Silent Crown

Chapter 333 Elsa

"Where did you get this tattoo?"

The girl thought for a moment and shook her head. "Forgot."

"Forgot?" You can forget this too?! He thought.

Feeling weak, Ye Qingxuan rubbed his face. "Do you know someone called Hermes?"

"Probably?"

"Do you or do you not?!"

The girl pouted. "I don't know, I forgot! None of your business!"

"You remember your own name, right?" Staring into her eyes, Ye Qingxuan enunciated, "Tell me your name."

The girl fell silent. She dodged Ye Qingxuan's eyes and tried to take her hand back sadly. "I'm not selling you the map anymore. Let go. Seriously, you're so annoying…you keep asking weird questions," she murmured. She would not meet Ye Qingxuan's eyes as if she was avoiding something. "L-let go, I'm leaving."

She tried to pry Ye Qingxuan's fingers but he just stared at her seriously. "Tell me your name."

"Her name is Elsa." Someone reached over and placed a hand on Ye Qingxuan's hand. "Relax, Mr. Ye. She's my daughter."

The hand was covered in calluses and abnormally old. He patted the back of Ye Qingxuan's hand and loosened the fingers. Then he embraced the little girl. She began laughing dumbly after he murmured something.

"Take her home." He gave the girl to a young man behind him. The young man placed the girl on his shoulders and walked away. After seeing his daughter off, the stooped old man turned back to the youth. "I just sent you off and I can't believe we're meeting again."

"Uh, Mr. Caligula."

"Good afternoon, Mr. Ye." Caligula held his pipe. Studying Ye Qingxuan's Double Snake Time Meter, it dawned on him. "You're Hermes' man. I didn't expect that."

"It's a coincidence." Ye Qingxuan sighed. "I actually came to Romulus to help him check on Elsa but it seems that things aren't as bad as I thought."

"Hermes still remembers the poor child?" Caligula nodded. "I met him once when the flu erupted five years ago. At that time, my daughter was close to dying. He helped me find the best doctor, but sadly, he was too late, leaving this sequela. Mr. Ye, were you bothered?"

After a pause, Ye Qingxuan asked, "Is there a problem with her memory?"

"You guessed it." The elder lowered his eyes and said softly, "The fever damaged a portion of her brain. Some of her common sense remained but her memory…only lasts five minutes."

Five minutes? Ye Qingxuan was stunned. After a long while, he lowered his eyes and sighed deeply. "I see."

Only this way could he understand her strangeness. However, he could not imagine that kind of life. A world of five minutes was like an infant looking at the world. There was no past or future. She did not even know her name.

"No need for pity, Mr. Ye. She's very happy." Caligula patted his shoulder after seeing his sympathy. "It's not necessarily a bad thing to having no past. This is not bad. At least, she won't be troubled by sadness or pain."

The youth nodded. "I hope that is so."

"I almost forgot why I came." Caligula pulled some dirty scrolls and placed them onto his stall. "I wanted to give you these. These are relics from those elders. Some of our history is recorded, and I think you can use them."

Ye Qingxuan took them and flipped through. He looked up in shock. "These are all…Romulus' history? They're invaluable treasures to any scholar!"

"Mr. Ye, you told me this afternoon that you originally came to help the patients. These things are insignificant gifts of gratitude. They're only useful to scholars." Caligula knocked his pipe against a rock. The non-flammable ashes fell out and scattered in the wind.

"If possible, I hope someone like you wins the trial. If you still think it's too heavy of a gift, then please find a better doctor for Elsa." Chuckling, he turned and left.

Ye Qingxuan remained in his spot and watched as Caligula disappeared into the distance before looking away.

"Vic…tory?" he murmured. "I'll try."

-

At dusk, the smell of burning tobacco and alcohol hung in the air of the inn's lobby. There was bustling busyness under the quiet chaos. Though it was messy, it was rare for Romulus to be so spirited.

