Chapter 2105 Functional Mushrooms <TOC> Chapter 2107 Regina’s Decision
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Translator: SumTLMan
The wait was not long. Soon, a ripple appeared on the screen.
Rosen disappeared from the view, and in his place appeared a humanoid light spirit, emitting a faint blue glow. Although his face was not very clear, his noble butler-like standard accent revealed his identity.
The Guardian Spirit of the Creation Hall, Antonio.
“Good day, Lord Pat,” Antonio greeted Angel.
Angel returned the greeting.
“I have been informed of your request by the city lord. Lady Regina has just returned from the college and is indeed resting in Enchanted Mechanical City,” Antonio hesitated for a moment: “When Lady Regina moved into the Research Institute, she told me that except for Lord Muse, no one should disturb her while she is there. Therefore, I cannot directly help you contact her.”
Although Antonio’s answer was negative, Angel could hear that he seemed to have something left unsaid.
“You can’t contact her directly? Is there another indirect way?” Angel asked.
Antonio nodded: “After returning from the college today, Lady Regina went to Lady Portia’s room.”
Portia? Angel remembered her. At the ceremony where he was accepted as a member of the Research Institute, Portia had participated as a illusory projection and sat next to Angel.
Portia, from the Hills of Elysia, was proficient in fragrances and potion studies. She created the Triangular Synthesis Structure, solving a hidden flaw in the Salomon balance formula. According to Master Midora, before Angel became a member of the Research Institute, Portia was touted as the alchemist closest to the mysterious realm.
“Your meaning is…” Angel looked at Antonio, who had brought this up, suggesting he contact Portia. But would Portia agree to meet with him?
“Portia recently returned to the Research Institute. When she came back, she had asked about you, seemingly interested in communicating with you.”
Antonio’s words reminded Angel of the ceremony, where Portia had mentioned wanting to discuss enchantment studies with him. At the time, he thought it was just a polite conversation, but now it seemed she was genuinely interested in enchantment studies.
Regardless of why Portia wanted to delve into enchantment studies, Antonio’s implication was clear now; if Angel approached Portia, she would surely agree. That means, to meet Regina immediately, the only way might be through Portia.
“Lady Regina’s next ‘Mushroom Handling’ class at Achillea Comprehensive College is in 13 days,” Antonio informed.
As far as Angel knew, Regina was a witch who adored mushrooms, spending most of her time researching them. Since she had returned to the Research Institute, she would probably stay put. To contact her directly, it seemed he would have to wait 13 days.
The crisis with Mystlight was imminent, and no one knew when Mystlight would erupt from the Star Pool ruins.
Thirteen days might not seem long, but variables could arise at any time.
After some thought, Angel decided to contact Portia in order to reach Regina.
He had briefly interacted with Portia before and found her to be a calm alchemist. Among the many witches he had met, she was certainly of the gentler kind. She probably wouldn’t mind him using her to contact Regina, would she?
After Angel made his request, Antonio didn’t say much. He directly sent out a mental wave to contact Portia.
After a while, Antonio on the other side of the screen opened his eyes: “Lady Portia has agreed to meet with you. I will use myself as a medium to project the image.”
Angel: “Thank you for your trouble.”
The voice fell, and Antonio’s figure slowly disappeared. At the same time, a blurred image appeared on the other end of the light screen, which quickly condensed into reality.
On the other end of the screen, the view suddenly changed into a sea of golden clouds.
In a fluffy cloud island, there is a heavenly lake, vast like an ocean, with no end in sight.
The setting sun casts its slanting rays on the heavenly lake, creating shimmering golden ripples, making it look like a golden sea.
In the middle of this cloud-top heavenly lake, there floats a crystal palace, pure and translucent. On the balcony of the palace’s top floor, two witches dressed in elegant light gowns are half-reclining on leisure chairs, basking in the twilight of the setting sun and chatting over tea, looking utterly comfortable.
These two witches are none other than Portia and Regina.
Angel looks at the scenery on the other end of the screen, momentarily dazed. He has been to Enchanted Mechanical City more than once. Where is such a vast cloud island? Where is such a comfortable sea of clouds in gold?
Moreover, didn’t Antonio say earlier that Regina went to Portia’s ‘room’?
Is this… a room? Angel suddenly became stunned, as if realizing something. His gaze wandered over the balcony, finally settling on a small table between the two witches, where two items he was very familiar with were placed.
One was a pack of playing cards in an elegant case, and the other was a box with a strange appearance.
Upon seeing this box, Angel understood. Its appearance was almost identical to the Shadow of the Cage. That means this must be a Drama Shadow Box.
Furthermore, the Drama Shadow Box was in an activated state, so without a doubt, this sea of golden clouds environment was a true illusion created by the box.
Portia also had a light screen appear, showing Angel’s expressions changing from surprise to realization.
Portia, appearing in her middle age, radiated vitality and maturity, lacking the fatigue typical of middle-aged women.
Portia put down her teacup and said with a light laugh, “Little brother Angel, we meet again. I thought I would be the one looking for you, but I didn’t expect you to come to me.”
Before Angel could respond, Portia, with a teasing tone, said, “Your expression just now tells me that you already know this is a scene from a Drama Shadow Box. As the founder of the Drama Shadow Box, why not comment on this box?”
Despite guessing the truth, Angel still felt a bit peculiar.
He had heard that the Drama Shadow Box was very popular among the witches of Sky Mechanical City, even leading to private tea parties like Drama Shadow Box exchange meetings. However, he didn’t pay much attention to it then. Now seeing it firsthand, even Portia had a Drama Shadow Box, showing just how popular it had become.
