I loaded the Mysticism panel.

Chapter 144 Christmas Eve

The Williams family usually celebrates Christmas simply.

My father's factory only gave him three days off for Christmas, and my mother took care of the housework, carefully calculating every penny.

In previous years, the Christmas table only had a chicken, a vegetable soup, a few servings of mashed potatoes, and Christmas pudding baked by my mother.

In the corner of the living room, there would be a small fir tree less than a meter tall, with a few tin bells and some paper stars hanging on it.

The brother and sister each received a small gift.

In previous years, it was always new socks or a picture book; nothing of value.

This year is different.

Mother Margaret made the decision.

"This year's Christmas will be celebrated as a holiday."

The father stopped flipping through the newspaper.

What does "holiday-specification" refer to?

"Turkey, a full set of side dishes, new clothes, and a proper gift for everyone."

The mother closed the account book.

"Our family has the financial strength to do this this year."

Evelyn was sitting at the dining table peeling potatoes when she heard this. The potato slipped from her hand and hit the sink with a thud.

"Mom, are you serious?"

"Of course it's true."

The mother put the account book into the drawer.

"You two have worked hard this year. Richard hasn't had a single day off since he came back from the Cicero Cup."

Evelyn will also be preparing for her next year of school after the holiday.

"We're going to have a great Christmas this year."

So on the afternoon before Christmas, Evelyn rushed in from the gate of the yard, carrying a fir tree.

The fir tree was obtained by my father from a colleague at the factory.

The tree was as tall as an adult, with thick branches and full needles.

"Brother, come quick, help!"

Evelyn clung to the tree trunk, half her body buried in the needles.

Richard came out of the study, went to the yard, and took the tree from the house.

The tree was heavier than it looked, but thankfully his physical condition was different now. He used both hands to hug the trunk and carried it into the living room, moving with incredible speed.

The father moved the furniture in the living room to make room for a corner against the wall.

My mother brought down the Christmas decoration boxes that we had used in previous years from the attic.

The box contained a tin bell, paper stars, and several faded ribbons.

There is also a glass ball that was given to me by a distant relative years ago, with a small golden angel embedded inside.

On Christmas Eve, the turkey was taken out of the oven.

The whole turkey lay sprawled out on the long platter, its skin roasted to a deep caramel color.

The broth leaking from the cut, mixed with the aroma of mushrooms and basil, filled the entire living room.

The four people sat around the dining table, with light red wine poured into crystal glasses.

The parents filled their glasses to the brim, while the two children each had a finger's width of water poured in as a gesture.

"For this year."

The father raised his glass.

"For Richard," the mother said.

"For Evelyn," the father added.

"For Dad and Mom," the brother and sister said in unison.

After dinner is gift time.

Evelyn had been eyeing the cardboard boxes tied with red ribbons in the corner of the living room with a predatory look.

The mother took the first gift from under the tree and handed it to her.

"This is a gift from your father."

Evelyn opened the packaging.

Inside is a metal mold, heart-shaped, finely crafted with neatly forged edges.

"...Dessert molds?"

"Aren't you very interested in baking?" The father asked, taking a sip of tea.

Evelyn was overjoyed; she knew this meant her father had partially approved of her future plans.

She held the mold to her chest: "Thank you, Dad! I can make a heart-shaped loaf now!"

"Heart-shaped pudding is fine too," the mother said with a smile.

She took out her gift, a new woolen dress, deep red with a white lace collar.

"Try them on."

Evelyn ran back to her room to change her clothes, and a few minutes later came down the stairs, twirling around.

The red dress made her skin appear even whiter, and her gray eyes seemed more lively against the contrast of the dress.

Richard's mother gave him a well-made suit jacket.

"It was custom-made by your maternal grandfather; you probably can't buy it anywhere else."

Richard put on his coat.

The cut fits perfectly, and they even left room for extra height.

My father gave me a leather notebook with a clasp on the cover.

"The notebook in your bag is so worn out from being flipped around so much, I'll get you a new one."

"Thank you, Dad."

Finally, the brother and sister exchanged gifts.

Richard gave Evelyn a copy of "The Complete Book of Eastern Continent Desserts".

Evelyn mentioned a while ago that she wanted to learn some desserts from the Eastern Continent.

"In a bakery, it's rare to find someone who can make oriental-style desserts."

Richard handed the book over.

"When you open your own store in the future, you can take a differentiated approach."

Evelyn's eyes immediately lit up.

"Brother, how did you know I was thinking that?"

The gift she gave Richard was in a small cloth bag.

"It's not worth much money; I made it myself."

Inside the cloth bag were a pair of hand-knitted wool socks.

The stitches are much more even than Gray's scarf; the younger sister learned these from her mother from a young age.

"These are warmer than the ones I bought in the store," Evelyn added proudly.

………………

The 27th is the start date for my winter break internship.

Mr. Hutton had already informed us of the location in advance, and the train tickets would be reimbursed.

On the 25th and 26th, Richard was enjoying his Christmas holiday while packing all the things he needed to take with him in his bedroom.

He dragged the suitcase out from under the bed and placed it on the floor in the center of the bedroom.

The box was an old item my father used when he was on a business trip years ago. It looks quite old on the outside, but the lining is still relatively clean.

He placed the strange object at the very back.

He wrapped the Sphinx lamp in three layers of old flannel and placed it in the innermost corner of the box.

The lamp itself isn't very heavy, but the process of maintaining it must be continuous.

