Legendary Detective at the World's End (Volume 1) (4 page)

   “Wait a minute.” Jake said suddenly gathering his thoughts. “I thought you said that old man was part of this scheme? That he tricked us?”

   “Not really.” Kirin smirked. “I just said that to confuse our dear friend Shin. There’s something you have to understand about people who survive and emerge from the Grey forest. Anyone that enters that place and stays too long becomes insane. So much so that even the poachers have time restrictions on how long they can hunt there. If they stay too long, they not only have to fear the beasts of the wild, but also the nightmares that lurk within a fog that blankets parts of the forest.” Kirin said to Jake with an excited smile on his face as he explained everything to him. “This goes especially for the tribe of the ex-communicated.” He continued. “Their minds have been warped a bit after living there for a while, albeit deranged. And with a deranged mind, it’s hard to know what’s really real or a dream. So I just told him which was which, confusing my made up story with his truth, ultimately making him question his own sanity before losing his mind and perspective.”

   “S-So he wasn’t a serial murderer? He didn’t set us up with the old man? You just made all that up?”

   “Yeah, of course. I needed to create an immediate threat for the house guards once they entered here so that they would find us rather young and non-threatening compared to the axe swinging Shin. Putting us in a position to explain ourselves or at least, show them something familiar, like that box.”

     Jake looked at Kirin in awe of his forethought and execution of such a complex plan in so little time. “Rin, who are you? You’re too smart to be a chaser for the Gambling Den Sharks?”

   “Whoever said I worked for the Gambling Den? That’s just something you presumed, and I let you. All along, I just followed you on a hunch that something exciting might happen. And it did.” Kirin smiled.

   “What?” Jake looked at him in disbelief.

     In between their words with each other, the Madame let hers go. “This is his dying wish…” the Madame said interrupting the flow of their conversation, grabbing both of their attention. “You asked about this box, right? Do you still wish to know about it?”

     Kirin stepped forward with an eager look in his eyes. “Of course.”

     The Madame looked solemnly at them both. “This is our dying wish, my Father’s and I, our wish together, something he promised me before he sent me off to the Red-light Sector as a Courtesan many years ago.”

   “A promise with an old blood stained knife?” Kirin asked.

   “A bonding knife.” the Madame said picking it out of the box, examining its worn out blade. “It’s a knife used to signify an oath between parent and child. The father cuts the tip of his thumb while the daughter cuts her palm then presses it against the thumb of their father as he chants hymns of strength and success for them on their new journey.” She said with a reminiscent look on her aged face. “In exchange, the daughter gives to the father her promise to excel in their trade, whether chosen or forced. However…” she said looking coldly at the blood stained carpets below. “If the daughter does not live up to that promise of success, the Father will find her and cut her throat, ashamed of her failures.”

   “Keiko…” Jake said.

   “She was my youngest sister.” The Madame said with a remorseful look in her eyes. “She wasn’t supposed to be like this, she once was a musician, a cellist for the castle in the city Nodham. She played for the Nobles there, but after years of trusting the wrong people, she found herself homeless, and worse. Instead of keeping her on the streets, I brought her here.” She said letting her stone cold face reappear. “My great success was her failure.”

   “And that blade,” Kirin said nodding his head. “Was in honor of yours, right?”

   “Yes. If the daughter has success in her journeys, the father is never to see them again, as to not sully their future with the past. Instead, they send someone to give the blade to them as a show of honor and respect of their achievement. If the daughter is a failure, they see them again, only the edge of the blade as they take their life to erase their embarrassment for them.”

   “That’s twisted.” Jake said shocked.

   “It’s a tradition in the tribe I used to be in. It’s the only tradition I remember from the tribe.” She said with dead eyes.

   “Haa…” Kirin sighed heavily as if he had just finished eating a big meal. “A tale of two sisters with two different fates. Fascinating.”

