Chapter 76 Entrance Examination ② Entrance Examination Part Two, City...
Are you planning to go to Lamore Castle?
Just as Enid was about to reply, she suddenly realized something was amiss, so she shook her head. "It's Lamoia Castle." Hearing the prophet speak, Enid had a sudden, ominous premonition. Only after the words fell did Enid finally realize what it was: the prophet knew nothing about Lamoia Castle.
Upon hearing Enid's words, the prophet seemed to freeze, remaining silent for a moment before letting out a long sigh.
"I'm sorry, I don't know the exact location of Lamoia Castle, but I do know the rumors about it..."
Before they could speak, the prophet began to recount a very ancient tale. Lamoia Castle was once a dwelling bestowed by God upon His faithful followers. In this ancient land, Lamoia means "divine grace" in Western languages, but coincidentally, in the East, it means "death."
The name was given by God, and the servants who moved in received eternal life and supreme power, but they never left. They said that they had returned to God's embrace and were enjoying themselves in heaven. Their families were all designated as nobles by the king and became great dukes.
Then, what is Lamoir?
Lamor is hope, a castle named Hope in the southern lands. But it is not a gift from the gods; rather, it is a place that exists only in memory, a place that countless people yearn to visit.
After hearing the rumor, the three fell silent for a moment. Enid knew they were waiting for her to speak, because she was the main character in this exam. She took a deep breath.
"Then, regarding Lamoia Castle, was the last place it appeared in the east?"
The prophet fell silent again, then shook his head and nodded at the same time. He was conflicted and confused, like a tangled mess of hemp. He had been lost in confusion and didn't know what to do for a long time. The atmosphere became tense until the prophet glanced at the remaining Moonlight Rose potion.
"Actually, I shouldn't have told you this, but... since you told me the secret of the potion, in exchange, I should tell you that death lies to the east and divine grace to the west. Where Lamoa is depends on what you want to see. If you really want to see Lamoa Castle, go find the descendants of the Duke of Adelaide."
After speaking, the prophet seemed sleepy and quietly headed towards the corridor on his left. Enid didn't intend to call the prophet back, but instead looked knowingly in the direction he left and suddenly understood something. In this interconnected room, moving forward was sometimes a silent cues.
Leaving the prophet's dwelling, it seemed that people were beginning to appear in the surroundings. There were faint noises, cheers, and footsteps not far away, but they were not particularly annoying. After all, compared to the previous deathly silence, people are more willing to hear the voices of their own kind, even if they are no longer considered their own kind.
So they found a more secluded spot, and when they were sure no one was around, Enid met Tim and Barbara's gazes. She sighed helplessly, puffing out her cheeks.
"Okay, exam time is up. We should head to our right, right?"
It might be east, but it's probably close enough. Clearly, her answer was correct, because Tim nodded, indicating she had passed the test. Enid was somewhat happy and encouraged, and continued with her analysis.
“The descendants of Duke Aledre, Lamoia Castle was originally a gift from the gods, so we should go to a nearby city now, hoping that a bard can tell us about the history, or perhaps there are any books here.” Tim nodded again, showing a slight approval of Enid’s analysis.
“No need, the book has already been found. It’s in the prophet’s house, and of course, I got his permission.” Tim had barely finished speaking when he took out a photocopy of a book. Clearly, he had taken a picture of it, which surprised Enid, who had completely forgotten about this kind of high technology.
As she spoke, Enid received the book that Tim had sent her. It was a bit of a shame that the book was written almost entirely in ancient language. Although the general structure of the characters was similar, allowing them to recognize the contents from the cover, it didn't matter because Tim and Barbara had already made copies of all the books over there.
There's no need to dwell on the translation at this point. Enid, who had received numerous book contents, was overjoyed. She understood them, and at the same time, she realized this wasn't part of the assessment. The prophet wasn't an absolute tool, because books shouldn't be copied. Was it because she revealed the potion recipe? But that was all…
"What's wrong, Fia?" Barbara asked gently, looking at Enid. But before Enid could reply, she already understood the reason. "Actually, not everyone tells others about such discoveries. Just now, the prophet seemed to have done something, just like you."
Just like when she hid it, so is this an important secret to share?
