“Merman ritual data? Is that all you want?”
On the second floor of Saint Delan Square Six, Miss Jialinna looked at Xia De with a hint of surprise:
“Are you sure you don't want anything else? I've always been very generous with you.”
“I only want this. Please collect as much information as possible.”
Xia De nodded. It seemed like he was at a disadvantage, but in reality, even with just a single clue, he would benefit more from this transaction.
“That won't do. That's not a fair trade. You can't imagine how much this formula is worth to me. Come here, Xia De, to me.”
The Witch beckoned to Xia De. Although this was Xia De's home, Jialinna Cavendish was clearly not being polite.
“You want to hold my hand again?”
Xia De asked doubtfully, but he still put down Mia and walked over.
Mia stood there watching Xia De.
Unexpectedly, when Xia De came closer, Miss Jialinna suddenly stood up. The Witch's height was only slightly shorter than Xia De's. The two looked at each other closely for the moment. Before Xia De could react, she stood on her tiptoes, placed her right hand on the back of Xia De's head, and gently kissed his forehead.
“Oh, Miss!”
Xia De heard Miss Tifa Servett's gasp and the cat's meow from the armrest of the sofa. But before he could feel anything, he was released by the Witch.
Jialinna Cavendish's slightly flushed face held a charming smile. She brushed her fingers across her lips:
“This, of course, can't compare to your formula, but I think our relationship doesn't always have to be a fair trade.”
“Yes.”
The Outsider was momentarily speechless, taking a step back and appraising the Witch in front of him:
“However, I hope you don't do this next time.”
“You don't like a Witch's kiss?”
Miss Jialinna asked. Xia De shook his head:
“Next time, please tell me what you're going to do in advance. I want to feel it carefully; that would be fair.”
The Duchess's lips curved into a smile. The Black-haired maid by the table looked at Xia De with a slightly displeased frown. Mia looked up, her eyes wide, as if she wanted to “roar” at the women, while Xia De looked at the Red-haired Witch in front of him; her eyes were very pretty.
“Xia De, I thought you'd blush and not know what to say. I didn't expect this to be good.”
The gas lamp on the wall was bright, illuminating the three people and one cat at that moment.
Miss Jialinna was true to her word. Early the next morning, even before Dorothy arrived at Xia De's house, Miss Tifa, the Black-haired maid, arrived at Saint Delan Square by carriage.
Considering the time it took to travel from the manor outside the city to the city, she must have woken up very early that morning. Xia De apologized for this and invited the Black-haired maid to have a cup of tea at his home before leaving. Miss Servite hesitated for a moment, took out her pocket watch from her elaborate dress, checked the time, and nodded in agreement.
She was not only here to have tea with Xia De but also to explain the items she was giving him.
First was the pendant. What Xia De received from her was a silver circular badge strung on a rope. The badge had patterns of thorns, a lion's head, and azaleas.
This pattern looked familiar. Xia De thought for a moment before remembering that it was the emblem of “Duchess of Saladill” Jialinna Cavendish. The thorns were her chosen decorative pattern, the lion was an element taken from the royal family's crest, representing royal status, and the azalea was the symbol of Saladir County itself.
Although she was a member of the royal family, a Duchess with a fief could have her own emblem. On Miss Jialinna's carriage, both the royal family crest and this pattern were present.
If Miss Jialinna were a normal woman instead of a Witch, her descendants would inherit this emblem and regard it as their family crest.
“What does this mean?”
Xia De asked, puzzled, but still hung the badge around his neck.
“It means you are Miss's person. Even if you unfortunately encounter a Witch in the future, if they see this, they won't do anything to you.”
The Black-haired maid said quietly, winking at Xia De, and added:
“Also, in some situations, this badge is useful. For example, if you take this to Saladir County, restaurants might not even dare to charge you.”
This was probably a small joke.
The cat, full from its meal, stood on the armrest of the sofa beside him, yawning widely. Even a young cat could open its mouth very wide.
“Miss has tested it, and the formula you provided is perfect, even more perfect than the information recorded in the council's data from the later stages of the Witch War.”
This might be because there was an issue with the transmission of this technology during the fifth epoch, or perhaps Miss Felianna provided her private improved version.
Xia De played with the pretty silver badge. Because Miss Servite was present, it had already started to heat up. However, since this Black-haired maid was not a true Witch yet, only possessing the power of a Witch, the heating phenomenon was not severe.
The badge had a hole at the top, through which a rope was threaded. Xia De tied it around his neck and decided to wear it whenever he went out.
“Mr. Hamilton, here is the ‘Sea Return’ data Miss found. The council had already collected it in advance, so Miss didn't have to exert much effort. Miss Hivi Aurora, the Great Witch who is already in Coldwater Port, must have seen it.”
Miss Servite handed Xia De another file bag containing handwritten materials. There wasn't much information; even with the black and white photos attached with glue, there were only three pages. Xia De quickly scanned through it and found two points of value to him.
The most important point was that the council's data indicated that the source of power for the Sea Offering Ritual was an item left in the material world by an evil god after a divine descent in the fifth epoch, which gave Xia De more ideas.
The other point concerned aiding the cursed people:
“Tie the fishing line of a fishing rod with extraordinary power to the cursed person. As long as the fishing rod can be held, it can effectively prevent them from being called into the ocean by the evil god's power.”
Xia De read aloud the content on the paper, which was very similar to Miss Felianna's final hint.
Seeing no troubled expression on Xia De's face, the Black-haired maid continued to explain:
“An ordinary fishing rod only suppresses the urge to walk into the red ocean, while a fishing rod with extraordinary power can greatly suppress it. Miss said that the evil god is the Guardian of the mermen. He dislikes anglers and even more dislikes failures caught by anglers. Therefore, fishing rods are the most detested items of that god and His cult.”
Xia De thought of more things:
“Then He must hate drowned mermaids even more... Oh, I see. That's why the evil god God of Drowned in the Deep Sea, who is opposed to the lord of the scarlet spiral, is attracted by the Drowned Mermaid Scales. So it's not just that little girl's soul that's peculiar.”