     Jake looked at Kirin in confusion. “So then the old man… He…”

   “Yes.” Kirin nodded. “The Father did it himself. Keiko probably saw it coming and pushed Shin into the wall, like he said.”

   “So…” Jake said as his brain twisted in thought. “He wasn’t the murderer then.”

   “I never said he was… Or maybe I did.” Kirin chuckled. “Anyways, he gave us an opportunity to sort this matter respectfully.” He said looking over to the Madame.

     The Madame nodded her head. “Consider the matter settled, you’re free to go. But do keep this a secret between us.”

   “Of course.” Kirin bowed his head slightly. “Thank you Madame.” He then headed for the door. Before he exited, he turned to the still stunned Jake. “Are you coming?” he asked.

     Jake shook away the stunned expression wearing on his face before chasing the quick feet of Kirin out the door, through the hall, down the stairs, into the kitchen, and onto the sun swept streets. Breaking his trance like state as he followed the overjoyed Kirin down the streets while he haggled with vendors over a sweet snack, he called out to him. “Rin…”

   “Yeah…” he said just about to take a bite out of a chocolate candy bar. “What is it?”

   “Why did he come after me?” Jake asked. “Shin, you were standing right in front of him, but he ignored you and chased after me. Why is that?”

  “Rage.” Kirin said taking a bite out of his snack. “It builds and searches for something hostile to attack. It feeds off volatile emotions because it does not know if its actions are real or not without attacking something. So when it explodes,” He said throwing his hands in the air like an explosion. “It searches for something just as hostile. I was not hostile at the time and showed no anger, so he was uninterested in me. Instead, he chased after the slightest thing that showed emotions. And that was you, your anger over being tricked.”

     Jake looked at Kirin in awe and wonder, thinking how someone so childish looking could be so perceptive and cool under the most extreme circumstances. “Rin, who are you, really?” he asked.

   “Why do you keep calling me Rin?” Kirin asked.

   “Why? You don’t like nicknames?”

   “It’s not that I don’t like it, it’s just weird.”

   “Weird? It’s not weird. I have a nickname.”

   “Impossible, Jake is just a name, there’s no… No nick in it to be a name, so to speak.”

   “Yes there is, my real name is Nick-Jake.”

   “Stop lying.” Kirin said taking a bite out of his candy bar. Jake, looking at the innocent expressions of Kirin as he ate his snack, just could not see the genius who had saved his life in his baby face. “You still haven’t told me who you are?” Jake asked again.

   “Me?” Kirin said chomping down on his snack. “I’m a detective.”

   “A detective? You mean like the City Guard.”

   “Absolutely not. I solve the riddles the simple minds of the guards cannot crack. I’m more like a specialist in the solving of unsolvable problems. A hero, so to speak, just like from legend.” He said with a cocky grin.

     Jake chuckled at his almost childlike perspective.

   “What’s so funny? Kirin asked.

   “I-I just can’t believe your seventeen.” He said through his laughter. “Hero’s and legend’s from the fantasies? That’s something only a kid would say.”

   “And what’s wrong with that?” Kirin said. “Nothing wrong with being legendary.” He said dismissing his laughter as he walked away uninterested in Jake mocking him.

     Letting his amusement die down, Jake lifted his head up to see Kirin vanish into the crowd. Looking around himself and the bland faces passing him by, he felt a sudden loss within him. Brief as it were, he could feel the immense presence of Kirin lacking around him as reality folded back in on top of the surreal afternoon he just had. Feeling that brief moment of loss, Jake wondered if legends could be real.

     With the patience of a rabbit tailing a turtle, Jake anxiously followed the mysterious detective Kirin, or whom he likes to call Rin. Moving from corner to corner, it was as if he was chasing a rat with a sweet tooth around a crowded market square filled with candy stores. Watching Kirin as he moved from one sweets stall to another, sampling chocolate snacks by the pound, Jake looked on in wonder, amazed by the appetite of such a small boy for sugary candy. As he skulked through the waves of bystanders buying and selling other goods from vendors and tradesmen, Jake lost sight of the detective for a moment, causing him to look around frantically for his missing lead.

