Xingyue, is Xiaokai also considered Kai?

"?"

Bavan Shi, wearing a hood, looked puzzled.

"What I mean is, it's rare to see someone care so much about someone, so please keep up the good work."

Paracelsus shrugged slightly, then sat down by the window, quietly reading and drinking water.

"that....."

Feeling like she had been forgotten, the fairy girl raised her hand, pointed to her throat, and gestured a few times.

It's as if to say: Aren't you going to perform some kind of surgery on me?

"Haha, you don't really want anyone other than Favia to come into contact with you, do you? I can tell. And with your abilities, if you're willing, even if it's Favia's first time, it would be very easy to cure her."

As a magician who heals the sick and saves lives, the knowledgeable Paracelsus could naturally tell that Bavan Shi's recently healed facial injuries, his restored beautiful hair, and the lingering injury on his throat were all caused by human intervention.

After all, in this day and age, there are many children living in immense hardship. The difficult treatment they receive makes them withdrawn, insecure, or irritable, and the hardships of life cause their young children to show signs of severe skin damage.

In Paracelsus's view, this fairy girl named Bawan Xi, although she currently displays beautiful eyes, upon closer inspection, like many unfortunate people he has seen, has a deep gaze that is both dark and empty, as if to say that she has experienced countless sorrows.

"Can......"

Rejected, Bawan Shi trembled and clutched the hem of her skirt tightly with both hands.

She was probably panicked and trembling because she felt that she had failed to do what Favia had asked her to do.

Seeing the fairy girl like this, even Paracelsus couldn't help but sigh.

He felt that taking her to find Favia was the best course of action; otherwise, if things continued like this, it wouldn't be surprising if she suddenly started crying.

Just as Paracelsus was thinking this.

Paracelsus.

With this stern shout, the door opened.

This time, a young man with flowing blue hair came.

The serious-looking young man, who was about the same age as Paracelsus, looked past the trembling Bavan Shi in the room and onto Paracelsus.

"Hmm, isn't Favia here? Wasn't he supposed to be back today?"

"It's Machiri. Favia just went out."

Upon hearing this, the young man named "Machiri" cracked his knuckles with some regret.

"I see. Well, it's not too late to ask him about it later."

What do you want to ask?

“Paraxelsus, as you know, your actions over the years have long displeased the three noble families. For your safety, how about joining the Minerals Department? El-Melloi is at odds with the three noble families and should be able to protect you.”

Paracelsus, born as the eldest son of a family of magicians, should have stood on the side of the three noble families, just like his family. However, his actions in recent years have aroused dissatisfaction. Even his own family has been advising him not to work for ordinary people who have nothing to do with him, but he insists on doing so without hesitation.

The blue-haired youth's full name is Machiri Zorgen. At present, he is a noble and respectable idealist. Although he and Paracelsus have different ideas, they both believe that the other is a respectable magician.

"Haha, El-Melloi, I see. So that monarch has come too?"

"this--"

Machiri paused subconsciously. Although he had indeed come on someone's behalf, he genuinely hoped that Paracelsus could be protected.

"Even so, this is the result of my careful consideration. It is the best choice for you and Favia to join the Minerals Department to which El-Melloi belongs."

A voice answered Paracelsus in place of Machiri; it was a young but very composed female voice.

Why would careful consideration lead to this conclusion?

Magic is an incredible technique that bewitches people, an unbelievable method that utilizes supernatural beings and mysterious powers.

Although this is how modernity is defined 500 years from now, in 1515, knowledge was magic.

In the world before the advent of science, some discoveries and inventions were the power and value of magicians, and were absolutely not allowed to be leaked.

In many ancient civilizations, magicians are said to have kept their skills secret and not revealed them to the outside world.

Ultimately, it's about concealing oneself from the public eye, dwelling in the shadows of history and society, and continuously accumulating knowledge and honing skills.

Magicians survived in this way, and Paracelsus, who attempted to use magic to achieve real medical change, was undoubtedly a traitor from the association's perspective.

“You’re a genius, and so is Favia. The two of you are valuable enough to make Elmero invest.”

A few seconds after she finished speaking, a pair of bright blondes appeared behind the door.

Then, the fair skin reminiscent of a ceramic doll appeared, and the blonde girl adjusted her skirt with extremely graceful movements.

The current monarch of El-Melloi, and the leader of the Minerals Department.

As is well known, the twelve departments of the Clock Tower later split into three major factions: aristocracy, neutrality, and people's livelihood.

However, due to various previous developments, the Clock Tower is now divided into two major factions, El-Melloi and the three noble families, except for the Heritage Department established by the Clock Tower Dean, which can remain neutral.

