Miss Witch's Forbidden Book Secret

Does your Moen family have any normal people with any sense of shame?

—Knock knock!

Albert had just stepped out when there was another knock on the door.

Roman hadn't even recovered from the shock when the tiger left, and now the wolf appeared.

But Miss Wolf seemed quite kind, wagging her big tail and bringing some rare good news.

Tia didn't care whether Roman let her in or not, and pushed the door open to say bluntly, "There's been progress on the matter of the Crows' Seal."

Chapter 317 The Thief Never Leaves Empty-Handed

Upon hearing this, Roman raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean? Have you discovered traces of the witch, or have you found the ritual that points to the Sleeping Witch?"

"Neither of those—"

Tia pulled up a chair and sat down at the desk, saying, "There are still no leads on the witch matter, but there are leads on the Crows' Seal. I've found the real culprit behind the invasion of Laurel Forest: the Wisdom Palace of the Tianfang Empire."

Roman coughed twice, almost spitting out his tea, feeling that this was somewhat of a fantasy.

The Wisdom Palace and Ansu do have some grudges, but these grudges are either historical issues from hundreds of years ago or minor frictions caused by Tianfang's choice to side with the Empire in the past year.

When Clausin was invaded, Tianfang and Ansu were still on good terms, and even had a treaty of friendship and trade and a newly signed academic research agreement.

Roman believed that Tia certainly knew this as well, because her own sister, Avina Sulph, had gone to the Celestial Empire for oceanographic research!

He felt that Tia was there to make fun of him, just like Albert.

As expected, birds of a feather flock together; she might as well just marry Eleanor!

But Tia reiterated, "Sir, I'm telling you this very seriously. It was the Celestials who destroyed Laurel Grove. The Palace of Wisdom is not only destroying our Raven Seal, but also plotting to seize the Royal Sanctuary—and the Royal Family may even be their true target!"

"This is simply outrageous and audacious! The Wisdom Palace and the Tianfang people are no longer just our adversaries! The Tianfang people have never given up their desire to destroy us. The Wisdom Palace has become a conspiracy factory targeting the royal family and the kingdom, and a base for foreign forces intending to overthrow Ansu!"

This is an exaggeration by Tia. How could she know if the Celestials wanted a full-scale war? But regardless of whether it was just talk or not, she had evidence and spoke with great conviction.

And coincidentally, what Tia said by accident actually reflected the actual situation quite well.

Tia saw a chessboard on the table. She only knew the basic rules and lacked skill, so she just played randomly. But coupled with her confident tone, it sounded like she was playing a grand game.

Roman almost believed it. Although it went against tradition, he felt deeply that Tia was indeed suited to take the crown from Eleanor and become a princess. The knight looked at Tia with a wistful gaze and asked, "Does the Palace of Wisdom even know what you're talking about?"

Tia didn't stand on ceremony. Seeing the black tea on the table, she poured herself a cup, but after sniffing it, she didn't drink it.

He picked up the teapot and threw it into the trash can.

Still shaken, Tia carefully chose her words: "I'm very serious, Sir. I have factual evidence."

Roman followed Tia's moves, shifting his chariot. Although it still felt a bit far-fetched, upon hearing the words "facts and evidence," he reluctantly agreed, "Explain in detail."

The chess piece had just been placed.

Roman's keen sense of smell detected an extremely subtle sulfurous odor in the air, followed by the smell of garlic. Instantly, he constructed in his mind the physical structure of the source of the odor and all the related ritual models he could think of.

Tiny silver-white stars spilled from Tia's sleeves, scattering across the ground. Roman immediately felt a slight dizziness, and semi-transparent mystical illusions appeared all around him.

The illusion enveloped the entire office. Roman squinted and saw the silver-white Raven King being attacked by several prophets on a street at a harbor dock.

Roman's chest heaved slightly as he saw the shrike suffering the curse of slowness.

The Slow Curse is indeed a signature ritual of the Palace of Wisdom... but why did the Raven King come to the material world?

Tia adjusted the flow of the illusion, fast-forwarding the scenes of Shrike encountering the Prophet, the ensuing battle, and Shrike being beaten so badly that Saint Vincent didn't even recognize him as he fled in a sorry state.

The final image shows a valiant female knight carrying a greatsword, leading more than thirty silver knights to provide support.

—Lovisa Barr.

When Roman saw the female knight's face after she opened her visor, he quickly searched his mind for relevant information. He didn't have a deep impression of this Grand Knight Commander, but as a Sequence 4 Silver Knight, Roman still had some memories of her.

She was clearly listed on the long list of positions in St. Enggard supporting Iris and was supposed to be in charge of Iris's work at the northern Golden Moon Bay port.

If that's the case, then this illusion must have been a true capture of what happened at that time.

Even if there are some false parts, we can confirm them by coordinating with Saint Enggard.

However, this illusion is still shrouded in mystery.

It's strange that the shrike, the king of ravens, is so timid, and would willingly come to the material world. And why is it among the irises?

