Chapter 755: Franca

Facing Franca's "question," Lu Mi raised an eyebrow and said:

"I've run into something important I need to tell you."

Franca scrutinized Lu Mi up and down with suspicion, unsure whether this guy was playing a prank or had truly discovered something new.

If it was the latter, wasn't the frequency too high?

This morning he completed preliminary exploration of the "Azure Avenger," obtained the "Despair Witch" potion recipe, the "Sword of Courage" equivalent to a Level-1 sealed artifact, and the peculiar, possibly crucial corpse-oil candle, and gathered some vital information—now he had even more gains in the afternoon?

Franca ultimately chose to believe Lu Mi, given how often he'd proven himself a harbinger of calamity.

She stepped aside, letting him enter the parlor.

"What is it?" Franca asked gravely as she shut the door.

Lu Mi stood by the window, facing away from the outside, his expression solemn:

"Do you remember what the 'Hanged Man' said about Harrison?"

"I remember—he might appear near places closely tied to darkness, death, twilight, decay." Franca, affected by the oppressive atmosphere, did not reply with something like, "I'm not forgetful, I just told you this this morning!"

Lu Mi nodded slightly and said:

"I had some free time, so I wandered through the underground crypts and met the crypt keeper assigned to the 'Samaritan Woman's Spring' zone. He told me someone from outside tried to approach the spring and was stopped—this outsider looked nothing like anyone from the Northern Continent nations..."

Franca initially listened half-dazed, then instinctively shuddered and blurted out:

"Harrison? The East Asian face I saw with Jianna—is that Harrison?"

She instantly recalled her and Jianna's experience exploring the "Clithsmana Night Pillar."

In her urgency, she used "East Asian face" instead of the more complex "not resembling anyone from the Northern Continent nations."

"Very likely," Lu Mi said slowly, nodding.

Franca froze for a moment, then exclaimed:

"Resurrection Island... Resurrection Island!"

Her lake-blue eyes instantly sparkled, brimming with excitement and anticipation.

She asked, seeking affirmation:

"Could Resurrection Island be a nexus where the two worlds meet?"

"Even if not, it must be closely tied to your world," Lu Mi said, refusing to dampen her hopes.

Franca paced back and forth in agitation, then groaned aloud:

"Why didn't I recognize him then?"

"Why didn't I capture him?"

"Now we don't even know where he's gone—we have no lead to find him!"

"The 'Eternal Sun' Church is so inefficient—they haven't given us a single update!"

After Franca finished her lament and vented her negative emotions, Lu Mi spoke calmly:

"Don't blame '007' and the others for being slow—Harrison may already be gone from Triel."

"Yes," Franca mused. "I'll announce this at the Research Society meeting—have all regional members watch for anyone resembling Harrison."

Lu Mi was about to caution and remind her, but Franca was already muttering to herself:

"I'll tell them not to search for the island until they find Harrison and obtain detailed intelligence about it—it's too dangerous."

"Yes, if they spot Harrison, don't approach or act—pretend you didn't see him, and immediately notify Chairman 'Gandalf,' Lady 'Hela,' and us..."

Lu Mi listened carefully, then praised her with a teasing tone:

"I thought you'd be so excited you'd lose your mind."

"But I didn't expect you, usually so careless and brainless, to think so thoroughly at a critical moment."

Franca wasn't provoked; she replied with quiet pride:

"What's this called? This is Lü Duan never losing his composure in a crisis!"

"If you use your brain when things matter, and also use it when relaxing—wouldn't that make your relaxation pointless?"

It actually made some sense... Lu Mi asked curiously:

"Who... is Lü Duan?"

"You don't need to know!" Franca answered firmly.

Lu Mi guessed the reason and didn't press further; he nodded and said:

"Reveal this at the gathering in two days."

Franca hummed in agreement.

Suddenly, all excitement, joy, and anticipation vanished from her face.

Her body trembled faintly.

"What's wrong?" Lu Mi asked, concerned.

Franca pressed her lips together, speaking softly:

"I'm eager for the truth and what the future might hold—but I'm afraid it won't match what I expect."

"I'm afraid... I'm afraid it's an answer I can't face."

After saying this, Franca slumped, her hand bracing against the windowsill as if drained of strength.

Lu Mi did not comfort her; his eyes held the same emotion the "Magician" lady had shown him:

Compassion.

He was afraid too—afraid the resurrection hope he'd pursued so desperately was merely an unreachable illusion.

