Ms. Benanis could not imagine what the statue looked like based on Shad's description alone.
It just so happened that the toy statue that Shad had turned into was still with him, so he restored it and placed it in the director's office on the third floor of the Wilde Opera House.
Vanessa Benanis didn't take it seriously at first, but when she really saw the statue, she immediately stood up.
She walked around the statue, carefully observing its details, and finally gave her most honest evaluation:
"Now I understand why no one has been able to obtain the stonemason's legacy for a hundred years, but you solved the problem in one night. This is really... an absolute work of art. Although I don't understand why you didn't let the statue have arms, but with your aging, it actually has a kind of harmonious beauty that I can't describe in words."
This blonde witch not only understands opera and singing, but also has a good understanding of literature and sculpture.
Xia De was not proud of this. He just copied the statue from his memory. It was not his work, at least not completely his work:
"I think this should be enough as a birthday present for the princess."
"No one gave me a gift like this when I was seventeen."
The blonde witch half complained as she stretched out her hand to touch the statue's face, but gave up when she remembered she wasn't wearing gloves.
She turned to look at Xia De:
"You often tell me that you have not received any artistic training and have only a superficial understanding of art. It seems that you are still not telling me the truth."
This was said in a joking manner, not really blaming Xia De, but Xia De still explained:
"I didn't lie. I even think that I would never lie unless I had to. Honesty and trustworthiness are probably the few qualities I think I have that will never change."
“This is the first time I’ve heard someone say this about themselves.”
"I can use a small example to prove this point. You have seen my cat, right? It is not actually my cat. It is just a cat that the client asked me to take care of. No matter how much I like Mia and no matter how much I hope Mia can live in my house forever, I must get the consent of her owner, Miss Mia Gold, before I do this. This is keeping my promise."
I heard "her" laughter, and Miss Benannis asked with great interest:
"Since you think you are a relatively honest person, then answer me, who do you think is beautiful, me or Karina?"
"Beauty is a relative concept, just like it is impossible to say whether an apple or a banana is prettier. I cannot give an answer. But in my opinion, you are both beautiful ladies who will never appear in this world again."
The slight lip lines on the blonde witch's raised lips became more obvious:
"You are really good at talking. Then answer me another question honestly. What did you do after you met Jialina yesterday?"
Xia De looked up at her in surprise:
“Is this considered private?”
There was a shy smile in those red-gold eyes:
"How about satisfying my curiosity?"
"No, no, this is not only my own privacy, but also Miss Carina's. I am not the kind of person who would brag about my affairs with ladies... Besides, there is nothing worth bragging about."
The pair of eyes got closer and closer. The distance between Miss Benannis and Shade had reached a very dangerous level.
"Is that so?"
As she spoke, Shad could even smell the scent of perfume, still the "Scent of Witch" perfume, but the scent on Miss Benanis was closer to orange.
She leaned her face closer and kissed Shad lightly on the lips, then her face turned red instead.
Xia De was a little surprised, but he also felt that this feeling was very familiar. This was not the first time he was kissed by a witch.
"This is in thanks for this."
She shook the small statue in her hand, then sat back on the sofa, shifting her gaze and refusing to look into Xia De's eyes.
Xia De leaned back slightly, letting his center of gravity rest on the back of the sofa, and his gaze shifted from the witch's face to the sunlight outside the window.
This is probably the simplest witch you've ever met.
"She" said softly, but Xia De did not give any reply. His thoughts had drifted back to the day when he first came to this world more than half a year ago:
"How did I become this kind of person?"
On Saturday afternoon, Dr. Schneider's clinic held the group meeting of the week as usual. However, only Shade and the doctor attended the meeting this time. Father Augustus was sent to preach in the countryside of Tobesk and would not be back until tomorrow morning. Dorothy was called away by her father, Professor Louisa. The respected professor of literature planned to hold a kingdom-level literary forum salon in Tobesk in the name of the college in the spring, and he needed Dorothy's help.
However, even if there were only two of them, the study session was held as usual. Shade, who was holding a cat, and the middle-aged doctor who had been very idle recently talked to each other about their troubles in life, complaining about the recent rise in vegetable prices and the news that a "clean air tax" would be levied on all citizens. This money was used to deal with the increasingly serious air pollution problem in Tobesk this winter.
"What have you been up to lately in Randall Valley?"
