Only then did she fully relax.
Her voice softened a few degrees, carrying a hint of uncertain confusion.
After re-examining the young woman beneath her, she recalled all her memories.
She sat on the side of the bed and rubbed her head, her confusion growing thicker.
She clearly remembered that before she passed out, she had locked Celeste in the dungeon.
But after waking up, not only was she not sleeping in the inn she had previously been in, but Celeste was also by her side?
She lowered her head and looked at the smile in Celeste’s eyes.
She felt that something was off, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
“Why are you here?”
Having shed the initial killing intent born of self-defense, Mephia asked again.
The girl lying on the bed looked up at her, took a deep breath, and seemed to be holding back laughter.
“What do you mean, ‘why am I here’? If it weren’t for me, you’d probably be dead by now at the hands of that Inquisitor named Raymond. I saved you!”
There was a hint of grievance in Celeste’s voice.
She had saved Mephia, but instead of receiving her thanks after she woke up, she got nothing but doubt.
This experience made her feel extremely wronged, so much so that every move she made now carried the flavor of a resentful wife.
Of course, this grievance was also faked by Celeste.
The real her didn’t think Mephia had done anything wrong at all, after all, living in a world like this, caution was the most important thing.
After she finished speaking, Mephia stared at her for a very long time.
Celeste also sensed something, tilted her head slightly, and let her gaze fall on the silver earring on Mephia’s earlobe.
There, extremely faint fluctuations of magic power were jumping.
If nothing unexpected happened, Mephia’s silence just now was obviously her familiar, Elsa, telling her everything.
—
And that was exactly the case.
After learning the truth of what had just happened, Mephia’s expression seemed somewhat complicated.
She sighed and said, “Why did you save me?”
Celeste sat up from the bed, tidied her messy long hair, then crossed her arms and snorted coldly.
“You saved me once. This time, I saved you. That makes us even.”
Mephia rested her chin on her hand and said nothing.
Celeste looked at her and continued, her voice growing lighter: “Also, although I am a witch, I haven’t done anything heinous. Don’t ever come after me again. Otherwise, hmph! I’m not someone to be trifled with either.”
As she spoke, she leaned forward slightly, getting closer to Mephia.
The mischievous light in her eyes grew stronger.
‘Now that I’ve gotten back the Witch’s Tear, I think Mephia and I are completely even. Besides, even though I’m a witch, I’ve never done anything terrible. Plus, I know very little. Even if Mephia caught me, it wouldn’t make any difference. So from now on, we’re just the most familiar strangers.’
Mephia didn’t answer her words.
She looked at Celeste’s expression, which was both aggrieved and smiling.
The corner of her mouth moved slightly, and she said softly, “Thank you…”
Her voice was so soft it was almost swallowed by the moonlight, but Celeste heard it.
Her delicate body trembled.
She looked at Mephia in disbelief.
“What?”
Had she misheard?
That cold, aloof Mephia had actually thanked her?!
Was this still the Inquisitor she knew?!
—
After a moment of silence, she secretly chuckled to herself.
At the same time, she turned her face away and pretended not to hear clearly.
“What did you say? Louder, I didn’t hear you.”
Seeing this, Mephia narrowed her eyes, and her aura gradually became dangerous.
But soon, she sighed, with a hint of helplessness and a trace of indulgence she herself hadn’t noticed.
“Thank you.”
Her voice was a little louder.
Celeste wanted to continue pretending not to hear, but after seeing the upturned corner of Mephia’s mouth, she chickened out according to her own heart.
She was certain that if she kept teasing Mephia, her butt would probably swell up in the next second.
“Yeah, that feels good.”
With a sweet smile, Celeste saw that Mephia was truly safe and sound, and she prepared to disperse her magic clone.
But just before leaving, she suddenly seemed to think of something.
“Oh, by the way, that Inquisitor who wanted to kill you is named Raymond. You handle it.”
After giving this reminder, her figure trembled slightly, then, like a melting shadow, she gradually disappeared into the darkness.
—
Soon, only Mephia remained in the room.
She stood in place, staring at the fading figure, not moving for a long time.
Images of Celeste’s face kept surfacing in her mind.
The corner of her mouth inexplicably lifted, and her mood grew more and more cheerful.
But not long after, she bowed her head and looked at the silver ring on her finger.
According to her familiar Elsa, while she was unconscious, that witch had touched her ring.
She probed her magic into the ring.
After a search, she found that the only thing missing from the ring was the Witch’s Tear.
Nothing else had been touched at all.
‘She’s quite proper after all, that witch.’
Muttering to herself, Mephia put her longsword back on and simultaneously sneered, “Raymond…”
She had sensed something was off about him a long time ago, but back then she had no evidence, so she hadn’t touched him.
Now…
The Inquisition needed a major purge.
—
Pushing open the inn door, Mephia walked out onto the street.
There were many people on the street, coming and going in a hurry.
But soon, those people’s gazes all fell on her.
Their looks were complicated, full of surprise and confusion, but mostly stifled laughter.
Mephia frowned slightly.
She took a few steps, and the rate of people turning back to look at her increased.
Someone even stopped and pointed at her face, covering their mouth and snickering.
She finally stopped.
“Elsa.”
She called softly.
