Xie Yu's account (4K)

"If Mr. Kaiming hadn't saved me, and Mr. Yize and Mr. Fry hadn't arrived in time, the one sitting here talking to you might be a soul who had lived for nearly a century, a thief wearing my face and body. He would talk to you about the secret to getting a perfect score, then go home to reunite with my father and mother."

Xie Yu was in no hurry to describe every detail of his encounter with Wig Brown. He started with the key points; after all, this was an interview, not an investigation.

He wanted to convey a distinct feeling, a sense of fear, rather than accuse any particular person.

He had not come to condemn Wig Brown.

The interviewer, Ms. Fengye, looked into Xie Yu's calm eyes and found herself drawn into the young man's words.

She began to imagine what it would be like if the soul behind those eyes belonged to an old man, an evil mage who had killed and might kill again, sitting only an arm's length away from her, close enough to touch... It was rather frightening.

Her thoughts went further. Perhaps a "fake Xie Yu" like that would even go home to his parents, his family, his brothers and sisters... What if it were her own family? What if something like that happened to her own child? One day in the future, her child might come home with a somewhat unfamiliar look in their eyes, speaking a little less than before.

As she thought about it, her eyes grew a little vacant, and she forgot to ask follow-up questions or fill the silence.

Xie Yu did not wait. He continued:

"When spring came, he would go to the best school in our kingdom and spend several years alongside thousands of the most talented young trainee mages."

"He would become a mage again, be called a genius, and take up a position-perhaps one of those positions nobles were not normally allowed to hold."

Ms. Fengye realized the conversation was entering deep waters and immediately came to her senses. She instinctively tried to steer away from Xie Yu's hypothetical:

"But none of that actually happened... Mr. Xie Yu, is everything you've said true? What exactly does Sealed Artifact 3-0771 do, and how did it rebel? Is Wig Brown dead now?"

Speculation was unsuitable for an interview; it often implied a clear stance. But the interviewee's stance was not necessarily the newspaper's, so reporting only the facts was safest.

At the side, Yize interjected on Xie Yu's behalf:

"Those are questions for the kingdom's law enforcement department, and the answers should be based on solid evidence. I'll send the newspaper an account of the facts of the case after the interview. This is a serious matter, so I hope you understand."

What Xie Yu had just said had done the Education Bureau a great favor, and Yize went out of his way to protect him.

But the person most grateful to Xie Yu was not Yize, but Fry.

Positions that nobles were not normally allowed to hold... The Brown Family's covert bribery case that Fry had encountered at the Education Bureau concerned precisely that.

But as Xie Yu brought out the "truth," Fry's troubles were gradually receding. There was even hope that the matter might be laid to rest entirely.

At that moment, Fry wanted the people named Brown to fall into the abyss more than ever. The more trouble the Browns ran into, the more easily the Education Bureau could let its internal investigation drop.

If his position had allowed it, he would even have wanted to jump in and back Xie Yu up. He could barely hide the eager anticipation in his eyes.

Xie Yu also gave Yize a grateful look.

What Mr. Yize had just handed him was a suit of armor.

Yize had made it clear that nothing Xie Yu said in the interview could be treated as testimony, only as an account from a person involved. The newspaper also had no authority to investigate the case and could not pick apart Xie Yu's words. He had preemptively shut down the possibility of the interviewer making things difficult.

Xie Yu continued:

"Actually, there's no harm in talking about it. I recall Ms. Fengye asked me earlier what kind of genius I was. Perhaps I can answer that question at the same time."

"I'm very interested in sealed artifacts. Wig Brown was unlucky to run into me."

Xie Yu stroked the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll and commanded it:

"Since you've already devoured Wig Brown's fate and soul, show them to us."

The Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll could record a person's past fate, and Wig Brown, whom it had completely devoured, was naturally among them.

It obeyed the command. A red light appeared around it as it floated gently before Xie Yu's chest, changing shape.

It became an old man with sparse silver hair, dressed in a black robe. No bigger than a palm, it was a tiny doll.

At the side, Ms. Fengye was both curious and somewhat frightened.

Although she could not claim to understand sealed artifacts, their uncontrollability and unpredictability were well known.

Was it dangerous to use such a powerful sealed artifact right here? She glanced at Yize, and her worries faded. With the Magister's tacit approval, there probably would not be much of a problem.

The Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll began to reenact Wig Brown's fate.

