“I got some news about the Chosen One in Coldwater Port, but I didn’t tell Miss Jialinna, and instead was forced to tell Ms. Hivi Aurora.”
Xia De admitted honestly.
“I heard from the Miss that the Witch gave you a very high evaluation.”
The maid Miss said with a smile.
“Oh, I did help her, so what?”
“Your intelligence was obtained in Coldwater Port, and you couldn’t inform the Miss in time, she can understand that. What she’s truly a bit angry about is that Ms. Hivi Aurora actually initiated contact with you, and you even left a very good impression on her.”
Xia De looked at the maid sitting opposite him, tilting his head suspiciously from behind the newspaper. The maid Miss smiled and told Xia De a very unfortunate piece of news:
“Mr. Hamilton, your existence is equivalent to directly challenging the long-standing Witch curse rule. For such a secret, the Miss prefers to be the only one who knows it. And now, because of your adventurous actions, another Witch also knows it. She believes that other Witches have stolen her secret and treasure.”
“Hmm.”
Xia De hadn’t expected that the Red-haired Duchess would think that way. But upon careful consideration, if he knew a certain secret, he would probably also want to keep it to himself.
“Miss Servite, is there anything Miss Jialinna likes? I thought, perhaps I could bring some gifts for this visit.”
Even when smiling, the maid Miss could still maintain her elegant demeanor:
“The Miss likes many things, but you probably can’t get them.”
“How about this?”
Xia De thought for a moment, pulled out a handkerchief, and then reached into the inner pocket of his overcoat. Subsequently, an off-white pearl, about half the size of a fist, was pulled out from inside his clothes. The divinity stored within the pearl was perfectly absorbed by Xia De. Unlike the dolls created by gods to store divinity, the pearl was a real object, so it was preserved, but unfortunately, its size was halved, and it could no longer store divinity.
The smile on the Black-haired maid’s face disappeared. She leaned forward slightly, her eyes wide with surprise as she looked at the treasure Xia De was holding:
“Oh~”
A groaning sigh escaped her lips. Although Miss Tifa Servett was well-informed and a Ring術士 herself, almost any woman would be unable to refuse such a jewel.
In fact, men probably couldn’t refuse either.
When Xia De presented the pearl to Miss Jialinna in the manor’s study, the Duchess, who had been about to look up and say something, saw what he was holding and put down her pen in surprise:
“Although I thought that one day you would give me jewelry or similar gifts, isn’t this too exaggerated? I have larger pearls in my collection, but I’ve truly never seen one as perfectly round as yours. Where did you get this?”
“I found it in Coldwater Port. I also went into the sea yesterday morning. After the merman’s ancient ruins collapsed, all sorts of strange things fell down. Now, the Orthodox Church in the Coldwater Port parish is still searching the entire sea area for abnormal items.”
Xia De handed the pearl to Miss Jialinna. She took it and seemed to like it very much, but after looking at it, she handed it back to Xia De:
“Instead of giving it to me, you should keep it yourself. Recently, you will have an opportunity to use this thing. Keep it at home, don’t sell it, and wait for my hint before you give it away.”
“To whom?”
Xia De wrapped the pearl in the handkerchief and his overcoat, turning it back into a toy, and then put it into his pocket.
“Queen Diana, her birthday is at the end of this month.”
Miss Jialinna handed her signed document to her secretary, who then took the document out. She capped her fountain pen and looked at Xia De:
“Recently, Tobesk will likely have a few political incidents.”
The Duchess frowned slightly, not knowing what she was thinking:
“Xia De, at the appropriate time, I will have you give this gift to Queen Diana. Although you have no intention of participating in politics, the upcoming turmoil will inevitably affect you. After all, you saved Queen Diana. Sometimes doing the right thing can also make people resentful. Moreover, Queen Diana will bring greater benefits to your life in Tobesk.”
“But I have you.”
Xia De joked, and Tifa, standing behind Miss Jialinna, smiled. The Witch also seemed very happy:
“But I am, after all, the Duchess of Saladill, not the Duchess of Tobesk. Compared to me, Queen Diana has greater influence in this country. And the turmoil in Tobesk in the coming weeks, I am not convenient to intervene. You should understand.”
Standing up and walking towards the sofa, Xia De also got up and moved to another spot:
“I heard from Ms. Aurora that the mastermind behind the assassination attempt on the Queen has been found? It’s Sachs Cavendish.”
Xia De asked tentatively, and Miss Jialinna nodded:
“Yes, MI6 finally played some role this time. As a Duchess with real power, I cannot easily intervene in this matter.”
“Because it’s related to the succession of the throne?”
