You have come into contact with 'whisper'.
Just a glance at the exquisite snuff bottle deeply captivated Xia De.
Xia De had seen more delicate objects in his own world, but at the moment, he felt an overwhelming need to possess this one. Fortunately, the woman's voice pulled his thoughts back to normal, and Doctor Schneider merely smiled at Xia De's lapse:
"Even a Poet Grade relic can affect ordinary people, which is why the Orthodox Church and Saint Byron's Comprehensive College try their best to contain and control relics. But you really recover quickly... Once I open it, you will fall into a dream. The dream will last for 7 minutes and 23 seconds, and in it, you will learn about the college's past and present. This will help you believe what I say."
"Such precise timing?"
Xia De asked, then, guided by the doctor, leaned back slightly on the sofa, adopting a posture conducive to napping.
"Almost every Letter-based Ring術士 who joins Saint Byron's has to confirm the information they receive through this relic. It has been used countless times and has never made a mistake."
The doctor said with a smile.
This kind of "never" phrasing, on the contrary, made Xia De a little worried. But he did not voice his feelings and signaled to the doctor that he could begin.
"Alright, please prepare—"
The doctor stood up, covered his mouth and nose with a wet towel to prevent himself from falling asleep, and at the same time, adopted a retreating posture:
"Begin."
The lid was lifted, and colorful smoke billowed out. Xia De immediately lost consciousness.
Xia De had a dream. In the dream, his soul left his body, rose into the distant sky, looking down at the bustling steam City in the gray mist, watching steam factories spew thick smoke in the distance...
Then he flew north, crossing the City, crossing mountains, crossing grasslands, crossing forests. Finally, he saw snow-capped peaks, and behind the highest peak, he saw the Great Ice Cap of the far north.
Perhaps it was just the moment, perhaps several hours or even days, the sky in the far north darkened. In that night, beneath the colorful aurora, behind the shimmering glacial mountains, a massive complex of buildings appeared.
This was a strange dream he had never experienced before. After waking up, Xia De only remembered walking through the vast college, strolling through ancient castles, gazing at the starry sky from the top of spires. He traversed tiered classrooms with rows of seats, searched for herb recipes in the basement, and checked relic containment lists in the Library...
Mysterious, ancient, profound, secretive—that was Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, but also a gathering place for mystics. It had stood behind the glaciers of the far north from the distant past to the present.
His vision was still a little blurry when he opened his eyes. The doctor's figure on the opposite sofa became clear; he was frantically putting the lid back on the snuff bottle, returning this Poet Grade relic to its box.
"How was it? Now you know the college truly exists, don't you?"
After putting away the snuff bottle, the doctor smiled and asked Xia De. Xia De sighed with a hint of melancholy, actually feeling a bit nostalgic for that strange dream.
"It's true, what the doctor said is indeed true."
Even if it was just a dream, this special dream was enough for Xia De to make the correct judgment.
"The only side effect of this Poet Grade relic is that it has a very slight addictive quality."
Doctor Schneider's voice was gentle, carrying a strange power, as if he wanted to use it to completely pull Xia De back from the dream world:
"Forget that dream, Xia De Hamilton. But one day, as a Ring術士, you will join us, travel by steam locomotive to the City of the far north, trek across the ice cap under the aurora, huddle together through long nights in blizzards, and together assist in climbing the highest glacier, and then, enter there, Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, the Ring術士s'... My dream is to be promoted to Four Ring in the college and obtain a lifelong teaching position at Saint Byron's. Xia De, if you like it there, then join us."
That dream, both real and illusory, took Xia De some time to recover from. When the doctor formally asked for his opinion again, this time, Xia De nodded without any hesitation:
"Yes, I wish to join the college and become a Letter-based Ring術士."
Doctor Schneider's face revealed a heartfelt smile:
"Then congratulations, Xia De. Please allow me to call you that. You are about to become the fifth Ring術士 in our group. Please wait, Miss Dorothy Louisa was here just now. She will join me in presiding over your enrollment ceremony. I can introduce you two, and let her know that I'm not always so unlucky. The enrollment ceremony requires at least two people from the group to be present to prevent newly enrolled Ring術士s from being deceived."
Even though the doctor had been very enthusiastic since his visit to Saint Delan Square Six this morning, his enthusiasm now continued to grow:
"Oh, Louisa is a fourth-year Letter-based Four-Ring Warlock. Her main job is a Writer. I know you just 'woke up' from blind foolishness, so you probably haven't read her works, but she's quite well-known. Her two short stories, 'Snail's Dream' and 'A Midsummer Night's Wish,' won the Kingdom's literary award three years ago, and she even received an audience with the King along with 35 other award winners because of them."
"Actually, you don't need to mention the total number of award winners that year."
The door was pushed open, and the Golden-haired girl seen earlier stood outside. She was still dressed the same, but looked a bit angry:
"Doctor, is it necessary to mention all the unimportant information every time you introduce your friends to others?"
It seemed the atmosphere in the doctor's four-person Letter-based Ring術士 group was quite good; at least everyone was friends, and Xia De was very happy about this. But Xia De also guessed that perhaps this Golden-haired Writer lady had been listening to the conversation outside the door all along.
"As expected, it's impossible for everyone to be completely unguarded."
He thought silently, preparing to stand up and greet them.
The doctor avoided answering the Golden-haired girl's question and smiled, motioning for Miss Louisa to sit down:
"Hamilton Detective has accepted my invitation. Now our group finally has five Ring術士s."
"Doctor, you really haven't used some strange relic that overdraws luck, have you?"
She asked suspiciously, but still walked in and extended her hand to Xia De:
"Dorothy Louisa, Writer, also a part-time journalist."
Miss Louisa seemed very efficient in her actions, so Xia De also stood up and lightly shook her hand:
"Xia De Hamilton, I suppose I'm a Detective."
"That's a pretty good profession."
As they spoke, the two sat down again. The doctor cleared his throat, indicating that he was about to speak:
"Xia De, please allow me to call you that. The last thing before your official enrollment, I need to talk to you about the tuition fees."
Xia De's heart skipped a beat, and his joy was once again dispelled by the sad reality. He blinked:
"Yes... tuition."
He realized that when the doctor introduced the Orthodox Church and Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, he didn't mention the college's significant drawback. After all, the Orthodox Church certainly wouldn't charge money to recruit members.
"The school's fees are charged by grade. Wait a moment..."
Doctor Schneider retrieved a document from the bookshelf behind his desk, while the Golden-haired girl remained silent, watching the two with interest.
"This is the fee standard. Because we are Letter-based, and won't directly communicate with the college, the college created these documents to prevent group leaders from overcharging... I heard this kind of thing was very common a few hundred years ago."
