From the previous conversations with Little Monster and Old Kelly, it was clear that the attitude magicians held toward the Church was similar to their attitude toward nobles—both were rather disdainful.
But why had both Mr. Tuck and Little Monster accepted this commission to help Bonsandi's daughter?
And besides... this was a commission from Bonsandi...
This suddenly gave Syl hope of making contact with Bonsandi. However, the most important thing right now was to figure out Arno's background.
"Er... not exactly, you might have misunderstood, Miss Silver Crow," Arno explained. "Magicians do not attach themselves to the Church or the nobility, but magicians are always very happy to accept commissions issued by nobles and wanted notices issued by the Church. After all, the amount of currency they offer is just too much."
"If you don't wish to accept commissions from nobles, Miss Silver Crow, I will try my best to filter the commissions carefully before telling you about them next time."
Syl nodded seemingly casually and said:
"No, I was just curious about your background. It doesn't have much to do with any conflict with the nobles."
She was just thinking about how to incite a massive riot.
"Ahem... My background isn't anything worth talking about. I'm just an ordinary person seeking the extraordinary." Arno scratched his head, seemingly wanting to gloss over the topic.
"And the reward?" Syl acted as if she were quite interested in the reward. "What is the reward?"
"5,000 currency, plus a favor from Mr. Bonsandi," Arno said. "Mr. Bonsandi loves his daughter very much; this is a huge investment. The most valuable thing isn't the 5,000 currency, but that favor."
"Is his favor really that valuable?" Syl asked with some curiosity.
Arno seemed to be very well-versed in these matters. "Bonsandi has done many things of madness to repay favors. Of course, obtaining his favor is also incredibly difficult."
"Hmm..." Syl nodded, weighing the commission in her mind. Soon, she had an answer. "I can go take a look at his daughter."
"Really? That's great! Er... let me finish listing the items for you first, it won't take long." Arno began to speed up his writing.
"Here you go. This is what I've collected so far. You can promote it to your friends so I can recoup some costs." Arno handed over the paper and shrugged. "I don't have any use for these anymore."
"Good." Syl took the paper, glanced at it, folded it, and tucked it into her pocket.
"Are you free now, Miss Silver Crow?" Arno stood up and looked at Syl. "If you are free, I can take you to Bonsandi's mansion now. This matter has dragged on for too long."
"There is one more thing. If we go to Bonsandi's mansion, we will need to go through the guards' inspection. The mask might..."
At this point, Arno looked at Syl, waiting for her response.
"No problem." Syl nodded.
Whether she took off her mask in front of Bonsandi or not didn't matter to Syl at all. Because the identity of the physician itself was a mask.
"Then let's get ready to go." Arno looked down at the black cat stretching on the mat and called out softly, "Kersus, please show Miss Silver Crow the way."
"Meow~"
The black cat let out a soft cry, then walked past Syl with elegant cat steps, brushing its tail against her boots as it passed.
"Miss Silver Crow, you can just follow Kersus. It's not convenient for me to go to Bonsandi's side." Arno scratched the back of his head, seemingly a bit embarrassed. "I also won't go and ask Bonsandi about your appearance; I can swear on that."
"Hmm." Syl nodded, then followed behind the black cat and walked out of the tailor shop.
Syl wasn't afraid of any danger at Bonsandi's mansion, especially with the Missionary as a powerful trump card in her hands.
Whether it was to understand Bonsandi as a person, to stitch up someone in need of help, or simply for the 5,000 currency, any one of these reasons made it impossible for Syl to refuse this commission.
As for lunch, Syl decided to enjoy it after finishing her business.
The black cat nimbly wove through the crowd, occasionally turning back to look in Syl's direction, its gemstone-purple pupils reflecting the sunlight.
She didn't know what the abilities of the Vicious Dog pathway were. Could it be turning into a dog? Or perhaps it could go as mad as a dog when attacking?
Seeming to have discovered Syl's somewhat rude thoughts, the black cat turned back and glared fiercely at her, which made Syl feel even more surprised.
"Can you hear what I'm thinking?" Syl tried to silently recite a sentence in her mind toward Kersus.
But Kersus continued to lead the way in front, completely ignoring Syl.
"Stupid cat."
"Meow!"
Just as Syl had mentally cursed the black cat in a whisper, Kersus immediately turned its head and meowed at her, looking as if it were angry.
"I cursed in Chinese..." Syl looked at Kersus, speechless, and thought silently, "It seems it only reacts to malicious emotions."
"Good cat, good cat... your fur is really beautiful." After Syl praised it several times in her mind, Kersus finally turned its head back and continued to lead the way.
Syl followed Kersus just like that, and soon they moved away from Sule District and arrived at the border area between Sule District and Queens District, the Duke District.
This was basically a residential area for nobles and the wealthy. The rent for every mansion here was a significant amount, and of course, the houses were also much taller and more pleasant to look at than in other areas.
After continuing to lead Syl for a distance, Kersus stopped in front of a garden and looked back at Syl.
"Meow~"
Syl looked into the garden. In the middle of this garden, which seemed particularly large even for the Duke District, stood a luxurious and huge mansion. At this moment, the two guards beside the huge iron gate in front of the garden looked toward Syl, and then their attention shifted to the cat at Syl's feet.
"It's Lord Kersus..." one of the guards turned to the other guard and said, "Frafu, go quickly and have the butler come out."
After speaking, the guard looked at Syl and bowed, "This guest, please wait a moment."
Syl nodded. Before long, a tall, mature, and steady-looking elderly butler ran to the gate in a hurry. After seeing the black cat, he bowed slightly, "Lord Kersus."
Subsequently, he turned his gaze to Syl and said respectfully, "Guest from afar, please follow me."
The ornately carved iron gate was opened, and Syl stepped into the garden. The butler led the way while introducing Bonsandi's mansion to Syl.
When Syl arrived in front of the mansion, the butler stopped. Several maids surrounded them, and guards in the distance also cast their gazes here.
The butler did not continue to lead Syl into the mansion but asked cautiously, "This... guest, may I ask if you could remove your mask? Here at Lord Bonsandi's place, such concealment is not necessary. We will guarantee your privacy."
"This is not concealment, this is my hobby." Syl reached out, undid the clasp at the back of her head, took off the mask, and said with a smile, "Don't you think it has a deep meaning? The black death-announcing bird brings news of death, yet I bring life."
Syl's silver-gray hair cascaded down, her long eyelashes fluttered, and her silver-gray pupils reflected not only the brilliance of the sun but also carried a hint of confusion.
Suddenly, the physician narrowed her eyes, a smile on her lips, and asked the butler and maids in front of her:
"Why do you look at me as if you've seen a ghost?"