Chapter 321: 96. Quiz Game
Valentina’s carriage quickly arrived at the end of their journey, which was a large hotel located in the city of Miya. It seemed that even someone as privileged as Valentina, the young lady of a local noble family, needed to stay in a hotel like ordinary people, but unlike ordinary folks, she had rented the entire hotel for her use.
“We’ll also need to negotiate with the Snow Fox Tribe later. Renting this place for living is good for tidying up in advance, and it’s quieter, right?”
Heidi Lin, who was standing at the door, smiled and covered her mouth, saying this to Fisher, who was stunned by Valentina’s extravagant display. They had just gotten off the carriage, and other less luxurious carriages that followed from the port had also stopped, from which came the maids accompanying Valentina from the Unicorn Whale.
The Turan Family had also brought a pile of books about Slime and Troll species, which needed to be organized on the carriage. However, this would be handled by designated staff, and Heidi Lin would arrange everything. As an employee hired by Valentina, he, like Balzak and the others, only needed to choose a luxury suite on the top floor of the hotel for his own rest.
“By the way, Mr. Fisher, I need to busy myself temporarily with moving things and room arrangements here. Could you please help Miss Valentina up the stairs in her wheelchair for a bit?”
Fisher glanced at Valentina, who was at the hotel entrance, trying her best to push the heavy wheelchair but not making any progress. Ever since the mechanism on her wheelchair was broken, she seemed to have truly become disabled; the disadvantages of losing her legs were fully apparent, and without help, moving was somewhat difficult.
“Isn’t that Filis’s task?”
“Ah, that child. Every time we arrive at a town, she wants to go shopping. Valentina is aware of this flaw of hers. If she doesn’t shop, she can’t get into her peak working state. You see, she doesn’t even know where she ran off to this time; she’s probably gone to spend money somewhere.”
Heidi Lin touched her cheek with a distressed expression, looking around, and indeed, she could no longer see that lion race figure.
“However, Filis is very generous in this regard. When she returns, she’ll bring you souvenirs.”
“Bring me?”
“Yes, she brings them for both Balzak and me as well. Just some small trinkets. Alright, hurry and push the young lady into the hotel to the top floor; it’s getting cold outside.”
Fisher blinked, thought for a moment, and then slowly walked up behind Valentina, who was futilely pushing her wheelchair. When her fair hands were still gripping the wheel’s handles, Fisher had already spoken up,
“Let go, I’ll take you up.”
Valentina was startled and looked back to see the expressionless Fisher. After hesitating for a second, she released her grip on the wheel and then turned her head to mutter to herself,
“That Filis, she runs around like mad the moment we reach a city. If it weren’t for Heidi Lin needing to deal with other matters… it was my oversight.”
The wheelchair slowly moved forward, and Valentina’s words sounded somewhat reluctant, but it essentially conveyed the meaning of “I didn’t actually need your help.” Fisher sensed the hidden meaning but didn’t nod or say anything else; he simply lowered his head slightly, only to suddenly notice the small part of her delicate back, where her white, silky hair slightly parted, revealing her fair neck half-concealed by black clothing.
On that neck, where it connected to her body, dark marks resembling cracks stood out starkly, adding a sense of fragility to her porcelain doll-like figure.
Was this what she referred to as a hereditary disease? Or was it a sign of her Phoenix bloodline within?
Fisher suddenly recalled her expression while looking at the ice at the Miya port; she seemed to be searching for something in the ice before being interrupted by an officer. She would definitely look at that piece of ice again; especially since she had it here now, wouldn’t it be easy for her to do so?
If he “accidentally” discovered her secretly watching the ice, could he use that as leverage to gain more secrets about her body?
Fisher’s gaze kept drifting toward her fair neck, his expression gradually darkening, causing Valentina to feel a chill down her spine. She glanced back at Fisher and indeed found him staring at her in a daze, her face suddenly flushed with embarrassment as she grit her teeth and said,
“What are you looking at?”
“Your hair.”
Fisher calmly diverted his gaze slightly, smoothly fabricating words while hiding the small scheme that had formed in his mind.
“Hair? What’s so special about hair?”
“Miss Valentina’s hair is white, just like pure white snow. In my hometown, Nali, no one has such hair color, and it doesn’t snow in winter.”
“Then during your time in the Northern Region, you must have seen this spectacular snow already?”
“Actually, I saw it the first time I met Miss Valentina on the Southern Continent.”
Valentina bit her lip, tightly gripping the ring on her hand, then slowly turned her head, taking several deep breaths before smiling calmly,
“You’re quite the smooth talker, Nali person. But when I was on the Iceberg Queen, Captain Alagina, who is also from the Northern Region, has white hair too; if we talk about the first time seeing snow, it should have been when I first met her.”
