Boss Guan

Boss Guan was one of the three people in charge of the Sealed Book Hall for the Church of Mists, ranking on the same level as Lady Scab.

He had hidden himself extremely well. If Chen Miemie hadn’t happened to run into him today, she probably wouldn’t have seen through him even after being his neighbor for three months.

“Boss Guan, I never would’ve guessed you were so good at grilling. So you have another ‘main occupation’ after all.”

“Haha. For people like us, if we weren’t skilled enough at the identities we use as cover, we couldn’t keep up the disguise.”

“But I heard that your family has been running this barbecue business for three generations.”

“That’s right. I wasn’t born into the Church, but I started learning how to grill when I was little. Which one is really my main occupation is hard to say.”

“You had a perfectly good life. Why join the Church?”

Boss Guan was surprisingly talkative.

“I was young and impulsive. When I first obtained the [Mystery], I got into a conflict with someone. I was young, reckless, and didn’t know my own strength. I ended up taking a life. I should have been punished by law, but I wasn’t willing to go to prison. Then, as luck would have it, the Church of Mists extended an olive branch.”

“Why does that sound like you regret it?”

“Who in the Church doesn’t regret it? When we were young, we thought our choices were clever. We avoided punishment and lived arrogantly for a while, but the price… The price has to be repaid for the rest of our lives.”

“You still set up your stall every day, and nothing seems to have changed. What price are you talking about?”

“Heh. Most of us in the Church never start families. We walk in the shadows. We don’t trust others, and we don’t dare invest our true feelings in anyone. We can’t afford to expose our weaknesses. We rarely get a good night’s sleep, and most of us leave no descendants.”

Lady Scab sighed as well. “It’s an inevitable price. Of course, it’s also what makes us strong.”

Boss Guan nodded. “With no attachments, you can act without restraint, use any means necessary, and fear neither revenge nor retribution.”

Chen Miemie ate two skewers before stopping.

The flavor was quite good, but there had been no chili added. It was missing something.

“All right. Let’s get back to the subject. Tell me what the Church is planning.”

Compared with Boss Guan, Lady Scab understood just how frightening Chen Miemie was, so she made no attempt to hide anything.

“The Church of Mists is dissatisfied with its weak position in the human cities. It has decided to use the Sealed Book Hall as a foothold to expand its influence and appoint a city archbishop.”

“Hm? Didn’t you say this was the Witches’ main city? Wouldn’t appointing someone here be useless?”

“Whether it’s the Church of Mists, humanity, or the witches, any organization of that scale is extremely complicated. The situation is constantly changing.

“Take the witches, for example. They aren’t united as one. There are conflicts between the various seats, and the witches who originated from different races also have their own positions and demands.”

Chen Miemie liked talking with Lady Scab. She could always obtain blunt information from her that she would never hear under ordinary circumstances.

“What do you mean?”

“Let me give you an example. Suppose a witch of human origin needs a Mysterious One as a material for refining a potion. Do you think she would choose a human Mysterious One or one from another race?”

“Obviously, one from another race.”

“Exactly. And the reverse is true as well. [Silence] is a witch of human origin, and her will has always suppressed the witches in the human cities. Over time, those whose ideals differ from hers will inevitably accumulate resentment and hatred.”

“So, according to you, some of the witches are dissatisfied with [Silence].”

“Of course. Wherever there’s power at the top, there’s struggle. After all, [Silence], the de facto leader, has never truly obtained a seat. In theory, she’s still just an ordinary witch. It’s only natural that high-ranking witches would refuse to submit to her.”

Boss Guan suddenly interjected with an unrelated remark.

“A few years ago, [Silence] had a chance to obtain a seat. She was of human origin, and her strength, methods, and potential were all extraordinary. After working diligently for several centuries, she had rendered outstanding service. But for some reason, the previous Grand Witch of Humanity didn’t choose her. In the end, she handed the seat to a young witch from another city.”

Lady Scab sounded faintly disdainful. “And what of it? So what if that little girl obtained the seat? Doesn’t the entire human region still have to listen to [Silence]? That girl is still practically wet behind the ears by witch standards. I hear her strength is only average, too. Apart from the witches in her own city, who listens to her?”

Faced with such an opportunity to uncover secrets, Chen Miemie hurriedly followed up.

“Do you know why the previous Grand Witch of Humanity made that choice?”

“I don’t,” Boss Guan and Lady Scab replied, shaking their heads in unison.

“For something this important, wasn’t there any official explanation? No reason given for her promotion?”

“Witches are simply like that. They’re eccentric and solitary. They do whatever they want and don’t need a reason,” Boss Guan said, as though it were perfectly normal.

“I did happen to hear one theory.” Lady Scab hesitated before continuing. “I can’t guarantee it’s true. Among the information I possess, there was a piece of classified intelligence I obtained by chance. It said that the young witch had made a major contribution and performed a great service for many human witches. But I have no idea what that contribution was.”

Boss Guan had never heard that before. He instinctively asked, “That’s supposed to be top-secret?”

“The information didn’t come from eavesdropping. It came from a ruin connected to the witches. There were many treasures deep inside, but in a box at the very core, someone had recorded that vague and cryptic sentence.”

“Wait. Do you realize what you’re saying? A ruin? How many years ago would it have to date back? How old is that young witch?” As an intelligence specialist, Boss Guan immediately spotted the glaring flaw that made the story sound like an outright scam.

“I told you I couldn’t guarantee it was true. Forget it. Back to business. Mr. Chen, this time the Church of Mists plans to send someone capable to serve as city archbishop. The candidate hasn’t been decided yet, and we’re discussing how to respond.”

“By ‘respond,’ you mean you have no intention of promoting one of the three of you from within, right?”

“That’s right. We aren’t strong enough, and the higher-ups don’t believe we’re capable of standing on equal footing with [Silence].”

“Looks like this new archbishop—who hasn’t even arrived yet—won’t be easy to deal with.”

“That’s right. This person will need overwhelming combat power and an iron hand. They’ll probably cause a major stir the moment they arrive. Our lives were relatively peaceful before, and we don’t want to be dragged in as cannon fodder.”

“Fine. Let me know when they arrive. You’re my people now.” Chen Miemie rose to her feet.

Lady Scab naturally stood as well to see her off.

Boss Guan opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he merely sighed and did not deny the words, “You’re my people now.”

Now that he had been discovered by Chen Miemie, descendant of the Three Seats, he had no choice but to pick a side.

Either he would disappear from this street tomorrow and assume an entirely different identity, or he would become one of “their people.”

“I hope I haven’t made the wrong choice,” Boss Guan murmured.

When he came back to himself, even Lady Scab had disappeared.

“Hey! Wait a minute. Scab, you haven’t paid yet!”