Persimmon

The Academy of Scholars.

The high-security cell where dangerous criminals were held.

[Stone Whisperer] and “Granny Mortar” had each been given a cell, becoming neighbors.

Separated only by iron bars, they could see each other with nothing more than a turn of the head.

Each small cell had only one simple lock, and there were no guards inside or outside the chamber.

With the strength of [Stone Whisperer] and “Granny Mortar,” the locks were practically useless. Clearly, however, neither of them had any intention of leaving.

When “Granny Mortar” wasn’t smiling, her face actually looked rather kind.

“A great scholar in the prime of his life, traded for an old relic like me who’s already one foot in the grave. That’s hardly a worthwhile bargain.”

[Stone Whisperer] lowered his head. “If I could, I wouldn’t drag you into this either. Taking down one or two witches at most creates a bit of an impact. It won’t achieve the effect I want, and it may even provoke greater hatred.”

“Granny Mortar’s” heart gave a sudden jolt. “You have another plan!”

“Of course. Granny, do you really think what I did today could change the relationship between the two races?”

“What else are you planning?”

“Just wait. It won’t be long.”

[Stone Whisperer] leaned back, his head disappearing into the darkness. Then he fell silent.

No. 19, Fairy-Tale Road.

Chen Miemie had watched an entire show and returned to his shop.

When they parted earlier, [Bridge Princess] had been in extremely low spirits. He wasn’t good at comforting people, so after saying goodbye, he left her to calm down on her own.

The oddities all crowded onto the sofa and, as usual, began their discussion.

“Almost every mystery was solved at today’s assembly. The whole truth has come to light.” Qinghua pinned the details of each incident onto the porcelain blackboard.

The causes and consequences of several major incidents were now clear.

For example: Li Liang issuing the assassination contract, Yu Ling falling from the cliff, the pufferfish and seaweed poisoning, and so on.

Loop frowned. “I feel like something’s still wrong.”

“Go on, Loop. What exactly feels wrong?” Chen Miemie had the same feeling, but it was only an intuition. He hadn’t been able to identify any specific flaw.

Loop nodded and began her unique method of analysis.

“I divided myself into roughly ten different versions, each taking the perspective of one of the principal figures present.

“Among the major figures at today’s gathering, [Zhiliao], President Yu, President Shepherd, Mr. Kong, and [Rotten Wood] all seemed to react normally when I put myself in their positions. They acted when they should have, and held back when they should have.

“But several others were unusual.

“First, there’s the ‘Logic Pawnbroker,’ Luo Lang. In theory, he had already taken control of his son, Luo Wen. Yet Luo Wen appeared today far too easily, and Luo Lang’s reaction to his son’s reckless behavior afterward was far too calm.

“Then there’s ‘Granny Mortar’ and [Skin-Shedding Clinic]. Judging from the behavior of their vice president, Du Jun, they seemed to have been prepared in advance and knew that something major would happen today.

“Next is the witches’ side. Miemie, don’t you find it strange that [Chenpi] and Silence didn’t try to save ‘Granny Mortar’? Given [Chenpi]’s willfulness and Silence’s forceful nature, the fact that neither of them made a sound when Granny was taken is highly abnormal.

“Finally, there’s [Stone Whisperer]. He spent so many years preparing, only to sacrifice himself in the end. Doesn’t the final result seem a little anticlimactic—thunder in the distance, but barely any rain?

“Taking all these anomalies together, I think things won’t end here. There’s a very high chance that something else is coming.”

“Excellent.” Chen Miemie clapped his hands.

Loop was essentially a patient suffering from split personality disorder with 128 distinct personalities. Her perspective was comprehensive and constantly shifting.

They had identified the problem, but Chen Miemie and the others couldn’t do anything about it.

Chen Miemie looked at it from another angle. “If I hadn’t come to seal the library, these things would still have happened, right?”

“Yes,” all the oddities answered.

“Then that’s fine. We don’t know how things will develop from here, so for now, we’ll watch and wait. When the time comes, we can decide whether to remain spectators or enter the game and respond to whatever moves they make.”

