"Besides the illegal ones, what about his relatively legitimate businesses?"
Xia De asked again.
"Gray Gloves has sorted out his business connections and has sent the intelligence to me. This man's business is bigger than we thought, and he is richer than his living standard shows. His current net worth is at least this figure."
Her Royal Highness the Princess made a gesture to Xia De, who made an expression of surprise.
"Crowns or sovereigns?"
"Crown."
Xia De was even more shocked:
"His business is so big. Even if we eliminate smuggling and contraband trade, it will be difficult to deal with legitimate business, right?"
This question made Margaret laugh:
"Oh, Shad, my dear knight, you don't think that you can't find out the problem in a serious business?"
She covered her mouth and chuckled, looking at Xia De with a smile in her beautiful eyes:
"Any businessman can find out the problem if they are willing to check. Even if there is really no problem... it is impossible."
Margaret said easily:
"The professor of our Sukses Medical School has returned from an investigation of the so-called silver mine. Because the situation is very complicated, the analysis report will probably be given later this week or next week. By then, as long as we find traces of the devil, and then the school will inform the church of the matter, and then let the official forces of the kingdom investigate Osenfurt's business, he will be finished. But I have thought about it, the compensation money to the Stonemasons Association has not been settled yet, right?"
Xia De raised his eyebrows:
"You want to..."
"Although I had planned to take the money myself, I still felt bad about such a large sum of money. Now that I know the source, isn't it better? Besides, I am the one who led the investigation, so shouldn't I get some benefits for myself? If I am really so 'honest', my father will doubt my ability."
"Um... ... "
Xia De was not in a position to comment on the thoughts of the royal children. He nodded thoughtfully:
"Then if the Kingdom officials want to take action, please do it as soon as possible. Once you start, I will go to Ossenfurt and communicate with the Stonemasons Guild. How is the progress? You don't have much time left to stay in the Randall Valley, right?"
"I need a party."
Margaret said:
"A banquet was held to invite most of the local nobles and celebrities, and then the two sides reconciled in public at the banquet. I am still trying to persuade my father, and he is not unwilling to give in, but he has additional conditions, that is, the Stonemasons Association will send people to repair the part of the mausoleum that was destroyed by the colossus, which has been difficult to repair so far, and there will be no wages. In this way, the royal family expressed their apologies for the delay in payment - this is the only thing my father is willing to admit, and the Stonemasons Association also expressed their apologies for the unfinished project."
"Can the Masons' Guild agree to such a thing?"
Shade asked suspiciously.
“So, this is my thing.”
Margaret sighed.
Because she hadn't seen Miss Sylvia for a long time, Margaret went to see Miss Sylvia after talking to Shade. Shade waited until Margaret left before sitting down in the manor study with the three witches, Miss Lathers and Luvia.
"When Miss Yin Luna Bei Yasi arrives here, I will ask her to help me open the portal. I have been in pretty good shape these days. After calling Jia Lina and her followers over, it shouldn't be a problem to open another portal to Middlesbrough."
Miss Sylvia said confidently, while Miss Aurora asked Xiang Xiade:
"What is the current local situation? Although Benanis reports to the council every week, we still want to hear your opinion."
"It's almost over, but there are many enemies this time. Cultists, Blood Spirit School, demons..."
Miss Sylvia and Miss Aurora looked at each other. After they arrived last night, they heard Miss Benannis talk about the devil, but it was still incredible to hear Shade admit it.
"There is one more thing you need to be careful of. The cultists may be seeking the coming of God. Well, it's not a possibility, they are doing it. Last night, I actually met an unknown ascetic from the Church of the Sun. He is the body that the church has cultivated for the coming of the righteous God."
"oh?"
Miss Aurora thought for a moment:
"Is it a slovenly-looking man in his thirties or forties, carrying an oil lamp and with very short stubble on his head?"
"Yes, the eyes are brown, and probably around eleven rings."
Shad added.
"I know this guy. He's the 'Acheter' of the Church of the Sun. His real name is probably unknown even to the Church of the Sun itself. He is the most persistent ascetic of our time. Since he is here, it means that the Church is truly prepared for God's coming this time."
Miss Aurora said worriedly. Shade nodded, but did not say that he would handle it if anything went wrong.
"Whether the evil god will descend or not, we will see when the time comes. The key now is the chosen one."
