163: Chapter 163 A Letter

The early morning sunlight filtered into the room through the fairytale-like stained glass windows on the outer wall of the flower shop.

Starlight converged as Mia slumped listlessly over the small table she usually used for pruning flower branches.

The fatigue of her soul had transmitted to her body, making her not want to move a single muscle.

The black evening gown, which used a fair amount of fabric but had a concerning level of transparency, felt as if it were welded to her body; it had returned with her from [Paradise Lost] to the physical world.

Tuaner gave her a quick stolen kiss before disappearing off to who-knows-where, which was quite unlike her usual style.

Mia had just finished changing into a slightly more normal outfit in the lounge behind them when she was caught by the rushing Tuaner.

She was forced to change into a beautiful maid outfit.

"So the reason you specifically picked a slightly larger size when you bought that outfit for Luo Xiaoya before was for this?"

Mia was completely speechless, but she didn't resist much, fearing that Tuaner might do something even stranger to her on a whim.

The small wooden sign saying "Closed Today" was blown by the wind, tapping against the door panel with a crisp sound.

"What direction did you choose for your enhancement?" Mia began to ask Tuaner about serious matters.

Tuaner was putting on her black lace stockings. Having pulled them up to her knees, she looked up and gave Mia a sweet smile. "Guided Arrow!! At least it guarantees accuracy so I won't hit you or Ryan in melee."

"Oh, right. Ryan gave me those daggers to use. He somehow scavenged a pair of fire-breathing two-handed hammers for himself." Tuaner chewed her nail while thinking, chatting with Mia about the romance of werewolves.

"Wielding two-handed weapons with one hand? Is that Ryan's new development direction?" Mia looked at Tuaner, who had deliberately dressed herself as a sexy beauty, then looked down at her own white-stocking maid outfit—which looked both pure and blood-pumping—and sighed...

"If I were still that man tied to a steel pipe being beaten, I'd enjoy watching this too, but unfortunately..." Mia's thoughts drifted a bit far.

"Yeah, he swings them like a giant windmill." Tuaner gestured while stepping in her high heels to demonstrate Ryan's hammer-swinging style for Mia, then perfectly timed a fall into Mia's arms.

"Shut your mouth!!" Mia pushed away Tuaner's approaching face, driving her away from her impressive chest.

"Just one bite! The feeling back in the [Nightmare Cathedral] didn't feel real, my head was all dizzy." Tuaner began to act spoiled.

"Not even half a bite. Do you think I'm a sweet melon? Bargaining like that." Mia finally summoned the courage to refuse.

"Hmph, it was sweet anyway..." Tuaner grumbled as she went to the kitchen, preparing to fry two eggs to replenish her energy.

Mia's current attribute values were no longer suitable for appearing in public.

She looked at the two veils Tuaner had brought back, tried them on, and found that they only increased the likelihood of an accident.

Wearing them was worse than not wearing them at all. She simply found a cartoon-style face mask in the chest of drawers and put it on.

The wind chime at the door rang. Then she heard Luo Xiaoya's cheerful voice. She planned to participate in some slightly horror or supernatural-style dungeons on her own later to improve her adaptability.

With a [substitute doll], the worst that could happen was terminating the dungeon and laying low until the end. Safety wouldn't be too bad.

Loran had scavenged a Druid-exclusive weapon from [Paradise Lost].

It looked like a vine twisted into a spiral, with a verdant glow shimmering at the tip.

[Dried Branch of the World Tree]—this somewhat long name piqued Mia's interest. Besides a few attribute bonuses, it also increased various advantageous attributes for a Druid's beast forms, such as speed in Cheetah Form and strength in Giant Python Form.

Ryan arrived as well. Without his armor, he looked remarkably like a legendary soccer star from the British Isles, incredibly handsome. Unfortunately, the four top-tier beauties across from him had absolutely no interest in him: one was a succubus dependent, one was a girl with a sister complex, one put her daughter first, and one was still struggling with whether her mental core was male or female.

