Chapter 193 - 168: Mortal Enemy and the New Generation

On January 3rd, the mission team was officially disbanded.

The atmosphere at the breakfast table was completely different from the past few days.

No one talked about Seals, Inscriptions, or Evil Beings anymore.

Everyone was packing their bags, preparing to go their separate ways.

The innkeeper’s wife prepared a lavish farewell breakfast: bacon, fried eggs, toast, mushrooms, black pudding, and a large pot of strong tea.

"Eat up before you go," she said, bringing out the last plate of bacon. "Who knows when you’ll be back again."

Due to his injuries, Captain Field would be staying in Whitcomb for two weeks to recuperate.

The innkeeper had already set a room aside for him, and his daily meal expenses would be reimbursed by the civilian Guild.

"I’ll take the train back myself in two weeks," the Captain said, holding his teacup with his right hand. "I just need a little more time to heal."

Sarah had left early in the morning. Her horse had been tied up at the village entrance, and she rode off before dawn.

Before she left, she placed a note on the bar. It had only a single line written on it:

"Call me again for the next job. —S."

Mrs. MacNeil and Mr. Hutton had more business to attend to.

Mrs. MacNeil had to finish the mission report and send it, along with the silver coin, back to the North branch of the civilian Guild.

Mr. Hutton needed to compile all the data collected during last night’s ritual into a file and store it in the local Seal maintenance archives.

"This file will serve as a reference for other Practitioners in the future."

"The next person who encounters a similar entity won’t have to start from scratch like we did."

The old gentleman then said to Richard:

"I’ll hold onto that Sheepskin Scroll for now. When the next semester starts, the two of us can study its contents together."

The four Newcomers exchanged mailing addresses at the inn’s entrance.

Edmund gave Richard an address card for Saint Peter’s Divinity School.

"Just send your letters here. I go to the mailroom to pick up my mail every Wednesday and Saturday."

Theodore pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket, on which an address in West Yorkshire was scrawled crookedly.

"This is the address of my family’s horse farm," he said, handing the paper to Richard. "Send letters here, and my mom will collect them for me."

"Your mom won’t open them, will she?" Richard asked as he took the paper.

"...She will," Theodore said, looking a bit embarrassed. "So don’t write too much about Mysticism in your letters."

Maggie was the last to exchange addresses.

She gave Richard a long address containing several place names in the Gaelic Language that he couldn’t pronounce at all.

"Copy the full address when you send a letter," she instructed. "The postman relies on the place names to find his way. If you miss a single letter, he won’t be able to find it."

"Okay."

The four of them stood at the entrance of the inn as the winter wind blew down from the Highland, messing up everyone’s hair.

"Well then... goodbye," Edmund said, extending his hand first.

Four hands piled on top of one another.

"Goodbye."

"See you."

"Hope everyone is still alive next time we meet," Theodore said, uttering something rather inauspicious.

Maggie kicked him. "Don’t jinx us! What a thing to say."

"I’m just being honest!"

"You can’t just say things like that, even if it’s true!"

The two bickered for a few moments before parting with a laugh.

Edmund took a southward-bound carriage, while Theodore caught a branch line train heading east.

Maggie didn’t need a ride. Her home was in the Highland, and someone would meet her if she was Walking to town.

Before leaving, she paused at the entrance of the inn.

"Richard."

"Hm?"

"Do you know Catherine Blackwood?"

Richard stopped in his tracks.

"I saw her at the Cicero Cup. Why?"

Maggie pulled up the hood of her cloak, obscuring the upper half of her face.

"My family and hers are mortal enemies."

"..." Richard frowned but said nothing.

"I was originally going to participate in the Cicero Cup, too."

Maggie didn’t look at him as she spoke. "But since Catherine had already registered, I didn’t go."

Richard thought for a moment before asking.

"What kind of feud?"

"It’s something from the older generation," Maggie said, shaking her head. "Back in my great-grandfather’s time, our two families got into a fight over the ownership of a pasture."

"A fight?"

"A ’fight’ between Hunters," she emphasized. "The kind where people die."

Maggie pulled her hood down a little further.

"The younger generation doesn’t really care that much about the old grudges."

As she said this, her tone held no hatred, nor any forced sense of release.

"I saw her once, at a gathering in the Highland."

"She’s half a head taller than me, and her hair is darker than mine."

"She glanced at me, and I glanced back at her."

"That was it."

Richard nodded.

"If you ever have the chance in the future..." he began, choosing his words carefully, "what would happen if the two of you were at the same table?"

Maggie thought for a moment.

"It would probably be very awkward."

She waved and turned to run.

Her cloak billowed in the wind like a balloon, not unlike mushrooms sent tumbling by the wind.

Richard stood at the inn’s entrance, watching her run into the distance. He would be taking the train back alone.

From Whitcomb to the transfer station, and then another transfer from there.

In the waiting room, there was only him and a dozing ticket agent.

He took a notebook from his backpack and did a full inventory of his gains from the past few days.

Marvels: Ritual Dagger and Bronze Plate.

’Judging by their seepage rate, the two items together could provide at least one point, and possibly even two.’

’When my aunt gets here, I’ll have her recycle the Copper Pendant, the Incense Burner, and the Sun Emblem first.’

