On Thursday morning, after checking the renovation progress, Xia De took Mia to Schneider’s clinic.
He had thought the doctor wouldn't have much work early in the morning, but unexpectedly, he actually started seeing patients at eight o'clock.
Xia De waited two hours before seeing the yawning doctor, who was wearing a clean white shirt and writing medical records with a pen, sitting in a chair behind his desk.
When Xia De walked in, both his greeting and the look in his blue eyes showed he was very tired.
Inside, there was a strange smell of burning spices, and a sphere fixed in a wooden frame was on the desk.
“Doctor, is your work that hard?”
Compared to him, Xia De was simply the epitome of sloth.
“Oh, I’m not sleepy.
I just used hypnosis for a consultation.
Did you smell the scent in the air?
This is a spice for aiding sleep.
Didn’t Alan give you a bottle last time we met him in St. Anthem Square?”
The doctor explained briefly, motioned for Xia De to sit down, and then quietly added:
“I really like hypnosis as a treatment method.”
“Why?”
Xia De asked curiously, his eyes scanning the psychology books on the table that were clearly often read.
These were not Saint Byron's textbooks, but the doctor's own professional books.
“Because my consultations are charged by time.”
Doctor Schneider smiled and patted the alarm clock next to him, the delicate brass mechanism making a pleasant ticking sound:
“Ten minutes costs 1 shilling 3 pence, an hour is 7 shillings 6 pence.
In two and a half hours this morning, I earned almost a pound.”
Xia De immediately showed an even more admiring expression.
The money the doctor earned from one consultation was more than what an ordinary worker made in a month.
Just sitting in an office and being able to live a decent life—that was the life Xia De wanted.
“Speaking of which, how do you have time to come to me?
Is there something you need?”
The doctor asked as he capped his pen.
“Yes, I’ve been learning a new Miracle recently, but I lack casting materials, so I wanted to ask for your help in acquiring them.”
“What do you need?”
“Psychic Crystal.”
“Hmm?”
The doctor indeed knew about this, frowning in thought:
“An alchemical item made from mind and spirit, involving advanced psychical alchemy.
This won’t be easy to get.
Xia De, how much do you need?”
“Two drams (about 3.5 grams) of crystal, one dram per crystal.
The spell requires two small crystals.”
The density of this strange crystal was not high; one dram was about the size of a grain of rice.
The doctor thought for a moment and mused:
“This is difficult.
The Academy does have this material, but the price is very high, around 500 pounds, which is comparable to the price of an ordinary Document-level relic.
So, unless you need it urgently, I don’t recommend buying it from the Academy.
But if you want to acquire it from the black market, you might not find a seller even by the end of the year.
However, I could make some myself; I’ve studied advanced psychical alchemy courses.”
“Is there trouble?”
Xia De asked.
“Yes, and the trouble is that you need to find the raw material.
That is, an object capable of producing Psychic Crystal.”
“What characteristics are needed?”
Xia De took out his notebook, ready to write.
The doctor listed them with his fingers; Xia De noticed blue ink stains on his index finger:
“Strong in spirit, enough to extract the crystal of the mind.
Rich in imagination, enough for us to explore their dreams.
Unstable in mind and spirit, only such people can produce crystals… For now, only these.
If a target can be found, I will need to conduct further examinations.”
“So, we need to find a powerful, mad artist… Should I try my luck at the Delarion Academy of Arts?”
Xia De summarized.
“It’s not that simple.”
The doctor waved his hand:
“If you go looking, even if you find one, you won’t recognize them.
How about this: I’ll visit some mental sanatoriums around Tobesk this weekend.
If there’s any news, I’ll let you know.
If not, I’ll spend two weeks investigating, and if I still haven’t found one, then you can pay to buy it from the Academy.
However, this business can’t be free for you.”
“No problem, Doctor, how much do you need?”
Xia De wouldn’t take advantage of a friend.
“The ritual and alchemy material fees aren’t much, 30 pounds will do.
But the labor fee… How about this, Xia De: you pay the 30 pounds for materials, and besides that, Priest Augustus told me you have connections for smuggling from the New World.
Coincidentally, I recently need some New World ritual materials to assist with my Hexacle promotion ritual.
