Fishing for Information

That owl?

The owl from the Warlock legend?

Thoughts flashed through Lumian's mind like lightning, and all the blood in his body seemed to freeze in an instant.

At that moment, he was even more terrified than when he had seen the monster with three faces.

After all, this was reality, while the ruins were in a dream.

Even if dying in the dream meant dying in reality as well, there was still a psychological buffer.

What should I do?

Will this drag Aurora into it?

*...*

As Lumian desperately searched for a way to respond, the owl made no other move. It simply watched him quietly, as though assessing him.

A few seconds later, the owl spread its wings and took flight toward the distant mountain forests.

On the way, it glided downward and disappeared somewhere in Cordou Village.

Only when the owl was completely out of sight did Lumian recover.

He dropped into his chair and raised a hand to his forehead.

It was drenched in sweat.

Was that really the owl from the Warlock legend?

Has it really lived all these years?

In any case, it was different from other owls. Its eyes weren't vacant. They were more like a human's...

If it really was that owl, why did it fly to my window? Just because I wanted to investigate the Warlock legend? But we've already given up...

It just looked at me a few times and left...

I wonder whether it'll come back, and whether it'll affect Aurora...

Since nothing had happened for the moment, Lumian had initially wanted to watch and wait for a few more days. But when he considered that Aurora might get dragged into it, he felt he couldn't keep this from his sister.

Leaving his room and finding that Aurora hadn't gotten up yet, he went downstairs to prepare breakfast, making all her favorites:

Sunny-side-up eggs with runny yolks, pancakes dusted with icing sugar, plain toast with jam...

I'll have to make noodles later, with meat sauce this time... Seeing that the compartment where they kept the noodles was empty, Lumian decided to replenish it within the next two days.

That was Aurora's favorite staple food.

When Aurora came down the stairs in her nightdress, tousling her blond hair, the food was already laid out on the kitchen table.

"Morning." She covered her mouth and yawned.

Lumian smiled. "It's not that early anymore.

"Don't you always say you should start planning your day in the morning?"

"Exactly. My plan is to sleep." Aurora sat down and began eating breakfast with a glass of milk.

Lumian sat across from her at the table for six. As he munched on a pancake, he said with studied casualness, "I've been investigating the truth behind the village legends these past few days."

"Why?" Aurora asked.

Lumian was quite frank:

"You wouldn't agree to help me obtain supernatural powers, so I thought I'd try on my own. There might be clues hidden in those legends."

"Highly unlikely," Aurora remarked offhandedly. "Those legends have either been altered over several generations until they're unrecognizable, or they're accounts of someone's hallucinations, which are meaningless. Hmm, someone might also have made up a story specifically as an excuse. Heh, and then there are contributions from chaos lovers like you."

"What?" Lumian didn't understand what Aurora meant by "chaos lovers."

It wasn't even Intisian.

"The full term is 'people who love playing pranks,'" Aurora explained briefly. Then she frowned. "Are you suddenly telling me this because you've gotten into trouble and finally know to come home and ask your sister for help?"

"Something unexpected did happen, but I wouldn't call it getting into trouble." Lumian sounded perfectly justified.

He collected his thoughts and said, "My first target was the Warlock legend."

"What Warlock legend?" Aurora looked puzzled.

"You haven't heard it?" Lumian was rather surprised. "A long time ago, someone in the village died suddenly. When he was being buried, an owl flew over and perched at the head of his bed. It only flew away when they lifted his body. After that, the body became so heavy that it took nine oxen to pull the coffin. Only then did the villagers realize he'd been a Warlock."

Aurora listened carefully before saying:

"I really hadn't noticed there was a legend like that."

That doesn't make sense... Lumian could hardly believe it.

Although Aurora spent most of her time at home, she still went out a few days every month to chat with old women like Naroka and tell stories to the children. She knew all the rumors in Cordou Village very well. How could she not have heard the Warlock legend that so many people knew?

Besides, their house had been built on the site of the Warlock's old home!

Lumian had previously suspected that Aurora had chosen to settle in Cordou Village precisely to obtain the Warlock's treasure, and had successfully acquired supernatural powers through it.

"And then?" Aurora asked calmly.

Lumian answered truthfully:

"We asked the old people in the village and confirmed that it really happened, but it was decades ago. The Church burned down the Warlock's house, and the land was this plot you bought."

"Really?" Aurora looked distinctly surprised. "I knew there had to be a reason they sold me this plot for less than the usual price... I thought it was because I was sweet-talking the old ladies and making them happy..."

After thinking for a moment, she added, "Did the Church burn the Warlock's body?"

