Library Tea Party
"I understand your request, but I'm not quite clear, Warden. What benefit do you gain from doing this?" The Witch Dailey sat in her chair, holding a cup of red tea.
"I don't fully grasp your motives either," the necromancer Arsena poured tea into a cup with an expressionless face. "In the end, killing that mafia doesn't provide any substantial help to you, only pure risk. Silaine's revenge target is Carmilla, not him. Even if you help her avenge, she won't find solace as long as she refuses to accept the truth."
In the prison library's reading room, Aiden, Dailey, and Arsena held a tea party.
As part of the exchange for managing the prison, Aiden allowed these two to spend two hours each day continuing their forbidden studies in this library.
For this discussion, he decided to walk to the library himself during this particular segment of events.
"I'll figure out a different way to deal with Silaine's issue," Aiden took the tea Arsena poured, "Is my motive that crucial? Do I need to report my actions to you?"
Dailey and Arsena exchanged glances, then spoke simultaneously to Aiden:
"I'm just concerned about you!" Dailey looked genuinely worried.
"I'm afraid you might go astray in the gutter," Arsena, still expressionless, stated.
Aiden paused, while holding the tea cup near his lips, and silently looking at the two.
"While I have great confidence in your abilities, Warden, it's not impossible for you to get hit by a stray bullet if you're not focused," Dailey shrugged, "If you die, it's quite a hassle for us. No one can guarantee the next warden would be willing to make a deal like this with us."
"If you were to die out there, I'd find it regrettable. You've inherited Evangeline body modification abilities, and I'm very interested in your physique. Even if you have to die, I'd prefer your body for research..." Arsena emotionlessly adjusted her glasses.
Aiden couldn't hold back anymore, placing the tea cup down. "Enough! Why do I feel like you two are taking this opportunity to curse me? I commissioned you to ensure my safety. Okay, admittedly, this task might not have any tangible benefits. But, well..."
"But?" Dailey prompted.
"Killing that mafia would make me feel pretty good, that's all," Aiden raised his tea cup and took a sip.
Dailey thought for a moment and nodding thoughtfully. "Well, that sounds like a decent reason... But why not just take me along? I can directly help you eliminate the target."
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Aiden rolled his eyes. "That would just land me in prison."
"It wouldn't be bad, Warden. You could come in and spend time with us. Maybe we could even share a room..." Dailey teased.
"Who wants to come in and spend time with you two? Besides, I'm a man. Even if I went in, it would be to the men's prison," Aiden retorted.
"No need to worry about that. Actually, among the witches I know from the 'Witch Gathering,' many can perform long-term gender-changing spells. I've even had the experience..." Dailey said earnestly.
"Experienced? So, are you originally a man or a woman?" Arsena looked at Dailey, her perpetually expressionless face showing a hint of wariness.
"Well, about that..."
"Don't stray off-topic, you two!" Aiden suddenly reacted, knocking on the table with his fist. "I'm asking if you can provide support for me remotely!"
"Of course, no problem," Dailey and Arsena answered simultaneously.
"It would have been better if you were straightforward from the beginning," Aiden crossed his arms. "So, what's the casting distance you can achieve?"
For his plan, he wanted the two to support him without appearing in person. To execute this plan, he needed to know their maximum casting distance.
With his knowledge of black magic, he knew that the power and precision of offensive magic often inversely correlate with casting distance.
"You don't need to worry about that. I can stay directly in the prison to support you, no matter where you go," Arsena calmly replied. "I have no desire to leave this place."
"I would like to wander outside the prison, but considering the risk of discovery, I'll stay here to support you," Dailey added.
"How do we proceed?" Aiden asked.
The old district area and here had a considerable distance, far beyond the limits of most black magic.
Those capable of casting spells from such a distance were usually involved in reconnaissance-type spells, like Dailey familiars or pre-set demonic contracts.
"Using summoning spells should do the trick. I can summon a shadow demon to attach to your shadow and then transfer complete control to you. It should last about three hours. If you force demons beyond that time, they might retaliate, though," Dailey proposed a solution.
"I can create a guardian spirit attached to you, allowing you to command it to perform necromancy for a short time. There's no time limit, but if the spirit's magical energy is depleted, it will disappear on its own," Arsena calmly explained.
"So, if I get possessed by these summoned entities, I can utilize your abilities?" Aiden grasped the idea.
"Considering your own considerable strength, with our abilities added, ensuring your safety and even directly crushing that mafia stronghold would be a piece of cake," Dailey encouraged with a happy expression. "You can try it out first, and if you're not satisfied, we'll make it right!"
"That sounds quite promising," Aiden nodded.
He didn't intend to use Dailey and Arsena's power directly to confront the mafia. Still, to execute a risky plan, even if he was stubborn, he needed to prepare to make a clean getaway. After all, if he showed off without any hidden cards, he could easily end up in a predicament.
"So, what do you want as compensation?" he brought up the topic of the exchange.
"I'd like you to check out any new pastries on 7th Street. Anything in the baking category is fine," Dailey smiled.
"For me, I hope you can buy some books that are hard to come by in prison..."
"What kind of hard-to-come-by books?" Aiden raised his tea cup and asked.
"Novels with themes of romantic relationships between beautiful boys, as long as they're newly released this year," Arsena said slowly.
Aiden's hand trembled, and tea splashed onto his face.
After a while, he looked at Arsena. "So, you're into that kind of thing?"
Arsena nodded in silence.