Luvia did not leave Shade's house that morning. The two spent the entire morning discussing the fourth Chosen, and after having lunch together, she and Shade—who was holding his cat—took a four-wheeled hansom cab to Dr. Schneider's clinic for their meeting.
A light snowfall occurred again at noon, but it stopped by the time they reached Röntgen Avenue.
Because Tobesk had remained superficially calm this week, the five members of the group had no fresh news to share. Aside from emphasizing the importance of next month's exam week once again, the doctor reminded everyone to be mindful of theft
"I heard from the black market that a humanoid relic skilled in theft has recently appeared in the city."
The doctor shared his information
"This relic targets everyone, but it is more inclined to steal from Ring Warlocks; some local Ring Warlocks have already had important items stolen. Be careful with your security, but do not use Ring Warlock methods, otherwise the opponent will become very powerful. As long as our security measures are tight enough, even if it finds us, it will give up on the theft."
Shade recalled what he had seen at Professor Manning's place and spoke up
"An ordinary old professor I know was robbed. The thief used a wire to hook the latch on the inside of the window, opened a first-floor window to enter the room, and stole a vase."
"I have heard similar reports," Father Augustus said while cleaning his pipe.
"Old Birmingham, who frequently visits the church, had the only photo of his deceased wife and himself stolen. The theft occurred during the day; a large wooden crate was brought to the door and disguised as delivered goods. The thief hid inside the crate, sawed through the door from the side flush against the house, entered the room to steal, and then returned to the crate."
He shook his head. "What normal person could think of such a method of theft?"
"I've also heard other diviners in the Association chatting about this relic," Luvia shared her own anecdote.
"Miss Ryan, who lives in the East District of Tobesk about two blocks from here, had a family heirloom pearl necklace stolen. But this time, the thief neither broke the door nor opened a window. Taking advantage of Miss Ryan's absence, it used a sledgehammer to brute-force a hole through the back wall of the house facing the trash alley, then crawled in through a hole the size of a dog door."
"Is that considered a 'normal person's method'?" Shade asked skeptically. "Can a normal person smash through a building's wall with a sledgehammer?"
"They can; after all, that house wasn't a very sturdy building," Luvia replied.
Dorothy became interested. "Even though the opponent is a relic, it's still a thief. I really hope I can record the process of it being caught; that way, my book can have more interesting plots."
As she spoke, she glanced at Shade. Of course, Dorothy certainly wouldn't encourage Shade to go looking for trouble with a humanoid relic.
"What's the benefit of catching it?" Shade asked curiously.
This time, neither Luvia nor Dr. Schneider could answer, but Father Augustus, having heard information at the church, knew more
"This humanoid relic possesses many wonderful treasures. Yes, if you can catch it, you can obtain one of its collectibles."
Seeing the interested expressions on the other four faces, Father Augustus hurriedly added
"Don't think it's simple. To date, no one has ever seen the thief's true appearance. It grows stronger as its opponent grows stronger. While it usually employs ordinary human methods to steal, those methods are extremely exquisite. Furthermore, Church records show that this thief does not exist at time points outside of the 'act of theft'; it only exists within the scene where the theft occurs. Therefore, on the surface, catching it doesn't seem difficult; but in reality, there is reason to believe that the probability of catching it is roughly equivalent to using a fishing net to find a needle in the ocean."
Aside from the curiosity regarding the humanoid relic thief in the city, the five group members spent the afternoon contacting the academy to make final preparations for next month's year-end exams.
Father Augustus was still short on practical credits and wanted to take on an academy commission with a high point value. The doctor wanted to try again to pass the elective course "Ether Mechanics," which he had failed during the summer retakes; although he didn't have much confidence, he wanted to try his luck.
As for Dorothy and Luvia, the writer lady had advanced to the Fifth Ring with Shade's help, so she had to take the grade promotion exam at the end of the year; she still had a few basic course papers to submit. Although Luvia was a joint student of the Diviners' Association and St. Byron's, after advancing to the Fourth Ring during the Battle of Midhillburg in the autumn, she was considering taking the fourth-year advancement exam in the winter.
She wasn't in a hurry herself; even if she didn't pass this year, she could take it again next year.
Shade was the one with the most trouble of all. He had formally requested St. Byron's to allow him, as a second-year student, to take the skip-grade exam at the end of this year to jump directly into the fourth year.
The requirement for the skip-grade exam was a sufficient Ring Warlock level, which Shade had no problem with. The exam content only covered the written portion of the compulsory courses; the unfinished practical courses and papers from the second and third years could be completed within the following year.
