Deep in the western district of the Imperial Capital, there was an alley that even locals rarely set foot in.
The entrance was so narrow that only one person could squeeze through sideways.
On both sides, the mottled walls were covered in unknown vines, making the already dim light even weaker.
The air was thick with a damp, musty smell.
Celeste, dressed in a black dress, stopped at the entrance and looked up. ‘
On the wall, there was an almost imperceptible scratch—a secret signal.’
She squeezed sideways into the alley, the hem of her black dress brushing against the walls with a soft rustle.
The alley was deeper than she expected.
After walking about a few dozen steps, the space suddenly opened up.
An unremarkable old house appeared at the end, its door slightly ajar, revealing a dim yellow light.
She pushed the door open and entered.
The space inside was much larger than it appeared from outside.
A round table sat in the main hall, with three white candles lit on it.
The flames stood perfectly still, unnaturally eerie.
Three people were seated around the table.
The woman in the center appeared to be about thirty years old, with dignified features.
She wore a deep purple robe, its collar embroidered with intricate magical runes.
The most striking thing was a palm-sized mirror floating beside her, its surface pitch black like ink, occasionally flashing with strange light.
On her left and right sat two other women, also dressed in witch robes.
Their aura was no weaker than hers, and they exuded a coldness that warned others to keep their distance.
Seeing Celeste enter the small house, the leading woman waved her hand, and a long chair appeared behind Celeste, who then sat down gracefully.
“You’re the witch who took the commission, Nightingale?”
The woman asked, her tone carrying the calm of one who had long held a high position.
Celeste nodded and replied with neither humility nor arrogance, “Yes. May I ask who you all are…”
The woman smiled softly.
“Allow me to introduce myself. I am a Witch Councilor, code name Magic Mirror.”
She gestured casually to her left and right.
“The other two are also Witch Councilors, but I won’t introduce them one by one. If you need anything, just discuss it with me.”
Celeste’s gaze swept over the two Councilors, then returned to settle on Magic Mirror’s face.
“Mm.”
But Magic Mirror looked her over with a smile, then probed subtly, “I heard that you, Nightingale, are also a Grand Witch?”
‘Celeste’s eyelashes trembled slightly.’
‘She knew exactly where that information had come from. The Grand Witch codenamed Rose was clearly connected to them.’
‘And she hadn’t expected that a mission concerning a treasure map would involve three Witch Councilors… Obviously, this task held a very important secret.’
‘But she had no interest in that secret.’
‘What she cared about more now was what this Grand Witch, Magic Mirror, thought of her.’
‘After all, in the eyes of Rose, she, Nightingale, was also a Grand Witch, and she had never denied it herself. What if these Grand Witches realized she wasn’t actually a Grand Witch?’
‘Wasn’t that deception?
‘Decieving a Witch Councilor was subject to terrible punishment in the Witch Council.’
‘But if she admitted the truth, the outcome might not be much better…’
After a moment of silence, she replied, “It’s just a misunderstanding from Lady Rose. I merely used a clever trick to complete her commission. It’s nothing significant.”
She chose to keep her identity ambiguous.
That statement neither confirmed nor denied her being a Grand Witch; it left everything to the imagination of the three Witch Councilors.
Magic Mirror stared at her for a few seconds, then gave a knowing smile, as if she understood everything.
“No need to be modest. Whatever secrets you have, we don’t care. After all, the Witch Council is just an organization for witches to huddle together for warmth. There’s no strict control over personnel.”
She waved her hand, and a cup of tea appeared in front of Celeste.
“If the Council gains another Grand Witch, we Councilors would be more than happy.”
Celeste said nothing to that, merely offering a faint smile.
‘In this situation, the more she said, the more likely she was to make mistakes. So silence was the best response.’
Magic Mirror smiled and didn’t continue the topic.
Instead, she directly took an old roll of parchment from her bosom and gently placed it on the table.
“I won’t waste words. Since you accepted the mission, you probably already know. I have a treasure map here, but there’s a special layer of magic on it that prevents us from seeing the contents.”
She looked up at Celeste, a hint of expectation in her eyes.
“Do you have any way to dispel it?”
Celeste picked up the parchment.
‘It felt warm and cool to the touch, the edges worn and frayed—clearly very old.’
She unrolled it and found a layer of hazy mist covering the surface, flowing slowly like a living thing, completely obscuring what lay beneath.
‘She probed it with her magic power, but the mist only trembled slightly, showing no sign of dissipating.’
‘What was this?
‘She had little experience and had never seen such magic, but Eros Energy was different.’
[Target: Spirit Mist]
Spirit Mist was a type of spirit magic, and a very advanced one at that.
No wonder even the three Grand Witches were helpless against it.
Unfortunately, no matter how powerful these sealing magics were, they were no match for Eros Energy.
