At noon, Abner met up with the Magic Mirror—or rather, Cecia—after she finished handling the property transfers. They returned to the small villa provided by the Golf Club and had lunch with Fors, who had stayed behind.
Abner speared a butter-fried mushroom and popped it into his mouth, listening to Cecia's report as he chewed:
"Herta's house in Glan Borough was in a decent location and quite lavishly furnished. It was valued at 19,000 fel, and someone bought it just over an hour after it was listed at auction. The final price was 22,000 fel.
"As for his one-percent stake in Sushit Bank and his shares in the shipping company, the agreements were signed long ago. With the paperwork complete, they can be transferred to your name in a day or two at most."
The transfer agreements Mirror Apostle Herta had produced had clearly gone through the proper channels and needed only one final step to take effect. Otherwise, the Quiz Maze would never have accepted their value... That made things convenient for Abner.
After drinking a glass of genuine Intis white wine, Abner wiped his mouth and asked, "Any news about the newspapers I asked you to look into?"
Cecia, under the Magic Mirror's control, nodded and replied smoothly, "The News Censorship Act has unsettled quite a few newspaper offices in Trier. Several are already being offered for sale at low prices."
"Which ones?" Abner asked with interest.
"The East Coast Morning Post, Cerenzo Weekly, and Ryan Newspaper... A few smaller papers are also up for sale, but they have limited influence and aren't worthy of your status, Master!" As Cecia spoke, she picked up the Magic Mirror itself and displayed images showing the newspapers' addresses and other details.
"Even the Ryan Newspaper can't keep going?" Fors exclaimed. "It's