Mystic Overlord: Reading Gives Strength
Chapter 297 - 296: Beneath the Sunset Ocean

Chapter 297: Chapter 296: Beneath the Sunset Ocean

Time rolled on to noon.

The unexpected encounter had finally come to a complete end.

The spell previously cast by Catherine had eventually dissipated, releasing the trapped investigators and the witch back to shore.

Even the beast-shaped chunks of flesh scattered in the shallow sea had been painstakingly found by the investigators, one by one, and arranged in order on dry land where the seawater wouldn’t reach.

Ronald, to avoid any suspicion, chose not to dive in to retrieve the fragments.

He had stayed on the shore throughout the process.

On one hand, to watch over the badly injured investigator, and on the other, to prevent the likewise wounded witch from escaping.

Thus, the able investigators continued their work, and by the time the last piece was fished out, it was time for afternoon tea.

Walking past the neatly aligned pieces of beast-shaped flesh,

Clark looked at the results before him, then nodded with satisfaction.

His last spell had been a resounding success.

For the witch Catherine, attached to the beastly flesh, had been precisely severed by him and sank into the waters along with it.

He then took two steps towards the piece containing Catherine’s body.

Clark squatted down and began a careful examination of the corpse of the original grimoire’s holder from the "Primordial Witches’ Council."

Yes.

Catherine was dead.

And it was a particularly definitive death.

Not just from the continuous extreme spellcasting and fighting, but as soon as Clark’s dangerous spell cut her from the beast-flesh, it immediately began eroding her body.

Then, immersed in seawater...

In short, the grimoire holder was as dead as dead could be.

However, maintaining his actions, the satisfaction on Clark’s face faded quickly.

In the end, he began to search the witch’s body roughly, so much so that it took on a pitiful state due to his movements.

"Where’s the grimoire?"

"Where is this woman’s grimoire?"

He muttered with a troubled tone.

As he kept searching, a few more seconds slipped by.

Eventually, the empty-handed Clark turned to look at Ronald, his tone unmistakably tense:

"Mr... Mr. Ronald."

"You previously searched this person’s body..."

Seeing Clark’s reaction, Ronald immediately knew the situation.

He stretched out his empty hands to show Clark, and then continued to explain:

"When I searched her, I felt something like a small booklet at her waist, and it was then that the spell was activated."

...

Hearing Ronald’s response, Clark instantly turned back, once more searching the corpse hopefully.

It wasn’t just at the waist.

After searching every conceivable hiding place, he still couldn’t find a booklet-shaped object. The original grimoire that had been on Catherine during the battle was now not even a scrap of paper.

Of course.

Clark remembered the last piece of beast-flesh that had escaped.

It can’t be that the thing took off with the grimoire, right?

If that’s the case, even if Her Majesty herself arrived at the seashore, it would be impossible to fish it out of the Sunken Sea!

Struggling with the thought, Clark softly recited the lie detector spell:

"Volume eleven, page two hundred sixty, entry six."

Standing up from in front of the body, he looked around and called out loudly:

"Ladies and gentlemen, did any of you see a booklet-like book today?"

"That would be Catherine’s grimoire!"

The others immediately replied:

"No."

"Didn’t see it."

...

The lie detector told Clark that his companions had not deceived him.

The original text of the "First Witch Council" was indeed not on this beach at that moment.

After bowing his head in contemplation for a moment, he finally made his last decision:

"Everyone, we cannot afford any mistakes in this matter."

"We will continue to stay here, and Hermes, you must return to the city immediately, inform the department of the situation here, and have them notify the professional fishermen from the Maritime Bureau to come over."

"Yes!"

An investigator immediately responded and then ran towards Springs without looking back.

As he watched the figure of his subordinate disappear at the end of his field of vision,

Clark turned and walked over to Ronald, nodding apologetically:

"Mr. Ronald, I’m sorry."

"Even though I know you are not a suspect, please help to maintain the scene here."

"Right now, I simply can’t ensure the security of the scene."

Ronald shrugged nonchalantly:

"No problem, it’s only right."

"..."

After answering Clark’s questions, Ronald still felt somewhat uneasy in his heart.

Although it was only a few kilometers away from the previous location, now, in the afternoon, the great witch who had set out with him in the morning had yet to arrive at this spot.

Considering the extravagant range of her enemy detection abilities,

An unpleasant thought immediately emerged in Ronald’s mind.

Firstly, it was impossible that the great witch had engaged in battle.

Otherwise, the clash that left behind the original tome’s holder would not have eluded Ronald and the others from such a distance.

So then...

The great witch, holding the original text of "Introduction to Fluid Mechanics,"

Could her true strength keep up with the beastly flesh that had plunged into the Sinking Ocean?

At the very least, with such scouting capabilities,

Within this range, the great witch would undoubtedly be able to pinpoint the enemy’s location.

And then...

Thinking this far, Ronald chuckled bitterly to himself.

"Heh—"

If that were the case,

He could only marvel at her experience and cunning.

Finding a clean spot, he sat down and began to gaze into the vast expanse of the Sinking Ocean in front of him.

Upon the silent ocean, the tide rhythmically advanced and receded.

Sunlight scattered across the undulating shore, casting a serene reflection akin to a leisurely afternoon—if one didn’t dive underwater, no one could tell that this was where a battle had previously taken place.

Whether it was the rocks, corpses, or traces of Spell,

All had been thoroughly submerged by the seawater.

So...

Should he share his suspicions with the investigator nearby?

Thinking this, Ronald turned his head to look at the investigator next to him.

Although these few people had no need to work at the moment, in terms of professionalism, the investigators were very solid indeed.

Taking advantage of the fact that support from Springs had not yet arrived,

They had already surrounded the severely injured witch and started the bureau’s method of extraction.

The intermittent screams that came through proved that the witch was indeed in considerable discomfort.

"Still..."

"Forget it..."

Shaking his head gently, Ronald leaned back and squinted his eyes.

After all, he was just a knowledge consultant, assigned to ensure that the great witch caused no trouble within the city.

Given that she had imparted a great deal of knowledge to him,

It was better not to speak out and complicate matters at such a time.