   “Hey!” a voice said leaping from behind Jake, catching his attention. He quickly turned around to see Kirin standing there holding an ice cream cone. “What are you doing following me?” he asked licking the side of his cone.

   “Rin?” Jake said surprised.

     Kirin raised an eyebrow in recognition. “Nick-Jake, right?”

   “Yeah…” Jake said standing upright from his stalking posture. “You can just call me Jake.”

   “Bleh…” he said sticking out his tongue in disgust. “How can your parents give you two first names like that, how improper of them.”

   “Hahaha…” Jake said laughing uncontrollably for reasons he could not understand. “That’s still bothering you? I think my parents fought over which name they thought was best and just settled on the both of them.”

   “How convenient.” He said looking away with disinterest before looking back in wonder. “Shouldn’t you be somewhere gambling, maybe getting into trouble?”

   “W-What? Why would I be getting into trouble? I’ll have you know I’m a law-abiding citizen here in Teigen.”

   “Oh, really? Then why were you stalking me up and down the streets just now for the past two hours?”

   “Wait,” Jake said annoyed. “Aren’t you the one looking for trouble? You stalked me the other day into the Red-light Sector for that reason alone.”

   “Well,” Kirin grinned. “I never said I was a good citizen… Now,” his grin wore off. “Tell me what you want? You do want something, right? Don’t tell me you followed me to just admire my looks…” Kirin smiled again. “Though I wouldn’t mind, I am quite handsome.”

   “Umm…” Jake said feeling awkward at the flow of their conversation. “Ah, well, you see there’s this thing…”

   “Thing?” He said walking forward, passing Jake as he headed down the Market Square. Confused by his sudden movement, but eager to speak to him, Jake followed closely through the crowds.

   “You’re a detective, right?” he asked.

   “Hmmm…” Kirin took a bite out of his ice cream cone before looking back up at Jake. “Yeah.” He nodded.

   “So,” Jake said as he bumped into a disgruntled messenger boy who shoved him aside. “So,” he said staggering back to the side of Kirin. “You take cases on, right?” he asked.

   “Of course.” Kirin said while a bunch of kids swarmed him as he entered the Entertainment sub-Sector where street performers abound.

   “Rin! Rin! Rin!” the children chanted as they held their hands open to receive. Kirin dug into his pockets, pulling out a handful of small wrapped candies that he flung into the air. The children jumped up and down as they scurried through the streets to pick-up the hard candy rolling on the cobble stone beneath them, breaking up jugglers performances and street musicians songs in their hurry.

     Jake looked on with fascination at the scene for a moment before chuckling under his breath. “I’m not the only one calling you Rin.”

     As Jake laughed to himself, Kirin turned around and gave him a piercing stare. “Do you have a case? If not, stop following me.”

   “So you do take cases on then?” Jake said with a grin as they stood by the jugglers and dancers that filled the center square between the theatres and concert halls.

   “At a nominal price, of course.” Kirin said walking forward.

   “Wait…” Jake said chasing him down again. “Think you can put this on my tab?”

   “Tab?” What do you think this is? You think I’m some kind of dive bar? I’m running a business here, you can’t buy candies on promises and favors, don’t you know?” he said popping in a small hard candy into his mouth.

   “You know those will rot your teeth, right?”

   “I know,” he said smiling, revealing his white teeth. “That’s why a brush five times a day; keeping my gums fresh for more candy consumption.”

     Jake grinned. “Then how about this?” he said pulling out a ball wrapped in a red and gold aluminum foil. Kirin stopped dead in his tracks as his eyes fixated on the sparkling ball that Jake palmed within his hand.

   “Ah, so you know what it is, right?” Jake said with a cocky grin. “You see, I did my own research on the little known detective Kirin.”

