Operation Red Book

Joshua slept on the sofa in the second-floor living room until dark.

He was a light sleeper, and the armrests of the sofa were not soft, so he would suffer from back pain if he lay there for a long time.

"Click..."

The door lock of the infirmary easily woke Joshua up. He rubbed his sore eyes and watched Bell pour a small glass of tequila.

"Is Mr. Moriarty all right?"

"Great, don't worry about him, rest is more important than anything else."

Bell drank the golden liquid in the glass and turned to lean against the cold wall.

Joshua lowered his head and played with his fingers. He felt Bell's gaze on him, not one of blame, nor doubt...

It is a kind of sadness that comes from nothingness, which usually occurs in people who are immersed in memories.

"Are you recalling what happened before?"

Joshua was the first to break the silence. He didn't dare to mention Beatrice's past and only said something vague.

Bell's head slowly leaned against the wall, and his dilated pupils took a long time to finally show highlights.

The direction his eyes were looking in remained unchanged, but Joshua's illusory figure became increasingly solid.

After completely pulling himself back from his past memories, Bell realized belatedly that Joshua was aware of his emotions.

Bell sighed and said in a slightly Irish accent: "Can you believe it? This is my home in Ireland."

"Here?"

Joshua looked at his surroundings and his tone became noticeably surprised and delighted.

"This is a house built by five generations of Cruz's family. The first floor is used to boil medicine, and the second floor is used to treat patients, just like the clinic opened by a medical family on the street."

"A medical family?"

"Yes, my mother is one of the best potion makers in the wizarding world, my father is a doctor in the small town, and he is familiar with both human medicine and wizard spells. I have an older brother who is two years older than me. He is a veterinarian and also teaches at a wizard school in California..."

"That's amazing!" Joshua exclaimed sincerely.

"Isn't that great?" Bell smiled, "I'm a member of the Cruz family, and I'm pretty good too!"

"Of course!"

"Influenced by my family, I have been exposed to potions since I was a child with the support of my mother. My mother has used her potions to cure many patients in this house. Seeing the smiles on the patients' faces after they recovered, my mother smiled, and I smiled too..."

"From then on, the idea of ​​becoming a world-renowned potion master and using the potions I made to make my patients smile with happiness was like a small seed planted in the depths of my heart..."

"At home, I followed my mother to plant and pick raw materials for making potions; in the small town, I followed my father to learn how to diagnose patients' illnesses..."

"Finally, when I was fifteen, I followed my brother to the Stry Witch Academy in California, USA."

The story stopped here. Bell suddenly put down his glass and asked Joshua, who was lying down and listening to the story, "Are you hungry?"

Joshua blinked twice and replied seriously, "I'm starving to death."

Bell's mouth curled up even more. She waved to Joshua, picked up a kerosene lamp, turned around and went upstairs.

Joshua followed Bell, and when the dark rooftop was illuminated by several candles, he couldn't help but exclaimed loudly.

"Wow!"

The space on the third floor is larger than the entire hill. It is planted with a variety of rare flowers and plants, which sparkle brightly in the moonless night.

"What kind of flower is this? It's so beautiful..."

Joshua tapped a small yellow flower on a black vine. The body of the flower was covered with hard diamonds of various sizes.

The moment Joshua touched it, the flower closed its buds shyly and shook off all the diamonds on its body.

Looking at the dazzling diamonds scattered all over the ground, Joshua's face instantly turned red in panic: "Sorry... I'm sorry..."

"Hey! Don't move! Follow me closely, or some plants might eat you alive!"

Belle was holding a candlestick and standing among the swaying plants. Next to her was a pigtail grass covered with thorns.

The pigtail grass rolled up its thorns and gathered them in mid-air to form a big mouth with sharp teeth on the top and bottom.

The big mouth swayed from side to side, and it gently sniffed the Bell in front of it with its non-existent nose.

