After the Tuesday meeting, Xia De's experiences over the past few days had been quite exciting. To summarize, there were probably four main things: the dream pen, Miss Jialinna's commission, the Sunlight Gun, and the rhode cards.
The incident of retrieving the relic, the dream pen of joy, with Miss Louisa, naturally didn't need him to recount. And as per their agreement, he also didn't mention his second meeting with Miss Jialinna or Miss Bei Ya Si's "Sunlight Gun," so he only shared the successful appraisal of Founding · Silver Moon.
Everyone was happy for the young Detective, but apart from Miss Annette, the others didn't understand the special nature of the "Founding" series of cards, so they simply regarded it as the Detective acquiring a very valuable treasure.
In the eyes of the others, the young Detective was a very good person; he deserved to have a large sum of money.
However, Priest Augustus, as an elder, cautioned Xia De not to easily fall into the habit of gambling with rhode cards. He had seen countless stories related to rhode cards in the church, and countless gamblers had confessed their sins in the confessional.
The Old Priest nervously said while wiping his pipe:
"Our Lord Mr. Dawn tells us that mortals must learn to restrain unnecessary desires, and gambling is one of them."
Regarding Mercury Blood, everyone tacitly avoided mentioning too much, but Xia De believed that, apart from Priest Augustus, who was truly unrelated to the matter, everyone had their own plans.
Miss Louisa and Doctor Schneider were after the forged philosopher's stone, and Miss Annette was after Miss Bei Ya Si.
During Doctor Schneider's time in bed, he also obtained some information through his own channels. In addition to what Miss Louisa had mentioned about Mercury Blood breaking up into smaller units, he also mentioned that the Church was preparing a major operation against the Cultists who worshipped the Blood Feast Lord.
And Miss Annette also received some news from the Prophet Association.
According to her, Cultists are mostly abnormal, which is why they firmly believe in the abnormal doctrines of evil gods. For example, followers of the Blood Feast Lord believe that becoming food on the evil god's table is the best way to be with God.
The Cultists still hadn't given up on the idea of having the evil god descend, but after the failure of the Lakeview Manor incident, they abandoned directly summoning the evil god's main body to Tobesk. Instead, they prepared a mortal vessel for the evil god's descent, allowing him to come to this era in the form of a saint.
"Let me guess, the mortal vessel is Mr. Lawrence."
Xia De said, and Miss Annette looked at the Detective with some surprise:
"You could even guess that?"
Xia De shook his head. He merely connected the clues he had:
"It's not surprising at all, otherwise, it can't explain why Mrs. Lasoya went to such lengths to approach him. Last time, the college said that ring was called the Metamorphosis Ring. Although the relic did distort his preferences, to be honest, a greasy middle-aged man like Mr. Lawrence doesn't look like he could attract women, especially since Mercury Blood isn't short on money."
He thought of the tragically deceased Mrs. Lawrence, pursed his lips, and continued:
"Moreover, recently, because of a commission, I got in touch with the police department and heard about the Lawrence family's affairs. It's not hard to guess that Mr. Lawrence, who was abducted, is the vessel prepared for the evil god."
Mr. Lawrence's date of birth, personality, age, physique, and what is called his soul in the field of mysticism, all met the conditions to become the evil god's vessel. After being artificially given medication to make him a bulimic patient, he became the chosen candidate for the god's descent, prepared by the Mercury Blood organization for the Cultists.
Furthermore, using the method of summoning a saint for divine descent is much easier than directly summoning the evil god's main body, and it has less impact. Therefore, the Church has recently intensified its screening efforts to ensure that no second divine descent ritual appears in the Tobesk Diocese.
Xia De, the Doctor, Miss Louisa, and Miss Annette provided information about the Cultists, while Priest Augustus provided information about the Orthodox Church.
"Next week, the Sun Church's Thirteen Ring Sorcerer, Mr. Hogg Lundell, the Sunlight Greatsword, will arrive in the Tobesk Diocese. At that time, the Five Gods Church will conduct a joint operation to round up the Cultists, and then slowly deal with the Mercury Blood scattered throughout the City."
"Is that Lundell? I thought it would be the 'Sun Emblem'."
Miss Annette said, while Miss Louisa quietly told Xia De that these two were the Sun Church's Thirteen Ring Sorcerers of the current era. The former was famous for his divine art, Sunlight Greatsword, while the latter was a female who specialized in Miracles and divine arts based on the "Emblem" system.
"The 'Sun Emblem' recently went to the New World to handle some matters, seemingly related to a relic of the Sun God."
Priest Augustus's information was truly very well-informed.
"Then what about the original Thirteen Ring Sorcerer of the Tobesk Diocese? I remember he was called the 'Steel Right Hand'."
Xia De also joined the inquiry.
"I'm not too sure about that. The Creation Church has sealed off the news. But it's said he's tied up with troublesome matters. An angel-level relic (Level 1) has gone out of control in a small town near Tobesk, and the Creation Church has been busy with that recently."
The Priest shrugged, and seeing Xia De's surprised expression, he added:
"Although such things don't happen often, once every few years is considered a normal frequency. This world has never been peaceful."