The doctor asked about Xia De's recent itinerary, and Xia De sighed slightly:
"Doctor, I just need your help,"
He dug out the medal from his pocket that he and Luvia had found at the Masons Guild on Thursday:
"Do you think there is any demonic power in this? I was recently in the Randall River Valley and met a very strange person."
"Although I am sensitive to the power of demons, my nose is not omnipotent. Besides, are the negative effects of the Night Watch and the Demon Hunting Seal so strong? How did you encounter a demon again? In the second half of last year, you encountered the Human Pus, the Ancient Fire Demon, and the Demon of Proliferating Desire. This year, it's only the beginning of the second month."
Although he said this, the doctor still held the teacup in one hand and took the medal with the other hand to look at it:
"At least on the surface, nothing seems to be wrong, but you're in luck, I recently learned new potions from the knowledge of those demons. Wait a moment, I'll go get some stuff."
So Shade sat on the sofa and broke up the biscuits to feed the cat. Mia looked down on the biscuits, but because Shade fed her, she ate them happily.
After the cat licked all the biscuit crumbs in Shad's hand clean, so that Shad had to go to the bathroom to wash his hands, the doctor came back with a black iron box.
The box was lined with a soft pad with grooves dug into it. Four identical-sized glass test tubes with oak corks were placed inside. The test tubes contained mercury-colored liquid:
"Magic potions are very sensitive to demonic power and are used to detect whether mortals are contaminated by demonic power. As you know, the corruption of demons is usually very hidden. As for why there are magic potion formulas specifically for detecting demonic power in demonic knowledge, it's because demons are the natural enemies of demons."
"I understand. People say that the biggest enemy is the same industry."
Hearing what Xia De said, the doctor laughed:
"Don't talk nonsense."
He pressed his finger directly on one of the test tubes, and the mercury-colored liquid in the test tube began to boil as if it was about to explode. If the doctor had not just touched it and then removed his hand, Xia De believed that the test tube would definitely not be saved.
"This magical potion is very sensitive. Not only can it be dripped onto objects or the skin, it can also be drunk. It is said to have a cherry flavor, but unfortunately I dare not drink it, otherwise I will get a stomachache."
The doctor said with regret, motioning Xia De to stretch out his hand, then put on gloves, opened the bottle stopper, and used a dropper to suck a drop of liquid onto Xia De's hand. When the liquid touched Xia De's skin, it actually emitted a very weak light.
"In addition to the power of demons, this potion can also detect the possibility of your soul being corrupted by demons. Of course, we can't make a judgment based on the potion alone. We need to verify it from many aspects. This can only be a preliminary judgment. The fact that the potion glows means that your mind is strong, your spirit is full, your willpower is extremely strong, and the possibility of being corrupted by demons is low."
The doctor explained, and when he saw Shade holding the cat's right front paw, he sucked another drop of liquid. Mia was an orange and white cat, and this cat's four paws were completely snow-white. At this time, Shade was holding her with his left hand, and her paws were held by his right hand. She was very uncomfortable and wanted to break free, but unfortunately the cat's strength was not as strong as Shade's.
The liquid also dripped onto the cat's paw, and then emitted a light even brighter than before:
"Look, your cat is even less likely to be corrupted by the devil than you are. Judging from my knowledge, this cat can be called a 'holy cat'."
The doctor quipped.
"So, Mia's soul strength is higher than mine?"
Xia De looked at the cat licking its paw suspiciously. The cat's big amber eyes also looked at Xia De with reproach, feeling very dissatisfied with its fur being wet.
"Of course not. Your cat has a peaceful and simple personality, and has far fewer distractions than you do. Plus, you also said that it has some low-level supernatural abilities, so the possibility of it being corrupted by the devil is extremely low. To sum up, we should keep a calm mindset and not pursue too much material enjoyment. We should learn to look at the world calmly..."
The doctor said casually, sucking out another drop of liquid, this time dripping it onto the medal lying on the coffee table.
The mercury-colored liquid fell, and there was no reaction for the first two seconds. Then the mercury-colored liquid droplets on the metal surface turned slightly black, and the color was no longer so bright.
The doctor was stunned:
"What? It's really a demon?"
"Didn't I say from the beginning that it could be a demon?"
"But how can I believe that your luck is so bad?"
The only thing that made Xia De feel strange was being told by the doctor that he had "bad luck".