She is not an investigator.

The witches also harbor resentment towards humans, so there's no need to blame anyone. Given enough time, this hatred will likely gradually diminish or even disappear.

Igris smoothed a strand of hair that had fallen beside her ear, preparing to ask the librarian about the crow or the recent guests.

Wandering around aimlessly is not a good idea. Reading books and materials here can indeed help her relax, provided she doesn't waste too much time doing so.

But just as she took her first step, a figure slowly approaching involuntarily caught her attention.

Her chestnut-brown hair was tied into a ponytail, and she tightly hugged a huge book that was almost as wide as her in her slender arms.

Her steps were light, and she even hummed softly, just like when Igris first received her wages from Olivia.

Slowly, she stopped, somewhat surprised and delighted, and waved to Igris, greeting her.

"What a coincidence, I didn't expect to see you here... Are you here to read books too?"

It's Talia, the even more mysterious girl who can turn mysterious, unusual objects into keys.

Her lips curled slightly, and although she was holding a very heavy book, she didn't seem to care at all. Instead, she was very happy to chat with Igris and maintained a cheerful mood.

Perhaps she won the lottery? Iglesias wasn't sure.

"I guess so... I just came here to look for some things."

Igris couldn't tell her that she had come to the library to look for a talking, book-reading raven that might appear, or it would make her look... a little silly.

Although no one would think that way.

Talia blinked, slung the thick book over her shoulder along with her arm, and tilted her head slightly.

“I, um… I’ve been studying here recently, and I’d be happy to help you if you need anything.”

"Have you been here recently?"

"Of course, this is probably one of the few pleasures I have."

Igris retracted her earlier statement; perhaps she really could tell Talia that she was only looking for a raven.

After all, she's always been here.

The Gods' Fool - The Rainstorm: Chapter Twenty-Eight, Conversation

Igris was still hesitating whether to tell her about the raven, but Talia had already come closer and was looking at her curiously.

"You do seem to need my help. Why don't we talk?"

"you're right."

Igris sighed softly. Although she felt it wasn't right to ask someone else for help with her request, she also found it hard to refuse the look in Igris' eyes.

"I'm looking for a... crow."

"Is it a raven?"

Talia tapped her cheek lightly with her finger, explaining earnestly.

"Although both crows and ravens can be called crows, strictly speaking, ravens cannot be considered the same species as all crows. They are quite different in appearance... By the way, crow is actually a general term for all black birds."

Igris nodded thoughtfully. If the witch also made such cute expressions and gestures and earnestly explained the difference between crows and ravens, then Igris would most likely not make a mistake.

"So you did see it, right?"

"Yes, it's a very cute little guy. He keeps me company while I read, and he won't eat anything given to him by strangers."

Talia couldn't help but chuckle softly, but then she coughed lightly, composed herself, and continued speaking with feigned seriousness.

"It's a pity that it was taken away by its owner while we were having a lot of fun yesterday. We don't know if we'll ever see it again."

Recalling the scene from that time, Talia said with some excitement.

"Moreover, it spoke to me before it left, saying: 'See you again someday.'"

However, Talia added somewhat dejectedly at this point.

"But there's a line in a book I once read that says: 'The meaning of meeting again is often that we will never meet again.' I quite like that little guy."

Talia was surprisingly talkative, but her chatter wasn't entirely meaningless. At least it made Igris feel comfortable, and she could appreciate Talia's love of reading, which did indeed slightly improve Igris's literary skills.

Igris also hoped that she could give others the impression of being an intellectual, but most people seemed to think... she was a mysterious terrorist.

"Could you describe its owner to me briefly? Are there any distinctive features? Like... a wide-brimmed hat, a cape, or is it very beautiful?"

Talia murmured softly, rubbing her chin as she recalled.

"She is indeed a very beautiful person, very quiet, and walks without making a sound. She reminds me of you for some reason... I mean, her temperament, a mysterious feeling, like she's some kind of extraordinary person."

This vivid description makes it hard for Igris to associate it with the grumpy witch, but since the raven recognizes its master, there shouldn't be any possibility of it mistaking her.

"Didn't she... say anything to you?"

Talia gently shook her head, her curious eyes reflecting Igris's thoughtful expression.

"By the way, she has very beautiful long dark red hair."

"Oh…"

Igris thought of a rather unpleasant person, so much so that she didn't know who to worry about anymore.

"Thank you, Talia, you've been a great help to me."

Igris gave her a rare, bright smile, her attitude unusually friendly and gentle.

This attitude is something that many people find fascinating, and Talia is no exception.

Her cheeks flushed uncontrollably. She picked up the thick book in her hand to hide her obvious emotional change, and even her voice softened.

"…My pleasure."