“Through a screen, I can’t see much. But, from what I can see, the quality of the illusion is very good; I haven’t spotted any flaws.” Angel paused: “However, good scene construction is just one of the strengths of the Drama Shadow Box. The core lies in the story plot and the language of the illusion.”
The so-called language of the illusion is essentially the content expressed through the camera. Having a good scene is one thing, but how to express the story’s content in this illusion goes beyond technicality and into the realm of art.
Portia: “What you said is exactly the same as the interpretation given by a soul witch from the Torch Institute at a tea party I attended last time, who pursues the art of expression.”
“Unfortunately, I’m not well-cultured in art. I simply enjoy this scene. Chatting with friends and playing cards in such an environment is quite pleasant, isn’t it? So, I didn’t trigger the language of the illusion.”
Angel also realized that Portia and Regina were simply looking for an atmosphere to chat and had not considered the Drama Shadow Box as an artistic form.
“Speaking of which, this Drama Shadow Box is the work of that soul witch. Since you two are on the same wavelength, maybe you would like this Drama Shadow Box too. Do you want to see its story?” Portia added.
Angel had not yet spoken when Portia added, “The content of this play, actually quite good, is said to be original, titled —Love of Cloud Sea—. It tells of the love and hate entanglement between a lofty city lord of Cloud Sea and a mortal woman.”
As soon as the voice fell, a “sizzling” sound appeared on the light screen.
Then, Antonio’s voice, like a voice-over, entered everyone’s ears: “Lady Portia, it’s probably best not to talk about this story anymore.”
Portia’s lips curved into a sly smile: “Well, it seems someone doesn’t want me to tell this story.”
Angel did not utter a word, but he probably also understood the current situation. That so-called —Love of Cloud Sea— seemed to be alluding to city lord Rosen.
After all, it was rumored that Rosen, the city lord, had once fallen in love with a mortal woman, and Witch Melanctha was the product of this extraordinary love.
Now, it seemed like he and Portia were talking, but in reality, through Antonio as a medium, Portia’s room situation was projected on the light screen. In the real scene, Angel was actually sitting across from Rosen.
Mentioning —Love of Cloud Sea— in front of Rosen, no wonder Antonio suddenly interjected.
However, even excluding the play’s allusion to the romantic story of city lord Rosen, Angel was still not interested. Just by the name, he knew it was a romantic play. Such a play would be fine to watch in a theater, but using a drama shadow box for a holographic experience seemed a bit off.
“Let’s get back to the main topic, what do you need from me?” Portia asked curiously, “I heard you’ve already returned to the Savage Grottoes, and the upcoming tea party is about to be held there. Are you looking for me to help make fragrances?”
The theme atmosphere created by fragrances was indispensable for tea parties of any size. That’s why Portia made such a guess.
“However, Liana is also very knowledgeable about fragrances. With her personality, she probably wouldn’t use someone else’s fragrances at such a grand event, right?”
Faced with Portia’s inquiry, Angel hesitated for a moment before deciding to speak frankly.
“I’m sorry to say, actually, my main purpose is to meet with Witch Regina. I heard that Witch Regina has come to your place, so I asked Antonio to contact you.” Angel said apologetically, as this was indirectly using Portia. If it were an acquaintance, it would be different, but he and Portia were not familiar enough to be indifferent about such matters.
After listening, Portia narrowed her eyes, her expression unreadable.
Just when Angel thought he might have offended Portia, she suddenly burst out laughing.
“You start with an apology, and I thought something serious had happened. Turns out, it’s just looking for someone, nothing serious. Why so formal?”
Portia’s words made Angel feel even more embarrassed.
Portia waved her hand: “Alright, I actually have something to ask of you too. If you really feel bad, don’t cut off the signal so soon later.”
Angel nodded.
Portia did not say anything else. After exchanging a few words with Regina sitting beside her, who seemed to agree, the light screen silently turned to Regina.
Regina looked very young, but there were some bluish-black circles under her eyes, making her look both poisoned and like a house girl who hadn’t rested for many days.
Regina, draped in a sheer fabric adorned with pink mushroom patterns, lounged lazily on a recliner. Upon seeing Angel, she merely nodded slightly, appearing even more indolent than the character Angel had recently portrayed.
“What brings you here? Do tell.”
After speaking, Regina seemed to remember something and added, “Since you’ve come all the way to Portia, it must be something urgent, right? Do you need me to head to the signal tower to contact you privately?”
Angel shook his head: “No need for such trouble.”
Once Mystlight erupts, it’s like a live wire, impossible to conceal. If someone were intent on finding out, they surely would, so there’s no need for deliberate secrecy.
“My main reason for coming is to ask for a favor from Witch Regina.”
Regina smiled softly, leisurely sipping tea from a cup at the table: “I can help, but be aware, the price won’t be trivial.”
Angel: “Do you know about live wire?”
“I seem to have heard of it vaguely.” Regina turned to listen to the voice of Portia coming from the other side, discussing information related to live wire. Clearly, the matter of live wire had spread from the Paramjit Plateau to Sky Mechanical City.
“Oh, I remember now, it’s a special infectious disease.” Hearing Portia’s information, Regina immediately recalled related details, turning to Angel: “You mentioned live wire, are you hoping I can help solve this problem? Wasn’t there information that the Savage Grottoes had found a cure?”
Angel: “There is indeed a cure for live wire, but I’m referring to its origin.”
“The origin of live wire?”
Not only was Regina curious, but Portia also perked up her ears. After all, secret news is always good gossip for tea parties!
“Yes, the origin of live wire is a special mushroom.”
“Its name is Illusio.”
Chapter 2105 Functional Mushrooms <TOC> Chapter 2107 Regina’s Decision