Following the attendant to find the maid Tifa, as Xia De walked through the long, quiet corridor, he first considered how much Mia the carpet underfoot was worth, then realized that after meeting the King, he didn't have the thought of “I can replace him” like the protagonists in stories he had read before.
Not only was it because, compared to mysticism and those extraordinary powers, worldly power truly meant nothing. It was also because the study of Ring術士 was too time-consuming, and the King just now was still working at eight in the evening, and eight o'clock was not even the end.
The other party's tragic hairline clearly indicated how hard the King's profession was.
Having finally arrived in a different world, the Outsider wanted to see more of this magnificent and mysterious world, rather than spending his entire life at a desk.
After meeting with the maid Tifa, the two left Yodel Palace. But they did not immediately return to Saint Delan Square; instead, they took a carriage to retrieve the relic the Duchess had promised.
At the same time, Miss Vitter would also give the promised “white stone crystal” to Xia De.
In the carriage, Xia De retrieved his belongings. He also mentioned his conversation with Larus III, especially the last sentence. Miss Tifa Servett smiled after hearing that question and told Xia De not to worry about it:
“Those who hold power always believe everyone around them is a coveter; clearly, our King has not escaped this saying.”
The promised relic was placed in Miss Jialinna's large mansion in the suburbs. Although Xia De had received the address last time, this was his first time here.
This place was truly exceptionally eerie.
He watched out the carriage window the entire time and noticed that the closer they got to the mansion, the denser the surrounding fog became. Moreover, this fog was unlike the heavy fog in the city caused by exhaust emissions.
By the time the carriage stopped in front of the tall fence gate of the suburban mansion, the surrounding fog suddenly disappeared. Looking around, besides the dirt road the carriage had come from, they were surrounded by woods and wasteland, and further away, it was completely gray.
“This place is a bit like the homes of witches in stories.”
Of course, he only thought about it and didn't dare to voice his thoughts in front of the maid.
Since the owner of the mansion, Miss Jialinna, was not present, Xia De did not go inside but waited in the carriage. The maid Tifa quickly returned along the gravel path of the mansion's central axis. After she got into the carriage, the carriage immediately turned around and headed back.
Xia De looked at the mansion in the night from the carriage window and realized that not a single light was on inside. This strange situation increased his doubts about the place, but because he hadn't actually entered the mansion, the voice within him couldn't perceive any elements.
“Detective, this is what you wanted.”
While Xia De was lost in thought, Miss Vitter carefully opened the cloth bag in her hand. Wrapped in blood-stained yellow burlap was a grotesque stone mask, but it only had holes for the mouth; the eyes and nose were blocked.
Xia De's thoughts immediately returned. After blinking, Blood Echo activated, revealing the stone mask was covered in bloodstains.
“This is a keeper-level relic Miss has found for you, Detective. Do you want to guess its function?”
She asked, then handed the mask to Xia De. Because it was made entirely of stone, it was quite heavy. The stone surface was rough, and it even felt prickly to the touch:
“Does it turn humans into Vampires after wearing it?”
Xia De thought for a moment and said jokingly.
“No, this is the Secret keeper-level relic 【Another Face】. If you drip two drops of your blood onto each of the mask's two eyes, the user can then manipulate this face to make it fly. You share its vision, smell, and senses. The mask itself is extremely aggressive, possessing the ability to devour and digest, and whenever the mask devours any living creature, it will bring a temporary increase in strength and stamina to the holder.”
“What about the side effects?”
If only considering these effects, 【Another Face】 could be considered a perfect long-range offensive weapon.
“Once this mask is used, its connection cannot be severed unless the user dies. The user must control this mask to eat a living person every week, otherwise, it will lose control, forcibly attach itself to the back of the user's head, devour the user's soul, and manipulate the soulless corpse. Do not place it on the head of any creature, and when unsupervised, it must be wrapped in this burlap cloth. This cloth contains the blood of hundreds of devout church clergy, which is its containment condition.”
Perhaps a wheel ran over a stone, and the carriage jolted slightly:
“Detective, are you satisfied with this relic?”
She asked Xia De, also knowing that the relic's negative characteristics were almost unacceptable to normal people.
In the relatively confined space, Xia De could easily sense the maid's perfume. When she asked, she would instinctively lean forward, making the scent even more noticeable.
Although the relic's side effects were enormous, Xia De fully accepted them. He didn't need a weapon, but a one-time use item.
As long as he used this mask when there was an opportunity to absorb divinity, even if it wasn't successful, the mask would shatter from attempting to devour a god beyond its capabilities, so he wouldn't possess it indefinitely.
“Very satisfied.”
Upon hearing this answer, Miss Vitter showed a strange expression but didn't ask further.
“Also, this is the white stone crystal you wanted.”
She handed another yellowish-brown wooden box to Xia De. When he opened it, he saw it filled with straw, and in the center of the straw lay a smooth crystal the size of a goose egg.
It was white and translucent, with an uneven interior containing Floccules . It wasn't a standard oval sphere; its surface consisted of small pentagonal facets.
Xia De only glanced at it before closing the box. Although he couldn't find any information on “white stone crystal,” he understood that the other party had no need to deceive him:
“Then, Miss Servite, as the price for me obtaining this crystal, what do you need me to do?”
He hadn't forgotten that there was a price.
The maid, who was in the same carriage as Xia De, smiled. Because her lips were coated with a very light lipstick, this action made the lines of her lips even clearer:
“It's nothing difficult, and it has nothing to do with dangerous relics; it's my private matter. You see, recently I've been researching some unique potions.”
She reached her right hand into the pocket of her maid's dress, pulling out three small wooden vials, each the thickness of a thumb and similar in length to an ordinary pen, all identical in style but with different numerical codes engraved on their surfaces.
She shook her hand, and the small vials between her fingers immediately made the sound of liquid sloshing:
“I've probably succeeded, but I hope to find someone to help me...”
“No, I won't drink any potions of unknown origin.”
Xia De said, shaking his head. white stone crystal could be obtained from other sources, and he wasn't willing to risk trying some potion. Although the maid and Miss Jialinna were conditionally trusted by him for now, this didn't mean he would agree to anything without thinking.
And more importantly, he knew absolutely nothing about Tifa Servett's potion-making skills.