The person that Secilia feared the most was the director of the Courier Office, Qijiang, and she remained the same even after meeting Gregory. Although Qijiang was not a sanctuary magician, he had three loyal two-wing warriors under his command, and Iron Fist Kaiwei was one of them.
He wore a colorful helmet that completely covered his head. At first glance, it looked like his head had only a mouth. Every day, the pattern and color of his helmet changed. Looking at him for a few more times would make you dizzy, like a walking ritual statue. His horror was not in his cruelty, but in his madness that ignored others. When Cecilia first met the painter, he was making a chair for her task. Even though he didn't pay any attention to her and was concentrating on assembling his work, Cecilia didn't dare to move and stood by to watch the whole process.
It was not until the painter finished painting the chair that he said, "Actually, I also want to make a table, but you seem to have a higher level of talent."
The Messenger Agency is a small but highly elite group of magicians, and all members dare not violate the will of the Painter. Ambitious people think that the Painter is an opportunity for unrest, and cruel people pursue higher levels of cruelty here, but more people are simply attracted by the Painter's personal charm... The Painter actually did not restrict Cecilia's stay or leave, but she was afraid and couldn't help staying, as if the danger itself had a thrilling temptation.
But even the painter had never made her feel such a chill that penetrated her bones. Her mind was resistant to movement because of fear. She could smell the citrus fruit scent in her nose, the pink curly ponytail against her face was soft and cute, and her voice was so pleasant, but she felt like there was a giant snake behind her, licking her body with its wet and slimy tongue, as if it would roll her into its belly in the next second.
This is the devil in urban legends! It turns out there is more than one devil!
Their relationship is -
"Why are you here?" Ash asked.
"Gospel informed us that the Sun-Seeking Spirit had entered the city. I waited for a long time but it didn't come to Liwan District, so I came out to take a look." Wei Xi reached out and pinched Cecilia's chin, looking at her like a toy, "I didn't expect to disturb you from having a midnight snack~"
Owner!
When Cecilia looked closely, she found that this monster in human skin was actually wearing a maid outfit, and her tone when she said "master" was very natural. No wonder she said she was not qualified... Even a monster like her could only be a maid. Cecilia felt that she could only be a metal doll at best.
Vichy lifted up Cecilia's metal arm and raised his eyebrows: "Mechanics? Master, your interests are becoming more and more extensive."
"Don't talk nonsense. Sword Princess is here in the next few days. I don't want to make her angry." Ash said unhappily, "Do you know about the group of people outside?"
Wei Xi glanced at the voodoo office on the street outside and shook his head: "I don't know. Did they offend you? Then I will give them a thousand-day soul refining package later. I guarantee that they will regret being born into this world."
Ash said, "They are trying to monopolize all the Sun Seekers in Azula in order to trade with us. If I hadn't seen them robbing, I wouldn't have taken action."
"Well, what's wrong?"
"Don't you think there's something wrong?"
"Isn't it great that there is an organization willing to help us collect the Sun-Seeking Spirit? Anyway, it's enough to get the Sun-Seeking Spirit." Wei Xi said: "This is the direction I want to guide. Compared with scattered transactions, wouldn't it be more convenient for someone to take the lead and bring a large number of sources to trade with us in a centralized manner?"
"But by then, when they have a monopoly on the Sun-Seeking Spirit, they can ask for whatever price they want..." Ash said halfway when he realized from the look in Vichy's eyes that Vichy was looking at a fool - Vichy had no intention of trading fairly at all. She just wanted to give the mortals a little sweetness through the first few transactions, tempting them to monopolize the Spirit and concentrate a large amount of supply. They thought they could ask the devil for an exorbitant price, but all that awaited them was the ridicule of the Ghost Prophet.
Vichy is indeed a devil. She is best at using greed to lure mortals into the abyss of no return. Thousands of years ago, she must have used this routine to completely drain all the value of her victims. Ash couldn't even blame her for anything, because the Sun Seeking Spirit was extremely important to them, and the magicians who were lured by greed would inevitably commit murder for the sake of monopoly. Vichy killing them and refining their souls was not against Ash's orders.
But if Ash condones this behavior this time, Vichy will inevitably adopt more radical measures in the future to lower his moral bottom line bit by bit.
After three months of silence, this bad woman started to stir up trouble again, and I couldn't scold her... Ash rubbed his temple and said, "Don't do this."
"I know, my dear master." Wei Xi said perfunctorily and scratched Cecilia's chin: "Let's complete this transaction first."
Unconsciously, she had sat next to Cecilia and held Cecilia in her arms. However, Cecilia did not feel comfortable at all, but instead felt as if she was suffocated by a giant python.
But when she heard Vichy mention her, Cecilia still plucked up the courage to say: "My wish is to follow you! I am willing to do anything you ask me to do, as long as I stay by your side!"
She felt her face getting hot after she finished speaking. She had never thought that she would be so bold and impulsive to make such a nearly dedicated oath to a mysterious being who looked like a devil and whom she had only known for less than an hour. The mere thought of it made her feel like a fool... But she had an inexplicable intuition that if she missed this opportunity, she would spend the rest of her life imagining whether everything would be different if she could be braver on this summer night.
