Part 4 The Undead Chapter 21 A Visit from the Bishop
After the end of a philosophy class, Klein had the feeling that he hadn’t slept for three days and three nights, his mind was full of names and concepts such as skepticism, metaphysics, a priori a posteriori, nominalism solipsism, social Rosselianism, existentialism, positivism, and so on.
If it was not for the fact that when the original body studied history, there was an incidental understanding of some philosophical knowledge, he even doubted that he could survive a class in its entirety, which was not comparable to the non-one-on-one education he would have had when he was studying at the university on Earth, where he could still sleep and laze around or read novels and play with his cell phone if he did not understand what was going on.
”On the contrary, Mr. Hamid is not quite what I expected, funny, bright, outgoing, not boring in his lectures, neither like a philosophy teacher nor those notions often held by followers of the ‘Storm Lord’ …… “Raising a hand to rub the corner of his forehead, Klein turned away from the doorway and headed for the stairs deeper into the hall, all the way back to the third floor, with his personal manservant, Richardson, following silently at his side.
In the process, he noticed that the manservants and maids were all busy with their own affairs, none of them slacking off, and only pausing to salute and greet their employer, himself, as he passed by, in a cultured manner.
Tanea was still very competent in the organization and management of the internal affairs of the family …… Klein stepped down the third floor aisle and walked toward the room that was half open.
Before he even entered, Klein saw the butler, Walter, hanging two double-barreled shotguns onto the wall, giving the inside a bit more of a rugged and grandiose feel.
This is the arrangement of every rich merchant’s house, the “hunting license” is very good to apply for, and the power of the double-barreled shotguns is not small, enough for the house maids and servants to deal with infiltrating thieves and even kidnappers.
After hanging it up, Walter took two steps back, examined the shotgun for a few moments, and pulled a gold-cased pocket watch from the inside pocket of his shirt.
Snap!
He pressed the pocket watch open and looked into the inside of the cover, his serious, curmudgeonly face visibly softening a bit.
Klein coughed softly to alert Mr. Butler, then pushed open the half-hidden door to the room and stepped inside.
Walter closed the pocket watch and returned it to its original position, saluting sideways:
”Sir, a total of six ‘hunting licenses’ were issued for six double-barreled shotguns and corresponding shotgun shells.”
Klein, who was carrying a Deathstroke revolver under his armpit, wasn’t too concerned about this, and merely nodded his head to indicate that he knew.
He then put on a gentle smile and asked in a casual manner:
”When I was looking at the information of the ‘Helping Household Servants Association’, I noticed that you seem to have a wife and children, Walter?”
The butler, or chief butler, was the employer’s second-in-command, a beloved servant who could not be bypassed in many matters, so liaising with the butler was something every employer would do, and Klein did not want to be an exception.
Moreover, he also remembered that “Magic Mirror” Arodes said that the butler, Mr. Walter, would have additional unfolding.
Walter responded in a serious manner:
”Yes, when I was working as a manor servant in Viscount Connard’s house, due to the need of certain affairs, I was in frequent contact with a lady and developed feelings for her, and then, under the watchful eyes of the goddess, I stepped into the palace of marriage and had a daughter, who is now attending a grammar school and hopes to pass the entrance examination of Beckland University, but this is something to be considered after two years! ……”
At the mention of his wife and daughter, the unsmiling Mr. Steward’s tone became unconsciously soothing.
–At the present time, all churches are emphasizing the importance of the family in order to combat the pressure of life and spiritual problems brought about by the technological progress of the zeitgeist, the only difference is that different churches have different emphases, the darkness of the night is the equality of men and women and family mutual support, the storm is men busy outside, women take care of the family, and be the former’s supporting angels, and the steam Steam is to learn more skills and labor, each is good at their own, complementing each other.
Klein listened to the inexplicable emotion, turned to say:
”Ms. Tanea seems to be single?”
”Yes.” Walter’s expression reverted to seriousness and said, “In modern society, male and female servants are still not equal enough, this is not referring to the salary, female housekeepers belong to the same tier as male housekeepers and housekeeper’s assistants, all of which have a salary of 25 to 50 pounds a year, but the deeper concepts and ideas, the part of the church that is committed to change but full of obstacles, after all, the goddess is not the only faith of Ruen. ”
He paused and added:
”Whereas a manservant can marry, a maid who has a family means unemployment or becoming the lowest class, temporary hire, wash maid who doesn’t have to live in her employer’s home, and that can’t be reversed until the housekeeper stage, but that’s not something a young, inexperienced lady is capable of doing.”
Without continuing the subject, Klein nodded gently and stepped towards the position of the easy chair.
At that moment, his eyes swept over the newspapers stacked on the coffee table next to him.
With a twitch in his heart, Klein stopped his steps, sidled his body, and said to Mr. Butler:
”I saw an advertisement in the newspaper about the transfer of the shares of the Bakerland Pedal Car Company, you find a professional lawyer and accountant to go over and consult with them to figure out the exact situation.
”Oh, I’m interested in this industry, if the price is suitable, consider buying it.”
