Mystery: Good Witch

Chapter 995: Patron Angel
Deep in the violent sea, an area far away from the conventional shipping routes of the north and south continents.

Four three-masted sailing ships fully loaded with cargo were sailing with difficulty in the storm. They reefed half of their sails to prevent the ships from capsizing in the strong wind. The helmsmen carefully controlled the direction, passing between two rain clouds and returning to the sunshine.

"I didn't expect that there is such a passage that can avoid dangerous waters far away from the safe channel... The last time I went to the South Continent, there was no way to enter here..."

Standing on the deck of the "Redhead", red-haired Elaine Soren muttered to herself as she picked up a telescope and looked into the distance. She soon found the fleet's destination in the mist on the sea: a small island with primeval forests and several low hills.

This small island without even a name has an inconspicuous mark on the nautical chart, and it is recorded as having a natural shelter and fresh water resources. However, ships passing through the nearby waterways would rather go a few hundred nautical miles further to the northern island of Tirinius for supplies than stop on this uninhabited island.

"But it's different now... With a safe waterway leading here and an artificial port, this place will become increasingly busy... And my fleet will be the first pioneer to dock at the port of the Dream City..."

Thinking of this, Elaine puffed out her chest with some pride, but unfortunately William, Tia and the others were assigned to other ships due to the rapid expansion of the fleet. At this moment, there were only some new sailors who looked at her with half awe and half amazement, but no old friends with whom she could talk.

By the way, what about Ariel? Is it my destiny to be with a mermaid... She looked around and suddenly found that the agile mermaid in the water had impatiently swam away, leaving only a white dot near the water line.

She left me too...

To Elaine's dismay, four cargo ships approached the island, circled to the sheltered back side, and docked at a makeshift pier.

Near the dock, the originally dense trees, hills and mountains have been flattened by some force, and the prototype of a huge port has been initially established. Countless workers are busy shuttling around, building houses, paving roads, and driving the foundation piles for the dock.

Because of this, Elaine's fleet could only unload the cargo at the temporary dock, which inevitably increased the operation time. According to her estimation, they would have to stay here overnight today, and only tomorrow they could complete all the work and set sail again to return to Bayam.

Leaving the rest of the work to the calculating William, Elaine boarded a carriage leaving the port, ready to visit the "City of Dreams" mentioned by Miss Angelica.

The person riding in the carriage with her was a tall middle-aged woman who seemed to have some Feysac ancestry. Taking advantage of her eloquence, Elaine got everything she wanted to know from her within a few minutes.

This lady's name was Kaya. She was indeed from Feysac as Elaine guessed, but she came to this city to settle down more than ten years ago. She called herself a resident of the City of Dreams and had long since stopped recognizing the country in the north.

This city, which is said to have been built more than a thousand years ago, has a population of 100,000. Before that, it was completely self-sufficient relying on its internal production cycle. However, due to an internal crisis some time ago, it changed its policy and resumed external contacts.

"A hundred thousand people can be self-sufficient? You must have people producing industrial products and creating cultural works, right? But that would lead to problems with food production..."

Elaine asked back in disbelief.

Having traveled a lot and gained a lot of experience, she knew that a city of 100,000 people could be called an industrial city, an art capital or a university town, but it was absolutely impossible for it to meet all needs by itself and not communicate with the outside world for more than a thousand years!
"I don't know the specific principle, but it is said that a high-sequence Beyonder power is used... You are also a Beyonder, right? You should know that many paths have magical powers that completely subvert reality. I know a 'biologist' who can greatly increase the output of farms and ranches..."

Kaya scratched her head and explained.

Relying on extraordinary power... I have never heard of any city operating in this way... Elaine's doubts grew more and more. Just as she was about to continue asking questions, she heard the driver shout outside the carriage:
"We're in the city now."

So fast? Elaine was stunned. She didn't bother to talk to Kaya anymore. She pushed open the door and left the car, which seemed a bit cramped because of Kaya's tall stature, and stepped onto the street paved with black slabs.

Before her eyes, a picture that seemed to have come from the Fourth Age described in history books slowly unfolded.

Compared with the red-walled and green-tiled buildings of Intis, the rough and solid arches of Feysac, and the neat but featureless streets of Loen, the houses in the "City of Dreams" were mainly black, and the roofs were mostly asymmetrical structures, with a strange order in the twists. The straight streets stretched into the distance and gathered towards the park in the city center like the spokes of a wheel. With Elaine's excellent eyesight, she could see an ancient but huge three-masted sailing ship in the middle of the woods in the park.

That is the flagship of "Golden Queen" Angelica Thatch, the Queen Anne's Revenge!
Did it run aground in this city after an accident while traveling through the spirit world? Or was the entire city actually created by Miss Angelica, so her ship was parked in the city center?
Thoughts popped up in Elaine's mind one after another, until the female Feysac Kaya got off the carriage and came to her side, saying with a smile on her face:

"I was just as surprised as you when I first came here... It's a pity that you didn't catch up with the best time. Now, it's just an ordinary city."

