Mystery: Good Witch

Chapter 1407 The Beginning of an Ordinary Day

Christina was awakened by the sudden sound of a horn outside her window.

She scrambled out of bed, went to the window and looked at the now bustling Daffodil Street. She saw that the steam-powered vehicle, belching smoke and vibrating, had slowly driven away. She pouted, closed the window and drew the curtains, preparing to go back to bed for a while longer.

Anyway, it's the weekend, no school today... she muttered to herself.

But then, a fragrant aroma, a mixture of heated oil and roasted egg whites, wafted into the bedroom.

Mom had prepared breakfast... She hesitated for a moment, glanced at the bed, and finally sighed, folded the blankets, and went to the bathroom on the second floor.

When the light was turned on, a face appeared in the mirror, with messy, light blonde hair and dull, lifeless purple eyes that looked like it hadn't woken up yet.

She immediately smoothed her hair, rubbed her eyes, straightened her back, and struck a more flattering pose in the mirror.

Although she is only 13 years old this year, good nutrition and the height inherited from her mother have made Christina the most eye-catching girl in the school.

When will this place be like Mom's...? She gestured to her chest with her hand, then shook her head violently, washed her face with cold water to clear her head.

After washing up and changing out of her nightgown, Christina picked out a casual dress from the closet and put it on before leaving her bedroom again. As she passed her sister Dorothy's room, she held her breath, listening intently to the sounds inside, and then gently pushed the door open.

She was still asleep... A smile appeared on her lips, and her steps became lighter as she went downstairs.

Christina followed the aroma of breakfast to the dining room, which was connected to the kitchen. She found her mother, with her long hair tied back and wearing an apron, busy in the kitchen, the smell of fried eggs wafting from her. Her father sat at the table, holding a metal box with two metal supports extending from its exterior, an uneven surface, and large circular outlines on both sides.

That was a radio the family had recently bought. It could receive wireless signals from the huge iron tower in downtown Tingen and convert them into lifelike human voices, transmitting all kinds of real-time information.

At that moment, a deep male voice, tinged with a slight hissing noise, was emanating from the speakers on both sides of the radio. Seeing Christina peek out from the doorway, Klein Moretti, dressed in a shirt and vest with neatly combed black hair, turned a knob on the radio, making the sound much louder.

"...The cell tower network around Tingen has been completed. Starting next week, residents of Ramde, Morse, and other areas will be able to listen to four radio channels, including 'Tingen News,' along with the citizens of Tingen, and will be able to attend science lectures given by several professors from the University of Tingen on weekends..."

"...The railway speed-up across the kingdom is nearing completion. The travel time from this city to Backlund by steam train will be reduced from 4 hours to 2 hours and 30 minutes, and fares for seats other than first class will also decrease by 20%..."

"...Professor Melissa from Backlund University of Technology published a groundbreaking paper last week, proposing a method for building artificial aircraft based on aerodynamic principles. Perhaps in the future, each of us will be able to get rid of bulky airships and soar through the sky..."

Hearing this, Christina exclaimed in surprise, sat down at the table, and asked curiously:
"Are you talking about Aunt Melissa?"

“It must be her,” Klein nodded, turned down the radio volume, and continued, “She discussed this technology with us when she came to Tingen last month.”

"Dad, you know about these things too?"

Christina stared wide-eyed at her father in disbelief.

She had always thought her parents were just employees of a security company that searched for antiquities, doing jobs that required experience but weren't very technical. She never imagined that they would be able to discuss such academic issues with her Aunt Melissa, who taught at the Technical University of Backlund.

"Of course, your father was the first college student in the family, a few years before Melissa."

Before Klein could answer, Christina heard a soft voice in her ear. She turned around and saw her mother, Angel Granger, bringing fried eggs, bacon, toast, and vegetable salad to the table, smiling as she spoke.

I know it's the history department at Hoy University, but my aunt graduated from the university in Backlund... Christina muttered to herself, without showing it on her face, and took the plate to help serve and plate the food.

Seeing that she didn't ask any more questions, Klein continued, somewhat reluctantly:
"In fact, this idea was first proposed by Emperor Russell, but at the time there was a lack of technology to realize it. It wasn't until two years ago that a... genius invented an internal combustion engine that could run on alcohol to replace the cumbersome steam engine, and the idea of ​​an airplane finally had a chance to be realized."

He put down the radio, patted Christina's head, and said in a lecturing tone:

“Tina, this tells us that no technological achievement can be accomplished by one person or a small group of people. Even your Aunt Melissa, whom you admire, cannot be proficient in all fields and needs to rely on the inventions and creations of others to make her research progress further.”

“But…” Christina glanced at her mother, who had stopped what she was doing and was looking at her. Under her expectant gaze, she swallowed back the words that she instinctively wanted to say in response, and changed her words, “…But Rosell invented a lot of things himself, including the airplane you mentioned.”

