The Secret Code of Monsters.

Chapter 46 Taylor and Golden Smoke
"I know you, Mr. Inspector General."

Mr. Randolph did not seem to avoid the detective like James Penn did. Instead, he introduced himself and his sister politely.

Taylor.

This surname is not considered noble in the upper class circle, but if you mention "Golden Smoke", you can't help but mention Bellows Taylor and his son Randolph Taylor.

This tobacco and smoking utensil brand, which has been influential in the tobacco industry and can be called the number one brand, was founded by Randolph Taylor's grandfather.

It is currently in the hands of his father, Bellows Taylor.

If nothing unexpected happens, the future will be taken over by the blond, deep blue-eyed man in front of Roland, Randolph Taylor.

Grandpa built the brand, and both father and son are good at business.

"You know me?"

"Of course, some things spread quickly in the circle." Randolph Taylor raised his thin eyebrows and looked around, hinting at Roland. "Especially in the salon, Mr. Collins."

Ok.

James Penn.

I thought they didn't like cake.

"They don't like you, you idiot."
-
do you like me?
The floating words shuddered.

"…Are you sick?"
-
I'm just asking casually.

"I don't want to answer your stupid question."

Roland curled the corners of his mouth.

He and Randolph Taylor had a pretty good chat.

The slightly younger man listened to Roland's casual words about mysticism with curiosity but in a restrained tone; then, after Roland brought up the topic, he told some simple stories about tobacco.

Mutual exchange.

They had a fillet of halibut, a few cuts of steak, and kidney pie.

During the meal, two Yasa roast chickens were served on the table, along with fried potatoes and nut crisps.

By the way, what made Roland happy was also:

This Randolph Taylor did not mention anything about the eyes, nor did he say anything polite like "I need your help with this and that."

It finally feels a bit like a salon.

Strangely, during their conversation, Randolph's sister Beatrice Taylor said nothing, blinking and staring at Roland.

"Is there something wrong with her brain?"
-
Don't say that about a lady.

"…I didn't give him that bag of tobacco to put next to the candlestick as incense."

When a joke came out, Roland laughed a few times symbolically.

Just then, the girl who had been silent all this time spoke.

Her voice is as childish as that of a child who has not grown up.

"you're so beautiful!"

The voice is not quiet.

There was surprise and dissatisfaction in the eyes of the people around.

Randolph looked at Roland apologetically, turned around and apologized to everyone around him. Then he took an apple from the table and put it in Beatrice's hand.

She took a strong bite.

The juice flowed down the corners of his mouth.

"There must be something wrong with her brain."

"You must be very beautiful too, Miss Taylor." Roland stared at the floor, straightened his face, and replied politely.

The girl with curly blonde hair raised her lips, held up an apple with teeth marks on it, and smiled brightly at Roland.

"It seems like you guys had a good chat."

Cherry-Chloe came over.

As the hostess of the banquet, it is not easy to make time for this.

"Ma'am." Randolph bowed.

"How's old Taylor doing?"

"Thanks to you, I am in good health. It's just that the weather has turned cold recently, and this old man often wears only a single layer of clothing when he gets in the carriage, which makes me a little worried."

Cherry-Chloe spread out her fan, the satin as soft as her skirt: "Winter can't defeat him. I guess nothing can defeat him except a good, smart, strong and wise successor."

Randolph smiled widely.

Cherry picked up two glasses of champagne from the tray of a passing servant, gave one to Randolph, and took one for herself: "I'm sorry, I have to borrow your friend for a while."

Randolph looked at Cherry, then at Roland, and smiled even more. "Of course, my friend, please come to my house when you have time. It's at 25 West Avenue. By the way, it's a pleasure to chat with you."

"Me too, Mr. Taylor." Roland said goodbye to the Taylor siblings and followed Cherry.

After walking for about two minutes, the lady, who looked a little tired, chose a time when there were few people around and spoke softly.

"The Taylors' little fox is pushing his sister around again."

"sell?"

"You are not from this circle, so of course you don't know. This matter has spread everywhere." Cherry Chloe spoke sharply, and her eyebrows and eyes became sharper when talking about Taylor's family: "His sister is a..."

She nodded her forehead.

"There's a problem girl here."

"Look what I said."
-
What's wrong with you.

"It wasn't obvious when she was little. Until one time, she peed her pants on the street." Cherry raised her eyebrows, with an indescribable complexity in her tone. Like sarcasm, but also like sympathy: "... She also shouted 'It's raining'. The news spread quickly."

"I don't know how many teachers we hired later, but maybe because he was older, the child was able to socialize properly..."

"But it's still wrong. It feels wrong."

"This disease...I don't believe it can be cured."

Roland suddenly realized.

Miss Taylor has been acting a little strange since a while ago.

"Few people are willing to marry a fool. How can she go out in the future? As for those who have ulterior motives and are really after the rich dowry from the Taylor family, young Taylor will not let his sister die of illness within a few years after marriage - he is smart."

"Don't be fooled. If you're not a fool, do you think a tobacco tycoon like Taylor would be interested in an executive?"

Roland added slowly: "Prepare for execution."

Cherry chuckled.

"Dancing?"

"A blind man?"

"Then I'll show you something interesting."

They passed a wing and Roland saw Sir Mince Croy.

He was sitting around a table with a group of men, occasionally making noises of excitement or frustration.

The square table was covered with a green velvet rug, and several maids were serving on the side; there were not many gas lamps on, only one in the center was lit.

There were many cigars and cigarettes scattered on the table, and the hall was filled with a strong smell of tobacco, alcohol and cologne.

Add to that the stench of sweat and smoke, and don’t even mention it.

The long table they were sitting around had a recess in it, with a huge thing - something like a roulette wheel - sunken in it.

There was also a thumb-sized silver ball rolling around in the grid.

When the ball landed, there was a roar of voices.

"That's their gambling tool."

Even though it might be a 'trick', Cherry still thought that Roland had poor eyesight and mainly relied on his ears.

So, she explained to him in a low voice:
"You can spend tens or hundreds of pounds in an afternoon. If you get involved, you're screwed."

"A blind man cannot gamble, ma'am."

"That's hard to say. There are so many things to play. Marseille, hunting, roulette, cards, I've also seen..." She tugged at Roland's sleeve, trying to get him away from this smoky place as soon as possible, "...I've also seen people betting on women."

"woman?"

Cherry spat lightly: "It's just your men's business."

"These guys are really good at having fun. Let's find a chance to sneak over and take a look, Roland."
-
I have no interest in gambling.

"Oh, yeah, you're only interested in evil bats."

"Now do we have to take into account the lady in front of us and the butt girl from before?"

After chatting for about ten minutes not far away, the two left the side hall.

Further inward is the world of ladies.

The air didn't get much fresher.

They walked around for a while, took Roland to listen to two songs, and then led him into a room.

There was a performance going on inside—Roland saw the girl he had just met:
Beatrice Taylor.

Her brother seemed to have just left, leaving her alone holding a glass of apple juice, standing outside the crowd, standing on tiptoe to look inside.

The man surrounded by the ladies was a dull-looking man with long light brown hair and a black mole on the tip of his nose.

He was rummaging through the cards in the washbasin and putting them back into the wooden box.

(End of this chapter)