The entire Marienburg only has the Amber Avenue area where one can enjoy peace. The rest of the city is always noisy and crowded, whether it is morning, noon, evening, or even midnight and early morning. The whole city is in a state of pathological activity.
The streets are always crowded.
Marienburg is composed of several main districts, which can be roughly divided into the harbor dock area, the temple university (rich) area, the citizen area, the elven enclave, and the canal (poor) area.
Due to Marienburg's extremely high land prices, an awkward situation has arisen.
Only the Ocean Church and the Wealth Church have strong influence in this city, so the temples are built in the rich area. The other major churches, even the three most financially and influential ones, cannot afford the high land prices in the rich area, so they have all established their temples in the citizen and poor areas.
The streets in the rich area are clean and tidy. The nobles spend a lot of money using huge stones for the foundation and then paving the roads to ensure their activity areas are high and solid. But it is different in the citizen area. The streets are full of household garbage, every corner is filled with residences, shops, and warehouses. The constantly illegal construction and excavation hide various dangers, and some underground tunnels even extend into the sea and below the warning water level.
"The most terrifying is the canal area. It's said that when walking there, you must hold an umbrella, otherwise you never know when someone will dump household sewage on you," said Veronica, who was holding Ryan's hand while wearing a new silk dress. The woman's beautiful face was full of radiant charm today.
"Indeed, that sounds like Marienburg," Ryan nodded, stopping with Veronica. "We've arrived at the Sisters of the Holy Grail convent."
The Sisters of the Holy Grail is an organization of the Lady of the Lake church. However, its personnel and organization are very mysterious. Seeing Ryan arrive, the leading nun in white ceremonial robes nodded and opened the temple door. "Blessed of the Lady, you are qualified to enter the temple."
For some reason, the nun in charge here was not good-looking, with hard, masculine features.
"And what about her?" Ryan pointed to the witch beside him.
"Is she your companion?"
"Yes."
"Then she may come in as well."
The process of handing over Birrig's head was very simple. The statue of the Lady of the Lake flashed, indicating she was aware, and then the head of the Chaos champion became useless. The nun threw the head into the fire to burn it to ashes. Ryan was not surprised by this. Bretonnia did not have a fetish for skulls, which was related to the personal preferences of the Lady of the Lake.
Standing in the middle of the temple's white statues, Veronica felt very uneasy.
The witch always felt that the statue of the Lady of the Lake was looking at her with cold and disgusted eyes whenever she wasn't paying attention.
Kneeling before the statue of the Lady of the Lake, Ryan prayed silently. "Lady, is there anything you need from me?"
"Focus on your own matters first, my chosen. You will stay in this city for a while. As for the rest, I have already arranged it." The ethereal voice of the Lady of the Lake echoed in Ryan's heart. It was clear that the goddess did not intend, or did not like, to appear in this place and time.
"When will I have the honor to hear your teachings?" Ryan asked silently, having many questions for the goddess.
"Hehe, interesting foreigner. You are the first knight I have encountered who wishes for my descent," the Lady of the Lake responded with a soft laugh. "Unfortunately, due to certain restrictions, I cannot walk in the material world for long unless..."
"Unless?"
"Unless you provide me with energy."
...
When Ryan and Veronica came out of the convent, Ryan still had a strange expression on his face.
Veronica held his hand, her dark brown hair cascading over his arm. "I regret going in with you. I could feel that the Lady of the Lake is not friendly to me."
"She cannot remain indifferent to a woman appearing beside her chosen champion, especially since you are a spellcaster and carry my scent," Ryan squeezed Veronica's small hand, indicating they should discuss this matter later at home and focus on other things for now.
Veronica nodded, her small hand tightening on Ryan's to show she trusted him. She wouldn't dwell on the matter anymore. If Ryan wanted to talk, she would listen. If he didn't want to, she wouldn't care.
Veronica, unlike Teresa, was more understanding and decisive, having climbed up from being an apprentice witch.
After completing their task, they returned to the temple university district. On the wide street, Ryan noticed some wizards from the Wizard Alliance walking with their apprentices, going from store to store to purchase alchemical ingredients. Ryan remarked, "The way wizards are trained is quite similar, mostly under the mentor system."
In Marienburg, wizards were not as rare as in Nord. You could usually see one or two after walking a short distance.
"No, it's different," Veronica shook her head. "It may look the same on the surface, but it's completely different. This is something Teresa couldn't tell you because she hasn't experienced it."
"I'd love to hear about your experiences then," Ryan nodded, knowing a bit about the Garland Council's recruitment of apprentices but not fully understanding it.
"Every year after Winter Veil and before the start of Spring Festival, the witches of Garland who lack or need apprentices will travel across the continent. Of course, it doesn't have to be at this time. Any time a girl is proven to have the talent for magic, we take them to Sky Castle for a physical examination. In the warmth of the hearth and delicious food, these naive girls think they've arrived in paradise..." Veronica reminisced, pointing to the wizard with her apprentice. "Just like that, girls with potential are chosen by witches or sorceresses and given the status of apprentice. This part is quite similar."
"But apprentices must follow their mentor's guidance, becoming excellent servants. They are required to strictly obey any command. If a servant is too useless, they will be eliminated and remain a servant for life. You understand what I mean?" Veronica looked at the young wizard apprentice following their mentor, covering her mouth and laughing. "Because their lifetime value is only as a servant."
