After going into the sea, I met the witch.

He didn't mention that the Blood Witch was dead, since they had just met and he couldn't reveal everything.

“Whirlpool Islands…outer sea area…So Lady Serena went there, no wonder we couldn’t get in touch with her…”

The catgirl muttered a few words to herself with her head down, then raised her head, took a deep breath, and composed herself: "My lord, I am the owner of the 'Black Cat Fortune Telling Shop,' the Phantom Beast Witch, Meloye. May I ask who you are?"

“Just call me Ryan,” Ryan replied, then asked curiously, “I heard that a few days ago, knights from the Libra Church came to the ‘Black Cat Fortune Telling House’ and took you away?”

“Yes, but they only took one of my bodies.” The catgirl, Meloye, stroked her hair. As she did so, the fine lines on her face disappeared, and her furry black cat paws returned to normal human hands. “This is not a good place to talk. Please come with me.”

Before she could react, her body began to shrink rapidly, and in less than a second, she transformed from a living girl into a tiny black kitten.

After wandering around the alley for a long time, the little black kitten jumped into an ordinary farmhouse.

Ryan followed closely behind, and as he entered the room, he saw the little black kitten turn around and glance at him before jumping into the water tank.

When the cat's paw touched the water's surface, the seemingly ordinary water subtly distorted, and then Meloy disappeared into the water.

"A rare object?"

Ryan approached the water tank, hesitated for a moment, and then jumped in.

The Beast Witch Meloye is not very strong. Her professional level is only second tier, and she poses a similar threat to Ryan as the twelfth Black Knight. If it were before, Ryan would have found her troublesome, but after a series of improvements, he now has an overwhelming advantage when facing opponents of this level.

His strength gave him confidence.

Moreover, in Ryan's assessment, the probability of Melloi harboring ill will towards him was not high, and the overall risk was within a controllable range.

He jumped into the water tank, and everything went black for a moment, but it soon came back to light. He looked around and saw a small room about 20 square meters in size and about 3 meters high.

The decor here is predominantly light purple, with a small round wooden table and dark curtains hanging around it, giving it an overall style similar to a fortune-telling shop.

At this moment, Meloya had transformed back into human form. She sat at one side of the round wooden table, pouring Ryan a steaming cup of black tea.

"Mr. Ryan, please have some."

“This is the real branch of the Witch’s Guild. The ‘Black Cat Fortune Telling House’ above, as well as the water tank we jumped into earlier, are just some of the entrances here. There are many similar entrances, all of which connect to this pocket space. Of course, even if you find the right entrance, you can’t get in without my permission.”

"Thank you very much for providing information about Lady Serena."

"Is there something you need from me?"

The young woman's movements as she poured and served tea were elegant and professional, clearly indicating that she had received relevant training.

Ryan didn't drink the tea, but asked directly, "Have you offended the Libra Holy Cult?"

"No." Faced with this question, the catgirl Melloye shook her head: "In fact, I am also a victim."

Seeing the undisguised curiosity on Ryan's face, she explained, "A few days ago, the Libra Holy Church's 'sacred relic' was stolen. It is said that cat paw prints were found at the scene, so in the past few days, the knights of the Libra Holy Church have been searching everywhere for people and things related to cats."

"My 'Black Cat Fortune Telling Shop' was targeted by the Libra Knight because its name contained the word 'cat.' I had no choice but to give him a meticulously crafted 'prosthetic body' to take away."

"Although the 'prosthetic' is almost identical to me, the difference in expression and language is too great. It may fool me for a while, but it will be discovered sooner or later. So, I am ready to change my identity."

"I went back to 'Black Cat Fortune Telling House' today to leave a coded message. If you had come a day later, you probably wouldn't have met me."

“I see…” Ryan nodded in understanding, then asked curiously, “What is that lost ‘relic’?”

Something that can be called a "holy relic" is definitely not an ordinary thing. Ryan was just curious and had no ulterior motives.

