“There is a very faint stench of demon on him. It seems that besides the night of the Princess's attack when we witnessed Sir Prisha conversing with a demon, he was indeed on the top floor of the concert hall and met Bunny. However, I am certain that the knight did not accept the demon's power; at most, he merely had contact with one. If even a demon of proliferating desire could not tempt him to fall, what are you worried about? He is a man of firm conviction.”
The doctor asked with a smile, then prepared to bid farewell and leave. Shade opened the door to see the doctor out, but before stepping down the stairs, the doctor added
“Of course, other possibilities exist.”
“What possibilities?”
“That even a demon could not satisfy his thirst for knowledge, which is why he chose to ignore the demon's offer. He wants more; he craves more.”
Shade nodded slowly, lost in thought.
Nothing else happened this Monday. In the evening, Princess Margaret's servant delivered an invitation to Shade, formally inviting him to a dinner party at Canary Manor tomorrow night.
The news had already been published in the newspapers. Provided there were no blizzards, the Carsonrick delegation would depart Tobeisk by steam train at ten o'clock Wednesday morning, then transfer to a steam airship to return first to Huntington City within the United Kingdom of Carsonrick, and subsequently take a train back to the royal capital, Windale.
Thus, Margaret Anjou's trip to Tobeisk was finally coming to an end.
Shade invited Luvia to be his companion; the purple-eyed girl planned to come to Shade's house in the afternoon. Therefore, on Tuesday morning, Shade intended to pack his luggage at home.
Luvia had confirmed that the location of the Chosen One's ceremony was not Tobeisk, but most likely the Pantanal region. Since the exact timing of the ceremony was unknown, Shade had to be ready to depart at any moment after Sir Prisha left with the delegation. If he waited until then to pack, it would certainly be too late.
But changes always happen faster than plans. At eight in the morning, Tifa appeared downstairs at Shade's house, and subsequently led Shade—who was holding his cat—to the manor outside the city.
When he met Miss Galina in the third-floor study, Miss Sylvia was smiling and talking to her. On the coffee table lay the book *Secrets of Eternal Youth*; Miss Galina had been studying it recently, for even a witch worries about the aging of her beauty.
“Good morning, Shade.”
The young witch greeted him first, and Miss Galina also smiled and motioned for Shade to sit down and talk
“I saw the note you left me on Sunday. Is there something you wish to ask me? Oh, and I won't be attending the banquet tonight. I hope you have a wonderful time.”
“Is there something else tonight? Has another Secret Keeper appeared?”
Shade asked in surprise.
“Of course not. It is because I am sick.”
The red-haired Duchess motioned for Shade to touch her forehead. After Shade actually reached out and touched her forehead, Miss Galina revealed a satisfied smile
“I caught a cold during the snowfall a few days ago, so I must remain in bed. I likely won't recover until the end of the year.”
Shade withdrew his hand and looked at her suspiciously. Setting aside the possibility of an eleventh-tier witch's physique catching a cold, even if she truly had one, a very common magic potion could cure it—a potion Shade could brew himself. Even if a potion couldn't cure it, he had recently acquired the [Plague Doctor's Ring], currently worn on Mia's tail.
“I will not see guests while I am ill. Daily affairs will be handled by my lady-in-waiting, Tifa.”
Miss Galina took the hand of the black-haired maid
“Servette, I leave everything to you.”
Normally, she would not address her maid this way.
“Yes, Miss,” Tifa said with a smile.
“So, what is actually going on?”
Shade then asked Miss Sylvia, who chuckled
“Miss Galina intends to accompany me to Carsonrick with the delegation. But given her status, it would look strange if she didn't make a public appearance for a long time, so she plans to pretend to be bedridden for a while. Shade, you can find time to occasionally visit Miss Galina here; it will make it seem more authentic.”
“That is a good idea.”
Miss Galina nodded, her eyes glancing at Tifa, somewhat worried that something might happen if the two met alone while she was away.
“To the Kingdom of Carsonrick?”
Shade raised an eyebrow.
“The Speaker has confirmed that the ceremony is not in Tobeisk, but further south. However, the Chosen One is indeed still in Tobeisk City. Therefore, the delegation about to depart seems exceptionally suspicious.”
The Duchess said
“There are two Ring Casters in the delegation. Besides Legins Prisha, there is a bodyguard hired by an accompanying noble, who is only a Second-Ring.”
She huffed
“Of course, they aren't the only Ring Casters leaving the city to spend winter in the south recently. While it's uncertain if the Chosen One is one of those two, being with Sylvia allows her to use the power of space to rush to the scene of an incident faster if new developments arise. The Speaker has also agreed to our plan; currently, Sivi is rushing toward Huntington City. If luck is on our side, three Great Witches will be involved in this event.”
