After giving instructions to the golden retriever Susie, Audrey paced back and forth a few times, seemingly not feeling completely at ease, as she wasn't sure if strange things would occur during today's ritual magic.
"Well..." her eyes became calm, observing the anticipated process with an observer's attitude, and soon made a new arrangement.
Audrey locked the bedroom door and said to the golden retriever:
"Susie, you stay here. If Anne and the others try to force their way in, go to the bathroom and notify me immediately."
To prevent some unexpected situations, her personal maid had a key that could unlock the lock.
Susie gave her a sad look and wagged her tail three times.
"Good, I'll let you choose today's lunch!" Audrey clenched her fist and gently shook it.
After finishing her instructions, she entered the bathroom and saw that the square bathtub, which was three meters in length and width, was already filled with clear water, with white mist spreading and a fog-like haze enveloping her.
Audrey tidied up the rectangular table, which was originally filled with bottles and jars, and then returned to the outside room, moving in the candles, offerings, and white robes.
Immediately after that, she closed the bathroom door.
After all this, Audrey breathed a sigh of relief, picking up a small, shallow, and translucent blue bottle the size of a palm.
This bottle was cylindrical, shining with a dreamy luster under the light, and inside was the ritual essential oil she had distilled and extracted yesterday - as a mystic enthusiast, she had studied similar things quite a lot, and had many homemade essences, flower essences, ointments, oils, and incense at home, so she quickly made the necessary preparations according to the Fool's description.
"Moonflower, golden mint, deep sleep flower, golden citron, and rock rose... strange formula..." Audrey muttered softly, "Well, before the ritual magic, one must clean the body and calm the mind. This is a sign of respect for the gods, um, the object of prayer."
After reviewing the process, she placed the ritual essential oil on the edge of the bathtub and began to undress her light and comfortable home clothes.
One by one, the silk fabrics fell into the washing basket, Audrey gathered her long hair and first tested the water temperature with her hand, then lifted her toes slightly and stepped in carefully, sinking her body into the warm embrace.
"Ah..." she breathed comfortably, feeling warm all over and extremely relaxed.
Really, not even a single finger wanted to move... Audrey forced herself to stay alert, grasping the small, translucent blue bottle beside her, and dropped a few drops of the ritual essential oil into the water.
A fragrance spread, hidden in the tranquility, and Audrey took a few breaths, nodding in satisfaction.
"Good, very pleasant."
"It's so relaxing, so comfortable..."
"I don't want to move at all. I really wish to lie quietly like this..."
"Quietly, quietly... Calm... Still..."
After a while, Audrey suddenly heard the汪汪汪 sound of the dog.
She suddenly opened her eyes, looked around confusedly, and found that Susie had opened the door and was squatting outside the bathtub, her eyes looking extremely helpless.
Rubbing her eyes, Audrey felt that the water temperature had dropped quite a bit.
"I, I fell asleep?" she subconsciously asked.
Susie looked at her, not barking or wagging her tail.
"Haha, that bottle of ritual essential oil really worked well, um, really well!" Audrey dryly chuckled, explaining in a cheerful tone.
She stood up, took a bath towel, wrapped and wiped her body while saying to the golden retriever:
"Susie, keep watching, don't let Anne and the others come in!"
When the golden retriever left, she quietly flicked her tongue, threw away the bath towel, and directly put on the clean white robe.
Closing the bathroom door, Audrey carefully recalled what she had recorded for the ritual.
She picked up the four candles and placed them in the four corners of the table.
"White bread on the upper left, Venetian portobello on the upper right, so fragrant, just a bit cold..." No, it's not the time to think about such things! The seafood dish in the lower left corner, the Dixie pie in the lower right corner... "Audrey carefully set up the altar according to the fool's description, shaking her head twice in the process.
Ready, she lit four candles one by one, picked up the silver knife, and inserted it into the pile of coarse salt.
After reciting the sanctifying incantation of Hermes, Audrey offered the small knife, which had exquisite patterns, and placed it in a cup filled with water.
Gathering her strength, she withdrew the silver "sacred blade" and contemplated the scene where spiritual energy spread from the tip of the blade and burst forth.
The intangible power surged outward. Audrey held the knife, walked around the altar, and felt that indeed a spiritual wall had been erected around it, excluding all impurities and all disturbances.
She maintained the "audience" state, not allowing the excitement and joy in her heart to affect the ceremony.
Putting down the silver knife, she picked up the translucent blue crystal vial and dropped a drop of it onto each candle.
Zhi!
A faint fragrance spread successively. Audrey's body, mind, and soul seemed to gain peace.
She took a deep breath in silence, lowered her head respectfully, and recited the formal incantation in Hermes's language:
"O fool who does not belong to this era;
You are the mysterious master above the mist;
You are the king of yellow and black who holds good fortune.
I pray for your help.
I pray for your favor.
I pray that you grant me a good dream.
Deep sleep flower, the herb of the red moon, please pass the power to my incantation.
Golden citron, the herb of the sun, please pass the power to my incantation." ...
