Chapter 234

By 2:30 that afternoon, Xia De, who was at home, did not wait for Miss Miss Jia Lin Na's reply; instead, someone knocked on the door downstairs.

Opening the door, a four-wheeled carriage was parked at the entrance. There was no one inside the carriage, but the coachman, who was biting on a cigarette, gave Xia De a note. On it was Miss Miss Jia Lin Na's beautiful handwritten calligraphy, asking Xia De to get in the carriage and see her directly.

It seems that the great witch is also very attentive to Xia De's request for a visit.

The carriage carried Xia De through the sweltering city, along the road Xia De had walked once before, heading to Miss Miss Jia Lin Na's manor outside the city. The last time he came here it was night, and the abnormal thick fog even made Xia De suspect whether this was some "witch's house," but coming during the day, he couldn't see any abnormalities.

The suburban manor under the sunlight looked as if it had just been washed; the tiles on the roof shone in the afternoon sun. The lawn was trimmed to almost the same height, and after the carriage drove in from the main gate, Xia De also saw a team of servants trimming the large trees in the courtyard in the distance.

He once again had a new understanding of Miss Miss Jia Lin Na's financial resources.

Compared to the magnificent manor house of the royal family, the interior decoration of Miss Miss Jia Lin Na's house is relatively "simple." The only thing worth mentioning is the oil paintings on the corridor walls. She probably likes the scenery of various places; those oil paintings, which looked expensive just by looking at them, were actually all landscape paintings, without a single portrait of a person.

The meeting place was the study on the second floor. When Xia De knocked on the door and entered, besides the Duchess and her personal maid, there was also a middle-aged woman wearing a white shirt and a lady's formal skirt, reporting on tax work.

Miss Miss Jia Lin Na waved her hand, letting the middle-aged woman go out first. When the latter brushed past Xia De, she nodded at him, with an indescribable curiosity in her eyes.

"Good afternoon, Miss Miss Jia Lin Na."

"Good afternoon, Detective. I haven't spent a summer in Tobeisi for several years. It rained yesterday, and today it's this hot again... Sit here. Difa, afternoon tea."

After Xia De sat down on the sofa, the Duchess behind the desk also came to the sofa area. The maid Difa brought a team of maids, pushing a dining cart with afternoon tea and snacks.

From the study window, one can see the general view of the manor courtyard, and looking further into the distance, one can see the vague appearance of the city's building complex. In autumn, if it is a windy day, there will be golden wheat waves in the farmland outside the manor; sitting here and looking at the scenery is really nice.

"This place is really nice."

Xia De praised softly, while the Duchess sat on the single sofa opposite Xia De in a very relaxed posture, waving her hand to let the maids other than Miss Difa retreat first, and then looked at Xia De's attire today:

"Detective, I didn't expect that so soon, you are going to find trouble for the Silver-Eyed One with your friends."

Before the Sunday banquet, Xia De had revealed his thoughts, and the letter also explained that he was seeking help.

"Yes, if we delay any longer, the people from the 【Blood Spirit School】 will arrive, and we don't want to deal with so many people at the same time."

"Well said, so what plans do you have now?"

The Duchess asked, and Xia De thought for a moment and nodded:

"Thursday night, the Church is going to encircle and suppress the cultists who believe in the 【Lord of the Blood Banquet】. We will take advantage of the fact that the Mercury Blood people are attracted over there, rush into the underground ruins, and finish off the Silver-Eyed One."

He paused for a moment, confirmed that there were no other ideas, and then nodded:

"That's the plan."

The red-haired Duchess tilted her head and looked at him:

"This plan of yours is really... concise."

She laughed, but it was not mockery:

"It's good to have your own plan; simple plans have a smaller chance of going wrong. I am very happy to provide you with help, so what help do you want me to provide? First, you must understand that there is a 13th-Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi from the Church in the city now; it is impossible for me to take action directly."

"No, no, I don't need you to take action directly. I want to borrow some relics from you that I can use, and return them after the matter is over. I can mortgage 【Founding · Silver Moon】 with you."

Xia De said immediately.

"Forget about the mortgage, but what kind of price can you pay to convince me to lend you the relics?"

The Duchess asked, and Xia De looked at her expression:

"What do I need to do this time?"

Miss Miss Jia Lin Na smiled and bent down to pick up the teacup:

"Thursday night, the reason the Orthodox Church chose this time point is because that night, the cultists will gather together to hold a banquet with 【Mercury Blood】 and summon the Evil God again."

Xia De's expression became serious; he really didn't know about this.

"This time they are trying to let the God come to the material world in the identity of a Saint, and the human body is that missing Mr. Lawrence you investigated last time. But don't worry, the Church has fully grasped their action plan, action time, and action location, figured out the organizational status of the entire cult, and obtained a list of personnel related to this matter. Thursday night, led by that 13th-Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi from the Sun Church, they will personally handle the scene of the sacrifice, and the Church's Ring Ringed Ringed Shushi squad will search the whole city for the people on the list."

"It's somewhat like the Lake View Manor incident, but this time the Church has grasped the initiative... but what does this have to do with me?"