Fisher’s steps were light, and he pushed Valentina’s wheelchair neither too fast nor too slow. Freed from Emhart’s restraint, he felt unusually liberated, otherwise he would have been derisive of himself, which would not only disrupt his mental state but more importantly, interfere with his “Valentina’s hidden bloodline research plan.”
At this moment, however, when Valentina mentioned Alagina, Fisher couldn’t help but think of the Iceberg Queen from Sardinia, who had Old Jack and Isabel, whom he brought out of Nali, on her ship. He wondered if they had arrived at Pirate’s Haven.
Fisher shook his head, temporarily dispelling the thoughts in his mind, sighed, and said,
“That’s different; Captain Alagina’s white hair doesn’t remind me of the snow and wind of the Northern Region. It only reminds me of the blue ocean’s waves. Before coming to the Northern Region, I had no idea that her temperament was so out of place here. Miss Valentina is different; I can immediately sense the genuine Northern temperament from you.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Valentina blinked thoughtfully and didn’t ask what he meant by “genuine Northern temperament.”
Because it was Fisher pushing the wheelchair, Valentina felt somewhat uncomfortable being so close to a relatively unfamiliar male. She didn’t even lean back against the wheelchair, feeling the strain from sitting up straight. After hearing these words, she hesitated for a few seconds and then leaned back into the wheelchair.
Fisher pushed her to the elevator door, where Selti and Balzak had yet to arrive. He casually brought his boss there alone; they seemed still busy outside, giving him and Valentina an extra opportunity for interaction. After waiting for a few minutes, Balzak and Selti finally walked over.
“Sorry, boss, I went to the restroom and got delayed.”
“No problem, let’s go up and sort out the rooms first. There’s still a lot that hasn’t been moved in yet; we’ll officially start preparing things tomorrow.”
As Valentina spoke, Fisher had already moved to pull her into the elevator. Thus, she spoke while moving toward the elevator, and after the other two employees entered, the elevator temporarily fell silent, with Fisher letting go of her wheelchair handles and closing his eyes to rest.
Valentina, meanwhile, touched her ring and suddenly glanced down at her white hair draping over her shoulder, feeling that her long hair did not resemble the snow of the Northern Region at all.
“Ah ha! I’m back!”
On the top floor of the hotel, Filis kicked the conference room door open joyfully, holding a large bag of items. She was the last one to arrive, so she didn’t have the privilege of choosing a room, but she didn’t care much since she bought so many things.
Her brows and eyes curved in delight, and a prominent canine tooth was visible as she smiled. The bag she carried was filled with various items, while in the conference room, the atmosphere was quite harmonious. Valentina sat with her hands crossed in front of the sofa, on the coffee table in front of her, a game of chess typical in the Western Continent had already reached mid-game.
She had previously been reading the encyclopedia in the hotel and was now observing Balzak and Fisher playing chess. Since there wasn’t much to do at the moment, Fisher initially intended to etch some magic, but unexpectedly the magic materials hadn’t arrived yet. Had he known, he would have brought a bag with him. With little else to occupy their time, Valentina suggested they play chess.
Fisher was indifferent to the idea, and Balzak, since Fisher’s arrival, felt a sense of being overshadowed, clearly wanting to compete with this scholar, readily accepted the invitation to settle their rivalry on the chessboard, resulting in such a harmonious afternoon.
“Boss, Old Ba, and this… Fisher, I’ve brought you souvenirs back.”
“Old Ba your mother!”
“Hey, let me see, are you losing?”
Filis leaned in, rummaging through her bag, gazing innocently at Balzak, who was quite furious, blushing and gritting his teeth while glaring at her.
“Can a country bumpkin like you even understand chess?”
“I don’t understand, but looking at your face, it’s clear you’re losing.”
Filis casually tossed a Silvali-style silk scarf at him, then pulled out another item, a lightweight staff of Nali style, and handed it to Fisher. Surprised by such an expensive gift, Fisher accepted it with thanks.
Upon taking a look, this staff appeared to be a commemorative piece made to celebrate the ascension of a new emperor, inscribed at the top with small words,
“To the esteemed Majesty Godlin the Tenth, please allow me to use this work to praise the decrees you have issued, enabling my family to gain sustenance.”
Fisher was speechless, feeling the staff was warming in his hands, worried it might be rigged with espionage and tracking magic by Elizabeth. However, after checking, he found nothing on it.
“And lastly, here’s one for the boss.”
Filis extracted a small silver pendant from the big bag, engraved with a vivid little cat. Valentina’s face flushed for an instant at the sight of the little cat, and after a second, she gently coughed and extended her hand towards Filis, smiling as she said,
“Thank you.”
Filis waved her tail, satisfied, and hugged the remaining large bag of items as she walked out the room,
“Then I’m off. I need to go tidy up… Oh no, did Heidi Lin not bring down my stuff from the ship?! Oh no, oh no!”
