Angel didn’t say anything, he just quietly stared at Cicia.
Cicia felt a bit uneasy under Angel’s gaze, sensing that he might have already guessed her thoughts.
Since it was she who suddenly changed her mind, Cicia felt embarrassed to say anything, so she awkwardly turned her head, avoiding Angel’s gaze: "If you don’t want to know anything, then I’ll just take a short rest..." Or rather, calm the sudden feeling of fear.
As Cicia’s voice fell, the dark mist that filled the palace slowly gathered, seemingly about to completely envelop Cicia on the throne.
Just as Cicia’s figure was about to disappear into the darkness, Angel spoke up: "Then let’s talk about treasures?"
"Treasures?" Cicia stopped controlling the black mist and hesitated for a moment before looking at Angel:
"Are you talking about these treasures?"
Cicia waved her hand lightly, and four items materialized in front of her—
A dark crystal ball, a piece of cowhide paper with stitched corners but still somewhat wrinkled, a vine staff emitting a faint glow, and a plain gray stone slab.
These four treasures were the toll fees paid to Cicia by his companions.
"Yes, let’s talk about these," Angel paused for a moment. "Of course, if you want to talk about some particularly meaningful and special treasures from your collection, that’s fine too."
Cicia cautiously said, "To talk about my collection, you need to trade some other treasures with me. Once they belong to you, I’ll talk."
"So to talk about these four treasures, you won’t ask me to trade first, will you?"
"No need for that, but..." Cicia looked suspiciously at Angel: "You don’t seem to know your teammates very well either?"
"The so-called treasures lie in their meanings, and these meanings are hidden in the most secret corners of everyone’s heart. Even the closest people, like family, might not understand the meaning of the treasures."
After saying this, Angel continued in a matter-of-fact tone: "But you’re right, I’m not that familiar with my teammates. The team was formed temporarily, and the person I’m most familiar with has been with me for less than half a month."
Cicia: "...Yet you still pompously said a bunch of nonsense."
Angel: "I was just being logical."
Cicia squinted her eyes: "Are you sure you want to correct logic with a former Prophet Wizard? Even though my prophesizing abilities are lost due to the transformation, certain psychic touches haven’t disappeared."
Angel: "...If you had said earlier that you were a former Prophet Wizard, I wouldn’t have bothered with all the talk."
Prophet Wizards don’t follow logic; they talk cryptically, with jumpy thoughts. What they say now might happen days or months later. What’s logical about that?
"You’re the one disrespecting your elders, talking back, and then blaming me?" Cicia was a bit speechless.
Angel remained silent but his eyes shone brightly. Cicia, upon seeing this familiar expression, almost imagined that sentence in her head—"After all, I’m not even twenty yet."
Cicia quickly waved her hand dismissively: "Forget it, I’m not going to argue with you. But you are bold to explore ruins with people you’re not familiar with."
"Everyone seeks different things, but the goals are broadly the same, all in the depths of the underground aqueduct," Angel said. "As long as there’s an oath binding us, there shouldn’t be any major issues."
Most importantly, Angel also had his own trump card.
"Moreover, the underground aqueduct isn’t considered a major relic in the Wizards’ Realm currently, at least outsiders think it’s not very dangerous."
Cicia: "That’s true. With your team, as long as you don’t actively bring disaster upon yourselves by awakening those sleeping old beings or going to places you shouldn’t go, the danger here is indeed not great."
After a pause, Cicia asked: "That being said, are you asking me to evaluate your teammates or these treasures?"
Angel: "It doesn’t matter, just talk about whatever requires less effort... After all, you’re already very tired. If you expend even more effort, Popota might have to wait longer."
Angel’s tone was serious, but Cicia couldn’t help feeling mocked.
This person’s temperament is like this... He’s barely twenty, full of youthful vigor... Hold back... I was once a big person, I can’t be bothered, can’t be bothered...
In Cicia’s heart, similar voices kept oscillating. Though stifled in her chest, she tried to maintain a calm face.
"Although you haven’t spent much time with your teammates, I believe you understand them better than I do. So let’s talk about these treasures instead." Cicia said, "Which one do you want to start with?"
Angel: "Either is fine, whatever."
Angel’s indifferent attitude seemed to Cicia like he was implying she was wasting time, reluctant to face her people... Which was rather annoying.
However, Cicia misunderstood. Angel actually had some understanding of these treasures. What he truly wanted to know was the situation regarding the Black Earl. But he didn’t want Cicia to notice anything, so he simply said "whatever" and decided to take it one at a time, hoping to eventually reach the Black Earl.
Unaware Cicia, silently gritted her teeth, forced a smile: "Then in order, let me start with the crystal ball."
Cicia hovered the dim crystal ball above her palm, and for once, a hint of admiration appeared in her eyes.
"This crystal ball, in my opinion, is much more interesting than your two gold coins."
"It appears to be tainted with a lot of death’s aura, but this aura isn’t true death. Near death yet alive, embracing death to live." Cicia said: "Do you know what this means?"
"Changing fate," Angel ventured.
Cicia chuckled softly: "That’s too grand a term. It can’t change the heavens, nor alter fate. Instead, it gently nudges the strings of destiny, causing the worst outcomes to collapse."
Cicia used one phrase to illustrate Vay’s ability: "Death Sense."
Vay’s Noah Divination Shop was nicknamed the "Death Divination Shop", but those visiting his shop were people who didn’t want to die. They knew their upcoming choices might carry the risk of death, so they went to Vay to avoid such risks.
So, Cicia was right, it was actually Vay using his ability to pluck the "strings of destiny," bending the path of death.
"What does this mean?" Angel asked.
Cicia: "It means the bad outcome is merely a facade, and hidden inside is actually brimming with life."
After saying this, Cicia lightly juggled the crystal ball, and under the dim sheen, Angel seemed to catch a glimpse of purple light.
"Life reversing death, the spinning of fate’s strings. Even without considering the inner meaning of this crystal ball, it qualifies as an excellent transcendent item. If someone near death carries it, masked by the surface’s aura of death, perhaps they can evade doom."