"So, Mr. Humphrey, did you make the stone statue that moves at night in the association?"
Luvia also asked, and the old man shook his head again:
"My ability is only to make some noises and maintain the scene you see now. Besides, the rumor of the moving stone statue has been around for hundreds of years. Maybe my ancestors hadn't even arrived in this city at that time."
Luvia knew this, of course. What she wanted to ask was actually the next question:
"So, during the year you became a soul and stayed here, have you ever seen the moving stone statues in the association at night?"
Old Humphrey smiled:
"You are very perceptive, young lady. It reminds me of my granddaughter, but she is not as old as you. I am glad that you can ask me this question, but before I give you the answer, please answer a question of mine first."
He finally turned around and looked at the two people. Although they were souls, they still had shadows. After all, the fire was also created by him:
"What do you think of the craft of carving stone statues?"
Xia De and Luvia looked at each other. Rarely, he felt that he understood Luvia's thoughts, so Xia De spoke first:
"It is not the stonemason who carves the stone, nor the stonemason who gives the stone a specific image, but the stonemason who, according to destiny, unseals the image from the stone."
"Whether it's one more or one less, every cut is destined."
Luvia added the second half of the sentence, happy that Shade could read her thoughts.
The old stonemason Mr. Humphrey took a deep breath, and his soul actually shook a little in the firelight:
"What an interesting view. One more cut or one less cut is all destined."
He turned around again and touched the statue beside him, his eyes filled with endless sorrow:
"It took me so many years as a stonemason to understand this truth. Today's young people are really amazing... Do you want to know whether the rumor about the moving stone statues is true? I can tell you that it is true."
He put down his hands:
"This is a test left by an ancestor. I hope that the descendants of the Stonemason Association can find this test and pass it one day. I don't know if anyone has found it before me, but it is clear that no one has ever been able to pass it."
The old man looked at Xia De with his hands behind his back:
"Young man, are you interested in this?"
"certainly."
Otherwise, if Shad didn't have a candlelight dinner with Margaret, go stargazing with Luvia, study at home with Lecia or Dorothy, or rest at home with Mia, there would be no point in him coming here specially.
"Then come with me. Your ideas about the statues are very good. Perhaps you can really pass this test. I have tried it before, and that's how I got my special ability, but unfortunately, I am not qualified."
The fire went out, the stone statue disappeared, and the old man left the warehouse with Shade and Luvia, his hands behind his back. After crossing the yard, they returned to the building of the Stonemasons Association, and then went from the first floor to the third floor, and unexpectedly returned to the previous position.
However, this time he did not enter the office, but stood in the empty corridor:
"Wait a mininute."
The old stonemason said, and his empty hand flipped over, and the hammer and chisel appeared again. He gently hit the two, making nine consecutive rhythmic sounds, and then shouted to the corridor:
"I've brought people here to accept the test!"
After a while, part of the corridor ceiling fell silently, forming a ramp leading upwards. Looking up, there was no sky. This was clearly the entrance to the attic above, but Shade and Luvia were sure that this building had no attic. Above the third floor was the roof, and above the roof was the sky.
“What an interesting hidden space!”
Xia De said this with some excitement, and the old stonemason took the lead and walked up. The originally dark attic was lit up with fire, and the fire still came from a coal stove.
So Shade and Luvia followed him and found that the attic was filled with stone statues. Some were busts, some were full-length, but all were human figures. In the middle of the attic, there was a small empty space, and a stone statue that looked like a stonemason was standing still by the stove, pretending to carve a stone statue.
The old stonemason led them to the center and explained:
"It took me a long time after I died to discover the pattern here. Every month, this place will randomly open once, and one of these stone statues will randomly come out and move inside the association for about twenty minutes. They will deliberately avoid living people and even become invisible, so most people can only see the shadows of the statues or hear the sound of the statues moving. But if you can track them like me, you can follow them into here."
He paused.
"I even suspect that this test is specially prepared for the dead souls. It is too difficult for the living to discover them."
