Don't confiscate my citizenship

The dome-shaped ceiling was about fifty meters high, painted in a style similar to that of an opera house performance hall, but the walls were surrounded by dark brown solid wood bookshelves that extended all the way to the ceiling. Each bookshelf was filled with precious music and drama literature, and there was not a single book on magic engineering. It was hard for Talia to imagine how disdainful Abigail was of the talent for magic engineering.

In addition to countless antique collections, the center where they sat was a set of sofas and coffee tables in the style of the ancient West Vancouver Free Federation, on which was placed an exquisite silver tea set.

The air is filled with a light scent of sandalwood. A variety of high-end liquors and crystal wine glasses are displayed in the wine cabinet on one side of the wall. The entire space is lit with warm brass tones. Outside the terrace, you can overlook the entire Broadway Center Plaza.

However, it is not as simple as it seems.

Every wall was covered with inscriptions of space-related barrier spells that were difficult for her to understand.

Abigail, a seventh-level space magic craftsman, is not very powerful.

But if it was in the base she carefully built, the situation would be completely different.

Talia was initially reluctant to enter such dangerous and unknown territory.

However, judging that Abigail's invitation was not hostile, she agreed to let Lanqi come.

"Barton? Are you his acquaintances?"

Abigail sat up a little and looked at Lanqi and Talia. She never thought that Barton just happened to save her life.

"Yes, this is a token given to me by Mr. Barton."

Lanqi took out a silver cross brooch from the pocket of his gray coat, placed it on the glass of the coffee table in front of him, and pushed it towards Abigail.

“It’s definitely his stuff.”

Abigail picked up the brooch, observing the light it reflected, and murmured in thought.

Based on her understanding of Barton, he would not easily hand over his personal keepsake to others.

Although she and Patton have a unique communication channel, it is not suitable to show it in front of others or let people know its existence, so Patton must have considered the rules between them and did not contact her directly.

"What do you want from me?"

Abigail asked as she handed back the silver brooch and spoke in a more relaxed tone.

"You two are definitely not ordinary people. I can see that you are both very strong, especially her."

She pointed at Ranch, then moved to Talia.

These two people are definitely not ordinary people.

She must have heard of their names.

But no matter who they are.

Since these two people helped her a lot, if the other party needs her help, she should also help them.

"That's right, Miss Abigail."

Lanqi said, taking off his disguise,

"I'm actually Professor Landry from St. Clement's Abbey. I ran into some trouble today, so I had to change my appearance to hide from others and come to the opera house to find you."

He gradually changed back to Landry with black hair and blue eyes.

When Abigail heard the word "Landry", her pupils trembled slightly and the rhythm of her breathing began to change subtly.

"Landry, Professor...?"

Abigail asked him with a hesitant smile.

"I'm very sorry to conceal my identity, but we were indeed introduced by Mr. Barton."

Lanqi believed that even if he didn't explain it clearly, Abigail could probably guess his intention -

He needed her support on the Imperial military side.

"It's okay, it's okay. Why are you apologizing?"

Abigail kept smiling perfectly and waved her hand.

"...Of course I have to apologize."

Lanqi felt that Abigail did not seem angry, so he continued to speak.

"Maybe there was some miscommunication when we met you, and we wanted to help you to the best of our ability, so it turned out like that."

He had a hard time figuring out what Abigail's attitude was.

Abigail seemed to understand, but did not completely believe him, with a hint of sarcasm and coldness that was almost perfectly hidden, or it could be said that at this moment she was completely alienated from him on some level.

Talia stared at Abigail, unable to read what Abigail was thinking right now.

"Professor Landry, so you hope that I can help you advance your influence in the Imperial Magic Engineering community and make you more valued by the Imperial Military, right?"

Abigail asked straight to the point.

"That's right, that's right."

Lanqi also admitted.

"Can I ask a question first?"

Abigail did not answer yes or no, but just put her hand on her chest, bowed slightly and asked him with interest.

"Excuse me."

Lan Qi nodded.

"How did you manage to come up with a series of principles such as magic energy fission in recent times, as if you had gained enlightenment? I would like to ask you a question first..."

Abigail spoke in a calm and steady voice.

"..."

at this time.

Talia seemed to be keenly aware of the subtle changes in the air, and a hint of vigilance flashed in her golden eyes.

Abigail's smile was still on her lips, but her eyes became cold and sharp.

Her fingers gently stroked the black gemstone necklace, and a dangerous atmosphere filled the air.

The hands of the antique clock just passed eleven o'clock, and time stood still at this moment. Lanqi and Talia both felt an invisible sense of oppression, causing their heartbeats to suddenly accelerate.

In an instant, the lights in the banquet hall flickered and the candles all began to flutter.

"what are you doing!"

Talia quickly stood in front of Lanci, protected him, and turned around to grab Abigail. She knew that Abigail was no longer the friendly conversation partner just now, but a complete enemy!

Suddenly, a low and long resonance, like the morning bell in an ancient sacrificial ceremony, vibrated in this small space.

The sound waves spread in the form of visible ripples, stirring up layers of ripples in the air and tearing countless fine cracks in the static space and time.

The treasured opera manuscripts on the bookshelf swayed without wind, and the portraits of famous actors in the gilded frames seemed to come alive, watching the sudden change with scrutiny.

Talia reacted almost instinctively and tried to help Lanci block the spatial magic that had reached the eighth level.

The magic power was not strong. At most she would be injured by the spell triggered by the high-level magic device, but Lanqi would definitely not be able to withstand it.

Yet the gears in this space turn relentlessly.

When Talia was about to use her mental magic to subdue Abigail and take the spell triggered by the black gem necklace, the space suddenly twisted and deformed, and a mirror about two meters high appeared silently out of thin air.

Talia felt a sense of weightlessness. Her feet, which had once been able to dance on the stage, could no longer find a point to exert force.

"orchid……!"

Before her voice could be heard, she passed through Lanqi's gradually transparent outline, as if she had caught a wisp of morning mist that was about to dissipate. When her vision recovered, there was only nothingness.

The room is still the same room.

But neither Lanqi nor Abigail were there in front of the sofa.

"Lanqi, can you hear me?"

Talia looked around.

She suspected that she was isolated in another channel of this space, and could not return to where Lanqi and Abigail were until it was released.

"Don't let anything happen to you! She can't keep me locked up for long!"

She shouted anxiously. No matter how she tried to destroy it, it was as if she was the only one in the world. She could only shake it slightly and could not find the core coordinates of the tearing space node.

The facts confirmed her guess. She was very close to Lanqi, but she couldn't get a reply from him.

……

In the original room.

The fluctuations of spatial magic gradually subsided and the vortex disappeared without a trace.

The second floor of the Brillda Opera House fell into silence again, and everything that had just happened seemed to be just an illusion.

Lanqi sat alone in the center of this magnificent mansion.

The air seemed to still linger with the floral scent that always accompanied Talia, and a faint aftertaste of magic lingered, reminding Lanqi that what had just happened was not an illusion.

"Miss Abigail? What are you doing?"

Lanqi asked Abigail who suddenly attacked from the opposite side.

The other party seemed to have no intention of attacking him further for the time being.

Or maybe he felt that after eliminating Talia, he would also lose most of his threats.

"You really have a good attitude..."

Abigail sneered and crossed her legs.

"who are you?"

She asked, squinting her eyes as she observed Lanqi.

"I'm Landry."

Lan Qi said firmly.

Just like when Nikolai, the chief of the Imperial Special Operations Department, asked him, he couldn't give a second answer.

"If you're still lying, that's pointless."

Abigail seemed to find this ridiculous and looked up.

"how you said that?"