"...It's said to be one of the keys to activating the 'Divine Scales'." Mellois was uncertain: "Of course, this is just a rumor, and I'm not sure what it is."

At this point, a look of shame appeared on her face: "I've only been in charge of this 'branch site' for less than two months, and the previous person in charge disappeared without a trace, resulting in the loss of many intelligence sources, so..."

"You must be an ally of some witch, right?"

Meloy looked at Ryan: "It's impossible for an ordinary person to have such a strong, positive witch scent."

"Smell?" Ryan neither admitted nor denied it, but was quite interested in the word "smell" in Meloy's words.

“Yes, scent.” Meloy nodded. “I can communicate with animals and even monsters, and I can imitate their powers for my own use. This extraordinary sense of smell is an ability that I imitated from a creature called ‘Starhound’.”

"You trust me so much that you've revealed all your abilities?" Ryan asked in surprise.

“Even if I don’t say it, you can guess some of it. Besides, you are a fellow traveler of witches. To gain the trust of a witch means that you are also worthy of my trust.” Meloy said calmly, “This world is too cruel to witches. Helping witches as much as possible is the original intention of the ‘Witches’ Association’.”

"If possible, you can bring your demon girlfriend to see me. I will do my best to help within my power."

"..." Ryan understood somewhat why the Blood Witch had specifically instructed the Witch Association before her death. Witches who held such ideals and practiced them were indeed something worth remembering from the Blood Witch's perspective.

“Your situation isn’t good right now either, so I won’t trouble you with any help.” Ryan shook his head and got up to leave.

Having learned that the city of Santos, though seemingly peaceful, was actually rife with undercurrents due to the "theft of the sacred relic," he had decided to evacuate with Freyne and Cecilia as soon as possible.

Having just gone through the Whirlpool Islands incident, he just wanted some peace and quiet and didn't want to cause any more trouble.

“Take this with you.” Meloy handed over a small blue conch shell: “This is a communication conch shell. They come in pairs. You can communicate with it within a hundred kilometers. To use it, just tap the bottom three times. Also, if it receives a message, it will vibrate regularly.”

"And this map."

"It includes the regional distribution of the outlying islands, as well as the situation of the surrounding waters within a hundred nautical miles. I hope it will be helpful to you."

Taking the conch shell and map, Ryan gave Miss Catwoman a deep look: "We should be leaving soon. If you encounter any trouble in the next few days, you can ask me for help, but of course, it has to be within my capabilities."

"Thank you very much." Melloer smiled and nodded, not really taking it to heart.

Although she had fought with Ryan and knew that Ryan's strength was superior to hers, her ability was unique in escaping, especially in the complex urban area. If she encountered a really difficult situation, she would not be able to escape, and even if she asked Ryan for help, it would be of no use.

Of course, she did not refuse Ryan's kindness.

"If you wish to leave, please step into this mirror. Through it, you can return to the farmhouse you were in before."

Ryan nodded, stepped into the mirror, and his body gradually disappeared.

As the ripples on the mirror gradually subsided, Melloi's smile faded, and he sighed softly, "Should I also leave here to avoid the storm? I have a feeling something big is about to happen."

"There are only two days left. Let's leave after 'that' is over."

……

With a sudden flash of light and darkness, Ryan found himself back in front of the water tank at the farmhouse.

He reached out and touched the water in the tank, finding that it had become just ordinary water and could no longer function as a "door".

"What an interesting and strange object."

Ryan clicked his tongue in amazement.

It must be said that the witch's society's survival is due to its formidable resources and foundation.

After examining the map for a while, Ryan set off to visit a shipyard in the outer city.

The situation in Santos is far from peaceful right now; it would be best to buy a small boat and make a quick getaway.

After leaving the farmhouse, guided by the map, Ryan soon arrived at the western area of ​​the outer city of Saint Tos, where the city's only shipyard was located.

Suddenly, Ryan stopped in his tracks.

"Kaka..."

