New Gods of North America.

Chapter 318 New Commission

Although Dr. Allen was not optimistic about the value of the stone tablet,

But after knowing that the thing was most likely the "real name tablet" that was once embedded in the core statue of the temple,
Inissa and Lina were obviously much more careful with the fragments that Wayne took off from that thing.

But compared to fear, their attitude is more like "fear of mice or bedbugs suddenly appearing in the house".

I wanted to use potion to soak the slate fragments and then bury them in the ground.

“Although the reason is still unclear, some special objects, after being ‘nurtured’ by people’s specific emotions and rituals for a long time, tend to be more susceptible to being infused by various beings or extraordinary powers, turning into extraordinary objects.

“And in many ancient civilizations, this process may even be the other way around or interact with each other—certain materials were first discovered to have certain extraordinary properties, and then they were regarded by priests and other clergy at the time as the embodiment of the power of specific gods, and therefore received special treatment.

“So from the perspective of mysticism, even if the corresponding gods have disappeared, it is better to be as cautious as possible when dealing with these items that may be directly related to higher-level beings, so as to avoid being affected by the legacy of higher-level beings.”

While Inissa was explaining, she and Lina did some simple processing on the slate fragments.

Lina tried to reverse the extraordinary ability several times, and finally a ball of thin wires was tightly twisted together, wrapping the stone fragments in an airtight "metal ball".

Then the metal ball was thrown into the bottle, the bottle was put into the cloth bag, and the cloth bag was put into the safe, and that was the end of the job.

"There's no need to be so careful... We've all touched that stone slab before..." Wayne said from the side.

Inissa didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with it. "Our detective agency doesn't have a special treasure house for extraordinary items. Without the corresponding magic array, this can only be regarded as a conventional special preservation method."

Okay, that's rigorous.

Out of kindness and to provide after-sales service to his wealthy customers, Wayne also wrote a letter and asked someone to bring it to Simon Sherman, who had purchased the slate.
Tell him about Dr. Allen's appraisal of the stone slab and remind him that it would be best to take it to the clergy of the church to see it to ensure safety.

Two days later, the detective agency received a rare visit.

On Saturday, Wayne had just finished his morning classes on the history of civilizations of the Old World and international relations when he received a message from Doug while having lunch:

"Sir, we have received a commission to escort a valuable item to Atlanta, Georgia. The reward is $2000."

Atlanta, Georgia, is one of the most prosperous and wealthy cities in the southern United States, or in the entire United States today. It is not uncommon for such a commission to appear.
Although there is a steam train line connecting Georgia and Virginia that can directly reach Atlanta, it is still a bit far between them because there are two states between them.
If Wayne were to give a similar but less accurate analogy, it would probably be like shipping something from Shanghai to Guangzhou.

2000 USD...

Wayne thought for a moment, "Did the other party say he knew me? Or is he related to the Fisk family?"

The reward for escorting items has reached this price, and the value of the items themselves must be even higher.
Normally speaking, a commission of this level would not be easily allowed to be taken over by a stranger unless it was an emergency. At least the ability and reliability of the person being commissioned must be confirmed first, or there must be corresponding personal recommendations.

With the conditions of "rich" and "Georgia", the only family Wayne could think of in his social circle was the Fisk family.

To be precise, it's just the Fisk siblings.

“The other party has only sent a servant to the detective agency to make a preliminary statement of purpose. Since the partners are not here, the other party has not revealed his identity for the time being.

"However, the other party's owner said that he will visit the detective agency in person tomorrow afternoon. At that time, you or other partners may need to have specific discussions with the other party." Doug replied.

"I see." Wayne nodded. "Go find David Mills this afternoon and ask if there is any way to extend the bishop's franchise to other states in the short term, such as assigning tasks, for situations like our detective agency.

"You need to refine your wording and try to be more tactful. He owed us a favor recently, so he should be more willing to talk to us now. The main thing is that this is about business. We can't rely on the safety of our agents and goods on the idea that church personnel in other states 'may' give face to the local church. We need to confirm the feasibility in advance."

"I'll do it later." Doug replied.

"By the way," Wayne added, "Before you leave the academy, go find Inissa or Lina and ask them to ask Miss Olivia if she knows anything about the situation.

"Willie should have brought them lunch today, right? He's still young, so he shouldn't be stopped from delivering messages to the girls' dormitory during lunch."

"Yes, sir."

……

After finishing the etiquette class in the afternoon, Wayne returned to the detective agency in a carriage driven by Connor.

The detective agency currently has only sixteen people left, including the three partners.

Although there are the extra-curricular chef Parker and the iron-armored Peter who can temporarily make do, but there must always be someone to guard the house and take care of the little loli Emma, and college students like Wayne and Seth are not suitable to leave for the time being.

So Wayne thought about it and felt that the number of people he could still spare was about ten at most, and the specific number would depend on the relevant details of the commission.

After Inessa and Lina came back, they told Wayne that this commission was not from the Fisk family. At least Miss Olivia was not aware of this.
As to whether other people did it for the sake of the Fisk family or someone else, it is hard to guess for now. We will know when people arrive tomorrow.

Then the three of them discussed the allocation of manpower.

Lina has lost interest in piano lessons. In addition, after some investigation, the college church's hostility towards the detective agency does not seem to be as high as it needs to be strictly vigilant, so she plans to stop the lessons temporarily:
“If it’s an escort commission, I’m willing to go out for a walk, but if there’s a choice, I still hope Parker won’t get involved. It’ll be hard to repair him if he gets injured.

"But since you still have to go to class, Wayne, and Inesa can't perform well in an environment like a steam train, if I, as a partner, go there, I will have to take 30% of the detective agency's commission. Will that dampen the enthusiasm of the members?"

This is not something a money-grubber like you would say...

Wayne first made a slight joke in his mind.
But on second thought, Lina was able to share 30,000 US dollars before, which was actually very generous in some aspects. In addition, the property under her name is at least tens of thousands of US dollars now, so it is normal for her not to think about these few hundred dollars for the time being. She really looks like a little rich woman.

So Wayne thought for a moment:

"The detective agency doesn't have many commissions right now. In the eyes of outsiders, it's probably still in its early stages. I think for a security commission of this amount, at least one partner must be involved to at least ensure basic security.

“As for the partners’ share, that was what we agreed upon with everyone at the beginning, and I think it can still be retained.

"If you are worried that this will discourage the agents, then we can make a slight change and use the deducted amount as funds for the partners to use flexibly. For example, we can use part of it to reward the agents, just like scholarships in colleges, and distribute it regularly to outstanding agents."

Lina thought about it and thought it was feasible. "Well, this is a good idea... Dear Mr. Wayne, you are becoming more and more like a cunning rich man."

Inesa had no objection to this, but she couldn't help but tease:
"The church hasn't responded yet, and we're not sure whether we can accept this commission, but you've already figured out how to divide the reward..."

(End of this chapter)