Witch’s Night: Chapter 8 Talking Behind Someone’s Back, To Their Face
Due to Luo Yan’s special nature, neither Granny Zoya nor Norian had approached that area in the past few days, and they had also strictly forbidden anyone from approaching the apartment.
The situation in Lannister was very different from Yan City, and Luo Yan’s arrival had indeed been too alarming.
Before the Saint arrived in Lannister, Norian didn’t intend to change the current situation and wanted to maintain the status quo as much as possible.
It was best to leave this thorny matter to the Saint to resolve.
But this didn’t mean that Norian wasn’t paying attention to Luo Yan’s situation.
In fact, he had many questions about this mysterious girl, but due to caution, he hadn’t voiced them.
—Unnecessary knowledge could bring disaster, and forbidden knowledge could drive people mad.
No matter what, all matters related to the Primordial Demons had to be treated with the utmost caution.
“Um…”
Hua Qingling hesitated for a moment, glanced at Luo Yan, who was frowning and fiddling with a cocktail next to her, and nodded,
“It should be fine.”
…What kind of answer was that?
And, following Hua Qingling’s suddenly shifting gaze, Norian finally saw Luo Yan, who had been previously ignored.
The presence that Luo Yan had reduced through “Envy” was almost like invisibility. Even if someone was very close, without deliberately looking, they would be forced to overlook her.
It wasn’t until Hua Qingling’s glance that Norian had the chance to notice Luo Yan.
He was startled. A black-haired young man was sitting right next to him, and he hadn’t noticed at all.
Norian didn’t suspect that this was Luo Yan’s ability, but rather attributed it to his scattered attention due to exhaustion and mental fatigue from the past few days.
“Oh… sorry, young man, I didn’t see you just now.” Norian looked at Luo Yan and nodded apologetically. “You must be Hua Qingling’s partner? You two are a good match.”
Just as Granny Zoya’s information suggested, it was indeed a handsome young man.
Norian had only said this out of politeness, but before Luo Yan could say anything, Hua Qingling hurriedly denied it, her cheeks slightly flushed,
“No, no, we’re not… that kind of relationship.”
“We are friends.”
Luo Yan looked up slightly and said seriously.
The clear voice was very pleasant, but Norian felt that it was somewhat familiar, but he couldn’t remember where he had heard it before.
He didn’t connect it to Luo Yan, mainly because of the gender…
If Granny Zoya were here, she would have seen through Luo Yan’s appearance hidden by the mental distortion at a glance. Unfortunately, Norian’s strength wasn’t nearly enough to reach that level.
“Hmm?” Norian was a little taken aback, but he quickly adjusted. “Alright, it seems your relationship hasn’t been confirmed yet. I’ve spoken out of turn.”
“It’s not… forget it.”
Hua Qingling didn’t want to continue down this path, although Luo Yan didn’t seem to mind.
She took a deep breath, her voice slightly lower,
“Magistrate Norian, before that, there are some important questions I’d like to ask you.”
Even though she had the right to question, facing the renowned Chief Magistrate of Lannister, Hua Qingling was still somewhat nervous.
Admittedly, Norian wasn’t particularly strong, but in the New Era… there were many things just as important as strength.
Norian could make Lannister powerful, and that was enough.
“It seems… these aren’t friendly questions.” Norian’s expression also became slightly serious. “Ask away. Even if they are offensive questions… I will try my best to answer your doubts.”
He had a good impression of Hua Qingling; she was indeed an outstanding young talent.
“May I ask, Magistrate Norian, why did you secretly send surveillance personnel to our residence?”
Hua Qingling’s tone wasn’t strong, but her attitude was quite firm.
“If this is Lannister’s way of treating guests… I can only say that there are some serious flaws in the impression you and Lannister have left on me.”
“Surveillance personnel? No… I never authorized such actions.”
Norian’s pupils constricted, and his expression became serious. “This is a very serious incident. I… Lannister will investigate this thoroughly.”
After saying that, Norian immediately took out his communicator. After a few rings, Granny Zoya’s surprised voice came through,
“Norian? Why are you suddenly contacting me through the emergency line? Did something unexpected happen at the banquet?”
