Chapter 1195: Chapter 1195: The Grand Witch of Randall Valley
"Although it looks magical, it’s not very useful. [Water Summoning] is a basic sorcery for Circle Sorcerers, and no one would face a shortage of water. Moreover, your sword can pierce the earth and bring forth a clear spring... Maybe the real purpose of this cup is to purify water sources."
Luviya comnted, taking a sip from the Soil Holy Grail and confirming that it was indeed just clean water.
"It is indeed not very useful. But if every ti I use the spell ’Power of the Earth: Healing Aura,’ a cup appears, that would be interesting."
Shard said with a smile.
"But where would you find so much polluted land? That Miss Grande ntioned, didn’t she? Such situations only occur every ten or so years, and there’s also help from the True God Church."
Shard nodded, but he always felt that Randall Valley’s so-called "polluted land" wouldn’t be that simple. Now he and Luviya were here, and the way the man in the dream described the "Crazy Earth" was so vague, coupled with similar situations in Tobesk. To him, encountering land that needed purification seed only a matter of ti.
"Speaking of which, does your Mithril Cube react to the ’Crazy Earth’ story?"
Seeing Shard a little lost in thought, Luviya asked again.
Shard shook his head:
"That’s the strangest part. Miss Grande clearly said this is a situation that occurs locally every ten or so years, which should et the ’story of Randall Valley’ requirent. But unfortunately, the Silver Cube hasn’t reacted... So, what exactly constitutes the story of Randall Valley?"
After having lunch, Luviya bid farewell to Shard and returned to the Prophet’s Society, while Shard wandered around the city again. He arrived at Wilder Opera House at 2:40 PM. By this ti, the afternoon opera had begun seating, and after showing the ticket given by Miss Grande, he went up the steps to the third floor of the opera house.
Although Randall Valley City itself couldn’t compare to Tobesk, this opera house seed larger than Tobesk’s opera house. In Shard’s view, there shouldn’t be any surprises in obtaining goods, and he even thought about returning to Tobesk to visit an abandoned manor outside the city before dinner.
At three o’clock, while watching the opening of the opera from the box, Shard also received the person delivering the goods to him. Miss Grande did not appear; a young woman dressed as a maid delivered a suitcase containing the promised three Echo Flowers.
After the maid left, Shard planned to leave as well, as he had no interest in the opera being perford. He had just walked out of the box with the suitcase when he suddenly felt heat in his chest.
"Hmm?"
With just a montary pause, he realized that the Witch Detector badge was activating. And in the brief two seconds that Shard was stunned, the heat from the badge rapidly increased. Shard understood completely what this ant: a real Grand Witch was very close to him and was gradually approaching.
"There’s a Grand Witch in Randall Valley?"
This shocked him more severely than the undead in the morning.
Granny Cassandra was in Milestone, Miss Galina was still in the County of Saradiel, and regardless of whether Miss Sylvia would follow Margaret here, she certainly wasn’t local now. Miss Aphrola had corresponded with Shard recently, and she had no plans to co to Randall Valley soon. Accordingly, whoever the Grand Witch that appeared here must be a woman Shard wasn’t acquainted with.
Regardless of who it was, in an unprepared state, Shard absolutely couldn’t face an unfamiliar Grand Witch alone. He imdiately turned back to the box with the suitcase:
"There’s no reason the other party should be able to discover ; this is the first ti since coming to this place that the badge has heated up... It should just be a coincidence..."
Turning the suitcase into a toy and putting it away, he sat on the sofa anxiously, feeling the change in the badge’s warmth in his chest.
But very unfortunately, the heat indeed grew stronger, indicating that the unknown Grand Witch was truly getting closer. When Shard heard footsteps outside, he had even placed drops of the Wind Vane Bluegrass Extract on his tongue, prepared to hide at the corner and transform into an angel statue for concealnt.
After all, the opera house’s box had no windows.
Fortunately, the unfamiliar witch’s target wasn’t this room. From the sound of footsteps, she and the person with her entered the adjacent box.
Shard pressed his ear against the door nervously to listen for sounds, eager to confirm that after closing the door, he could leave promptly. A Grand Witch’s companions surely included a witch’s followers, and even if only slightly capable, they would not recognize Shard’s unusualness from looking at him, but real Witch Apprentices like Tifa and Miss Rita Swift might pose a potential risk.
Unfortunately, although the witch entered the next room, there were still footsteps in the hallway.
