Alice froze for two seconds, then raised a hand to cover her mouth and stared at Edwina with innocent big eyes.
After meeting her gaze for ten seconds, Edwina realized that Alice was indeed very good at pretending to be innocent. She slightly emphasized her tone and asked again:
"The texture? The taste?"
Silent for two Seconds, Alice let her left hand hang naturally at her side, raised her right hand with her palm facing outward, held three fingers together, and bent her thumb and pinky toward her palm. Then she said firmly:
"I guarantee the book is no different from when I first got it!"
Edwina remembered that sleeve whose wrinkles had remained exactly the same as before. She looked at Alice, frowned slightly, and fell into deep thought.
After being looked at by Edwina for ten seconds, Alice finally could not bear the pressure any longer. She silently lowered her hand behind her back and guiltily lowered her head.
Edwina felt that she completely understood what had happened. Taking a deep breath, she asked in the gentlest voice possible:
"Why did you do this?"
"B-Because..." Alice cautiously raised her eyes for a furtive glance. Only after confirming that Edwina at least did not look angry did she stammer an explanation. "I-I wanted to taste what books tasted like..."
Edwina's expression did not change as she continued to ask gently, "Why did you have that idea?"
That attitude put Alice somewhat at ease. She gave up on assuming a posture ready to flee and pinched the hem of her clothes as she explained:
"Because I hoped I could gain knowledge just by eating books, and then I-I thought of it..."
The entire chain of logic clicked into place. Edwina looked at Alice and smiled.
"Someone in the Church really