Chapter 454: 16. The White Hime-Miko
London, England. With a long whistle, a huge ship entered the harbor.
In an unnoticed corner, a shadow quietly jumped off the ship, looked around confusedly, then chose a direction and disappeared into the crowd.
Alright, Sora admitted he had really messed up this time. He couldn't take the plane, was chased by annoying police for half a day, so in frustration, he decided to swim to Sardinia by himself!
The result? Haha, after swimming for half a day, he got completely lost.
That wasn't all. Sora's bad luck continued as he encountered a sea storm! A huge wave hit him and threw him far away. Even Sora thought he might die at sea.
He had dreamed of conquering the sea, but now it was just embarrassing—youthful recklessness was to blame…
Well, in the end, Sora's luck was still decent. He encountered a cargo ship heading to London. Although it was still some distance from his destination, if he reached London, Sardinia wouldn't be far.
So, Sora shamelessly became a stowaway. Sigh…
…
Hampstead, one of London's few upscale residential streets. In one corner stood a mansion resembling an ancient castle.
A vast courtyard, a four-story building, and four towers… luxurious indeed!
There were many such grand residences nearby, so this mansion didn't stand out much. But its owner was a single woman; the others living there were her servants… which was unusual.
Alice Louise, daughter of Duke Goddodin.
Commonly called Princess Alice, former chairwoman of the Greenwich Assembly, now a special advisor.
This was the mansion owner's title. She was happily enjoying the scenery in the sunny courtyard, a scarf draped over her shoulders, sitting in her exclusive lounge chair.
At 24, the duke's daughter, known as the "White Hime-Miko," had many strengths.
In appearance, she had platinum blonde hair, admired beauty since childhood, and an excellent figure. But now she was using her inner talents.
Focusing her mind, she extended her sensing tendrils.
Starting from around her, gradually covering the entire house, then expanding outward—
Due to her physical condition, Princess Alice rarely left her mansion. But this didn't stop her from understanding her surroundings and the world. Soon, her mental power covered the entire city of London!
"Now… what interesting things will I discover today?"
With a hint of anticipation, Princess Alice closed her eyes and began searching the city covered by her mental power. At some point, this had become her pastime after meals.
"Hehe… found something interesting!"
At a certain moment, Princess Alice lying on the lounge chair suddenly opened her eyes. A gleam full of wisdom and spirit flashed through her pair of azure pupils, and a cute yet playful smile appeared on her beautiful face.
In the princess's perception, at this moment on the streets of the harbor, there was a desperate-looking young boy. On his back, he carried something like a sword and a worn-out stone tablet.
What surprised the princess immensely was that the stone tablet was actually a magic guidebook, which seemed to seal some powerful magical creature inside. Moreover, the boy himself was no ordinary person; he emitted a magical aura that even Princess Alice admired!
When her spiritual power touched his, the boy instinctively glanced back. Although he quickly returned to his indifferent expression, Alice was certain he had noticed her!
If someone had told Princess Alice before that someone could detect her spiritual probing, she would have politely smiled and shaken her head without a word. But now, such a person had actually appeared before her!
"Interesting person," was Princess Alice's first impression of the boy.
What happened next made Princess Alice even more intrigued.
It was that boy with the strong magical aura who was now lying outside a restaurant window, looking pitifully at the people inside enjoying their lunch, his expression full of endless longing…
This was a fascinating person, completely different from the nobles, magicians, knights, and others Alice had known before. Although they had not met, the princess had already formed an opinion about the boy in her heart.
"Mary."
Softly parting her pink lips, the princess's voice was as elegant and melodious as her beauty, with a gentle softness like moonlight that was soothing just to hear.
"Princess, please give your orders."
A beautiful and dignified maid appeared beside the princess, responding respectfully.
"Go prepare some food and bring it here. Hmm, make plenty. Then you may all rest."
Without the usual arrogance of nobles, Princess Alice exuded a natural and noble aura. Even to her own maids, her tone was gentle and kind.
"Yes, Princess."
The maid, well trained and familiar with the princess's habits, sensed something unusual about her today but never questioned any orders. She respectfully withdrew to carry out the princess's instructions.
"Now, let me see who exactly you are, mysterious and interesting guest from afar!"
A strange gleam of expectation flashed in her eyes. Princess Alice murmured to herself, then gently closed her eyes again.
…
"I'm so hungry!!!"
Listening to the rumbling of his own stomach, the desperate Sora howled to the sky.
Besides the broken stone tablet and his sword, almost everything else he had was lost to the sea. He couldn't remember how many meals he had missed. Sora was starving…
"Tch, are all these foreigners so cold and heartless? Damn soap operas!"
Glancing at the shop owner who had glared at him countless times with disgust, Sora pouted and sulkily walked away from the window. The kind uncles and aunties that the desperate protagonists in TV dramas always meet were clearly lies!
"This won't do. Maybe I should quietly hack a few ATMs while no one's looking…"
Rubbing his chin, Sora muttered to himself.
"Hmm… ATMs?"
For some reason, the thought of hacking ATMs felt strangely familiar, as if he had done it before, though he couldn't recall when exactly… (Please recall the plot of Apocalypse Academy, sweat…)
"If you're hungry, you can come to me!"
Suddenly, while Sora was still hesitating about hacking ATMs, a beautiful, melodious, and slightly playful girl's voice sounded directly in his mind.
Yes, it wasn't heard by his ears but transmitted mentally straight into his brain!
"Hah… it's you again! You're not the legendary black witch who sells children, are you?"
Though it was the first time hearing the voice, Sora sensed the spiritual wave for the second time and replied with a face full of disbelief.
"Selling children, black witch? Hehehe, you're really interesting!"
"Alice Louise, that's my name. If you want to eat a delicious lunch, come to me. I look forward to your arrival, mysterious guest from afar."
The girl's beautiful and melodious voice sounded again in his mind, soft and elegant, with a small playful tone yet full of natural nobility, making one feel as if the girl was a princess secretly sneaking out of the palace.
Well, of course, Sora didn't yet know that the other party was indeed a princess, a real princess!
"Alice? I think I heard that name from Miss Kaoru before."
"Ah… can't remember! Whatever, if someone's treating, I'm not going to refuse. Let's eat!"
Scratching his head, Sora was sure he had heard the name before but couldn't recall where. Not wanting to bother with it, since someone was offering food, he decided to go and fill his stomach first.
Humming a little tune, Sora headed in the direction indicated by the voice in his mind…