Where is the unseen razor?
Hi there. Do you know if there are any inns still taking guests in this town?
Doubt it. They’re probably all closed. No one has enough Kresnik Kristall to heat their own homes, let alone a business.
what a bummer…
Pretty much. When you’re broke, you scrimp and save. When it’s cold, you huddle together for warmth. There’s always a way to stretch things out to make ends meet…
“With his salary cut, he had to stretch things out —eating out less and driving fewer miles—just to make ends meet.”
（由于降薪，他不得不精打细算——少在外面吃饭、少开车——只为勉强维持收支。）
Trouble is, if you stretch someone out like an elastic band for too long, who
knows if they can ever bounce back… sigh You know what? Come with me,
and see for yourself.
even as our purchase quota’s gone down
Since you insist on making me repeat myself every single visit, I will remind you again: There is no monopoly on the trade of Kresnik Kristall. You are free to purchase the shortfall from elsewhere on the market.
But liaison Shishkin, there’s clearly something wrong with this quota! I have a family in Morepesok who tell me they can buy at least double our Kristall allotment.
What we can do is open the lower combustion chamber of the Kresnik’s Torch to the public. You can come to me directly to register, and I will allocate time slots accordingly.
Oh, Paimon’s not a fae, hehe. Just Paimon. She must’ve caught a cold or something. We only just got to Snezhnaya, and we’re still getting used to the climate…
But if you’re not picky, you’re welcome to rest there for now. It’s not much, but I’ve got blankets and a warm fire.
Ohh, so cozy and warm… Paimon’s getting nice and toasty.
Don’t say that! Paimon’s too young for chronic health issues…
Pretty crazy for a random find in the mountains… Well, as long as your train’s good to roll, you might get to Snezhnograd after all.
I’ve been doing some digging recently. Turns out, the real reason for the current energy crisis in Sretomorozsk is that some of the supply is being seized for a private stockpile.
…It’s a figure of speech. Real rabbits couldn’t pull this off. They’d prefer carrots to Kresnik Kristall anyway.
Alright, guess there’s no point pushing myself. Paimon will stay here and hold the fort, then… Be careful, you two!
“Carrots” aside, we’ll need to stay completely undetected. We can’t risk spooking our rabbit, or there’s no telling which burrow he’ll scurry back into.
burrow:
a hole or tunnel in the ground made by animals such as rabbits for them to live in （动物的）洞穴，洞穴通道
there’s no ˈtelling
used to say that it is impossible to know what happened or will happen 无法知道；难以预料
There’s no telling how they’ll react.
说不准他们会有什么反应。
freight list
There we go: a freight list. Straight from the Fatui, so Shishkin won’t have had the chance to doctor the figures.
~ sthto change sth in order to trick sb 篡改；伪造 SYN falsify
He was accused of doctoring the figures.
他被指控篡改数字。
Looks as new as the day it was printed. I guess no one bothers reading these unless they have ulterior motives.
Let’s grit our teeth until the blizzard passes. These days of hardship will be over soon
I just had a question for you. Why, when times are as tough as this, would someone hoard more Kresnik Kristall than they could ever use
Me? Why, I have no idea… But look at how much there is! It’s quite a godsend. Now, there will be plenty to go around
This “godsend” was found in a cellar adjacent to your residence following a tip from Mr. Alyosha
The jig’s up. Time to come clean
sigh Looks like I’m just not cut out to be a criminal. I’m so sorry… Once the Fatui have finished their count, you’ll see that the numbers match their waybill
Yeah, owning up to your mistake is enough for me. You’ve done plenty of good for the community in the past. I’m not looking for a handout
You claim this was a one-time mistake, but the real reason there’s only one shipment’s worth of stolen Kristall in your basement is that you have an accomplice.
Reporting in, Sir. We’ve conducted a full search of the mayor’s house. As expected, we found many crates full of Kristall, half of which were still in their original shipping containers.
This wasn’t your first time at all. You’ve been colluding with the mayor of Sretomorozsk for a long time now.
Well, I’ve heard enough. The evidence speaks for itself. Take Shishkin and the mayor into custody and escort them back to Snezhnograd.
preposterous… What proof do you have of any of this
Argh! You cocky little brat, ruining my business! Just you wait…!
Yeah. Something felt off, so I just followed my gut. Math isn’t my strong suit, though. I’m lucky my dad made me learn enough to get by, but… All this number-crunching was a million times harder than the “aim-and-fire” work I’m used to
Thank you for your assistance. You’re a brave lad
Shishkin was quite the cunning criminal, as I’m sure you can tell. He did all of this right under our noses, and we never suspected a thing
Without the compelling case you put together, even I might have fallen for it.
compelling:
that makes you pay attention to it because it is so interesting and exciting 引人入胜的；扣人心弦的
Her latest book makes compelling reading.
她新出的书读起来扣人心弦。
They aren’t a violent organization, and their goal is to improve the lives of the common folk. But still, as a member of the Fatui, I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t keep tabs on them.。
Haha, looks like it’s my turn to brush up on math now. I never liked it as a kid either.