Whispering Verse

"Being your apprentice?"

Shade looked at each other in surprise:

"But I'm not a woman."

"But you can not only use the power of the witch, but you are also proficient in space and mathematics, and Miss Carina also praised your excellent abilities and made her feel at ease in your work. I can't think of anyone more suitable to be my apprentice than you."

Miss Sylvia counted Shade's advantages one by one.

What she said did make sense, but Shade felt that being a correspondence student at St. Byrons was enough for now, and he was still thinking about the position of college librarian. Not to mention, if he really dared to promise Miss Sylvia, he didn't dare to think about what Miss Carina would do:

"I'm honored to be favored by you, but I'm sorry, I have no intention of becoming the witch's apprentice."

Miss Sylvia was not disappointed either:

"You can think about it for a moment. The Speaker said that I am not very mature yet and my talents have yet to be explored. Therefore, I was asked not to recruit apprentices before the eleventh ring. I can give you time to think about it. The Speaker said, I have touched the tenth ring." A third-level talent.”

Miss Sylvia said, without looking like she was joking, that she was really considering making Shade her apprentice.

"If I'm not mistaken, Princess Margaret is looking forward to becoming your apprentice."

Shade pointed this out, and the witch shook her head slightly while holding the tea cup:

"I said last night that the girl has no talent. I don't mean that she is stupid. Her talent as a ring magician is very good and she works hard. But she is not suitable to be my apprentice. Girls from the Anjou family are very ambitious. She is big, but she is really bad at academics. Besides, the mystery of space is completely beyond her reach. This world will only give special talents to a few people, such as you and me."

This woman was very proud of her gifts.

Shade fully understood what she meant:

"Have you ever told her this?"

"Yes, I told her clearly, but she refused to give up. In fact, even if she doesn't become my apprentice, I am willing to guide her to go further on the path of a ring warlock, but no talent means no talent. This It cannot be changed.”

"Is this related to the fact that we are meeting here instead of meeting at the Rothschild Manor where the princess is staying?"

"Yes, you should try not to let too many people see your existence. I have very few followers. Some of them can see you, but not Margaret. I don't think Miss Carina is either Make your presence known to all your followers.”

This also means that Shade cannot rely on the relationship with the witch to use Shade Hamilton's identity to get close to the princess. Regarding the matter of "Guiding Moon" and "Grey-Headed Eagle", he still had to figure it out on his own.

"Also, take this."

The witch took an invitation from the side and handed it to Shade:

"Tomorrow night, the Rothschild Manor will hold a farewell party. All the nobles in Huntington City will be invited to attend. I hope you can come too."

"Is there any special mission for inviting me to participate?"

"There is no mission. Yesterday I handed Poison Ivy Magis of the Pantanal Voodoo Society to the church, but I still don't know why the other party attacked a count. I don't think they have the guts to attack a count. The princess of the kingdom takes action, but after all, it is safer, so if you can come, I will be less stressed. But don’t take it too seriously. The church in this diocese will also send people to attend the banquet tomorrow night, and of course I will Be there, you just have to show up to the party and keep an eye out for anything weird happening.”

Shade took the invitation:

"No problem, Saturday night? Okay, I'll postpone the original thing for a while."

Later, he asked for advice:

"Excuse me, what do you think of the legend of the 'Lady of the Lake' around Huntington?"

Miss Sylvia thought for a while and shook her head slightly:

"I have only heard of this legend, but I don't know the specifics. My followers mainly operate in Willendale. My teacher did not have long-term activities in the Huntingdon area during his lifetime."

Although it is a bit regretful, Shade also knows that not everyone can provide information:

"I will consider the apprenticeship, but don't have too high expectations. Also, my local friend, yes, the vampire Mr. Bernhardt, also mentioned the Pantanal Witch. I don’t think the forces of the Poison Society, a loosely structured organization, dare to attack the Earl of the Kingdom. Are there other possibilities for this matter? For example, did they accept employment?”

"Before handing over the guy with the high bounty on his body, I did interrogate him, but the other person was very firm and didn't say anything, and the potion didn't work on him. But judging from the current situation, Pantanal The principalities surrounding the region seem to be a little dishonest, but it is not entirely certain that it is them. After all, once it is discovered that the secular regime hires an illegal group of ring magicians."

Miss Sylvia put down her teacup:

"The Inquisition of the Orthodox Church is no joke. Especially in the modern era when the epic poem is taking place, even if the mist of steam envelopes our civilization, the Inquisition is still the most terrifying institution."

"Hopefully this isn't the beginning of some big conspiracy."

