"What kind of dream was that..."
It was rare for Shade to have such a clear dream after waking up. When a ring warlock encountered such a thing, he would start to wonder if it was a special case of "precognitive dream". The last time such a thing happened was when he first arrived in the Randall River Valley, and dreamed of riding a cat to fly to the sun.
"So, did I foresee that I would meet the blood-sucking god again and encounter the Night Manor again, or did I foresee that Mia would turn into a golden-haired, glowing lion?"
Xia De muttered in a low voice, holding the cat's waist with both hands and picked it up. Little Mia struggled symbolically for a few times, then docilely stopped moving. Xia De realized that the scene at the end of the dream where he was slapped on the chest by Mia's paw was most likely caused by the cat seeing that he had a strange expression in his sleep, so it jumped on his chest.
This also explains why Mia rolled off Shad's chest when he woke up.
"I'm so sorry to have to take you out on an adventure tonight... I'm so sorry."
He spoke softly to Miss Gold's cat, but the orange and white kitten just meowed a few times meekly, as if trying to comfort Shade.
Outsiders feel that this world treats them very kindly.
Because he got up half an hour earlier than usual, Xia De had time to wash up slowly and go over the plan for tonight in his mind. He waited until half past six before going downstairs to get the newspaper and goat milk from the door and started today's breakfast.
He had planned to go to the Randall Valley early to discuss the plan with the witches and then fulfill his promise to Shiris, but he packed his things too hastily last night, so he had to confirm again the relics he was going to bring.
Of the two angel-level relics, Aikenola-The Arrow of the Chosen One is related to the qualifications of the Chosen One, and if it is lost or damaged, it will be a big problem, so Shade will not carry it. As for the Night Watch, as the key to fighting against demons, of course it must be taken to the Randall Valley together.
There were two sage-level relics in his hand. The God's Gift Box was not very helpful for this operation, and it was not easy to carry, so he left it at home. Huang Yue's Orb, the Source of Chaos, was carried with him.
All of Shad's Secret Keeper-level relics are small in size and useful, so he carries the twenty-sided dice of fate, the Higgs dragon head stone, the perfume bottle of desire, the profane cross, the demon hunting seal, and the newly acquired soul-sucking demon blade.
I'll leave the Clerical-level Kindness Spear at home for now, and take the Poet-level Time Key and two Eternal Youth Leaves with me. If things go well, maybe there will be three leaves tomorrow night.
The remaining special coins in his hand, the Emperor's banquet copper coins, were temporarily handed over to Luvia for safekeeping. And the rings of transformation, fish training, blood sucking species, and plague doctor, which Shade called "Mia's Four Rings", were also carried on his body because each of them had a unique function.
Of course, according to the basic education of St. Byrons Comprehensive College, carrying so many relics at one time is actually a very dangerous behavior, but since it is the final decisive battle of the Earth's Chosen One incident, Shade can't care too much.
There were must-have intangible cultural relics, as well as spellcasting materials and alchemical items that needed to be packed up. By the time they were done with all that, the sound of bells could be heard from downstairs.
"Who would visit me now... It can't be such a coincidence, is there a client coming today?"
But before Shad could open the door, the key opened it, and then Dorothy came up worriedly:
"Shad, I just received a letter from Dr. Schneider. He said that the group meetings this week and next week have been cancelled. He has some difficult matters to deal with out of town, and he will try to come back within two weeks... Is this matter related to your affairs in Randall Valley?"
She frowned and saw the pile of things spread out on the coffee table in the living room. Without waiting for Xia De's reply, she added:
"I just asked Leicia, and she said that Carina Cavendish is no longer in the city. She claims to have a winter cold and is resting in bed. She even gave her time to visit. This is very unusual. Since you are still here today, and the doctor will definitely not be here tomorrow afternoon, is something big going to happen in Randall Valley tonight? Don't tell me that you packed these things for an outing."
The cat stood on the dining table that Shad had wiped, staring at Shad on the left, and then at the blonde girl who had just entered the living room on the right. The writer wrote detective novels, and her reasoning ability was better than that of the second-rate detective Shad Hamilton.
Shade put down the potion bottle in his hand:
"Well... I'm not going to lie to you, yes. I've been planning this for nearly two months, and it's finally coming to an end tonight."