The familiar Elsa flew out of the earring.
She looked at Mephia’s face, her own expression also brimming with barely suppressed laughter, but unlike the passersby, she also felt a bit guilty.
“Master… you, you…”
Mephia’s frown deepened.
Then, as if she realized something, she used magic to conjure a mirror.
Elsa finally couldn’t hold it in anymore and let out a “pfft” laugh.
Mephia froze.
She slowly raised her hand, touching her face.
When her fingertips came into contact with the two black circles that still bore traces of paint, her expression solidified in that instant.
“…Celeste, is it?”
Muttering the name of a certain someone several times, Mephia wiped the paint off her face in one go.
Then, with a gentle squeeze, Elsa let out a scream.
Concealing information and watching her master make a fool of herself.
Punishment!
—
After returning to Harris Manor, Celeste transformed back into Tia.
Since she couldn’t carry out the Witch Council’s missions recently, she decided to take it easy for a few days and conserve her energy.
However, what she didn’t expect was that her father, Count Harris, came to see her.
“In the next few weeks, I’m going to the Imperial Capital to visit some old friends. I’ll bring you with me. Not all the nobles in the Imperial Capital are like that Marquis’s daughter from before; many have good character.”
“So, in these next few weeks, you’d better find a suitable match for yourself. After that, I’ll hold a wedding for you.”
This was Count Harris’s final ultimatum to her.
For the sake of her marriage, the Count had almost worn out his heart.
From the local nobles of the City of Haila to the nobles of the Imperial Capital, he seemed to know quite a bit about them.
On this journey to the Imperial Capital, she had to find a suitable marriage partner.
Otherwise, Count Harris would personally arrange a marriage for her.
Then her marriage partner would no longer be up to her.
This worried Tia to no end.
She thought for a long time about how to solve her marriage problem, but unfortunately, even as the time to leave for the Imperial Capital approached, she hadn’t come up with any good ideas.
However, since she was here, she would make the best of it.
During the days of preparation, she found a mission in the Imperial Capital from the Witch Council.
The reward for the mission was two Condensed Magic Crystals.
The content of the mission was also very simple: decipher a treasure map.
This was a piece of cake for Tia, as her Eros Energy could make the treasure map “speak” on its own.
—
The day before departure, in Tia’s bedroom, Margaret was packing Tia’s luggage.
As she folded those gorgeous dresses, she muttered softly, “Miss, the Imperial Capital is not like Haila City. The nobles there have their noses in the air, and they hide their thoughts three layers deep when they speak and act. You need to be careful…”
Tia sat in front of the dressing table, looking at her from the mirror, a slight smile on her lips.
“Margaret, are you worried that I’ll be bullied?”
Margaret sighed.
“Yes, the nobles of the Imperial Capital are not simple. You’re so innocent. What if you get deceived?”
“Deceived? Isn’t that why I have you all? I won’t act on my own.”
“That’s good. Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease.”
Margaret felt much better after Tia’s words, and a happy smile appeared on her face.
Having been in Harris Manor for a long time, her care for Tia no longer felt like that of an etiquette apprentice instructor, but more like that of a mother caring for her daughter.
—
On the day of departure, with Count Harris’s permission, Tia left Harris Manor and went to find Mephia.
As for why Count Harris allowed her to do so, it was mainly because the Inquisition had undergone a major purge in the past few days, with as many as twenty Inquisitors beheaded.
And the mastermind behind all of this was Mephia.
To be able to cause such a purge in a local Inquisition, Mephia was definitely not an ordinary Imperial Capital Inquisitor.
Moreover, since he himself was about to go to the Imperial Capital, Count Harris was afraid of complications, so he allowed Tia to go and say goodbye to her.
—
At present, in front of Mephia’s residence.
“I heard you’re going to the Imperial Capital.”
Mephia asked somewhat nonchalantly, and Tia nodded.
“Blind date.”
She deliberately emphasized the two words, wanting to see Mephia’s reaction.
Mephia was silent for a moment, then snorted coldly. She stepped forward and came in front of Tia.
She grabbed her chin and said coldly, “Blind date? Aren’t you in love with me? Why are you going to the Imperial Capital for a blind date?”
“This… this is my father’s decision…”
“Oh, is that so? Haven’t you ever considered eloping with me? You know, I’m from the Imperial Capital. Even if we elope, your father can’t do anything to you.”
When she said this, Mephia had a playful smile on her face.
Tia was stunned for a few seconds, then waved her hand and refused somewhat flusteredly, “No, no. Eloping and whatnot… I’m not prepared for that, and I… I don’t want to disappoint my father…”
But elope with Mephia?
No way!
She had already gotten the Witch’s Tear.
She didn’t need to use any honey trap to get close to her anymore.
Eloping was even more impossible!
She was still acting like she loved Mephia now just to maintain her persona!
—
Mephia’s expression didn’t change.
She thought for a moment and asked, “So, what you’re saying is, if your father decided to marry you off to me, you wouldn’t object?”
“Mm, mm, maybe.”
Tia lowered her head, twisting around twice as she replied, sneering inwardly.
‘Convince Count Harris to let them get married? That would be like hoping for the Emperor himself to issue an edict. With Count Harris’s temperament, there’s no way he would ever agree to them being together!’