Holding the three pieces of paper Joshua handed him, Holme was immersed in reading. Joshua decided to give him space and, after being given a tacit approval from Holme, walked over to the sleeping infant girl.
“You’re not bringing her away?”
Ciri noticed the protrusion on the infant girl’s forehead. That does not resemble a human’s features.
“While raising children might sound like a beautiful thing to do, I am actually not prepared to raise children.”
Joshua extended his finger with the intention of touching the sleeping infant girl. But, after pondering for a brief moment, he gave up on that thought.
As Ciri was a human, she cannot detect the difference between the infant girl and Chaos Demons. But, the blood flowing in Joshua informed him that the infant girl was not a genuine Chaos Demon...
She was an existence similar to Chaos Demons. The only difference was that the magic power within her was not gray like that of the Chaos Demons.
The magic power within this little life had a bluish hue. While Joshua was looking at the infant girl, her hand moved slightly.
“There seemed to be... a magic inscription engraved on her arm?” Ciri immediately noticed the complicated insignia on the infant girl’s arm. It was like a tattoo on her arm.
“Which magic system’s rune inscription is this?”
Joshua attempted to identify the meaning behind the infant girl’s magic inscription runes. Unfortunately, with the magic knowledge he currently possess, the inscription only appeared to be a jumbled scrawl.
“I... don’t know either. I am able to recognize the rune inscriptions from the God of Flowing Waters and Healing and the God of Lighting and Punishment. I also know a bit about the Flames and Holy Light systems of magic. But, the rune inscriptions on her arm...” Ciri carefully searched through her memories. In the end, she shook her head helplessly.
Such an academic problem was indeed difficult for a live-combat mage like Ciri.
“It would seem that we’ll have to ask Gray Mage to come here to identify the rune inscriptions later.”
Joshua does not believe that an infant girl abandoned to the streets would have such a complicated inscription insignia on her body. Most likely, she was not an ordinary person.
“Should we ask him?” Ciri pointed at Holme who was sitting there and nervously watching Joshua’s every movement.
“No need. Dark elf Thousand Faces had gathered the intelligence already. The knowledge she gathered might even be more than what the infant girl’s adoptive father knew.”
Joshua took out a small bag of gold coins and tossed it to Holme. Holme extended his hand and firmly caught the bag of goin coins. Having mingled in Squirrel Street’s bottom rung all his life, it would be nowhere near enough if all he knew was gathering information.
Holme also looked to be an outstanding thief.
“There’re twelve gold coins in there. Use the money to treat your injuries. Also... I bet you don’t want that child to be malnourished either, right?” Joshua pointed to the infant girl sleeping in a rag-swaddle.
Holdme was holding the coin sack in one hand and the three papers in his other hand. He wanted to thank Joshua. However, Joshua gestured for him to stop.
“I look forward to your performance tomorrow.”
After leaving those words, Joshua pushed open the door to the room and left the tavern together with Ciri.
When Joshua walked out to Squirrel Street, it was already late into the night. A crow landed on the tavern’s roof. With its head crooked, it was staring at Joshua.
“Thousand Faces... who are you trying to have her keep a close watch over?”
Ciri immediately noticed the crow above the tavern.
The birds in Norland were mostly owls. It was practically impossible for one to catch sight of a wild crow in Norland. Because of that, if one was to see a crow in Norland, it was most definitely a certain dark elf’s transformation.
Joshua made a hissing gesture at Ciri. Then, he pulled her and proceeded to enter a store across from the tavern.
The shop belonged to the Black Dove. Their leader, the dark elf, had already informed them of Joshua’s arrival ahead of time. Because of that, Joshua and Ciri entered the shop’s second floor without any obstruction. On the second floor, Joshua could clearly see the tavern across and the alley next to the tavern.
Joshua and Ciri did not have to wait for long before a goblin appeared in the alley next to the tavern.
“That’s the goblin that fled,” Ciri recognized the goblin that was acting sneaky in the alley. But, this time around, Joshua’s target was not the goblin. Following the goblin was an individual wearing a white cloak.