“Agreed!” The oddities voiced their support for Chen Miemie’s decision.

“Leaving all that aside, I’m facing a problem of my own. After forming a contract with the Bridge Princess, my [Mystique] has reached 3.99. I can’t put off solving the problem of my exclusive materials any longer.”

At that, all the oddities fell silent.

Even Xiao Hong and Xiao Shuang had no ideas. All they could do was worry.

Before they knew it, night had fallen.

Tonight was another Eternal Moon night.

Chen Miemie racked his brains but failed to find a solution. In the blink of an eye, it was time to open the shop again.

A customer arrived almost as soon as the shop opened.

She was a white-haired woman. The hair over the left side of her forehead was long enough to cover her left eye, leaving only the right one visible.

She seemed afraid of the cold, wearing a high-necked sweater that wrapped snugly around her entire neck.

“Is this the place?” The woman looked extremely young, yet when she spoke, her voice was mature with a slight rasp.

Loop smiled faintly. “This is the Mystery Shop. We accept all kinds of commissions. Please, come in.”

The woman followed Loop into the main room and sat down on the sofa.

Unlike the previous customers, she was quite the curious type. She wasn’t afraid in the slightest. In fact, she craned her neck and tilted her head, peering into the hood of [The King in Yellow].

“Are you an oddity, sir?” After catching sight of some yellow points of light, the woman asked curiously.

“I’m the owner of this shop.”

“The owner? Do you have a name, Shopkeeper? I think calling someone by their name makes it easier to become friends than calling them by their title.”

“I’m used to being called Shopkeeper.” Chen Miemie had no intention of leaving his real name, [The King in Yellow] or Chen Miemie, behind in history.

“All right, my name is Qiu Shizi. You can just call me Shizi.”

“Shizi? Is that a code name? What an interesting one.”

“No, it’s my real name. I love eating persimmons. My code name is [First Words].”

“All right, Ms. Persimmon. Is something troubling you?”

The visible right eye of Persimmon shifted from side to side, as though she were thinking.

“Yes! I want to be able to eat fruit from all four seasons at the same time.”

Chen Miemie looked at the seemingly delighted Persimmon and felt a headache coming on. This woman didn’t seem lost or troubled in the slightest.

“It looks like you really love fruit. Do you have a more serious problem?”

Persimmon appeared to think very carefully. “Yes. I want to live a long life.”

Chen Miemie’s headache worsened.

Just like that, the difficulty had jumped from beginner level straight to [Mystique] 9. Persimmon certainly knew how to make things difficult.

“Are you serious?”

Persimmon nodded vigorously. “I’m very serious. I want to live another hundred years—no, a thousand—no, three thousand years!”

“You still seem fairly young. Isn’t it a little early to start thinking about immortality?”

“Young?” Persimmon shook her head repeatedly and pointed at her white hair. “This hair isn’t dyed. I’ve merely taken good care of my appearance and used a little trick to disguise myself. In truth, I’m already over fifty and will soon be dying.”

Chen Miemie showed no reaction on the surface, but he was secretly astonished. Persimmon was so lively and cheerful—she didn’t seem like someone in her fifties at all.

“Haha, Shopkeeper, I was just teasing you. I know it’s not like you can simply wish for immortality. Truth be told, I don’t have many regrets in life. If there weren’t something I needed to do, I never would’ve wanted to live that long.”

Chen Miemie thought she had found a breakthrough. “What is it you need to do?”

Persimmon shifted around, trying to get more comfortable, then leaned back against the sofa.

“Well, a lot of witches have placed their hopes in me. They want me to inherit the Human Grand Witch’s seat. Unfortunately, my lifespan is too short. Even if I took over by forcing the issue, I wouldn’t be able to hold the position for very long.”

“The Grand Witch? Your surname is Qiu...” Chen Miemie gasped softly. “You’re the former Human Grand Witch, Granny Qiu!”

Persimmon’s eyes widened. She shouted indignantly:

“Shopkeeper, that’s too much! I’m only a little more mature-looking than most people. No one’s ever called me Granny before!”