That's because he stood on the shoulders of giants.

Klein said something cryptic, then looked at Angel, and the two of them laughed, leaving Christina completely bewildered.

Fortunately, her desire for breakfast made her quickly put the matter out of her mind, and she laid out breakfast in four portions, including her own, her parents', and her sister Dorothy's, who was coming upstairs.

The latter is a year older than Christina, 14 years old this year. She inherited her father's black hair and brown eyes, and is a little thinner than her sister. Her face shape is somewhat similar to Melissa, who occasionally comes back to Tingen to visit.

She also looked tired, as if she hadn't slept enough the night before. It wasn't until she smelled the aroma of breakfast that she seemed to wake up, sat down at her seat, picked up her glass of yellowish-white beverage, took a sip, and asked in surprise:
"Isn't this milk?"

Hmm? Christina also picked up the cup with a puzzled look and took a sip of the warm liquid that smelled of beans. It was sweet and a bit thicker than milk.

"This is soy milk, made from soybeans and water, and coffee beans..."

Klein, having put the radio down and sat back down at the table, explained. Seeing that he was about to launch into a lecture, Tina and Dorothy exchanged a glance and spoke in unison:

"we know!"

Klein, annoyed by being interrupted by his two daughters, shut up and began to eat his breakfast. After a moment, he changed the subject and began praising Angel's cooking:

"The soft-boiled egg was fried perfectly."

Christina felt the same way. In her home in Tingen, she couldn't see the hustle and bustle of the big city or experience any new and exciting things. The only thing she was quite satisfied with was the food.

Not only my mother, but my father was also quite good at cooking, and he liked to make some strange dishes that you could never buy or even hear about outside.

It was like they were experimenting on me and Dorothy, but the results were pretty perfect... She took a big bite of the perfectly toasted bread with the egg and bacon sandwiched between them, then finished her soy milk with relish. Just as she was about to pour herself another cup, she suddenly heard Klein say:
"Angel and I are going on a long trip this morning and will probably be back in the evening."

Dorothy, who was quietly enjoying her breakfast with a knife and fork, looked up at her father and asked:

"Work-related matters?"

“Yes, I was only notified last night,” Angel replied, having quickly finished breakfast and continuing to work in the kitchen. “I will prepare sandwiches in advance, and you can also go to Silver Crown Restaurant to order a takeaway lunch.”

"Won't anyone come to look after us?" Dorothy immediately pressed. "I mean the red-haired uncle who came to our house when you were away on your trip last time."

She was referring to Mr. Medici.

Christina added to her sister's description, the image of a woman in a multicolored shirt with an open collar and fiery red hair flashing in her mind.

That day left a deep impression on her.

“So it was him…” Angel stopped wrapping the sandwich, turned to look at her two daughters, and her lips twitched slightly. “He won’t come today, and he won’t come again.”

—Hidden by the bedroom window, watching her parents leave the house, board a hired carriage, and depart from Narcissus Street, Christina finally breathed a sigh of relief and drew the curtains.

She arrived at the corridor that connected all the rooms on the second floor and found that her sister's bedroom door was still closed. She guessed that her sister might be reading, so she felt relieved and tiptoed downstairs to the dimly lit basement, where she fumbled for the light switch.

Under the light, rows of shelves reaching to the ceiling were neatly arranged, two wooden boxes were placed in the corner, an extra chimney was covered by a trapdoor, and the stone table was full of bottles and jars of various shapes.

The environment, which should have been covered in dust due to dampness and lack of use, appeared quite clean, suggesting that it hadn't been cleaned for long.

This also puzzled Christina. Unlike their neighbors, her family didn't hire maids to clean regularly, and her parents took turns doing laundry and cooking. Logically, it would be difficult to keep a two-story townhouse with a basement clean.

But Klein and Angel did it; they not only kept the housework in order but also didn't seem flustered.

I had a feeling they secretly hired a few maids to sneak into the house and clean after Dorothy and I fell asleep, and then leave before sunrise... It was hard to imagine my parents scrubbing the toilet by hand... Christina had an unlikely guess pop into her head.

How could that be? Unless those female workers were rats in disguise, hiding in the roof or sewers during the day and turning back into human form at night... She chuckled self-deprecatingly, walked around several shelves displaying jam, durable food, or unused tools, and came to a corner of the basement that seemed far too spacious compared to the ground floor. She then lifted the lid of a wooden box.

Hidden inside the box was a palm-sized golden kettle, gleaming alluringly under the light.

It's really here... Could it be, as shown in my dream, that it can grant me one of my wishes?
Christina, unable to contain her excitement, took out the golden water jug ​​and placed it on the stone platform next to her. She examined it for a while, confirming that the object in front of her, with its shape, intricate patterns, and a wick protruding from its spout, was the "wishing lamp" she had dreamed of many times.

