I made up magic and taught a world-destroying witch?

Does Grey Pigeon Town actually have a proper patrol system?

The tavern waitress didn't think much of it and carried a plate of rye bread and hot soup toward Joseph's seat.

"Professor Grantham, you're awake? The Chamber of Commerce said they'll put breakfast on their tab, please don't be shy."

Just then, footsteps came from the stairs, and Mia came down. She was clearly not fully awake, with a few strands of her red hair sticking up.

She rubbed her eyes and only sobered up a bit after walking down two steps and seeing Joseph.

Good morning, sir.

"morning."

Mia walked to the table and sat down. Just as she picked up a piece of bread, she heard someone slam their hand on the table next to her.

"I'm telling you, that must be a blessing from the gods!"

Mia tilted her head, half a loaf of bread in her mouth.

"A blessing from the gods?"

Joseph glanced at her, and Mia looked back at him with a puzzled expression.

"Something happened in Grey Pigeon Town last night."

"What is it?"

"It is said that the gods have been restored."

Mia: "Huh?"

She was probably still half asleep, with half a piece of bread in her mouth, her eyes gradually widening.

Looking at her expression, Joseph suddenly felt that the scene was quite in line with the overall atmosphere of Grey Pigeon Town this morning.

Everyone looked completely bewildered.

Joseph took a sip of the soup and thought it tasted alright, but the people here might not be very bright.

He only wanted to know one thing: the reward promised by the Dwarf Merchant Guild, he hoped it wouldn't be lost because of this absurd rumor of divine resurrection.

Fortunately, the pay hadn't recovered yet, and halfway through the meal, the man with goggles from yesterday showed up.

After a night of commotion, he looked even more tired than yesterday, with dark circles under his eyes, but he was still surprisingly energetic.

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"Professor Grantham, Miss Taylor." The man in goggles approached the table, his manner very polite.

"Miss Penny has returned and wishes to thank you both in person. Also, the exhibition area outside the Ministry of Works Square is almost ready, and the Chamber of Commerce's carriage is waiting outside if you would like."

"Okay," Joseph said.

Mia quickly swallowed the last bite of bread. She had just gotten the low-magic axle running at a low load using the furnace light yesterday. Now that she heard she was going to see the exhibition area, she was already looking forward to it, even though she wasn't fully awake yet.

Joseph felt a little helpless looking at her like this.

It's good to be young; you can wake up one night and feel that the world is worth looking forward to again. Unlike him, the first thing he wants to hear when he wakes up is that the world has exploded.

The dwarf merchant guild's carriage stopped outside the tavern, and they soon arrived at the temporary exhibition area outside the Ministry of Works Square.

As soon as the carriage stopped, a young woman, shorter than an average human girl but much taller than a pure dwarf, walked over from the side of the exhibition area with a smile.

She had light brown hair, which was obviously tied into a short braid for convenience while working. She wore a monocle on the bridge of her nose, with the lens edge fastened to her collar by a thin metal chain. Her clothes were exquisitely tailored, and every pocket seemed to have a practical purpose. She also had a small notebook and a short charcoal pencil hanging from her waist.

The moment Joseph saw her, a question popped into his head.

Do dwarfs have some kind of obsession with glasses?

Yesterday, that man in goggles practically framed his eyes like glass beads, and today Penny is wearing a monocle. If this trend continues, will the Dwarf Merchant Guild's entrance exam actually include a section on eyeglass fit?

The young woman walked up to the two men, smiled, and gave them a slight bow.

"Professor Grantham, Miss Taylor."

"I'm Penny, the agent for the Dwarf Merchant Guild in the capital and Grey Pigeon Town area. I've already heard about what happened last night from Holm. Thank you very much for your help, Miss Taylor."

Joseph then learned that the man in the goggles was named Holm. His name was normal, and he was a normal person, except his imagination ran wild.

Penny looked at Mia, her smile softening slightly.

"Miss Taylor, you saved the Chamber of Commerce from a very troublesome exhibition yesterday. Please allow me to formally thank you."

Mia seemed unaccustomed to this kind of situation and said somewhat hesitantly:

"I just took a look for you."

"Often, figuring out where the problem lies is more important than fixing it," Penny said.

Penny took a small wooden box from the dwarf merchant behind her. Inside were two money pouches and a thank-you letter stamped with the merchant's seal.

"This is the reward for the temporary disassembly and inspection of the low-magic axle last night."

Penny pushed one of the money bags toward Mia and the other toward Joseph.

"In addition, this letter of thanks will also be copied to the Royal Academy and the Imperial Capital Office of the Dwarf Merchant Guild."

Joseph had intended to say that a thank-you note was unnecessary.

He originally only wanted to buy a few high-end-looking low-magic detectors at a discount from the Dwarf Merchant Guild, then put them on the experimental tower table to fool the association's review a month later.

His life is already difficult enough; we can't just add more layers to it.

He took the money bag, and... it was quite heavy.

Joseph suddenly realized that the Dwarf Merchant Guild was indeed a very reasonable organization.

After all, anything that translates into improved quality of life is a form of self-respect.

Mia looked down at the money pouch in front of her and asked softly, "Is this for me? Or for my dad's shop?"

Penny said with a smile, "You signed your own name yesterday."

Mia didn't say anything for a moment.