Beneath the white cloak was a knight-like helmet and armor. The attire completely obstructed his appearance...
“He’s the employer of that goblin... The goblin is saying that the target that person wanted to find is here.”
Inside the alley, the goblin was gesturing with his hands and saying something to that figure. Joshua conveyed what was said to Ciri.
“You learned that from Thousand Faces?” Ciri took a glance at the crow above the tavern. It was using its claws to repeatedly tap at the air.
Although Ciri found it difficult to acknowledge, the crow was typing with its claws. At times, it would even use its beak.
It would appear that, for the sake of becoming an outstanding spy, the dark elf had practiced how to type and send messages as a crow.
“Mn,” Joshua nodded his head and continued to observe the tavern.
But, while Joshua and Ciri were discussing, it seemed like the white cloaked individual had noticed something. He immediately raised his head up and looked to the second floor of the shop across the street.
Joshua’s eyes crossed with the white cloaked individual. The moment that happened, a strange sort of sensation started rising in Joshua’s heart.
It was a feeling similar to how ‘Stand Users attract other Stand Users.’ Joshua was certain that the white-cloaked fellow had something to do with the Chaos Demons. But, he felt like that person was a human instead.
The moment that white-cloaked individual discovered Joshua, he decided to escape at once.
‘Thousand Faces, stop him from escaping!’
Joshua sent forth a command on the messenger. The crow standing on the roof of the tavern immediately changed back into the dark elf.
A bow appeared in the dark elf’s hand. In only a second, three arrows were shot forth. They struck at the ground below the white-cloaked individual’s feet!
The arrows caused the white-cloaked individual to halt his footsteps. When the dark elf was about to shout ‘Stop, don’t move!’ magic ripples swept through the entire alley.
The magic ripples ended up obstructing the dark elf’s field of vision. But, she pushed against the magic ripples and chased after the white-cloaked individual who had ran deep into the alley.
Joshua watched as the dark elf and her target disappeared into the alley. He immediately opened the windows and jumped down from the second floor. He planned to give chase.
“From the magic power that fellow unleashed, he is no ordinary mage,” Holding her staff, Ciri was following right behind Joshua.
Right after Joshua ran into the alley by the tavern, he found the dark elf standing at the end of the alley all alone... The ground on the alley’s end has been... completely destroyed.
It was like the ground was a cake and someone had used a heated knife to slice it open. Only a large opening remained. The opening was so neat and even that it was scary.
“My apologies... Your Highness Joshua,” The dark elf was leaning against a wall. Crimson blood covered her lower legs.
“He escaped?”
Joshua slowly walked to the end of the alley. He took a glance at the sliced up ground. It was connected to Norland’s sewer.
As for the sewer, it was connected to the dwarven mines. That fellow had escaped into Norland’s underground. Even if they were to dispatch people to track him down, they would not be able to catch him.
“How are your injuries?” Joshua walked over to the dark elf. It seemed like her leg was torn open by something.
“An injury like this could be easily recovered using the inquisitors’ power.”
Even though the dark elf considered the executioners from the Heresy Tribunal as her life’s enemies, she used the same power as the inquisitors... the gray mist.
During her normal day to day activities, she would conceal that power. Even the Blackwood Elves did not manage to detect the true form of her magic powers.
“Your Highness Joshua, that guy... is able to extinguish my magic,” While recovering her injuries with the gray mist, the dark elf revealed a shocking piece of information.
“He could extinguish the gray mist?” Joshua was startled. The dark elf tossed a knapsack to Joshua. There were several arrows stuck on the knapsack.
“He left this behind... Apart from this, I also noticed some strange inscription runes on his hand,” said the dark elf.
“...”
Joshua did not say anything. The reason for that was because his attention has been captured by the item inside the knapsack.
It was a palm-sized... slab.
The moment he touched the ‘slab,’ the vein lines on the slab suddenly started emitting a light blue light.
“Arcanotech device?” Ciri walked over and stared at the slab with complicated inscriptions on its back and emitting a strange image on its front.
“I’m not sure. That said, we’ll know once we bring it back to study it,” said Joshua.