The only thing Cecilia was afraid of was that if she took the initiative like that, the other party would look down on her... But when she looked up, she saw that the corners of Ash's mouth were slightly raised, and his shyness could not be concealed in his smile.
"Thank you." He said sincerely, "Thank you for appreciating me so much."
Cecilia was stunned and looked down at her knees. A sour feeling filled her eyes and she wished she could hide under the table.
Wei Xi sniffed at the side of her neck, as if tasting fine wine: "What a stubborn and tough soul... Well, there is also three parts of ambition, three parts of anger, three parts of ruthlessness, and a little love brain. The talent is not bad, and the hair is wine red."
"You are actually a very good girl, but unfortunately, we have too many girls like you." Wei Xi chuckled and said, "You are late."
She could still bear it just now, but after being mocked by Vichy, Cecilia couldn't bear it anymore. Her eyes were full of tears and she could only wipe them with the back of her cold metal hand. She didn't know why she couldn't control her emotions. She could keep silent every month when she was tortured by neuron and phantom limb pain. Now she just didn't get it, but she felt as sad as if she had lost it.
"Don't tease her." Ash said unhappily, "Cesiliya, can I call you that?"
"Um."
"You may have misunderstood something, but I'm not a... cult leader. I don't accept followers." Ash paused and said, "If you want to be friends with me, you don't have to make a wish. I'm not the kind of person who charges friendship fees."
"As for your desire to stay with me... I'm sorry, it's too risky for you to stay with me, and you're just acting on impulse. You might regret what you said tonight when you wake up tomorrow."
"Um."
"Don't worry, the reward I give you is definitely worth all your hard work along the way—"
Before Ash finished speaking, Cecilia slammed the box containing the Sun Seeker onto the table. Vichy reached out to take it, but Cecilia held the box tightly, staring at Ash stubbornly.
The Ghost Prophet was slightly startled, then raised his eyebrows and looked at the metal doll with a playful malice in his eyes—
"Don't bother with the little girl."
Ash smiled and patted the back of Vichy's hand. He reached out to take the box and took out a small glass bottle from his arms. There was a drop of dark red liquid in it. "Although it can't solve all problems, at least you don't have to worry about most of them."
"Ah?" Wei Xi blinked: "Do you really need to take out this thing? She is a silver magician..."
"She is being hunted by the two-wing magicians in order to fight for the Sun Seeking Magic Spirit. This drop of essence can just protect her."
"Why don't I teach her the method of killing and refining souls? Then it will be easy for her to kill enemies higher in level!"
The corner of Ash's mouth twitched: "Let's not talk about whether I will allow you to teach, but isn't your inheritance of magic much more precious than this drop of essence?"
Wei Xi curled her lips and said, "I only teach the knowledge of the golden realm. Anyway, it can allow her to control both wings."
"And then they ended their sinful lives by killing and refining souls, right?" Ash said unhappily, "Our fair trade is to try our best to satisfy their wishes, not to push them into the fire pit!"
He held up the bottle and said to Cecilia, "This is the essence of knowledge. You don't have to remember it. You will forget it after the transaction is over. Just remember to always carry it with you. It can increase your success rate in summoning magic spirits and reduce the difficulty of casting miracles. Other magicians within ten meters of you will be affected. The difficulty of magic spirits casting spells will increase, and the probability of miracles going wrong will rise sharply. Even if you are chased by a two-wing magician, you can easily escape. But it is best not to provoke a sanctuary magician."
Cecilia was stunned when she heard this: "Is there really such an almighty treasure?"
This is the essence of knowledge that can condense the Prison Wing. How can a mortal resist the power of a demigod? Even a drop is a treasure that is unimaginable in the world. Ash opened the bottle and poured out the essence drop, then hooked his finger, and the streamer butterfly that landed on Cecilia's shoulder flew over and held the drop, transforming it into a beautiful dark gem pendant.
Wei Xi took the pendant and put it on Cecilia, and said, "Master, your taste is really... You actually made a pure gold chain with dark red..."
"Ah? Doesn't it look good?" Ash smiled sheepishly, stood up and said, "Then I'll practice it again—"
"No, it looks good!" Cecilia carefully held the pendant with her metal hands, as if she was afraid that she would crush it if she used too much force. An inexplicable power filled her body: "I want this!"
At this moment, she felt her head being gently rubbed, and she looked up to see Ash looking at her with a smile on his face.
"The deal is done. Have a nice night, Cecilia."
Ash turned and walked out of the store, waving without looking back: "See you next time, little girl."
Vichy walked up to her and bowed slightly. She was not as aggressive as before and really looked like a decent and elegant maid.
Watching them go away in the rainy night, Cecilia still felt like she was in a dream.
A desperate betrayal, a life-threatening adventure, a reward from the devil... She seemed to have gained a lot, but also seemed to have missed out on even more.
The memory of the two demons gradually faded, and she would completely forget their appearance and key information when the sun rose tomorrow. But now, she could still try to hold on to the surprise left by the demons.
The still world returned to its original state, the splashing water drops finally fell to the ground, screams echoed in the streets, and the Sanctuary magician with his eyes pierced rolled on the ground. But Cecilia was in no mood to appreciate the ugliness of her enemy, a belated resentment lingered around the metal doll:
"I'm already twenty years old, not a little girl anymore..."