“Priest, where exactly are you going? Do you still not know the destination?”
Xia De asked curiously while helping the Priest Augustus sign the “Co-Group Ring術士 Signature” section of the “Letter-based Ring術士 Outdoor Application Form.”
“Middlesburg, the City of Mountains.”
Priest Augustus lowered his voice. He was organizing other documents on the other side of the desk:
“Bishop Owen helped me find this out; otherwise, I wouldn’t even be able to choose appropriate clothes. You mustn’t tell anyone; the Church doesn’t allow it to be disclosed.”
“What a coincidence! One of my clients also went there.”
Xia De said with a smile, handing the application form to the Priest. The Priest frowned, looking at the page he held in his hand. It was the “Saint Byron's Comprehensive College Letter-based Ring術士 Long-Term Outdoor Notice” and “Saint Byron's Letter-based Student Management Regulations · Resident Chapter” he had received from the doctor.
As a formal school, Saint Byron's is particularly comprehensive, or rather, cumbersome, in its rules and regulations. The school rules accumulated over two epochs are not to be trifled with. According to the Priest, he would need to write at least a stack of approval forms to leave; those papers would even be enough to bind into a thin book.
“However, Middlesburg City…”
Xia De recalled another matter. When he obtained the demon hunter seal from the ophthalmologist, he also learned the whereabouts of a relic longsword. Like the seal, it was equipment left behind by the Demon Hunters of the third epoch, and weapon relics are among the most precious of all relics.
That longsword was buried in Sicar Mountain, and Middlesburg City is located at the foot of Sicar Mountain, at the entrance to the mountains.
He had originally planned to take a long trip with his cat to retrieve the sword himself when he had some free time. But since the Priest was going to be in that vicinity, Xia De informed the Priest about the sword.
He didn’t know the specific details of the sword, only that it was a silver sword, had no curse itself, and could be used upon acquisition. When the Priest heard Xia De mention the demon hunter seal, he had also heard about this sword, so he promised that if he had time, he could help Xia De go into the mountains to retrieve the sword.
“But that was hundreds of years ago after all; it’s not impossible that a Ring術士 might have accidentally taken that relic already.”
The Priest said. When encountering problems, this Old Priest always liked to consider the worst outcome first.
“It doesn’t matter; it’s a bonus anyway.”
Xia De was very open-minded about such things.
That afternoon, he again ran errands for the Priest, going to City Hall to get a few stamps. The academy’s documents required Priest Augustus to prove that he was indeed a permanent resident of Tobesk City. Although Xia De didn’t know what meaning such proof held, City Hall was on Silver Cross Avenue, and getting the stamps on his way home and then giving the documents to the Priest at the study session tomorrow afternoon was no trouble at all.
Xia De was now considered a well-known figure in Tobesk City, though this “fame” largely came from Miss Jialinna. But this did not hinder him; he received preferential treatment when doing business at City Hall.
At least he didn't have to queue, nor did he have to go back and get Priest Augustus's tax certificate to get the stamp. Xia De couldn't quite say whether he was happy or sad about this kind of “preferential treatment.” But overall, it was great not to waste any time.
And by that evening, Iluna and Luvia arrived together at Saint Delan Square. The three had a long-awaited dinner together at a restaurant on Silver Cross Avenue, and listened to Iluna complain about how heavy her current workload was.
Xia De and Luvia could rest for a while, but as the Chosen One, Iluna could never rest. After the Tobesk City Dark Descent incident, people increasingly realized the importance of the whispering chapters, and a series of plans centered around Iluna were unfolding. Her life was truly rich and colorful.
And even if the Church didn't give her tasks, fate would guide this seventeen-year-old girl to gradually become stronger, just like when she went with Xia De to investigate a seemingly ordinary corpse disposal case, but inexplicably stumbled upon a relic.
But fortunately, Iluna's peculiar luck did not manifest that night. The three went to dinner together, then went to the Delarion Royal Opera House to watch the opera “Eight-Winged Archangel,” and everything was peaceful during this time.
The opera ended at half past nine in the evening. Afterwards, the three returned to Saint Delan Square Six, discussed their upcoming plans, and Iluna's gains from learning the “Balance” power from Miss Jialinna.
She now goes to the Witch's manor on weekends; Miss Jialinna values her new student greatly.
On an early autumn evening, being able to drink tea and eat snacks with friends at home, leisurely chatting about their future and individual lives, was truly a delightful thing. Not until half past ten that night did the three conclude their date.
Xia De originally wanted to escort the two ladies downstairs, but Luvia insisted that it wasn't necessary:
“It’s not our first time at your house.”
