Early the next morning, Ed visited Aaron Mansini's mansion on the west side of Uptown.

As Count Ferdinand, Mancini had a small territory in the hills east of Rutger, but he clearly preferred to stay in the warm, humid Stunbuch that didn't come from the Minni Desert and carried the dusty storms. Since buying it ten years ago, the Earl has returned to his realm only a handful of times, and those few times have only been to transport the "treasures" he had collected to Stonebucci.

Many of the collections that people marveled at or laughed at now stand in the courtyards. The huge and bizarre statues are incomplete, the coarse stone tablets are indistinctly written, and most of them cannot tell which race or civilization they belong to, and they are scattered irregularly among the lush plants of the south, which is even more grotesque...... But it's undeniably quite remarkable.

Mancini himself doesn't seem to care whether these things are real or not, and for him, "eye-catching" is probably enough...... Although it is difficult to say how much of this grandstanding is to hide people's eyes, and how much is because he really enjoys it.

Ed's gaze casually swept over a statue of a dwarf standing by the roadside, apparently a forgery, and watched curiously as a petite maid carefully placed a black veil over a pot of flowers. The black veil held up by the bracket is as thin as smoke, and in the early morning sun, you can still faintly see the huge flowers that are meticulously protected in it.

"Heart of the Night. ”

Almost immediately, Mancini noticed his slight pause and politely introduced him: "You have probably heard of it...... This rose needs to be moistened by night dew, and the bright sun burns its petals. ”

He waved his hand to the maid to lift the black veil. The black rose, which was famous throughout Tonbuch, bloomed proudly in front of Ed's eyes.

In fact, if you look closely, the velvety petals are not pure black. Rather, it is an extremely deep blue-purple color, beautiful. Elegant, but also indescribably bewitching.

"I nurtured it with my own hands. ”

Mancini smugly clasped his bulging belly with both hands, "No one but me can make it bloom." ”

Ed smiled, keeping his due curiosity intact, "I heard it needs the power of magic to grow?"

"Yes, a little magic potion...... But you have to be precise in timing and weight, or it will wither and die in no time. ”

The black veil fell again, hiding the precious flower in it. For a moment, Ed unconsciously remembered Agnes, but was soon distracted by the incessant chatter of his overly enthusiastic master.

"I'm sorry I sent someone to hunt that ice dragon...... Your friend, and thank you for never blaming me for it. Mancini bowed to him and apologized. "I know how many people are talking about my ...... 'peculiar fetish,' which is a nice thing to say, but I just can't help but love these ancient civilizations, the great creations, the mysterious powers...... You know, I used to wish I could be a mage and have my own place in Neo's Archmage Tower...... Unfortunately, I don't have that talent, so I can only try to help the more talented young people. ”

He glanced at Ed quickly. Ed smiled back with a smile that seemed to be interested.

"Talent. ”

Even if Ed didn't have an interface at all, Mancini quickly took it upon himself: "I think it's something very mysterious...... Is that what the gods have given us? What are the criteria by which they make their choices? Is it in our blood or in our souls?"

"Both?I think. Ed had to reply in his eager gaze, "After all, life and soul cannot be separated. ”

"Of course, of course. You're not right at all. Mancini nodded vigorously, his admiration and adoration on his face did not look like it was fake at all, "I dare not speculate on the arrangement of the gods...... You probably won't believe it now. But I've always felt that you were more of a saint than Bloomer Christus. ”

Ed couldn't laugh anymore.

"I am sure that the Staff of Eternity will one day return to your hands. The Earl, who was extremely good at observing words and expressions, turned his head away at this moment, ignoring the stiff expression on Ed's face without a trace. "But I can't help but wonder why Bloomer is also able to manipulate the Staff of Eternity. Why is Master Sean Fletcher so attached to the blood of the Chrysers...... Especially after Lord Scott Christus became a saint of another deity...... I know it's too bold for someone like me to try to snoop into such a secret, but you see, I just can't control it. ”

Now he had brought Ed into his study, and was opening the tightly locked secret cabinet, and with the care of the Heart of the Night's rose, he took out a book wrapped in soft and delicate linen, and placed it on a desk the size of a bed.

"I once went to see the Sage, and humbly wanted to dedicate this little discovery to him, hoping that it would help him. Mansini's voice sank, but he couldn't tell whether it was resentment or frustration, "But the adults seem to be quite busy. ”

Apparently, Scott ignored him.

"So......" Ed finally heard something, "is this a secret about the bloodline of the Chrysers family?"

Mancini nodded, and gently unwrapped the layers of linen.

"Of course, you probably already know everything...... After all, it's not something to be seen for. He said, "Perhaps my little discovery is not a secret to you at all. ”

"In fact, I only know the ones that everybody knows. Ed shrugged, "First of all, my last name is Singal...... Also, I know that my mother's family ruled the country hundreds of years ago, and that they were devout believers in the water goddess Ni'o—I don't know much more than that. ”

He calmly met Mancini with an inquiring gaze, and he was extremely calm—the gods were above, and he really knew so much.

Mancini smiled and bowed, stepped back slightly, and handed him a delicate wooden knife.

"You'd better use this to turn the page. "Try to be as gentle as possible...... The book had been hidden in the Archmage's Tower for many years and had been neglected, and it had almost completely decayed. I had a little potion for some protection, but it was still fragile. ”

Ed took the knife and looked at him involuntarily. In any case, this guy's cherishing of this ancient book doesn't seem like a fake......

It's just that the pile of scraps lying on the linen can hardly be called a "book".

(To be continued.) )