"I called Old He; everything is as usual, no big problems. No large-scale spiritual energy recovery phenomena have appeared in the district either..."

"Oh, right, here's a regular letter sent to Mia. I just found it in that wooden mailbox of yours that's basically just for show. I always thought that thing was just a prop for photos..."

Tuaner and Loran complained internally—that cute mailbox really was just a prop for young boys and girls who came to buy flowers to take photos with. Even Luo Xiaoya rolled her eyes. How strange, they actually received a regular letter?

Ryan handed over a very smooth envelope. It made everyone present frown.

There was a faint scent of blood on the letter...

On the sender's address line of the envelope, there was only a solitary signature—Chen Mo. It looked bold and powerful.

Mia hesitated slightly as she took the letter. She searched her memory—when had she ever met a man named Chen?

"Won't we know if we just open it?" Tuaner snatched the envelope and ripped it open with a "Tear!"

"Eh?" A photo fluttered out from the envelope, and Tuaner reflexively caught it in her hand.

The photo was a Polaroid. The frame showed only a wasteland of ruins; in a prominent position, there was a broken drainage pipe with a pair of blood-stained handcuffs on it.

Tuaner unfolded the letter.

"I hope this letter finds you well~"

"To be honest, the fee you provided, Employer, really made me take a huge loss this time."

"Through all my various connections, I finally reached the outskirts of this Science and Technology Park. I went through quite a bit of suffering to reach the place you mentioned."

"But this is the area with the strongest rumors of being haunted nearby. I was haunted by evil spirits just by taking a simple photo..."

"In any case, consider the commission completed. The one who died on this pipe was a person from the Xia Country who was tricked into coming here, named... Luo Yu."

Seeing this, Tuaner felt a bit of regret. She knew too much; would she be silenced by the Original Owner next time she went to the cathedral? No, that's not right—isn't the real person standing right in front of her? It's Mia herself.

She kept reading. Hehehe, everyone loves gossip.

"Communication shows you are a young girl. Regardless of what he was to you, I advise you not to come here looking for him... a severe spiritual energy recovery has occurred here."

"You might not understand, but it doesn't matter. If you are satisfied with the news, or if you feel some pity for a poor detective injured on the job, please send an additional 20,000 Xia Country currency to me."

——Poor Private Detective Chen Mo"

Mia took the letter Tuaner handed her. She also recalled that when she first obtained this body, she had hired someone online to investigate her original self.

She hadn't expected this detective to be so professional.

While she was thinking, the photo and letter were snatched away by Luo Xiaoya, who then began to cast her still-unfamiliar [Blessing of the Sprouting Bud].

"This letter is cursed." The shrine maiden's spiritual sense combined with her medium's perception made Luo Xiaoya almost like a human malice-sensing radar.

"The sender is most likely in grave danger as well." Her voice grew softer and softer.

Mia rubbed Xiaoya's head as she was casting. "Want to go on a trip? The kind where if you get caught, you have to stay and be a dealer?"

"Let's go, then. Let's go see. I'll have Old He arrange the itinerary for us." Ryan's team had always been known for being fast, accurate, and ruthless.

"I'm also looking forward to the scenery of South Cliff Continent!" Loran covered her mouth and laughed. It was a rare opportunity to take her two daughters—well, one daughter and a succubus even cuter than a daughter—out for a trip.

"Then... shall we go see?" Mia was still a bit hesitant.

"I'll go pack my bags and bring a couple of outfits." Tuaner also cast a vote in favor.

"Ah, it failed. The dispelling wasn't successful." Xiaoya's face was full of disappointment. "All of us have been targeted by this curse..."

"What's there to be afraid of? The most powerful demon in the physical world is Mia, who looks even more like your beautiful mother than you do." Ryan's large hand rested on top of Xiaoya's head, giving her some sense of security.

A bloodthirsty glint flashed in Mia's eyes. "Then, let's go meet my enemies of the past..."