After a pause, Lu Mi looked at Franca and said:

"Want a drink?"

"Yes," Franca replied with a complex smile. "Drunk, I can forget these troubles."

"Tch. So it's true—brothers comfort each other with alcohol."

…………

Two days later.

Franca kept her promise and found "Black Witch" Clarice at the edge of the Dongluo Forest hunting ground.

This half-god witch no longer wore her black court gown; instead, she wore a darker hunting outfit, a black hat covering her long hair—both dashing and fresh.

Compared to her former melancholy beauty, Clarice now possessed another kind of allure—equally captivating, equally beautiful... Franca admired the "Black Witch" with appreciation, suppressing her instinctive desire, and detailed the intelligence "007" had relayed about the "Mirror People."

Clarice nodded gently, her smile bright as she took a wooden, reddish-brown suitcase from her horse's saddle.

"This is your reward," the "Black Witch" said, handing the case to Franca.

Franca didn't refuse; she thanked her while unlatching the metal clasp and opening the small wooden case.

Inside, crystal-clear ice, untouched by melting, divided the interior into compartments, each frozen with: a bat's head marked with colorful blotches, a gallbladder oozing blood and green fluid, a forked tail covered in smooth, sinister scales, and two vials of dark red blood.

"All the main and most auxiliary materials for 'Pain' are here. If you're not ready for advancement, don't break my ice—it'll cause the carrier to repeatedly contract different diseases until death," the "Black Witch" warned.

"Thank you, Madam," Franca said quickly, counting what auxiliary materials she still lacked.

Only blue eucalyptus was missing—common enough.

Clarice, the "Black Witch," then said:

"You work efficiently and achieve results. Perhaps in another year or two, you'll be ready to push open the door to divinity. But then, we won't reward you with the 'Despair' potion recipe or its main and auxiliary materials—we'll inform you of the advancement ritual in advance, and when you're prepared and nearing completion, we'll give you the 'Despair' potion directly."

"To prevent leakage of high-tier potion recipes?" Franca asked, understanding dawning.

The "Black Witch" nodded:

"When you earn the right to prefix your title with a color, you'll truly gain access to high-tier potion recipes and some sect secrets."

I wanted to see the "Eternal Youth Witch" potion recipe too—but since I won't be able to prefix "Eternal Youth" with a color... no matter, I can learn the ritual first—see if it's evil or not... Franca didn't hide her anticipation.

She quickly shifted the topic back to the "Mirror People" investigation:

"Madam, how far should we pursue the 'Mirror People'? Destroy their schemes and eliminate those who escaped the special mirror world—is that enough?"

"We can't truly enter that mirror world and destroy their leader or their foundation while the Fourth Era Triel seal remains unopened, can we?"

Franca was probing the witch sect's ultimate goal regarding the "Mirror People," to infer the state and intentions of the "Primordial Witch."

Clarice glanced at her and replied with a clear smile:

"Do what you can."

"When you advance to 'Pain,' we'll tell you some things."

Becoming the "Pain Witch" meant entering the core of the witch sect, gaining access to secrets? Franca was both thrilled to be nearing the sect's secrets and completing her mission, and uneasy.

…………

Deep night, underground Triel, inside a disused quarry cavern.

Angoulême de François entered this dark, sleeping region wearing a brown wool greatcoat, a golden brooch on his chest, and carrying an acetylene lamp.

His right sleeve was rolled up; a glass syringe was strapped to his upper arm, containing a cloudy white liquid.

Behind him followed four or five "Purifiers," each with a similar syringe on their arms.

In the center of the group were four tall, iron-gray steam-powered automatons, carrying an object over two meters long and about one meter seventy-eight centimeters wide.

The object was covered with a red flannel cloth, revealing no detail.

Angoulême stopped at the center of the quarry cavern, pressed his hand down, signaling his team to halt.

His teammates set the carried object on the ground.

As the flannel cloth was lifted, a beautifully crafted, classically styled bed appeared before Angoulême and his team.

They all felt sudden exhaustion, felt the bed was incredibly comfortable, and yearned to lie down and sleep deeply.

Angoulême quickly averted his gaze and pushed the plunger of his syringe, injecting more of the liquid into his body.

The other Purifiers did the same—when suddenly, a figure clad in black nun's robes emerged from the opposite side of the quarry cavern.

PS: At the start of the month, requesting double moon tickets~

(End of chapter)