And how was this footage captured?

Tia concluded the ritual, ending the illusion, and said, "The source of the images is a shared nightmare in the deep sea. I suspect that the prophets within the Palace of Wisdom secretly sold them in exchange for resources."

Roman nodded solemnly and said, "I can understand. But the Palace of Wisdom tampered with the Laurel Grove... What did you mean when you said their target was the royal family?"

Tia said, "I was previously commissioned by Ms. Bernice to perform a soul examination on Eleanor."

"I know that."

“Yes, Sir, here’s the problem. I’ve already spoken to Ms. Bernice about this. I discovered the ritual node on the edge of Eleanor’s nightmare and am keeping watch on the Prophet.”

Tia paused for a moment, then said, "And Eleanor's nightmare is just as deep as the waters of Laurelwood. To invade the royal nightmare, one must first eliminate those swarms of gossipy ravens in Laurelwood—of course, this is just my guess."

"Well-reasoned and supported by evidence."

Roman gasped, sensing the situation had suddenly become incredibly unpredictable. But it was good, Tia's warning was timely; it was better than knowing nothing at all!

He relaxed for a moment, then suddenly smiled and asked, "By the way, was that an illusion ritual set up using refined mithril? When did you learn that?"

It is indeed antimony.

Tia was previously pulled into an illusion by the Dragon Hunter Santis's Star Antimony and almost didn't realize it. Knowing yourself and your enemy, she never stopped studying illusions and Star Antimony techniques afterward. She also happened to obtain the Book of the Black Sea and has recently benefited greatly from her studies.

Tia was equally blunt, saying directly, "I'm a learned and beautiful girl, so mind your own business."

Roman's words of complaint stuck in his throat, neither coming out nor going down.

Okay, let's not talk about this.

The knight immediately turned around, knocked on the hidden compartment under the silver shield and gold crown emblem on the wall, and took out a shiny test tube-shaped vial.

Roman grabbed it and handed it to Tia, saying, "Here, take this."

Tia asked curiously, "What is it?"

"A signal flare. As long as it's within Avalon's range, Avalon can detect its exact location once it's destroyed."

Roman was about to touch the teapot when he found it had been thrown in the trash can, so he picked up his pipe instead, but didn't light it, just chewed on it for fun.

He said, "The Avalon system hasn't completed its computing power reorganization yet, so I was supposed to give it to you in a couple of days. I didn't expect you to bring me the news first."

The girl asked, bewildered, "Then why are you giving it back to me? Are you trying to use me as a human bomb?"

Tia had a rich inner monologue. She remembered that Roman was originally intended to be Mrs. Bernice's heir. She was so awesome that she was sure to arouse Roman's jealousy and fear.

Then she wanted to reclaim her own life, but was banished three thousand miles to Iris Flower. In the end, Iris Flower became the president and returned to take revenge, setting the entire Ansu ablaze once again.

It's probably a power struggle for the crown prince position, but that's unlikely.

Ansu is a land of order.

Roman couldn't understand Tia's rich and colorful inner world either, and spread his hands, saying, "You probably won't need this now, and it's best not to use it either. Keep it as a souvenir."

Tia thought about it and decided to take it, since she was already there.

I always feel restless if I don't take something with me.

Chapter 318 A Miraculous Healer, Doctor!

After taking the flare from the Greater Bay Area Police Station and leaving, Tia stayed at Anne's house for half a month.

Two weeks passed without incident, as if the whole world was peaceful and tranquil. Roman said that the Avalon system covering Ansu had been shut down and all computing power had been concentrated in the deep sea, but Tia, who went to the police station for meals every day, did not find many supernatural crimes.

There were some strange, turbulent currents around 20,000 meters deep in the ocean, but the prophets around Eleanor's nightmare had calmed down considerably. Tia even took a special look at the Wisdom Palace outpost in the Imperial Coldwater Harbor, only to find that everyone had fled...

The antique shop next door is bustling with activity. They even bought the Wisdom Palace location, and it's always packed with customers. I don't know how they market it.

Tia thought that since she was being watched closely for counterfeiting cultural relics in Ansu, it would be difficult for her to sell them. The Iris Flower people were all poor and couldn't sell their wares. She wondered if she could go to the Empire to swindle and cheat sometime.

The iris-growing region is indeed a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery, with a strong sense of turmoil and heroes gathering. Tia projected her soul into the iris and learned that Santis's exact location had just been found by Milke, the former Minister of the Interior.

At that time, this dragon hunter had already established connections with the local bureaucracy, was living in the villa of a local official, and even received support and protection from the local police force.

Therefore, Milke agreed to the army's request, allowing the army to mobilize three full-strength artillery regiments, totaling 108 105mm howitzers and 72 77mm cannons, to carry out a brutal carpet bombing of the local police station and three estates, thus eliciting controversy from within the Iris Kingdom.

Santis survived, clinging to life only thanks to the Star Antimony. He used inorganic transformation to convert his physical body into minerals, and with the help of another giant of the Hand of Transformation, the "Monk" Sazdive, he managed to escape to the East.

