Traveling by carriage, Ronald Adler quickly arrived at Haywood Avenue in the commercial district.
Unlike the residential area where he lived,
Haywood Avenue, as Berenwich’s most business-centric district, was also upgrading its gas lamps to electric lights. The pace of public infrastructure development was only slightly behind that of very important areas like Long Beach Street.
Having just hopped off the rented carriage,
Ronald immediately noticed many shops bustling around him.
The district management of Berenwich was relatively strict.
In the depths of winter, salespeople hawking goods on the streets were mostly curled up near the storefronts, their activities somewhat organized in conjunction with the standing signs promoting goods or services behind them.
Shoppers on the streets, vigorous promotions, products in the shop windows...
These scenes were framed against the backdrop of red-brick buildings.
The character of the commercial street was almost palpable.
Turning around to pay the fare to the carriage driver, Ronald stood for a while, looking around before heading toward his destination alone.
Ronald did not know the origin of the hotel’s name.
But from what he saw before him, the hotel could certainly be described as impressive.
Located on the shopping street of Haywood Avenue, the Floral Hotel’s facade was mainly a deep red, visually similar to the architectural tone of Harvard University, solemn with an air of stability.
And the hotel, with a total of six floors,
stretched over thirty meters wide along the street!
Apart from the business level on the ground floor, only the second to fourth floors were for guest rooms, with the top two levels under the blue tiles arching upward into a double-layered attic.
Compared to the one or two-story shops nearby, the difference was like that between a giant and a child.
Based on the number of hotel windows alone,
Ronald guessed that the hotel had at least one hundred and fifty rooms.
Such a hotel situated on a shopping street was definitely a five-star establishment!
"No wonder they can offer such a substantial reward."
Muttering to himself, Ronald then walked toward the hotel entrance.
Passing through the extended arch-shaped canopy outside the main door, he had taken only a few steps into the lobby when a hostess approached him.
"How may I assist you?"
Ronald nodded to the hostess:
"I am looking for Mr. Everton Virginia, I had an appointment."
The hostess paused before asking:
"May I have your name, please?"
Ronald immediately replied:
Upon hearing this name, the smile on the hostess’s face became much brighter than before.
Leading the way toward the stairs, she explained to Ronald:
"Mr. Virginia is staying in room 214 on the second floor, I will show you the way."
Nodding his thanks, Ronald followed her.
The hostess led Ronald to a door on the right side of the second floor and even knocked three times on the room door for him.
"Mr. Ronald Adler to see Mr. Virginia!"
A seasoned response came from inside the door, which was then opened from the inside.
However, the person greeting Ronald was not the merchant, Mr. Virginia.
It was an elderly butler with a crisp posture and a gentle gaze.
The butler stepped aside to let Ronald into the room, and with a single warm look, signaled to the hostess to discreetly leave the doorway.
Then, the butler carefully closed the door behind them.
Standing upright, he faced Ronald Adler, first nodding slightly and then he spoke:
"Mr. Adler, the master is enjoying his lunch in the dining room. I will show you the way."
"Thank you for that."
After the brief exchange, the two continued deeper into the room.
As a merchant of considerable economic strength, the room Everton Virginia had rented at the Floral Hotel was certainly one of the most luxurious types. After passing through the living room at the entrance and then a short corridor, Ronald finally saw Everton’s figure in the dining room by the window.
This merchant from Springs was currently holding a knife and fork, dealing with a steak in front of him, the utensils making a crisp sound upon the plate, with traces of sauce on the napkin on his chest.
Clearly, this merchant wasn’t the kind to pay much attention to manners in private.
At this time, the old butler who had walked Ronald in said:
"Master, Mr. Adler has arrived."
Instantly, Everton’s attention shifted from the steak.
He looked up and saw Ronald, who had just entered the dining room.
"Mr. Adler has arrived, you say?"
Putting down his knife and fork and removing the napkin from his neck, Everton wiped his hands on a wet cloth, then stood and walked toward Ronald.
"Mr. Adler, let’s talk in the room inside."
Ronald nodded and said:
"Of course, no problem."
The merchant turned neatly and led the way, not forgetting to instruct the butler following behind:
"Tom, throw away the rest of the steak for me."
"I want to be alone with Mr. Adler for a while. No one is allowed to disturb us."
"As you wish, master."
The butler’s voice lingered in the dining room, while the merchant led Ronald into the adjoining tea room.
Like the living room and dining room, the tea room was also exceptionally comfortable, even though it was a smaller room within the Floral Hotel’s most luxurious suite.
Sofas, coffee tables, and the like were all available.
The designers had successfully and reasonably arranged a wealth of furniture within a limited space.
Once the two were seated on the sofas, the merchant immediately waved his hand.
A soft sound followed, and the room door automatically closed.
There were no mechanisms, no signs of magical power activation, nor any traces of others’ assistance.
Just like that, without any intermediate process,
What kind of spell was that?
Ronald didn’t care whether the other was pressuring him or had some other intention.
He was only quickly reviewing the knowledge he had acquired recently in his mind.
To achieve such an effect, there were three schools of thought on the mystical side that could do it.
——Rune casters like Nicole.
Having previously inscribed runes could achieve such an effect.
——Command-style casters.
A spell that established rules for a certain thing and thereafter functioned according to those rules.
——Deception or illusion technique casters.
This kind of spell was literal in its type and needed no further explanation.
The gentleman merchant before him, which type of caster among the three might he be?
As Ronald pondered the question,
Everton was also sizing up Ronald; he seemed to quite like Ronald’s silence.
Smiling happily, he opened his mouth to speak:
"Mr. Adler, what is your understanding of the exhibition?"