Old Man Aita

The carriage gradually came to a halt. Moss opened the curtain and said in a low voice, "Master Merlin, we have arrived."

Merlin nodded and jumped down from the carriage. As soon as he emerged, a gust of cold wind blew against his face, stinging like a knife blade.

Merlin hurriedly covered his face with his hands. At that moment, he finally understood how painful it had been for Moss to sit outside the whole time.

"Moss, I won't be coming out for a while once I go in. Just stay inside the carriage during this time."

A look of gratitude appeared on Moss's face. He nodded slightly and immediately crawled back into the carriage; being blasted by the cold wind outside was indeed a form of torture.

Seeing Moss crawl into the carriage, Merlin turned around and walked inside.

The charming Xiaolin was still at the counter. Although Anson and Gute were not here this to accompany him this time, Xiaolin clearly remembered Merlin. Upon seeing him arrive, a smile immediately appeared on her face as she respectfully opened the secret passage.

Merlin navigated the familiar passage. Inside, there was no back-flowing cold wind, and it felt much warmer instead.

Soon, Merlin reached the underground hall. Perhaps because it was early morning, or perhaps because the weather was too cold, there were not many people in the hall at this time, and it appeared quite spacious.

Nathan did not seem to be here either, so Merlin strolled around casually by himself.

There was no sunlight in the hall; lighting was provided entirely by candles. However, these candles were made from the grease inside a strange sea beast from the ocean. Although quite expensive, they left no unpleasant smoky odor upon burning, instead releasing a faint, natural, and peculiar fragrance.

The antiques were all placed on stone platforms, surrounded for viewing by even more expensive transparent crystal cages. However, Merlin knew nothing about antiques. After walking around a circle, he still did not find any antiques that could induce hallucinations like the relief, which indirectly proved the extraordinary nature of that relief.

As Merlin was admiring the antiques, he suddenly heard a soft set of footsteps behind him.

"Miss Kailisi?"

Merlin turned around and discovered that the person behind him was an acquaintance—none other than the beauty whom the chubby Gute thought of constantly. She was indeed very pretty. Today, she wore a white fur coat on her upper body and tight cotton trousers on her lower body, setting off her slender and shapely legs. It seemed women never forgot to dress up no matter the time; even on such a cold day, she wore tight cotton trousers to accentuate her long legs.

Kailisi looked at Merlin with some puzzlement; it appeared she did not have much of an impression of him.

Merlin did not mind either, smiling slightly as he said, "Miss Kailisi, we just met a few days ago right here. I came with Anson and Gute..."

Kailisi's brows gently unfurled. She nodded thoughtfully and said, "I remember now. You're Wilson Merlin?"

Merlin nodded in acknowledgment, then took two steps forward to approach Kailisi.

"Miss Kailisi, Anson mentioned that you are very well-versed in antiques, especially those from the Molta Empire period. I've recently taken a liking to some extremely special antiques from the Molta Empire period, but Mr. Nathan doesn't have any here that satisfy me. Therefore, if Miss Kailisi happens to have some special antiques on hand, would you be willing to let me take a look?"

With that, Merlin looked at Kailisi. He knew that Kailisi collected many antiques, and perhaps the mysterious relief he needed was among them.

"Bizarre antiques? Your tastes happen to match those of an old gentleman I know. He also likes to collect some bizarre antiques from the Molta Empire period. If you have time, I'll take you to see them right now. Perhaps we can find something you like."

Kailisi and Merlin were standing somewhat close, so the warm breath from her mouth brushed against Merlin's neck, creating a tingling sensation. Moreover, he didn't know what kind of perfume Kailisi wore, but it was extremely fresh and refreshing, putting him in high spirits.

"Then I'll have to trouble Miss Kailisi to lead the way."

Merlin naturally accepted with pleasure. As long as he could find the mysterious relief, even if it were just a single clue, he would be very satisfied.

Thus, Merlin followed behind Kailisi as she walked outside.

Light snow was still drifting outside, and the cold wind blew against his face like a knife. Kailisi also had a carriage, so she quickly climbed inside, and it slowly moved forward.

"Moss, follow Miss Kailisi's carriage in front."

Merlin woke Moss, and they drove the carriage, slowly following behind Kailisi's.

Because the weather was very cold and light snow was falling, the road surface had frozen and was somewhat slippery. Both carriages traveled very slowly, and it took half an hour to reach their destination.

Kailisi and Merlin arrived in front of an old wooden-structured small building. In front of this building was a garden planted with all sorts of flowers, plants, and trees. However, the garden looked quite battered at the moment; the small trees that had not yet grown thick trunks were all leaning this way and that, crushed under the weight of accumulated snow.

It had snowed all night yesterday, and the wind had been very strong. A small garden like this was basically ruined and could only be replanted when spring came around next year.

Seeing the utter mess in the garden, Kailisi shook her head slightly and said quite helplessly, "Mr. Aita's garden has been ruined again. Poor Mr. Aita wasted several months tending to his garden, and now it has turned out like this."

Following that, under Kailisi's guidance, the two walked into the small building, successfully went up to the second floor, and arrived in front of a faded and rather old-looking wooden door.

Kailisi turned back to remind him, "Merlin, Mr. Aita likes quiet, so be a little quieter once we go inside."

Merlin nodded. It seemed the person Kailisi wanted to find was inside this room.

"Is Mr. Aita in? I am Kailisi, come to see you today."

Kailisi knocked on the door and called out softly toward the room.

Creak.