   “What do you mean by little?” he said with a disgruntled look on his face.

   “What I mean is, you spend your days rescuing dogs and cats for overprotective aristocrats in the High-End Sectors, not something very detective like if you ask me.”

   “Nothing wrong with that.” Kirin said turning his nose upright at his comments. “They pay well and there’s no better information network then gossiping girls with nothing but time on their hands.”

   “Maybe…” Jake said twirling the sparkly ball in his hand. “But besides that, I learned that you love to stroll down the Market Sector on the prowl for the newest and rarest sweets. And here I have them both in my hand now.”

     Kirin raised an eyebrow before his eyes lit up for a brief moment in excitement. “Don’t tell me that’s a Grenadier?”

   “A Chocolate Grenadier, the honey sprinkled almond treat coated in chocolate, directly from the markets of the Golden Cities by the coast. The rarest of all sweets, lest you’re an aristocrat with the means, and even then, you have to place your prayers and hopes on a brave carrier who would travel through dark and dangerous roads of the Outskirt Cities to get it.”

   “Impossible.” Kirin said shaking his head in doubt as his eyes fixated on the ball. “No commoner could get something so rare from the Golden Cities here.”

   “I’m not just any commoner, I’m a man with good friends who do wild things for love.”

   “Love?” Kirin said raising an eyebrow. “Just tell me, what’s your case?”

   “So you’re willing to do it then?” he grinned with over excitement.

   “Yeah… But I want the candy up front.”

   “Sure.” Jake said tossing the chocolate ball to Kirin who quickly grabbed it mid-descent. He then sniffed the surface of the ball, letting its sweet aroma fill his nostrils. As its odor lingered there, he turned to Jake with a frustrated look in his eyes.

   “You lied.” He said.

   “Huh? What are you talking about, I bought this from my most reliable tradesmen from the market.”

   “And I applaud you for it, but this is not completely a Chocolate Grenadier.”

   “Not completely? What do you mean?”

   “I mean,” he smiled. “You almost have one here, which I commend you for even being able to do that. Sure, this little chocolate ball here is one hundred percent made from the Golden Cities, but by sniffing the contents and…” he said knocking the rough aluminum shell as he put his ear next to it. “Knocking on the shell, you find out it’s hollow… which means the rarest part of the Grenadier, its honey coated almond center, is missing.”

   “Why is that part so important?”

   “Haha…” Kirin laughed throwing back his head. “Oh, how little do you know about the delicacies? It’s where the money is, obviously. Cocoa seed or chocolate can be grown anywhere locally, but the almond can’t, it can only be grown in one of the Golden Cities.”

   “So it’s the more expensive part then.”

   “Yes!” Kirin snapped his fingers. “And it’s the missing part. But why? Why? Why? Why?” Kirin said twiddling his thumbs on the bottom of his lip with an intense sense of curiosity beaming from his eyes. He then turned to a confused Jake. “Jake, where did you buy the Grenadier?”

   “Ah, I was given it, by a friend, I suppose.” He said scratching his head.

   “You suppose?”

   “Well, he’s… he’s the type to owe a casual gambler such as myself, some money.” Jake said awkwardly in attempt to hide his own habits. “He gave it as a peace offering or… interest on the principal of a loan.”

   “Hoho…” Kirin mockingly laughed. “Swindled by the gambling sharks, now you’ve become a Shark yourself. I’m rather impressed by your quick turn around on the matter.”

   “You kind of live and learn in this world.” Jake shrugged his shoulders. “And I couldn’t help but notice that all the money was going upwards towards loans or gambling sharks, so I decided to test out the waters on both.”

   “How’s that going for you?”

   “Besides being duped by my most recent client, it’s going great.”

   “Good, then you wouldn’t mind bringing me to this debt slave of yours.”

   “He’s not a debt slave,” Jake defended his friend. “Anyways, what about my case?”