“How has the Council arranged to deal with the Chosen One this time? The fragments of the poem already indicated that he is male.”
Shade asked again.
“Attempting to resist fate only leads to being toyed with by fate. The appearance of the Chosen One is an inevitability of the Sixth Epoch. Moreover, from Sister Daphne of the [Spiritual Cult], we know that candidates for the Chosen One still exist. Even if we kill one male, we aren't certain of the gender of the second-in-line, nor which faction they belong to. Therefore, the Council requires us to only observe for now and not take action.”
Miss Galina said to Shade with a smile
“But I know that regardless of where the ceremony is eventually held, you will somehow mysteriously appear, just like the previous three times, right?”
Miss Sylvia raised an eyebrow, a smile appeared on Tifa's face, and Shade sat relaxed on the sofa
“Then, Miss Galina, I shall see you in Huntington City. The climate there is much better than in Tobeisk... Speaking of which, if I have the chance, I'd really like to try and see what it feels like to ride a steam airship.”
Having finished the topic of the Chosen One, and while both witches were present today, Shade asked them a question
“I did indeed have something to ask when I came here this weekend. Ladies, do you know of a Miss Chloe who lived around the year 903 of the Fifth Epoch? She was also a witch and once visited a snowy mountain.”
“Is this another witch you encountered in the times of the past?”
Miss Galina smiled, recalled for a moment, and shook her head
“Records from the early Fifth Epoch are too severely lost. Moreover, with only a name and no surname, it is very difficult for us to know who you are talking about.”
“Not very tall, long silver-white hair, crimson eyes, very beautiful...”
Seeing the two witches' expressions turn displeased, Tifa immediately coughed to give Shade a hint. Shade hurriedly added
“Of course, not as beautiful as you two. Oh, Miss Chloe was a formal member of the Council.”
The fact that she could leave a Witch's Echo made this a certainty.
“A member of the Council?”
Miss Galina glanced at Miss Sylvia, and both fell into thought
“No more biographical data?”
“None,” Shade shook his head slightly.
“At least I cannot think of any corresponding figure,” the Duchess said regretfully. Shade then looked at Miss Sylvia, who thought for a long while before shaking her head slightly
“I don't remember either... How about I take you to find out for yourself?”
“What?”
Shade was puzzled. Miss Galina stood up
“The Council possesses records of past Great Witches; of course, they are incomplete. While theoretically only the Speaker is qualified to browse those records, the current Speaker has granted us access; we can query the less important contents. It is currently ten o'clock Tuesday morning, everyone is busy, and the Council is likely empty... I'll go in first to make sure no one is there, then I'll come out and call you.”
The song of a witch is the first key to opening the Council. Amidst that most gentle singing, one enters a long, ancient corridor. After stepping through the white mist gate at the end, the true key to opening the Council is a witch's jewelry.
Among the four witches Shade had encountered so far, Miss Galina possessed the [Golden Necklace of the Ancient Witch] from the thirteen Sage-level relics; Miss Sivi Aurora's was the [Golden Ring of the Ancient Witch · Right 1]; Grandma Zina Cassandra's was the [Golden Button of the Ancient Witch]; and Miss Emma Sylvia, whom he met this time, possessed the [Golden Ring of the Ancient Witch · Left 2].
That ring was very similar to Miss Aurora's, only the surface patterns and the runes around the band were different.
After using the witch's jewelry to open the Council gates, there was indeed no one inside. An empty stone round table sat in the circular clearing at the bottom, surrounded by worn steps leading upward toward heights shrouded in terrifying darkness.
A white light source from an unknown origin only illuminated the round table and a small surrounding area.
Behind every white stone backed chair at the round table was a symbolic sign representing a witch's seat. Miss Galina was "Balance," Miss Aurora was "Light," Grandma Cassandra was "Darkness," and Miss Sylvia was "Space."
If one didn't count the pitch-black stairs hidden in the darkness, the Council area was almost entirely visible, with no place to store records.
“Do we have to go up the surrounding stairs?”
But before Shade could voice his question, Miss Galina took her necklace, went behind the chair corresponding to the [Moon] seat, and held up her jewelry toward the stairs behind the chair.
As the golden necklace emitted a soft glow, the originally hard stone steps rippled like a phantom, quickly revealing a square opening that allowed further passage inward.
[Hidden wall ahead.]
“She” whispered a reminder in Shade's ear with a smile. This scene was indeed very similar to Shade opening the hidden space in his own basement.
“Emma, Shade, follow me.”
Miss Galina beckoned and entered first. The square opening was about one and a half times Shade's height, and after the two witches entered, the internal passage was also quite spacious.