She took a deep breath, gently stroked the smooth surface of the lamp, and called out a name:
"The Genie".

With a whoosh, a flame seemed to emerge from the wick of a golden teapot, its light viscous and flowing like water. As if it had been waiting for a long time, it surged upwards and quickly formed a blurry, distorted, and somewhat dim figure.

The figure was the size of a normal human, but it floated in the air, shaking its head and looking around. Then its gaze locked onto Christina, and a look of surprise appeared on its indistinct face.

Sure enough, there was a genie, and he looked almost exactly like the one who granted my wish in my dream, except he wasn't wearing a crown... Christina smiled and was about to bow her head and make a wish like the protagonists in various novels when she heard the blurry figure of the "genie" speak in a majestic and authoritative voice:
"You summoned me, so you must grant me one wish."

Christina opened her mouth in astonishment, and after a long while, she managed to squeeze out a sentence:

"Shouldn't you be the one to fulfill my wish?"

She felt cheated!
“That is indeed the case normally,” the genie replied immediately, with a lighthearted, teasing tone, “but my previous owner is still alive. He has already exhausted all wishes, so if you make a wish now, you might be in mortal danger.”

"I can only grant your wish if you grant mine first; it's an exchange of equal value."

This is practically the kind of evil being that deceives the protagonist in novels... No, even that kind of being would throw out bait to lure me in first, why would they ask me to help them first... Christina pouted and shook her head:

"Never mind then, how should I get you back?"

As she spoke, she reached out and touched the faint flame at the mouth of the magic lamp pot, as if she wanted to extinguish it.

"Wait, aren't you going to bargain?" the genie exclaimed, his majestic and imposing aura vanishing in an instant. "What I mean is, you should help me with some small things first, and then you can receive a generous reward, such as a wish that is within my power."

The blurry figure waved his arms, seemingly trying to prevent the flame that allowed him to reveal himself from going out.

That sounds more reasonable… Christina pondered for a moment, then cautiously asked:

"What do I need to do for you? It's not about killing someone, making a sacrifice, or offering a large sum of gold, is it?"

"My family doesn't have much money; we can't even afford to hire a maid for odd jobs..." she added to herself.

“No need for that. Just take me to a few places and uncover some of their secrets,” the genie replied quickly, as if worried that the girl in front of him might change her mind. “If you’re quick, it can be done in a day.”

I just happen to have a day... What a coincidence! Does the genie know that Mom and Dad went out today? Christina was a little confused, but the recurring dream and her inner desires eventually overwhelmed her caution, and she picked up the little magic lamp.

"I hope you will keep your promise, otherwise... otherwise I will hand you over to the archbishop of the 'Fool' Church!"

She spoke to the figure that was still floating in the air.

This statement seemed to have a great impact on the genie, especially when he heard "the Church of Fools," his whole body trembled.

"Of course, once you've finished this, I won't be bound anymore. Not just one wish, I can have three, no problem."

He answered earnestly, then disappeared back into the golden lamp, where a wisp of bluish-white smoke rose from the spout and went out.

At the same time, Christina also had a vague location in her mind. She recalled the map of Tingen and found that it was a place in the North District, not far from Narcissus Street, and could be reached quickly by public carriage.

While my sister is still reading, I'll go over there right now... Her hesitation was gradually replaced by a sense of excitement. She turned off the basement light, walked up the wooden stairs, and pushed open the hidden door at the end of the stairs.

A somewhat thin figure stood in front of the basement exit, legs apart, hands on hips, glaring at her angrily.

“Arods wasn’t lying to me after all,” Dorothy said sternly, her face puffed out. “Tina, what were you doing in the basement?”

Although it was a question, her gaze lingered on the golden lamp her sister was holding, as if she already knew what the latter was doing.

Christina's heart skipped a beat at her sister's sudden appearance and stern questioning, but she quickly recovered, a mocking smile playing on her lips, and said:
"I'm planning to run away from home."

Ah—Dorothy's face looked like it had an exclamation mark written on it.

"why?"

She asked eagerly.

"because……"

Christina smiled mysteriously, leaned close to her sister's ear, and whispered a few words.

Immediately, the surprise on Dorothy's face faded, turning into a gloomy expression, and finally into a resolute look.

She glanced at Christina, then walked away quickly without a word, running up to the second floor. A moment later, when she returned to the basement door, she had changed into casual clothes and was holding a silver mirror with an antique design, strange patterns on the edges, and black gemstones on both sides.

"Let's go, I'll go with you."

She said.

P.S.: There's an event in the book club, remember to participate, it ends tonight.

(End of this chapter)