Dorothy pursed her lips nervously:
"Is it related to the recent frequent earthquakes in the Old Continent, and the academy sent a letter to remind ring sorcerers in various places to pay attention to local earth elemental giants and report abnormal conditions on the earth?"
"Yes."
Xia De nodded:
"The Randall River Valley is the center of the material world recognized by mystics. What happens there will directly affect the entire world. Including this morning... Although I haven't had time to go out yet, it's almost eight o'clock now. Isn't the speed of dawn a little too slow today?"
He walked to the dining table and held the table with one hand beside Mia:
"I'm going to Randall Valley tonight to do something very dangerous. But don't worry, I will solve those troublesome things."
The blonde girl came over, opened her arms and hugged Shade, and didn't let go for a long time:
"I know you have your own goals and ideas, so I won't persuade you not to do it. But be careful and don't forget to protect Luvia. I look forward to seeing us together in Dr. Schneider's clinic on a Saturday."
She pulled out three rolled-up rolls of parchment:
"This is a copy of Cinderella, or Gray's Glass Slipper. Not any modern, current version, but the one you told me about."
"Didn't I get one last Saturday?"
Xia De asked, reaching out to take it:
"Lecia was worried, so she asked me to copy a few more copies for you to take with you. We all know that this is very important to you."
Dorothy looked at Shad with considerable concern:
"Promise me you will come back safely."
"Yes, I will come back safely. This is my promise."
Shade stretched out his hand to her and made a pinky promise. The blonde girl pushed his hand away with a forced smile.
"I don't want such childish behavior, I just want you."
He closed his eyes and when he opened them again, it was Resia who was looking at Shade:
"Dorothy has already told you what she should have said. Remember to come back soon. ... Do you want us to help look after your cat?"
"I'm going to take it with me this time. Little Mia will be useful."
Xia De stroked the cat standing on the dining table:
"If all goes well, I shall be back on Saturday morning. If you are really worried, you can let Dorothy sleep here and wait for me."
"Well, we'll wait for you at home. And..."
Leicia looked up at Shade:
"Be sure to come back safely."
Xia De made a reassuring gesture to her:
"In Mia's name, I will...Will you come with me to Dr. Schneider's? I want to put a Rhodes card with him temporarily."
The two went to Dr. Schneider's clinic together. After temporarily handing over the Founding Darkness to the doctor, Shad warned the doctor that the Randall Valley area would probably be "very lively" tonight.
When he and Dorothy returned to number 6 St. Teresa's Place, they commemorated their brief farewell with two kisses.
The reason there are two of them is because both the blonde and the princess cherish this farewell very much.
After arriving at the Randall River Valley, the Forgotten Church was silent and empty. Shade carried Mia to the main hall and retrieved the Watson family photo next to Mr. Lathers' stone sculpture. He flicked the edge of the photo and then clipped it into his notebook:
“The first line of insurance.”
He turned to look at the holy emblem hanging on the wall, then patted the shoulder of the stone statue sitting there. Without looking back, Shad walked along the carpeted path between the benches in the main hall towards the church door.
This Friday was the last day before the first Randall flower of this spring bloomed, but when Shade walked out of the church, he found that the sky was filled with fine snowflakes. It had obviously been snowing for a while, and the church's courtyard, which had been cleared out, was now covered with snow, and the color of the snowflakes was gray:
"What is this?"
Shade bent down and touched the snow with his hands, but he could not detect any trace of the elements.
And "she" gently explained:
The ancient god, Mother Earth, has the power of "foundation". The changes in the earth will have a comprehensive impact on the rest of the world. Fortunately, the changes have not yet reached the final stage, so the last snow before spring will show this color.
It was already nine in the morning, but the sky was the same dull grey as the snow. Besides the thick fog that smelled of rotten eggs and rotten cabbage leaves that enveloped the city, something was wrong with the sky itself.
As for the sun, when Shad and Mia looked up, they could only see the shadow of the sun with a dark outline behind the thick fog and dark clouds. Even when Shad opened his arms and shouted "Praise the Sun", he could not activate the magical effect of gaining strength under the sun.
Standing on the steps outside the church and looking out over the city, one could see two or three thick black smoke columns floating in the distance. At the same time, the sound of gongs and whistles could be heard from all directions. When I left last night, the city was just beginning to feel depressed, but when I looked at it again this morning, it was clearly in the late stage of an incurable disease.