caro: Yes, I use it from time to time to study specimens for the Nature Friends Society.

caro: That is, assuming it's not possible to simply observe the animals in their natural habitat outdoors ...

caro: In the back there is the Ravenhollow history archive that I maintain.

caro: Unfortunately, the last time I let someone look at those files, some of them disappeared ... I think it was one of the Baron's men.

caro: Regardless, I'm not taking risks with new visitors right now, so I've closed the archives to the public.

caro: I'm sorry ... the Ravenhollow history archives are closed to the public right now.

caro: Those? Oh no, those are specimen jars. I use them to catch and catalogue the wildlife of Ravenhollow ... the smaller specimens anyway.

caro: Yes, but of course I release the specimens later on.

caro: We members of the Nature Friends Society would never intentionally harm an animal or plant ... not even for the sake of science.

caro: Oh, those are not for sale. I use those specimen jars to conduct research on Ravenhollow ecology for the Nature Friends Society.

caro: Yes? How may I help you?

caro: I see you've found some of the specimens ... very good!

caro: ... now hurry up and find the rest of them!

caro: Fantastic! My friends at the congress will be amazed.

caro: The Red Brigadier! Very well!

caro: Butterflies love November lilies ... I'm pretty sure he'll enjoy his stay.

caro: Oh yes ... and you brought me a Glow Gecko. Thank you.

caro: He'll have to stay in my vivarium for the time being.

caro: Wait a moment ... this locust ...

caro: This isn't the rare Lonely Locust ... you've found its evil twin ... the blossom-devouring Lotus Locust.

caro: Please ... set it free as far away from here as possible. These locusts devour foliage blossoms, then leave the rest of the plant to wither and die.

caro: Do my lovely yard a favor and take that vile insect away!

caro: Of course. You did your best and that has to be rewarded ... you've earned my trust.

caro: Feel free to use my archives. You may remove that velvet rope.

caro: Well, I've given it some thought and ... I want you to have the diamond ring.

caro: After all, you've saved the statue of Lilly. Timothy Caro's final work ... It only seems fitting that you receive the ring she wouldn't accept from him.

caro: Besides, I have a feeling that it's going to stay here in Ravenhollow ...

caro: I suppose, go ahead ... I hope you didn't make a mess back there?

caro: Very good. I'm happy to hear that.

caro: Do you like my November lilies? I grow them myself.

caro: Lilium longiflorum ... to me the most beautiful member of the lily family.

caro: You're right, indeed. I had hopes that this was a nobleman's undergarment.

caro: Yes, actually it's a simple makeshift cloak that a plebeian tailored from an old potato sack.

caro: Don't get me wrong ... it IS antique ... but unfortunately it's not really a collector's item.

caro: Sure, I think I can make you a special offer on that item.

caro: What are you willing to pay?

caro: Hm. Do you really like it?

caro: Okay then, take it! It's yours.

caro: It's a worthless piece of junk. I only realized after I bought it that it's chromed steel and not real silver. Just take it and get it out of my shop.

caro: Interested?

caro: Sorry ... no.

caro: A wonderful model isn't it? It was given to me by Professor Von Sternberg of the Smith Institute.

caro: He was fascinated by the castle's architecture.

caro: Professor Von Sternberg said that the clock's hands were lost before he moved to London.

caro: Oh, come to think of it ... I seem to recall filing away a diagram of those clock hands in my archives.

caro: Ah yes, those books are mostly first-edition classics. Some of them have even been signed by their respective authors.

caro: Indeed. Selling a first edition of Kafka's, "The Castle", was enough to put my niece Cecily through college.

caro: My grandfather bought this clock as a wedding gift for my parents. Now I'm just as old as my grandfather was back then.

caro: Oh, don't worry... I guess fleeting time is a thing you learn to cope with as you grow older.

caro: Sorry, no. This clock belonged to my parents, and has been here since I opened this shop.

caro: These coins are quite valuable ... especially if you're interested in local history. They were issued by the Castle in 1767.

caro: Back in those days, all smaller baronies did their own coin minting.

caro: However, therein lies their value. The acquisition of this rare set of Ravenhollow coins would cost you about nine-hundred dollars.

caro: I can hold this coin set for you until the end of the month, if you'd like.

caro: You really think so? I think it's a hideous vase ... yet it is one of the most sought after items in my humble collection.

caro: The Duchess of Sommerstand handcrafted ten of these blue vases on her one-hundredth birthday in 1887 ... she gave them as gifts to her most loyal servants.

caro: Due to their hideous appearance, these vases changed hands quickly and many were lost. This is one of the last three Sommerstand vases.

caro: I guess not ... but honestly: if you're not a collector, then there's not much reason to spend money on antiques.

caro: Especially on hideous objects like this blue vase.

caro: Well observed. I haven't had many customers in the past weeks, so I might as well finish up my accounting for the year.

caro: Antique glasses...?

caro: Oh! Those aren't antique, they're my spare pair of reading glasses. I was wondering where I'd put them.

caro: Those are not for sale. Hands off please.

