Chapter 3378

「Meow~」

Just as the crystal shoe landed in front of Xia De, he heard a meow from the cat, and it was clearly a complaint:

「Oh, what's wrong? 」

He was worried as he went downstairs, but he happened to run into the cat coming up. Xia De then caught a strange, indescribable odor permeating the house.

It wasn't exactly a stench, but the smell was still nauseating, and the cat, with its much sharper sense of smell, had clearly been enduring it for quite a while.

The cat stayed on the third floor, unwilling to come down. After Xia De held his breath and made his way to the second floor, he saw Dorothy and Lu Lu Weiya busy in the dining room. They weren't cooking; both young ladies were wearing black, dirt-resistant aprons suitable for alchemy and potion-making, their hair tied up, hands gloved, and faces masked.

The dining table was covered in beakers, mortars, long-necked flasks, glass condensers, pipettes, liquid-transfer guns, and other tools.

「Why are you doing experiments here instead of in Room 3 on the third floor? 」

Xia De asked while holding his breath. Seeing the windows tightly shut and the curtains drawn, he knew they were worried about the neighbors discovering the strange smell—perhaps someone would think the famous detective of Tobesk was using ancient alchemy, the kind that extracts gold from urine.

「Good evening, Xia De. You're back~ Lu Lu Weiya performed a divination before starting the magic art, and it indicated that conducting the experiment here would yield the highest success rate. 」

The golden-haired writer, her voice also muffled, explained. It was unclear whether the mask was very effective or if she had simply grown accustomed to it, but she showed no signs of disgust toward the surrounding air.

「The Philosopher's Stone is too precious; we certainly can't waste it. Just wait a little longer, the first attempt will be finished soon. 」

「No, no. You two are enduring this smell, I won't hide to the side. 」

Xia De said, picking up a spare mask they had prepared and putting it on, then preparing to go to his bedroom to change his clothes.

「Remember to close the door. We don't want to smell this when we sleep tonight. 」

The young ladies reminded him, but Xia De felt everyone should be more concerned about how they would manage breakfast tomorrow morning.

The "ink" materials he and Galina had collected, whether precious or common, didn't have such a nauseating odor; the smell seemed to arise from the mixing of certain ingredients. Xia De felt that if they succeeded this time, the next time they made this ink, they must choose a well-ventilated place far from the city—

Like Vistalin Woods or the Green Lake Island would both be fine.

Dorothy and Lu Lu Weiya continued their final refining of the mineral pigments while listening to Xia De recount the events of the day on the island. Xia De naturally played his part; during the solution settling and final drying stages, he had to use 【Breath of Time】 to accelerate the passage of time; otherwise, the production process couldn't have been finished in a single night.

The entire process, aside from the order of adding and mixing various materials, also involved separating the coarse and fine particles of the ground "Snake Scale Stone." This step determined the fineness of the pigment.

Combining the information Dorothy had researched from ancient texts, Lu Lu Weiya's divination ultimately selected a method requiring the coordination of a miracle. For this, Dorothy had even run to Randall Valley yesterday to ask Vanessa for the method of manipulating gravity.

In short, half an hour after Xia De returned home, the first finished "pigment" was finally completed.

Dorothy hadn't dared to use too much of the 【Philosopher's Stone】, so the final finished pigment was only about the size of two fingernails. Even if they used a fine needle as a pen, they probably wouldn't be able to write many letters.

「The last step is human blood. Who should write, and whose blood should be used? 」

Lu Lu Weiya asked as she took off her mask and gloves. Xia De inquired:

「If we want to experiment, shouldn't we use a snake skin? Do I need to go back to Kyle-Todd Town now to borrow the one from Miss Larson? 」

Dorothy was currently using a miracle related to the "Mermaid Princess" to summon bubbles, constructing a bubble wall to block the connection between the living room and the kitchen, preventing the smell from spreading. After they all washed their hands, they sat in the living room, where the windows had been opened, to talk.

Lu Lu Weiya shook her head:

「I already thought of that. No need to borrow one. 」

She handed the blank snake skin she had been using for research to Dorothy:

「I have no more use for this; I've researched everything I could. Let Dorothy use it now. Besides, didn't you plan to let them use it eventually to help her and Lei Qianya? 」

Xia De didn't deny this. Dorothy squeezed a drop of blood from her fingertip onto the snake skin, and a large number of letters appeared:

【Name: Dorothy Louisa】

【Rank: Ring Mage (Ninth Ring)】

【Fortune: ↑】

【Story Role: Important Supporting Character】

【Personal Story Arc: You, who were once endowed with the great destiny of a savior, remain dissatisfied with the status quo even after escaping that fate. Thus, in the winter after the blizzard, your lover, who cares for you, traveled alone to the land of destiny to help you and her find another turning point in your fate.

