Chapter 90: Witch’s Power

The green-haired girl who appeared before her eyes was really dazzling. The length of her hair was truly astonishing—her twin ponytails had already passed her knees and were nearly touching the ground. Though it looked a bit odd, it also gave off a strangely fitting feeling… As for the clothes she wore, Lika knew them even better. Weren’t those among her boss’s favorite outfits that she usually wore?

“B… Boss?” Lika asked in a low, awkward tone. This caused a few nearby patrons to raise their heads. They had never seen Lika lose her composure like this before; her every move usually carried the elegance expected of a server.

As for what she had just said… Hmm? What had she said? Never mind, in this kind of situation, it was more important to focus on her own serious matters.

“Her name is Miku.”

“…Boss Miku?” Lika’s expression grew even more tangled. As her own superior, and one she had interacted with for a long time, how could Lika not know her boss’s temperament? A cold tone? That was purely because of her boss’s ability—if she spoke too fiercely, accidents could happen… A cold personality?

That didn’t exist at all. If her boss spoke too fiercely, accidents could happen; meeting people outside was even more likely to cause trouble! And her boss’s name wasn’t this either!

“This will do.” Qin nodded, though her heart was somewhat unsettled. She had controlled the Alchemical Puppet to come out to test a few things, but the test results gave her an unexpectedly… pleasant surprise.

She herself was a Witch, the type who couldn’t control her own power very well. That was why her tone of voice was calm and indifferent, and she always needed some kind of cover when meeting people. She had tried using Alchemical Puppets as bodies for external activities before—not to mention how aesthetically pleasing those bodies were.

Bodies full of Otherworldly styles—while they could be made perfect in appearance, internally… This current body was the most perfect one she had come to know regarding the internal structure of an Alchemical Puppet, whether it was the special internal skeleton construction or the degree to which it concealed her ability!

As for the former, some geniuses could achieve it, but the latter was extremely rare. How could a Witch’s power be so easily concealed? Even if she remotely controlled an Alchemical Body and used it like an Avatar, it was useless. That body would quickly be influenced by her power, taking on the same traits as her. This feature was somewhat a common trait among Witches—their abilities easily “contaminated” other things. As for people… they usually ended up dead if something happened, so there was no talk of so-called contamination.

Unless it was a Witch with a special ability. But for creatures contaminated by a Witch’s power, death was considered a good end. Worse outcomes meant turning into some kind of monster, living a life worse than death.

Yet this body showed no signs of contamination. Was it because of the special nature of the materials? She had used better materials to create bodies before, but it still didn’t help—they could only last for a period at most. As for features… After taking control of this body, she could clearly sense the internal structure of the Alchemical Body. It was intricate and tightly made, but it didn’t have any additional strange features. This was just an exquisitely crafted, special Alchemical Puppet body.

Some kind of Talent from the Creator? As an old monster who had lived a long time, Qin quickly figured out the most likely situation. Some special Talented individuals made things that came with natural traits, of course. To others, it might seem that way, but from the perspective of a Witch with vast accumulated knowledge, that situation was mostly the Creator using Mana to process the materials, causing the Enchanted Material to be infused with the Creator’s Talent traits.

Talent could affect the nature of a person’s Mana. The trait of this Alchemical Puppet wasn’t strong; its role was merely to conceal the influence of her power on the surroundings and to resist the erosion of Witch Power. If someone else used this Alchemical Body, without having Witch Power, they wouldn’t notice this hidden trait.

Anyway, if this truly came from some kind of Talent trait… then she had encountered a special collaborator this time.

Of course, Qin had also considered whether Zheng Yichen’s true form might also be a Witch… but that possibility was low. The existing Witches knew each other well enough; it was unlikely that a new Witch with a new ability would appear without them knowing. As for newly born Witches, they often had an extremely hard time surviving. The Sanctuary Church wouldn’t let go of any Witch. Newborn Witches were weak in power and naturally became the best targets for the Sanctuary Church.

But… the era of frequent Witch appearances had already passed. Based on the information Qin knew, there hadn’t been a newborn Witch in over fifty years. The current Witches were basically these old-timers who had lived a long time.

Reflecting on beings who could conceal Witch Power, Qin couldn’t help but think of Dan Marina. She had come here to look for someone… There weren’t many things that could interest an old Witch, and even fewer that could interest Dan Marina. Qin naturally connected the person Dan Marina was looking for to Zheng Yichen. This wasn’t impossible. If even an Alchemical Puppet could resist the erosion and contamination of her power,

such an Innate Ability might be able to resist the effects of Dan Marina’s abilities. Knowing such a person, wouldn’t Dan Marina be interested?

“…” Seeing her boss lost in thought, Lika quietly stood to the side, waiting for her boss to return to her senses. Fortunately, during this time, no one came to the Tavern, allowing her to smoothly wait until Qin finished thinking. “Boss, what should I do next?”

She asked carefully. In the past, Qin had used Alchemical Puppets as bodies before, but the result was naturally that she got angry every time she used one. Who made those bodies so useless?

“I have something to discuss with the collaborator. Bring him to me as soon as he arrives,” Qin said faintly… but halfway through, her tone changed back to that of a young, lively girl’s voice. This made Lika’s eyebrows jump. If the boss spoke in such a tone, probably everyone in the Tavern would suffer!

For now, it seemed nothing had happened?

“I understand.” Lika quickly nodded, and her tone easily revealed something—for example, right now, the boss seemed to be in a good mood!

“And I’m going out for a bit. No need to send anyone with me.” With that, Qin quickly left the Tavern with light, brisk steps, leaving Lika standing alone in a daze. What kind of day was today? Not only did the least approachable and most unwanted Witch pay a visit, but her own boss also seemed to have regained her vitality, choosing to break out of her reclusive habits?

Even though it wasn’t her real self, using an Alchemical body was rare. Wasn’t the boss worried about exposing her identity? If exposed, the consequence would be years of management ruined in an instant. The chain coverage of the Mysterious Tavern was extensive, but it had been built up bit by bit. Once the Sanctuary Church realized the Mysterious Tavern was connected to a Witch… there wouldn’t be much after that, unless her boss wanted to start an all-out war with the Sanctuary Church!