Chapter 45: **Twenty Points**

Using 【Moonlight Slash】 required no casting materials; it only required the caster to draw light trails in the air with their limbs. These silver trails could be slashed forward to unleash an attack.

In the time before midnight, Xia De attempted this many times in the living room with the curtains drawn. He was extremely excited; although he had tried Ringed Ringed Shushi Hand, Blood Echoes, and Light, 【Moonlight Slash】 was the only one that matched his imagination of "power" and "mystery."

Unfortunately, Xia De was merely a beginner with a shallow understanding of the 【Moonlight】 spirit rune, and his own spirit was quite limited. Those trails of light couldn't even leave a visible mark on the wall.

However, if he only intended to harm a fragile human body, he imagined it would be sufficient at close range.

This spell, while currently mediocre in power, left behind incredibly beautiful trails of light in the air—even more elegant and noble than those described in the books—which attracted the curious orange cat, Little Mia.

Of course, these four spells from the curriculum were merely provided for free by the Academy. If Xia De wished to obtain more, he could search the library and pay for the knowledge.

Each professor also possessed their own collection of rare spells and incantations; achieving high marks in their courses was another way to obtain them for free.

Regarding the Academy's spells, Doctor Schneider believed the library's pricing was unreasonable—an "exploitation" of correspondence students by the Academy.

Xia De would be better off purchasing them from his group members or local ring mages rather than the Academy, using the Academy only as a channel for rare or unique knowledge.

Regardless, the outsider had now completely stepped through the gates of the mysterious and supernatural in this eerie steam-powered era.

The outsider summarized his current situation and found that what he lacked most was neither time nor experience, but gold pounds. Thus, he became even more determined to manage this detective agency well; it was the best way to earn money he could currently access.

"Earn gold pounds through commissions, then acquire knowledge from St. Byrons. Collect the four elemental spirit runes, advance continuously, and even if I can't go back, I will witness this mysterious and magnificent world."

Having his own house, Xia De no longer felt the oppression he had experienced in the past few days.

As for copying books from his past world or using knowledge from his past to profit in the steam era, those were plans for after he had established a firm footing and gained more power.

Xia De had spent the entire day playing with the cat and reading books. Having mastered his first spell, he was very happy, even without any income that day.

Thus, night arrived. Seeing the clock strike eleven, Xia De first locked the nocturnal orange cat, Little Mia, in the bedroom, then moved the coffee table and sofa to clear some space.

He arranged the four chairs around the living room, used a compass to strictly align them with the cardinal directions, and finally placed a basin full of clear water in the center.

He changed into the only formal suit in his wardrobe, closed the curtains, and dimmed the gas lamps to a faint, warm yellow glow.

He sat in the chair facing north, holding a match in one hand and the elective course list scroll in the other. He stared at the clock until it was nearly midnight, then struck a match against the chair arm.

Because he used too much force, the match snapped in half. Xia De was slightly startled and immediately pulled another from the matchbox on his lap.

Matches in this era were not "safety matches," and there was no rough striking surface on the box. Striking them against the floor, the soles of one's shoes, or the wall was the common practice.

The second match finally ignited. Xia De looked up at the clock, and the moment the first chime of midnight rang, he lit the scroll. The parchment scroll caught fire almost instantly; seeing the flame, he tossed it into the basin of water.

Although he had been prepared, he was still surprised to see the submerged scroll transform into specks of blue light scattering in the basin:

"What is this?"

As he wondered, the woman's voice whispered in his mind:

【Not a spell or incantation, but a more ancient form of occult power. This is a ritual.】

"A ritual?"

Before he could receive further explanation, the entire basin of water began to radiate light. A breeze stirred in the room despite the closed windows, and within that wind, three beams of light projected from the basin toward the east, west, and south.

Three transparent blue human figures gradually materialized in the chairs Xia De had prepared. He even saw characters swimming within their translucent bodies, but trying to decipher even one caused his head to throb. Recalling the lesson of the 【Darkness Box】, he suppressed his curiosity.

The arrival of the three figures caused the room to turn chillingly cold.

Sitting directly across from Xia De in the south was an elderly man wearing round-rimmed glasses. He wore a formal black suit, was even taller than Xia De, and had a pocket watch chain extending from his vest pocket to a button.

"Vice Principal of St. Byrons Comprehensive Academy, Director of Student Affairs, Professor Harms Sanchez of the Library Management College."

Professor Sanchez introduced himself in standard Delarion, nodding slightly at Xia De.

This was the name signed on the note; it was he who had arranged this meeting with Xia De.

Sitting in the eastern chair was a man in his forties, thin and with a resolute expression. He also wore a formal black suit with a white shirt; on his cufflinks was the school emblem of Byrons Comprehensive Academy—a book bound in chains.

His ears appeared slightly pointed, different from a normal person's:

"Vice Principal of the History College, Professor Heisenge Garcia."

His Delarion was clearly not as standard as Professor Sanchez's. In the current world, the southern Karsenrik language and northern Delarion language were both common; perhaps this Professor Garcia was originally from the south.

Finally, the woman sitting in the western chair was a beautiful lady in her thirties with curly hair. She wore a monocle over her right eye and the standard blue uniform of a female clerk, holding a writing board and pen.

She nodded kindly at Xia De and spoke less formally than the two professors:

"I am Laks Jones from the Academy Secretariat. According to regulations, when Academy professors communicate with correspondence ring mages outside of teaching hours, a secretary from the Secretariat must be present to record and archive the conversation. This is to protect both you and the secrets of St. Byrons."

"I understand. Professor Sanchez, Professor Garcia, Ms. Jones, good evening... Would you like some hot tea? The black tea I have here is quite good."

Xia De was slightly surprised but spoke politely to the three transparent figures. He wondered if this ritual was similar in principle to a projector, while the chilling atmosphere suggested that the ritual's original purpose might not have been to hold remote meetings.