Although Granny Zoya had left the room with Norian, she hadn’t entered the banquet hall.
On the one hand, she wasn’t interested in these things due to her age, and on the other hand… her status was rather special.
To use a somewhat inappropriate but apt analogy, Granny Zoya was to Lannister what the Saints were to all of humanity. Someone who usually didn’t appear, and when she did, it was a big deal.
Moreover, she was also of a very high seniority. Even the oldest elder in the Council of Elders had to address her as Granny. Her presence at the scene would create too much pressure.
“No… Granny Zoya, this is much more serious than an accident at the banquet. I need you to investigate this matter immediately.”
Norian said in a deep voice.
“What is it?”
Hearing this tone, Granny Zoya immediately became serious as well.
“Someone has quietly infiltrated Restricted Zone Seven and has already made contact with Miss Hua Qingling and Miss Luo Yan. I suspect it’s… their doing.”
Although Norian didn’t explicitly say it, Granny Zoya knew at once that “they” referred to the Church of the End Gods.
These troublesome cultists had often caused chaos in major mega-cities in recent years, and there had been several difficult incidents in Lannister as well.
Moreover, these cultists had been gathering in Lannister recently. Coupled with Luo Yan’s identity, it was hard not to make further associations.
“Alright, I’ll set off immediately.”
Granny Zoya didn’t waste any time. This matter concerned the safety of Lannister, and there was no room for ambiguity.
After hanging up the phone, Norian looked at Hua Qingling apologetically,
“I’m very sorry, this was our mistake. It won’t happen again. Please believe in Lannister’s sincerity. We treat every guest with the same sincerity.”
“Uh… I can see that…”
Hua Qingling was somewhat dazzled by Norian’s actions.
Usually, when officials said they would launch an investigation, or that there wouldn’t be a next time, or expressed that the higher-ups hadn’t authorized it, they were just covering up the truth.
But Norian…
Clearly, he wasn’t.
Even if it were a staged act, it wouldn’t be possible to involve a “Destruction” level ability user…
However, was it necessary to go to such lengths?
“It seems we’ve misunderstood Lannister,” Hua Qingling breathed a sigh of relief, but was still somewhat puzzled. “But, is it necessary to trouble Granny Zoya with this matter?”
“Of course it’s necessary, very necessary,” Norian looked deeply at Hua Qingling. “Young lady, you have no idea how dangerous the young lady beside you is.”
Hua Qingling: “?”
Luo Yan: “?”
Seeing Hua Qingling’s bewildered expression, Norian sighed deeply.
In his opinion, Hua Qingling didn’t believe him.
Indeed, during the short time he had spent with the mysterious girl from the forest outside the city to Lannister, it was hard for Norian to associate her with the terrifying Primordial Demons.
No matter how you looked at it, she was just an ordinary girl who was a little frail.
However… Norian had thoroughly learned about everything that happened in Yan City through various channels, combined with the on-site intelligence brought back by the rescue team he had casually sent out.
Norian had come to the truth known only to a few, that Luo Yan had used the body of Dawn’s Mister “One” and entered the Void to confront the Witch of Envy in the final battle.
No one knew what happened in the Endless Void, only that Luo Yan eventually returned to the present world alive.
But there was another point. Granny Zoya had seen Luo Yan in her crimson dress form, and the unknown and terrifying feeling she felt when looking directly at her was very similar to the Witch of Envy.
Coupled with the Saint’s specific instructions…
It was hard not to suspect whether the one who returned to the present world was the original Luo Yan, or the Witch of Envy.
Or perhaps both.
“Anyway, just take my advice, it’s best to keep your distance from her,” Norian composed himself and continued,
“After this matter is over, don’t have anything more to do with her. Even a slight connection could bring unimaginable disaster—it’s precisely for this reason that I designated your residence as a restricted zone, absolutely forbidding anyone from entering or leaving.
“As for surveillance, that’s even more absurd. Lannister doesn’t want to take unnecessary risks, and neither do I.”
After Norian finished this series of earnest words, Hua Qingling’s expression became even more bewildered, while Luo Yan remained expressionless.