After Miss Louisa finished sharing about the containment of the "dream pen of joy" incident, she and Xia De spoke about their battle with the merman last night. The others regretted that they hadn't obtained more clues about Mercury Blood, but regarding that scale, everyone had many interesting opinions.
Because the others hadn't experienced anything worth mentioning this week, the topic somehow shifted to politics.
They jointly discussed the topic of the next heir to the Delarion Kingdom and believed that the current king's numerous children would inevitably lead to a battle for succession decades later. Miss Louisa had excellent insights on this issue; she was very knowledgeable about the royal family's secrets.
The conversation then turned to the scenery of the Carson Rick United Kingdom. The Doctor spoke of his experiences when he attended an academic conference in Carson Rick in his youth, mentioning the sea view of the southern kingdom; Miss Annette preferred Carson Rick's primeval forests, believing that staying in such an environment for a long time was good for the skin; Miss Louisa had a special fondness for the vineyards of the southern kingdom, stating that her biggest dream was to own her own vineyard.
As the conversation progressed to the winter exhibition in Atek City, the country's art capital, and then drifted to Princess Diana's ribbon-cutting ceremony next week, the time finally arrived for the professors of the college.
It was still the same ritual Xia De had used at home before. The ritual required people to sit in the four chairs—east, west, south, and north—when it began. This time, Professor Röntgen from Saint Byron's School of Theology and Professor Garcia from the History Academy were coming, and since the Doctor couldn't leave his bed, Miss Louisa and Miss Annette, being higher-grade students, occupied two chairs.
The Doctor's bedroom was large, with curtains drawn. A basin of water and chairs were placed on the round white embroidered carpet between the desk and the four-poster bed. When Xia De, checking his pocket watch, announced that the time had come, the golden-haired Writer immediately lit the parchment and threw it into the basin.
A blue glow diffused across the water. With the appearance of two beams of light, the transparent bodies of Professor Röntgen, a somewhat stout man wearing a wig, and Professor Garcia, whose ears were a bit pointed, appeared in the chairs.
"Professor Röntgen, Professor Garcia."
The five people respectfully greeted them, and the two professors also smiled and nodded.
Vice Dean Hessenger Garcia of the History Academy had come specifically for Xia De, so after responding to the greetings, he said nothing more.
Professor Röntgen coughed, and his transparent hand picked up a piece of parchment from the air. Unfolding it, he said:
"Without further ado, I will now read the college's report on the Lakeview Manor incident. Cough, cough—"
"The investigation into the Lakeview Manor incident of Sunlight Moon, sixth epoch 1853, has been completed. The School of Theology and the School of Mathematics dispatched two associate professors to the Tobesk Diocese to verify the incident site and confirm your investigation report."
Xia De was a little nervous, as there were significant issues with the report. But he noticed that Priest Augustus, who stood beside him, and the two ladies facing the professors were not nervous at all, which made him suspect that they frequently falsified reports.
"The investigation report is largely true, with some vague details awaiting confirmation from the Orthodox Church."
Professor Röntgen said, looking at the five people—the one on the bed, the ones on the chairs, and the ones standing—his walrus-like face broke into a smile:
"Gentlemen and ladies, I am very pleased to see that you, having gone through such an incident, are safely before me."
The Doctor quickly coughed.
"Of course, regarding Bill Schneider's injuries, the School of Chemistry has provided a batch of magical potions to heal mental damage. But I must warn you, never use Sublimation Words lightly. Next time, you might not be able to endure it."
As he said this, the Professor looked at the Doctor, his tone becoming somewhat serious. The Doctor nodded weakly, but Xia De felt he was even more "weak" now than before the professors appeared, not at all like his active self when debating economic topics with everyone just now.
"Regarding the reward for practical credits, it was already responded to on Tuesday, so I won't elaborate here. As a side note, Miss Dorothy Louisa, you have completed your fourth-year practical credits. If you intend to participate in the promotion assessment at the end of this year, please advance to PentaCircle as soon as possible."
Miss Louisa smiled:
"Okay, Professor, I think that shouldn't be a problem. The Sublimation Words based on the 'match girl' are ready, and I plan to advance to PentaCircle in the autumn."
Professor Röntgen nodded:
"Additionally, after the college's investigation and verification of the situation you faced at the time, it is believed that your group made extraordinary and outstanding contributions. Therefore, in addition to the credit reward, your group will be awarded a special contribution bonus within Saint Byron's, 1000 pounds."
Xia De's eyes widened slightly, and he held his breath. Sure enough, Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, being of the good alignment, would give exceptional rewards for acts of "saving the world."
Professor Röntgen knew that Xia De was a newly enrolled Ring術士, so he specifically explained:
"This money can only be used for Ring術士 studies and only for expenses within Saint Byron's College. It can be considered a voucher with a value of 1000 pounds, valid for one year, and only usable at Saint Byron's."
Xia De knew the prices at the college, so his excitement slightly subsided. Unexpectedly, the Professor's gaze left him and turned to the others, warning:
"In principle, this money cannot be cashed out, but I know you will play many tricks. These are not my concern, but I must warn you, remember not to go too far. If the college's year-end accounts don't match, those people in the accounting department will come looking for trouble."
Only then did Xia De realize that the people here were not law-abiding individuals.