Chapter 66

Chapter 66 Tasting

“Are spirituality and oppositional? ‘The Stone’ can neutralize ‘The Cup’s’ drugs because they are in opposition, so it turns out that ‘The Stone’ also has detoxification effects…”

After hearing Audric’s words, Dorothy thought to herself, then she turned her gaze to Audric and continued speaking.

“If it’s ‘The Stone’s’ mind-altering drug, then I’m sure you have some here.”

Looking at the present Audric, Dorothy spoke again, and as expected, Audric nodded.

“I naturally do. Since Miss Meyshos asked me this, I assume you’re set on getting it. We won’t beat around the bush. ‘Stone Wisdom Powder,’ 10 grams for 20 pounds.” As he spoke, Audric gestured to show the price, and Dorothy directly took out 60 pounds and placed it on the table.

“I want 30 grams.”

“No problem, please wait.” After saying this, Audric slowly walked to a corner of his workshop, took down a glass bottle filled with gray powder from a wooden shelf, opened the lid, and used a spoon to take several scoops and weigh them on a scale. Precisely 30 grams, neither more nor less, no need to add or subtract.

Audric wrapped the weighed powder in paper and walked over to Dorothy, handing her the packet.

“Hold onto this, dissolve it in water and take it. Remember, if you took ‘The Cup’s’ drug, take an equal amount of this. The standard dosage is a one-to-one ratio. If you don’t want to become permanently demented, don’t take too much.”

Dorothy put away the medicine Audric handed her, then inwardly commented:

“‘The Cup’s’ mind-altering drug is a narcotic, while ‘The Stone’s’ is a dementia drug. I wonder what ‘The Lamp’ and ‘The Shadow’ do. When I learn how to make drugs, can I use ‘Enlightenment’ to create a smart drug?”

Having spent 80 pounds on the drugs, Dorothy was preparing to leave, but just then, Audric reminded her.

“Oh, Miss Meyshos, I know you’re busy every day dealing with the Holy Communion and have no time for school, but I still need to remind you that if you don’t want your final grades to be too unsightly and attract your parents’ attention, you’d better not fall behind too much in your studies.”

“Don’t worry, sir. I’ve been self-studying during my free time. There’s no need to worry,” Dorothy replied frankly, unaware that Audric didn’t know what kind of Extraordinary Being she was.

“Heh… It seems Miss Meyshos is very confident in her self-study abilities. However, I need to tell you that our school calculates final grades not only based on regular courses but also includes important practical social assessments. If yours is zero, it will significantly affect your overall score,” Audric said with a smile. Hearing this, Dorothy couldn’t help but be stunned.

“Practical social assessment?”

…

In the garden of St. Amanda School, Dorothy, who had just come out of the basement, was walking around somewhat dejectedly.

“Practical social assessment? You mean those were all lies I told Gregor? Does this era even have practical social assessments?”

Dorothy never imagined that St. Amanda actually had practical social activities, which were recorded in the main scores. According to a certain merchant principal, he himself had made this rule to avoid cultivating bookish students who only knew how to read.

“Sigh… Fortunately, the practical social assessment score is also due at the end of the term, there’s still enough time. Let’s first deal with the current problem.”

Sighing deeply, Dorothy decided to ignore this matter for now and focus on handling the Holy Communion issue. While thinking this, she turned her gaze to the small paper packet in her hand.

With this, those guys might believe that she had been corrupted.

…

A few days later, in the morning, at White Pearl Street, in Barnard Old Book Collection store.

Old Colif was examining the ledger at the counter when he suddenly heard the sound of the door opening. Turning his head, he saw the white-haired girl entering the bookstore with a book in her arms.

“Hello, Manager, I’m here to return a book,” Dorothy said straightforwardly to Colif, who brightened up upon seeing this and immediately said,

“Oh… It’s you, Miss, from last time. Hmm… I wonder which books you’ve finished reading…”

“It’s this one…” Without any unnecessary words, Dorothy placed the book on the counter in front of Colif, which was “Glimmer Gospel.”

“Oh, it’s this one… Miss, what did you think after reading this book?” Seeing the book on the counter, Colif paused slightly, then looked at Dorothy with a playful expression. Dorothy responded with an uneasy look.

“Um… I wonder if you accidentally included pages from other books inside…,” Dorothy said while taking out several pages and placing them on the counter. Colif exclaimed happily upon seeing the pages.

“Aha! So they were here. I thought they were lost. It turns out they were accidentally mixed in. Oh, look at how careless I am. Anyway, thank you, Miss, for returning them. This is a very precious book.”

As he collected the pages, Colif spoke with a tone of gratitude. Seeing this, Dorothy showed a hesitant expression.

“Um… Actually, I wanted to ask… Is there a continuation to those few pages of the novel?”

With a nervous expression, Dorothy asked. Hearing her words, Colif smiled smugly.

“It has it, of course. ‘The Crimson Taste’ is my treasure, collected page by page. I never expected you to appreciate it too.”

Colif said with a smile, then continued,

“It’s rare to find someone with similar tastes. Since you and I share such similar tastes, why don’t I lend you the next few pages to read?”

“Really? That would be wonderful, thank you, Manager!”

“Hehe, no need to be polite. There aren’t many people who understand appreciation…”

While speaking, Colif took out several prepared pages from under the counter and handed them to Dorothy, who took them directly.

Afterwards, Dorothy borrowed two normal books and thanked Colif before leaving the bookstore. Watching Dorothy leave, Colif’s smile became increasingly sinister.

And as Dorothy stepped out of the bookstore, holding the pages in her hand, a similar smile appeared on her face.

…

Over the next week, Dorothy visited Colif’s bookstore every few days to borrow books. Each time, Colif gave her pages of secret transmissions, and each time he gave her more than the last. After several exchanges, Dorothy had read through the secret transmission “Crimson Taste.” Because “The Cup” was also significant to Dorothy, she chose to directly extract the spirituality from the secret transmission to accumulate, gaining 3 points of “The Cup” and 1 point of “Enlightenment.”

Now, Dorothy’s spiritual reserves were 6 points of “Enlightenment,” 8 points of “The Cup,” 4 points of “The Shadow,” 1 point of “Silence,” 1 point of “The Stone,” and 50 pounds, with 5 points of “Enlightenment” being recoverable blue bars.

During her interactions with Colif, Dorothy intentionally portrayed herself as increasingly engrossed in the contents of the secret transmissions, becoming obsessed with “The Cup.” This made Colif feel that the time was right.

…

One afternoon, in Colif’s bookstore, Dorothy sat in front of the counter, looking somewhat absent-minded. In front of her, Colif looked at the last returned pages and smiled.

“How do you feel, Miss Meyshos? Can you share your thoughts after reading ‘The Crimson Taste’? Let’s exchange insights as fellow book enthusiasts, shall we?”

“Mmm… Insights? It feels… very strange, an indescribable strangeness. I wish I could continue reading, but it ended… I really want to know what the next wine tastes like, but why wasn’t it continued…”

Dorothy said with a distant look, seeing her reaction, Colif laughed even harder. He knew it was time to take the next step.

“What does the next wine taste like… Ah… This is indeed the suspense left by the book. After reading it, it truly makes one imagine and want to keep reading. I understand your feelings, because I’ve experienced it too. After finishing the book, I truly wanted to know what the wine tasted like, and I even wanted to taste it myself. Luckily, I finally found it…”

As he spoke, Colif picked up a teapot on the counter and poured a steaming cup of black tea, handing it to Dorothy.

“Miss Meyshos, wouldn’t you rather taste it yourself instead of just reading about it?”