42: Chapter 42 Little One and the Collector

"Let's continue the tracking; I have another way," Morpheus whispered to the group after they left.

Richard nodded and said, "I trust you, but if the risk is too high, we'd better find a chance to withdraw."

After leaving the Moulin Rouge, Morpheus took the group straight to the magic materials shop on the island, spending a considerable sum on a few items.

A small bottle of mercury, a live black four-eared mouse, some amethyst powder, and a spool of thread spun from unicorn mane.

When Richard asked him how much it cost, Morpheus vaguely replied, "Not too expensive."

But Jinbao glanced at the price tags of those materials and gasped: the spool of unicorn mane thread alone cost several gold coins.

Returning to the Red Socks Tavern, Morpheus rented a room at the far end of the second floor all by himself.

He pushed all the tables and chairs to the walls and drew a small but extremely complex magic circle in the center of the empty space using chalk and silver powder.

The outer ring of the circle was a hexagram, with three nested concentric circles inside, and the center point of the concentric circles was filled with amethyst powder.

He used the unicorn mane thread to gently tie the card and the front paw of the four-eared mouse together, then poured mercury into a shallow silver dish placed directly facing the center of the magic circle.

After doing this, he sat cross-legged on the edge of the magic circle, closed his eyes, and his lips began to mutter an incantation.

This incantation was longer than any before it, the syllables neither Common nor Elvish, but a more ancient and difficult-to-pronounce language.

The surface of the mercury in the silver dish began to ripple with concentric circles.

Even though there was no wind or vibration in the room, the mercury began to rotate on its own, spinning faster and faster until it formed a tiny vortex on the surface of the dish.

Several hours passed, and when the door opened, it was nearly dark outside.

Morpheus walked out of the room, a patch of silver powder clinging to the hem of his robe, his face slightly pale, and fine beads of sweat on his forehead, but his expression indicated that the magic had succeeded.

A small black pug followed at his heels—well, if it could even be called a pug.

It did indeed have the flat face and short nose characteristic of a pug, with two long ears drooping on either side of its head like a rabbit's.

But just below that pair of normal ears, there was another pair of smaller, yet equally complete, little ears.

All four ears rotated in different directions simultaneously, like four independent little radars.

"Her name is 'Little One,' a unique magical summon; it's a tracking spell I learned from an ancient ruin."

"She will lead us to the wealthy merchant's daughter, but the duration is limited, so let's set off quickly."

Morpheus bent down and reached out to stroke the pair of main ears on top of the little black dog's head.

The little black dog didn't bark; instead, it made a few chirping sounds, like a tiny fledgling bird.

The little black dog chirped twice, kicked its four short legs against the floor, and then turned and ran toward the stairs, its four ears pricking up forward simultaneously.

The group didn't hesitate and immediately followed.

After leaving the tavern, the little black dog didn't run toward the main street but turned into a small alley near the foot of the mountain.

Passing through a coconut grove and crossing a cobblestone road, it finally stopped in front of the main entrance of a private mansion built halfway up the volcano.

The moonlight was mostly obscured by clouds, and the outline of the mansion's front gate appeared blurry in the dim light, yet it was still clearly magnificent.

The outer walls were covered in vines with white flowers, the gardens on either side of the front gate were neatly manicured, and several oddly shaped dwarf trees were planted on the lawn.

All the windows were drawn with heavy curtains, and only two green storm lanterns were lit at the foyer.

"This is it," Morpheus whispered.

The little black dog chirped, turned in a circle on the spot, its four ears drooped simultaneously, and its body began to fade away.

Before Richard could decide whether to climb the wall or knock on the door, the mansion's front door opened on its own.

A middle-aged man wearing a dark red butler's uniform stood at the entrance, his hair meticulously combed with hair oil, wearing a smile.

His voice was as standard as his smile, so standard it gave people goosebumps: "Good evening. The Master noticed several friends waiting outside; why not come in and sit for a while? The Master loves hosting new friends, especially adventurers like you."

Richard and Morpheus exchanged a look.

The little black dog had completely dissipated, but the direction its four ears had pointed was this very door.

Since the other party had opened the door voluntarily, they couldn't let this opportunity slip by.

He hung his halberd on his back and nodded to the butler: "Sorry for the intrusion."

While walking through the foyer, Richard quickly scanned the layout of the mansion's interior.

The decor of the hall was extremely magnificent, with framed oil paintings covering the walls, and the carpet was hand-woven wool, so soft underfoot it didn't feel like the floor.

Several servants in gray uniforms were wiping dust from the stair banisters, their movements light and quiet; not one of them looked up at them.

When Richard passed one of the servants, he deliberately stepped half a step closer to him.

The person had no calluses or scars, their breathing was calm, and they looked just like an ordinary person.

The owner of the mansion was waiting for them in the reception room on the second floor.

She was sitting in a high-backed armchair, with pine logs burning in the fireplace behind her, the orange-yellow firelight casting warm shadows on her face.

She looked about forty years old, but was extremely well-preserved, with fair, firm skin and lips painted with light red lip gloss.

She wore a dark red silk long dress, tight at the ankles, and a thin cashmere shawl draped over her shoulders.

Her features were regular and elegant, and when she smiled, a few fine lines appeared at the corners of her eyes.

"Oh my, some adventurers!" She stood up from the armchair and greeted them with a tone of pleasant enthusiasm.

She clapped her hands gently, as if welcoming long-lost distant relatives.

"I am Lady Elsie, and I love hosting guests like you. Please sit, everyone, please sit."

"You look like you've just come from the sea, haven't you? You must have had a tiring journey. Butler... prepare tea and refreshments, quickly."

Several maids entered silently in single file from the side door, carrying silver tea sets and pastry plates; their movements were light and deft as they placed the teacups in front of everyone, then retreated without a sound.

The Noblewoman gestured for everyone to drink tea, then picked up a cup of black tea herself, stirring it slowly with a silver spoon, her gaze starting from Morpheus and sweeping over each guest one by one.

Her gaze stopped on Richard's leather armor, and her eyes brightened slightly.

"Petrified Lizard skin!" she said, with the certainty of an expert in her tone.

"Gray-green scale patterns, preserving the area of greatest tension of the entire hide from the shoulder piece to the chest piece; the craftsmanship is decent, although the stitching is still quite crude."

"Have you hunted a Petrified Lizard? That is quite a dangerous prey."

"Yes, that was indeed a troublesome monster, and we even encountered two at the same time," Richard replied, following her lead.

"You really are promising young adventurers!"

"If you hunt anything similar in the future, or other rarer monsters or magical beasts, I will buy them all at a high price; I am a professional collector, after all."

She put down her teacup, stood up, waved at the group, and spoke in a light tone.

"Since the tea isn't finished yet, why not take a tour of my collection hall first? It's right in the backyard, full of the collectibles I'm most proud of."