She was happy to be able to help Igris, and also happy to receive her gratitude and recognition.

But similarly, she also forgot what she had just been about to read.

"Would you mind if I stayed with you for a while? I won't disturb you while you're doing your own thing; I just want to read a book here."

It's daytime now, and it's still early, so the matter of a red-haired phantom thief abducting a raven isn't that urgent, unless she's really interested in the little guy's meat.

Now, Igris plans to continue reading here for a while, to learn more about the knowledge she should acquire, and to engage in some further study.

She deeply understands that learning may not necessarily make her smarter, but it will definitely give her some knowledge, whether useful or not.

Nobody knows when it will come in handy.

"Of course! Oh, sorry... my voice was a little too loud."

Talia gently covered her mouth, looked at Igris apologetically, and said in a low voice.

"It's best to keep quiet in the library; it's basic etiquette. If you need to talk, use this level of volume so as not to disturb others."

Although she should apologize to the librarian, Igris wouldn't care, since there seemed to be no one else there besides the two of them.

"Igris...do you usually enjoy reading?"

Talia and Igris sat down side by side in the nearest seat, but the book in Talia's hand had completely lost its purpose. Instead, she used it as a mask, tirelessly trying to conceal her expression in order to communicate with Igris.

Igris didn't know what her purpose was in doing this; perhaps it was to show off how beautiful her eyes were? But Igris thought her overall appearance was also beautiful.

"I guess so. Rather than reading books, I prefer to learn from them and put my knowledge into practice. I may not be able to use everything, but I feel gratified whenever I do."

At this point, Igris also became interested and tilted her head to talk to Talia.

"Did you know that the land we live on is actually a very, very small part of the world? Far beyond the ocean, there exists a world called the New World, and there have always been people trying to find the sea route to the New World and become the first people to reach it."

In her previous life, Igris died on the sea route to the New World.

If a safer flight path can be found one day, then human civilization and development will see unprecedented progress.

But Talia stood there, stunned. Her puzzled expression and large eyes showed that she had never heard of the things Igris was talking about.

This is normal, since most people haven't heard of it.

"It feels... amazing."

But Talia was still willing to give Igris some positive emotional value, such as pretending that she was indeed interested in the topic.

The Gods' Fool - Torrential Rain: Chapter Twenty-Nine, I've Fallen for Her

Igris knew she wasn't really interested in the topic, and she didn't want to become like those guys who only talked big and didn't care about other people's feelings, causing unpleasant feelings to the people around her, so she took the initiative to change the subject.

"Let's talk about you? I'm quite interested in you too."

"Are you... very interested in me?"

Talia suddenly felt inexplicably flustered. Although she knew that Igris didn't mean anything by it, the feeling of trying to pry into her heart still made her feel a little apprehensive, and also a little... joyful.

But what does she have to talk about? She could try telling Igris about her past, about that heavy history and trivial tragedies, and make everyone unhappy.

You can also talk about poetry and drama, which she is particularly interested in, as well as some dry and boring topics like classical literature and her thoughts on the world that might put you to sleep.

So she's actually not very good at chatting, and doesn't really know what to say to Igris.

Does Talia have someone she likes?

"So it was about love...?"

Talia felt that she might have overcomplicated things; after all, conversations between friends should be casual.

Are they... friends?

Talia glanced furtively at Igris's somewhat curious gaze, then shook her head reluctantly.

"Not yet... and probably never will be, right? It's rare for someone like me to meet people with similar interests, plus the things I have..."

Her smile became somewhat heavy, but she still forced a smile, presenting her beautiful and sunny side to Igris, hoping that Igris wouldn't feel sad for her.

Igris would not do that, because even so, she felt that Talia had the potential to pursue her own happiness, which was quite different from her own situation.

"Actually, I just don't really know what to talk about, so let's just pretend I didn't say anything?"

Talia nodded sullenly, then bent down again, using the book in her hand to cover her face.

But an unprecedented curiosity compelled her to raise her eyes again and peer through the edge of the book at the beautiful girl who was engrossed in opening the novel in her hands.

The bright sunlight shone on her, making her golden hair shine brilliantly, full of divine beauty, making people unable to help but cast their gazes at her, and once again marveling at her stunningly beautiful appearance.

Like a legendary work of art sculpted by the gods, it was difficult to find any flaws on Talia's face. It seemed that all the beauty and wonder of the world paled in comparison to her and became meaningless.

She slowly raised her hand, resting it on her cheek, languidly and casually looking at the unknown suspense novel in her hand, making one want to take out a paintbrush and permanently capture this beauty on a portrait.

Talia's gaze grew increasingly intense; no amount of adjectives or praise could adequately describe her current feelings, nor could they capture the captivating charm emanating from the person before her.