It's a grocery store that Alan is familiar with, with shelves all over the house, counters hidden in the depths of the store, and a weird and tacile salesperson, if I'm not mistaken, this grocery store was called Hill's grocery store a while ago.

Now it's a different boss, and two dull-looking young men stand behind the counter, ignoring every customer who comes in.

However, when they met Allen, or Raphael, who was in contact with Allen, this cold face changed to a hint of kindness.

"Raphael seniors. They raised their hands to greet Raphael. Raphael also raised his hand, and then asked, "Is Elder Momiji here?"

"Upstairs. One of the salesmen responded, and then looked curiously at Alan next to the middle-aged mage: "Do you need me to lead the way?"

"No, thank you. ”

Raphael smiled, then pulled Alan towards the stairs leading to the grocery store.

Alan looked at the two of them curiously, and then asked casually as he walked, "This grocery store is your permanent residence in the bay?"

"Yes. Raphael replied frankly: "It can be regarded as a permanent residence, every mage in our tower will report here when he comes to the bay, and some mages with financial difficulties will also choose to live here." ”

"Do you take turns? I remember a while ago the boss here was a pair of twins, and then they became my employees in a vague way. ”

"Yes, this garrison is a regular task for the apprentices in the tower, and it is changed every year. ”

"And then even the name was changed?"

"This is the apprentice's own behavior, the Mage Tower does not prohibit such small details...."

Under the watchful eyes of the two salesmen, the two walked down the wooden staircase and chatted, and when they disappeared from sight, the two apprentices began to talk quietly.

"That one looks familiar?"

"It's familiar, isn't he the lord of Bay City, Alan Chrissy? ”

"How did he get here?"

"It is said that he is also a mage, Elder Momiji guesses that something is wrong with him..."

“....”

The conversation between the two mage apprentices did not reach the upper floor, the second floor was an apartment-like place, and the staircase was connected by a long corridor lined with doors on both sides, and a window at the end was now open, and the sunlight shone in through it, making the corridor not very dark.

Raphael led Alan up to the second floor without pausing, leading him deeper into the corridor, and then stopping outside the door of one of the deepest rooms.

"Don't be too restrained, Elder Momiji is very kind. ”

Looking back at Allen, the middle-aged mage said this.

In this regard, Alan pouted: "I'm not nervous, I'm just thinking about what your elders are looking for me." ”

Raphael smiled: "Yes, it's good not to be nervous." ”

The mage knocked on the door as he spoke, and the dull sound seemed very subtle, but the people inside clearly heard the subtle sound, so before the middle-aged mage could stop his hand, the door creaked and opened.

A cloaked figure came into view.

"Go in by yourself, I won't go in with you, look for me down when you're done, I'll wait for you below." ”

The mage admonished, and at the end he patted Alan on the shoulder: "Don't be too surprised. ”

"What?"

Eren was a little confused, but the middle-aged mage had already turned away, obviously not explaining anything.

He didn't need to explain, because when Alan turned to look at the figure in the room, he already understood why Raphael said that.

He was neither tall nor short, and the mage under the cloak could not see his face, but the long hair that was exposed was extremely strange - as if it was made of water, translucent, with a slight blue tinge.

The skin of the exposed hands was not a normal complexion, but a light blue, and a stream of water permeated the room, reflecting the mage's strange appearance.

And when Alan officially entered the room, the mage said hello, "Hello, Alan Chrissy?"

The voice was slightly low and old, and it was a little confusing to distinguish between men and women, but as the cloak mage lifted the cloak, Alan could be sure that the mage in front of him was a woman.

The female mage seemed to be very old, with loose skin on her face, wrinkles on her forehead, and slightly narrow eyes looking at Alan quietly at this time.

The long aqua blue hair really seems to be made of water, and the sharp-eyed Alan even sees the water surging in the slightly blurred long hair... Coupled with the female mage's overall light blue skin, Alan couldn't help but think of what Raphael said before leaving.

"Don't be too surprised. ”

As if she could read minds, the female mage's voice appeared almost at the same time as what Eren was thinking. Then, under Allen's surprised gaze, she stepped in front of the young man.

"I've tried to test your mind and methods to determine if you're the person we're looking for, and now I basically have the answer. ”

"Sure enough, you did it. ”

This sentence was not spoken, Alan couldn't figure out what the female mage's purpose was at this time, and he was more afraid of her, so naturally he wouldn't anger her very casually.

Although there are countless questions in her heart that she wants to ask, such as who is the person she is looking for, why she suspects him, whether he is or not, etc., these questions have turned into a sentence: "So, what is the answer?"

"Obviously, you're not. ”

The female mage's answer made Eren squint his eyes and be wary. However, it seemed that he was thinking a little too much, and the mysterious mage in front of him did not make any misleading moves, and after a pause in his voice, he continued: "But you can also say that. ”

Under Allen's inexplicable gaze, the old mage smiled, as if he didn't mean to explain, but walked around Allen.

A chill ensued.

It wasn't Alan's inner feeling, it was a real touch, and the female mage's hair was constantly exuding a chill outward, as if the water that made up the hair was cold.

The mage walked around and stopped in front of Allen, lowered his head, and seemed to be in deep thought, a little inexplicable, in this regard, Allen couldn't help but ask, "What do you want to do?"

There was no response, and the old mage just hung his head and stood motionless opposite Allen, seemingly transformed into a sculpture.

A chill emanated from her brain, swirling around Alan's face, and the moisture that came into her nose seemed cool, pouring into her brain, and it seemed that her mind was much clearer because of it.

However, the neurotic old mage on the other side had already occupied all of Allen's attention, and naturally he would not notice such small details.

He couldn't help but say again: "If nothing happens, I think I can go." ”

This time the mage reacted, she looked up at Allen, her long blue eyes were extremely deep, her long hair was shining, and her gloomy and obscure dress made Allen can't help but think of a word in her heart - witch.

Or the old witch.

So under Allen's gaze as if he was looking at a monster, the old female mage showed a grotesque smile:

"When Binns asked me to test you, I was bored, I didn't expect to encounter such an interesting thing. ”

"I think I know who you are. ”