"You look a little sad."
At ten o'clock in the morning, at Miss Carina's manor in the south of the city, Shade sat on the sofa with his back to the window, holding a teacup. The red-haired witch tilted her head and suddenly said.
"Nothing, just thinking about some friends."
Shad shook his head.
"So, what are you doing here with this box?"
The Duchess raised her eyebrows. On the coffee table between the two of them was God's gift box. She had seen Shade use this box during the Dark Realm Advent incident, so she was not surprised to see it appear again.
"The box has a feature where children can take out a gift from it every week. I've been trying for more than two months, but it was only last week, with my two female friends watching, that I was able to take out a relic. I remember it was a skeleton key."
Xia De said with a smile, then bent down and pulled out the orange cat that was curled up inside. Mia looked very dissatisfied and meowed at Xia De.
"Are you a child?"
Miss Carina asked in surprise:
"Can a man like you who has slept with a girl be considered a child?"
This question made Tifa smile as she led the maids to bring tea and snacks.
"Anyway, that god seems to think I'm the one who counts."
Shade said, and then insisted that Tifa stand next to him before reaching out to the box whose lid had been slid open.
"Shad, you have a really weird superstition."
Although Miss Carina said this, she still remained curious about the next "gift".
So, under the gaze of the crowd, Xia De reached into the box and touched a medium-sized metal object:
"Oh, an ordinary item, it looks like a small box."
Taking out the box with a little disappointment, Shad and Mia both blinked their eyes. The "unsophisticated" man and cat could not recognize at first what this box in their hands was, which looked finely crafted and had a small key inserted in the keyhole.
It looks like a makeup box, but the weight is a little off. Although it feels like metal, the surface and part of the box are made of enamel, which looks very delicate. It must be a handmade product.
"What's this?"
Xia De placed it on the coffee table.
"I really miss it. When I was 12 or 13 years old, I loved collecting this kind of things."
The red-haired witch nodded to Tifa standing next to Shade, and the maid hesitated for a moment, holding up her skirt with both hands, revealing her black buckled leather shoes and part of her white stockings under her skirt. She squatted carefully, and while Shade and Miss Carina's eyes were attracted to something, she turned the key of the box on the table three times.
After letting go, gently open the lid, the sound of gears turning will sound regularly, and then with the appearance of clear music, a white swan made of metal and a ballet girl will pop out of the box together, spinning and dancing to the music.
The music was very pleasant to the ears, and even outsiders knew that it was a famous folk song in northern Delarion.
"Music box, looks nice."
Miss Carina said, Tifa stood up, but Shade still looked at her:
"Then give it to Tifa. It's useless for me to keep it."
The black-haired girl did not refuse, but instead lifted the hem of her skirt and saluted with a smile:
"Thank you for your generosity then."
Miss Carina raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
The task attached to this gift is still not difficult. Shad needs to take a bath at least twice this week. Perhaps the innocent creator thinks that this is a good habit that children must develop from an early age.
Of course, Shad didn't go to Midhill Castle to hang out today, but to visit Miss Carina, and not just to bring the box to pick up the gift.
At the same time, he also brought the sword he had taken from Midhill Castle last night, wrapped in a bed sheet. After removing the sheets layer by layer, the long sword with bright yellow runes appeared in the study of the manor.
"Ms. Carina, I would like you to help me identify what this is?"
"Oh, this sword looks really nice."
Tifa held up the sword, then walked around the coffee table and handed it to her master. Miss Carina flicked the sword lightly, then stood up and skillfully used the long sword to make a sword flower. The royal family members have all been trained in cold weapons and horseback archery. The noble ladies of the upper class are not weak and useless. As a duchess with a fiefdom, Carina Cavendish even has a special martial arts field and horseback archery field in her own castle:
"Relic-level longswords are rare. Where did you get this from? And you actually brought this thing wrapped in a bed sheet?"
"I don't have a scabbard. As for its origin, please see this."
Xia De lifted the suitcase beside him onto the coffee table, unlocked it with a click, and opened the box. He then neatly rotated it 180 degrees, allowing Miss Carina to see the black stone in the bottle.
"The heart of the Fire Demon was severely damaged. Since he died not long ago, it still has some temperature."
"Flame Demon..."
The witch opened her mouth slightly, staring at the black stone in the bottle that was emitting an imperceptible temperature. She hesitated for a long time before looking at Shade:
"Shad, if I understand correctly, what you want to say is that you killed a fire demon?"
"No, no, no."
Xia De shook his head hurriedly:
"My friend did it, and I just got the spoils."
Because he had to keep Dr. Schneider's secret, Shade didn't explain it too clearly. He just explained the location of the cave in the mountain, the image of the past in the long sword, and the traces he saw on the other side of the stone platform that were suspected to be left by the Great Witch of the Fifth Epoch:
"I suspect that there are relics left by the witch at the other end of the broken bridge. And since that location is so secretive, maybe the cave in the mountain belly corresponding to the narrow gap between life and death is the mountainside passage sealed by the witch emperors. As for these two items, I hope you can help me identify the long sword and find a buyer willing to buy the Flame Demon's heart."
"I'm still curious as to who killed a Balrog. Even if it was sealed away for hundreds of years as you said, it's not something a human ring sorcerer can easily fight against."