But afterwards, Minister Milke resigned because of the bombing incident in the city. Tia felt it was a pity when she read the newspaper. Milke must have known the consequences of such a bombing, and probably didn't want to keep his job.

The appointment of the new minister went surprisingly smoothly. Tia had expected it to be quite tense, but all the members of the Constitutional Council, including Marn, and the Republicans represented by the Alchemist Society in Mistmoon City agreed to appoint the former elder of the Alchemist Society and the current governor of Mistmoon, Old Kamas, as the minister.

The Republicans' goal was quite clear: to retain control over domestic affairs, and Kamas Sr. was highly respected and the perfect candidate. The Constitutional Council's goal was also clear—with Kamas Sr. as Secretary of the Interior, the position of President would be vacant.

Scarlett Lane, the assistant governor supported by the Constitutional Council, had already performed well, so she naturally took over the governorship. Even though nearly half of the governor's power had been fragmented, delegated, or revoked by the Department of the Interior due to Durant's rebellion, it was still a very important position.

Scarlett became the new governor in a daze. When Tia saw the photo of Scarlett nervously taking the oath in the newspaper, she recalled Scarlett's awkwardness when Scarlett came to her house to investigate, and sighed that they were all the same kind of people: she had managed to run the Great Harbor District smoothly for half a year while the capital of Iris had changed three mayors in a year...

Of course, Tia wasn't idle either.

She was working hard to help Anne revise the opera's libretto, and she was also working hard to freeload off Eleanor and Vera—the latter being someone she had bought a batch of oak from Roman to make dolls, which Vera was given to do the initial carving, and then Eleanor was given the fine finishing touches, thus freeloading off two laborers.

"This dialogue isn't very good. I can't seem to get the anger out of the line... Tia, come take a look."

Anne was in her study revising the script draft when she called Tia over.

With a book of the Black Sea on her left and a book of the Hearthfire on her right, Tia flipped through them simultaneously, complaining, "Ugh—why do we have to revise it again...?"

Miss Anne seemed fine with it, saying, "The more the merrier!"

Tia had already read the script four or five times and could almost recite it from memory. She looked at it carefully again and said, "This is already pretty good, isn't it? There's really no need to strive for perfection."

Anne said, "No, I still don't feel good."

Anne suffers from perfectionism disorder, which even the miracle doctor couldn't cure, but Tia has a miraculous cure.

Tia picked up the script, glanced at it, and underlined a section with her fingertip. Pointing to the underlined part, she said, "This part can be changed."

"What do you mean? Do you want me to edit the text?"

"Hmm... Simply changing the text and melody won't do much good. Annie, you've revised it several times, and you still don't feel any anger. I think it's actually a human issue. Without strong emotion, it definitely won't work. You had Eleanor and Evelyn help with the performance before, but what do they know about this?"

Tia said in a serious tone, "So you'll have to do this yourself. I'll revise it for you, and you can read it aloud with feeling. You should be able to feel that emotion then."

With a few quick strokes, Tia picked up her pen and began making small annotations next to the words.

Anne took it and was about to read it aloud when she immediately put on the character she had designed. Her mouth worked faster than her brain, and her voice was sincere but tinged with disappointment and slight anger: "Sulph, my beloved, the blooming rose, my angel. Don't you love me anymore?"

Tia stroked Annie's soft, long hair. "I'm sorry, I already have someone I like."

pain!

Anne immediately stood on tiptoe to give Tia a headbutt. Even though it was in the script, hearing this still made her very sad, you bastard! And what do you mean by being so sincere?

Tia tapped Annie's head with her finger, continued to pat her head, and said sincerely while patting her chest, "But I can also like many."

　--boom!

Anne set up a ritual between her fingers, which instantly hardened and cleaved into fists to deliver a powerful punch to Tia.

The hammer-wielding daughter's powerful punches should not be underestimated, but Tia still dodged them, saying, "See, you're angry, aren't you? It's this suppressed emotion that's about to burst forth."

Annie wanted to hit her again, but Tia hugged her tightly and she couldn't move. She sulked and said, "You cheated!"

"Isn't this just playing along with your performance? We can change the lines too. Like, something like 'I like you'."

"..."

Annie couldn't stand this incredibly direct approach. Her face flushed instantly, and she pulled away from the embrace, changing the subject: "Tia, what were you looking at just now?"

Tia didn't hide anything and said directly, "An alchemical text. Related to the Philosopher's Stone."

She didn't say much, but asked, "Annie, aren't you going to revise the script?"

Why bring this up again!

Anne stormed back, packed up the draft, and deleted the absurd lines Tia had written, like "I can like so many." Reality may not follow logic, but drama does! This kind of change is no good!

"I'm not changing it!"

Tia felt like she had miraculous healing skills, not just skillful, but divine healing skills, and continued to pat her head.

(,,?oωo)ノ“(?っωo｀.)