I’ll give you a list, and you help me get these things.
I’ll pay for these materials, and your labor fee for getting them will offset my labor fee for making the Psychic Crystal.”
In other words, Xia De only needed to pay 30 pounds.
“No problem, Doctor.”
“That’s good then.”
The blue-eyed doctor nodded, then asked curiously:
“By the way, what Miracle are you learning?”
“Mind Blast.
I’ve already prepared the learning materials.
Now I just lack the casting materials.”
“Mind Blast, ah, that’s the most primitive mental attack ability.
It’s not bad; at least it gives you another means of offense.”
Only then did Xia De realize that this ability, after Moonlight Slash and Moonlight Greatsword, was his third purely offensive ability.
“Since that’s the case, I have a notebook here you can take back and read.
It contains tips for using mind-related abilities, which should be helpful to you.”
The doctor stood up, pulled a book from the bookshelf, and handed it to Xia De; borrowing notes within the group didn't cost money.
For the next two days, Xia De didn't engage in any more adventurous activities.
The rest of Thursday was spent with Professor Manning.
Although Xia De was reluctant to visit the professor with Mia, he couldn't leave Mia at home, which was under construction.
The professor still remembered his archaeological experiences in Herkils Town decades ago.
After receiving those photos from Old Lady Ila from Xia De, he excitedly pulled Xia De into storytelling until noon, even inviting Xia De to lunch at his home.
Although Professor Manning had strange ideas about cats, his archaeological skills were absolutely top-notch, and his storytelling ability was even better.
Xia De was captivated by those archaeological stories.
In the afternoon, hearing that Xia De had nothing to do that day, Professor Manning took Xia De on a tour of the Archaeology Department at the Delarion Royal Academy, where he worked.
Although it was still Summer, in a serious place like the Academy, it was rare to see people wearing short sleeves.
And even though women had gained the right to education decades ago, female students were still hard to find in the Academy.
Walking on the Academy’s flagstone paths, dappled light filtered through the leaves overhead.
Watching the young people carrying books and scholars wearing glasses walking and chatting, Xia De smiled; he liked this atmosphere very much.
It was a pity he had no time to be a proper student in this era.
If this world had no true mysticism and was just a world of ordinary people, he would be very willing to spend the rest of his life in school, like Professor Manning.
Professor Manning had his own private office and a group of students awaiting graduation under him.
He enthusiastically showed Xia De the artifacts collected from the archaeological excavation in Herkils Town more than a decade ago, and then called his students to bring more piled-up artifacts related to the eastern ruins of Herkils Town from the warehouse.
Although the professor and his team did not discover the underground temple at that time, they had confirmed that the ruins were built by followers of the Old God Earthshaking Worm.
When talking about his professional field, and seeing Xia De's keen interest, Professor Manning began to speak voluminously.
He sat behind a desk by the grid window, tilting his chair as he spoke to Xia De, who sat at the short end of the desk.
On the windowsill behind the professor were some flowerpots, and the professor's students could only stand behind Xia De, listening to their teacher tell stories.
The professor lectured for an hour, and Xia De admired how the students behind him managed to endure it.
Even the orange cat lying on his lap had, during this time, flipped over at least 23 times out of boredom.
Xia De’s attention wasn’t just on the cat.
He also observed the flowerpots behind Professor Manning, the piles of thesis drafts waiting to be graded on the professor’s desk, and the documents almost overflowing behind the glass doors of the bookcase on the east wall.
Professor Manning’s office was not dirty, but it was messy, with various documents and artifacts placed in every visible corner, and cardboard boxes piled on top of the bookcases looking like they were about to fall at any moment.
Yet, it wasn’t too chaotic; upon closer inspection, Xia De felt that this simple chaos, with a touch of old-style decor, suited the atmosphere of a busy scholar’s office.
“Perhaps I should redecorate the second floor to make myself look more professional.”
Xia De thought to himself.
Professor Manning voluminously recounted to Xia De the connection between the Old God Earthshaking Worm and the Old God World Serpent, and then, using the mythological system described by the Orthodox Church, he also linked the Orthodox God Lantern Old Man, who held the divine authority of Earth, also known as the God of Sun and Earth.
“In fact, there are quite a few gods with divine authority related to land, but each god has a different focus.”
