Just as Louisa had observed, the carriage carrying Tifa was indeed a noble's private carriage. Its interior decorations and furnishings were like a small reception room.
The black-haired maid sat there alone. She was still wearing the same maid's long dress and even the same hairband as when they last met. Her hands were clasped together on her lap. Upon seeing Xia De, she nodded slightly:
"Good evening, Hamilton Detective."
"Good evening. Am I late?"
After Xia De sat down, he handed over the item wrapped in newspaper. But the black-haired maid did not take it; she scrutinized Xia De:
"Not very late. Try to open it."
Xia De glanced at the maid and, without further questions, reopened the clasp and tried to lift the lid of the lacquered wooden box, but still failed.
Only then did he hand the cosmetic box to Tifa. With a gentle pull, the box opened in the maid's hands. Xia De looked on curiously, and the maid rotated the box to let him see its contents clearly.
It was a very ordinary cosmetic box, with its interior divided into small compartments holding different cosmetics... The Outsider recognized none of them.
The black-haired maid was definitely a Ring Sorcerer. Xia De didn't know what method she used, but after a faint brassy spiritual light flickered, she confirmed the authenticity of the item and showed a gentle smile to Xia De:
"Detective, you did very well."
"I have one more thing to mention. The delivery person... I killed him. Is that a problem?"
"What does that have to do with me?"
The maid tilted her head slightly, asking Xia De in confusion. Her age was probably similar to Xia De's physical age, and her skin was unusually white. But it wasn't pale; it was the color of milk. Her eyes were large, and her black hair was most in line with the Outsider's aesthetic.
"I mean, will this affect Cavendish..."
He probably understood that she didn't care about that.
"The Lady prefers to be called 'Jialinna'."
The maid reminded him.
"Alright. Will this affect Jialinna's matter?"
"Mr. Hamilton, do not underestimate The Lady's power, and do not think that Mercury Blood is some formidable force."
The maid said, then patted the small box she had placed on the table, smiling at Xia De:
"You have indeed delivered this cosmetic box according to the entrusted agreement. Other than that, Jialinna will not care about anything you have done... However."
She glanced at Xia De's expression and asked softly:
"The explosion just now, you didn't cause it, did you?"
Saint Delan Square was only half an hour's walk from the delivery location, so it was normal for her to hear the sound. Xia De gave an awkward smile, and the maid didn't ask further, but continued:
"Early Sunday afternoon, I will send someone here to help you prepare for the rhode cards game in the evening. Please do not go out. If you win, The Lady will not be stingy with rewards, and then you will also know which faction she belongs to... Actually, you can probably guess, the Witch Council."
She revealed such secret information so casually, and only after realizing that Xia De's surprise wasn't too obvious, did she shake her head regretfully:
"The Lady was right, you did guess."
"You just told me like that?"
Xia De was actually surprised by this point; he had long suspected that the other party was a member of the Witch Council.
"So what? Besides, won't you know anyway if you win the bet this weekend?"
The maid replied, tidying her hair.
The carriage carried the maid away from Saint Delan Square. Xia De watched her leave, then called out to Louisa, who was standing in the shadows of the house, and took out his key to open the door.
Immediately, a dark shadow darted out from the lit hallway. Xia De happily hugged the cat that jumped down from the shoe cabinet:
"Mia, were you bored at home alone?"
Having a living creature greet him when he returned home made the lonely Outsider very happy.
The orange cat rubbed its soft little face against Xia De, then suddenly twitched its nose and looked at Louisa, smelling fish.
"Oh, little cat, we meet again."
Louisa greeted Mia, but the orange cat once again "roared" at Louisa out of fear. Although this cat was sometimes fierce, it was unusually timid and still wasn't used to being carried around by Xia De.
Bringing Louisa to the second floor, there were naturally no women's clothes in the young Detective's home. But fortunately, Sparrow Detective had many loose trench coats and overcoats for convenience in shadowing, allowing Louisa to change clothes in Sparrow Hamilton Detective's bedroom, while Xia De returned to the study to record today's transaction.
"I never expected that 'The Lady' would be Duchess Galina Cavendish."
This was the first thing the Golden-haired girl said as she walked out of the bedroom, wiping her hair with a towel. She hadn't showered in the single man's house, just simply wiped her hair with a towel to ensure that her landlady wouldn't be suspicious when she returned.
"Hmm? You figured it out?"
Xia De put down his pen.
"Are you surprised that I recognized that maid, Tifa Servett? This is Duchess Galina Cavendish's personal maid. Since she came to handle the handover personally, then The Lady must be Galina... I never expected it, she's actually a High-Ring Sorcerer... With this, many things make sense."
Louisa walked to the sofa, deep in thought.
Xia De was originally organizing his ledger, but now he couldn't continue:
"That maid only showed her face briefly; I almost didn't recognize her."
"This is my little secret, I have a good relationship with someone in the Royal Family, to be precise, with a certain princess of the Royal Family."
The Golden-haired girl said lightly, then looked around the Detective's office. Like Bei Ya Si and Annette who had visited, she also became interested in the small and cute Mia, but unfortunately, even though the relic on her still emitted a fishy smell, Mia still disliked being held by strangers.
The professor from Saint Byron's suspected Louisa was an academic spy from Zaras Academy, but looking at her, it seemed there was a deeper hidden story.
"This place is really nice."
Louisa commented.
"Please don't tell anyone about Jialinna's matter."
Xia De exhorted again.
"Of course I won't spread the word about her being a Ring Sorcerer. It's fine if I know it myself. I was just lamenting how everyone seems to have secrets."
She said jokingly, and Xia De squinted, not daring to look at her.
"However, you must be careful when working with that woman. She has disliked men for a very long time. There are private rumors that she actually likes... pretty girls."
The Golden-haired girl showed an ambiguous smile:
"This person has a spiritual 潔癖. Is that the word? I heard a doctor mention it last time."
"Are you very familiar with Jialinna?"
Xia De probed again, he wasn't trying to find out others' secrets, just curious.
Louisa picked at a strand of hair by her ear with her finger, her eyes on that strand of hair rather than on Xia De, which was a clear sign of lying.
"Of course not, Galina Cavendish is a Duchess with a fiefdom, I'm just an ordinary Tobesk Writer. How would I know her? I only heard a friend mention her. However, High-Ring Sorcerer, dislikes men, single..."
Only then did she look at Xia De:
"I used to think it was strange, but now that I know these things, I realize, could she be from the Witch Council? She fits all these criteria. Oh, if that's really the case, then the matters of the Cavendish Royal Family in Delarion are truly becoming more and more interesting."
The Golden-haired Writer raised her neck, and under the light of Xia De's living room, her smile became even more pronounced.
Her relationship with the Royal Family was definitely not that simple.