“Did you agree to her request?”
The afternoon tea included black tea in a silver teapot, patiently baked sandwich cookies on a porcelain plate, and small shrimp pancakes sprinkled with white powdered sugar. Noble ladies cared deeply about the contents of afternoon tea, and top nobles like Leia naturally had this habit.
The small pancakes with powdered sugar were a local specialty of Coldwater Port. When Xia De tasted them, he thought Mia would like them.
“Agree? Of course, I couldn’t agree immediately. I also need to consider what the Aurora Family truly wants to do and whether it would be detrimental to the kingdom.”
The princess, holding a teacup, said, glancing at Xia De, who was studying the pastries, then quietly added:
“Besides, the price she offered wasn’t high enough. I wanted thirty percent of the shares in her Coldwater Port shipyard, and she actually smiled and called me a greedy woman.”
“Cough, cough.”
Xia De, who was eating, choked. Leia complained about his carelessness and asked a maid to pat his back. Xia De waved his hand, signaling the maid not to come over, picked up his teacup, and took a large gulp, making the princess cover her mouth and chuckle.
He thought that for the witch to be able to say that with a smile was already very polite.
“Look at this.”
Leia handed Xia De something else from beside her: two invitations, their surfaces sparkling as if sprinkled with gold dust.
“Lady Xi Wei Aurora even specifically gave me these. These are invitations to tonight’s banquet. Xia De, are you really not coming with me? I know you don’t want people to know you’re here, but it’s fine to wear a mask.”
“No, that’s not the issue. I genuinely don’t want to go.”
Xia De shook his head firmly, completely refusing to meet the witch. The princess was a little disappointed but didn’t insist further, instead asking:
“I wanted to ask earlier, what is that canvas-wrapped thing you’re carrying on your back? A new type of rifle?”
She brushed a strand of red hair from her ear, changing the subject, and only then did Xia De bring up the Sea Offering Ritual and the curse.
The appearance of the red ocean was imminent, either today or tomorrow. Although the Church reportedly had thorough preparations, Xia De couldn’t let his guard down.
He told Leia the information he had gathered, then took out a fishing rod and tied the fishing line to her wrist:
“This should work. The characteristic of this fishing rod is triggered by catching prey through fishing, so it won’t affect you. Leia, keep this fishing rod with you for now. Have a servant carry it for you, and if any problems arise, immediately tie the fishing line to your wrist.”
He thought for a moment:
“Oh, and also, someone must be holding the fishing rod for it to suppress the curse.”
“Can’t you stay at Sophia Manor tonight? Xia De, you’re more reliable than a servant.”
Leia asked, staring at her wrist.
This was indeed a good idea. Xia De thought about it. Someone in Tobesk could visit him at any time. Besides the three commissions Iluna brought from Black Stone Security Company, he hadn’t had any business for over a week. But to ensure Leia’s safety, missing a few potential clients was worth it:
“I don’t want Mia to come to Coldwater Port during such a dangerous time. Dorothy might need to take care of her all night.”
Hearing Xia De’s meaning, the princess knew he had agreed, so she chuckled and said:
“It’s fine, I’ll convince her. For my safety, I think she might be a bit angry, but she’ll definitely nod in the end.”
The way the princess’s eyes narrowed was very beautiful.
With this arrangement made, Xia De returned to Tobesk in the afternoon. Dorothy already knew about it and indeed looked unhappy, but she still agreed to take care of Mia tonight and tomorrow, and earnestly told Xia De to be careful.
Besides this, Xia De also went to the Prophet Association and told Luvia that he would be staying in Coldwater Port for a day.
The female Diviner was a bit surprised that Xia De insisted on getting involved in Coldwater Port’s major event, but he maintained that it would be of great help in finding Darkness.
The reason he couldn’t disclose was that Xia De was still unsure what the power of the so-called “evil god” truly was.
The purple-eyed Diviner didn’t give any further instructions, only wishing Xia De good luck and telling him to be careful. Not to be careful of the Sea Offering Ritual, but to be careful of the Blood Spirit School. The other party had failed to curse Xia De with the puppeteer’s notes, and even though they were currently being hunted by the Church in Coldwater Port, they would certainly not give up on Xia De.
In addition to these preparations, Xia De also asked Dorothy for the Document-level relic, the Drowned Merman’s Scale. Xia De and Dorothy had recovered this together, and originally planned to sell it after the incident of the evil god gazing upon Tobesk subsided, so the scale had always been kept by Dorothy.
After preparing, Xia De reluctantly said goodbye to Mia. The very intelligent cat probably sensed that Xia De wouldn’t be back tonight; her little paws clung to his arm and wouldn’t let go.
It was only with great difficulty that he got the cat to release her paws. As Dorothy held Mia, standing in the basement watching Xia De enter the hidden wall, the cat meowed incessantly, and Xia De looked back with every step.
“Are you going or not?”
In the end, it was the Golden-haired girl who couldn’t stand it anymore and finally chased Xia De away.
The rain fell all day without stopping. Leia had a banquet to attend, so she didn’t have dinner with Xia De. After Xia De finished dinner at Sophia Manor, he continued to Saint Byron’s through a ritual to attend Professor Garcia’s “Closed Space” class.
Yesterday was primarily theoretical, while today was a practical class. Professor Garcia demonstrated his Miracle Mystic Lock - 【Barren Field】 - to the Ring術士 who had signed up for the course.
This Miracle was rare, requiring three Ling Runes to learn. The corresponding Runes were 【Field】, 【Lock】, and 【Free Mind】.
When the professor unfurled the Mystic Lock in the classroom, even with intentional control, Xia De’s projection ritual nearly interrupted. Inside the Mystic Lock, a vast, brown, barren field appeared.
“Students, look over here!”
The professor waved towards the distance, emitting a whistling sound. Before long, a large group of animals could be seen running towards them from the horizon of the barren field.
The functionality of the Mystic Lock - 【Barren Field】 - was that Professor Garcia could summon low-wisdom wild animals he had previously encountered.
As long as he had seen them, he could summon them within the Mystic Lock as his combat partners. The more he understood those animals, the lower the cost of summoning them, and the stronger the animals’ power would be.
It should be noted that this world does not only have ordinary beasts. In places inaccessible to the civilized world, the combat power of various low-wisdom magical creatures is no less than that of human legions mechanized by steam.