’Even if I can’t exchange them for new Marvels, I can save up some money. I’ll be able to browse for goods at Donal’s shop when I go to the Imperial Capital in the future.’

Boundary Stone Array Rubbing Copy: Twelve segments of Celtic Ancient Script Inscriptions. A complete translation would fulfill the validation requirement for an advanced Practitioner.

Spiritual Appearance: Recovering, at 2/10.

The Four Elements of the Body Skill didn’t increase much during this winter break internship, but the last few days of wilderness patrols and hands-on Seal practice had caused a noticeable shift in the progress bar.

[Perception] had jumped to Level 2 this time; [Scholarship] was nearing 82%.

’Once I completely decipher the validation text I copied, my Scholarship progress should increase by a large chunk.’

’Plus the Inscription on the Bronze Plate and the Curse Spell on the Sheepskin Scroll.’

’When I study them with Mr. Hutton after the break, I estimate that all together, it should be enough to get my [Scholarship] progress to at least 95%.’

’And that’s not even counting the natural growth from my regular studies.’

’Advancing [Scholarship] to Level 3, gaining a new trait, and unlocking [Rationality] are all within reach.’

Richard grew excited at the thought.

This winter break internship had been fruitful in every aspect: the Marvels he’d acquired, the practical experience he’d gained behind the Curtain, the new connections he’d made, and the Mysticism texts awaiting decipherment.

He closed his notebook and leaned back against the wooden chair in the waiting room.

Outside the window was a gray-white sky, and the silhouettes of the distant hills were as hazy as an unfinished watercolor painting.

The train arrived.

He boarded the train and found a seat by the window.

There were only three other people in the carriage: an old woman dozing with a basket in her lap, and a young couple speaking in low voices.

Richard placed his backpack on his lap and closed his eyes.

The train swayed as it rumbled south.

He slept for an hour and a half on the train, and when he woke up, the view outside the window had changed from wilderness to farmland.

It was a little after one in the afternoon when he reached the station. He bought a ticket to Osborne at the transfer point.

On the evening of January 3rd, Richard arrived in Osborne.

Osborne was a small town in southern Yorkshire.

The town was backed by a range of rolling hills, and thus had an outdoor activities club that organized hiking, camping, and rabbit hunting trips.

On the club’s notice board, Richard found a two-day hiking group scheduled to depart the next day.

The registration fee was two shillings and six pence, which included a guide, use of the campsite, and rental of basic camping equipment.

He paid the fee and found a small inn near the club to stay for the night.

After dinner, he locked his room door from the inside.

He took out the small cloth bag that Old Big had given him and poured over twenty Talisman Stones onto the table.

Then he took out his training Copper Disc and placed it in the center of the table.

He adjusted the Oil Lamp on the table to a medium brightness.

He sat at the table, placed his hands flat on his knees, and performed two complete rounds of Quadruple Breathing, allowing his Light Tree Leaves to contract back into a stable rhythm.

Then he closed his eyes and ran his hand over the pile of Talisman Stones for a moment.

He silently posed his question:

’Will this trip be safe? What will the road and weather conditions be like for the next thirty-six hours?’

He grabbed a handful and cast them into the Copper Disc.

A soft CLATTERING sound came from the disc.

Five Talisman Stones landed in the disc, arranged roughly like this:

The Wheat was near the center of the disc;

The Crescent was slightly off-center, leaning toward The Wheat;

The Drop was by itself, on the North side of the disc’s center;

The Double Circle was on the seam of the disc, almost falling off;

The Hammer was three finger-widths from the center, pointing North.

Richard stared at the combination for several minutes.

’The Wheat is near the center, meaning the main objective will have a stable outcome.’

’The Crescent, combined with The Wheat, will bring positive changes and growth.’

’The Drop is North of the center. "Unfinished business" lies to the North. There is something on my path that requires attention.’

’The Double Circle is on the seam. There will be connections and some friction among my companions, but nothing deep.’

’The Hammer points North. The "action" points North.’

He recorded this combination in his notebook, then grabbed another handful and asked again:

’Will any of my companions be a source of trouble?’

He cast them into the disc, and five Talisman Stones fell.

The Double Circle was near the center;

The Drop landed next to The Double Circle;

The Wheat was a little farther away;

The Hammer was inverted, pointing outward;

The Crescent was at the edge of the disc.

’The Double Circle is near the center. A "relationship" will emerge among my companions.’

’The Drop is right next to The Double Circle, which means the "unfinished business" is tied to that relationship.’

’The Hammer is inverted and pointing out. I won’t need to take action against any of my companions.’

’The Crescent is at the edge. The "change" is on the periphery and has nothing to do with the main objective.’

Richard breathed a sigh of relief. No source of trouble.

But there would be some "unfinished business" linked to his relationship with a companion.

He turned a page and wrote:

Note: Unfinished business with a companion; route will involve a detour; main objective is safe.

The results of the Stone Reading Technique gave him some confidence about the next day’s hike.

He returned the Talisman Stones to their cloth bag, wiped the Copper Disc clean and put it back in his backpack, and blew out the Oil Lamp.

At the edge of his vision, the progress bar for [Perception] Level 2 twitched again.