Chapter 2856

The girls in black robes held candlesticks, all agreeing with Xia De's approach, and the blue "Giant Spirit" praised him:

"Very cautious, and I admit the terms of this deal are reasonable. But in this phantom state, I cannot reveal that secret—after all, that venerable Ancient is far stronger than I am. I must meet you in my true form to complete this transaction."

"No problem. How about we meet at the Golden Music Hall in the center of Vesta City? When can you come?"

Xia De proactively suggested the meeting location; as for the time, he believed it should be tomorrow night, since tonight he still needed to assist the doctor with the ritual.

"The location is fine. Let's meet tomorrow night."

The blue Giant Spirit said:

"You're lucky—actually, I'm not far from your current position."

"Are you making another deal with someone?"

"Not a deal—a wish!"

It corrected him, arms crossed over its chest:

"I am dedicated to fulfilling every soul's wish—don't mistake me for my former boring companions. This deal with you is an exception; I know you crave more. If you learn to trust me, our cooperation might extend beyond this single occasion."

"I don't make wishes to you."

"Yes, yes, most people who meet me think that—but I never try to persuade them to change their minds. Do you know? No one can refuse a wish. No one."

It laughed heartily, dissolving into a rainbow mist, and the flames on the girls' candlesticks swayed and returned to their normal color.

The effect of the Darkness Spell ended; the late-autumn, early-winter sunlight fell upon him, its warmth more comforting than ever.

"You agreed to meet at the Golden Music Hall on Tuesday night because the Autumn's 'First Snow Festival' is being held there, right?"

The tiny witch, pulling back her hood, asked curiously. Only then did Xia De notice she now seemed shorter than Chloe:

"What First Snow Festival?"

Xia De immediately shook his head; Miss Bell, to his left, softly explained, her complexion still pale in the sunlight:

"The First Snow Festival is an annual celebration held during the final week of the Month of Fallen Leaves in Vesta City, meant to welcome the first snow. The Music Hall hosts concerts during this time; Young Lady received her invitation last week. Outside, the square is lined with stalls and seating for night-time bonfire concerts, where many young, unknown musicians perform."

"I feel like Vesta City has too many festivals. In the two months I've been here, there's been a new celebration almost every two weeks... Well, it's a tourist city."

But the festival had nothing to do with Xia De's plans—he chose the Music Hall simply because it was once an ancient god's temple, regardless of any celebration.

What intrigued him more was what the Wish Demon was doing right now—he hoped the person making the wish wasn't too greedy.

As he thought this, he glanced toward the nearby bushes:

"I wonder how Amelia is doing. She must miss home so much."

The tiny witch beside him nudged him, then looked up at him:

"Could you care about your elf a little less, and care about me a little more? Compared to Jia Lin Na, I feel my situation is worse. She'll be healed by weekend, but I still don't know when I'll recover."

But Xia De shook his head seriously:

"Given your current physical condition, from both moral and legal standpoints, I cannot show you any special care or affection. Until you fully recover, I cannot even look at you too closely, to avoid unnecessary complications."

The tiny witch didn't get angry—she merely lowered her eyes, on the verge of tears:

"So... if I stay like this forever, you'll just abandon me?"

"No, no, of course not."

Xia De immediately shook his head, and unable to suppress his guilt, he gently hugged her. But everyone else—the witch apprentices—could plainly see this was the Great Witch's scheme.

The witches understood Xia De well: steel blades and iron swords were useless against him—he feared most the unbreakable, inescapable tenderness.

That day, no other strange events occurred. After returning to the ship in the morning, Xia De spent the rest of the day preparing for the evening's affair. Though the minor troubles involving Vanessa and the other 13th-Ring sorcerers remained unresolved, at least Xie Wei, leading the expedition to the dragon-beast nest, brought good news.

The nest still existed; geological shifts had caused the hillside to collapse, blocking the dragon's den entrance. Fortunately, the interior of the nest suffered little damage, and the witches even found a tomb in one corner.

If Xia De could learn from the man of the Kindel family—who had been advised to take a walk in the woods and thus encountered the dragon egg—he might not need to deal with the demon at all.

