Stuffing the god's gift box into the backpack he made himself, Xia De carried it from the ruined tower towards the City at the foot of the mountain. Cassandra Auction House, located in the City center, was still bustling with activity in the late autumn season. Xia De also met Grandma Cassandra and Sister Devlin in the reception room on the top floor of the auction house.
The Sister would also be present to witness the ritual, but besides the three of them, because Grandma Cassandra's teacher did not want too many people to know the details of the ritual, only Grandma Cassandra's young apprentice would accompany them up the mountain.
The apprentice, Miss Rita Swift, was a young girl who looked about the same age as Angelina, slender, with long, wavy flaxen hair.
She responded to Xia De's greeting very reservedly, but was not puzzled by the presence of a man like Xia De. Presumably, Grandma Cassandra had already mentioned this to the young apprentice.
Before setting off, Grandma Cassandra expressed her doubts about the box Xia De was carrying, to which Xia De vaguely explained:
"This is a box used to seal fierce beasts."
"I thought it was that angel-level relic, the 【Golden Holy Wardrobe】. I remember that relic was clearly in the Creation Church's Vatican."
The Old Witch was in a good mood today, and even started joking.
Holding the ritual on Monday was already planned, so there was no need for extra preparation before going up the mountain. Miss Aurora was not present, and Grandma Cassandra did not want anyone from the Witch Council to see that ritual. Helen Black was also absent from the ritual, and when Xia De asked about her whereabouts, the Old Witch said with a smile that she had already gone up the mountain.
The prepared carriage was parked at the main entrance of Cassandra Auction House, and it was just right for four people to sit in the same carriage.
However, just as the carriage started moving, Sister Devlin claimed that she had forgotten an important item at the auction house, and asked the carriage to drop her off. She would make her own way to the ritual site on the mountaintop later.
"Would someone like Sister Devlin also forget to bring something?"
Xia De found this amusing, as in his eyes, Sister Devlin was the kind of reliable person who would not make mistakes.
The carriage then proceeded with the three of them, but just after leaving the core of the City and entering the western district near the mountains, Grandma Cassandra had the carriage stop again, saying somewhat embarrassedly:
"Just now, I saw an old friend outside, and I must see him."
As the Old Witch spoke, she actually left the carriage as well, claiming that she would go to the ritual site on the mountaintop alone later.
"Which one is Grandma Cassandra's friend?"
After the carriage started again, Xia De asked the Old Witch's young apprentice, Miss Rita Swift, curiously. The latter blushed, as if she was not used to talking to Xia De, so Xia De did not ask any further.
It felt strange to be in the same carriage with a strange girl, especially when the other party was unwilling to talk. But fortunately, this strange feeling did not last long. When the auction house's carriage brought the two to the western part of the City near the mountains, the young Miss Swift suddenly spoke:
"Oh, I actually forgot what Grandma told me to do!"
She hurriedly called for the carriage to stop, and then said to Xia De apologetically and stutteringly:
"Teacher asked me to pick up a batch of goods at Mi Fort Train Station last night, but I accidentally forgot last night, and now . . ."
"It's okay, then let the carriage go now, it's not far from the train station here."
Xia De said very considerately.
"But, that batch of goods . . . can't let others know."
Xia De looked at her suspiciously, then nodded:
"Then it's okay, I'll get off here and wait for you, you can come back to pick me up later."
The young girl with flaxen curly hair bit her lip, lowered her head, and did not look into Xia De's eyes:
"Sir, why don't you walk towards the mountains first, and I'll catch up with you later. If you go from Mi Fort Train Station back here, it would be like going around in a circle, but if you go directly into the mountains to catch up, it will be faster."
After speaking, she blushed and said very apologetically:
"I'm really sorry, this is all my fault, please forgive me for the trouble I've caused."
Since the other party had said so, Xia De could only agree.
So he jumped out of the carriage with the box on his back and the sword in his hand, and after explaining his route into the mountains to Miss Swift in the carriage window, he set off alone towards the entrance of Sicar Mountain.
It was already very close to the entrance to the mountain, and Xia De chose to walk the rest of the way to prevent the carriage from not being able to catch up with him. And to make the journey more enjoyable, Xia De let the cat out of the box.
Of course, Mia would definitely not climb the mountain herself, so it squatted on Xia De's shoulder.
Although the four of them had entered the mountain together, and it had ended up being just him and Mia going up the mountain alone, Xia De would not complain, thinking that he would soon see the twins he had not seen for a long time.
Sicar Mountain in late autumn was already covered in gold, and the road into the mountain was also covered with fallen leaves. The crisp sound of shoes stepping on those leaves made people feel happy, and the suggestion from a passing cargo truck asking Xia De if he wanted a ride also made him feel good:
"Thank you for your kindness, but I'm still waiting for someone."