The crisp sound of metal shoes landing came from both in front of and behind him at the same time, and two knights wearing silver armor with a light gold "scale" mark tattooed on their chests surrounded him from the front and the back.

A suppressed yet surging spirituality emanated from the two knights. Judging from the intensity of the spiritual fluctuations alone, the two Libra knights were at least second-tier beings.

"The Knight of Libra?"

Ryan frowned slightly.

"An investigation has confirmed that Ryan Reyland, a wanted criminal in the capital of Augustus and the Blood Son, inquired about the 'Black Cat Fortune Teller' from Jorah, a resident of the outer city. The owner of the 'Black Cat Fortune Teller,' Meloyer, has been identified as a 'witch' and is highly suspected of stealing the 'holy relic.' The Tribunal has decided to 'arrest and interrogate' you. Please come with us. If we confirm that you are not involved, we will release you."

The Libra Knight standing in front of Ryan spoke in a detached tone.

Upon hearing this, Ryan frowned even more deeply.

From the time he asked Jorah to lead the way to the "Black Cat Fortune Teller's House" until now, less than half an hour has passed. In such a short time, the Libra Holy Church has dispatched knights to "apprehend" him. Even if Jorah had run to report to the Libra Holy Church immediately after taking his money, it would have been impossible for them to arrive so quickly.

After all, investigating his intelligence and tracking his whereabouts are not things that can be done in a short time.

Unless, the Libra Church has activated some kind of magical artifact that instantly locks anyone who utters a word related to "cat".

The world is full of wonders, let alone a religious organization like the "Libra Church". It wouldn't be surprising if they could produce any wonders.

Of course, this was also related to Ryan's carelessness.

At that time, he was unaware of the "stolen sacred object" and naturally did not care too much.

Regardless of the reason, the fact remains that he is currently blocked.

"What if I don't want to?"

Looking at the Libra Knight in front of him, Ryan said in a low voice.

Since the other party has already investigated his identity, the so-called "release" is a joke. If the positions of the two parties are switched, even if it is confirmed that Ryan has nothing to do with the "theft of the holy relic", then notifying Augustus to come and pick him up and completing the wanted order will earn a large reward. Isn't that better?

"In that case, we will not stand on ceremony."

The Libra Knight spoke calmly, and with a clang, drew his knight's longsword from his waist with his right hand.

Perhaps these two Libra knights never thought that a "bloody son" who dared to kill nobles would obediently surrender.

The two Libra Knights launched their attacks simultaneously. Even though Ryan's spiritual energy was not as strong as theirs, they showed no sign of holding back.

Their first move was a coordinated attack.

Ryan kept his eyes lowered until the two Libra Knights closed in within two meters of him before he made any move.

"Boom--!"

With a loud crash, accompanied by fine lines spreading across the gravel ground, Ryan neither dodged nor avoided, but crashed straight into the Libra Knight in front of him.

The suddenness of the move caught even the Libra Knight off guard.

When faced with an attack, a normal person would either dodge or use a weapon to resist. Who would just charge in with their body like that?

However, a Libra Knight who can advance to the second tier is naturally no ordinary person.

Despite being startled by Ryan's charge, the Libra Knight remained calm and changed the stance of his longsword, aiming the tip at Ryan's throat, which was unprotected by scales. If Ryan insisted on charging at him, the sword would pierce his throat before he even got close.

The Libra Knight was certain that Ryan would dodge.

He even mentally simulated the sword moves that followed.

To the Libra Knight's great surprise, Ryan showed no intention of dodging despite the sharp sword tip and continued to charge forward.

Seeing this, a cold glint flashed in the eyes beneath the Libra Knight's visor—since you're courting death, I'll grant your wish.

Just as the tip of the longsword was less than twenty centimeters from Ryan's neck, suddenly, the Libra Knight's eyes...

Ryan's speed suddenly increased, and a faint layer of firelight even appeared around him. He slightly turned his body, accurately dodging the longsword, and at the same time came behind the Libra Knight, punching him in the back with a backhand.