Capítulo 1854: Chapter 1853: Green Lake and the Five Members of the Group

Shard didn’t stay long at Rose Manor. After breakfast, he bid farewell to the ladies of the House of Cavendish and returned to the Green Lake Hotel with Mia.

Pushing open the door to the hotel and pondering what to do for the day, he immediately noticed in the corner of the first floor, Luviya, Priest Augustus, Dorothy, and Dr. Schneider sitting together around a table.

The table, originally pushed against the wall, was moved out to create space for seating. Luviya and Dorothy were sitting on one side, facing Priest Augustus and Dr. Schneider, so Shard took a seat opposite the two girls.

The five of them greeted each other naturally, as if they were still in Tobesk. Each with their own secrets, pretending it was just like any other time:

“It’s a really strange feeling to see everyone gathered here outside of Tobesk.”

Shard commented, placing the well-fed cat on his lap.

The doctor put down the newspaper in his hand and nodded:

“This morning, I was getting ready to head down for breakfast. Opening the door, I saw the priest passing by my door, which gave me quite a start.”

Priest Augustus had arrived late last night when the doctor was already resting. The old cleric looked in good spirits and shook his head with a smile:

“I also didn’t expect that. When I was preparing to go down for breakfast, the door next to mine opened, and it turned out to be the doctor coming out.”

“I was even more surprised. Half an hour ago, when I was heading downstairs, I saw the doctor and the priest sitting together. I thought I had… accidentally walked into the wrong place again.”

The blonde writer, Miss Writer, added, then playfully winked at Shard, much to Luviya’s interest.

Although Shard and Lecia “rested” together in a guest room at Rose Manor last night, it was actually time spent with the three of them. As for Dorothy’s abrupt departure from Tobesk, it was naturally not a cause for commotion. No matter how famous she was, she was not like Lecia with her princess status. All she had to do was claim she was out gathering materials, and then have Shard send back her handwritten letters to her friends and family in Tobesk, so no one would suspect her whereabouts.

“Actually, I was the most surprised. I arrived ten minutes before the detective. When I opened the door, I saw the three of them sitting there looking at me. I stepped back to make sure I hadn’t gone to the wrong place before daring to walk in.”

Luviya shook her head:

“So, our writer friend arrived here by accident?”

“From what it seems, yes.”

Shard could only respond this way, though he knew it was abnormal. If it were only Dorothy, it might be explained as bad luck, but for both her and Lecia to encounter such a situation simultaneously was as incredible as Laster Edwards and Durut Giles showing up at the Circus together.

The former tomb robber Shard was concerned about happened to be coming downstairs with a young girl’s spirit at this moment. Yawning as he walked, likely having not slept well last night, he saw Shard sitting against the wall, talking to a group of strangers, and didn’t initiate any conversation. Laster Edwards, wandering about, noticed the kindly old man in long robes looking up at her, causing the girl to shiver sharply, pulling Durut Giles away for breakfast:

“Not here, not here! Let’s eat out, eat out!”

“Priest, you scared them.”

Dorothy said with a smile, the old cleric shaking his head helplessly:

“Don’t tease me; I’m quite popular with the kids in the church choir. So, the Diviner was summoned by the society, the doctor is here to purchase materials, the writer had an accident, and the detective was already operating in the area. Should I also explain my reason for being here?”

He glanced at Shard, and upon seeing him nod, he produced a reason he had prepared:

“I am preparing to advance to Four Rings.”

“Hmm? So soon?”

Other than Shard, the rest were startled, with the doctor exclaiming:

“Priest, didn’t you just advance last year?” 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

“Doctor, you advanced from the Five Rings to the Seventh Ring after the detective joined the group last year, and quite swiftly too. Not to mention, the detective here is even faster than us.”

Upon hearing what the priest said, Dr. Schneider understood:

“So, you’re here to find materials too?”

“Yes, there’s a very important material on that island, though the detective said it’s dangerous there, so I haven’t decided how to obtain it yet. But it shouldn’t be a difficult task.”

The priest spoke lightly, prompting the doctor, and those who somewhat guessed the situation, Luviya, and Dorothy, to offer their help.

“So, Miss Writer, do you plan to stay here for a while or take the train back?”

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The doctor turned to Dorothy, who pondered:

“Since we’re already here, there’s no need to leave. I’ve been planning to go out and gather material, and right now the two shores of Green Lake are quite interesting—a spy and a detective, indeed the best combination.”