He pointed in the direction of the foot of the mountain, and then watched the carriage carrying grain leave.
Middirburg to the north of the northern foot of Sicar Mountain is the vast Lancerde Plain in the northern Old Continent, which is rich in grain; while to the south of the southern foot of Sicar Mountain is still the Rommel Mountains. Although there are scattered towns located there, the supply of grain is not so easy, so the farmers of Mi Fort often transport grain across Windy Path sentry post to the southern countries in the autumn.
The witch's apprentice claimed that she would catch up soon, but until 11:00 a.m., Xia De did not see the carriage again, nor did he see Sister Devlin and Grandma Cassandra, who had gone down the mountain earlier.
He had already passed the height of the ruined tower in the mountains, and was heading towards the higher reaches of Sicar Mountain.
The mountain road that allows carriages to pass only extends to Windy Path near the mountainside, but the location of the ritual is at the top of the mountain. At Xia De's current speed, he would probably reach Windy Path around 4:00 p.m. And in order to be able to go home tonight, he really hoped that his other three companions could catch up as soon as possible.
"Can someone help me?"
While thinking, he heard a voice asking for help. The voice was not on the mountain road that allowed carriages to pass, but in the dense forest on the side. Although it was not wise to rashly enter the forest, the voice seemed to be not far away, so Xia De hesitated for a moment and left the mountain road.
Walking through the dense forest, he soon heard the sound of gurgling water, and a few steps further, the scene suddenly opened up. It was a mountain stream, and a short dam several dozen meters upstream created a small waterfall nearby.
Beside the stream was a shallow beach made of gravel and pebbles, and the midday sun shone directly on the surface of the stream. Walking out of the dark forest and facing the sparkling water, Xia De even had to raise his arm to shield his eyes from the somewhat dazzling light.
The autumn wind blew across the stream, bringing a hint of coolness.
Although Sicar Mountain had turned golden, the trees on both sides of this mountain stream were still as lush as in midsummer. Tall canopies stretched from the dense forest to above the mountain stream and converged above the mountain stream. Sparse branches allowed the midday sun to shine through patches of dappled shadows in the stream.
Those shadows swayed slightly with the wind. Squinting his eyes, Xia De listened to the sound of the babbling stream and saw a young girl wearing a black dress with a Red Butterfly pendant hanging from her waist, sitting on a large rock in the stream.
Her arms were propped back against the rock surface, and her bare, white feet were sliding in the clear mountain stream, leaving marks in the silk-like water.
The stream was very shallow, and you could even see the stone surface below and small fish.
Xia De was stunned, and the girl draped in dappled leaf shadows also looked at the young man walking out of the forest.
The stream babbled, as if flowing in his heart; the shadows of the trees swayed, but could not shake the eyes meeting; the chirping of insects was faint, as if sighing for this scene; the sunlight was slightly drunk, Xia De would definitely remember this scene for many years.
"Sir, can you help me?"
The girl's body shape looked like she was in her twenties, but her face looked like she was only fifteen or sixteen years old.
She had long black hair and beautiful blue eyes. Her skin was fair, and her appearance was no less than any other girl Xia De had seen. She wore a black dress with a black lady's coat over it, probably to resist the mountain wind, and her height looked about half a head shorter than Xia De.
Whether it was a coincidence or not, the dappled sunlight was shining on her feet, and her skin was so white that it seemed to reflect light.
"My shoes and socks are by the water, can you help me get them? This stream is very cold."
Xia De stood there, feeling the wind, listening to the water, and even for a moment, he suddenly felt like history and himself were overlapping.
It took a long time before he slowly nodded:
"Okay, I'll do it right away . . ."
"No, please carry me to the shore. If my shoes get wet, it will be difficult to go down the mountain."
The Black Dress Girl continued, looking at Xia De with a smile. Xia De withdrew his surprised expression and showed a nostalgic and gratified expression:
"Okay, then please wait a moment. I'll come right over . . ."
"Don't make me wait too long . . . it's been too long."
Xia De put down the long sword in his hand and the god's gift box on his back, and put the seemingly drowsy cat inside to prevent it from getting lost in the forest or being carried away by a gray wolf.
Then, he took off his shoes and socks and rolled up his trouser legs. Stepping into the water, the slightly icy stream made him shiver. Although he had the 【Walking on Water】 spell, he did not show it at this moment.
"Am I carrying you away, or am I carrying you on my back?"
Xia De asked, standing beside the big rock in the stream. The Black Dress Girl thought for a moment and said softly:
"Please carry me on your back, thank you, sir. Do you need me to introduce myself? I am a second-year student in the History Department at Middirburg Mechanical College."
She said, and Xia De turned around, let the Black Dress Girl lie on his back, and carried her to the shore.
【Outsider, you have felt the "whisper".】
"I know."
He sighed softly in his heart.