Shard patiently listened and then heard the faint sound of high heels stepping on a soft carpet pause just beyond the door, followed by a knock:
"Mr. Watson, may I co in?"
It was Miss Grande’s voice.
"She has connections with a witch? That can’t be right; when we shook hands in the morning, she clearly..."
[Didn’t possess a witch’s power.]
Shard didn’t speak at the door but instead stepped back to the sofa and sat down:
"Is that Miss Grande? Please, co in."
He said as he stood up, and the lady who looked to be in her twenties also entered.
Although the voice just heard was that of Miss Grande, the face that entered was not the sowhat plain one seen earlier in the morning, but a refined visage not losing to the won around Shard.
This was evidently her true appearance.
When he saw the lady this morning, she was dressed in a very ordinary winter outfit. Probably because she was now visiting the Opera House, she was wearing sothing slightly more formal. But it wasn’t a formal gown, it resembled so sort of formal uniform, with a round badge on her chest.
The main body of the badge was gold, with an extraordinarily complex pattern on it. It sowhat resembled the rising sun and also the aningless ink patterns found in church religious murals.
Shard did not recognize this.
"Good afternoon, Miss Grande, is it you? This face is really beautiful... May I ask if there’s sothing you need? I thought the commission I accepted was already completed."
He asked hesitantly, confirming once again that the lady before him truly did not possess the power of a Witch.
The Female Sorcerer replied with a smile:
"Indeed, it is completed, and there are no other issues with that piece of land. However, I told my friend about this matter, a High Ring Sorcerer with great influence locally. She is very interested in the problem with that piece of land and the sorcery you used to solve it, Mr. Watson, would you be interested in eting her? The lady is just next door now."
Although the suggestion was bold, it seed quite good on the surface. Shard, calling himself an outsider Circle Sorcerer, would find it very beneficial to et local High Ring Sorcerers through this connection for future matters.
But the issue was, that High Ring Sorcerer must not be a Witch. In the Witch Council, not all Witches would disregard his existence, as Miss Galina has reiterated many tis.
"I am honored to be invited."
Shard said cautiously, not refusing outright, knowing he would handle many things in this city, and from past experience, avoiding Witches was unlikely.
"But, though I originally had no plans for the afternoon, I received a letter from a friend at noon, and now I must go see him."
He tried to keep his expression calm to disguise his inner turmoil from lying:
"Please convey my apologies to the lady, but any other ti this week, I believe I can et her."
Miss Grande still maintained her graceful smile:
"Of course, then please accept this ticket."
She handed Shard a ticket to Wilder Opera House once more:
"Tomorrow afternoon, at this ti again, the lady will et you here."
"Yes, this ti I will not break the appointnt."
Shard assured, then left under Miss Grande’s gaze.
As he walked through the corridor, he didn’t dare to look back. Only when descending the stairs did he feel as though his back was drenched. He was afraid, at any mont, he might hear the door open behind him:
"But... which Witch is she, really?"
(Mia running...)
Thursday night at eight. Witch Council.
As the thirteen Grand Witches successively exited through the Mist Gates behind their chairs, another eting of the Witch Council ca to an end. However, just before the ladies’ perfu aroma could dissipate, the Mist Gate unfolded once more, with Miss Sylvia, Miss Galina, and Miss Aphrola gradually returning.
Miss Aphrola was dressed in a black dress, with an exceedingly slender waist. She stood behind her chair, one hand on the chair’s back, slightly furrowing her brows as if lost in thought.
Miss Galina wore a luxurious sky-blue long gown, a small silver crown on her head, sitting on her stone-backed chair, hands clasped while looking at the round stone table illuminated by unknown light. Tifa stood behind her with a tranquil smile, still wearing that maid’s long dress.
The young Miss Sylvia wore a relatively simple red dress, arms crossed, leaning against the wall at the edge of the central round space of the Council, right thumb and index finger with red nail polish, nervously rubbing back and forth.
No one spoke and instead waited patiently. Fortunately, it was only a few minutes before another Mist Gate opened, the Old Witch Granny Cassandra entered first, followed by her apprentice Miss Rita Swift. The young girl appeared sowhat nervous, respectfully greeted the three Grand Witches, then pulled out a chair for her teacher to sit.
Behind Miss Swift, in the Midshire Fort Cassandra Auction House where Shard was waiting, he also walked in.
"Good evening, Miss Galina, Miss Aphrola, Miss Sylvia."
He greeted the Grand Witches, and the obviously witch-like, and beautiful Witches and apprentices all cast him a smile.
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