Ryan's letter to Theresa wasn't long.
At least it wasn't as long as the witch had imagined. Ryan briefly explained his recent situation and change of identity in the letter.
After a brief greeting, Ryan subtly indicated that he needed the witch's help in managing his territory and inquired if Theresa was interested, stating he would pay her the usual rates.
Finally, Ryan conveyed his regards to her and her mother.
That's it? Nothing more?
Theresa leaned against the soft sofa cushions, having shed her fur coat. Now wearing a gold-thread embroidered gossamer blouse and loose black wide-leg pants, which accentuated her slender leg lines, she meticulously read Ryan's letter thrice. She confirmed that there was nothing more than these brief words on the parchment.
She felt a tinge of disappointment.
From her initial impatience to excitement and now to a somewhat silent demeanor, the witch's emotions were evident to her apprentice, who dared not speak much and stood with her head bowed in respect.
"When did the letter arrive?" Sure enough, the question came.
"This afternoon, my councillor."
"Was there anything else besides the letter?"
"Nothing else, my councillor."
A hint of displeasure flickered in Theresa's silver eyes. She softly said, "Alright, I understand. You may leave."
"Yes!" The apprentice almost exited when the witch suddenly stopped her: "Wait! How did you receive this letter at the Sky Fortress, and were there any other letters?"
"I was present when the messenger arrived at the Sky Fortress, my councillor. As for the letters, there indeed was another one sent to Councillor Veronica, which Catherine took."
He also sent one to Veronica! Theresa's eyes narrowed, sparks flying in her silver pupils: "Okay, I know. You may leave now."
After the apprentice left, the room returned to silence. Most witches prefer tranquility, especially in their own wizard towers. Theresa forced herself to calm down.
It's been almost a year since receiving a letter from Ryan. Did it make the witch happy?
Undoubtedly, yes.
Her black hair, like a waterfall, brushed across the sofa. Over the past year, she had matured and grown stronger.
However, the distance between her and Ryan had also increased.
Outside the window, the weather was clear, and the snow had blanketed the entire mountain range, covering the high mountains near Sky Fortress in a thick winter coat. The fierce wind howled, passing between the wizard towers.
Inside, sparks flew in the warm fireplace. After reading the letter again and finding no omissions, Theresa sighed lightly. Many memories resurfaced.
She decided to consult her mother for her opinion.
As the witch headed towards the high tower to her mother's room, in the corridors of the Sky Fortress of the Galon Council, a little girl was running hard, her golden hair fluttering and her black leather shoes clattering.
The magnificent Sky Fortress towered into the clouds. As a castle, it covered a vast area, forming a small city inside. Numerous wizard towers connected the aerial corridors between parts of the castle. Travelling from one place to another took considerable time.
Many witches and wizard apprentices in the corridor were startled by the little girl's hurry.
"What's wrong, Catherine?"
"Catherine! You almost bumped into me, do you know?"
"Any latest news?"
The apprentices often studied together under the guidance of their tutors, all wearing standard red witch dresses and robes. Many recognized this little witch; she was Councillor Veronica's apprentice.
"I have an urgent matter! Please make way!" Catherine, panting, signaled everyone to clear the way. She had received an extremely important letter and needed to show it to the councillor immediately.
After running through the corridors and descending a flight of stairs, then following a long downhill path, Catherine reached a tower door.
This was a wooden door, and a wolf statue completely blocked the path ahead, giving the impression that there was no way forward.
Catherine stopped, sweat beading on her forehead. She stood in front of the statue, took a deep breath, and said, "Requesting entry."
"State the passphrase," said the statue.
"Ryan is a heartbreaker." Catherine glanced around, her face reddening as she whispered.
"Correct." The statue moved aside, revealing the door behind.
This was Veronica's residence.
Unlike the wealthy Aurora and her daughter, Veronica, who emerged from the ranks of wizard apprentices, didn't have the resources to build her own wizard tower. Initially, she was even quite poor and often had to wander for most of the year to make money.
Now it was different. As her strength and status rose, especially after Ryan's fame and position grew, Veronica increasingly caught the attention of Galon Council Chair Margaret. After Veronica returned from her Beautific Order mission, Margaret arranged this small tower for her residence.
Veronica never really considered this tower her home; she only saw it as a temporary residence.
The councillor was always waiting for a call from someone, ready to be by his side.
But that wait was long.
After waiting for several months, the statue's passphrase became this. Catherine often wanted to laugh, remembering how her tutor cursed a certain man yet frequently asked her if there was a letter from him.
"Knock knock, Councillor?" Catherine knocked on the door. There was no doubt Veronica was inside; otherwise, the statue wouldn't have responded.
"Councillor?" Seeing no answer, Catherine knocked harder.
"Is that Catherine? Weren't you in class?" A sweet female voice finally came from inside, sounding surprised: "Why are you here now?"
The door opened.
Councillor Veronica seemed free today, dressed in a peach-colored floral dress. The hem revealed her slender, nylon-stockinged legs and milk-white peep-toe high heels. Her toenails were painted with red nail polish.
Her beautiful almond eyes looked questioningly at her apprentice. Her lustrous black-brown hair, more vibrant than her dress, fell over her shoulders, smoother than the finest Zhen Dan silk. A silver pendant, a gift from someone, hung at her chest, bouncing on her ample bosom.
"Stefana's history class might be boring, but you can still listen to it... Anyway, come in." Veronica had just gotten out of bed, loving her beauty sleep, especially after dreaming of a certain man last night. It took her a while to leave her bed.