When the three of them stepped into the area illuminated by the fire, the still stonemason statue began to move. It was originally bent over, but now it stood up and looked at the three of them. Of course, it first looked at the old stonemason:
"Are you here to take the test again?"
The stone statues spoke the Carsenric language with a strong Randall River Valley flavor. Shad believed that this hidden attic was built only a few hundred years ago because the clothes of the surrounding stone statues were very recognizable.
"I'll try again, and there are these two."
The old stonemason pointed at Shade and Luvia. The stone statue itself had no expression and could only make very simple movements. It turned its head to look at the two people in turn, then nodded:
"Although it's a living person this time, it's no problem."
"I must first state that neither this lady nor I know how to carve stone."
Shade immediately added and Luvia nodded.
The statue said:
"It doesn't matter. The test is not to carve it yourself."
Even though he said that, three large stones suddenly slid in front of the three people from a distance with a harsh friction sound. Xia De had no knowledge of carving and stone appreciation, so he could only judge from the color and texture that this stone was similar to the stone used for the surrounding statues.
"Put your hands on the stone and use your heart to carve the statue you think is the most perfect. Complete the work before dawn. If the work is acceptable to me, it will be considered as passing the test. If you fail, you can come here to take the test again in the future, but only ten times."
The statue spoke in a cold voice:
"The location of this place moves every three months. You can try to tell others about this place, but if more than eight people know about this place at the same time, this place will be forever closed to you and those who have come into contact with you."
If this rule is true, it can only mean that the ring wizard who created this place not only has outstanding alchemical skills, but is also an absolute master in other aspects.
"no problem."
"That's fine with me."
Xiade and Luvia said that although neither of them knew anything about stone carving, they could at least give it a try.
At this time, the soul of the old stonemason Humphrey had already placed his hand on the big stone in front of him. As the stone chips fell off, the marks left by the knife appeared clearly on the roughly rectangular stone.
“Do you have your own method?”
Luvia asked Shade:
"According to the noble core spirit rune, my thaumaturgy is created unexpectedly, which can give me extra inspiration when I am creating art or making alchemical items. If you need, I can try to trigger inspiration multiple times and share the inspiration with you."
"Before that, I have to answer a question first."
Shade took out the mithril cube, and this time, the third story of Randall Valley City finally appeared in front of him:
The Masons' Chamber
One of the founders of the Stonemason Association, in order to pass on his craft and strength, built his own secret room inside the association before leaving. Once a month, if a lucky person can encounter those moving statues without being discovered by them, they can enter the secret room and accept the test of the stonemason. It is rumored that the secret room is located on the third floor of the association. If you carve the best statues carefully and pass the test successfully, you can not only gain strength, but also unexpected wealth.
"Look, a brand new story. However, the clues pointed out by this story seem to be used to find this secret room, rather than to help us pass the test."
Shade said that Luvia did not feel any regret:
"This is a test after all. It would be wrong to cheat. So, Xia De, I'll start first. If you need help, remember to tell me."
"OK."
He nodded, and rubbed his fingers over the fine characters on the Mithril Cube:
"Founder of the Masons Guild..."
I looked up and asked the stone statue beside the charcoal stove:
"Is it Mr. Fleming who built this secret room?"
"Yes and no."
The statue replied coldly.
At the moment when Xia De was talking to the statue, the old stonemason's stone carving was almost completed. It was the same statue he was carving when he met him just now, and the same statue that crushed him to death.
As for Luvia, after deep thought, she also placed her hands on the stone in front of her. As the stone chips peeled off, the statue was quickly taking shape. She seemed to be carving a female figure.
After careful consideration, Xia De placed his hand directly on the stone and realized that he could really carve the stone according to his heart. It was like controlling those Vientiane cards. Thoughts became the sharpest chisel, and he could leave marks on the stone at will.
What are you going to carve? If you just make a replica of a girl you know, that won't have the artistic quality of a stone statue.
she said softly.
"I know. Fortunately, I still have some memories in my head. Help me. I need to dig out my past memories and control the position and strength of each knife. I need your help."
I will always help you.
Shad closed his eyes and chuckled as he felt "her" holding his hand.