Shade had already borrowed enough books from the library for "memorization." As long as he completed Miss Danest's commission, he could use a backdoor to obtain a massive amount of practical credits at once. Thus, before 1853 ended, Shade had a vast number of books to memorize. Fortunately, with "her" help, Shade did not believe he would fail his exams.
After the five of them requested the occult lists from the library, the academy also sent a letter from the Student Management Office to the group.
The letter was opened by the group leader, Dr. Schneider. He glanced at the contents and sighed.
"Well, the Tobesk division of this year's off-campus practical activities has been officially canceled. The students who were supposed to come here have been sent to other divisions."
The off-campus practicals for official St. Byron's students were originally supposed to take place in the summer. However, because of the Descent event that occurred in Tobesk during the summer, this year's activities were postponed to winter.
Dr. Schneider had complained about this, and he hadn't expected them to be canceled outright once winter arrived.
"Why cancel our division? Hasn't Tobesk been very safe for the past few months?" Father Augustus asked in confusion.
Dr. Schneider handed the letter to the priest and explained to the others
"The school believes that the visit of Princess Margaret of Anjou will cause some things to happen in the city. Therefore, for safety reasons, this year's off-campus practical activities are officially canceled."
"What does the Princess's visit have to do with Ring Warlocks?" Dorothy asked pointedly, but the doctor shook his head.
"The academy didn't specify. However, the academy has issued an additional high-value academy bounty. Augustus, please read it to everyone."
The old priest, who was reading the letter, coughed and read clearly
"Academy Bounty Order.
According to the divination results of the Astronomical Academy, high-danger relics related to 'trials,' 'tests,' and 'riddles' will frequently appear in the Delarion-Tobesk city and surrounding areas in the near future. A bounty is now offered to all correspondence Ring Warlocks in the region: upon encountering such a relic, promptly report the specific information to the academy. Depending on the detail and value of the information, the academy will grant between 1 to 20 practical credits."
"Just submitting information can give that many credits?" Dorothy exclaimed softly.
Father Augustus continued reading
"If one makes direct contact with such a relic and completes the test given by said relic without requesting any reward, they will receive a teardrop-shaped blue crystal as a reward. This crystal is a physical substance of unknown composition, named the Poet-grade relic [Sage's Brilliance]. Submitting a Sage's Brilliance to the academy will grant a one-time reward of..."
Father Augustus's mouth hung open in surprise
"...20 practical credits, 2,000 pounds in cash, the learning information and ritual materials for any occult art on the library list, and any one Sage-grade relic contained by the academy."
The priest gasped. Shade glanced at Luvia; Luvia's eyes flickered, but her expression remained unchanged. Dr. Schneider rubbed his chin in thought, and Dorothy, holding Shade's cat, was equally shocked
"Containing one Poet-grade relic (Level 5), and the academy rewards one Sage-grade relic (Level 2)?"
"Yes," Father Augustus nodded, reading the final few sentences of the bounty order
"Note 1: This task is extremely dangerous. Students below the 4th Ring (inclusive) are not advised to attempt to obtain the [Sage's Brilliance].
Note 2: During the bounty period, the academy library will provide free access to containment information for certain humanoid relics. Please consult the academy library for details.
Note 3: Multiple Ring Warlock organizations, including the Orthodox Church, will be involved in this event. Medium-intensity urban Ring Warlock battles are expected to occur. Local correspondence Ring Warlocks are advised to protect their privacy and safety. If needed, please contact the St. Byron's Student Management Office at any time."
After he finished reading, the others remained silent for a long time. Even though Shade and Luvia had known about the [Sage's Brilliance] half a week ago, they were still stunned by St. Byron's "generosity."
"The last time the academy gave such a lavish bounty reward..." Dr. Schneider said softly, "was when the academy suspected the Tobesk region had fallen into an eternal time loop, but it was later proven that this was not the case and time was flowing normally."
Luvia quickly exchanged a glance with Father Augustus, and the priest shook his head slightly while cleaning his pipe.
"It seems something truly major is happening in the Tobesk region." Dr. Schneider's expression suddenly became serious; he was the most senior Ring Warlock in the group.
"Are there any other situations where the academy would offer such a generous reward?" Shade asked.
The doctor replied again
"Yes. There is a certain integer that is itself a relic. This integer is located between 13 and 14. If one finds this number, the academy will reward them with a Sage-grade relic and a lifelong tenured professorship after graduation. Once this number is announced, it will directly lead to the collapse of the mathematical system."
This sounded a bit like solving the Goldbach Conjecture in the hometown of an outsider. The doctor's analogy allowed Shade to fully understand just how intense the academy's desire for the [Sage's Brilliance] truly was.