"Miss Benannis said that you have already talked to the Chosen One of the Earth? Although Miss Benannis described his incredible situation, is he a man or a woman?"
Miss Sylvia asked curiously.
Xia De asked the blonde witch:
"Ms. Benanis, when you saw Guardian Fleming by Lake Eldron, did you feel he was a man or a woman?"
"Of course it's a male."
The witch insisted, and the other two ladies understood:
"For any individual with bisexual characteristics, witches will judge them as male. In fact, only truly pure women can be exempt from the witch's curse."
So the five ladies all looked at Xia De, and Xia De could only emphasize again:
“I’m really a male.”
“We didn’t say no.”
Miss Aurora thought again about what she had done to the unconscious Shade in the water after the battle at Coldwater Harbor. A blush appeared on her face, but she concealed it well:
"I brought the ritual materials for contacting the Earthshaker Worm. It also requires sacrifices: summer flowers, grass, and fire."
"Leaves, flowers, and fruits in spring, flowers, grass, and fire in summer, and flowers, stones, and souls in autumn."
Shad counted:
"This time, there are nine kinds of sacrifices. If the winter demand is also three, then the feast of the Earth Mother Goddess will require at least twelve kinds of sacrifices. Is this ritual of the chosen one so complicated?"
"Last time we discussed, some sacrifices may not be necessary."
Luvia reminded:
"But all nine known types need to be collected, and the guardian has promised to collect his share. What clues do you have about the winter sacrifice, Shad?"
"The god of winter is the old god Winter Maiden. This god has gone away, but there is still a cult in the far north."
"We know about the Winter Choir and the thirteenth-ringed 'Winter Singer', but the Council has no relationship with them. On the contrary, Saint Byron has a good relationship with them. Do we need to seek knowledge of the God-summoning ritual from them?"
Miss Aurora asked Xia De, and Xia De shook his head:
"No need. I always feel that the ceremony for the chosen one shouldn't be so complicated, at least not as complicated as collecting twelve different sacrifices. If I have time on the weekend, I will go to Huntington City and seek enlightenment from a wise man. Then I will get the result."
"Okay."
The witches nodded. Although they were worried about the future, they all had confidence in Shade.
After finishing the serious business, Miss Aurora and Miss Sylvia, who hadn't seen Shade for a long time, started talking about Shade jokingly:
"I heard from Carina that you and Benannis are getting along well in Randall Valley?"
Miss Aurora, who had long brown wavy hair, asked with a smile. The blonde witch turned her head slightly embarrassedly, and Shade nodded:
"Ms. Benedict is such a nice lady to be around... Well, I know what you're going to ask. We kissed... more than once."
In addition to the protagonist of the topic, the ladies on the sofa beside the tea table all laughed. Miss Lathers glanced at Luvia and saw her winking at her, so she understood and added:
"The production of the bottle of essential oil that caused Shad to have a high fever was also related to Vanessa."
"Yes, I was there."
Luvia said with a smile, Miss Benannis turned her head slightly, not letting anyone see her face, and Miss Aurora sighed and shook her head:
"I thought that before Shad and I separated in Huntington last winter, Sylvia, Carina, and I taught Shad how to kiss. It was crazy enough, but I didn't expect that Benanis was braver than us."
Now even Miss Benannis started laughing. The atmosphere in the room was quite good, except for Shad who felt it was very strange.
"When Carina comes, we can talk about our story with Shade."
Miss Sylvia suggested, and Miss Aurora nodded immediately:
"Yes, how about finding a night and having a pajama party with only the girls, excluding Shade? Prepare books, pillows, and desserts. I haven't participated in such an event for a long time since I became an adult."
"That sounds interesting, though, Shad needs to provide us with a couple of nice bottles of wine."
Luvia said, and they started laughing again, and Shad wasn't sure if these ladies were really making fun of him.
He was still thinking about Mia, whom he hadn't seen for more than 24 hours, and was about to suggest leaving now, when he heard a knock on the door. Miss Lathers asked, and the maid guarding the door said:
"It's Miss Aurora."
"Um?"
"My niece, and also my apprentice."
Miss Aurora explained:
"I nominally came here for family business, but because I was worried about Shade, I asked Hayley to handle other things first, and it looks like she's done. You rarely see her in the parliament, right? This is a good opportunity for her to meet him."
So Miss Lathers asked the maid to open the door, and everyone in the room looked towards the door together.