each month, or remit through the post office."
"Ten shillings?"
Xia De was stunned, suspecting he had misheard, or that the gentleman behind the desk had made a slip of the tongue.
He had run to many places today and knew that for a high-circulation newspaper like The Steam Bird Daily, which published four times a week, even ten shillings for a small advertisement in the back section for a week would be considered very cheap.
And for the bottom advertising section of the second page, ten shillings a month was practically free.
"Since Louisa introduced you with her business card, of course, it can be cheaper."
The middle-aged man shrugged and explained.
"Does Miss Louisa contribute articles to you?"
Xia De knew that the Writer also worked as a reporter.
"She contributes, but more importantly... her father, Professor Scaven Louisa, is a shareholder of the newspaper. Most of the editors at the newspaper now are his students. I also audited the Professor's courses during my student days, so since she personally introduced you, it's only right to give you a discount."
The middle-aged man explained, also asking if Xia De needed tea.
"This..."
From her demeanor, the Writer was certainly from a middle-class or even upper-class background, but Xia De hadn't expected Miss Louisa's family to be so influential. Yesterday, at Professor Manning's, he learned that the Professor knew Miss Louisa's father, but at the time, he hadn't imagined it was like this.
"Is this really alright?"
Xia De asked, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"What's not alright? We're not not charging you. Oh, sir, you are truly amusing. Are you worried we'll lose money?"
The middle-aged man said with a smile, and Xia De also shook his head and laughed, as if afraid the other party would change his mind, and slapped ten shillings on the table.
He decided that he must thank Miss Louisa properly next time. With the handwritten copy of "the little match girl" and the advertisement, Xia De already owed two favors.
Because he needed to reserve the 20 pounds he had to pay back next month and the 10 pounds he owed Mia, Xia De's available funds were not very generous. The cheap advertisement in The Steam Bird Daily greatly reduced his planned expenses, which filled the still-not-wealthy Outsider with hope for his future life.
"Indeed, everything will get better."
After dealing with the advertisement issue, when he returned to Saint Delan Square at noon, he unexpectedly found a letter on the doormat. It was a reply from The Lady; she asked Xia De to meet her at the club in the evening.
The Lady had successfully helped the group of five escape after the incident at Lakeview Manor, and this assistance certainly wasn't free.
"But a Ring術士 of her caliber shouldn't lack the power of a one-Ring術士. Could it be that she needs me to do things that are inconvenient for her as a noble?"
He wouldn't believe that nobles were law-abiding individuals as depicted in books.
The previous letter, which he had asked the Priest to deliver, must have been written hastily on paper and pen found at Lakeview Manor, so the paper quality was very ordinary. This time, The Lady used special high-grade stationery; while it didn't have gold edges, the entire sheet had a unique fragrance. Mia was very sensitive to this smell, probably finding it pungent, but Xia De liked the scent.
Of course, he wouldn't go so far as to sniff the letter paper like a pervert.