"Yes. His ashes are buried in the cemetery beside the church." Lumian nodded.

He continued, "Since all the leads had dried up, we'd already given up on this. Who would've thought that when I woke up this morning, I'd see an owl outside my window that looked very much like the one in the legend?"

"Are you sure?" Aurora grew somewhat solemn.

"Not entirely, but it really was different from an ordinary owl." Lumian gave an objective answer.

Aurora thought for a while, then said slowly, "For now, don't leave the village, and absolutely don't leave home after dark, until I've investigated what's going on."

At that point, she gave an exasperated laugh. "I told you that pursuing supernatural powers was dangerous. See? Now trouble's come knocking!

"Fortunately, it doesn't seem to harbor any ill intentions at the moment. We should be able to resolve this fairly smoothly."

As long as you're on your guard, I can relax... Lumian lowered his head and said without hesitation, "Sis, I was wrong."

He promptly changed the subject:

"Have your pen pals written back?"

"How could they be that quick? It's not like sending an elec-uh, email!" Aurora gave a little snort.

Doesn't mail just mean letters and packages sent through the post office? Lumian didn't quite understand.

He didn't particularly care, either. Aurora often came out with strange words, after all.

Outside the old tavern.

Lumian stood there and glanced inside.

He knew the lady who had given him the Tarot card probably wasn't up yet. This time, he was looking for the three outsiders: Ryan, Lya, and Valentine.

As Lumian had expected, the three outsiders were sitting at a table in the tavern, eating breakfast.

Trout rolls, wine, bread with mayonnaise... They're eating pretty well... Lumian observed them for a few seconds, then backed out of the old tavern without disturbing Lya and the others.

A little while later, Ryan and his companions came out, ready to continue strolling through Cordou Village and finding people to "chat" with.

Lumian went up to them, spread his arms, and greeted them with a radiant smile:

"Good morning, my cabbages."

He saw a muscle twitch in the aloof Valentine's face. Ryan looked a little embarrassed, while Lya looked amused.

Huh, they're wearing exactly the same clothes as the other day... Didn't they bring many changes of clothing on their trip? Lumian noticed that Lya was still wearing her unpleated, fitted cashmere dress, short white jacket, and Massy boots. There were two small silver bells each on the veil she wore in place of a hat and on her boots. Ryan still wore his brown tweed jacket and pale yellow trousers, with a simple, dark bowler hat on his head.

Likewise, Valentine still had powdered hair and makeup on his face.

"Good morning, Lumian. Is there something you need?" Ryan asked calmly.

"You're my friends. I'd come to see you even if I didn't need anything." Lumian looked deeply wronged.

Then he asked, "I've noticed you've been finding people in the village to chat with these past few days. Are you trying to ask about something?

"You can come to me, my cabbages. I'm your friend. You can ask me anything!"

"We can't trust your answers," Valentine couldn't help saying.

Ryan turned to look at him, signaling for him to remain calm.

Lumian smiled.

"And you can completely trust everyone else's answers?"

For a moment, even Lya was at a loss for words. Ryan thought for a moment and said, "Actually, we can't completely trust them, either. We make an overall judgment based on different people's answers and what we observe ourselves."

"Exactly." Lumian spread his hands. "So hearing my answers wouldn't hurt. At least they'd give you something to go on."

Ryan fell silent for a moment and instinctively glanced around.

In the early morning, quite a few people in Cordou Village were heading toward the fields, but almost none were near the old tavern.

"Here's the situation," Ryan said, choosing his words carefully. "We came here to find someone."

"The Parish Priest?" Lumian asked with a smile.

Ryan shook his head.

"No.

"We visited the Parish Priest to help us find that person."

"Who?" Lumian looked intrigued. "I know everyone in the village. I should be able to help."

Ryan wasn't cheered by this.

"The truth is, we don't know who that person is, how old they are, or what they look like.

"A while ago, we received a letter from Cordou Village. It wasn't signed, and now we want to find whoever wrote it."

An informer? The thought instinctively flashed through Lumian's mind.

Feigning puzzlement, he said, "After you came to the village because of that letter, the person didn't come looking for you?"

"No," Lya answered for Ryan.

"Maybe they still don't feel safe enough and don't quite trust you yet?" Lumian offered his guesses with great enthusiasm and apparent eagerness to help. "Can't you work it out from the contents of the letter?"

What he really wanted to know was what the letter said.

If it targeted the Parish Priest and his associates, he would welcome that. But if it involved Aurora, he would have to hurry his sister into moving away. After all, Aurora often exchanged letters with her "pen pals." If one of them had been arrested, she could very well be implicated, and those letters would be the trail leading to her.