Chapter 695: The Encounter
Translator: TransN Editor: TransN
"How, How could this be possible?"
No. 76 felt as though a bomb was exploding in her heart, and stood petrified on the spot.
Since she knew that the colorful Magic Stone was only able to respond to the fluctuation of magic power within a limited range, which, in theory, was around 100 steps, she had just casually raised the ring and not expected to see anything in the castle at this distance. She wondered how this happened?
She took a deep breath, then blinked, and again put the ring before her eye.
The beam was still there, what she saw was not an illusion but a solid sight.
A surge of indescribable excitement rose in her mind, making it impossible for her to stay calm now. She got in touch with her people through thoughts.
"Pasha, what kind of people are eligible to be called the Chosen One?"
"Have you seen the edge of the ring? The one whose beam of light can fill the entire field of vision will be the Chosen One we're looking for."
"This is too dramatic. Even Lady Eleanor's beam of light is only capable of covering half of the ring's view."
"Hence that person must have more potential than the Three Chiefs of the Union combined. I admit that the requirement is hard to meet, but we have no choice other than this. Remember, the Key neither represents the strength of the magic power nor equates to fighting capacity. That's why you have to make sure to check every witch."
"The edge? Fill the vfield ision?" Number 76 repeated it in her heart.
"No... Pasha, the miracle I'm seeing now is far more than that." Even seeing through the ring which had been put closest to her eye, No. 76 could not see the entire beam. The width of the beam extended beyond her sight so that only by moving the ring horizontally she was able to see the vast panorama of the huge light wall.
"Deities finally smile at human beings."
"Lady Natalia, you're right."
"I've found the Chosen One here."
***************
When Roland entered the bathroom, yawning, he saw that Zero was washing up before the sink.
"Mm... Where's the toothpaste?"
"Here." The little girl slightly stood aside and handed him a tube of toothpaste that had almost run out.
"Thanks." Roland took a glass of water and stuffed the wet toothbrush into his mouth. Looking at himself and Zero, a tall person and a short person, in the mirror, crowding before the narrow sink and making synchronous elbow movements to brush their teeth, he suddenly felt that this scene was hilarious.
Zero spat out the foam in her mouth and shot Roland a glance. "What're you sneering at?"
"You're such a shorty." Roland returned with his nasal voice.
Then he felt a kick in his calf.
"Remember to shave, or you'll look old," she said as she swept back her white hair and began to tie a ponytail, "Don't shame me today."
"It was only a parents' meeting." He sighed and rinsed his toothbrush clean. "I'm not your true family. There's no need for an agent to be so formal."
Given that his wardrobe was filled with cheap clothes, he would be thankful to find something that would make him look virtuous, not to mention a formal suit.
"By the way, I think you look better with hair hanging down," Roland smacked and said, "but if you insist, I suggest the twin tail that'll suit you more."
"None of your business!" Zero retorted.
Then he was pushed out of the bathroom.
"It seems that her temper has worsened after summer... Do I indulge her too much?" Roland pondered.
As the times he came in and went out of the Dream World increased, Roland had mastered the trick of how to enter the Dream World. In other words, it depended on him. If he had not intended to enter it, the strange Dream World would not appear, and he just slept through the night without any other dreams.
Thus, he could easily control the passing of time in the Dream World.
Over two months, apart from further explorations of the Holy City of Hermes, Roland had spent the rest of his time in various libraries searching for some half-remembered books he had read long ago.
In addition, he found that the peculiar power flowing in his body also worked in the memory fragment. For that reason, his venture to the snowfield turned out to be much smoother than he had imagined. With the purchased climbing ropes and drilling machine, he could reach deep into the cave under the cathedral, where the Pivotal Secret Temple was located and do an investigation. Although Roland did not find the Prayer Room that Isabella had mentioned, materials recording the secret history and the research on Magic Stone were really mind-blowing to him.
But he failed to enter the old Holy City by passing through the secret passage in the Pivotal Secret Area because when he was halfway in the passage, he saw that the road ahead just disappeared, leaving nothing but endless darkness and scarlet lightning, as if the void had consumed the other end.
It seemed that when Zero was defeated, her will to resist was still very strong and that only a small area, New Holy City, was saved in the memory fragment.
Roland's deposit was accumulated rapidly by selling the armor that he had moved out from the Holy City. Finally, he bought an air conditioner and installed it in the living room, as well as a bigger refrigerator to replace the old and small one, significantly improving his living conditions in the department.
Of course, there were still some troubles. He had not expected that some people had taken some photos of him when he had been running incredibly fast on the street to save Zero. Those photos were not only posted on the internet but also reported by the local news channel. But fortunately, since no one clearly captured his look and he also discarded his clothes right after the accident, Zero did not suspect him.
As a result, the topic of who this martialist-like man was and why he would wear such a casual suit of vest and shorts had gone viral on the internet for some time.
And about this, Roland had to say... "Ahem, my apology for being too poor to buy some decent clothes."
Now that he did not have to worry about his livelihood, he naturally turned his attention to his neighbors in this building.
He wondered if there were similar doors that opened into the memory fragments hidden in these people's rooms.
Apart from cheating, the simplest way to knock open their doors was to pay them.
"I'm ready, uncle. Let's go," Zero said as she finished dressing and walked to him with a bag on her back.
Today was September 12th, the first day of the new term, the attendance of every student's parent was mandatory.
Roland was impressed by Zero's new look.
She had put on a black short-sleeved shirt paired with a short pleated skirt and a pair of white stockings and sneakers, which made her look quite youthful and lovely.
She had tied her soft white hair in a twin tail that hung on her shoulders along with yellow hair ribbons, her lineament impeccable, her skin fair and translucent, her pupils light red, as if she was an elf walking out from the pictures.
Roland could not help reaching out his hand to rub her head and said, "That's right."
"I just happened to want to tie my hair like this, it's not because of what you said..."
"Yeah, I know."
"It's true!"
"I didn't say it's not true."
"Why do I think you're lying to me?"
"That's because you think too much," he said, pretending to be serious while holding back the laugh in his heart. "Let's go, or we'll miss the early bus."
…
All Roland needed to do in the parents' meeting was sitting in the back of the classroom and listening to the children reporting their goals and guarantees in the new term. Students at this age were not accustomed to lying and would work harder to meet the goals they had promised in front of their parents.
Roland had thought that it would be a peaceful morning, but he did not expect that the Dream World would be so unpredictable.
"Why is it you again?"
A crisp female voice rang in his ears.
He turned his head and found that it was Garcia who was sitting beside him.