Free Web NovelChapter 190: Chapter 190: Pet_1
The next day, on the outskirts of Northwind Town.
Aiden and his party had set up a makeshift shelter on a hidden part of a low hill, calling it a tent, though it was hardly different from the rain shelters set up by roadside stalls, merely a simple resting spot.
"That over there is the target, the abandoned mine." Aiden stood on the low hill, dressed in his former Judge attire and peering into the distance at the mine through his binoculars.
From this spot, nothing could really be seen; the distance was too great, and the perspective wasn’t high enough to view the mine, only some abandoned houses. Yet Aiden worried that getting any closer might lead to being discovered by the enemy.
However, both the Heretic Inquisition and the Witch Congress were certain that this was the enemy’s encampment, so the intelligence should be reliable.
"You two..." Aiden turned his head, looking towards Presia and Daili, and glanced at the manacles on their wrists, "your casting permissions are unlocked. Use your familiars to scout out the village and try to locate the positions of the priest and the nuns."
The manacles on Daili and Presia’s wrists had a sealing effect similar to a prison’s barrier, but it was designed for individual use.
Despite the reinforcement of a demon pact, considering the possibility of them secretly communicating with other members of the Witch Congress, Aiden chose to take extra precautions.
"Understood, Warden."
Only Daili responded, she moved towards the tent, took out a birdcage that had been prepared earlier, and released the raven inside—the bird would serve as her eyes and ears near the abandoned mine.
Presia didn’t bring any animals specifically for her use; she glanced around and set her sights on a rock dove perched not far away on a rocky outcrop.
"’Gift me your senses, and in exchange, I grant you wisdom.’" She raised her hand and uttered the spell, instantly taking control of the bird with her spirit. frёewebηovel.cѳm
The dove fluttered over and landed directly on the manacle on Presia’s wrist. Presia’s mastery in mental spells far surpassed Daili’s, allowing her to make use of whatever was available.
Then Aiden turned to Veronica, who was arranging her gear: "Veronica, have you carried out missions here before?"
"Yes, I’ve been here twice." Veronica nodded.
"Can you draw a rough map from memory?" Aiden asked.
"I can try to recall it." Veronica nodded again.
"Everyone has a task; do you plan to slack off here?" Presia glared at Aiden.
"It seems you haven’t quite grasped your position. When was it your turn to supervise me?" Aiden swept her with a glance, "You’re responsible for reconnaissance. I’ll wait for contact from Abigail. When they make a move, we’ll follow suit."
After the raid that night, the Heretic Inquisition would need another day or two to prepare before they could spare personnel. In terms of combat support, Aiden couldn’t expect much help. Of course, Aiden wasn’t too eager for the Inquisition to get heavily involved either; on one hand, the Judges and the Great Witches would have a hard time getting along, and on the other, he also had his eyes set on seizing the divinity controlled by the Harvest Mother Cult.
Aiden turned away, reached under the tent for his travel kit, and prepared to find something to eat. They had traveled overnight by train from Silvertown to Northwind Town and then hired a horse-drawn carriage to this desolate location; they hadn’t even had time for breakfast.
The backpack held only some dry food, cheese, canned goods, and sugar, all portable foods taken from the prison, rudimentary like the simplest of army rations... but on second thought, they were indeed headed into battle.
"Why can’t we just eat something in town? Why do we have to run all the way here to gnaw on dry rations?" Presia complained.
"The warden is eating the same thing you are, and you, a prisoner, sure have a lot of demands. Maybe next time I should hire a chef to follow us?" Aiden replied with a sarcastic smile, then pointed at the mercury ball crouching under the tent, "With that thing, we can hardly move around in town."
The mercury golem, weighing over half a ton and possessing its own consciousness, naturally couldn’t be allowed to roam freely in the outside world.
During these days of taming, Aiden discovered that the mercury amalgam golem would enter hibernation when exposed to low temperatures, so he cooled it down and stored it in a sealed container, releasing it only when they transported the goods to the outskirts.
Just the shipping cost him a pretty penny, but considering Abigail’s words made sense, he reluctantly accepted the expenses.
"Don’t stay under the tent, you don’t need to cool off." Aiden shooed the mercury ball out from under the tent, as his days of taming had yielded noticeable results; the creature was now somewhat capable of understanding simple commands.
The mercury ball sluggishly oozed out of the tent, and Aiden took some food from his backpack, suddenly pausing.
He searched through his backpack again, then confirmed it.
A can was missing.
Aiden slowly turned his gaze towards the mercury ball that was slowly moving to the outside of the tent. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
Being stared at like this, the mercury ball suddenly stopped its wriggling, and then, Aiden faintly heard a "click" from inside of it.
"Spit it out." After a long while, Aiden spoke emotionlessly.
The mercury ball stayed still, not responding, as if pretending nothing had happened.
"Fancy some sulfur powder?" Aiden showed a "kind" smile and took out a flat sealed can.
This can contained the insect-repellent sulfur powder. Aiden’s way of taming the mercury amalgam golem involved the conventional ’carrot and stick’ method—the "carrot" was naturally the precious metals that the mercury ball loved most, but finding the "stick" took some effort. He discovered that the mercury amalgam golem seemed to detest sulfur powder that reacted with mercury.
Although sprinkling it on the mercury ball wouldn’t actually cause any serious harm, it seemed to make it extremely uncomfortable, much like a vampire smoked by garlic.
The mercury ball trembled violently the moment he took out the can, then a strange gurgling sound came from within it, and at last, it spit out a crumpled, worn-out beef can.
"When we finish eating, you’ll get the empty can," Aiden knew the mercury ball was actually just chewing on the iron from the beef can’s exterior, "If you steal food again, I’ll give you the whole can for a snack."
He revealed a somewhat ferocious cold smile and shook the sealed can filled with sulfur toward the mercury ball.
Scared, the mercury ball turned into a sea urchin shape for a moment, then swiftly slid into a crevice in the rock face and contracted.
Seeing the mercury ball’s reaction, Aiden suddenly burst out laughing. Being controlled by Vila with a core, transforming into a humanoid "Terminator" was indeed very cool, but this autonomous "mechanical pet" also seemed quite appealing.