Last night, Shard also discussed this topic with Dorothy. Dorothy made her decision after referring to Shard’s opinion. She can also sense that her and Lecia’s arrival is definitely abnormal. Even if they were to leave immediately, there is a high chance they would return, so it would be better to stay and prepare. And if the premonition is wrong and they’re really just unlucky, then merely staying at the Green Lake Hotel won’t be a big deal.

Shard summarized for everyone:

“Although due to various reasons, we’ve all coincidentally gathered here.”

The five of them wore different expressions:

“But since we’re here, let’s deal with our own matters first. The priest’s issue, he should investigate the situation himself, and if he finds a clue and needs help, we’re all here to assist. Luviya will likely be busy working with the Prophet’s Society, the doctor is preparing to craft a high-difficulty alchemical item, so he’ll be busy too. As for Dorothy, you’ll be staying here for the time being. The owners here are friends of mine, their chef’s skills are quite good. You can explore Green Lake City, but be cautious, this city… is dangerous.”

Shard said this as he lifted the cat from his lap and handed it to her, Dorothy gladly took Mia:

“I still need you to go to Tobesk and bring my luggage and manuscripts, so I can settle down here.”

Everyone here knew Shard could roam freely, so they weren’t surprised by Dorothy’s request. However, the doctor thought of something else:

“Now the whole group has left the base, if the Academy investigates… it will be very troublesome.”

He finished, and everyone looked at Shard, who nodded with understanding:

“Currently, several High Ring professors from Saint Byrons are in Green Lake City, including Miss Danester. Conveniently, I should pay a visit, I’ll handle this.”

The others felt reassured, although the doctor, priest, and Dorothy should still keep their identities hidden and not show themselves openly.

“So, how long will we be staying in the Green Lake Region?”

Luviya raised an interesting question, and Shard calculated in his heart:

“Not very long, at most two weeks, or even just one week.”

“But since everyone’s here, whoever needs help, the rest of us in the group can’t refuse without special reasons. Speaking of which, the last group task doesn’t seem too far back… It was indeed a bit dangerous last time, but the time before that we acted collectively, I remember it was at Lakeside Manor… Hm, was it so dangerous?”

The doctor spoke softly, and as for how the people around the table interpreted his words, that was something only each person understood in their own heart.

Dorothy had already written down the list of clothes and manuscripts for Shard to bring, so Shard immediately returned to Tobesk to attend to the matter. The other four members continued chatting, and by ten in the morning when Shard returned to the Green Lake Hotel with two giant suitcases, the doctor had taken Priest Augustus out to explore the Green Lake Shore, while Luviya and Dorothy were chatting in the room with Mia, who clearly wasn’t pleased.

“Meow~”

Seeing Shard walk in with the large suitcases, the cat immediately ran towards him and, after being picked up by Shard, seemed determined not to part from him the whole day.

Dorothy looked surprisingly behind Shard at the extremely beautiful brown-haired lady. She smiled as she accepted the suitcases and listened to Shard’s introduction:

“This is Miss Audrey Edwards. Paradise Island Pharmaceuticals is her enterprise. Dorothy, haven’t you always wanted to talk with her?”

Shard had previously mentioned the situation of Audrey and Megan, so Dorothy and Lecia, with similar ‘duality’ tendencies, had always wanted to meet this witch.

As for Audrey and Megan, they had heard this famous female writer’s name, and while marveling at how Shard had gathered yet another girl, they thought that even though the sisters were relatively latecomers, this time they mustn’t lose in momentum.

Shard gently said:

“The feather for separation and fusion which you’ve used actually… I procured it for her.”

The witch immediately became apprehensive, while Dorothy invited her to sit in the room. Meanwhile, taking advantage of Dorothy and Audrey’s conversation, Luviya gave Shard a glance, and the two went to Shard’s room for a talk.

“I’m not a superstitious person, but all five of us being here is not necessarily a good omen.”

The purple-eyed diviner said seriously:

“Especially Dorothy and that Princess, what’s going on with them? When can they meet? I need to see them together to confirm whether they are candidates. The current situation is unclear; no one knows what will eventually happen. The position of the Chosen One can’t be vacant. If all previous candidates really die, then Dorothy and that Prin…”

“I’ll arrange it, you don’t need to worry about it. I prepared for this long ago.”

Shard said, and Luviya nodded, knowing Shard to be very cautious about such matters:

“As long as you have confidence, it’s fine. But today I came to you not because I predicted Dorothy’s arrival in advance. You know what happened last night, but I’m not here to talk about that either—probably the Church has resolved the issue. Today, I’m here about the Unclassified Level Relic, [Fate’s Pedestal].”