Chapter 8: The True Colors Revealed.

Why had the mask spell stopped working?

Alice refused to give up. She pressed her hand against her chest and tried again. No matter how much magic power she poured in, the spell was like a jammed machine. No amount of forceful power could make it respond. Pushing harder might even cause the “circuit” to burn out further.

Hiss hiss.

Only when faint white smoke began rising from her chest did Alice finally stop. She pulled open her collar and looked down. On her smooth, delicate skin was a fist-sized pale red spell sticker shaped like a rose.

“Shady merchant, you promised a ten-year warranty. It’s only the fifth year and it’s already broken.”

Alice closed her collar, her beautiful eyes slightly furrowed.

She left the living room and walked toward the room opposite the bathroom. It was the bedroom, containing only an empty bed frame and a wardrobe.

Creak.

Pushing open the wardrobe door, Alice pressed her legs together, covered her skirt, and squatted down. She found a small iron box that had been gathering dust for a long time and pried it open with ease.

There weren’t many things inside the box: a group photo of four girls taken at a mall, a bag of broken Sky River sapphires, and a small, delicate pink portable makeup case.

Alice reached out and picked up the group photo, holding it on her lap and gently wiping it with her sleeve. Her blue eyes flickered with shifting emotions as she murmured.

“So much time has already passed.”

After gazing at the photo for a while, Alice took out the portable makeup case, sealed the iron box again, and put it back into the wardrobe for storage.

Sitting at the dining table in the living room, she gently opened the makeup case. The narrow mirror reflected Alice’s expressionless face. She took a deep breath, her pink lips quickly reciting a complex and obscure incantation while raising her hand to inject faint blue magic power into the case.

“Ally of the Wise King Court of Syslian, reveal the true world of knowledge.”

As the incantation and magic power continued to pour into the makeup case, the mirror surface that had been reflecting Alice’s face gradually changed. A static-like buzzing sound similar to a satellite phone rang out. The other side connected, and the mirror turned into a pure black background.

“Oh my! It’s a rare guest. Lady Alice has finally remembered to contact me. Are you thinking of joining the Wise King Court? I’ve been keeping the vice position open for you.”

A female voice with a strong sales pitch came from the other end, full of inducement.

However, if Alice hadn’t met the owner of that voice and learned about the Wise King Court, she might have actually believed this olive branch.

“Shady merchant, the item you sold me has a problem within the warranty period.”

Alice replied coldly, her eyes filled with dissatisfaction.

“Eh? The item I sold you has a problem? Did you make a mistake? Products from the Wise King Court are always premium. I would never ruin my own reputation! Especially something used so intimately by Lady Alice.”

“First, let me correct you. The mask spell is not my intimate item. It’s merely a tool to conceal my identity. Second, I use it every day, so I couldn’t possibly be mistaken about how to use it. This is a quality issue with your product.”

“You insist it’s our problem. Why don’t you let me take a look first? The mask spell is still on Lady Alice’s body, right?”

“How do I show it to you?”

“Point the mirror at yourself, Lady Alice.”

“Like this?”

Alice lifted the makeup case and pointed the mirror toward her chest, though it was still separated by a layer of clothing.

“Mm, I can only see Lady Alice’s clothes. Why don’t you put the makeup case inside so I can observe carefully? Hehe.”

“Hm?”

Alice wasn’t foolish. Sensing the shady merchant’s intention, she directly placed the makeup case on the table, stood up, turned her back to the mirror, and personally reached into her clothes to peel off the mask spell.

“Foul! Lady Alice is cheating! I can’t see the problem if it’s not stuck on the body surface! Turn around quickly! I haven’t seen it yet!”

“Showing your true colors at last.”

Alice turned her head. Her blue eyes stared at the mirror surface of the makeup case as if looking at trash, as though she wanted to see through the person on the other end.

“Damn it… so close! Sigh!” A particularly regretful sigh came from the other side.

“Look. What exactly is the problem? I need to use it tonight.” Alice had already removed the mask spell and placed it on the table. She held up the makeup case to scan it.

Although reluctant, the shady merchant got to work seriously and quickly identified the issue.

“The magic circuit is burned out. It’s the result of sustained magic power overload. The entire core line is severely aged. Eh? How did this happen? The designed lifespan was clearly twenty years.”

“Shady merchant, what do you have to say now? If this isn’t a quality problem, then what is it?”

Alice asked with a cold face. If she couldn’t transform back into Xia Hui tonight, how was she supposed to face her sister? And how would she continue her live-streaming career?

“Mm… the environment Lady Alice is in… Oh! The human world. No wonder the lifespan is greatly shortened. The city you’re in is Weaving Sunny City, right? It’s one of the cities with very low magic concentration. The mask spell has limited resistance to low-magic environments. If you lived in a city with high atmospheric magic concentration, the designed lifespan could be extended.”

“Shady merchant, didn’t you solemnly promise back then that no matter where I went, the mask spell would hold up? Now you’re telling me it can’t. Huh?”

Alice held back her anger. The shady merchant quickly replied.

“Lady Alice, after all, it was tested based on the environment of the Law World. It was my oversight. I’m sorry, okay?”

“Then what do I do tonight? Can I repair the mask spell myself?”

“No, it’s damaged to that extent. It’s completely scrapped. As for your sister, you can just make up some excuse to brush her off!”

“…” Alice covered her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. But considering the need to see her sister in the future, she had no choice but to ask the shady merchant to make another mask. “How long will it take to make a new one? When can it be delivered to my home?”

“Well, restoring your previous appearance and voice data is quite difficult… This isn’t a matter of money. It’s a lack of soul motivation.”

The shady merchant suddenly changed her tone, hinting to Alice that she wanted something special.

“What do you want? A powerful disaster beast core, or something I have in the Law World bank? Just say it.”

Alice’s need for Xia Hui’s appearance was necessary, so she could only negotiate with the shady merchant.

“It’s great that you’re willing to offer options. Actually, I just want a little encouragement from you. I’ve recently learned about the human world’s network technology and got myself a 【phone】 and something called a 【SIM card】. If you’re willing to send me a few photos, I’ll have the motivation.”

“Photos… but I refuse to take any specified shots.”

Alice frowned. She had seen the shady merchant’s true intentions more than once.

“Mm… daily life photos of Lady Alice would also work. But depending on how wonderful the photos you provide are, it will also affect the efficiency of me making the mask spell.”

The shady merchant openly stated her attitude. The photos she wanted from Alice were not ordinary.

This guy is still the same as before!

Alice silently clenched her fist, but she could only agree.

“Fine. I can send you photos.”

“Then let’s add each other as contacts! My number is…”

The shady merchant reported her number. Alice entered it on her phone and searched. She found an account with a very eye-catching name.

【Master of the Wise King Court — Feibisi Official】