Mr. Hutton once said that from the day it was decided until the official signature, the daily nurturing was an essential course.

As the old man had instructed, the internship would take at least a week.

If you don't nurture the relationship for a week, a portion of the compatibility built up over the previous period will be worn away, which is counterproductive.

Carry the lamp with you and spend ten minutes each night before bed doing a gentle warming treatment; it means you won't miss any progress even when you're away from home.

He left the gargoyle on his desk.

He has practiced the triggering mechanism of the Stone Armor repeatedly over the past two months until he can operate independently of the gargoyle.

The gargoyle cane is necessary for beginners; you can discard it once you're proficient.

Carrying a gargoyle around would be a burden.

The middle shelf is used for storing miscellaneous items.

The copper dish, the bag of runes, and the wax sticks that Old Big gave me were placed on top, wrapped in an old handkerchief.

Reading wax and stone requires daily practice; the practice cannot be interrupted.

The silver needles were packaged separately in a long, rectangular kraft paper box.

The old needles come in sets of twelve, and he's used up three of them while practicing Moon Needle Technique.

Two needles had broken tips, one was bent, and the remaining nine were in pretty good condition.

Actually, during the winter break internship, with enchanted bullets as the main combat method, silver needles might not be necessary.

But silver needles take up almost no space in the box and don't add much weight.

It's better to have a box with you than to be completely without any other options.

If you encounter a low-level evil creature, and you don't need to use enchanted bullets but still have to take action, moon spikes are a much cheaper option than enchanted bullets.

Each needle fired consumes only a small amount of its own ether, and can be reused after the needle is retracted.

Firing enchanted bullets is a real waste of money; every six bullets used reduces the number available.

Richard pulled the notebook off the bookshelf and flipped to the pages containing his Moon Nail practice notes.

In the past week, his formation time has stabilized at two seconds, and his throwing distance is close to five meters.

This data isn't bad for a newcomer, and it's sufficient for practical use.

He hesitated for a moment before deciding to take the vial of deep etheric liquid that Prometheus had given him.

The condensate bottle is only about the size of a thumb, so you can't feel it at all when it's in your pocket.

The uses of this condensate, besides saving lives in critical moments, are as a catalyst for surgical procedures.

Stone Armor is a passive defense with a stable effect and does not require a catalyst.

Shadow Armor is applied actively, and its effect is positively correlated with the amount of Ether consumed.

During the initial stage, the total amount of ether that a newcomer can contribute to a single spell is limited.

If an entire bottle of deep ether condensate is injected as a catalyst during the spell, the intensity will be increased significantly.

Normal Shadow Armor only makes the target feel heavy, but Shadow Armor with added condensate catalyst may actually make the target be pressed to the ground.

If you can fixate on a target at a crucial moment, your fellow hunters or secret agents can seize those few seconds to do a lot.

This is the most valuable use of condensate bottles.

Carrying it on your person is like having a chance to "turn the tide for your team".

The top layer contains everyday items.

The appointment document for the trainee inspector was tucked into the inner lining of his wallet and kept close to his body.

This document is his only proof of legal possession of a gun; losing it would be a huge problem.

Webley's Type III military gear was wrapped in two layers of tarpaulin and placed on the outermost layer of the box for easy access.

Next to the gun case is a metal box for storing bullets.

The metal box is divided into two compartments: one compartment holds thirty ordinary bullets, and the other holds six single-ring enchanted bullets.

"Six shots, just enough for you to empty one magazine."

This is what old Big gave me at the time.

"Enchanted bullets are lifesavers in critical moments; use regular bullets as much as possible otherwise."

"Six enchanted bullets are enough for when you really need them."

Richard understood the other party's unspoken message: if six shots weren't enough to solve the problem, then no further help would be possible.

Five pounds in cash were stuffed into my wallet, and the change was kept separately in another small cloth bag for buying tickets, newspapers, and snacks.

After packing the entire suitcase, he picked it up and weighed it in his hand.

The heaviest gargoyle was missing, and the overall weight was much lighter than he had originally estimated.

His training at the fighting club this month paid off; he could carry this box for miles without feeling any strain.

………………

Richard was already awake at six o'clock on the morning of the departure.

Sleep management, facilitated by sleep, allows him to control his wake-up time.

He closed his eyes in bed and thought about today's departure time, and his consciousness automatically woke up his body.

It was still dark outside.

At six o'clock in the morning on a winter day, the sun is still a full two hours below the horizon.

Richard quietly got out of bed, dressed, and moved the suitcase he had packed the night before from the bedside to the door.

When he went downstairs, he found that there were already people in the living room.

The mother sat at the dining table with a plate of freshly baked bread and a pot of hot milk in front of her.

"Mom, you're up so early too?"

"I got up at 5:30."

The mother poured the milk into a cup.

"Eat quickly, or you'll get hungry on the train."

Besides bread and milk, there was a sandwich wrapped in parchment paper on the table, containing leftover slices of roasted turkey meat and cucumber from last night.

"I don't know if there's anywhere to eat on the bus."

The mother pushed the sandwich towards her.

"Put this in your pocket first."

"it is good."

My father came downstairs; he was already wearing his coat.

"It takes more than half an hour to walk from here."

The father's tone was very calm.

"I'll take you there."

"Dad, are you going too?"

"I won't feel at ease if I don't see you off."

Evelyn also ran downstairs in her slippers, her hair disheveled.

"Brother, wait for me! Wait for me!"