Chapter 2770

Miss Dannister joked:

"And calling me here so late, you should at least treat me with the best black tea."

"This... not for the moment, but you can take some tea leaves back later... I'm afraid you might smash my teacup in a moment."

Professor Pigman said cautiously. The current principal of St. Byrons was a refined middle-aged man. He looked to be in his forties, did not wear glasses, and had black hair. And because he did not grow a beard, he looked even younger.

"What?"

The red-haired girl raised an eyebrow, and the principal behind the desk immediately laughed again:

"Don't be so anxious. When I was your 'Ether Mechanics' teacher back then, I said that only a calm mind can make things go more smoothly."

The red-haired girl then reminded him:

"But most students who took your 'Ether Mechanics' course couldn't keep a calm mind, right? What was the pass rate for our grade at the end of the semester? Oh, it seems that besides me, only two people passed.

I still haven't quite understood the 'Hilbert Ether Space' theory, but I have been researching the 'Systematic Composite Verification Ritual of Spirit Particleization on Time Disturbance' recently when I have nothing to do."

So the book Xia De often saw her reading recently was this:

"I remember that later, because the pass rate was too low, your 'Ether Mechanics' changed from a required course to an elective course for the whole academy. And after you no longer took on teaching duties, it seems that only two professors can teach this course to this day."

"Ahem, let's not talk about this. Actually, I have always felt that letting students come into contact with some cutting-edge theoretical knowledge is not a bad thing. Although ring-warlocks are a practical profession, theoretical work also needs to be done."

As he spoke, he bent down and took out a red lacquered wooden box from the office drawer, and then pushed it across the table to the academy's library administrator.

The pet white mouse lying on the table immediately wanted to lean in, but Principal Professor Pigman waved his hand, and a silver portal appeared under the mouse, and it fell into the lower drawer at once:

"I called you here tonight because of this."

"What is this?"

She reached out, wanting to lift the lid, and then heard the principal across the table say:

"Many years ago, also in this office, your teacher, Professor 'Moon Spellcaster' Helena Carter, handed this to me and asked me to..."

Even though he was prepared, facing the slightly gloomy expression when the sorceress suddenly raised her head, he still leaned back slightly:

"You have a much worse temper now than when you were in school. I know you are very angry, I know you have been looking for Professor Carter's trail, and I also know that there may be related secrets in this box, but this is what Professor Carter didn't let me tell you."

Seeing Miss Dannister take a deep breath to adjust her mood, he recalled:

"At that time, Professor Carter told me to give this to you at dawn on the Thursday after you went to the Vesta woods and applied to the academy to purchase the relic 【Blunt Blade】. A very strange request, right? I didn't understand it either, but since it was Professor Carter's request, I couldn't refuse... Speaking of which, she disappeared not long after she left this with me.

I don't know if the contents of this box have anything to do with the professor's departure and disappearance, and I have no intention of destroying the professor's arrangements, which is why I only took it out today."

There was a seal of the moon engraved on the box; this was a seal that only Helena Carter and Dannister Gustav could break.

And after opening the box, Miss Dannister first saw a folded note. She was all too familiar with the handwriting on the note, but there were only two short sentences on it:

【Xia De is fine, he will return to your time soon.】

【Give this to him.】

Removing the note, there was a silver ring in the box, with a thin and short silver chain wrapped around the ring's band to contain it. Seeing Miss Dannister pick up the ring, the principal across the table said:

"Oh, isn't this the 【Ouroboros Ring】? I have seen Professor Carter wear this ring a few times, but she didn't use it often, and she never lent this ring out. Did she leave this to you as a memento? Speaking of which, does this ring have an inhibitory effect on your curse?"

The red-haired girl continued to keep a gloomy face, and she looked in an even worse mood than before:

"She didn't mention me at all in her letter, and this ring is also for me to pass on to someone else. She knew she was going to leave and never return, but she left nothing behind... I won't use this ring; this wasn't left for me."

So the principal behind the desk shut his mouth, and Miss Dannister silently put the ring and the note back, and then asked:

"How is the academy's support team for the Vesta woods prepared?"

"The 'Time Proof' ritual is very effective, and the ritual has been completed for most people. However, the Moon Creek Clan also wants to send people this time, and they still need to prepare, so they will probably depart next Monday."

"What about Miss Sinod?"