As the door closed, the room returned to quietness. The expressions on the faces of the three who received gifts varied, but Valentina carefully examined the cat statue in her hand and then cherished it close to her palm.
Fisher and Balzak exchanged glances, and then Balzak sighed, saying,
“I give up.”
“You win,” Fisher replied.
Fisher’s chess skills were taught by Damien, the head of the military academy, who was good at playing chess. During tea in the office, they often played chess to decide whether to punish Fisher. This achieved the effect of disciplining him while also giving a little face to Lady Elizabeth.
Valentina watched as Balzak lost three consecutive games, feeling a bit sympathetic for her subordinate constantly being bested by Fisher, she lightly flipped through the books in her hand, smiling as she said,
“Since the chess game has concluded, would you two like to answer some questions from me?”
“Answer questions?”
Balzak and Fisher turned to Valentina simultaneously, who gently held up the history encyclopedia in her hands.
“This is a compilation of historical knowledge. There’s nothing pressing right now, so I’ll ask you both questions. If you answer correctly, you get a point; if not, there’s no score. Whoever has the most points will win. Of course, I’ll add a little wager; well, the Turan family has many interesting books that cannot be borrowed, and if someone wins, I can have a list of them sent over for you to choose one to read.”
“Whether it’s long-lost magical tomes, history related to subhuman races, or secrets about the Silvali Empire, our family has corresponding recorded collections. So, what do you say? Want to join this game?”
Fisher initially had little interest, but upon hearing the mention of books about subhuman races and especially magical tomes, he felt a bit of clear interest. Balzak felt similarly; for scholars like them, exploring more unknown tomes and knowledge was a coveted desire, so they had no intention of refusing.
Valentina then held the small cat-shaped statue and smiled as she opened the book in her hands, asking,
“Alright then, let’s begin. Let’s start with the simplest question, how about eleven? First question: When the Silvali founded the country, someone claimed that the first emperor killed a white snake to ascend the throne. What actually happened in history?”
“He indeed killed a white snake, but that snake was one he found while hibernating by the roadside. When he returned, he roasted and cooked it into soup.”
Regarding the question about his family’s emperor ancestor, Balzak, the exiled minister, still retained the basic respect due to him, of course, he wouldn’t speak recklessly. As a result, this moment of distraction was seized by Fisher to grab the lead.
“Fisher gets a point. Next question: How many major battles occurred in the Misty Mountains of Silvali? Please name them.”
“Twice. The Cardu Extension Campaign was a risky invasion of the distant Cardu; the Misty Sea Battle was a naval battle against a small country far from Cardu. After the initial naval battle, the war gradually spread throughout the Misty Mountains, and it wasn’t until months later that Silvali’s forces eliminated the guerrilla soldiers in the mountains.”
“Good, Balzak gets a point. Next question: Whose bloodline does the current empress of Silvali inherit from which ancient kingdom?”
“Cardu!”
“Very good, Balzak gets another point.”
Fisher raised an eyebrow, suddenly realizing that all the questions were about Silvali. He cast a glance at Valentina, who also noticed his gaze. Seeing Fisher’s somewhat resentful look, Valentina almost laughed but had to maintain her composure, keeping her demeanor as the “fair and impartial” judge.
Just wait until I get you back.
Fisher crossed his arms, his mind working rapidly. For the subsequent questions, regardless of what Valentina asked, Fisher quickly responded. After all, Silvali and Nali were relatively close, and Fisher roughly understood Silvali’s history. Even so, he still couldn’t outmatch Balzak, the local born and bred native.
Moreover, there was plenty of knowledge known to both, and at this time, whoever was quicker to speak made a difference. Amidst this back-and-forth questioning, the two alternated their responses, and Fisher quickly tied the score to five to five.
This made Valentina find it amusing. She casually flipped through the pages of the book in her hand and finally saw an interesting line in a corner, prompting her to ask,
“Alright, last question. During the outbreak of the Dead Rot disease in Silvali, the church once changed its attitude toward the plague, and they affectionately referred to it as…”
Balzak and Fisher answered almost simultaneously and without hesitation,
“It was called the [Blade-less Knight].”
“When people had the least hope against the plague, the church declared that the disease was punishment from the Mother against her children, intending to cleanse humanity of its deeply-rooted sins. The plague was invisible and intangible, yet wherever it spread, it was a scene of lament. Just like a pure white knight without a blade. Thus, the later versions in Genesis included the concept of the Blade-less Knight.”
Fisher explained this, making Valentina nod in satisfaction as she closed the book in her hands,
“Not bad, gentlemen, so let’s consider it a tie. Don’t worry, you both will receive the rewards I promised, and I will have the list sent to you later.”
求求投票、打赏和支持，这对我来说十分重要！
万分感谢支持！
(End of Chapter)