Shade sighed and looked out the window with a frown. The clouds of war left the Old World decades ago, and only in peaceful times can the prosperity of the steam revolution be born. In the summer, there was a rebellion within the Cavendish family. Queen Diana was inexplicably assassinated in the street. Now, the death of the Earl of Carsonrick is related to the strange ring magician organization. It seems that some people are not willing to live in peace. era, and whether the smoke of war will ignite the Old World again is something that even outsiders cannot figure out.

All Friday morning, Shade stayed in the Owl Library talking to Miss Sylvia. This young witch with short black shawl hair has made great achievements in contemporary mathematical research. She has even published many papers as the first author. She also has a high reputation in ordinary academic circles. This is why she can The reason why he was hired by the royal family as a tutor for the princesses.

And talking about the topic of space thaumaturgy. Miss Sylvia also has brilliant insights and insights that go beyond Shade's vision. She is very accomplished in space thaumaturgy. A simple conversation can point out many of Shade's puzzles in the use of space power.

Of course, she couldn't figure out why Shade's "Rag's Leap" had a longer effect than an ordinary ring magician. As for the "Space Stabilizing Halo" thaumaturgy, she pointed out the key:

"Compared to thaumaturgy, this is actually more like some kind of wonderful magic. I suspect it comes from the ancient gods. Maybe after checking the data, we can find its origin."

Although Shade rejected the offer to become Miss Sylvia's apprentice, he was happy to communicate more with the great witch. The other party was willing to share knowledge with Shade, and even promised that when the group of them arrived in Tobesk, she could temporarily act as Shade's teacher and teach him some knowledge related to the power of witches.

Compared to Miss Carina and Miss Aurora, Miss Sylvia is indeed more of a scholar. She is extremely capable in speaking and doing things. Her appreciation of Shade does not come from his specialness, but because she thinks that Shade's logical thinking is like that of a scholar and mechanical engineer who has undergone rigorous training:

"If you don't become a ring wizard, but spend your life as an ordinary person, you can definitely contribute to the scientific development of this era."

This is extremely high praise.

Near noon, Miss Sylvia treated Shade to lunch in the Owl Library club, and then the two formally said goodbye. And in the morning, Shade was convinced that the great witch was not hostile to him, and even had a good impression of him, which made him feel relieved.

After leaving the Owl Club, Shade officially began to explore the legend of the "Lady of the Lake".

According to the information provided by Mr. Edmund of the Monastery and the vampire Mr. Bernhardt, the sighting records of the "Lady of the Lake" did not appear next to a specific lake, but appeared randomly in the city of Huntington and The Pantanal area is surrounded by numerous lakes.

Because of its proximity to the Pantanal, there are many large and small lakes in the west of Huntington, which is completely opposite to the low hills and plains covered with vineyards in the east. It was impossible for the city to expand to the swamp areas in the west. This resulted in the ancient West End of Huntington not being able to take advantage of the steam era, but it also retained the urban style of the old era.

Steam pipes run here, but the old buildings also highlight Huntington's glory in the old days. Torbesk is a real metropolis of the steam age, Cold Water Port is a paradise for adventurers, Fort Midhill is a mountain city, and Huntington is a mixture of vineyards, swamps, and steam, standing on the dividing line between the times. City.

Shade's first stop was not to rush directly to the lake outside the city to try his luck. Mr. Bernhardt contacted a local folklore professor who studied the legend of the "Lake Lady". At the same time, the other party claimed to have actually encountered the so-called "Lake Lady".

In fact, Bernhardt contacted more than one witness, but this one was the only one who was proficient in Delarian. Shade had no other choice. His Kassenric was not enough for him to communicate with the locals. It was a very long and professional conversation, and you should know that Miss Sylvia had been using Delarian just now.

“It seems like every time I arrive in a new city, my first stop is always the folklore professors.”

Shade in the carriage thought.

Professor Kansas Drake, whom Mr. Bernhardt introduced to Shade, is an old professor who has retired from a local university. Because he has never been married, he lives alone in a single-family house in the old town in the west of Huntington. It was not the typical street-facing apartment of the era, but a courtyard-style building with courtyards, gardens and detached warehouses, located in a dedicated residential neighborhood. Although the total ground area is not as large as that of No. 6 Saint Teresa Square, it is enough for an elderly person living alone.

Unlike the old folklore professors Shad had seen in the past who were obviously old but still energetic, Professor Kansas Drake, who once worked at Huntington College, had his legs disabled due to an accident and now can only sit Getting around in a wheelchair.

Therefore, when Shade took his business card and found the door of No. 21 on Green Algae Street in the West District of Huntington City and rang the bell outside the fence door, the person who opened the door for Shade was a fat maid in an apron.

Inside the fence are bushes that have been trimmed into squares, and behind the bushes is flat grass. Although Professor Drake's legs are disabled, it seems that his life is still comfortable and comfortable.