A tall figure suddenly blocked the sunlight.

Shirley, who had just finished sprinkling water on the open space in front of the store and was carrying an empty basin and preparing to go back, was stunned for a moment, raised her head, and saw the inquisitor standing quietly in front of her in the backlight.

“…… !! She subconsciously exclaimed, but then reacted suddenly, coughed twice, and organized the language nervously, "Eh, that, you...... You ......"

Vana frowned slightly, for some reason, she always felt that this short, thin girl seemed too nervous when she saw her, the last time she and Heidi came to this antique shop, and still is.

But she didn't think much about it, after all, for various reasons, she was actually very used to this kind of "nervous reaction" after others saw her.

"I remember your name was Shirley," Vana said with a smile, trying to relax the short girl with a smile, "don't be so nervous, I'm just here to hang out." ”

Shirley quickly stood up straight and nodded stiffly: "Forehead...... Ay! Okay, welcome to ......."

Vanna shook her head helplessly, passed Shirley, who was still tense, and nodded slightly to Nina, who was looking at her curiously, and walked straight to the antique shop in front of her.

Pushing open the door, the silence on the first floor of the antique store was broken by the crisp sound of bells clashing, and Vanna stepped into the store, her eyes on the figure behind the counter.

The next second, she frowned in some surprise.

In the early morning sun, a blonde woman who had never been seen before was sitting behind the counter, and it was a very ...... A beautiful lady with an elegance and mystery that does not seem to belong to this place, or even to this era, has a warm glow in the sun.

After hearing the movement coming from the door of the store, the blonde woman behind the counter raised her head and glanced curiously at Fanna, who was walking in, she showed a faint smile, and her voice was soft and slightly magnetic: "Welcome, just take a look?" ”

Vanna was a little stunned, for some reason, she always felt that this new face who appeared in the antique shop should not appear here, but the next second, she felt that the mysterious and elegant temperament of the other party seemed to match the ...... presented by the antique store Atmosphere.

It's full of all sorts of things that look quaint and mysterious, and there should be a lady with mysterious elegance sitting behind the counter.

But this antique shop is full of fakes.

Vanna stared fixedly at the blonde woman behind the counter.

Ah, that's right, fakes.

"Excuse me......" Alice looked at Vanna, who suddenly stood there in a daze after walking in, and the situation in front of her seemed to be beyond the "standard process of entertaining guests" that the captain usually explained to herself, which made her a little confused about what to do, "Do you want to buy something?" ”

Vanna suddenly came to her senses.

A chaotic numbness and dizziness filled her mind, making her mind staccato, and she vaguely remembered that she seemed to have seen something or thought of something, but the sudden chaos completely covered everything she had seen and known in that moment.

In the next second, there was another soft sound of waves in her head, and in the sound of the waves, she even completely forgot the chaotic numbness and dizziness she had just now.

She felt like she had just walked into the store and the young woman behind the counter was talking to her.

"Ah, isn't Mr. Duncan here?" Vanna looked curiously at the scene on the first floor, but couldn't find the antique store manager, "I know him." ”

"Mr. Duncan? He went upstairs to put his things away, and soon came down," Alice didn't care what was going on with the other party's stunned look just now, anyway, as long as the conversation could continue, she felt okay, "Do you want to buy something?" Have a pre-order? I can help you find it – although not always ......"

What a straightforward statement.

Vana felt strange, she instinctively felt that the beautiful young woman in front of her seemed to be a little disagreeable, but whenever she tried to focus on the issue, she immediately forgot her own thoughts, which made her speak more slowly than usual: "I...... Just take a look. I'll just wait a minute. Excuse me...... Are you new here? I haven't seen you since I last visited. ”

"Ah, I'm new here, my name is Alice," Alice said with a smile at once, she liked to introduce her name to others, "Mr. Duncan asked me to help look at the store. ”

Faintly, Vana seemed to notice something strange, hidden in Alice's reserved but slightly stiff movements, hidden in the perfect but too perfect smile, and even hidden in the breathless flow of her words.

