Chapter 1496: Chapter 1496

"The residence provided by the Church sounds nice, but it's on the outskirts of Bel Diran. It would be quite inconvenient if you needed to come into the city for anything. If you're looking for a temporary place in the city, I can help."

Miss Windsor offered again.

"Thank you for your kindness, but I actually have my own house in the city. It was... purchased last year, but I've grown accustomed to living at the church."

The house in Bel Diran had been a reward from the Church, given late last autumn after Jenkins provided cross-regional assistance in dealing with a demigod Enchanter who had attempted to merge with A-12-2-4219 [The Flesh of the Foul Devourer] to achieve immortality. The reward had also included a pocket watch chain that could divine good and ill fortune, but unfortunately, that chain had been fused with an arrow and destroyed as a single-use weapon to deal with an angel.

Jenkins hadn't had time to visit Bel Diran since then, so he had entrusted the Church with the house's care and cleaning. He had only just remembered it when Miss Windsor brought up the subject of lodging.

"The church is indeed a bit far, and coming into the city is certainly a hassle... Perhaps I'll move into the city for a few days during my week in Bel Diran."

As he thought this, he realized that moving out would make it easier to handle certain matters without the Church finding out.

"Where exactly is your house? I can help you hire a few servants." Chapters fırst released on novęlfire.net

Miss Windsor said. Jenkins offered a few polite words and declined once more.

"...Speaking of your second book, Her Majesty was just talking to me about it the other day. She's quite fond of your writing style and is very curious to know if your third book will be published soon."

He only had a rough draft of the third book; it was far from a complete manuscript. During his stay in Ruen, he had been busy helping Dolores with state affairs and traveling between the two cities, leaving him no time to devise detective stories.

"It's quite all right. I know that brilliant works don't just appear one after another. You need time to polish them. Her Majesty truly admires you. She often speaks of you to me, calling you a model for the young nobility."

She praised, and surprisingly, her words were all true.

"Now that you've come to Bel Diran, Her Majesty will surely summon you when she finds out. A long time ago, because of the Fabry Fraud, your title should have been elevated. But for various reasons, you are still only a Baron. I imagine Her Majesty will seize this opportunity to grant you a promotion. You might end up staying in Bel Diran a little longer."

Miss Windsor’s words, both spoken and unspoken, seemed to suggest she didn’t want Jenkins to return to Nolan too quickly. Jenkins couldn't discern her motive. After all, if Miss Windsor also coveted the throne, she should want him sent back home as soon as possible. He outwardly nodded in agreement with her, but inwardly he was trying to dissect her every word. Realizing he lacked the talent for such analysis, he decided to ask Alexia for her opinion that evening.

The carriage took half an hour to reach the vicinity of the Grand Cathedral of the Sage. The religiously inspired spires and the magnificent complex of church buildings were now in full view.

Outside carriages were strictly forbidden from entering the Holy See's grounds, so Jenkins disembarked at the start of the path. After a polite farewell, he walked back to the cathedral. The mirror had to be handed over in person for its authenticity to be confirmed, so Jenkins took it out of its wooden box himself. This was the first time he had ever seen it.

He kept the reflective surface pointed to the side as he handed the mirror to the gentleman from the special items processing office who was handling the exchange. The man took the mirror and, without a hint of concern, turned both sides to face himself before nodding.

"No problem, this is definitely it. You work incredibly fast, Mr. Williams."

"You just looked in the mirror..."

Jenkins pointed out hesitantly, taking a step back in case the man suddenly went mad.

"It's fine. For an Enchanter, this level of harm is almost negligible, as long as you aren't tempted by it for too long. You said an ordinary person died because of this mirror? I expect our office will be sending someone to assist with the autopsy shortly. This would be the fifth recorded death caused by this mirror."

The man, who was starting to bald, sighed mournfully. He placed the mirror back into the wooden box, then bent down to open a drawer and search for registration forms and the standard containment report for transferring special items.

Jenkins nodded in understanding, then hesitated for a moment before picking up the mirror again. He first looked at the front. Since he carried no diseases or curses, nothing happened. Then he flipped the mirror over. After a second of staring, his face flushed crimson as he placed the mirror back in the wooden box and took another step back.

"You see? It has almost no effect on Enchanters, especially high-level ones."

The man in the office commented. Jenkins, doing his best to forget the image he had just seen, promised to submit the report as soon as possible and then fled the room.

Chocolate, however, was very curious about what Jenkins had seen.

After handing over the mirror, Jenkins applied to the Church to move into his house in the city. He had expected them to deny his request for security reasons, but to his surprise, he received an immediate approval. Since the house was fully furnished and regularly cleaned by hired help, all Jenkins had to do was arrange for the large amount of luggage he'd brought from Ruen to be moved over.

"Why did you think the Church might not let you move out? You're an adult, and you're more than strong enough to take care of yourself. The Church has no reason to restrict your freedom."

After moving into his new house in the heart of Bel Diran, Jenkins invited Papa Oliver over for dinner. At the dinner table, Papa Oliver asked curiously. Jenkins thought for a moment, swatted away Chocolate's little paw as it reached for a plate, and then answered:

"Probably because back in Nolan, you were always restricting my movements."

This was, in fact, a half-hearted complaint directed at Papa Oliver.

"Wasn't that for your own good? And looking at things now, it was for Nolan's good too."

Papa Oliver nodded, pretending not to catch the undertone, and then took a bite of his veal steak.

"Which restaurant did you get this from? It tastes quite good."

Neither Jenkins nor Papa Oliver was skilled in the kitchen, so until Jenkins formally brought a mistress to the house, meals would have to come from outside restaurants.