Chapter 1333: Chapter 1333: An Afternoon in the Council
Because the story indicated by the Mithril Cube suggests that the gold mine is likely near this ancient Night Shrine, and the gold ore Shard found downstream indicates that the mine is very close to the upper river. Therefore, the two left the cliff and meticulously searched the surrounding area.
Neither of them possessed the specific Arcane Techniques for exploring mineral deposits, such as “Ore Perception”—where land with deposits turns red with a small chance, but if one doesn’t deeply understand the technique, there’s a high chance of error; “Treasure Exploration”—where treasures in boxes, land, and cabinets show white glimmers, but be cautious these treasures might already have owners; “Money Mouse’s Sense of Smell”—which greatly enhances perception of wealth, but the deeper the mastery, the more one dislikes cats.
Fortunately, as a witch holding the position of “Earth,” Miss Benanis had a tremendous ability to perceive the earth.
After she and Shard left the cave, she used an Arcane Technique to sense, but the result was that they found nothing.
Standing together in the Cedar Forest, watching Miss Benanis retract the “Ruby” used as a spellcasting medium from the snow, Shard deemed it normal:
“Since it’s qualified to be recorded by the Mithril Cube left by that Guardian, it means the matter is related to the Transcendent. Perhaps the gold mine is hidden by some force, we should try other methods to search.”
So, the two first brought the horse by the river, and then attempted to determine what lay beneath the soil by digging. This method was extremely time-consuming, and the efficiency was very low. But neither Miss Benanis nor Shard were overly obsessed with the gold mine. In fact, Shard thought that if the alleged gold mine was really found, it would likely be quite troublesome for him.
Thus, that afternoon, they wandered through the Cedar Woodland, taking turns using Arcane Techniques to melt the ground while discussing interesting topics, or more precisely, Shard’s relationship with the witches.
The Arcane Technique Shard used to melt the snow was “Feliana’s Witch Light,” which should have been an exclusive secret technique to the witches, and even most witch followers couldn’t learn it, yet it appeared in Shard’s hand.
Miss Benanis didn’t know about this beforehand, so she curiously inquired how Shard learned the Arcane Technique, leading to an even more unexpected answer:
“I can even enter the Witch Council.”
Shard placed his hand on the snow, a golden glow gradually melting the snow and soil:
“Sing the ballad, pass through the tunnel, and finally enter the end’s White Mist Gate. Unfortunately, I lack the witch’s jewelry, so even though I can enter that white fog, I need a Grand Witch to lead me in to step into the council area.”
Shard described it very clearly, even humming a portion of the witch’s ballad. After acquiring the Arcane Technique “Voice of Music,” he could hum beautifully even without the songs recorded by the technique.
“Are you really a man?”
The Blonde Witch curiously asked, her eyes unconsciously glancing downward.
“It seems like it’s not your first time asking me this question, but the answer is still the same: I am indeed male.”
Shard wasn’t surprised by Miss Benanis’s question. After confirming it was still dirt beneath the soil, he stood up and continued walking with her, but Miss Benanis tugged at Shard’s clothes. Although the sky was somewhat gloomy, the sunlight filtering through the Cedar Forest was quite adequate, and those eyes with green and golden traces seemed to glimmer brightly:
“How about I take you into the Council? I’ve never seen a man enter the Council, let’s give it a try?”
“But the gold mine…”
“Who cares about the gold mine.”
She appeared indifferent, and then excitedly took Shard’s hand:
“I’ll sing, you stay at the tunnel’s end, and once I’m sure no one is in the council, I’ll take you inside. It’s Sunday afternoon today, those women certainly wouldn’t want to enter the Council either.”
Seeing Miss Benanis genuinely interested, Shard could only agree:
“If there are witches I don’t know in the council, I definitely won’t go in.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not too kind either… I mean, I’m not too enthusiastic about introducing you to other council members.”
With those words, standing side by side in the woodland, treading on snow and looking forward, Miss Benanis coughed lightly and then, with her unparalleled voice, began to sing softly:
“The princess in the castle won’t understand, walking freely in the world is our true pursuit.”
“At the lavender-filled crossroads meet the witch, where are you heading, to collect a bundle of herbs.”
Even though Shard had heard many witches sing this tune, this time felt particularly different. Not only because of the greatest female opera singer’s voice of this era, but also because it was Shard’s first time entering the council outdoors.
The two strolled through the cedar forest on a winter afternoon, with the silent woodland absent even of birdsong, allowing the Witch’s voice to spread in all directions. Although the weather was gloomy, it was at least daytime, and as the two moved forward, the surrounding light gradually dimmed.