caro: Wonderful pieces! The clockmaker who sold them to me, Mr. Moore, was in tears when he parted with this pair of pocket watches.

caro: Poor man. He's almost gone bankrupt with the Castle driving customers from Ravenhollow.

caro: I offered to lend him money, but Mr. Moore insisted on selling me these antique watches instead. They're worth far more than I could ever pay him.

caro: Sorry, I won't sell those. I'm holding them for Mr. Moore, the clockmaker, until he has the means to buy them back. It's kind of a loan without interest.

caro: Yes. This set of silver spoons was a gift from a local silversmith to the Baroness of Northwest Castle in 1751.

caro: Back in those days, the silverware from this barony was quite famous. Traders would come to Ravenhollow Harbor just to acquire items like these spoons.

caro: About eight-thousand dollars ...

caro: Neither would I ... but collectors are pretty interested in these sorts of antiques.

caro: That might be worth a try, but I can't let you wear that one.

caro: There's a chance that THE Fred Astaire wore this hat while filming one of his best-known performances. I'm still waiting on confirmation from an expert in Oslo.

caro: No, I always dress like this.

caro: It seems likely ... I'm still waiting for my friend in Oslo to confirm the Fred Astaire connection. If I'm correct, then this hat will be worth a LOT.

caro: Don't worry ... the best things in life are free. Most of them anyway.

caro: Well, actually it's a replica ... but it's made to look over a hundred years old.

caro: Yes.

caro: Hey!

caro: Yes, it's a 19th century uniform of the honorable Northwest Castle guard.

caro: Cain and his men are a joke, and so are their uniforms. What they call restoration is not a return to the old ways.

caro: I bought those as a favor to a man down on luck ... but I'm afraid it won't be easy to resell them.

caro: Oh, that record belongs to my private collection. The ones down below are mostly Bavarian folk tunes ...

caro: Of course not ...

caro: Nevertheless.

caro: I would personally enjoy flinging them into the sea ... but that is neither good for the environment, nor for business.

caro: It's in near mint condition, and therefore quite dear to me I'm afraid.

caro: This is a ragtime tune from the Mississippi delta.

caro: Lively rhythms like these counterbalance the dullness of the bookkeeping that I'm working on.

caro: You wouldn't believe how often I've heard that line.

caro: When you have time, I can tell you all about this diamond ring and its remarkable history.

caro: Although the rules are lax here in Ravenhollow since the Castle took over, shoplifters are still not welcome in my antique shop.

caro: Of course you would ... that will be eight-thousand dollars.

caro: Don't worry, most men your age can't. Even I couldn't right now ... business is really slow these days.

caro: Usually I would agree, but in this case ... it is the unicorn itself that validates the painting's historic age.

caro: You see, this canvas must have been painted back in the days when there were still unicorns around to be painted.

caro: Isn't she beautiful? ... But be careful: if you fall for her, then you'll have to pay the price.

caro: Eight-hundred and ...

caro: Now, now... That's not an optimistic attitude.

caro: Why do all you young men have an aversion to porcelain?

caro: You could at least try to make to make SOME kind of acceptable offer, don't you think?

caro: There are pineapples on these coins.

caro: Sorry, I don't accept foreign currencies anymore ...

caro: I still have a calabash gourd filled with Krakatoan Shillings, and a suitcase filled with Latverian Rubles that past customers have paid me with.

caro: Well, at least that's real money.

caro: I think we have a deal.

caro: Just be careful not to hang that cloak in your wardrobe with your other clothes. That stench might hurt your social life.

caro: About four months ago, Lowell Cain's men removed Timothy Caro's final work and erected a statue of Baron Northwest.

caro: They stole a piece of our history, only to replace it with that modern piece of political propaganda!

caro: Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out what the Castle did with that statue of Lilly ...

caro: Unfortunately, she returned the ring to him shortly thereafter and was forced by her parents to marry a wealthier man.

caro: Timothy Caro was heartbroken, so he sold the ring. Now 150 years later, it has found its way into my shop.

caro: Timothy Caro never married. Instead, his love for Lilly held dear and true to the day that she died.

caro: Upon Lilly's death, Caro crafted his final work: a beautiful statue of Lilly in her bridal gown. He never sculpted again, and died soon after.

caro: The citizens of Ravenhollow were moved by his story, so placed the statue of Lilly in the village square ... in honor of the great Timothy Caro.

caro: Well, I fear that I can't sell it for less than eight-thousand dollars.

caro: Yes, now you know why no one has bought the ring for so many years. The diamond and the ring itself are of the finest quality.

caro: But what makes the item even more valuable to me is its history ... the stories it has to tell.

caro: Most of the antiques here are connected to the history of Ravenhollow.

caro: You fell in love with that ring didn't you? It's quite understandable.

caro: My niece, Cecily, has adored the ring since she was a child. I would like to give it to her, but my sister tells me that I mustn't spoil the child.

caro: Besides, isn't it the fact that we have to work hard for something that makes an item even more valuable?

caro: As I said, what makes an item valuable to me is its history.