The Inquisitor frowned, not really noticing anything unusual.

Just a new clerk, there's nothing wrong with that.

At that moment, a sound of footsteps suddenly came from the nearby staircase, interrupting the conversation between Vana and Alice.

Duncan's figure appears on the stairs.

Just now, he sensed the presence of Vanna, and only to confirm the inquisitor's intention, he deliberately waited on the second floor for a few more minutes, and then found that the other party didn't seem to have any special purpose, so he walked down.

"Looks like there's a special guest," Duncan said to the puppet lady behind the counter, "I'll come to receive you, someone I know—Alice, and you're going to make tea." ”

"Yes, Mr. Duncan!"

Alice stood up happily, said yes, and walked to the small stove on the other side of the stairs, while Duncan came up to Vana and greeted the inquisitor with a smile, "Long time no see, Miss Inquisitor." ”

"Just call me by name," Vanna rubbed her forehead, "I'm sorry for the sudden visit, but I actually have some questions I want to confirm." ”

"Questions?" Duncan raised an eyebrow, "What's the problem?" ”

Vanna froze, pondering how to speak.

Some faint clues point to this ordinary shop, some intuitive guidance has led her here, the inquisitor's experience and sense of smell seem to be beating faintly, but the church has investigated through official channels before, and no anomalies have been found, and the only reason that can support her to come to investigate this time seems to be the "talisman" of her friend.

"As far as I know, Heidi once had an amulet from here," Vanna said slowly, "and she wore it on her before that real-life pollution disaster. ”

"Oh, then I have the impression," Duncan nodded as usual, with a slight abrupt expression, "that amulet I gave to Mr. Morris—and I've given another one in the last two days." ”

As he spoke, he turned around and took another amulet from the shelf behind him and displayed it in front of Vanna.

"That's it."

Fanna's eyes were a little strange and looked at the antique store manager in front of her, who was openly taking out the "collection" in the store as mass production goods: "You have a lot of these talismans here?" ”

"I've got a big box, and I've sold twenty-one of them in total," Duncan nodded solemnly, "You're interested?" ”

As he spoke, he subconsciously glanced at the young inquisitor again.

Today's Vana gave him a very strange feeling, looking a little in a trance, and her speech was a little dull, but compared to these strange things that can be seen on the surface, what is even more wrong is her unstable "aura" at the moment.

Duncan couldn't understand what was going on, but the young inquisitor was feeling to him at the moment...... It was as if there was another person in her mind, another pair of eyes in her eyes, where she was talking to herself, but in the depths of her consciousness it was as if something else was hidden.

Vanna didn't seem to notice Duncan's scrutiny, she was just a little unaccustomed to such a candid approach to business—though she knew from the beginning that there was nothing real in the store at all: "Huh...... No, I'm just here to investigate. I'd like to ask you about the specific source of these talismans, and if they have ever shown anything special, or have the people who bought them ever reported anything unusual? ”

"What do you mean......"

"Heidi thinks that the amulet she wore had a real protective effect, and even helped her stay conscious during the 'disaster' in the first place," Vanna said simply, without going into too much detail, "I think it is very likely that the amulet you gave to Mr. Morris in the first place was ...... The influence of extraordinary powers, so I came to investigate. Of course, you don't have to be nervous, judging by the current intelligence, this is not a bad effect. ”

She said this, but there was still one sentence that didn't come out: Investigation is investigation, she didn't expect Duncan to have a whole box of similar talismans here before she came! And so many have already been sold!

Duncan's heart moved slightly after hearing Vanna's words.

What the hell...... Did it really work? The "gift" that he gave out casually really protected the psychiatrist's sense of self?

Why is this happening?

What's the key?

Is it the act of "giving gifts" itself, or is it because the psychiatrist himself is too "inspired"?

(End of chapter)