You have gained change, yet you remain unsatisfied. The double-edged sword of destiny has endowed you with talent and a mission; you enjoy the talent but are unwilling to bear the mission, so he blocked a blade for you. So, will there be a second time?

But this time, it is no longer an adventure for you and her. Although there is a peculiar fate and bond, the great drama will not seek you, who have already become a protagonist, to take the stage again. However, you will still bring more twists and turns to this drama.】

Dorothy's fortune was consistent with the card from the year-end task, and the story role and the final paragraph were also very similar to Emilia's, who was also a Chosen One, indicating that neither the writer nor the princess was a protagonist this time.

「Can I understand the last paragraph this way: the Chosen One of Destiny has a hidden requirement—they cannot become other Chosen Ones? If Dorothy and Lei Qianya hadn't become Chosen Ones of Space, could they have become candidates this time? 」

Xia De asked. Lu Lu Weiya nodded in agreement:

「Mr. Ring is the audience of the stage; naturally, he hopes the protagonist he selects is unique, so he excludes other Chosen Ones. This is quite reasonable. I had originally wondered if Dorothy and Lei Qianya's unique fates were also a manifestation of talent.

So, if a Chosen One of Destiny wants to hold other qualifications, it seems they must first secure their destiny before testing other powers. 」

Her purple eyes narrowed slightly, as if she were thinking of something else.

As for the first two paragraphs of the story, they seemed to be criticizing Dorothy and Lei Qianya's approach, accusing them of wanting too much while being unwilling to bear the responsibility. Emilia, Miss Larson, and Claire's snake skin stories were all told in a neutral tone.

After reading the content, Dorothy's expression froze. She didn't discuss the candidate matter with Lu Lu Weiya. After glancing at Xia De, she communicated quickly with Lei Qianya in her heart, and finally said to Xia De:

「Let's continue the experiment, but I'm not in a hurry to change the fact that Lei Qianya and I meet every 21 days... The current state is very good. 」

Then she met Xia De's eyes.

「Dorothy, do you and Lei Qianya want to give up? 」

「It's not that we want to give up, it's just that we don't want you to get hurt for us anymore. Now that happiness is in our hands, Lei Qianya and I share the same thought: there's no need to risk losing our current happiness just to gain more. 」

She said very frankly, even holding Xia De's hand:

「Look, happiness is now in her hands and mine. I have written too many stories about losing everything due to greed; I don't want to become that kind of person myself. I don't want to give up; I'm just afraid of losing the hard-won happiness we have now. 」

「You two shouldn't talk about this yet; it's not even certain if the ink is successful. 」

Lu Lu Weiya interrupted them and handed the palette with two small portions occupied to Dorothy.

The extremely small amount of "pigment" had been divided into two by Lu Lu Weiya, allowing for two experiments. Dorothy carefully dripped her blood into one of the "pigments." She did nothing else, and the blood successfully blended into it.

Their finished pigment had originally been black, but after being soaked with blood, it finally turned into a warm red.

「This is a very good sign. 」

Lu Lu Weiya whispered, then watched as Dorothy dipped a fine needle into the pigment and began to write on her snake skin.

They had agreed beforehand to write "The next draw must be the Wang Hou" to test the effect of the pigment as much as possible. But the pigment had barely landed on the snake skin when the red color vanished, as if absorbed by the skin.

Dorothy looked at Lu Lu Weiya, who signaled her to continue:

「Anyway, the pigment is already made, just continue. 」

Dorothy continued to write, but the snake skin absorbed everything she wrote. By the time she finished, not a single letter remained on the skin.

Lu Lu Weiya watched the snake skin with pursed lips, then had Dorothy draw a card, using Xia De's deck. In their hearts, they all knew this attempt had failed. The card Dorothy drew was indeed not the Wang Hou, but the Star 9 【Ancient Fairy Tale: Snow White】 that Xia De had just acquired.

「Could it be that we need both Lei Qianya's blood and mine? After all, our fates are also intertwined. 」

Dorothy guessed, but Lu Lu Weiya shook her head:

「It shouldn't be that. Although your fates are linked, because of Xia De's intervention, you still possess your own unique fates. Only one portion of the finished product remains... Xia De, you try. 」

Xia De's blood was dripped into the second portion of pigment, and the color transformed into a pure silver. Xia De wanted to reach for the needle, but Lu Lu Weiya stopped him:

「Dorothy, give Xia De the relic-class pen. 」

Thus, the 【Pen of Joyful Dreams】 that Xia De and Dorothy had collected two years ago at Professor Manning's place appeared in his hand. He dipped the nib of the fountain pen into the silver pigment, and as he began to write, the pigment was immediately absorbed by the snake skin.

(End of Chapter)