At that instant just now, Klein thought of the problem that a rich man who came to Bakerland with a huge amount of money to look for further opportunities could not possibly not pay attention to the transfer of shares in Bakerland Pedal Car Company.
Even if “he” did not see the future of this industry, it is normal to find someone to understand, otherwise it does not fit the persona.
Of course, I can also raise the price, so that 10% of the shares to sell for more money …… Well, must remember, simply raise a little bit, just can not be too greedy, if the lift lifted and smashed hands, then I should cry, that will make all my liquidity all sunk, unable to maintain daily life expenses … … …Klein admonished himself a few times in his mind as he made a nice fantasy.
”Yes, sir.” Without asking any more questions, Walter simply obliged.
At 4:35 pm, valet Richardson knocked on the door and entered the room, saying to Dawn Dantes who was leisurely reading a book:
”Sir, Mr. Murray Macht and his wife, Ms. Liana, as well as Mr. Elektra, the bishop of St. Samuel’s Church, have come to visit.”
Murray Macht? That member of the House of Commons? And, how come the bishop of St. Samuel’s Church is here as well?…… Klein thought about it and asked with a smile:
”Is there such a courtesy?”
He had only taken two lessons in etiquette for the time being, and knew that among this class, visits to each other would not be so direct, and that all butlers and servants were first sent to the door to deliver invitations or agree on the time of the visit.
Richardson bowed his head habitually:
”There.
”For when Mr. Butler went to deliver the card and gift, he did inform the neighbors that you had been at home on afternoons for the last week.
”In which case the neighbors who received the card, after inquiring about you and observing the appropriate details, could not only send their own servants to invite you to be their guest, but also make a semiformal visit to their door between four and five in the afternoon as if they were passing by on a walk out of the way, and, well, the lady would be dressed accordingly in her walking attire, or else she would be insufficiently presentable, and you could invite them to afternoon tea.”
Crane asked casually as he walked towards the door, allowing Richardson to remove his coat and put it on himself:
”And why is there Bishop Elektra?”
That was what he cared most about, and the question just now was just a prelude.
Richardson answered as if he had been prepared:
”Bishop Elektra was a guest at Senator Macht’s house this afternoon, and I think it was in the course of their casual conversation that they mentioned you, and decided on the spur of the moment to come over and make a walking visit.”
The movements of his hands were completely unaffected by his speech, and he skillfully helped Dawn Dantes to straighten his attire.
Klein gave a “hmm” and waited until Richardson stepped forward to pull open the door to the room before stepping out.
Soon he met his three visitors in the small second floor parlor.
Murray Macht is a typical Rune gentleman, in his forties, with black hair and brown eyes, a deep profile, a high hairline, and a slightly long and thin face. He used to serve in the army, and after he retired from the army, he joined the political arena, starting from the vicinity of Birkeland, and became a Member of Parliament for the Kingdom’s House of Commons, and he is a devotee of the Goddess of the Darkness, and is a member of the New Party, which supports the improvement of atmospheric conditions.
His wife, Liana, came from a family of barristers and provided her husband with a lot of resources for his political career, also a believer in the Goddess of Darkness.
Elektra wore double-breasted black robes of the clergy, her appearance was just forty years old, her blue eyes were deep, her face was thin, her features were not really good-looking, but she made people feel obedient inexplicably, a bishop that Klein had seen when he put money into the offering box.
Seeing Dawn Dantes enter, Murray Macht took two steps forward and said with a light laugh:
”I’ve been hearing for the past few days that a devout goddess follower has moved in at block 160, and thought I must pay a visit, so I just happened to stroll by today and took the liberty of coming to the door, so please forgive us for our rudeness.”
Klein revealed a smile and nodded four times clockwise on his chest and said:
”At times like this, one only needs to praise the Goddess.”
”Praise the Goddess!” Elektra and Liana secretly nodded and followed by drawing a Crimson Moon on their chests.
Ending the pleasantries, Klein invited the three guests to take their respective seats, while the maids promptly served black tea and coffee – housekeeper Tanea had already asked the other party what they wanted to drink before.
”Mr. Dantes, I heard that you are a merchant from Dixie, I wonder what industry you were in before?” Mori Macht asked in a casual manner and joked, “Your last name always reminds me a lot.”
It was a reference to the last name of the protagonist of one of Roselle the Great’s best-selling novels.
Klein let out a laugh and asked back with sardonic amusement:
”What industry does digging up treasure belong to?”
That was also what that best-selling novel was about.
Without waiting for Mr. Councilor and the others to respond, he said what he had made up long ago:
”I used to own my own mines, but as you know, there comes a time when that’s all dug up, and the city that was born from the mines will eventually fall.”
He alluded to his birth in several resource-based cities in Dixie County, places where gangs ran rampant, where there were so many invisible rich people that it would be hard for an ordinary person to investigate Dawn Dantes without more than six months.
Bishop Elektra nodded thoughtfully:
”So, you chose to come to Berkland to look for new opportunities?
”I wonder which one led you into the church?”