   “What about it? You still haven’t paid me in full yet.” Kirin said raising the chocolate ball while he un-wrapped it. He then carefully split it in half with his bare hands, revealing an empty core. “Before any of that, I want my almond.” Kirin demanded as he rewrapped the chocolate ball.

   “Umm…” Jake said genuinely shocked by the eagerness in Kirin’s voice. “Alright, as long as you take my case afterwards.”

   “Definitely.” He said nodding his head.

   “Ok, follow me.” Jake said as he hesitantly turned around and headed through the crowds in the Entertainment sub-Sector to the more spacious walking area of the Downtown walkway where the shadows of yesterday’s party laid about in the flipped chairs at open restaurants, an empty outdoor stage being dismantled, and the closed lights of different vendors. While Jake made his way through the streets, he would look behind him occasionally to catch a glimpse of Kirin’s breezy walk. Looking at him dressed in his heavy trench coat and long collar covering the lower half of his face, Jake found it hard to make out the baby face under all the layers of his clothes. However, it was there, and for some reason, it made every word he spoke even more confusing to Jake as it seemed to be spoken from a child with an adult like intellect.

   “Haa…” Jake sighed, shaking off the odd feeling and thoughts mixing in his mind.

   “What is it?” Kirin responded. “Are we there yet?”

   “Almost.” Jake said pushing forward. “He’s probably at the den, so all we need to do is cut through the alley way here and find its entrance.”

   “Den? You mean gambling den?”

   “Yeah… What? You never been to one before?”

   “No. Never was interested in the cards, it all seemed rather absurd to play by any set of rules.”

   “Hahaha…,” Jake laughed as he made his way down an alley towards its back-end where a single door stood out in the dark.

   “What’s so funny?” Kirin asked, following him.

   As they approached the door, Jake calmed his laughter. “So the gutter rules of the gambling dens are too strict for you?”

   “No,” he said shaking his head in disagreement. “The rules are too easy to break. I mean, why do you think gambling houses need so many security guards in place? The rules bend easily there, and when they bend in the wrong or right direction, they have someone there protecting them.”

   “And here I thought it was just to protect all of the house’s money…” Jake said mockingly.

   “That’s true. But what’s considered house money includes your wallet once you enter their premises.”

     Jake stared at Kirin for a while with a slight sense of intrigue in what he was saying, and then an idea came to mind. However, he shook off this developing thought and knocked on the door in front of him in a coded rhythmic pattern. The cover on the peephole opened, letting the light brown eyes of someone on the other side of the door seep through while they looked them over. The peephole shut again, followed by the locks on the door clicking, letting the door eventually swing open, revealing two muscular bouncers dressed in black.

   “Jake, long time no see.” one of the bouncers said. “What’ve you been up to?”

   “Same old same old, Nipsey.”

     The bouncer grinned. “Yeah, right. Come on in.” he said waving in Jake. Kirin followed, but was abruptly stopped by one of the bouncers. “Not you, kid.” the bouncer said to him. “This is no place for children.”

     However, Jake stepped in. “It’s cool.” he said. “He’s with me, and he’s no kid.”

     The bouncer reluctantly removed his hand and let Kirin walk inside the brightly lit halls and vibrant chatter that filled the Gambling Den.

   “Stick close to me.” Jake said entering what looked like a small hallway where shady men posted on the wall, the look of failure in their eyes as they glanced at Kirin and Jake. Kirin snickered to himself. “Game of chance, eh?” he said under his breath.

     Walking down the short back hall, they made it to the main hall where gamblers hunched over tables as they eyed their cards up and down along with the other players seated beside them. A few people stood around the tables as an audience to the play, while others, more muscular and fit, stood guard as security measures. However, a few chosen elders sat at the corners of the room in their suits, overseeing their operations from afar—mostly likely representatives from the Gambling Union in Teigen. With them here, a certain sense of legitimacy entered the dank atmosphere of the den. Kirin nodded his head in approval as he finished his quick appraisal of his new environment.