After the holy sword is broken

"This topaz—"

The door of the forge opened, and Burgess's words stopped abruptly.

The two people sitting outside looked at him at the same time, their eyes blank.

Burgess narrowed his eyes and looked at their handshake.

Apprentice Eli came to his senses, retracted his hand like an electric shock, and uttered words as fast as rain: "Teacher, I'm going to clean the kitchen."

After speaking, he ran away like a gust of wind.

Burgess withdrew his gaze from the apprentice, walked slowly to the table, and sat down opposite Alger.

The atmosphere was a bit depressing, and Alger followed his instinct and tentatively explained: "Just now, I just happened to talk about swordsmanship, and he just wanted to see Sword Cocoon."

Alger spread out his hands and showed him.

These hands are clean and beautiful, with slender fingers and distinct joints, except for a few thin calluses, they are so delicate that they seem to belong to the hands of a pampered nobleman, rather than a swordsman.

Burgess glanced sideways, said "hmm" in a calm manner, and immediately added: "I don't want you to explain anything."

Alger thought to himself, forget it, and clenched his palms so hard that his nails were about to snap out. He still cooperated with him and turned the page: "You said earlier, what happened to this topaz?"

"The ____ does not work."

Um?Didn't you say you could use it before you went in?

"That means the quality is okay," Burgess understood Alger's puzzled eyes, "but it was later discovered that there was something wrong with this stone."

"What's the problem? Energy? Cutting? Bewitched?"

"It should be related to the spell, but it doesn't directly act on it. It's more like a component of a large spell."

Burgess put the box containing the topaz on the table and pushed it towards Alger.

"More, I can't confirm. I should look for the mage and the provider of this stone."

The provider of topaz is, of course, the accountant of the church.

They also take care of the cash flow of the book and manage the warehouse. All the withdrawal and use of public property must go through them.

"...Why are you here again?" The account manager looked at Alger with a broken expression.

"Ask for some after-sales service." Alger smiled gently.

"After-sales service? That's a thank you to paying customers. No, you don't have to take out that ring anymore. I understand. It's just casual... Eh? When did you get married? Or engaged?"

Alger's smile froze: "This is a talisman."

The accountant nodded with an "understanding" face, and asked, "That's it... Let me take the liberty to ask, who is your other half? Have I met it?"

"...I said it was a talisman."

While correcting, Alger quietly turned the ring on his hand, and turned the sapphire face to his palm.

As soon as the small movements were completed, he suddenly felt Burgess's eyes sharpen behind him, and he saw the hairs on his back suddenly, and he turned his face back silently.

He decides to bring the subject back on track: "Something went wrong about that topaz."

The accountant put away the joke and assumed a listening attitude of willing to hear more about it.

As soon as Alger started, the words got stuck, choked on "first", and couldn't make any progress.

I can't blame him. The description of this matter is too professional and beyond his ability. It's normal to get stuck.

So, he moved half a step sideways, revealing Burgess standing behind him: "First, please ask the blacksmith to explain the situation to you in detail."

Burgess gave him a sideways look before turning his gaze back to the accountant.

At this time, the Mr. Supervisor was looking at him fixedly, his eyes were a little dull, and his frozen expression seemed to be a little surprised.

Previously, Alger had led Burgess around the mission's residence for several days. As a person with normal five senses of sight and hearing, he had certainly seen this handsome and god-like young man.

It's just that looking at it from a close distance will have a greater impact than looking at it from a distance.

The beauty far beyond the normal threshold has the effect of "charming humans". The priest in charge of internal accounting is obviously not strong enough and has been bewitched.

"Cough." Argel tilted his head and coughed lightly.

Pay attention to the image, the decency of the religious order, decency!

The third executor seemed to have completely forgotten his gaffe when he first met Burgess.

The accountant blinked his eyes back to his senses, and his tone was soft and slow, as gentle as if he was worried about disturbing the butterflies that settled in the stamens: "Uh...uh, then, please tell me briefly, what happened?"

What a great attitude.

Alger stood aside, thinking silently.

He just shut the door.

It's still the same robe, it's really better to look good than to have a good relationship.

Borgins has long been accustomed to such treatment, and now his expression is calm: "This Topaz already has a 'belonging' at the level of magic."

"Belonging?"

"That is to say, it has already participated in a magic or ritual. Before that ends, it can no longer be used as a raw material to participate in other spell-casting behaviors, unless the two magics are compatible."

"How did you find out?" the accountant asked.

"The forging material needs to be pre-processed, but it cannot be integrated into the ritual, and all resonance cannot be completed."

Accounting frowned, lost in memory.

"This topaz... didn't seem to have any abnormality detected on the day it was put into storage."

When the church purchases various raw materials, it will be tested in advance to ensure that there are no problems before they are stored in the warehouse.

But considering the processing efficiency, this kind of inspection is just an ordinary pipeline operation, and does not involve too advanced and complicated magic, and occasionally there will be omissions.

