She is not an investigator.

Igris chuckled and placed something on the table in front of them.

Shaltie paused for a moment, then noticed what was on the table.

It's a piece of candy.

"So...Igris, are you cured?"

"of course."

Shaltie later learned a lot from Nolan, including about the relationship between Igris and Nolan.

Of course, Nolan didn't actually tell his daughter everything; he just told her that the two of them were good friends.

Sharti didn't doubt anything about this, after all, in her mind, Igris was friends with many people.

"And this piece of candy..."

"Here you go. I remember you quite like eating this, don't you?"

"……Thanks."

Shaltie silently unwrapped the hard candy on the table and popped it into her mouth.

The sweet taste spreads in the mouth, accompanied by a slight sourness and fruity flavor.

The taste was indeed very impressive.

Sharti glanced furtively at Igris in front of him, only to find that Igris was staring at him with a rather irritating smile on her face.

It's like... watching a pet.

Xia Erti inexplicably started to blush, probably because Nolan had told her not to eat candy given to her by strangers.

At least subconsciously, she no longer felt that Igris was an outsider.

"Oh, right, right... I'm here on important business this time too."

"Oh? Tell me?"

"Um…"

Charles nodded, shaking off his inexplicable emotions, and began to speak seriously.

“I have a friend who has recently encountered some strange things, very strange things. It started because she was going home late and she always felt like someone was following her, but when she got home, she didn’t find anyone there… But since then, she has found that all sorts of strange things are happening around her.”

"It sounds like... we should go see the police."

"Hey, let me finish!"

Igris shrugged, indicating that she should continue.

"Anyway, I went to see it later, but... after all, I'm a witch, so I know a little about the occult and such... but guess what I found?"

"what?"

Snapped--

Shalt gently patted the table and said solemnly.

"I've discovered it, an extremely strong spiritual reaction! In other words, she's encountered a ghost!"

"Oh."

"Your performance was so bland—"

The Bizarre Stage Play – The Book of Secrets: Chapter Two, An Even More Precious Reward

"After all, you shouldn't hire a detective to handle this kind of thing, right? You can call the police, you can go to Nolan, and if you're not satisfied with any of those, I can introduce you to a friend of mine who is an exorcist and priest. He happens to be in this city as well."

Igris refers to Constantine, who has now returned to his old profession as an exorcist.

"But aren't you very capable too? You can definitely be of help, right?"

"Being able to help doesn't mean I'll help; having the ability doesn't mean I'll do it. There are more professional people who can handle these kinds of things, and I won't do something that's both strenuous and thankless."

Igris shook her head and decisively refused Sharti. Dealing with such paranormal events was neither her forte nor something she wanted to do.

After all, in her opinion, it was better to go find her lost pet cat than to do that.

At least her pet cat lets her rub its belly.

"Ugh..."

Sharti probably hadn't expected Igris to refuse, but being rejected was actually quite reasonable, although she still didn't want to give up just like that.

After all, if she could get involved in this matter, she probably wouldn't need to continue taking extra classes at the academy.

Nolan will understand her.

And she couldn't really ask someone else to handle this, otherwise she would be completely left behind.

Perhaps only Igris would agree to have a little witch as a burden by her side.

"Is it about payment...? Of course I'll pay you, not only me, but my friend will too..."

"No, I'm not that short of money right now."

The current Igris is not the Igris of the past. She is no longer the money-grubbing person she once was. The savings in her wallet are enough to satisfy her.

After becoming wealthy, one can speak with much more confidence.

"No, I don't lack money..."

Aside from money, Sharti really didn't know what other way to persuade Igris, but if she were really asked to leave like this, she would definitely not agree to it under any circumstances.

"Indeed, I'm not short of money. Of course, it's not that I'm completely against accepting this commission, provided that you can offer... conditions that satisfy me."

Igris gently rested her chin on her hand and smiled as she looked at the little witch in front of her.

Her fingers tapped repeatedly on the table in front of her, making Sharti increasingly nervous.

In the world of witches, Sharty is still a student. A large part of her savings comes from the allowance Nolan gives her, and she doesn't have anything else worth mentioning.

…except for her raven.

"No...it's my friend, I can't give it to you..."

"...I don't want your pet, oh no... familiar. Besides, I wouldn't need it anyway. Think about it again."

Upon hearing that Igris didn't want her raven, Sharti was also plunged into deep confusion.

Besides these, is there anything else about her worth mentioning?

Sharti glanced at Igris furtively, only to find that the smile in Igris' eyes was growing deeper and deeper, and that her gaze was constantly scrutinizing him.

"..."

No way...

This is something we absolutely cannot agree to.

Is there no other way...?

"Ugh... Igris... you can't do this..."

"Why not? This is legal and compliant, after all, I didn't force anyone. If you don't want to, you don't have to entrust me with this."

"I...I'll tell Mom..."

"Even if Nolan were here, my statement would not change."

Igris narrowed her eyes slightly, her delighted smile almost impossible to conceal.

Sharti rarely saw Igris so happy, but the thought of why made Sharti even more unhappy.

"How about this... we agree that if you really help me complete this request... then, as long as it's not too outrageous..."

What are you saying...?

Igris suddenly realized that her joke might have been misunderstood.

After all, you could tell from the little witch's flushed face that she had definitely misunderstood.

She's technically still a minor witch... but she seems to know quite a lot about this...?

“I don’t lack money, so the reward I need should be something more precious that money can’t buy… I don’t care about the specific value of those things, but I hope it’s a reward you’ve prepared with care… Do you understand?”

"Eh...so, you don't want...you want me?"

“I’ll tell Nolan about this and let her ask you where you learned this nonsense.”

Please, please don't do that!

Now that things were cleared up, Sharti no longer needed to worry about the payment.

For some reason... she felt a strange sense of disappointment.

Perhaps... she was quite curious whether Igris would actually do such a thing.

I don't think so, do I?

"In short, that's it. I've accepted your request, but you'd better prepare your payment in advance, otherwise... I will definitely tell Nolan about this."

"Ugh..."

I was threatened.

If Nolan finds out about this, Sharty's classes will probably double again.

"Oh, right..."

However, having said that, we must also clarify why we specifically sought out Igris for her commission.

"Also, if you're really going to launch an investigation... you'll definitely need an assistant, right? I can be your assistant temporarily, how about that?"

"Is this what you really want? You don't want to go to school?"

Igris looked with interest at Sharti, who guiltily looked away, and shook her head with amusement.

"Come again tomorrow, and we'll set off together then."

"You agreed?"

"of course."

Igris silently took a piece of candy out of her pocket and popped it into her mouth.

“After all, studying at school is indeed quite tedious, and I do need an assistant. Nolan won’t blame me for taking you with me, as it will be a valuable learning experience for you.”