As Audrey finished reciting the incantation and began to meditate on the content, she felt a breeze blowing within the sealed spiritual wall. She saw the deep red stars on the back of her hand swirling.
Her heart skipped a beat. She quickly closed her eyes halfway, focused her mind, and sincerely made the request.
When everything was over, she looked around with a hint of confusion, but found no other strange phenomena.
"Is that all?" Audrey frowned slightly and murmured. ......
"The Yellow and Black King who wields good fortune... does not belong to the foolish ones of this era..." In the captain's cabin of the "Violet Vengeance" ship, Alge Wilson, dressed in a stormy robe, silently recited the three descriptions he had heard this afternoon, seemingly trying to find clues about the identity of the person.
He shook his head, getting up with a slightly irritated expression, but ultimately did nothing.
Alge was not very confident about the "Violet Vengeance", an ancient ship left over by the Tudor Dynasty. Although he himself had gained control of it, there was always a gut feeling telling him that this ship still held many secrets, just like that Blood Emperor.
So, he would use this ship to test the abilities of the fools, but would not attempt unknown ritual magic on board.
Alge thought for a few minutes, then left the captain's cabin and went to the deck, addressing the few crew members there:
"We are about to arrive at the Rosted Islands and will stay there for one day."
The crew members immediately cheered, shouting loudly:
"Thank Bishop!"
Because the ghost ship doesn't need sailors and has few crew members, they never worry about supplies. They can enjoy fresh food and clean water every day. But the repetitive sailing and almost unchanging scenery still make their bodies and minds feel tired, as if they are suppressing something and enduring something, until they can no longer control it.
The Rosted Islands are a famous colonial settlement in Sunia's sea, with developed commerce and various industries.
"I really don't want to wait anymore!" One "sailor" shrugged his shoulders, giving a chuckle that men all understand. ......
On the public carriage heading towards Zotlan Street, Klein, who was leisurely reading the newspaper, suddenly froze. It seemed that he heard a series of illusory cries.
The intangible whispers echoed in his mind, causing his forehead to jump and making it difficult for him to control himself.
These unrecognizable cries came quickly and vanished just as quickly, disappearing in just a few seconds. Klein pinched his forehead, fighting against the throbbing pain coming from deep within his brain.
"Old Neil said about the inexplicable existence whispering? The reason for the overly inspired thoughts?" Various thoughts flashed through his mind. Suddenly, he noticed four black dots on the back of his right hand that had emerged without warning. They seemed like natural moles, very inconspicuous.
The four black dots from the ritual of transfer quickly settled, turning from dark to light and disappearing.
Klein stared at it, adding another speculation to the encounter just now:
"'Justice' or 'The Hangman' attempted the ritual magic I gave? The reason for the overly inspired thoughts?"
"Was my train of thought really correct?"
"Those three descriptions can indeed precisely point to me through the mysterious space above the mist?"
"I'm still far from being powerful enough to clearly hear the prayer's content... I wonder if there are any messages 'preserved' above the mist..."
"Well, enter tonight and confirm."
Klein was somewhat nervous and excited, quickly holding up the newspaper to cover his face to prevent others from seeing his facial expression changes.
Soon, he arrived at Zotlan Street and entered the Black Thorn Security Company.
Before he could greet Rosan, Klein saw Captain Dunn Smith come out, holding a piece of paper with a picture on it.
"You should also take a look at this internal wanted notice. A very vicious and cruel exceptionalist has entered Tingen." Dunn, wearing a black windbreaker and without a hat, glanced this way and handed the paper over casually.
Klein took it and looked at it first. The sketch portrait was the first thing that caught his eye.
The portrait's owner had a round face, with an amiable yet somewhat shy air, and was not too old, around eighteen or nineteen years old.
"Tris, suspected exceptionalist, preliminary assessment as sequence 8 'Instigator', not ruling out the possibility of coming from the 'Knowledge Council', the perpetrator of the Osmium incident... There were witnesses who testified that he left Enmat Port and arrived in Tingen, currently missing..."
Tris... Osmium... It turned out that the exceptionalist committed the crime? Klein suddenly remembered the dream interpretation he did yesterday afternoon and the description of Joyce. He immediately said:
"Captain, I know a person involved, he might be a very important witness."
"I know, Joyce. Meyer. Last night, the 'Mechanical Heart' team invited me to help, and in Joyce's dream, I saw you. I also confirmed from many details that Tris was the one who caused the Osmium incident." Dunn's gray eyes were calm and he chuckled.
So boring, Captain... Fortunately, I was on a rest day yesterday, not working during the shift as the 'Divinationist'... Klein muttered to himself, feeling a fear of almost being caught by his superior for fishing around.
He then asked:
"Which sequence pathway is the Instigator from? What is the 'Knowledge Council'?"
To eliminate the potion hazard, was it Tris's way of eliminating the enemies from each other, or a need for promotion?
Dunn thought for a few seconds and said:
"Exactly. It's time for you to access the relevant materials on exceptionalists and secret organizations. Don't always be instructed by Old Neil to read historical documents."
Captain, the reason you invited me in is not to have a 'historian'... Klein didn't dare to point out the problem and nodded seriously:
"Okay."