Miss Carina muttered, but seeing that Shade was unwilling to speak, she did not ask any more questions. Shade lifted the hair by her ear and his eyes lingered on the purple gemstone hair ornament on her head.
"Today is Monday, and the council will meet at noon. The great witches of the council will all be present to confirm the situation at Midhill Castle. I will ask the buyer of the heart of the flaming demon for you. As for the sword, you can ask Granny Cassandra to identify it yourself. She is the witch who is best at identifying relics among us."
So Shade and Mia stayed in the manor for lunch. The witches' meeting lasted a long time, so after lunch Shade had nothing to do, so Tifa took Shade to learn horse riding in the manor courtyard. As for Mia, she didn't run around, but stayed in the study, taking a nap on the sofa in the sun.
It was not until three o'clock that Shade, who had barely mastered the skills of mounting a horse and shaking the reins, finally waited for Miss Carina to return.
She brought good news that someone wanted to buy the badly damaged heart of the Fire Demon, but it was not a witch from the Council, but Grandma Cassandra who bought it for Sister Defulin of the Spiritual Order.
In order to prevent other witches from doubting the origin of the heart, she had given the heart of the Fire Demon to Granny Cassandra, and Shade could go to Midhill Castle to collect the debt. At the same time, she also reported the matter of the cave in the mountain that Shade had discovered to the Council. The witches attached great importance to it. Even if it was not the seal leading to real death, it was valuable to them because it was a trace left by the witches of the Fifth Epoch after all.
"Also, Xiwei will arrive at Midhill Castle tomorrow."
"So soon?"
"It's already very slow, who knows what she's doing."
Miss Carina snorted, then glanced at Shade:
"But what exactly have you been doing in Midhill Castle recently? I thought you would be involved in the affairs of the Chosen One, but how did you meet the Balrog? Also, this Wednesday, little Resia found the important confidential documents lost by the kingdom. Could it be related to you?"
"If you mean the mechanical data, it does have something to do with me."
"You are really good at tricking girls."
The witch teased, and when she saw that Xia De wanted to refute, she signaled him not to explain:
"Lecia is not an easy person to get along with. She is very ambitious and has more desires and means than her brothers and sisters. I am very curious about how far she can go with your help."
As she spoke, she asked Tifa to bring a glass of red wine and motioned for Shade to drink with her:
"Things at Midhill Castle are coming to an end, and the ceremony led by the Church of Nature is about to begin. Since there are rumors that the Chosen One of Death is the key to resolving the narrow gap between life and death, I think he will definitely appear soon."
The witch clinked glasses with Xia De in the air, raised her fair neck, and drank the wine in one gulp:
"Even if Xiwei arrives in Middleburg, you still have to be careful. I just heard from Grandma Cassandra that people from the Truth Society appeared in that city. It seems that they are also aware of the third chosen one. And with the Truth Society, various ring wizard organizations will appear."
Compared to the time of the Dark Chosen One, this time the organizations outside the Orthodox Church and the Thaumaturgy Academy were much slower in getting the news.
"Is the Blood Spirit School going to appear again?"
Shade asked hesitantly.
"I don't think so. The Blood-weeper Hermons was seriously injured in Tobesk by the 'Sunshine Great Sword' who has decided to stay in this parish. Even if they found the Creation House as rumored, they can't heal themselves so quickly. Also, the blood-sucking clan that originally supported them is said to have a disagreement with the Blood Spirit School because the twelve-ring blood-sucking species was captured in the Millwood Forest."
The witch laughed and said:
"At least this time, you won't encounter the Blood Spirit School in Midhill Castle."
"Blood-sucking species..."
Shade thought of the local vampires in Midhill Castle, as well as the uncle and nephew Bernhardt who appeared there for unknown reasons:
"It seems that the local blood-sucking species in Middlesbrough are also making big moves."
"That's something Xiwei and Grandma Cassandra should worry about. It has nothing to do with me."
The Duchess put the wine glass back on the coffee table, and Shad realized that he had only taken a sip, so he also raised his head and drank the wine. The alcohol content of this red wine was much higher than the cider he had drunk in Middleburg, and he choked and coughed.
Miss Carina laughed and motioned for Tifa to pat Shade on the back:
"Shad, do you have anything else to do this afternoon? Stay for dinner. We can continue to talk about what you saw and heard about the time key you got from Grandma Cassandra. I have already bought most of the things you wanted to buy."
Shad has to go to the doctor in the evening to deal with the matter of exchanging the corpse mirror for the traveler's travel door, so he doesn't plan to go to Midhill Castle today.
So he stayed in the manor and spent this ordinary autumn afternoon with Miss Carina who was holding a teacup, and Tifa who was standing behind the Duchess.
The yellow fallen leaves almost covered the courtyard of the manor. From the red copper square grille window of the study, servants were sweeping diligently with brooms, or talking to each other while holding sundries. Outside the manor was the autumn meadow that had changed color, and in the distance there were woods and rice fields, and then the steam capital of Tobysk, which stood in the northwest of the old continent.
Compared to adventure, Shad prefers this peaceful time.
It was the seventh day of the Dead Leaves Month (October), and late autumn was approaching. From the time he came into this world in midsummer to now, the stranger had gained a lot of things that he was unwilling to give up.