"She will depart one day ahead of the team and be sent directly to your side. The academy will contact you then. She wants to bring the unicorn along, so you also need to think about where Miss Sinod will live in advance."

Miss Dannister nodded, didn't ask for any tea leaves, said goodbye, and grabbed the box on the table and left.

The principal sitting behind the desk listened to the sound of her going downstairs, took out his memo, and crossed out the letter at the very top.

Almost at the same time Miss Dannister set off to return to Vesta City, in the deep, dark place in the dense forest where the flames were gradually dying out, a sudden clap of thunder in the sky startled Dr. Bill Schneider, who was limping through the forest looking for Xia De.

That thunderbolt almost struck directly in front of him, missing him by only a hair's breadth. And at the spot where the thunder fell, space almost immediately tore open a gap, and then Xia De emerged from the vast white fog behind the gap, holding 【Nightwatcher】 and looking around vigilantly.

The startled doctor finally breathed a sigh of relief and immediately greeted him:

"No need to be so vigilant, the battle is over. You finally appeared. I was just thinking, if I returned to Tobesk and told Annette that I had lost you, would she curse me and make my luck even worse than it is now?"

The forest fire had almost been extinguished, and the late autumn night wind was weaving through the forest. Moonlight spilled down, illuminating the woods, and there was indeed no danger here.

Xia De looked at his finger, confirming that the ring had not been brought back by him:

"Did that tree disappear on its own? And Doctor, are you alright?"

This was already a day ago for him, and he had originally thought he would have to engage in a fierce battle after returning.

The doctor shook his head:

"I was unable to move after being knocked away, and I rushed back as soon as I could barely move. By then, you and that tree had both disappeared. What exactly happened? Was that tree the one you mentioned... How come I feel like you always encounter these kinds of enemies, and each one is more exaggerated than the last.

Also, don't worry about me, I'm fine."

But the doctor's situation was not as easy as he himself said. Xia De was banished from the current time by that tree, and the doctor was not just simply knocked away.

He still had abrasions on his face that had not yet faded, and he was limping when he reunited with Xia De just now. However, the doctor was not cursed by the power of that tree; it was just that the tree had the power to suppress the natural recovery of living organisms, and the doctor had deep experience with this:

"This is not limiting my natural recovery ability, but more like freezing the concept of 'recovery' on a temporal level."

However, he didn't care at all:

"This is not permanent, it will be fine after a while. Detective, compared to me, that tree's target was clearly you; I was just driven away like a fly, and perhaps even that evil thing didn't want to get contaminated by me."

He even had the heart to joke at this time. Xia De was speechless for a moment; he had wanted to apologize for implicating the doctor, but now he didn't know what to say.

"I was banished from the current time, but I found a way in the past, so I came back."

And Xia De's return meant that this "Demon Hunting" activity was a complete success. Therefore, although he was injured, the doctor was in a very good mood at this time. His goal of many years had taken a big step forward, which was something he couldn't even imagine before meeting Xia De last summer:

"It's good that you're back. Before we go back, come with me to take a look over here. When I was looking for you everywhere just now, I found a strange place nearby."

As he spoke, he waved at Xia De again, and then soared directly into the air. Xia De also turned into a flock of butterflies and followed.

The strange place the doctor mentioned was about two miles away from where the two had just reunited. That location was not hidden by any means. Theoretically speaking, as long as someone could walk to this location in the dense forest and could defeat the demons patrolling nearby that had almost turned into natural phenomena of the forest, anyone could see this place.

The doctor landed in the forest, and after Xia De turned back into human form, he found that there was actually a small path in the forest here. The path just extended to this location and stopped, and in front was the destination of the two.

The doctor explained:

"You must walk on this path to reach that place. If you were flying in the air, even if you knew the location, you wouldn't be able to reach it."

Walking forward another twenty steps, the front suddenly opened up.

The two released some light orbs to illuminate this fairly large clearing in the forest. When Xia De was looking around at the edge of the clearing, he discovered at the first moment that the direction the end of the path was facing was a giant tree.

Xia De had already seen many large trees in the Vesta woods, but the "giant tree" mentioned here was truly a "giant tree." In his impression, only the volume of the large tree he planted on the summit of Sikar Mountain, which symbolized the seal 【Edge of Life and Death】 of the "Tree's Kiss," could compare to this tree.