Emma Sylvia looked at the three people in the room, and all three were startled by The Lady who had walked in quickly, stopping their mutual attacks.
The Great Witch showed a look of disgust, shifting her gaze from the Bald Man's face, and then she suddenly saw Xia De, her eyes widening in disbelief:
“You—”
“I am The Lady’s man!”
Xia De immediately held up the badge on his chest:
“The Lady will explain everything to you. This is a Ring術士 from the Pantanal Voodoo Society; he is the one who murdered Earl Sachia!”
Xia De shouted loudly, and the young Great Witch looked at the Bald Man closest to her. He was startled, then said fiercely:
“No matter who you are, knowing the truth of this matter….”
Silvia raised her hand and waved it at the air—
Crack!
The man’s face was as if struck by an invisible hand, his head twisted one hundred eighty degrees on his neck, and his body fell stiffly.
Xia De and Bernhardt both looked at the Great Witch, who was wiping her hands with a handkerchief, with some horror. Xia De knew even more that this was the use of space power; it seemed to be waved in the air, but in reality, the force directly attacked the person five meters away.
“I am The Lady’s man!”
Xia De had no choice but to emphasize this again to ensure his safety.
The Witch with black bobbed hair ignored the terrified Vampire who was recoiling. She took a step and appeared directly in front of Xia De, carefully examining the pendant on his chest, and then, like all Witches Xia De had seen, her fair, warm hand grasped his wrist:
“Are you really a man?”
Although her gaze was sharp and her actions decisive, her tone was surprisingly not very aggressive. She released his hand, then looked at her own palm, asking the question Xia De didn't know how many times he had heard.
“Of course!”
Xia De immediately nodded:
“God once guaranteed it.”
He smelled the perfume of “Witch's Scent”; Silvia’s perfume had a jasmine fragrance.
“The spatial Miracle just now, did you use it?”
The Witch asked again, and Xia De nodded again. Silvia’s brown eyes carefully scrutinized him:
“So, you are really a man?”
As she spoke, she tried to grab Xia De’s wrist again, but at this moment, the sound of a doorknob turning appeared again. It wasn't the doorknob of the room door, but the doorknob of the washroom.
Masha, who had changed into another set of clothes, walked out of the washroom and immediately froze. She was an ordinary person and couldn’t feel the element fluctuations from just now. Because of the silence charm, she couldn't hear any sound from outside at all, so she couldn't imagine what had happened in the five minutes she was changing clothes to make such a pretty young Lady appear in the room.
Then, she saw the Bald Man’s corpse on the ground and tried to speak, but the Great Witch Silvia just pointed a finger. As gray light flickered around her, Masha froze in place as if petrified, her eyes completely devoid of light.
This was a basic spell—Petrification. Xia De had read about its improved, weakened version, “Partial Petrification,” in the pink book.
“Sir, your questions can wait.”
The Witch looked at Xia De:
“Now, first explain both of your identities, and what exactly happened with this murder case.”
“Before that, you’d best deal with him first.”
Xia De pointed again at the “corpse” on the ground whose head had twisted one hundred eighty degrees. The voice in his ear had made it very clear that this guy was not dead.
Indeed, as Xia De pointed his finger at the Bald Man, the latter leaped up from the ground and then transformed back into a mass of worm-like vines, rushing towards the window.
“Imprisonment!”
The Great Witch pointed a finger, and the dense, terrifying mass of tree vines, along with the human skin wrapped within it, were frozen in the air like a three-dimensional photograph. This was not Petrification, but a method similar to “Space Imprisonment.” The Great Witch Emma Sylvia corresponded to the “Space” seat, a genuine Ten-Ring術士 skilled in spatial power.
“Now, can you introduce your identities?”
She asked softly again, and Xia De immediately nodded:
“I am Xia De Hamilton.”
Since he had already been seen by this Great Witch, and the other party was only confused about “man” and did not think Xia De’s appearance broke the Witches’ rules, Xia De no longer hid:
“The Lady will explain my situation clearly to you. This is Viscount Bernhardt Armand Bernhardt. You should have heard of him from Grandma Cassandra.”