caro: If you can bring me a very rare item that is connected to the history of Ravenhollow, then I may be willing to trade the ring for it. How does that sound?

caro: Oh, this diamond ring has a most fascinating history!

caro: The stone itself was brought to Ravenhollow more than two-hundred years ago by an African trader.

caro: Stories say that the trader used the diamond to pay for a pint of beer at the Ravenhollow Inn.

caro: The stone was then given to the Baron as payment for back-taxes on the Ravenhollow Inn...

caro: ... Who in turn gave it as payment to a stonecutter for his work on the statuary around Northwest Castle.

caro: That stonecutter was one of my ancestors, Timothy Caro.

caro: He took the diamond, crafted it into this ring, and then gave it to the woman he loved ... Lilly.

caro: It was the final work of my great ancestor, Timothy Caro, that he sculpted upon Lilly's death.

caro: Indeed, we citizens of Ravenhollow have always been moved by the tale. That's why the statue stood in the village square for over 100 years ...

caro: It was only in the last months that the castle guards came into town and replaced Lilly with that grotesque effigy of the Baron.

caro: Unfortunately, no ... those goons hauled it past my shop on their way out of town, but I didn't see where they took it.

caro: I certainly don't think they could have gone very far with it ... it was heavy.

caro: Most of my antiques are from this area, and are connected to Ravenhollow's history. The same goes for that ring.

caro: If I sold it to a collector from far away, then the village of Ravenhollow would lose a piece of its past.

caro: Therefore, I'd only be willing to trade the ring for another item with a similar interesting history.

caro: Even then, I'd prefer it if the ring stayed in Ravenhollow with its new owner.

caro: Not knowingly, no. However there is an artifact of Von Sternberg's that I have some suspicions about ...

caro: Well, I have a wooden model of Northwest Castle in my archives ... it was built by Professor Von Sternberg as a jewelry cabinet for his wife.

caro: While I remember Von Sternberg building all sorts of hidden compartments, I can't find any secret latches that open them.

caro: If Von Sternberg's ring is still in Ravenhollow, then that's where I'd wager it would be ...

caro: ... plus I heard something rattling around inside the model when I moved it into my shop.

caro: Odds and ends ... almost all of it came from Professor Von Sternberg's estate. I bought him out for a song as he was leaving Ravenhollow.

caro: Unfortunately, my Von Sternberg inventory was greatly reduced when the Castle raided my shop looking for his old scientific possessions.

caro: I have no clue, but they definitely seemed to target his scientific inventory.

caro: The only things they left behind were an old table, a bird cage, and a magnificent wooden model that Von Sternberg built of Northwest Castle.

caro: Oh, and they missed most of Von Sternberg's old paperwork ... probably because it's filed away in a cryptic order within my archives.

caro: Oh dear, I found everything from bank statements to diagrams of his wooden models while sifting through that paperwork ...

caro: It's now filed away in a tidy yet cryptic order known only to me.

caro: I do indeed! Franz is a very dear friend of mine, and the only member of the Smith Institute that I ever really got a chance to know.

caro: While I don't know any details, I know there was a terrible accident at the Smith Institute that left Franz weakened and confined to a wheelchair.

caro: It was indeed, and he was terribly depressed over losing his life's work of exploring science.

caro: It was during that rough period that I paid Franz a social visit, where I suggested that he take up handcraft to keep his mind active and his hands moving.

caro: And truly, I believe that advice saved his life! Franz found new passion in model building, and he made it his new life's work ...

caro: He and I have been close friends ever since.

caro: What did you have in mind?

caro: A fine piece of work isn't it? And of great value if I may say.

caro: Unfortunately, no one here in Ravenhollow can actually afford such an exquisite piece ...

caro: Even though people seem to enjoy passing by my shop window to admire the ring from time to time.

caro: Oh, my ... that must be Timothy Caro's statue of Lilly that was stolen from the village square! If only we had a way to retrieve it from the river.

caro: A colleague of your father's, a man named Henry LeMue-LaFayette, had a zeppelin ...

caro: He could have lifted the statue for us, but unfortunately he's left Ravenhollow. I fear there's nothing we can do ...

caro: Sure, I have a few pieces. What can I help you find?

caro: The stolen documents contained architectural plans of Northwest Castle and the Smith Institute.

caro: I see that you are very interested in the history of Ravenhollow, so ... would you be willing to do me a favor?

caro: I'd like to have some specimens of the Ravenhollow fauna to present at the next congress of the Nature Friends Society.

caro: Could you help me out by collecting a few specimens?

caro: Use these jars to catch the specimens and bring them back to me.

caro: The specimens I need are ...

caro: A Glow Gecko ... at night this rare creature prefers to sleep in dark and windy corners.

caro: A rare red butterfly called the Red Brigadier ... they're attracted by white blossoms.

caro: A Lonely Locust ... they're nocturnal and quite noisy.

caro: If you can bring me the three specimens, then I'll happily let you use my archives.

caro: You may need some kind of net to catch the specimens ... it would be difficult to coax them directly into the specimen jars.

caro: Come back any time.