Gou learns witchcraft in another world

Chapter 5 The Deal in the Incinerator

Luo Qiu followed Winters all the way to the incineration chamber.

Pushing open the heavy oak door, a smell mixed with coal smoke, old paper, and disinfectant hit you.

The room is rectangular and about four meters high. The walls are made of dark gray mud bricks, and the lower half is covered with dark green glazed tiles, giving it a very old-fashioned style.

This place was built more than 100 years ago when the Bureau of Investigation was first established. To this day, the decorations have not been updated, and it even relies on a tungsten filament lamp with a metal mesh hanging from the ceiling for lighting.

Without windows, relying on only one lamp would undoubtedly make the place extremely dark.

However, neither Luo Qiu nor Winters paid any attention to this.

Another reason they found it even more appealing was its excellent sound insulation.

After collecting some coal and closing the door, Luo Qiu and Winters began preparing to burn the evidence.

Of course, the two had a conversation before officially opening the box.

"The usual price? 30% for you."

"...This time we need to change it."

"Luo Qiu, we've known each other for a long time. You know my situation; there are three people in my family, and the expenses are too high. Blair is still in school this year, and I'm tightening my belt to save money."

"I heard you gained over two pounds at your last physical exam?"

"No matter what, there's no way I can get 40%. You know how complicated the application process is, and 70% isn't just for me. I'll only get a small portion; the real lion's share..."

"That's not what I meant... If possible, I'll only take one."

"One piece?"

Upon hearing Luo Qiu's explanation, Winters immediately became suspicious.

They were discussing selling some expired evidence. Winters was in charge of the sales; he had his own channels, and in the past, he had always handled the transactions before Luo Qiu received the money.

Now Luo Qiu wants the items inside, and only one item...

Could it be that Luo Qiu knows something about this?

After all, this box came from six years ago. Back then, Luo Qiu had already been a full-fledged detective for a long time, so he might have paid attention to the evidence situation in a certain month.

After some consideration, Winster nodded.

Although the other party would take away one very valuable item, he could still make a considerable profit from the rest. Besides, he'd heard that Luo Qiu was about to be promoted to senior agent.

If he is promoted to senior agent, he may become a team leader, who might then become his direct superior.

Therefore, investing now is a worthwhile investment.

"It's settled then. Now, let's open the box..."

As they were talking, the seal on the box was finally broken.

The first thing that catches the eye is a women's silk nightgown, purple and lightweight, worth about five hundred kronor.

Of course, this is evidence, and it's placed in a transparent evidence bag.

Luo Qiu glanced at this and then looked away.

This is not what he is looking for.

But the next second, Winters picked up the pajamas and calmly put them aside.

"Wait, you're keeping this too?" Winters' actions made Luo Qiu frown.

"It's made of silk, so it's quite valuable. Although it has some bloodstains on it, I can cut it off. I can make a handkerchief out of the rest and sell it for a few dozen kronor."

"You really know how to do business."

After hearing this explanation, Luo Qiu was deeply impressed. He had always known that Winters was famous for his shrewdness in making money within the Bureau of Investigation, but he never expected that the other party could achieve this level.

Fortunately, this was none of his business.

When Winters picked up the second piece of evidence, he immediately shifted his attention to it.

"This dagger is quite nice. It has a fish-scale pattern, is double-edged, has a crocodile skin wrapped around the handle, and is inlaid with a sapphire. Its market price should be around six hundred kroners. Moreover, the style seems to be used by knights of the Poli Kingdom, so it must be at least three hundred years old and should still have some historical value."

Winters calmly assessed the second piece of evidence, and halfway through his speech, he even took out a dagger and flicked the blade with his knuckles.

Ding--

"That voice, it's definitely right. Congratulations, Luo Qiu. This dagger... no, this piece of evidence is yours to destroy." Winters finished speaking and handed the dagger to Luo Qiu with both hands.

He was convinced that Luo Qiu had come for it.

It's normal for an agent who deals with heinous crimes all year round to be interested in such a weapon.

But as the dagger flashed with a cold light, Luo Qiu shook his head:

"I don't want this."

"No way..."

Upon hearing Luo Qiu's reply, Winters sounded surprised rather than doubtful, and halfway through his sentence, he began to beat his chest and stamp his feet in frustration.

"You have a sharp eye; you noticed that."

"A Carlesi 1800 Series III watch, market price 3,000 francs. Although this watch is damaged and there are bloodstains on the hands, the core should be fine. It can be repaired for 1,000 francs and still be usable. Even if you sell it, it's worth 1,500 francs."

"Although I don't know why you're interested in the watch market, Luo Qiu, since you've spoken up, then you can destroy this watch."

Winters put down the dagger and took out a damaged watch from the box.

He had noticed the treasure as soon as the box was opened. He hadn't expected that Luo Qiu would refuse the dagger without hesitation.

After weighing the value of all the items in the box, he couldn't think of anything that would make Luo Qiu refuse the dagger except for the watch.

However, Winters still misjudged the situation.

After hearing Winters' explanation, Luo Qiu was astonished by the price of the watch, but he still shook his head to refuse.

Then, with his other hand, he reached into the box and took out... a gem shattered into five pieces.

"I said I want this."

"this?"

Winters pointed at the gemstone, his tone wry.

Winters, of course, also studied gemstones; the Bureau of Investigation's files show that there are numerous criminal activities recorded because of gemstones.

But after rubbing his eyes and examining the gemstone more closely, he still couldn't see anything unusual about it.

The gemstone is moonstone. Legend has it that moonstone is formed from the essence of moonlight and symbolizes pure love, making it a favorite among young people.

This one, shaped like a water droplet, is blue and transparent. The fragments together should weigh 7 to 8 carats.

Gems of this quality, if intact, do indeed have considerable value.

But if it's just a fragment now...

"Luo Qiu, this gem was indeed very valuable when it was intact, but now that it's so broken, even if you grind it into several pieces, it won't be worth much, maybe a few dozen kronor?"

Winters, filled with doubt, advised Luo Qiu once, suspecting that the latter could not discern the true value of the gem.

What he didn't know was that for Luo Qiu, what mattered wasn't how many kroner the gem was worth, but that it was glowing red.

However, after thinking carefully about Winters' words, Luo Qiu also hesitated.

"Indeed, this gem isn't worth much... Or, how about I have that dagger too?"

……