Seeing Allen's vacant eyes, the sorceress chuckled softly and shook her head: "Relax, Allen, I'm not reading your mind."
No need to read minds; the witcher apprentice's expression was easy to understand.
Although he was skeptical about Vera's words, Allen still pretended to be nonchalant and said: "I'm not nervous, Lady Vera."
Looking at Allen's stubborn yet adorable face, Vera's lips unconsciously curled into a doting smile as she coaxed softly: "Alright, alright, let's continue."
Allen, still nervously emptying his mind, didn't notice Vera's smile and said: "I absorb regular meals quickly, but..."
"Wait a moment."
Allen was interrupted by the sorceress again.
Snap
With a snap of her fingers, a delicate water bottle placed on the ground floated up and landed on the alchemy table in front of Allen.
"Drink it and show me."
Allen tilted his head. The sorceress propped her right hand on her cheek, her expression quite strange. Curiosity, amusement, and a hint of eagerness.
It didn't seem like she was digging into some topic or experiment; rather, it looked like she was excitedly... watching a good show?
If a child from a normal family had time-traveled, they would recognize this. This was the expression adults often had during the New Year when urging children to perform some special performance.
After hesitating for a moment, Allen could only pray that the witcher's journal would come through and not let the sorceress discover anything unusual. Under Vera's expectant gaze, Allen removed the wooden stopper from the water bottle and took a sip of his portion.
[Do you want to use the essence liquid of the drowner's heart?]
After mentally selecting the option, the familiar alternating currents of hot and cold coursed through his body. The sensation of pain and itching just started to surface before disappearing. Moments later, Vera saw Allen open his eyes and asked eagerly, "Is it over?"
"Yes, I've absorbed it all."
Mary, who had been eavesdropping, immediately distanced herself from the matter.
"Lady Vera, it has nothing to do with me. I just followed the original formula..."
Vera casually pressed her hand down to stop Mary from continuing.
"The first two days after the Trial of the Grasses, you didn't show this special ability. Why?"
Allen's heart skipped a beat, and he braced himself and said: "I don't know; it just suddenly happened yesterday."
"Really?"
When Allen heard the sorceress's question, his heart was in his throat. Just when he thought she was going to dig deeper, Vera surprisingly let the issue go and let him continue.
...
About half an hour later, this "interrogation" finally ended.
During this unbearable time, Allen had to hide his thoughts, make up stories, and even perform the "Witcher's Eye" ability like a monkey for the sorceress. Fighting drowners all afternoon wouldn't have been this exhausting. Finally, the torment ended.
"Alright, Allen, thank you for your cooperation."
"Glad to be of help." Allen forced a smile, quickly got up, and prepared to leave this "hell."
"Wait a moment!"
Hearing those three words, Allen couldn't help but tremble. Every torment from the sorceress began with those three words. Now, those syllables gave Allen a shadow.
"Wh-what is it... Lady Vera?"
Honestly, Allen was at his limit. If he were sure he could beat the sorceress, he would have gone all out.
"You haven't used the Mirage Pendant, have you?"
Allen froze for a moment, then took the pendant out from his collar.If the sorceress hadn't mentioned it, he would have almost forgotten he had a magical accessory. When he first got the pendant, Allen tried it privately, but no matter what, he couldn't figure out how to use it.
At the time, Allen thought he didn't have enough magic power to use the pendant.After learning the signs, he realized it wasn't just about magic power.The pendant was rejecting him.It refused to let Allen's magic enter its body. As if it wasn't a pendant but a living creature.
The witcher apprentice, who had never encountered magical accessories, instinctively rejected this bizarre feeling of neither life nor death. Seeing that the chief and the sorceress hadn't mentioned it, he didn't think to ask. Of course, it was also because the chief left in a hurry, and the sorceress had asked about the Witcher's Eye.
"Give me the pendant." Vera extended her slender, fair right hand.
Allen didn't hesitate and directly took off the necklace, handing it to the sorceress. The sorceress took the necklace, traced the edge of the pendant's gemstone counterclockwise with her index finger, and then returned it to Allen. Allen took the pendant and glanced at the sorceress.
"Inject your magic into it, like how you cast a sign," Vera explained with a smile.
Allen nodded, took a deep breath, mobilized his mutated organ, extracted a bit of magic, and cautiously injected it into the pendant. The magic was instantly absorbed, and the gemstone on the pendant seemed to flash with a white light, then dimmed as if it lacked energy.
"Don't be afraid, inject all your magic."
The sorceress's voice was gentle and intimate, making Allen look up. Vera's smile was also full of encouragement.For some reason, Allen saw a sense of benevolence in that beautiful face.
Benevolence?
!!!
He quickly dismissed the thought from his mind. It was all the master's fault. Knowing the sorceress was older than Vesemir's grandfather's grandfather, the more he looked at her 18-year-old-like face, the more he felt a deep sense of benevolence.The key was that these two feelings weren't contradictory, perfectly blended together.Making the witcher apprentice involuntarily feel dependent.
Was this also part of the sorceress's magic?
Allen muttered in his heart and quickly stopped the baseless guesses. If the sorceress knew what he was thinking, neither he nor Vesemir would see tomorrow's sun. Refocusing on the pendant's gemstone, Allen no longer hesitated and poured all the magic from his mutated organ into the magical accessory.
In an instant, the translucent gemstone seemed to breathe, flickering. A close connection formed between the gemstone and Allen's soul. The witcher apprentice was surprised to find that this Mirage Pendant was truly alive.
Thud
Mary, who had been openly eavesdropping, fell to the ground. This time, due to her posture, her head didn't land on the alchemy table. Hearing the noise, Allen quickly turned to look.
"Ignore her; she's just sleepy." Vera said lightly.
Allen had many complaints but dared not voice them.He could only pretend he saw nothing and refocus on the seemingly alive pendant.
Lady Vera understood Allen's expression and chuckled: "Yes, this gemstone is alive."
"She's called the Mirage Pearl, appearing after a Conjunction of the Spheres."
"Since the Ancients arrived on this continent by boat, less than three Mirage Pearls have been discovered. Two of them are now lost."
"So the one I have is the only one in the world?" Allen couldn't help but exclaim.
"At least it's the only one I know of," Vera replied.
....
📢10 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: p@treon.com/Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
26. Prophecy.
27. Master Vesemir is Too Fast.
28. No Alchemy Class?
29. The Little Celebrity of the Ancient Sea Fortress.
30. Surprise.