So at four in the afternoon, the owl urgently flew from the city into the forest. At that moment, Xia De had just returned to Tobesck to retrieve the 【Hunter's Journal】 and the extra 【Shou Mo Yin Zhang】, and also visited Priest August to purchase a batch of magical potions, so he couldn't accompany them.

Thus, when he returned to the Lightbringer, he happened upon the golden-haired countess "reprimanding" the owl.

It was in one corner of the cruise ship's banquet hall: dejected Flora listened as Bella Bellindel scolded her for being "so careless," "you're no longer an apprentice," "if it weren't for luck..."

It seemed the Great Witch's party had just arrived from Moon Bay. Xia De glanced at the golden-haired maid standing behind the countess; the gentle southern head maid smiled and shook her head, so Xia De continued toward them:

"Good afternoon, how was your journey, Bellin..."

"Just call me Bella! When I visited Jia Lin Na while she was recovering, she told me! While I was away, except for Granny Cassandra, you've stopped using honorifics for everyone else!"

The countess, with a beautiful red birthmark on her brow, spoke to Xia De with the same sternness she'd used on the owl, startling him:

"Alright, I'll call you by your name from now on. Bella, did you just arrive? Why aren't you resting?"

"Hmph~"

The countess crossed her arms. She realized her tone had been too harsh, so she softened it:

"I arrived an hour ago. Though you asked me to divinate about the elf a few days ago, I still wanted to say hello after so long."

She gently hugged Xia De, then, as Flora looked over, added:

"As for why I didn't rest—it's because of Flora and the others. They found a tomb in the dragon-beast nest this afternoon and didn't investigate properly before attempting spirit communication. Flora got cursed. She wasn't at full strength to begin with, and now she can't even maintain her human form—Xie Wei had to carry her back in his arms."

I had just arrived on the ship with Matilda and the others, chatting with Luweiya and Miss Yilaise on deck. In the end, Luweiya and I lifted the curse. She's such a grown woman—how can she still act like a child?"

Among this generation of Great Witches, their ordinary identities showed no close ties—but Flora and Bella were the exception.

One came from the noble family of Veldel, the capital's capital, a member of the legendary press dynasty; the other from the wealthy Bellindel family of Moon Bay, a magnate clan. As children, Bella, visiting the capital with her elders, met Flora and they maintained their friendship ever since.

They were the only two Great Witches of this generation who knew each other since girlhood. Notably, the Moon Bay countess was older than Flora, who was now in a near "runaway" state—hence the countess spoke to Flora like a scolding older sister.

Of course, this wasn't entirely Flora's or Xie Wei's fault. The power sealed within the tomb's bones came from a being stronger than both of them combined.

Flora had checked the tomb before attempting spirit communication and found nothing amiss. But once the ritual began, her soul was struck by a reverse surge of death energy. Had her innate resistance to instant death not been unusually high, and had she not carried multiple anti-instant-death relics, she might not have survived long enough for Xie Wei to stabilize her.

"Are you alright now?"

Hearing this, Xia De immediately reached out to touch Flora's forehead. Seeing her chance, she pouted pitifully:

"I think I'm fine, but I still feel cold... Xia De, can you give me some warmth?"

"Of course. I'll cast a spell—Inner Flame."

Saying so, he pulled a ball of golden radiance from his own chest and pressed it against hers. Flora glanced at the female countess beside her and saw the latter smiling at her — witches, of course, knew each other's thoughts. But Bella said nothing about it, after all Flora had genuinely been injured.

"After Flora's condition improved, Luvia and I went to inspect that dragon beast's lair and just got back. It was that dragon beast using the forest's power and its own soul to protect that tomb from any disturbance. It sacrificed part of its soul — a quite remarkable and ancient consecration ritual.

"But precisely because that tomb holds its soul power, Luvia and I came up with a good plan: we'll go and completely destroy the bones in the tomb. As long as that dragon beast is still in the Vesta Woods, it will surely sense it and come after us for revenge at any cost. That way, we won't have to go looking for it specifically."