Since the tasks at hand were temporarily completed, Xia De had planned to officially start resolving the last two commissions left by Sparrow Detective this afternoon.
But as soon as he returned to Saint Delan Square from Dawn Church, intending to take out the commission agreement and go out again, the emblem on his chest began to heat up.
It was Miss Jialinna paying a visit.
Of course, the Duchess wasn't just in the City for business and happened to drop by to see Xia De. Nearly two weeks after Darkness escaped Coldwater Port, the Witch Council finally found his whereabouts using that boot.
"Right now, Ivan Darkness is here, in Verwood City, Charring County. Last night, the Council's people nearby already spotted him. Although he escaped again, at least it means we've found his trail."
Miss Jialinna pointed out the location on the Old Continent map in Xia De's house with a finger painted with red nail polish. The exaggeratedly large map was now unfolded and spread out on the empty space of the second-floor guest room, and Tifa knelt down to carefully circle Verwood City with a pencil.
Mia stood proudly above the map, though it was unclear what she intended to convey. Xia De stood beside the Black-haired maid, bending over to look at the map.
Verwood City's location was already past the midpoint between Coldwater Port City and Tobesk City, to the southwest of Tobesk City.
His eyes scanned the map, inadvertently looking at the kneeling maid, and then he saw a scene that made him blush slightly. The Black-haired maid's figure was truly excellent, and this became even more apparent when she knelt down.
The flesh of desire was still affecting him, and Xia De tried very hard to avert his gaze.
"But how does your house have such a high-precision kingdom map? This could almost be a military map. Look, there's no publication number printed on the map. Strictly speaking, this should be considered contraband."
Miss Jialinna asked, sitting on a chair nearby. The second room had no furniture; when Xia De went to get the map just now, the Duchess's servants moved several chairs from the dining room of the first room.
The map was, of course, left by the former Detective. As for what Sparrow Hamilton wanted to do, that was beyond what the loyal MI6 agent Xia De Hamilton could imagine.
He glossed over the question, then asked:
"So, besides the Council, did the Church not discover Darkness?"
"The battle in Verwood City will attract the Church's attention, because things happened in a hurry at the time, and there was no time to cover up the traces. The Church should be able to link this matter to Darkness very soon."
Miss Jialinna said, looking at Xia De with emotion:
"Although it utilized an alchemical item, you accomplished something even Xi Wei couldn't. Xia De, you did very well."
"But Darkness didn't see my appearance at the time."
Xia De was very certain of this.
"Who knows? Otherwise, there's no explanation for why he isn't fleeing to the edge of the civilized world, but instead heading towards Tobesk."
The Witch also bent down and extended a finger, asking Tifa to circle Tobesk:
"In any case, the areas around Tobesk could all become the next location where Darkness appears. Besides the Council, other Ring術士 organizations currently tracking Darkness will eventually discover his whereabouts. After all, he is only one person, and even if he has a demon, he cannot become a master of stealth."
"Is Tobesk going to be chaotic again?"
Xia De asked, and Miss Jialinna shrugged:
"It's hard to say. Perhaps the Council's opponent this time is deliberately leading us in the wrong direction. After leaving Verwood City, he might have immediately headed south and smuggled himself into Carson Rick."
Xia De did not comment on this, but continued to discuss with Miss Jialinna the situation caused by the second Chosen One.
The power Iluna displayed on the Night of God's Descent gave people a preliminary understanding of the Chosen One's power, and the new whispering chapters slab discovered in the New World drew people's attention to Coldwater Port. Subsequently, in the major event of Coldwater Port, mermen, evil gods, Summoners, and the Chosen One appeared in turn. And once Darkness's next destination is confirmed, it is likely that more Ring術士 organizations attempting to contact whispering chapters and believing that the Chosen One will affect the situation in the material world will emerge.
"Speaking of which, are you looking for currency-type relics?"
The discussion lasted for two full hours, and Xia De also learned of more troubles caused by Darkness. When Tifa went to find the other maids waiting in the first room to help put away the large map, the Witch suddenly asked.
"Yes."
Xia De had mentioned this to both Witches.
"Here, take this."
Miss Jialinna flicked a coin, and Xia De fumbled to catch it.
His fingers touched the coin, and he immediately received a prompt about contacting the whisper. The cold coin, about the size of a one-shilling alloy silver coin, had a thorny border on the obverse, with the number 1 written on it, and the number 309 at the bottom. These numbers were symbolized numbers, symbols that had been in use since ancient times.
The reverse side had the ancient rune for "wish," and the border was also thorny.
And on the side of the coin, a circle of letters was engraved with very fine craftsmanship:
"Unsatisfied desire is the greatest enemy of wise beings."
"Document-level relic 【Wishing Coin】. Draw a pentagram on a flat surface, place five candles of different lengths at the vertices of the pentagram, and place the coin in the center of the pentagram, and you can make a wish."
The Witch introduced, as the two returned to the sofa in the first room to continue their conversation, while the servants helped tidy up the chairs and map.
"I suppose there must be a catch to the wish fulfillment, right?"
Xia De said while examining the coin.
"Yes, it will indeed fulfill some of your wishes, but it will always do so in strange ways, which is very similar to those stories that warn us not to be greedy."
The Witch said, her fingers moving, though it was unclear what she meant:
"However, although the method might be problematic, the purpose of the wish can be achieved. Therefore, some Ring術士 are willing to try using this relic to make wishes, treating it as a wishing method with both positive and negative effects. The smaller the wish, the more likely it is to happen in the way the wish-maker desires; the grander the wish, the more unexpected the fulfillment method."
"Oh, this is truly a good item."
Xia De praised.
"It is indeed good. Similar to most currency-shaped relics, the 【Wishing Coin】 is not a singular existence. But what makes it unique is that all 666 【Wishing Coins】, even if they disappear after a successful wish, can reappear within a period ranging from decades to centuries. For example, yours is number 309. No matter how you intend to use it, people in the future will still be able to see it. After all, these coins are the embodiment of greed, desire, and hope; they cannot disappear."
"So what payment do I need to make to acquire this from you?"
Xia De shifted his gaze from the coin and looked up, asking:
"Is there anything you need me to do?"
Miss Jialinna thought for a moment, a smile playing on her lips:
"Are you busy tonight?"
"Of course not."
He thought Miss Jialinna would arrange another task.
"Then let's have dinner together tonight. Oh, and after dinner, we can go see an opera together."
As she spoke, she looked back at her maid, and Miss Servite immediately nodded:
"I will prepare the box tickets."
"Dinner and an opera... Is that all?"
Xia De hesitated slightly.
"Of course, nothing has happened in Tobesk recently, and I don't have anything I need you to do."
She smiled at Xia De, awaiting his answer.
"Can I bring Mia?"
Xia De asked again, and the cat whose name was mentioned immediately looked up at him.
"Of course you can."
"Then, alright, I think that's fine."
Although this behavior gave him the illusion that he was relying on a woman's abilities, he currently needed special coins. Without wanting to consume the only remaining blood money, an extra coin for divination would be perfect.
"However, this doesn't count as me paying. I'll take the coin, and I'll participate in the evening's activities, but this counts as me owing you one, and I'll repay it later."
Xia De emphasized.
"For a man's pride?"
The Witch asked with a smile, not rejecting Xia De's statement:
"What a pity, little Leia won't be back in Tobesk until tomorrow. Otherwise, I'd really like her to see you like this."
Xia De did not respond to this remark, otherwise the Witch would surely say something even more excessive... She might even change the invitation time to tomorrow night.
