Chapter 408: Chapter 408

"The ritual is amazing, far exceeding my expectations. The results are much better than what I described. To put it in perspective, the version I knew was like a pebble, while the one you've restored is like that three-story, fully furnished building next to us."

Magic Miss's tone held a hint of pride. "I looked through some old texts and discovered that the ritual was based on a Ritual of Divine Advent from the 14th Epoch. But I happen to know a little about it, which is why I was able to improve it so much."

"A Ritual of Divine Advent?"

As he asked, he couldn't help but feel that the current effect was indeed similar to a divine projection.

"Yes. Although the great deities can choose the time and space of their descent at will—their power is beyond mortal imagination—in very ancient times, it was much more difficult for them to come to the material world. As for why, I don't know."

She cleared her throat and added:

"You can find traces of this if you look through the Orthodox Church's records on gods and saints. The earliest divine descents required the mortal vessel to be at least level 8 and possess three sets of very complex chain abilities. These three sets have long been lost to time, as they weren't very practical. But one theory suggests that mastering all of them in a modern epoch would allow a god to descend directly, without the aid of any ritual."

"What chain abilities?"

"Mr. Candle, you're in luck. I happen to know the names of two of them: [Energy Shell] and [Our God is Here]!"

Hearing the familiar phrases, he froze, and his expression changed instantly.

He didn't even notice when Magic Miss left, his mind consumed with the chain ability he'd traded for with Hathaway, wondering where on earth she had gotten it.

That trade was one of the few deals Jenkins had made at a loss, so his memory of it was particularly sharp. If it had been any other ability, he wouldn't have reacted this way, but anything involving the divine was no laughing matter.

"Where did she get that chain ability?"

With this question weighing on him, he hurried away from the other end of the alley.

He had another matter to attend to tonight, so he changed his appearance several more times and tucked the cat into his coat to let it rest for a while.

It was now nearly one in the morning, and the streets were empty save for patrolling policemen. There were no lights in the city, only the biting cold wind that whistled strangely through the alleys.

Tonight was the delivery time for the [Witch's Kiss]. Since he couldn't sell the three portions of ashes, he now planned to use the money from the potion sale for his upcoming trip. Although the Church had arranged for his food and lodging, he couldn't very well ask for reimbursement for souvenirs.

He had no idea what kind of people Miss Miller had found as buyers, to schedule a delivery so late. The meeting point was also in the city, a large warehouse near the dock area. With the port's annual freeze still a month away, a large volume of goods had been shipped out by sea, leaving many warehouses vacant.

Fortunately, the warehouse wasn't far from St. George Avenue, so he could get home quickly after the transaction.

While walking on the main roads, he had thought the winter nights in Nolan were exceptionally quiet, but once he slipped into the alleys, he discovered they were teeming with all sorts of unsavory characters.

Besides stumbling upon drunkards, he saw secret gatherings, private meetings, and contraband deals taking place at this hour. He even accidentally interrupted a conversation between two Enchanters, but thankfully, he was fast enough to get away.

Emerging from the alley, he felt the cold wind howl across the street. In the distance, he could see a row of low-slung warehouses. He leaned his back against a brick wall and took out his lady's pocket watch.

"Half an hour to go. I'm early..."

When dealing with strangers, Jenkins would never arrive ahead of schedule. Out of caution, he circled the warehouse area, even letting Chocolate out to check if anyone was on the roofs.

He could tell Chocolate was on the verge of getting angry. This was its sleeping time. He had reason to believe that if he wasn't home within the hour, he would have a battle with a set of cat claws on his hands.

After a full circle, he returned to the alley, only to find a skinny young man standing there, leaning against the wall. He was bent over, doing something, and was just as surprised as Jenkins when someone suddenly appeared.

"Just an ordinary person."

This helped Jenkins relax a little.

The young man greeted awkwardly, a lit cigarette pinched in his right hand. He waved a crudely made cigarette box in his left. "Mister, want a smoke? This is the good stuff. Elsewhere, a pound only gets you five sticks, but I've got a better price."

As he spoke with a flourish, a puff of pale yellow smoke escaped his lips.

Jenkins frowned. After the crisp click of the safety being released, he raised his pistol: This update ıs available on novᴇlfire.net

The skinny young man instantly threw away the cigarette and the box, raising his hands so fast they were a blur. "Mister, whatever you want, just say it! Don't shoot!"

He repeated impatiently.

With his hands still raised, the young man chuckled nervously and backed away step by step. When he finally reached the mouth of the alley, he whirled around and fled down the opposite side of the street.

"What a collection of characters."

Jenkins thought to himself, stepping forward to crush the still-burning cigarette butt with the sole of his boot. "Such a lack of public decency. What if it started a fire?"

He turned to leave but then stopped, crouching down to pick up the cigarette box. He opened it, and in the moonlight, he saw five white cigarettes lying quietly inside.

The paper was a pure, brilliant white, a quality that could even be compared to the official documents used by the Church.

He hesitated for a moment, then summoned a flame in his hand and burned the whole thing to ashes. Though they were valuable, Jenkins had no need to become a cigarette peddler; he had plenty of other ways to earn gold pounds.

He stood in the cold wind for another twenty minutes before walking into the warehouse right on time. The other traders apparently had the same idea; seven or eight women arrived within two minutes of him.

Yes, all the traders were women. Two of them were Enchanters, and the rest were ordinary people.

Miss Miller had already negotiated the price with the buyers. One small bottle, about half a pint, sold for twenty pounds. Jenkins couldn't be bothered to calculate the profit margin, but the price was so high it actually made him consider moving to Shire City for real.