The corners of Miss Jialinna’s mouth curved into an alluring arc:
“It’s good that you thought of it. I didn’t expect you to be so sensitive to politics. I won’t talk about too many political topics. Let’s talk about what happened in Coldwater Port. I’ve already heard about your and Hivi Aurora’s matter from her. She really stole the show in the Council this time.”
She picked up her teacup and looked at Xia De:
“When I wrote to you, I was indeed a bit angry, but thinking about it carefully, it’s nothing. I’m not that petty of a person.”
This statement was different from what Tifa said. Xia De squinted at the maid standing behind the Duchess. The Black-haired maid looked straight ahead towards the door, avoiding Xia De’s gaze.
“But there’s one question I need to confirm: was that so-called ‘Summoner’ you using the power you once used at Lakeview Manor again, or did that Thirteen Ring Sorcerer truly recover from his severe injuries? This is very important for the Council’s next arrangements.”
“It wasn’t me. I was swept to the bottom of the sea by the tide at that time.”
Xia De had already thought about this question. There was no need for him to admit that he had done it. This way, the next time he was forced to use divinity, people would naturally assume that the “Summoner” had recovered, and therefore, summoning a god again would not be difficult.
Miss Jialinna pondered for a moment:
“That’s a bit troublesome then. Although there’s more than one Thirteen Ring Sorcerer with an unknown identity, this one can summon a god. If there’s a first time, there might be a second. What exactly was in the merman temple that could heal injuries caused by summoning a god?”
Xia De cautiously remained silent, looking at the afternoon tea pastries on the coffee table. There were no frosted pancakes like the ones Leia served him; those were Coldwater Port delicacies, while the capital’s afternoon tea favored exquisitely shaped sweet pastries.
And just as Xia De was thinking about the taste of the pastries, Miss Jialinna asked an unexpected question:
“Xia De, what is your relationship with my grandniece, Leia?”
“What?”
Xia De was stunned. The Witch leaned back against the sofa and laughed:
“Don’t tell me you’re just friends. Hivi told me that you hid in Leia’s lounge closet and were caught by her, and you were still wrapped in a garter belt at the time?”
“No, it was a skirt belt, and I can explain this.”
“Leia is a Ring術士 of Zaras, I know that. If she hadn’t been discovered so early, I would have actually preferred her to become a Witch. Xia De, I don’t care how you two met, or what kind of relationship you plan to develop in the future, but you must be careful. She is a very ambitious woman.”
This was the first time Xia De had heard someone evaluate Leia this way.
“Ambition? Does Leia want to be crowned Her Majesty the Queen of Delarion?”
Xia De joked:
“Where would she find the time? Attending meetings, giving speeches, national tours—even with an advisory team, Leia doesn’t have that much time. Unless she’s willing to give up her Ring術士 identity, but how is that possible?”
“Of course, she won’t give it up.”
Miss Jialinna carefully chose her words, narrowing her eyes as she looked at Xia De’s puzzled face:
“She doesn’t have time to be queen, but others do. My nephew Larus III has quite a few children. It wouldn’t be difficult to find a few who are willing to listen to her. Leia doesn’t need to become queen; she still has ways to gain power.”
Xia De immediately understood her meaning. He looked at Galina Cavendish in surprise:
“Are you trying to say that Leia wants to enthrone—”
The Witch raised a slender finger to her lips, making a shushing gesture, telling Xia De not to continue:
“I have no thoughts about that position, and I’m too lazy to interfere with the kingdom’s succession. So, don’t talk about such things in front of me. If you’re interested in this, you should ask Leia. Aren’t you and she on very good terms?”
Her right hand toyed with her red hair by her ear, her tone full of teasing.
Xia De nodded. He hadn’t expected that red-haired girl to have such great ambition.
The Witch Council is still tracking Darkness’s whereabouts. Although divination targeting the Chosen One is extremely difficult, with the help of that boot, the Council has at least confirmed that he did not go to the New World, but instead moved inland from the West Coast.
New information would take some time, but Darkness couldn’t have arrived in Tobesk without revealing his tracks. Miss Jialinna hadn’t anticipated the possibility of him coming to Tobesk, and Xia De didn’t say anything. The Witch should know about this “surprise” within half a month.
After bidding farewell to Miss Jialinna, the carriage took Xia De into the city. It was only four in the afternoon when he returned home, so Xia De took the cat and went to the Prophet Association to find Luvia, wanting to discuss Coldwater Port and the escaped Darkness.
It just so happened that Luvia wasn’t at the association this time, but she should be back before evening.
Since there was nothing else to do today, Xia De decided to look at the latest rhode cards sets at the association and inquire about the Great City Player event next month. But as he turned to put the cat on his shoulder, he saw Vice President Mark and Mr. Addis Stan, the president of the Tobesk branch, getting out of a carriage together and entering the building.
“Now there’s something to do.”
Xia De went to meet them.