"I get it. It's like knights and their squires," Ryan shrugged, indicating his understanding.
"So those with high talent and effort often gain their mentor's favor. They always think that performing the best will soon win their mentor's favor and be taught more spells and magic secrets. But I kept my wits about me, thinking that mentors wouldn't let go of their best servants." Veronica's tone was full of sarcasm. "The council members aren't as noble as you think, Ryan. They rarely let their best servants go for further learning."
Ryan's eyes widened, understanding now.
The worst apprentices would remain apprentices for life, and the best... would also be suppressed by their mentors to remain apprentices for life?!
"So you deliberately acted like you had mediocre talent, hiding your amazing potential while secretly learning?" Ryan was astonished.
"Yes, at that time, Veronica was an unremarkable, slightly useful apprentice. This allowed me to eventually progress to elite rank and become a formal witch." Veronica laughed mockingly, then took Ryan's arm again. "How about that? Am I amazing?"
Ryan broke into a sweat, realizing the harsh elimination system within the female magic council. Looking at the sweet and beautiful Veronica beside him, he felt a bit of heartache, so he spoke more gently. "And then?"
"Then I should have faced more challenges, like ostracism from colleagues or suppression from other council members. I could have been injured in a strange accident, severely weakening my power, or had my face ruined by another witch's spell... Women's jealousy is terrifying." Veronica looked at Ryan, various complex emotions in her eyes. "At that time, I was hiding everywhere, only staying in Sky Castle during the three days a month the library was open to me. Then, a young rogue knight brought his spoils to Sky Castle. I dueled with him, and he became my partner. His identity made other witches wary, allowing Veronica to finally break free and fully display her talent. I gained the favor of Speaker Margaret and became the number one witch of this generation."
Veronica smiled charmingly. "That's my story."
"I remember I was just a rogue knight back then, an elite warrior, and only a foster son of a lord with low inheritance rights. Was I really that impressive?" Ryan thought his outward status wasn't that remarkable.
"Besides that, you were also the godson of the Empire's Griffin Duke, remember? You had many dealings with Garland, and everyone knew you wouldn't stand by if something happened to your friends, right?" Veronica reminded Ryan. "Though they didn't know I was your partner, they knew we were friends."
Ryan finally admitted she was right. His godfather was the Empire's Griffin Duke, the current Griffin Marshal and head of the Griffin Knights. No witch would risk provoking this formidable figure. Though the Garland Council was powerful, they would immediately hand over anyone to the Griffin Knights if things got out of hand.
The overwhelming force of the Griffin Knights was daunting even to imagine.
"So it was a gamble. Some won, some lost. This girl won a lot, but some didn't play fair. They targeted the chips the girl had already won, pretending not to know those chips were everything the girl had wagered. They even told her the game was flawed and she had
to start over, now that everyone knew where to place their bets!" Veronica's voice was filled with dissatisfaction and resentment. "Tell me, Ryan, can you find a reason for me to not dislike Teresa?" Veronica's voice was very soft. "I used to ignore her, but she crossed the line. I just want her gone, as far as possible. She can find someone else, just don't touch my partner."
"...It seems I still know too little about women. I always thought you'd be friends because you're close in age, similar in strength, both spellcasters, and both beautiful..." Ryan expressed his naive thoughts with some embarrassment.
"Every reason you listed is why we're enemies. We're not knights, we're witches!" Veronica retorted, crossing her arms and walking ahead of Ryan. "So don't try to mediate between us. Just be my partner."
"Alright." Ryan finally gave up his unspoken intention.
Seeing him listen to her, Veronica smiled brightly and pulled him forward. "Come on, let's see if there are any good maids in the slave market. The house feels too empty."
"No, Veronica, the maid isn't the priority now. Do you remember our mission?" Ryan held her hand. She almost lost her balance in her high heels, but Ryan quickly caught her. "Careful, your heels are too high."
"It's fine. If I get tired, you can carry me," Veronica teased, tapping his chest with her fist. "I heard from the council that we're chasing a fallen Witch Hunter? Teresa didn't give me the details, and I didn't ask."
"She didn't explain to you?" Ryan thought for a moment, realizing the two women couldn't have had a proper conversation because Veronica kept urging Teresa to leave.
Ryan had to explain to Veronica.
"Marienburg has hundreds or thousands of ships docking every day, with hundreds of registered businesses and guilds. It's almost impossible to trace the fallen Witch Hunter from the docks. We need another method." Veronica suggested, "Let's go to Shield Coin District and ask the Ocean Church about recent ship registrations, especially those from Nord. Then we can narrow down our search."
"Good idea. All ships must register with the Ocean Church and buy a Sea God Compass and Sea God Mark!" Ryan immediately thought of the specific steps. "We just need to check which ships sailed from Nord ports, and our target list will be greatly reduced!"
"Exactly. Think Teresa could have come up with that?" Veronica kissed Ryan on the cheek. "Let's get going, partner. As usual, you deal with the priests, and I'll ask the clerks."
"No problem!" Ryan was delighted. Their bond had not weakened with short separations but had strengthened with their growing abilities.
That's what partners and comrades are.
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