Unknowingly, the broad sides revealed the walls of that ancient passage. Looking ahead, the White Mist Gate had already appeared at the end.
The Witch’s song finished, and Shard also recorded the song. Miss Benanis gestured for Shard to wait a moment, then lifted the hem of her skirt and excitedly ran into the White Mist Gate.
In the past, when Shard entered here, he always went straight through the Mist Gate and never really had time to carefully examine the passage. Observing it now, he felt an indescribable sense of peculiarity. Looking back, the path they came from is a straight corridor, with stone-brick walls on either side, lit torches, and old, indistinguishable oil paintings hanging on them.
This seemed like the interior of a castle, but also like a part of a pre-Era ruin. Other spaces left behind by the Ancient God only required passing through the White Mist Gate to enter, but here, one must first enter the passage, indicating there must be some secret to it.
While Shard was pondering this, a hand reached out from the White Mist Gate, and Miss Benanis pulled him in:
“Only Sylvia is here, come with me.”
The two walked into the mist together. Next, they needed to hold the Witch’s jewelry and softly recite the incantation. Of the thirteen pieces of Witch jewelry rated as Sage-Level Relics, Miss Vanessa Benanis held the ninth seat’s [Witch’s Golden Ring: Left One]. She instructed Shard not to let go of her hand. After praying to the Ancient God [Chaos Witch], they entered the Witch Council familiar to Shard.
Sky light fell from above, illuminating the stone round table surrounded by thirteen backed chairs. Around them were dilapidated steps ascending, even more worn out than the ritual site of the [Spiritual Practice Order], and these stone steps extended into the white mist high above.
Just as Miss Benanis said, only the council’s thirteenth seat, Miss Sylvia, the Grand Witch of [Space], was present.
For Shard, this was his first time seeing Miss Sylvia since they parted ways in Huntington City before the Year-End Festival. The young black-haired witch was delighted to see Shard, stood up, gave him an enthusiastic hug, and said to Miss Benanis:
“See, Benanis, I told you Shard could come here.”
“So, what’s going on with him?”
“That’s what we’re curious about right now.”
Miss Sylvia said as she released Shard, then twirled around in her lovely black-and-white checkered skirt—a white blouse with a black bow tie at the square neck.
She smiled and asked:
“Shard, can you see what’s different about me?”
Shard looked down, first noticing the pair of brown leather ankle boots, then continued upward to see the tight-fitting black clothing:
“Although I’ve seen it once at Miss Galina’s, I have to praise it again, it’s truly beautiful.”
Miss Sylvia, whose face blushed slightly as Shard’s eyes lingered on her legs, nodded in satisfaction, then glanced over at Miss Benanis. Now, only three witches possess such fabric. Miss Galina had already shown it to Shard once, but the oldest blonde witch was too shy to muster the courage just yet.
“Want to touch it? Evaluate the smoothness and elasticity of these fabrics; you could definitely offer better suggestions.”
Miss Sylvia boldly proposed, and at this point, Miss Benanis finally couldn’t hold back any longer:
“Emma, young ladies should be more reserved.”
She said sternly, and Sylvia suppressed the desire to remark that “being overly reserved makes one a solitary individual like you.” However, she didn’t insist on Shard touching it, as she was somewhat shy herself:
“You might have misunderstood. I really wanted Shard to give me some advice. He’s the only person of the Fifth Era to have seen and touched the Witch Empresses’ clothing closely, so his insights must be valuable… After all, we’re business partners.”
She even winked at Shard, her eyes full of mirth.
Thus, originally Miss Benanis just wanted to take Shard for a brief tour of the council, but the rest of the afternoon turned into Shard extracting translucent books from the shimmering star river-colored shelves and discussing his past memories with Miss Sylvia.
Even the witches had to admit, some of Shard’s thoughts and ideas were quite novel. For instance, making simple fabrics into pants, keeping the more prominent seam lines on the back of the fabrics, or how garters and straps adorn the fabric.
It wasn’t until dinner time that, prompted by Shard, Miss Sylvia impatiently discussed Margaret’s apprentice trials with Miss Benanis. Confirming that Margaret was doing well, they didn’t dwell on it further.
Thereafter, Shard and Miss Benanis returned together to Randall Valley. The Witch Council maintained an eternal spring warmth, while the Material World was still in winter. Suddenly returning to the dimly lit cedar forest, Shard found it somewhat hard to readjust.