Luvia and Iluna then walked down the stairs together, discussing the decorations in Xia De’s house and commenting on the copperplate print at the stair landing.
Upon reaching the foyer to pick up their hats, Iluna opened the door first, still speaking:
“That’s why I said, if Black Stone Security Company also ran some advertisements like Xia De, their business would actually be better. But the captain said, our existence isn’t to serve the citizens of Tobesk City, it’s to…”
She stepped down the steps at the doorway, but turned around to see Luvia standing at the door, holding the door open, not having stepped out. The gas lamp in the foyer illuminated her shoulder-length brown hair, and the purple-eyed Prophet wore an expression as if she had forgotten to turn off the gas at home.
Their eyes met, and the seventeen-year-old girl swore that for the moment, she saw a playful look in the other's eyes.
“Oh, I forgot to tell Xia De one more thing, about the Great City Player. I received some inside information.”
Luvia said.
“Then let’s go back up.”
Iluna took off her hat, wanting to step back onto the stairs.
“No, it’s not necessary, I’ll go up by myself. Iluna, you go back first, sweet dreams.”
Iluna lived in an apartment arranged by the Church, very close to Black Stone Security Company, in the area between the North and West districts. Luvia lived in her rented apartment, which was located further east than Saint Delan Square. Therefore, the two were not going the same way, so Iluna did not object. After wishing Luvia sweet dreams for the night as well, she left alone.
Listening to the sound of the door closing behind her, the seventeen-year-old girl continued walking forward, thinking about making another Sunlight Gun brooch for Xia De to wear in a few days.
Thinking about Xia De and his cat, and then recalling the expression in Luvia’s pretty purple eyes when they parted at the door just now, Iluna suddenly stopped under a gas streetlamp in Saint Delan Square.
She looked up at the exquisite design of the gas streetlamp, frowned slightly, and turned to look at the second floor of Xia De’s house. The curtains were tightly drawn; although the gas lamp was on inside, no one could be seen through the window.
The early autumn night breeze ruffled her long hair, bringing a slight chill. She murmured thoughtfully:
“Are those two trying to avoid me about something?”
After thinking for a long time without understanding, she could only shrug and walk towards the taxi carriage at the street corner:
“So much is happening lately. Where did that contract come from, and also, The Society of Truth is actually related to the collapse of the ancient tower on Kalas Mountain…”
The convenience of living in Saint Delan Square was that no matter the time, people could always find a hired carriage at the street corner here.
As for the rather aggrieved Mia at Saint Delan Square Six, she was uncharacteristically confined outside the bedroom, spending the night on the sofa. So much so that at seven o'clock the next morning, when Xia De opened the bedroom door, he was almost knocked to the ground by the cat, who somehow jumped up like a cannonball—in reality, he was just startled.
“Your cat is truly interesting.”
Luvia said gently, sitting on the bed and styling her hair. The curtains were drawn in the room, making it a bit dim even in the morning. Luvia put her locket containing family photos back on, the cold pendant pressing directly against her skin.
“Sometimes I really wonder why it’s so intelligent.”
The cat was held by Xia De, licking the faint red mark on Xia De’s neck.
“Perhaps because his owner is very intelligent. And also very…”
Luvia praised Xia De, then changed her tone:
“Strong. I had a very pleasant night, Knight. Perhaps I can come more often in the future; your service is excellent.”
Xia De felt that this kind of talk was very inappropriate.
Nothing interesting happened over the next weekend, but there were more news reports about the Great City Player in the newspapers. Even the King mentioned it during a speech in Parliament. These news stories gradually made people forget the news of Prince Sachs being convicted of treason a while ago.
At the Saturday afternoon study session, the Priest formally announced to the others that he would be leaving Tobesk City by train next week, and promised to send postcards and bring a gift for everyone when he returned.
Besides attending the farewell lunch, Xia De also had his own matters at the study session.
Since he had already mastered the first Ling Rune, “Light,” recommended by the academy, “crazy light chaser” was temporarily returned to the academy by Xia De. It was indeed possible for him to obtain other Ling Runes related to “Light” from this book, but the probability was very low.
Therefore, after falsely claiming to have obtained the Ling Rune “Melting Light,” Xia De consulted the academy for their opinion on his next Ling Rune.
He did not mention that he had already advanced to three rings, so he was currently asking about his two-ring, what Ling Rune would be more suitable to match and build with his own system. Saint Byron's had cultivated Ring術士 for thousands of years, and the advice given would certainly be better than Xia De choosing by luck.
The academy’s reply would likely not be available until next week.
