On the other side, the library basement.
Quentin was entangled in vines against a wooden stake, and to prevent him from resisting, Darcy planted a mushroom atop his head.
The mushroom would continuously siphon off the prisoner’s strength, a simple and efficient method of sealing, not particularly brilliant, but definitely practical.
Wayne sat in a corner of the basement, pulling out a white handkerchief from his breast pocket and covering his mouth and nose.
He felt this action was rather effeminate, but the butler Philark strongly recommended it as being elegant, and under Philark’s insistence, Wayne had come to adopt it as a habit.
Darcy force-fed Quentin a dose of hallucinogenic mushrooms, and because the latter was inhuman, he deliberately increased the dosage.
One asked, and the other answered; amidst his dizziness, Quentin confessed everything.
Quentin was a biological scientist in the natural science division at Jianhe University, not a mage trained within the system, with crude combat awareness, knowing only how to use swarms of insects for his tactics.
All his knowledge, including the Alchemy Book and the Evil God Statue, came from a mysterious benefactor.
According to Quentin, the mysterious man was dressed in a suit and leather shoes, the standard appearance of a social elite, with nothing remarkable about his looks, very vague, and Quentin could no longer remember clearly.
The trail came to a sudden stop.
"He’s just a puppet, used by someone else."
Darcy organized the information at hand and frowned, "The worship of the Evil God has nothing to do with our Naturalism Church. It’s the headache of the Heavenly Father’s Court."
It’s true, but I fought all night, went through a long journey, and rushed to save people. The other side wants to take people away without any compensation; it’s not that easy!
Wayne glared at Darcy, "It’s precisely because there are too many people like you who don’t care and stay aloof that chaos finds fertile ground to flourish. We might not share the same beliefs, but we are guarding the same things. Don’t have this kind of thought ever again."
Darcy nodded. Whatever the leader said was right.
"My teacher always taught me this way: if you can’t distinguish between good and evil, then protect the innocent. I have always strongly believed in this." Wayne said with a stern face.
"Who is the teacher of Lord Shepherd?"
Darcy was very curious about who was the powerful predecessor who could train a mage as strong and just as Wayne.
"She is employed at Lundan Headquarters, the High Priest."
Darcy fell silent. If it were him, being the student of the High Priest, he would never settle for being just an ordinary Pastor.
That wasn’t gilding; it was clearly avoiding favoritism!
Darcy adjusted his attitude again, and Wayne nodded with satisfaction, "Work overtime tonight, finish the report, and contact Lundan Headquarters in the morning. Send the report over as soon as possible."
Wayne really admired Darcy’s receding hairline, clearly a Windsor man of pure lineage. He must be an expert at staying up late to finish reports.
"Lord Shepherd, I have already contacted Lundan Headquarters."
"Oh, what did they say?"
"The headquarters is waiting for a reply from the Heavenly Father’s Court. If there are no surprises, they will handle the transfer of the prisoner and the Evil God Statue tomorrow."
In other words, the headquarters was still negotiating; they might give, but not for free.
Wayne nodded. The Evil God Statue was strange and a hot potato; he didn’t care, but it was hard to say for the other mages at the base. Sending it away early would let everyone sleep better.
Early the next day, the artistic young girl, Odette, came uninvited and began reading books in a corner of the library.
It was evident she truly enjoyed reading books, being immersed in a sea of knowledge brought her more joy than anything.
Odette was not the prettiest Wayne had ever seen, but undoubtedly the purest, like a lily unpolluted by the secular world, making one unable to resist the urge to keep it safe in one’s mouth, away from the harsh elements.
Due to her outstanding looks and temperament, from time to time a boy would stop to chat her up. Wayne shook his head at this and had Odette taken to the office, approving funds for a desk so she no longer had to read outside.
Wayne’s thought was simple: such a fine "cabbage," even if he hadn’t "hoed" it, must rot in the vegetable patch.
Odette gave Wayne a grateful look and sat alone in a corner, creating a world of her own.
After yesterday’s surprise inspection, the civil servants dared not arrive late anymore, with the latest one arriving ten minutes early to the office.
At nine o’clock, Bishop Keith arrived at the library and invited Wayne for a stroll in Jianhe University Town.
Wayne readily agreed. The university town was one of his targets upon arriving in Jianhe County, having recently noticed an increasing stench of money on himself, hoping to be influenced by the literary atmosphere for a change, to see if it could bring improvement.
And to offer Veronica a change in taste, opting for more artistic diary entries.
He thought of the bridge over Jianhe, Cambridge, also known as Cambridge.
"Is this Pastor Wayne’s first time in Jianhe County?"
"Yes, I have the utmost admiration for literature and submitted an application to headquarters, with Jianhe County as my first choice for my posting." Wayne lied smoothly, never missing a chance to establish his persona.
After all, it was all idle talk; it was better to speak well of oneself.
As expected, Keith highly praised Wayne’s pursuit of literature. Being a shrewd man himself, the Bishop didn’t delve further into the topic and offered to act as a guide, introducing Wayne to Jianhe University Town.
Jianhe University is the second oldest university in Windsor, with a long history, and dozens of colleges are scattered throughout Jianhe City.
These colleges are highly autonomous, with their own enrollment quotas, competing amongst themselves, collectively known as Jianhe University.
The chancellor of Jianhe University is merely a figurehead, appearing only at major ceremonies, such as presiding over graduation to confer degrees and rarely intervening in university affairs.