She thought her apprentice came because of boredom in class.
Inside the room, a fire blazed in the fireplace, special magical firewood burning steadily for over eighteen hours. The floor was covered with various rugs, on which stood many wooden furniture pieces: a large table, chairs, a dressing table, cabinets.
The dining table held an unfinished bottle of red wine and some bread. It looked like the councillor was having lunch: "Catherine? Want some butter bread?"
"Ah, no! Councillor, you have a letter!" Catherine was startled for
a moment before quickly speaking up.
"A letter for me? From whom? If it's from that idiot Matthias, just throw it away!" Veronica said impatiently.
Last year, around this time, when she returned to Sky Fortress, Elder Aurora had assigned her a long and troublesome task of guarding a count's safety during his land inspection. The pay was good.
However, the count's son Matthias was smitten with Veronica and persistently pursued her, leading her to use her alchemy to render Matthias "impotent," effectively making him less than a whole man.
This matter was still a bone of contention in the Galon Council with the count, but under the will of Chair Margaret, it was suppressed.
"No... it's from Lord Ryan," Catherine continued, her face reddening: "A messenger arrived this afternoon with Lord Ryan's letter."
"Ryan? That guy dares to write to me?!" Surprisingly, Veronica was not pleased but looked threateningly dangerous: "He's been a baron for months now, and only now he thinks to write to me?"
"What about this letter?" Now Catherine was confused about what to do; she presented the letter to Veronica: "Councillor, do you want to see it?"
Veronica snatched the wax-sealed letter, checked its intactness, and said, "Alright, I've received the letter. You can go back to class, Catherine."
"Okay, Councillor." Catherine wanted to know what the letter said, but seeing Veronica's grim expression, she backed away.
An old warning circulated among the Galon Council apprentices: never try to anger your tutor.
"Wait! Catherine." As Veronica carefully opened the wax seal, she called her apprentice back, motioning her over: "Never mind, come sit here."
"Councillor?" Catherine trotted over, her face flushed.
"You've been with me for three years, right? There are some things I don't want to hide from you. Come, let's see what Ryan wrote. If he only talks about himself and not a word about me, throw this letter into the fire." Veronica tied her hair back and handed Ryan's letter to her apprentice.
Veronica's expression was unnatural. She sat on the sofa beside the fireplace, her legs shaking nervously, which was uncharacteristic of her usually calm and composed demeanor.
Catherine opened the letter.
Ryan described recent events in the letter: how he reached Bretonnia to become a Grail Knight and Baron Jean, participated in a Knightly war, and ultimately emerged victorious.
Then, Ryan detailed his current situation, including his relationship with his superiors and the Lady of the Lake. He emphasized he had taken Emilia as his maid and also recruited a dark elf as a maid.
Hearing this, Veronica scoffed: "He never lacks women around him."
"Councillor, Lord Ryan says he needs your help in his territory. He's not sure how you plan to build your wizard tower, but everything is ready on his end. Whenever you reach Baron Jean's land, your tower can start being built immediately." Catherine continued reading, her face suddenly turning even redder: "Lord Ryan hopes you can set off soon. He wants to make up for the missed Winter Solstice with you, wants to hold you, and wants to... uh, OO and then XX..."
"Enough!" Veronica's face flushed instantly. She quickly grabbed the letter and read it herself.
Soon, her face was also full of blushes.
The letter wasn't long, and Veronica didn't know that the content of Ryan's letters to her and Theresa was roughly the same. He used a more formal tone in Theresa's letter, while he was a bit more risqué and intimate with his partner.
Gently pressing the envelope against her bosom, Veronica took a deep breath, her mood improving noticeably. She seemed to feel Ryan's writing pressure and mischievous smile.
"Finally." She murmured: "It would take at most a month to teleport to Marinburg and then travel to his domain. I should be able to arrive by early November."
"Catherine, go back. I have to see Chair Margaret!"
"Yes, Councillor."
Action was immediate! After a quick lunch, Veronica took Ryan's letter and hurriedly left her room.
She was going to the chair for an external assignment, which she had already discussed with Margaret as a formality.
Leaving her room, Veronica walked along the corridors of the fortress towards the central wizard tower of Sky Fortress.
Not far, she encountered someone she didn't want to see.
Dressed in a fur coat, blouse, and wide-leg pants, the witch Theresa was holding a letter, seemingly also seeking someone. She was walking briskly.
Theresa stopped instinctively when she saw Veronica standing in front of her.
"It's you!"
"Well, well, if it isn't our little Galon princess," Veronica said unkindly, eyeing Theresa's elegant face: "So eager to go somewhere, huh?"
Mid-sentence, Veronica noticed the letter in Theresa's hand: "This is... you got a letter from Ryan too?!"
"Hmph! Yes, it seems Ryan wrote to both of us." Theresa's face was cold as ice. From every angle, she found the witch in front of her displeasing: "Now I'm curious, what did he say to you in his letter?"
A purple staff appeared in the witch's hand.
"I'm curious too, Miss Trovick. How did you get Ryan to write to you? Did you sneak into his bed, you bitch?" Veronica narrowed her eyes.
Within seconds, both women were ready to cast spells. Deep blue ice energy swirled in Theresa's staff, and Veronica's fingertips emitted a fiery red glow.
They both eyed each other's letters.
"Hand over your letter!"
"Give me the letter!"
___________________
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