"The best time?"

Elaine withdrew her gaze from the stranded ghost ship and asked subconsciously.

"At that time, this 'Dream City' was still a floating city..."

Kaya answered with a slightly disappointed expression, then she reached into her pocket, pulled out a colorfully printed page, and stuffed it into Elaine's hand: "By the way, in this city, you'd better obey these laws, otherwise you will be severely punished."

The latter's eyes naturally turned to the "Law" in his hand.

"The Dreaming City Provisional Laws (3rd Edition):

"This law is enacted to maintain the stability of the city and protect the lives and property of residents. No resident, outsider, or creature or object under their control may violate it, otherwise they will be punished in accordance with the regulations!
"Article 1: The following acts are considered crimes: murder, theft...

"Article 2: ..."

The contents were similar to those of the laws of other countries and cities, but they were written very roughly. They were probably just general regulations. The real law might be a thick book... Elaine's eyes quickly swept over the "prohibitions" and she felt a little more relaxed.

Until she saw the last line of information that was completely inconsistent with the serious content before:

"The St. Angelica Church on Raphael Street in the West District has been renovated. You are welcome to come and listen to the sermon. The witch in charge of disasters will grant you the blessing to avoid disasters."

----

"… This city is filled with an atmosphere that makes me feel comfortable. The buildings are neatly planned but not rigid or cramped. The residents are polite and law-abiding, but not rigid. Their clothes are very retro, as if they walked out of a museum, but without the pedantry and old-fashionedness of that period…

“When I first arrived here, I was recognized as a foreigner, but the local residents did not make things difficult for me. They just kindly reminded me to abide by the laws of this city… The word they mentioned most was law, which made me curious. What kind of consul could be so respected?

"…I met the Archon. She didn't even look like an adult, and was only a little taller than Xio. But her stern gaze was breathtaking. She must be a Beyonder of the Arbitrator Path, and her sequence was much higher than Xio's Judge!

"According to the advice of my new friend Gerdruf, I visited the ranch outside the city and tasted fresh milk, which was more mellow than the one I drank in Backlund... According to that 'biologist', the raw materials of food do not need to be high-quality, freshness is the most important. The highest level of eating steak is to chase the cow and eat it. I doubt it...

“…I visited a stranded ghost ship in a park in the city center. It was a hundred meters long, completely black, with a bow sculpture in the shape of a scale. It reminded me of a ghost ship in a novel. Strangely, no one could explain how it appeared in the park lake.

“After leaving the City Hall, I planned to go to the city’s memorial hall, which was said to have been converted into a church dedicated to the city’s patron angel.

"A city of 2 people actually has a patron angel? In the sense of mysticism, this means that a Sequence angel is protecting this city! I'm afraid Backlund doesn't even have such treatment..."

With a long sigh, Fors closed his notebook and looked up at the church in front of him.

It has a pair of black arches with eight ten-meter-high stone pillars on both sides, which together support the dark dome and the twisted and majestic reliefs.

Residents would come in and out of the door from time to time, bringing with them the scent of incense. From Fors's perspective, he could see rows of wooden benches and the altar at the deepest point.

For her, who had been to the largest steam church in Loen, St. Hillran Church, although the church in front of her was very grand in style, it was completely inferior to the former in terms of staff configuration and interior decoration, not to mention the archbishop's cathedral in the Trier Cathedral area in Intis.

As far as I know, only the Steam Church in Trier has angels stationed there, and they rotate with the Church of the Fiery Sun... Still unable to believe that such a small church could enshrine an earthly angel, Fors hesitated for a moment, then stepped into the black archway and came to the interior of the church.

With the scrutiny of a "recorder," she scanned the uneven marks on the walls on both sides that looked like they were cut by knives and axes, and passed over the asymmetrical number of candlesticks above her head, 40 on one side and 41 on the other side, and finally stopped at the altar at the deepest part of the prayer hall.

Unlike the Orthodox Church that hangs a holy emblem above the altar, this altar enshrines a female statue with proportions exactly the same as a normal person.

She has long flowing hair and a hazy face that makes it hard to look away. She is wearing an intricate classical dress, her feet are bare, her toes touching the ground, one hand is resting on her chest, and the other hand is raised forward, with lightning and flame patterns on her palm.

The statue's expression was lifelike, and its movements were lively and natural. If it weren't for the obvious stone material, Fors would almost have thought it was a real person performing the role.

Is this the patron saint angel... Her gaze reluctantly left the statue's face and swept across the slender and graceful body that was set off by the tight long skirt, and she was suddenly stunned.

This patron angel is the “Queen” lady of the Tarot Club!
(End of this chapter)