Five of the twelve departments—zoology, basic biology, archaeology, curses, and minerals—belong to El-Melloi, thus putting them in opposition to the six departments led by the three great noble families.

The blonde girl peeked out and glanced at the trembling Dibawan Xi.

"Oh, is this your guest?"

Bawan Shi didn't know what to say, so she could only obediently lower her eyes.

"They were brought by Favia."

"......oh?"

At that moment, the blonde girl who had come to visit extended her fair fingers.

"Indeed, if you take off the hood, you should look quite cute at first glance, which is great."

She lightly touched the fairy girl's hood and then sat down cheerfully.

"...In that case, could you please take Bavan Shi to find Favia? He shouldn't have gone very far yet."

Paracelsus nodded to Bavan Shi as he spoke, indicating that there was no problem.

Given the fairy girl's current personality, she naturally wouldn't resist, so she was led out by Machiri.

Then, sounds began to rise again in the silent room.

"I'm a little confused. Given your status, there's no need for you to come see me in person."

"This morning, through the monarchical council, the Clock Tower unanimously agreed to return ownership of all the religious courts of the Church of the Holy See located on the three islands."

"So, does that mean the clock tower has compromised with the church?"

Paracelsus was somewhat surprised by the blonde girl's words.

He also knew that since the French and the three noble families kidnapped the Pope, the Church had lost face and its sphere of influence had been greatly reduced.

It's truly a miracle that it was returned to us.

“Liansol is pushing us too hard. If we don’t return it as he demands, and if he really abandons the defenses of Italy and Rome, allowing the Ottoman Empire to take this opportunity to invade across the sea, then the Clock Tower won’t have an easy time facing the sorcerer.”

Spellcasting belongs to a school of thought outside of Western European magic and Eastern magic, primarily centered in Central Asia, and is now a mainstream organization in the Ottoman Empire.

Paracelsus naturally understood her meaning. In the past, the association probably would not have sent it back so easily, because successive popes had the belief that they would fight to the death to protect Rome and the surrounding area. So this also relieved the pressure on the newly emerging sorcery organization from Central Asia that came from the Clock Tower.

Although sorcery is a system of magic, most magicians in Europe look down on sorcerers. For example, the oil tycoon in the Middle East used sorcery, so the European magic aristocracy looked down on him.

However, since the end of the Catholic Church in 1414, the various monarchs of the Clock Tower found that the subsequent popes were all increasingly depraved, seemingly obsessed with plundering money and engaging in infighting, as if they were recklessly squandering their wealth. If the Ottoman Empire had not risen, the Clock Tower might have already been dancing with joy after completely destroying its old rival. But the problem is that the Ottoman Empire rose during this period.

It's important to understand that while magic is indeed very convenient for ordinary humans, it's already a blessing that magicians can still actively research it now that the Age of Gods has ended. Moreover, most magicians' physical abilities are limited, and the secluded environment of magic is what allows the mystical to continue to survive. Apart from a few exceptionally gifted magicians, most real magicians are actually just as physically capable as ordinary people.

Therefore, the Ottoman Empire not only threatened European countries on a secular level, but also threatened the position of the Clock Tower's apparent leader in Western magic with its sorcery organization on a magical level.

Therefore, neither the three noble families nor El-Melloi dared to gamble on whether the current 'infamous' Pope would really abandon his 'ancestral teachings' in a fit of anger and flee to Spain with the Church, leading to Italy being conquered by the Ottoman Empire. With this concern, they thought that since those religious inquisitions were of little use to them anyway, returning them would be fine.

“I see. After all, in general, both the Association and the Church currently have a common enemy,” Paracelsus said with a smile. “But then the three nobles used this as an excuse to target El-Melloi at the meeting, right? So that’s why you wanted to recruit Favia, right?”

"exactly."

Ultimately, while these religious inquisitions were of no use to the Clock Tower, they were still a matter of prestige. To return them in this way, a good reason was needed. El-Melloi had long been entangled with the Church because of Emperor Charles, which gave the three noble families a reason to make a fuss.

El-Melloi had a bitter pill to swallow. After all, the Church now looked down on them because of the Avignon Prison. They were naturally struggling to cope with the three powerful noble families. Although the monarchies of the two factions were not far apart, the most important subjects were still in the hands of the three noble families.

"However, I'm curious, why do you insist on having Favia join El-Melloi?"

Paracelsus raised a long-standing question: although he knew that Favia had a good talent for magic, his personality could be described as 'detached', he did not participate in any research, and only listened to lectures, so why could he attract the attention of the monarch standing at the top of the clock tower?