The professor said, holding his teacup:
“The Orthodox Church is tight-lipped about this, but there is a saying that the power of all gods related to the earth comes from an older Earth God.”
“Professor!”
Xia De quickly stopped Professor Manning from continuing.
Although the Orthodox Church seemed to be a positive force, the Inquisition was not a legend; it was a real existence.
Professor Manning smiled and shook his head:
“When I talk about something I’m interested in, I often can’t control my mouth.
Xia De, just pretend you heard nothing.”
“Of course.”
“What about you all?”
The professor changed his tone and asked the young people behind Xia De in a very serious voice, to which they all replied:
“We heard nothing.”
It seemed this wasn't the first time such a thing had happened.
“But why not assume that the Orthodox God Lantern Old Man granted his authority to other Old Gods related to Earth and Sun?
Orthodox Gods are stronger than Old Gods, so this conjecture is also possible.”
Miss Aurora on the train had mentioned the relationship between Ancient Gods and Old Gods, so Xia De asked another curious question, proposing other conjectures.
Professor Manning smiled:
“If the Orthodox Gods granted power to the Old Gods, then the Orthodox Church would certainly mention it to demonstrate the greatness of the gods they worship.
But I can tell you with certainty, Xia De, that no book in the Five Gods Church mentions it—yes, no book mentions that the Old Gods’ power originated from the Orthodox Gods.
In fact, when Old Gods are mentioned in Church texts, they are placed on an equal footing with the Orthodox Gods.”
Xia De nodded understandingly, not asking further questions, as continuing would lead to sensitive topics again.
However, if the power of the Old Gods did not come from themselves, but truly from elsewhere, then it is highly probable that all Old Gods related to the earth, and even the Orthodox God Lantern Old Man’s power related to the earth, came from the Ancient God related to the earth, the Earth Mother Goddess.
Ancient Gods being the original gods has already been confirmed.
“When the darkness box was out of control, it seemed like a voice said Old Gods are thieves…”
Xia De pondered.
It seemed that discussing religion and history with ordinary people could also be of great help to him.
Xia De thought he could communicate more with Professor Manning in the future, though it would be best for Mia to stay away from him.
Most of Professor Manning’s students were young people around Xia De’s physical age.
When the professor introduced Xia De to them, they immediately knew that this was the rumored “Hamilton of Leijiede.”
Therefore, even though Xia De could only be considered “illiterate” compared to them, he still earned their respect.
That evening, before Xia De left the Academy, he even exchanged business cards with the professor’s students.
Most of them had business cards; people who could study archaeology at a higher academy in this era generally did not come from ordinary families.
Xia De recently wanted to further expand his Detective business, wanting more clients to come to him rather than relying on encountering things when going out, so meeting more people was very necessary.
The most annoying thing for him was that the spread of Hamilton of Leijiede’s reputation was almost synchronized with the spread of Xia De’s relationship with Miss Jialinna.
Although the professor’s students didn’t mention Miss Jialinna, when Xia De chatted with the professor and mentioned that he had recently obtained a large sum of money from the Duchess and thus wanted to obtain an honorary degree, he still heard choking coughs from behind him.
【Then what troubles you, Outsider, is it that you gained a bad reputation, or that you gained a bad reputation despite doing nothing?】
“Is there a difference?”
【Outsider, you certainly understand the difference.】
Xia De did not answer the question, and with the cat, who had slept all afternoon and was now looking forward to dinner, he walked along the flagstone path of the Delarion Royal Academy and onto the main street.
The setting sun faintly appeared on the horizon, making it seem as if dusk had just arrived.
Carriages drove from his left to his right, and groups of students walked past him from behind.
Passing by him were men with briefcases, walking hurriedly, looking as if they were going to an appointment.
And two bare-armed workers squatted under a gas streetlamp by the roadside, seemingly inspecting a problematic underground gas pipe.
In this rapidly changing scene, only Xia De seemed to be strolling down the street, in no hurry at all.
With his hands in his pockets, he idly kicked a pebble at his feet to the side, then stroked the cat, thinking about dinner, and slowly walked towards the direction of the setting sun.
Until Darkness had news, he had plenty of time to manage his life in this era of steam.
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