Xia De asked hesitantly:

"Miss Miss Jia Lin Na, you don't want me to go and stop the Evil God..."

"Oh, Detective, don't be silly. Even if I let you go, can you do it?"

The Duchess shook her head, her fingers tapping on the teacup in her hand:

"I need you to attend this banquet and obtain an item."

She said, and Xia De looked at her seriously, confirming that the other party was not joking:

"Sorry, even without mentioning whether I should appear in such an occasion, I don't have time either. Thursday is also the time for our operation."

"It doesn't matter. I will arrange for people to assist you at the banquet. After you succeed, you can leave immediately by carriage, and I will be responsible for the aftermath. To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that 【Mercury Blood】 guessed that there was a great witch in Tobeisi and was guarding against suspicious women, it would be more appropriate to let Difa do this."

Miss Miss Jia Lin Na said, and the maid beside her did not show any expression.

"Then what do I need to get?"

"【Ring of Incarnation】."

"Hmm? Isn't that..."

"Yes, it was contained by the Peace Church. In order to let their own people infiltrate the interior of the cultists, the Church deliberately let that ring be 'accidentally lost'."

There was a smile in the Duchess's golden eyes:

"So, this gave me an opportunity. I have already arranged the personnel and made the plan. At that banquet, there will not only be cultists and people from the Orthodox Church, but also my people. You only need to follow the plan, and the ring will be very easy to get. Oh, by the way, the excuse for holding the banquet is to raise funds for the Tobeisi University District, and there will be an auction session at that time. No matter what you buy, I can help you pay for it later."

"This... will you be there at that time?"

Xia De didn't care at all about such a good thing as someone else paying for him to attend an auction; he cared more about his own safety.

The witch saw what he meant:

"I won't be there. The Church notified a very small number of members of the royal family, letting us stay away from the banquet on Thursday night. Therefore, I was able to learn about this matter in advance and conducted an investigation."

She narrowed her eyes:

"I won't force you to go, but if you agree, once the ring is in hand, according to our previous agreement, you can ask any question about the 【Witch Council】 at will; as long as I know, I will definitely answer. And besides lending you the relics, I promise that after this matter, you will gain my complete trust. In addition, please give me your hand."

"What do you mean?"

Xia De didn't understand, but he still got up, stretched out his hand towards the opposite side of the coffee table, and was then grabbed by the wrist by Miss Miss Jia Lin Na.

"Again?"

He struggled a few times, and sure enough, he couldn't break free:

"You don't need to worry about safety issues. Do you know why this is? Detective."

Those dark golden eyes looked at Xia De. Xia De hesitated and looked at the maid, but the latter shook her head, not knowing what she meant either.

"I don't know."

"Because, having finally encountered you, the only man who is not affected by the witch's curse, I am not willing to let you die easily in such a small matter."

This sentence was truly convincing, so Xia De stopped worrying:

"Actually, you can let go of me before talking."

He reminded her, and the witch smiled at him, then sure enough let go of his hand:

"Difa will appear at the banquet on Thursday, as well as several other of my servants. Even if you really encounter big trouble, you can still retreat unscathed. After the matter is over, I will arrange a carriage to send you away, and it won't delay your business."

"Then there's no problem. I will attend the banquet on Thursday."

Xia De nodded, looking at the red mark on his wrist; the Duchess's grip was really strong.

Although the temporarily added task would make the matter on Thursday night more complicated, since the preparations were so thorough, there was no need to worry too much.

"That's good, as for the relics you want to borrow..."

She didn't let the maid Difa go get things, but leaned on the sofa and thought for a while, then reached out and took off the gold necklace she was wearing around her neck.

The necklace was luxurious and exquisite, with gold chains woven into a diamond pattern, wrapping a ruby.

Miss Miss Jia Lin Na signaled the maid to hand the necklace to Xia De. The black-haired maid looked very surprised, but still did as she was told. As for Xia De, when he took the necklace, he could even feel the body temperature on it.

"This is a gift I received when I officially joined the Witch Council, Detective. Guess the level."

"Hmm... Keeper-level (Level 3)?"

"No, it is a Sage-level (Level 2) relic, 【Ancient Witch's Gold Necklace】. After wearing it, when using any sorcery or spells against non-witch targets, you can gain an improvement in effect. I cannot give you relics that are too dangerous, as there is a risk of losing control, and relics without risk are mostly useless. But I think this one should be just right. After all, at Lake View Manor, you have already shown skillful control over Silver Moon sorcery. With this necklace, the effect of your sorcery can be further enhanced."

"Sage-level..."

Xia De couldn't help but exclaim. It's not that he hadn't seen the world, but this was the first time he had encountered a Sage-level relic in the true sense (Note). Sage-level relics do not circulate on the black market; they are truly priceless. Senior Ring Mages like the Doctor have never even touched a Sage-level relic.

He lowered his head to examine it carefully. Except for the ruby, the entire necklace was made of gold. The golden chains clung to each other, forming patterns while also forming a sentence:

【We can only trust ourselves.】