As long as it is something, it can eat it! With this idea in mind, the big mouth opened its upper and lower rows of teeth 180 degrees, and it quickly flew into the sky, attacking Bell's burgundy head at high speed.

Joshua, who was watching the whole scene from a distance, was silent for a second before shouting in panic, "Ms. Bell! Behind you!"

Belle had already sensed the danger behind her, and she calmly reached out her fingers to the roots of the pigtail grass.

After a crisp "crack" sound, the pigtail grass swayed in the air for a few times like a deflated balloon, and then obediently retracted all the thorns on its body.

"So follow me closely."

Belle smiled smugly at Joshua, she raised an eyebrow in amusement, clutching the hem of her lace skirt as she slowly walked towards the glittering plants.

After walking back and forth for several hundred steps, the shiny plants disappeared after turning a corner.

Feeling the cool night breeze blowing in his face, Joshua finally stopped standing on tiptoe.

Further ahead is the end of the rooftop, which is also a concentration camp for vegetables and fruits.

At just one glance, Joshua saw no less than a hundred kinds of vegetables and fruits.

Belle placed the candlestick on the cutting board beside the fence. She tied her apron and asked Joshua, "What do you want to eat? Sandwiches? Vegetable wraps?"

"I'll eat whatever you cook... Can I have a kiwi first?"

"Please feel free to do so."

Bell walked into the dazzling vegetable garden with a basket, while Joshua picked two kiwis and ate them by himself while leaning against the fence.

The evening breeze blew Joshua's flaxen curly hair in front of his forehead, and he squinted his eyes comfortably.

This was a rare comfort, and Joshua's anxiety was finally released at this moment.

He turned around and enjoyed the breeze blowing towards him.

"Let me make you a cheese and butter cauliflower sandwich. It's my favorite at Stryker College."

"More pepper and mayonnaise, please."

"How about two more slices of tomato and cucumber?"

“Excellent!”

Joshua sniffed the scent of butter melting in the wind and took two bites of the juicy kiwi fruit.

Another gust of evening breeze blew towards him, blowing Joshua's hair back.

He squinted his eyes again, not because of the cool and comfortable night, but because he saw the yellowish light in the dark forest.

The lights illuminated the small pond at the foot of the cliff and the huge banyan tree beside the pond.

Joshua wanted to take a closer look at the tree house under the banyan tree, but at this moment a faint fragrance lingered at his nose.

He sniffed and looked down - a soft and delicious cheese and butter sandwich lay quietly on the ceramic plate in front of him.

The cauliflower sandwiched in the bread is almost bursting, and the clear mayonnaise sandwiched with semi-soft cheese slices creates a brilliant and colorful painting with the green cucumber and red tomato.

His stomach began to drum at the perfect time, and Joshua accepted it with great joy, without any hesitation.

Just as he was marveling at the golden color of the butter-covered bread slices, Bell beside him suddenly spoke.

"I met Beatrice during my second year at Stirry College..."

"This sandwich is fire! Oh! Tasty..."

Who cares about Beatrice or Sterry...sandwiches filled with mayonnaise are the rulers of the world...

Sorry, Joshua is really starving.

"Oh, excuse me. I'm just amazed that there are such delicious vegetarian sandwiches in the world. Although they can't compare to the taste of bacon and chicken fillet, what's wrong with the combination of butter and cheese?"

Sorry, Joshua is no longer a shy guy when it comes to delicious sandwiches.

"She is beautiful, flamboyant, and wild in her behavior. When she is quiet, she is like the most beautiful black pearl in the Atlantic Ocean. When she is moving, she is like a gorgeous siren dancing on the bow of a pirate ship."

"She is the most beautiful witch I have ever seen, the most unrestrained woman, and the wizard who is most capable of performing magic..."

"When I first heard the name Beatrice, she had already been boycotted by all the witches in the academy... because no one could understand her."

"That's a ridiculous reason, isn't it..."

"They went from being suspicious to being amused, to being annoyed, and finally to wanton ridicule... step by step, they isolated this beautiful stranger."