Silvia frowned slightly:
“The Vampire who tried to rob the Cassandra Auction House on the night of the Battle of Middlesburg but was caught by an apprentice?”
She glanced at Bernhardt, who was trying to make himself less conspicuous. He fully understood who the other party was. The psychological trauma from his near-death experience at the Cassandra Auction House made him wish he could disappear from the room immediately.
“We are all good people, and meeting Her Royal Highness today was purely coincidental.”
Xia De emphasized again, feeling much more at ease now. He gestured for the Witch to sit down and speak, then recounted the events that had occurred in the White King Club this Thursday afternoon from beginning to end.
Silvia listened quietly, and only after Xia De finished speaking did she nod gently:
“The most important thing now is to separate Margaret from this matter so as not to delay Tobesk’s visit.”
She pointed at the petrified Masha:
“I will modify her memory, making her believe that she knocked out Colonel Wood and was then caught by the two of you. I will also modify the Colonel’s memory, making him believe he was knocked out. As for the crack in the ring, such a simple alchemical item is easy to repair.”
Then, she pointed at the terrifying mass of vines imprisoned in the air, which looked like a sculpture left by the most insane artist:
“I will hand him over to the Orthodox Church through the black market, leaving some clues so the Church knows this matter is related to Ring術士. As for the follow-up, let the Orthodox Church of this diocese investigate it themselves; it has nothing to do with Margaret’s visiting delegation.”
After speaking, her extremely sharp and spirited eyes looked at Xia De again:
“The bounty on him will be split, one-quarter for each of you.”
“No need, no need, it all goes to you!”
The middle-aged Vampire immediately said, and Xia De also nodded:
“Yes, no need to give it to us, as long as this matter isn’t linked to us.”
Silvia did not refuse, her tone seemed a little lighter, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of her mouth:
“That Vampire over there is not under my jurisdiction; I will pretend I didn't see you today.”
Bernhardt let out a sigh of relief. Of course, he dared not reveal Silvia’s identity; before leaving the Cassandra Auction House, Grandma Cassandra had made him sign a soul contract.
“As for you, Xia De Hamilton.”
She again grasped Xia De’s wrist, carefully looking at his handsome face:
“This name, I seem to have heard it somewhere… Yes, Margaret mentioned this name when talking about Tobesk City’s gossip. So that’s it, it turns out that the scandals and rumors about her that have spread from Tobesk over the past six months were not deliberately released by The Lady to avoid being pressured into marriage. This is actually true; she actually found an existence like you, this is truly….”
She suddenly smiled, releasing Xia De’s hand:
“If you are her lover, of course, I won’t do anything to you. But tonight I will go see The Lady; she needs to explain this. Sir, please clean up here first so that this matter doesn't delay the visiting delegation’s itinerary.”
“No problem, it’s wonderful that you think that way!”
Xia De took a deep breath. As an invisible airflow surged from around him towards his nostrils, the damaged walls and the acid-corroded floor returned to their original state as if time were flowing backward.
Bernhardt kept his head down and dared not look up, so he did not see this scene, but the Great Witch naturally recognized what this was.
“Time? I didn't expect you to also be proficient in Time. However, using such a Miracle just to clean a room, isn’t that too wasteful?”
Silvia looked at him with increasing curiosity:
“The Lady, she really found a treasure this time… Do you know how to report what happened here to Margaret?”
“Yes, Lady!”
Bernhardt said with his head bowed. He was truly afraid of these Witches:
“This matter has nothing to do with Ring術士 at all. Let the Church investigate the true cause of the Earl’s death.”
“Yes, now please wake up Colonel Wood, and you can both go see Margaret.”
After speaking, she walked towards the door:
“I’ll go explain to Margaret first that you, Mr. Hamilton, found the murderer.”
Then she suddenly turned to Xia De, a smile on her lips:
“I’ve read the hamilton detective story collection. So, you really are a Detective.”