After all, geniuses are not uncommon in the Clock Tower.

“Fine, I might as well tell you…” the blonde girl said with a wry smile. “He might be a bloodline of El-Melloi that was lost outside, and a bloodline that is even purer than mine.”

205: I'd rather you be arrogant and domineering than obedient (4k)

That night, Bavan Shi saw Favia like this.

In a shipyard on the banks of the River Thames in the city of London—

Beside Favia lay human tools, such as a layout ruler, ink line, and straight ruler. He put his finger to his lips, tilted his head to think, and then gestured or verbally instructed the workers beside him to mark and draw lines on the boards based on the design sketch in his hand.

Sometimes, he would even change into coarse cloth clothes and wear a straw hat, and he would personally use an ink line and a ruler to accurately draw the lines that needed to be cut on the board, and then carefully saw along the lines with a saw. He was very patient and focused with each cut, and his movements were smooth and powerful, as if he were one with these tools.

In the 16th century, before the advent of advanced computer-aided design tools, manual operation required extremely high precision and experience.

Meanwhile, the workers were already busy with their respective tasks: some were sawing wood, some were hammering nails, some were measuring, and some were marking lines. The air was filled with the smell of wood and paint, as well as the mist from the Thames River in the distance, making one feel as if they were in a world full of life and vitality.

Although the fairy girl didn't quite understand, she still stared intently at it.

"What is this...?"

Bawan Shi's mutterings naturally reached the ears of Machiri, who had led her there.

"Shipbuilding, but according to what Favia said before, it can also mean participating in the production process."

"Aren't we going up...?"

"...No, you can go ahead. I've already told everyone, no one will stop you. I'll take my leave now."

The fairy girl turned around and glanced at Machiri, who was about to leave, and noticed that he looked a little strange.

Although he looked as serious as ever, his back view seemed to convey a sense of loss.

“Machiri, do you know what the biggest difference is between us and them?”

This is a conversation that took place a few years ago when Machiri came to see Favia, at the wool factory.

Machiri was initially puzzled as to why Favia didn't focus on magic research or studies, but he turned the question back on her.

At that moment, Favia sat in front of the spinning wheel, skillfully spinning wool fibers into fine yarn. Her fingers flew between the wheels of the spinning wheel and the yarn, conversing as she meticulously completed each step of the process.

During this period, London's woolen factories were usually located on the outskirts of the city or near rivers to facilitate access to water and raw materials.

First, the collected wool is soaked in a special water tank and stirred with long sticks to remove impurities and dirt. Then, the wool is transferred to the combing area, where combers use large combs to comb the wool into uniform fiber bundles, preparing it for spinning.

In wool production, the cooperation between various trades is crucial. From wool washing to spinning, weaving, dyeing and finishing, each link needs to be closely connected. In fact, much of the production requires the joint efforts of many people. In addition to the workers on the production line, there are many auxiliary workers, such as porters, cleaners, and maintenance workers.

"The biggest difference—"

The blue-haired youth seemed slightly confused. He hesitated for a moment before giving a stammering reply.

"Yes, they are pitiful, so we should help them."

"Well, there's more."

Favia nodded and continued to ask.

"But if we don't compare their family backgrounds, but rather compare them to you as a person, what's the difference?"

"Um......"

Machiri didn't know how to answer.

Machiri Zorgen, later known as Zouken Matou, was a friend of Paracelsus and Leonardo da Vinci at this time. He was an idealist with lofty aspirations. As time passed, his mentality did not change, and he did not begin to hate his increasingly corrupt soul and decaying body and his own lack of accomplishments, thus forgetting his ideals in his spirit.

Perhaps, just like the fateful conversation about Paracelsus: the Machiri he knew was a noble idealist, but if he were to meet Zouken Matou from the 21st century, he would absolutely not recognize or admit that it was the same person.

"No need to rush to answer, Marchie. You came here without any air of superiority. I know you have no intention of looking down on them. Poor and wretched people are everywhere in London—no, they are always the majority, no matter where you go in the world."

Nutritious food, unsanitary living conditions, and the daily grind of working relentlessly, with no hope of saving their energy for tomorrow, meant they had to work tirelessly just to survive. How much lack of freedom did they have to endure on a daily basis?

They lack everything in life, even money for proper medical treatment, let alone painting and music. For them, even ensuring basic sustenance for a day is an unattainable luxury. Clearly, they are the ones carrying the weight of this world; they are the truly remarkable people.

The silver-haired boy's voice wasn't loud, and was even drowned out by the sound of the spinning machine at one point, but the blue-haired youth listened attentively without interrupting.