After persuading the three Grand Witches to temporarily look away, she softly confessed to the magic, and soon it receded like a tide.
The next second, the contents on the parchment were clearly revealed before her eyes.
Her pupils contracted slightly.
‘A treasure map? The map drawn on it was far from simple—it was extremely complex, vaguely exuding an arcane quality like magical runes.’
‘A flicker of curiosity rose in her heart, and she activated Eros Energy again.’
[Target: Imperial Vault Deep Layer Map]
‘Imperial Vault?!
‘This—this was not a treasure map at all, but a map of the vault!
‘No wonder it looked so complicated.
‘Actually, calling it a treasure map wasn’t wrong, since the Imperial Vault was also a place where treasure was stored.’
She grumbled inwardly, then handed the parchment back to Magic Mirror, without mentioning a single word about its contents.
‘Are you kidding? This map involved a secret that was definitely not simple. If she meddled carelessly, she might not even know when she’d die.’
‘After all, that was the deep layer of the Imperial Vault! A forbidden ground where no one other than direct descendants of the imperial family could set foot!
‘A Silver Grade fighter was nothing but cannon fodder in such a place.’
‘And these Grand Witches holding this map clearly had designs on the Imperial Vault. If she said too much, she might end up dead right here today.’
“It’s been dispelled.”
Magic Mirror examined the map, and her eyes widened slightly.
The mist that had plagued them for months was now completely gone. Before her lay an extremely vast and complex map.
She raised her head to look at Celeste, surprise and admiration mingled with a barely visible wariness.
“Impressive. We were completely helpless against this magic. Nightingale, you solved it so quickly. With such skill, serving as a core member of the Witch Council would be a waste of your talent.”
She sighed softly.
“It’s a pity that a Witch Councilor’s position isn’t determined solely by magical ability. Otherwise, I would definitely recommend you for it.”
Celeste shook her head modestly.
“Lady Magic Mirror gives me too much credit. I only used a clever trick to break the magic.”
“Nightingale, you’re too modest.”
Magic Mirror took a small velvet pouch from her bosom, placed it on the table, and pushed it toward Celeste.
“This is the reward for this mission—three Condensed Magic Crystals. The extra one is a personal gift from me, as a token of friendship. If you ever run into trouble, you can come to me.”
She then took out a crystal engraved with intricate patterns and placed it on the table as well.
“This is my contact information.”
Celeste accepted the velvet pouch and the crystal, tucking them into her robe.
After offering her thanks, she chose to bid farewell to the three Witch Councilors.
—
As she walked away, the room fell into a brief silence.
The candle flames remained still.
Magic Mirror sat on the sofa, staring at the closed door for a long time without moving.
—
After a long while, a harsh voice sounded from her left.
“She saw the map. Should we… take care of her?”
Magic Mirror thought for a moment, then shook her head.
“Take care of her?”
She sighed.
“It probably won’t be easy. She broke that magic so quickly—her strength might be above ours.”
She paused.
“Even if it’s not, any witch who can reach this level is no simpleton.”
The other witch fell silent.
Then the witch on the other side finally spoke, “Then what? Aren’t you afraid the information will leak?”
“It shouldn’t.”
As if recalling something, Magic Mirror replied, “I’ve looked into her. Before this, she was always in Hela City. Coming to the Imperial Capital now might just be to complete this mission.”
The witch looked at her, her eyes flickering.
“Let’s hope so.”
—
Two days later, Count Harris received a letter.
The letter was sent from a duke’s residence.
The wording was polite, but the meaning was clear: the Duchess wished to invite Tia to her manor for a visit.
Count Harris stared at the letter, his brows deeply furrowed.
The worst-case scenario he had feared had indeed happened.
News about Tia had spread like wildfire through the Imperial Capital, finally catching the attention of the dukes.
The duke who sent this letter was named Duke Kylai.
Duke Kylai was one of the most powerful men in the Imperial Capital.
His children, the heirs, were still unmarried.
For Duchess Kylai to send a letter now clearly meant she intended to propose a marriage.
If he refused outright, there would likely be trouble.
With this thought, he handed the letter to Tia.
Tia took it, glanced at it, then looked up.
“What is Father’s intention?”
Count Harris was silent for a moment.
“Duke Kylai is not someone to offend easily, but if you are unwilling, we can find a way to decline.”
A hint of surprise flickered in Tia’s eyes.
In her view, Count Harris should not have let her refuse.
After all, though she was his daughter, she was also the canary he had raised.
So what was wrong with him?
“Is Father worried about me?”
Count Harris remained expressionless.
“You may think so.”
Tia smiled slightly.
“Then let’s go see. I’d also like to see what the most powerful duke’s mansion in the Imperial Capital looks like.”
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