The little talisman doll began to play the old man.

"Black Pine City had a perfect-score exam paper this year," the black-robed old man said.

"I can see you. What are you afraid of?" the black-robed old man said as he walked and mimed knocking on a door.

"My own funeral. The name is Wig Brown. Write it down," the black-robed old man said.

That was when he had deliberately faked his own death. Clearly, everything had been planned long in advance.

"Honored Lord Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll, I believe we can begin. I pray to you for the complete substitution of my fate and body... I have prepared the price, and I have made my decision," the black-robed old man prayed.

That was when he had prayed to the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll, hoping to replace another person's fate.

Wig Brown's figure came to a stop there.

Xie Yu spoke, adding to the account:

"At that moment, Wig Brown was standing in front of me, drinking the tea I had poured him and looking down at me. The sealed artifact showed no mercy either, and felt no pity for me then."

The little doll's one-man performance had been somewhat difficult to understand, but Xie Yu's account made Ms. Fengye grasp the horror he had faced at that moment. She pressed on:

"But you're still alive..."

Xie Yu continued:

"The reason I survived was that, just then, Dr. Kaiming, the owner of the clinic, happened to return. His return saved me, at the cost of his own life."

"Because the clinic owner had returned, Wig Brown had to change his target and deal with Kaiming first to keep the matter from being exposed. Kaiming's disappearance might have alerted others, so he chose to use the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll to replace Dr. Kaiming first."

"That way, after erasing my memory, he could remain at my side as Dr. Kaiming and continue observing me. He could use the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll to examine my past fate and seek a more perfect substitution, while Dr. Kaiming's spirit and soul as a Two-Star Mage replenished what he had expended."

Xie Yu quietly finished distorting the facts.

But perhaps it could not be called a distortion.

If Fry had not taken him away, and Wig Brown had learned that he, Xie Yu, really was the perfect-score examinee, then Wig Brown replacing his fate was also a highly probable outcome, unless the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll switched sides.

Everything that followed in the account was consistent with the facts. Only a small change had been added at the beginning: Wig Brown, an old teacher at Black Pine City Forest Magic Academy, had clearly discovered that the owner of the perfect-score paper was Xie Yu.

After that, he came looking for Xie Yu, and everything followed naturally.

After all, Kaiming's "importance" was hidden. As long as Fry, the Education Bureau, and the Brown Family said nothing, there was no solid reason for Wig Brown to take it into his head to replace a mere Two-Star Mage like Kaiming.

Everything Xie Yu described held together on its own, even more convincingly than the facts.

As for the dirty water thrown at the Browns, they could either drink one basinful or both.

Ms. Fengye listened, absorbed, and began to ask about how events had unfolded:

"Could you tell me about this Dr. Kaiming? Were you working as his assistant?"

Xie Yu pinched the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll and made it take Kaiming's form, continuing his account:

"He was Wig Brown's student, and also a mage specializing in the spirit and soul. He was the best spirit and soul physician in Black Pine City as well."

"Wig Brown sought to replace me, yet an innocent person suffered for it. I can't be at peace."

"He came very close to succeeding. He used that pure white flame from the Brown Family's bloodline to erase my memories, and perhaps I should have been left in a daze. But he made a fatal mistake: he appeared before me wearing the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll, and I happened to recognize that it wasn't an ordinary pendant."

Listening at the side, Fry felt a little dazed. Even he, a firsthand witness, had almost been taken in by Xie Yu.

As he listened, he kept feeling that Xie Yu was telling the truth.

Xie Yu was practically describing the facts, seemingly without altering anything, yet the truth he presented was an entirely different one.

At the side, Yize wore a similar expression and exchanged a glance with Fry.

It was hard to imagine that a child his age could be so watertight. Every single thing Xie Yu said could be followed up and supported by evidence.

And the problematic details, the places where he had made subtle alterations, were all hidden in the least conspicuous places, the places least likely to be suspected as false.

Yize felt that what he had said earlier had probably been unnecessary. If he had not already heard the truth from Xie Yu, and if he had not been investigating the Education Bureau bribery case, Xie Yu would almost have fooled him too.

If Kaiming had not given Fry a gift, and Fry had not arranged a position for Kaiming, Xie Yu's story would have had almost no flaws.

Even if he were a diviner, without knowing the inside story beforehand, he probably would not be able to divine any flaws.

The places that looked flawed were all how events had actually unfolded.