Alger interjected: "The religious order's gem-like raw materials seem to be purchased from the 'Secret Chapter'. Would you like to contact their person in charge?"

"No, no, these batches were not provided by the 'Wangcheng Jeweler', but... a strange merchant sold them at a low price."

The accountant was talking, looking up at the sky.

"Selling at a low price?" Alger grasped the point: "It sounds like a big problem."

"No, no, in a bustling commercial place like Dock Town, people get rich every day, and at the same time, people go bankrupt every day. Isn't it a common practice to sell some unneeded jewelry after losing their wealth?"

Accounting is still looking at the sky, speaking fast, trying to get rid of guilt.

"Wharf Town is prosperous in business, so—" Alger couldn't understand: "Why didn't he find an auction house? No matter what you think, the income from the auction will be higher, right?"

How big is the heart to ignore such obvious problems?

The accountant looked at the sky, and his tone was weak: "The main thing is, I think there are still many good people in the world..."

Alger laughed angrily at him, and shook his head: "It doesn't matter how many good people there are, you are really diligent and thrifty in managing your family."

"Excellent and rewarding, as the people who manage the accounts of the religious order, this is our basic quality."

The accountant accepted the ridicule without changing his expression.

Alger: "..."

The accountant said sternly: "Actually, we were not completely defenseless that day. We did carefully inspect these jewels with high-level detection magic, and they were stored separately from other gems. There are also some clues about the identity and background of the businessman." After a thorough investigation, nothing abnormal was found.

"In this case, you can still get hit. Except that the enemy is too cunning, it can only be said that you and I are really not very lucky."

Alger: "You're unlucky, so don't drag us along."

The accountant gave a "tsk" sound: "You have learned badly from Dana."

"Any other topaz alternatives?"

The reforging of the Holy Sword is imminent, and there is no reason to waste time on these investigations.

"Yes, yes..."

"No, just use this one." Burgess interrupted their conversation.

Facing the four puzzled eyes, he briefly explained: "This topaz has been half-processed, and the special potion used on it is difficult to obtain. At present, I only have the one just used. It's just a share."

"How difficult is it to obtain?" Alger didn't give up.

"At least half of the raw materials come from celestial creatures."

"..."

That's it.

Burgess continued: "Accidents in high-level forging are not accidental, but inevitable. Simply replacing a material will not solve the problem, and new materials often have defects of one kind or another. Judging from the comprehensive results, it is better to use the original plan.”

Alger blinked: "It doesn't sound...not theoretical?"

"But it's all based on experience. What ordinary thing do you think you want to forge? After all, it's also..."

"Cough!" Alger hurriedly interrupted him: "Okay, I understand, so, what should I do next?"

Burgess turned to the accounting: "Can you still contact the down-and-out businessman who sold gems?"

"Unfortunately, no, because he is already dead." The accountant lowered his eyebrows, with a slightly pitiful expression.

"Um?!"

Alger and Burgess had a unified reaction. They glanced at each other, and Alger asked first, "How did he die?"

"I don't know. He may have died of hunger and cold in winter, or he may have been targeted by debt collectors. He was found dead in a thatched house outside the town two months ago, whether he was sent to the truth by the city hall Poetry made."

The account was said with some emotion, and at the end, because of the pastor's job, he habitually added: "May he enjoy eternal happiness in the kingdom of the gods."

"Then we can only find the sorcerer." After hearing this embarrassing story, Burgess was completely unmoved, and his goal was clear: "Go to Dana?"

"He's not in Dock Town right now." Alger replied.

Accounting: "You can find Ms. Fei Liya. But she has been a little busy recently, helping the priests prepare for the Prayer Festival. In addition to the previous incident... Although everything is simple for this year's Prayer Festival, she is busy. The extent has only increased.”

The aftershocks caused by the Wangcheng rebellion have not stopped. Meetings followed one after another. In addition to the core meetings, there were also many high-level resolutions. Alger, as the executor of the order, was sometimes arrested to participate in the discussions.

"Then..." Argel rubbed his forehead: "Let's talk about it after tomorrow?"

Tomorrow is the Day of Prayer. After the festival is over, Fei Liya's daily schedule will probably be a little more relaxed.

"You seem to be afraid to trouble others, except Dana." Burgess looked at him quietly, his royal blue eyes were like deep pools.

"It was the same when I first found me. It was not like making a deal, but begging me."

"At that time, you firmly refused to cooperate. Whether it was a transaction or a plea, it was almost the same..." Alger sighed helplessly.

Burgess snorted softly, raised his chin haughtily, and looked at him with cool eyes: "I don't want to make this trip in vain."

Alger compromised: "Then go find her..."

I hope it won't take up too much of Her Majesty Fei Liya's time.

"But since you're in such a difficult situation—" Burgess's tone was full of "to show mercy to you", and the subject changed slightly: "I haven't been to your residence yet."