However, the lobby was split into two clear parts. One half was filled with the shirtless natives who drank and talked loudly. The other half was silent. The musicians who had worked the entire day ate their food quietly. After all, if one had enough money, one could even buy respect, let alone a place to eat. It was not sumptuous but it was already the best treatment in Romulus.

The table in the center was empty. There were only a few cups of liquor and half a bottle of gin that could make many alcohols drool over. There was a gold sticker on the bottle. It was clearly a good imported product and the best of the inn. There were even some slightly-dried lemons paired with the good drink. However, the three musicians did not seem to want to talk while waiting. They just sipped their hard liquor and waited.

Soon, the door opened. A musician in gray cloak shook off the dust at the entrance and walked straight to the table. Something invisible seemed to follow him, leaving behind small footprints. A flash of coldness seemed to thicken the air. It was heavy beastly nature that practically became tangible under the aether's projection.

The musician did not seem old. His blonde hair was messy like a lion's mane. He had the vertical pupils of Summoning musicians who interacted with beasts too often. His gaze was wild and terrifyingly beastly.

"School of Dragon Rock…"

"Baro, the Gold Lion."

"Baro Hoffman."

Sensing his arrival, the other musicians started whispering amongst themselves, discussing the hottest topic of the Auschwitz trial, the star of the School of Dragon Rock, an elite branch of Summoning.

When Baro casually sat down at the middle table and started drinking the gin, everyone's gazes grew serious. Now, the three popular picks for the champion were sitting together. They seemed to have teamed up and would explore the relic together.

There was Sam, nicknamed Hammer, the School of Destruction's representative; Gold Lion Baro of the School of Dragon Rock; and Miller, the rising star of the northern School of Choir. Putting the three names together was terrifying. Something negative flashed through the eyes of the other musicians. They finished their food quickly and left.

Seeing those gazes, Baro sneered. Unperturbed, he grabbed a lemon and squeezed it over the gin. Then he tossed it to the side and emptied the cup of gin.

"Nice." He sighed. "I was outside the entire day and now I can finally get rid of the taste of dirt in my mouth."

The musician on his left picked up the flagon with a smile and helped him refill the cup wordlessly. Baro wiped his mouth. Looking at his companions, he started with the main topic.

"Sam, I heard you found another partner?"

"I think he fits," Sam muttered while nodding. "He has a good head."

Baro furrowed his brows. "But we already have three people."

"It's better with one more," Miller said on his right. "I don't object. The more the better, right?"

"Not necessarily," Baro huffed. "It depends on who it is. I'm not willing to work with any weird guy. Sam, you're too sympathetic. Don't just add whoever into our team."

"You've heard of him, Baro." Miller smiled. "It's that Easterner who made things hard for those guys last night. Let me—"

"Ye Qingxuan?" Baro interrupted with a furrowed brow. "The nominee for the weakest of all participants?"

"Uh…" Miller froze, his expression strange.

"What's the use of deadweight like that?" Baro shook his head in dissatisfaction. "I heard that he wouldn't've even been allowed in the city if the Angloian grandmaster wasn't there."

Miller drank his gin awkwardly and said softly, "Look, a Revelations musician that's good at exploration is always a plus for relics like these. He's also historical studies grandmaster Abraham's student. He can help with exploring the Romulus relic. You can relax too—"

"Relic exploration isn't a game!" Baro raised his voice. The scar on his forehead reddened under the alcohol's stimulus. He was filled with disdain and disgust. "It's already a feat if a newly-made official musician doesn't add trouble. Don't put your hopes on him for being useful. And anyway, my Scale Demon can explore relics too!"

Unable to refute the claims, Miller looked away. "This is Sam's decision. He must have his reasons."

"I don't agree!" Baro's expression was dark as he tried to keep down his anger. "Do you think anyone can join our group and split the reward? Those gold-digging pieces of trash are useless!"

"Talk after you've seen him," Sam finally uttered. Rather than being angry or wanting to argue, he stated, "He has a good head. I think it'll be good to have someone like him on the team."

Baro's expression changed. In the end, he gritted his teeth and stepped back. "Okay. If he's not good, don't think I'll agree."

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