Check the details in Xie Yu's account, and they would probably all prove true. The real falsehood was hidden out of sight.

"...With Mr. Fry there to deter him, I didn't expose him immediately. I gave him a little leeway and forced him to lend me the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll."

"A day later, the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll acknowledged me as its master, so I returned the little fellow as agreed. Wig Brown, who had taken Kaiming's form again, hadn't expected this and let down his guard around it. After using the sealed artifact again, he died from its backlash."

Xie Yu's account suddenly moved ahead rapidly.

This part had nothing to do with his theme of accusing the Brown Family. Yize and the others had also witnessed it, and the factual evidence was equally detailed, so there was no need to elaborate. It was time to move on to the next topic.

"Wait." Ms. Fengye had been absorbed in the unfolding events, only for this legendary turn to break her immersion:

"How did the sealed artifact suddenly acknowledge you as its master?"

Xie Yu smiled and said:

"There were many factors. Sealed artifacts have likes and dislikes and can perceive the outside world. They aren't representatives of justice or evil. On certain levels, it liked me more than Wig Brown. It was afraid Mr. Yize would destroy it. It was tired and longed for some care for its body and mind..."

"Or perhaps it wasn't so complicated. It preferred the fate of staying by my side. That was all."

Ms. Fengye had no more questions about Wig Brown. She herself did not quite dare delve further into the subject, so the conversation returned to Xie Yu:

"It sounds like you have a very deep understanding of sealed artifacts. Should I say that's to be expected of a perfect-score examinee?"

"I almost became Brown's prize. It seems even a perfect score can bring disaster."

Xie Yu guided the conversation and was just about to elaborate on how awful Brown was when a crucial message appeared.

[A towering hotel (Affection 100) reminded you:]

[Speak of Brown, and here he comes!]

[You know that guy we were just talking about, Miuan Brown? He came down from the sky and entered my front door, and he brought a kid about your age with him.]

[This is hilarious. He wanted to book the king's suite too. See? I told you everyone who's stayed there was satisfied. Even though he grumbled and cursed while he was staying, he still wanted to stay again afterward.]

So soon?

Xie Yu was taken aback. Was Miuan Brown really so terrifying? His interview was not even over, and he had yet to make a move, but the Browns had already come knocking?

[He's gone. He couldn't get a room, so he immediately went on to the next place. How heartless, hmph. I don't want that guy staying here anyway!]

[The old ghost couldn't let it go and took a peek.]

[With all the arrays fully activated, did he think he could see through them? The king's suite burns seventy gold coins a minute. So what if you're a Magister? Haha, can't see inside, can you!]

Xie Yu had just been about to interrupt the interview and alert Yize, but the emergency resolved itself.

Magister Miuan Brown had not foreseen the future, nor had he come straight for Xie Yu.

"The king's suite has been booked. Grandpa will take you to another hotel." Miuan dotingly stroked Bai Luo's head.

Crossing more than half of North Province, from Mirror Lake City to Black Pine City, took only a single flash of an advanced void teleportation array. The service could be purchased with enough gold coins.

"Grandpa, aren't you curious who booked it? That front desk worker wouldn't even tell us their identity. How rude," Bai Luo complained.

He was rarely turned away, and he had certainly not expected it to happen in such a remote, insignificant part of the kingdom.

"At a time like this, it could have been anyone. Since Black Pine City has a perfect-score examinee, the Education Bureau and senior academy staff from both inside and outside the province could all have come here."

Miuan Brown did not care about the matter.

He had tried to investigate just now, lightly sweeping the place with his spiritual power, but had found nothing. He did not dare use his full strength to pierce the concealment around the room, either. Someone he could not afford to offend might be staying inside, or an equally powerful Magister might be staying there. There was no need to create a conflict for no reason.

He had come to deal with trouble in the first place and did not want to cause any more.

"Could it be the perfect-score examinee staying there?" Bai Luo thought for a moment and guessed, "Maybe they've already found the perfect-score examinee?"

Miuan shook his head, rejecting his grandson's guess:

"The Education Bureau put protection in place early this year. From what I know of those people in North Province, releasing the news early this morning was planned too. Under these circumstances, it should be unlikely for outsiders to find the examinee ahead of time. At the very least, there would be forces at the Magister level gathered around that perfect-score examinee."

"There are places to stay everywhere. We might as well take care of our real business first."