The traces of "Wither" discovered yesterday had ultimately led to the ring Little Mia liked so much. Whether today's trail pointed to a relic or something else, Shade still had to see it for himself.
So he climbed into the carriage with Miss MacDonald, and they headed all the way toward Grey Rock Pass.
This was the first time Shade had spent such a long stretch alone with the tall young woman. To prepare in case this clue really led to a Demon, he kept reminding the young woman, who was only at the middle ring, of all sorts of precautions along the way.
The serious and meticulous young woman listened carefully. Only after Shade had finished did she ask:
"Mr. Watson, you've dealt with many Evil Spirit Demons before, haven't you?"
"Yes, more than ten."
Shade answered. It was no joke. Aside from exterminating Demons with the Doctor in the Sixth Epoch, he had occasionally encountered Demons in the past—for instance, the Ice Demon in the hotel where he rescued Winnie.
The young woman with beautiful rose-gold hair showed an awestruck expression.
"You're planning to reveal your identity to Teacher this week, right? Your real identity must be someone very remarkable."
Shade recalled Margaret mentioning during one of their dates that rumors about the "wrist" had spread from the Northern Kingdom to the Southern Kingdom. Everyone paid close attention to the romantic gossip surrounding the most powerful Grand Duchess of the Northern Kingdom, so in a certain sense, Shade's true identity really was "very remarkable."
"I just hope you won't be too surprised when the time comes."
He said with a straight face, and Miss MacDonald smiled.
"So your identity is famous, then? Could you be some prince of the Northern Kingdom's royal family? Oh, I won't tell Teacher."