The old wooden door opened, revealing an old man of about fifty or so.

The old man was not very tall and was slightly bald on top, with only very sparse hair, yet he had carefully combed those sparse hairs straight back. He wore a black overcoat, possessed a thin face and slightly pale complexion, and sported two handsome waxed mustaches beneath his nose, giving him a very spirited appearance as a whole.

Merlin was sizing up the old man, and similarly, the old man was also sizing up Merlin and Kailisi. However, he only gave Merlin a faint glance before shifting his gaze to Kailisi, saying in a hoarse voice, "Kailisi, come in."

When the old man finished speaking, he turned and walked back into the room. Merlin and Kailisi followed behind, and Merlin closed the door on the way.

A blazing fire was still burning beneath the fireplace in the room. The old man walked straight over to a wooden chair by the fireplace and sat down, saying in a hoarse voice, "Kailisi, speak. What brings you to see this old man today?"

A smile appeared on Kailisi's face as she led Merlin directly before the old man. The blazing firelight from the fireplace shone upon his face, making the old man's originally fair complexion appear somewhat ruddy.

The old man did not raise his head at all, engrossed in reading a thread-bound book with a black cover.

"Mr. Aita, I've brought a friend to visit you today."

After speaking, Kailisi gave Merlin a cue with her eyes to prompt him to introduce himself.

Merlin nodded, then bowed slightly and said, "Mr. Aita, I am Wilson Merlin. I am very fond of antiques, especially those from the Molta Empire period. Today, I heard Miss Kailisi mention that Mr. Aita's home has many unique antiques from the Molta Empire period, which is why I presumptuously came to disturb you."

The old man added more firewood to the fireplace, and the crackling sound of the wood burning within could be distinctly heard. After a long while, the old man slowly put down the book in his hand, stood up, and said indifferently, "Follow me."

Does Mr. Aita have a very eccentric temper?

Merlin felt that this old man Aita had a somewhat strange and inscrutable temperament.

"Shh, keep it down. Mr. Aita is just a bit reclusive in personality, but he's a very good person. Alright, let's follow Mr. Aita inside."

Kailisi clearly understood old man Aita quite well. Together with Merlin, she followed Aita into another room.

This room was not large, and three people inside appeared somewhat cramped. However, two rows of giant bookshelves painted with red lacquer were arranged very neatly inside the room. On the bookshelves were not books, but rather a collection of small antiques.

Some of these antiques were damaged while others were intact, but unlike the antiques Merlin had seen at Nathan's place, these were all very unique. There were pieces of pottery with strange shapes that Merlin had never seen before.

For example, Merlin saw a slightly aged bottle placed on the shelf, featuring a curved spout on both the left and right sides—very peculiar.

Merlin wanted to reach out and touch these antiques, but old man Aita beside him suddenly let out a low shout, "Look only, do not touch!"

Merlin felt rather awkward and had no choice but to pull his hand back.

There were about a hundred uniquely shaped antiques displayed on the bookshelves, but as Merlin swept his gaze over them, not a single one resembled the relief. He could not help feeling somewhat disappointed, and asked casually, "Are these all the antiques there are?"

Old man Aita seemed quite displeased with Merlin's tone and said in a deep voice, "I collected just these over a very long time. What, do you still think it's too few?"

Noticing that old man Aita seemed somewhat angry, Kailisi hurriedly explained, "Please don't be angry, Mr. Aita. Merlin is only interested in antiques from the Molta Empire period, and he has only just recently come into contact with antiques."

With that, Kailisi also gently reproached Merlin in his ear, "Don't speak carelessly. Mr. Aita is a bit upset."

Merlin nodded. Old man Aita had a strange temper, so it was better to speak less and not provoke his anger.

Although the antiques here at old man Aita's place were all quite peculiar, Merlin failed to find the mysterious relief he was looking for. Thus, a trace of disappointment inevitably surfaced on his face, and he shook his head slightly, saying to Kailisi, "Let's head out first."

Just as Merlin and Kailisi left the room, the eccentric old man Aita narrowed his eyes, stared at Merlin's back for a long while, and a bizarre expression appeared on his face.

After leaving the room, Kailisi asked in a low voice, "Merlin, didn't you find anything you liked?"

Merlin shook his head. Kailisi did not press him further and simply bid farewell to old man Aita, saying, "Mr. Aita, we've disturbed you today. We'll come to visit again another time."

At that moment, however, the eccentric old man Aita suddenly spoke up, "Your name is Merlin?"

"Yes, Mr. Aita. Do you have any instructions?"

Merlin looked at old man Aita in puzzlement.

"Would you be willing to follow me and learn antique appraisal?"

As old man Aita's words fell, Merlin froze. He felt a bit baffled; why was this eccentric old man suddenly offering to take him on as a disciple?

Although Merlin indeed wanted to learn antique appraisal so that he could figure out the origin of the mysterious relief, he felt completely uncertain about this eccentric old man Aita.

Just as Merlin hesitated, a trace of pleasant surprise appeared on Kailisi's face. She hurriedly whispered to Merlin, "Hurry and agree. When it comes to the appraisal of Molta Empire-period antiques, Mr. Aita is considered the absolute authority in Blackwater City. For him to take you as a disciple is your good fortune—others couldn't buy this kind of opportunity even if they begged."

Merlin felt somewhat astonished. This old man living in such a crude house with such an eccentric temper actually possessed such formidable capabilities?

"What? You're unwilling?"

Old man Aita's expression turned gloomy, and he grew somewhat angry.