By the time Gene had left the mansion and was rounding the corner, the servant who had run all the way from the entrance reached Eanna, panting.
“M-miss! Just now, just now, who were you talking to? Surely not that…”
“The person who came looking for Enkishu? He said he’d come from the library.”
“He did! Something about a librarian, all those smooth lies… Miss, you’re all right, aren’t you? Nothing happened?”
Looking puzzled, Eanna spread her hands.
“What about me? Is something wrong?”
“That man might have behaved rudely, or taken something, or threatened you…”
“What are you talking about? He was very polite.”
The servant looked unable to believe her. Only then did the other servants run over and surround Eanna. One spoke.
“That coward of a gardener was only standing there watching. We ran as soon as we heard, but we’re still so late. It was our negligence. We never imagined such a thing…”
“Thank heavens you weren’t harmed, miss.”
Eanna frowned.
“Everyone, who is that man?”
“Haven’t you heard of the ShadowHawk?”
“The ShadowHawk? That person just now?”
Eanna widened her eyes and looked down the alley. But Gene had already turned the corner. Of course she had heard rumors of the ShadowHawk. They were rumors impossible to reconcile with the man who had just treated her with such polished courtesy. As Eanna covered both cheeks in astonishment and lowered her eyes, the servants watched her, hesitating.
“I-if something did happen, should we… chase him?”
“Your faces say you don’t want to die.”
As they scratched their heads in embarrassment, Eanna finally smiled.
“But I don’t think anything would happen even if you did chase him. Oh, he might give the bulb back.”
The farther Gene went from the mansion, the faster he walked. To change again. From a courteous, sensible gentleman into someone who could solve a problem merely by placing a hand on his sword hilt.
Change was familiar. Gene had changed countless times since childhood. Newly born, he had been bathed in sandalwood water and wrapped in red silk. Soon he was running barefoot through cornfields at play. Then he had endured a leaking little room in the slums, barely eating one meal in two days. A few years later, he had to learn again how to eat from silver dishes with ivory forks. Change was Gene’s life itself.
As a result, Gene knew that countless versions of himself clashed within him. Until now, he had brought out the one he needed when he needed it. Someday, perhaps, he would no longer be able to do so. Countless fuses lay hidden inside him.
For now, however, he knew clearly who he was. Walking into Tanners’ Street, Gene entered a shop. It was narrow and long, selling leather bags, belts, shoes, and the like. At the sight of him, the owner sprang to his feet. He was a tall, solidly built man for a shopkeeper. With two tall men facing each other, the shop was too cramped for anyone to pass between them.
Gene merely raised his right hand, but the owner gave a crisp salute. Gene spoke.
“Enkishu Nimushi, third son of His Excellency the Governor of Delphinad. He mainly goes to boxing clubs and the theater. Investigate the people he meets around the theaters. He’s stupid and likes books, but he’ll be a bold and audacious fellow.”
Eanna had given him a gold coin, but she probably had not expected Gene to be certain to find the thief. In another sense, it had been money to buy his silence, to keep some unknown, brazen book thief from being dragged to the arena. Gene did not find the thief dear in the least, however, and he had a reason to catch him without fail. Still, out of courtesy, he intended to send word to Eanna if he found the man. If she wished it, of course.
The owner replied, “Yes, Deputy Captain. I’ll report the results within two days.”
Gene nodded, then looked at the yellow parrot in a cage beside him. Taking an ear of millet from the cupboard, he held it out and drew it back, teasing the bird for a while, then placed it inside. Gene had always liked animals. Perhaps that was why he could not abandon his unrequited affection for Huka. Watching the bird diligently peck at the millet, Gene spoke.
“Does Taibon study at all?”
“Not at all. I may have to send him to the arena.”
“Don’t even talk about the arena. I’d sooner put him in the army.”
“I don’t want that. I’m thoroughly sick of armies.”
“And yet you salute readily enough.”
“When I see you, Deputy Captain, habit gets the better of me.”
As he answered, the owner went to a corner of the shop, opened a box for valuables with a small key, and took out a worn envelope. He laid it on the table. Gene looked down at it.
“What’s that?”
“Open it.”
A palm-sized book came out of the envelope. Its green cover had faded and crumbled, and the corners touched by the thumb were worn as though someone had taken a bite from each. The title could no longer be read. Gene opened it at random, then discovered something written in a margin.
Sara. When you see this, come tomorrow evening at seven to our usual place. Ven.
“What is this? Sara? Surely… Sara Izram?”
Gene’s hand trembled around the book. The owner’s face was tense too.
“As you can see, the ink is old. It isn’t a recent entry.”
“Then this is a record from that time?”
“It’s quite possible. There are more than a few similar notes in the book. I believe they used it to exchange messages instead of letters.”
“Where did it come from?”
“I found Sara Izram’s whereabouts.”
Gene’s eyes widened.
“Is that true?”
The owner nodded, undisguised joy spreading across his face.
“Yes. They say she left Delphinad long ago and has lived in Kamaha. That’s why we couldn’t find her until now. She’s presently working as a tenant on a farm. Jamalik sent word this morning. He says he met her himself and received this book as proof.”
Gene closed his eyes for a moment. His lips pressed tightly together. Knowing what Gene was thinking, a faint, awkward smile appeared around the owner’s mouth. He was not a man who smiled often.
“Hanbun.”
Opening his eyes, Gene looked at the owner, no, at Hanbun. Hanbun nodded.
“Yes?”
“You’ve all worked hard. I’d like to leave for Kamaha this instant, but I’ve already set things in motion. I’ll have to settle the Enkishu Nimushi matter before I go.”
“Understood.”
“Then send word through Ashabel.”
Gene sprang to his feet. The two aims he had set when he came to Delphinad were drawing closer at once. He grew impatient, restless enough that he could scarcely bear not doing something immediately.
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