Seeing the emotions in Enid's eyes, Tim nodded seriously. He was probably the one who understood the prophet's words the most, because the prophet was not really good at potions, but he loved potions. So there was a potion room where Enid used potions without saying a word. After all, her potion room in Wayne Manor was the best, wasn't it?
Tim knew that Enid was probably the first and only person to teach the Prophet how to truly understand potions, since the Prophet's core shouldn't have potion abilities inscribed within her. So Tim told Enid these little bits of information, not just verbally, of course.
Upon receiving Tim's message, she met their affirming gazes. Those emerald green eyes were like new leaves suddenly sprouting in spring, or flowers suddenly growing, dazzling and captivating.
"The prophet will surely become the best potion master."
“Yes, I will.” Tim agreed with Enid. Passion is the best teacher, and he didn’t need to worry about the length of his life.
"Does our great potion master know anything about the descendants of Duke Aledley?"
Barbara reached out and ruffled Enid's hair. Enid angrily dodged away, but was eventually pressed down and ruffled. She stared at Barbara with a slightly resentful look, which made Barbara burst out laughing.
“Okay, although the text may not be understandable, the patterns inside are comprehensible and are interchangeable with the language we use now.” Enid’s words were a little unnatural, but fortunately it wasn’t obvious. Only Tim and Barbara noticed, since she never lied, not to mention that she could actually understand them.
It is said that the descendants of the Duke of Aledre suffered a defeat in battle, and due to the extravagance of his descendants, a war broke out among the slaves in the territory. In the end, the Duke of Aledre's heir was accidentally killed by the slaves, leaving only a young girl whose whereabouts were unknown. However, since the Duke of Aledre's property has not yet been found, most people believe that the property was taken away by the girl.
“I don’t believe the property will remain in the hands of future generations.” Tim clearly knew that the property had been taken by the king, or that this incident was part of the king’s plan; after all, some stories don’t have no basis in fact. “Is she the duchess’s child, or someone else’s?”
"It belonged to serfs, and the Duke's original territory should have been in this vicinity."
"Great, it looks like we've found our next stop."
After Enid provided the additional information, Barbara's suspicions deepened. She and Tim both thought that if it was a serf's child, she would likely still be nearby. Because "the darkest place is where the light is," and all these coincidences just happened, didn't they? The questioner wouldn't be overly difficult for the students, so the clues would only be placed in the most immediate location.
"But... can we eat first? Cassan took me to Chinatown, and there were so many delicious foods there. I packed a lot to go! Ah Fu also prepared a lot for me! I admit I'm a little hungry."
Enid smiled sheepishly, and Tim lowered his head to think for a moment: "I remember there's a new Cantonese restaurant that just opened in Chinatown." Barbara nodded as well, "We can try it; we haven't had time to eat there yet."
If Cassan was taking Enid, they wouldn't be worried. In fact, Enid brought all the meat; they were just helping with the preparation. The chef agreed because the pay was generous and the ingredients were of high quality. With everyone's approval, Enid enthusiastically found a spot to start preparing the picnic, but just as she was about to sit down, Tim coughed softly.
"Huh?" Enid paused for a moment, then realized what she meant, looked around and found a new spot before turning to Tim. "Is it okay? Is it okay?"
After confirming that Enid's newly chosen location was suitable, Tim finally expressed his approval.
“Although you often venture into the forest, this is not a manor with guards; it’s outdoors,” Tim said, changing his words to remind Enid. Perhaps it was because she was a druid that she was used to it, but one cannot be careless outdoors just because of that. Caution is a good habit that must always be maintained, especially since they are not at home now.
They won't always be by Enid's side. After all, sometimes the Young Justice League has things to do, Dick has business to attend to on Titan, and Barbara has her own plans. Just as Bruce maintains a skeptical attitude towards magic, they are more accepting of it, but they also hope that Enid can have the best possible situation even without magic.
“Obviously, you’re right!” Enid wouldn’t misunderstand them; every word they spoke was earnest and gentle. “So, we won’t deduct points this time?”
Seeing Enid's pitiful expression, Barbara couldn't help but soften her heart.
"Hmm..." she mischievously drew out the last syllable, paused deliberately, and then said with a smile, "No points will be deducted."
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The author's note: The prophet may not have been human at first, but at this point, the prophet is already human, right?
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