nChapter 73: The Strange Calm

nTranslator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

nBenjamin rushed towards the necklace and grabbed it as soon as he saw that the necklace was about to be blown out of the window.

nHe closed the window and started inspecting the necklace.

n

"Hey, can you clarify whether this necklace is the one the old madame usually wears, the necklace that can be used to unlock the treasury?

" Benjamin asked the System while he continued scrutinizing the necklace.

n

"Um… let me have a look.

" The System examined it as if it were an expert. After a few moments of silence, he then said:

"Yes, I can confirm that this is the necklace.

"

nBenjamin furrowed his eyebrows.

nWhat was going on?

nWere there tapping devices everywhere in this world? Michelle was the first to put one on his body, did the madame also do the same? Otherwise, what was the reason for her action?

nBenjamin found it hard to believe that the old lady accidentally misplaced her necklace here.

nDid she know about something Benjamin didn’t?

nThe old lady left her key here the moment he asked Grant the method to open the treasury. Without a doubt, the madame knew he had plans to open the treasury, and that was why she made such a move.

nIn fact, her actions were not harmful to Benjamin. At the very least, he was no longer in a dilemma on whether to help Michelle obtain the necklace.

nBut why did the madame want to help Benjamin?

nFurthermore, the main concern now was how much information the madame had.

nDid she know that Benjamin was once kidnapped because of the treasury? Did she know that Benjamin was once threatened for a long period of time? Did she know of Michelle’s existence?

nMore importantly… Did she know of Benjamin’s identity as a mage?

nHe shivered as he thought about it and could not help himself but to turn around and look at the corridor just outside the room. There was nobody outside since the madame left a long time ago.

nBenjamin could not help himself as he felt that a pair of eyes were observing him out there.

nThe feeling of being watched faded as he walked over to the door and locked it.

nAfter that, he sat on the bed and continued struggling as he looked at the necklace on his hand.

nShould he pass the necklace to Michelle?

nBenjamin would definitely pass the necklace to Michelle if the old lady did not appear. However, Benjamin could not decide on the best route after this incident.

nThis must be a trap.

nWas the old lady setting a test for him?

nOr did the old lady find out that someone was going after the Joseph family’s treasury and decided to place the necklace here so that she could report it to the church and let the people from the church to catch the intruders?

nWith this thought in mind…

nBenjamin smelled a conspiracy under his nose.

nMaybe the Church was the one pulling the strings in the dark. They were the ones who told the madame to leave the necklace to Benjamin in hopes that he would pass it to Michelle and capture her.

nSeriously.

nNow that he thought about it, it was very likely that this was a trap.

nHe could not think of other reason for the madame to do so unless the Church was pulling the strings in the dark.

nIt was the church again…

nBenjamin sighed.

nFrom the looks of it, the Church was not satisfied with their results at Fulner’s theater. Hence, they decided to lure Michelle out with such a method.

nThey used the Fulner family to remove the mages’ power in the inner capital. This hit the Academy of Silence hard and severed the possibility of collusion between the Fulner family and the mages. Now, they were planning to use the Lithur family to take out the trouble maker, Michelle.

nOne had to give some credit to the Church for their effective use of power. The Church had the skills to manipulate the aristocrats and royal family in their hands.

nAnd so Benjamin fell into a dilemma again.

nWhat should he do?

nMichelle would open the treasure room and die in the Church’s hand if he were to give her the necklace. The Church would suspect Benjamin’s intention if he were to tell Michelle that it was the Church’s trap instead of passing the necklace to her.

nHe was in the same situation when he received Michelle’s letter.

nDamn…

nCouldn’t these people give him some peace at all?

nHe really did not want to be involved in this battle!

n

"Didn’t you know that you can’t always do what you like in this world?

" The System appeared and said in a deep tone.

n

"You’re in the wrong world. I teleported into a fantasy world, not a martial art world.

" Benjamin could not help himself but to complain even though he agreed with what the System said.

n

"The truth lies within even though one is blinded by the search. One may miss the true purpose as one is obsessed in finding out the truth.

" the System spewed nonsense as it spoke like a monk.

n

"...

"

nDid the System forget to take its pills today?

nBenjamin thought and shook his head.

nNope, the System has always been like this. Only he could be blamed for having an unreasonable expectation that the System would behave normally for even just a second.

nAfter thinking for a long time, he decided to push the issue aside.

nHe guessed that the members of the Church would soon approach and tell him to pass the necklace to Michelle.

nHowever, Benjamin planned to play dumb before that happened. If he had the chance, he could pretend that he was a good man who had returned a lost jewelry to the madame. In short, he had to drag this out as long as possible.

nHe would have the upper hand if he dragged this issue longer and he would eventually find himself a way out of this situation.

nIn the end, it all depended on his ability to manipulate and improve his surroundings.

nBenjamin felt that the reason Michelle unlocked the curse for him was because Benjamin was getting too strong in a very short amount of time. Hence, he would owe her a favor if she unlocked the curse for him and this would also show that she was a generous person.

nBenjamin had no reason to hesitate any longer.

nHe kept the necklace in the drawer, laid down on the bed and pretended to sleep. He started to meditate as his mind entered the space of consciousness.

nHe could not wait to practice magic in this world with no rest, but he did not do so.

nHe stopped the strengthening the triangular rune at around twelve o’clock, exited the space of his consciousness and came back to reality.

nIt was time to sleep.

nHe had no other way as the meditation could took a toll on his spirits even though the process was not monotonous at all. Regrettably, it was not like what he expected in the novel where this kind of training could replace sleep.

nHe needed to sleep even if the sky fell down.

nBenjamin took a shower, went back to bed, and fell into a deep slumber.

nA silent night.

nOn the second morning, he was sent to the military camp by Claude’s servant to continue his military training as usual.

nIt was the usual running in laps, firing a toy gun and

"military boxing

". However, everyone knew Benjamin was kidnapped due to the Church’s announcement and he was ridiculed.

nBenjamin laughed it off. The relationship between them had improved a lot as they suffered through the day.

nBesides that, nothing special happened. Benjamin’s physical attribute slowly improved over the days during his days in the military training. He felt that he had grown taller as his trousers did not fit him anymore.

nBenjamin went home to have his lunch after a series of training.

nHe purposely took his time out to return the necklace to the madame after his lunch.

nHowever, the madame gave him this response instead,

n

"I grew bored wearing that necklace, you can have it. The elder has to show some concerns to the young ones, right? Keep it well.

"

nAfter finishing her sentence, the madame went to take a nap, completely blocking Benjamin out.

n

"...

"

nBenjamin stood outside the door, speechless, with the necklace in his hand.

nHe could only accept his fate and go back to his room dejectedly. He meditated as he waited for the Church or Michelle to appear.

nThey would definitely come after me since they had already laid their traps.

nAt this point in time he could only react as things developed.

nHe was very surprised when the Church or Michelle did not approach him after he waited nervously for a few days. It was as if both parties had forgotten about Benjamin.

nWhat the hell?

nWhere was Michelle? Where was the Church?

nIn addition, Benjamin noticed that the Church had stopped sending people to protect him.

nThis was the most shocking thing to Benjamin.

nBefore this, the Church had not stopped

"observing

" him for many days.

nDid the people here take a vacation?

nWhat was going on?

nPeaceful days passed one after another. Even though his punishment period was almost over the third magic rune was already formed half way through, Benjamin could not feel excited at all, he only felt confusion.

n