Talking bad about someone in front of them.jpg
“It shouldn’t… be that serious,” Hua Qingling coughed lightly, trying to defuse the awkward situation and salvage Luo Yan’s image in Norian’s eyes.
“Miss Luo Yan stayed in Yan City for several months and resolved many Calamity events for the city… including this war. If it weren’t for her, Yan City might not have survived.”
Luo Yan, upon hearing these words, slightly turned her face away, a faint blush appearing almost imperceptibly.
Being praised to her face… was still a bit awkward.
“No, no, Miss Qingling—please allow me to address you as such. From various perspectives, Yan City was just a lucky exception, and we absolutely cannot expect such an exception to occur a second time.”
Norian shook his head and said seriously, “Admittedly, Miss Luo Yan is a very good young lady. Putting aside these external factors, even I admire such a young person very much… However, her personality doesn’t change her essential nature.
“No matter how kind a person is, they are dangerous when their pockets are full of explosives. The danger of explosives doesn’t change because the person holding them is kind. In my opinion, the power Miss Luo Yan possesses is this ‘explosive.’
“You can choose to believe that her kind nature will prevent her from using the ‘explosives’ recklessly, but you can’t guarantee that these ‘explosives’ will never fall on your own head.”
Although he was speaking ill of Luo Yan, Norian’s words made a lot of sense.
“That’s the first time I’ve heard such an analogy, it’s quite apt.”
Luo Yan said softly, finally putting down the cocktail glass she had been fiddling with for a long time.
…She really didn’t have any talent for mixing drinks; the several glasses she had made all tasted quite strange.
“Power indeed has no inherent good or evil, but it does possess a certain degree of danger. When this danger exceeds control, it doesn’t matter who holds the power, what matters is… the ‘explosive’ explodes.”
Luo Yan continued along Norian’s line of thought. “The result of the explosion won’t be weakened because the person who triggered it is kind… Therefore, when such terrifying power appears in the present world, one must always be prepared for it to lose control.”
Were the Misters of Dawn good people?
Undoubtedly, in the general sense, they were all good people.
However, when the demonic powers they possessed went out of control, could the fact that they were good people prevent the consequences of that loss of control?
No.
All the contradictions of tragedy stemmed from this.
Luo Yan had been quite ignorant of these things before, until Norian’s words enlightened her, summarizing these things that she vaguely understood but couldn’t express.
“Oh?” Norian turned his gaze to Luo Yan (black-haired young man face) again. “Unexpectedly, young man, may I ask your name?”
“Luo Yan.”
“Alright, Mr. Luo Yan… Luo Yan?”
The glass in Norian’s hand trembled.
“Or you can just call me Luo Yan, or Miss Luo Yan.”
Luo Yan picked up the juice used for mixing cocktails next to her, filled her glass, and slightly raised it to touch Norian’s glass,
“Apologies, Magistrate Norian, I left the restricted zone without permission, but I have already gotten the answers I wanted and will be leaving here soon.”
“…My words just now may have been offensive.”
Even a seasoned veteran like Norian couldn’t help but feel embarrassed when caught talking behind someone’s back, especially to their face.
Norian blushed, at a loss for words.
“But those were all truths,” Luo Yan said indifferently, her gaze falling on the scene of clinking glasses not far away. “Hmm… so this is what it’s like to hold a banquet in a hall. I’ve never seen it before.”
Everything in Natalie Manor was desolate, and even the spacious hall never had any guests.
Even though the memories left in Ghost Town were heartwarming, Luo Yan knew very well that if she were still immersed in Ghost Town to this day, even more terrifying consequences might have occurred.
She couldn’t guarantee that when facing the Witch of Envy, she would still be able to wake up from the whispers of divinity.
These… were all “explosives,” unstable factors that could lose control.
Feared by others, causing panic… This was who she was, and the nature of the power she possessed.
“What a peaceful scene, Magistrate Norian,”
Luo Yan turned to look at Norian, a faint red glimmering in her dark eyes,
“Just as you said, my power is dangerous ‘explosive,’ and it will destroy so many beautiful things like this…
“But avoidance can’t solve the problem, I’ve already tried… And, you underestimate my danger, and you underestimate me.”
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