She looked at the purse, her fingers twitching as if she wanted to touch it but was hesitant. She used to help out at her father's shop and received wages, but those were more like pocket money from her family or snacks her father casually slipped to her.

This was the first time an outsider had placed a reward in front of her based on her own judgment, saying it was for Mia Taylor.

Mia's ears slowly turned red, and she whispered, "Thank you."

Penny smiled even more gently and said to them:

"The exhibition area is already being prepared for display. If you two don't mind, shall I take you over to take a look?"

The exhibition area was very lively.

Besides the Dwarf Merchants Association's own booth, there were also booths from local guilds and some temporary stalls that were clearly just trying to ride the wave of popularity.

Some stalls were selling black candle sachets similar to those from the Scrap Portal, claiming that burning them could ward off heretics. Joseph stood in front of the stall and smelled them, thinking that the only people that stuff could probably ward off were normal customers.

Some people have even started selling lamps modeled after those used in the "Gods' Revival" series, with a wooden sign hanging next to them that says "Buy two lamps and get a free lucky dove feather pendant."

Joseph was speechless when he saw the sign.

Do the people here have an unusually sharp business sense?

Penny followed his gaze and said with a smile:

"The merchants in Grey Pigeon Town are always like this. Yesterday they were selling discarded portal souvenir stones, and today they're selling divine revival lamps. People who are slow to react won't make money here."

After saying that, Penny added casually, "So I don't want to be too slow to react."

Joseph glanced at her.

Penny didn't continue immediately, but led them to the Dwarf Merchant Guild's booth.

In the middle is the low-magic axle from last night, with several layers of protective frames added around it, and next to it is a small mechanical forging hammer.

The moment Mia saw that thing, her attention was immediately drawn to it.

Penny smiled as she watched her reaction.

"Miss Taylor can go and take a look. Holm already told me about your temporary disassembly and inspection process yesterday. Your judgment on the buffer plate was very accurate."

The goggles-wearing man following behind, Holm, immediately nodded.

Mia was a little embarrassed, but she couldn't help following Holm toward the booth to take a look.

The low-magic axle is connected to the side of the mechanical forging hammer, and the gray-blue crystal core is embedded in a metal frame. Several copper wires are connected to the buffer box next to it, which does look quite realistic.

Of course, Joseph couldn't understand it, but that didn't matter. It didn't matter as long as he didn't show it on his face.

Penny then walked to his side and whispered, "Professor, Buck was rescued last night."

Joseph's heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained unchanged.

"How are your missing craftsmen?"

"Not good, but alive."

Penny said:

"He wasn't the only one trapped; there were also dockworkers, cargo apprentices, and someone the patrol team thought had gone gambling a few days ago."

Joseph paused for a moment. Although he didn't really want to ask, he guessed that Penny would continue talking once she got Mia out of the way, regardless of whether he replied or not.

Sure enough, Penny continued:

"Someone used my name to trick Buck away, saying that the low-magic axle needed a final private calibration before the demonstration."

Penny's smile faded.

"Buck disappeared after taking his tools there. When he woke up, he was already under the ruined portal."

Joseph remembered the silver powder in the low-magic axle last night.

"Where's the silver powder inside the axle?"

"It's not a chamber of commerce procedure."

Penny answered quickly.

"Silver powder is used in some low-magnitude conductive structures, but it would never be pressed under the grease layer in that way. Someone wanted the axle to break before the exhibition."

Joseph sighed inwardly.

Sure enough, the after-sales dispute turned into an accident investigation, the accident investigation turned into sabotage, and now the sabotage has even brought up a missing person case.

Isn't this plot development a little too predictable? Is he a jinx?

He's just here for off-campus training, not to pick up the Grey Pigeon Town side quest collection.

Penny continued:

"The church knights discovered a blasphemous ritual in the old passage beneath the abandoned portal."

"A blasphemous ritual?"

"The church's version of events."

Penny said, "The specifics are still unclear, but judging from the reactions at the scene, it's not a good thing."

That's as good as saying nothing at all.

That's understandable, though. Penny isn't a member of the church, so it's quite a lot that she knows all this.

Penny whispered:

"The Church has already intervened, and the Royal Academy and the Magic Association will be notified soon."

Joseph's eyelids twitched slightly.

Penny seized the opportunity and continued:

"Therefore, the Dwarf Merchant Guild hopes to conduct a joint observation with your project under the guise of using low-magic mechanical aids to observe new magic."

Joseph immediately wanted to refuse.

What does this have to do with joint observation?

Doing this is no different from tying lead weights to his escape plan. He doesn't want to do so many unnecessary things that will hinder his future ability to monetize his funds. He just wants to be a free man.

Joseph shook his head.

"My project is not suitable for being tied to an external chamber of commerce."

Penny blinked, her expression suddenly turning slightly regretful.

She was already shorter than the average human girl, and when she looked up, she somehow looked rather pitiful.

"Professor, I understand your concerns."

Joseph sneered inwardly. You'd better really understand.

"The new magical revival project must be attracting a lot of attention right now. If the Dwarf Merchant Guild approaches rashly, it could indeed cause you trouble."

Joseph nodded.

"so……"

"So we won't ask for a public alliance," Penny said.

Joseph: "..."

Isn't there something wrong with his response? Wasn't he just saying he was refusing?