“My name is Mira Belle, and they call me the ‘Alchemist Witch.’ At least, that’s what they call me in the Yating Empire,” the girl introduced herself with a cheerful smile.
Hearing this, Jasmine remained silent, suddenly realizing that the witch in front of her, who seemed about her age, might actually be much older than she imagined.
Most likely, she was an expired or even spoiled old loli.
Jasmine had only two impressions of the Yating Empire.
The first was that it was once a great human empire that unified human language, beliefs, customs, clothing, and even lifestyle.
Nowadays, traces of the Yating Empire could still be found in the royal etiquette and daily life of various human kingdoms. The second impression was that the empire no longer existed, with its royal family wiped out by heretics.
So when she mentioned ‘within the Yating Empire,’ it must have been a very long time ago…
“It’s quite rude to speculate about someone’s age,” a somewhat eerie laugh interrupted Jasmine’s wandering thoughts.
“S-sorry…” Jasmine stammered after a couple of seconds, meeting the witch’s insincere smile.
Could this strange witch hear her thoughts?
“Strange, witch?” Mira Belle pouted, giving the impression of an innocent little girl.
“What’s strange about me? If I’m strange, then you’re even stranger, little mixed-blood Qian Baiyu girl.”
This person could indeed hear her thoughts, and she even recognized her race and mixed-blood status at a glance!
“Don’t keep calling me ‘this person,’ it’s very impolite.
Didn’t your etiquette teacher teach you to address an unknown-aged woman as ‘Miss’?” Mira Belle’s words left Jasmine dumbfounded.
What was she talking about? An etiquette teacher? How could an orphan like her possibly have something like that?
“Wait a minute…” Mira Belle frowned, feeling like she had caught onto something important.
“By the way, what year is it in the Northern Calendar?”
“Northern Calendar? Um, Miss Witch, the Northern Calendar has ended, and even the Southern Calendar has ended.
It’s now the 15th year of the Heavenly Calendar.”
“Heavenly Calendar?” Mira Belle was taken aback.
“What’s the Heavenly Calendar? Why isn’t the Northern Calendar used anymore?”
“Because the Yating Empire is gone,” Jasmine thought the witch’s knowledge of history was even worse than hers, and explaining it to her was too much trouble.
“Yating, gone?” Mira Belle’s eyes flashed with a hint of melancholy, and she sat down on the bench in a somewhat dejected manner.
“So that’s how it is.”
Jasmine’s expression turned strange.
Mira Belle’s reaction was like a caveman emerging into the modern world, shocked and exclaiming, “The Han Dynasty is gone?”
While Mira Belle was observing Jasmine, the latter was also observing her.
So this is what an eternally youthful witch looks like?
“Oh, right, I almost forgot the main thing,” Mira Belle suddenly stood up, nearly startling Jasmine.
“Little one, I heard you want to learn alchemy, right? I can teach you.”
One moment she was so downcast, and the next she was acting as if nothing had happened.
Is this the capriciousness of a witch? Jasmine’s internal alarm bells were ringing, especially towards someone who appeared uninvited and whose identity was extremely suspicious.
She maintained her sitting posture, sitting on her heels without saying anything.
“Don’t trust me? Really, you’re going to make me sad… When it comes to alchemy, I’m quite confident,” the mind-reading witch pretended to pout.
“Then, what’s the price?” Jasmine’s expression turned cold.
There’s no such thing as a free lunch; this mysterious and deep witch must have her own agenda for approaching her.
Is it really that coincidental that someone would offer her a pillow when she wants to sleep? Jasmine didn’t believe it.
She tried to convey with a cold and uncompromising expression that she wasn’t as easy to fool as she might appear.
However, she overlooked the fact that her current appearance, no matter how fierce, was still just a cute creature.
Her deliberate sternness didn’t intimidate the witch; instead, it made her find this quirky little girl pretending to be mature quite adorable.
“Price?”
“Yes, you said you could teach me alchemy.
What’s the price?” This witch might indeed be very skilled in alchemy, but her motives for approaching Jasmine were definitely not simple.
Would an alchemist have a request for someone? Impossible.
These people, who consider themselves superior, would never have such thoughts.
Either this witch was interested in her dragon lineage and wanted her to do something she was unwilling or unable to do, or her alchemy was so poor that she needed to actively seek someone to teach.
There were no other possibilities.
“You think my alchemy is poor?” The witch widened her eyes, then laughed, not knowing what to say.
Before she gained immortality, people who wanted to be her disciples would form a storm with a wave of her hand.
Receiving a compliment or guidance from her was the highest honor for alchemists.
The ‘Alchemist Witch’ Mira Belle never expected that one day, when she offered to teach someone alchemy, her skills would be questioned.
“Otherwise, why are you acting so eager?” Since the other person could hear her thoughts, Jasmine decided not to pretend anymore and straightforwardly expressed her reluctance to chat more with her.
“These glasses are yours, and you used them to find me? What’s the connection between you and this ring on my hand?” One mystery after another, Jasmine was increasingly puzzled by the intentions of Charles, that old drunkard.
“Not bad, having a strong sense of caution is a good thing.” The girl clapped her hands in satisfaction.
“It’s probably impossible to get you to let your guard down around me anytime soon, but you’re not wrong.
If we’re talking about motives, I do have one… but at least towards you, I mean no harm.” Mira Belle said, placing a hand on her chest.
“After all…” “What?” “Heh, nothing.” Mira Belle teased with a riddle.
Jasmine rolled her eyes.
Why is she always surrounded by people who speak in riddles?
“It’s obvious I’m a witch.
If I wanted to harm you, I wouldn’t approach you at a time like this.” Mira Belle’s lips curved into a charming smile.
“I should approach you when you’re most vulnerable, like when you’re on the brink of death, and force you to sign an unequal contract with me.”
“If I teach you how to avoid risks when you’re not in danger, if I truly wanted something from you, I definitely wouldn’t do that.
Instead, I would guide you towards dangerous situations as much as possible.”
