Miss Witch’s Devotion Has Gone… Twisted-Chapter 19: Jingxin: Your Filial Piety Has Turned to Something Different

"Mirrorheart, what's actually happening to me right now?"
Naclis lay on the bed with one arm resting on her forehead. Just a few minutes had passed and she already felt much better. This strange situation was something she had never heard of before.
"You've fallen in love."
The nightingale was placed in a padded box. Mirrorheart skillfully applied medicine to the nightingale while feeding it food and water, casually answering Naclis's question at the same time.
"What? With who?"
Hearing this, Naclis abruptly sat up. She had seen this word in fairy tale books before, but she couldn't understand why it related to her. Shouldn't that belong to princes and princesses?
"Simply put, your filial devotion toward our master has transformed... well, from a princess's love for her king into a princess's love for her prince."
Mirrorheart settled the nightingale comfortably, explaining in the simplest way Naclis could understand. Upon hearing this, Naclis instantly flushed red and buried her head under the blankets.
Her reaction was within Mirrorheart's expectations. Mirrorheart disliked beating around the bush and always spoke directly.
At the same time, Mirrorheart could understand why Naclis would develop such feelings. When Naclis met Loren, she had already experienced certain things and formed her own perspectives. Then encountering someone like Loren who treated her with complete sincerity—it was natural for feelings of admiration to arise.
Perhaps Naclis's affection for Loren had existed for a while, but she only suddenly became aware of it when she learned about Mirrorheart and Loren's relationship that day.
"So what should I do next?"
Because she was buried under the blankets, Naclis's voice wasn't very clear.
"Simple. While our master is sleeping... well... due to his inability to harbor impure thoughts toward witches, you'll probably need to flexibly utilize your 'eloquence' at that time. Then like this and like that, this way and that way..."
"Ah!"
Listening to Mirrorheart's words, the blankets covering Naclis's head seemed to emit steam. She screamed, interrupting Mirrorheart from continuing. The scream even startled the nightingale that had just begun feeling drowsy.
Out of embarrassment, Naclis didn't speak further, pretending to sleep under the covers until Loren returned.
"Has Naclis gone to sleep? What illness did she have?"
As he spoke, Loren washed his hands in the washroom, then pressed Anna into the washroom to force her to wash her hands too. Loren preferred cleanliness.
"Nothing serious. She's already better."
Only after hearing Mirrorheart's response did Loren feel relieved.
"That's good. How's the nightingale doing?"
Loren had previously worked in wildlife conservation, so he cared about animals and had some understanding of them.
"I fed it and applied medicine. Everything is fine."
"What did you feed it?"
Loren walked over to Mirrorheart's side to check on the nightingale. Indeed, its condition was good, breathing steadily.
"Bread and crackers."
"But shouldn't nightingales eat insects? I was just about to have someone catch some grasshoppers..."
After Loren finished speaking, the nightingale's body suddenly trembled, as if startled.
"It might be a mutation. It only eats these."
With so many strange things in this world, Loren didn't pay too much attention to a bird's dietary preferences, although based on his wildlife conservation experience, he was certain that nightingales and seagulls had different diets...
"Alright then. Good night. We'll be staying in the Royal Capital for a while. I'll start getting busy tomorrow..."
Of course, Loren's busyness was for his own benefit. He didn't need to deliver gifts personally, and most of his potion brewing was for himself. If even one out of ten potion batches was for the King, that would already count as Loren being generous.
In the game, there were three money-burning playstyles: the Enchanted Bullets path, the Potion path, and the Magic Scrolls path. Currently, Loren only pursued one path. Since he had already come to the Royal Capital, Loren planned to explore the remaining two paths as well. Potions were manageable, but scrolls were somewhat troublesome.
Anyway, he wasn't short on money. Even if the money ran out, Loren had plenty of methods to earn it back.
The rooms the King prepared for them were luxurious—four bedrooms and two living rooms, ensuring everyone had their own space. However, when it came time to sleep, Anna climbed onto Loren's bed.
"You sleep with Naclis every day, shouldn't you sleep with me too?"
"Could you please finish your sentences properly?"
Loren couldn't help but knock on Anna's head again. Sometimes Loren suspected Anna deliberately said such misleading things.
But obviously, Anna didn't care about these matters. Hugging Loren's arm, she drifted into dreamland.
The night wasn't very peaceful. Anna had stomach pain in the middle of the night, causing Loren to sleep poorly too. Early the next morning, Loren was awakened by knocking on the door.
"Who is it, knocking so early in the morning?"
The attendant outside glanced at his watch. He was quite certain it was noon, but still respectfully apologized to Loren:
"Very sorry to disturb you, Master Mentor. His Majesty the King needs to see you about something. We've already prepared everything you requested."
"Alright then. I'll go see His Majesty first. You all help deliver the gifts according to the list."
Loren yawned, patted the attendant's shoulder, then walked out of the room. He remembered these attendants—they were the same group who helped him move his luggage yesterday.
As Loren left, Mirrorheart handed them the list and organized treasures. Since they were sent by the King and had accepted Loren's money yesterday, Loren still trusted them.
...
The King indeed gave Loren plenty of face, receiving him directly in the royal bedchamber without checking him, which allowed Loren to bring in both submachine guns he was carrying, the magazines covering his clothes, and the circle of high explosives around his waist.
Upon seeing Loren, the King first drew the symbol of the God of Bountiful Harvest over his chest, greeting Loren:
"Master Mentor, everything you requested has been prepared. Gedlan's finest potion-making equipment is all at the Gedlan Royal Magic Academy, and the materials have been sent there as well. You may proceed directly to the academy."
Even from halfway across the kingdom, Loren could hear the King's calculations ringing. If Loren brewed potions at the Gedlan Royal Magic Academy, it could be simplified to "Loren is at the academy." After promoting this, people would subconsciously assume Loren was a teacher there, and eventually nobles from major nations might even send their children to study there.
However, Loren had embezzled ninety-five percent of the potion materials he requested. The King borrowing his reputation for promotion seemed somewhat reasonable, so Loren didn't resist too much.
"Fine."
Only after Loren agreed did the King breathe a sigh of relief:
"When will you depart? I'll have someone escort you."
"After finishing the meal."
With Anna around, cooking was no small task. Loren still intended to save Mirrorheart some trouble.
"By the way, Master Mentor, you only have one maid. Can she handle all the work?"
Just as Loren was about to turn and leave, the King called him back again. Indeed, he made a valid point. With Anna around, Mirrorheart stayed busy every day, especially since she would find time amidst her busy schedule to pull some stunt for Loren—that blood-stained bedsheet had already been thrown away by Loren.
However, Loren had quite a few secrets, making it unsuitable to hire new servants. At the very least, Mirrorheart was trustworthy. Even disregarding her identity as the mentor from the original work, Mirrorheart was some kind of unknown creature summoned by Loren into reality who had followed him for ten years. That identity alone made her trustworthy.
And since the King suddenly brought this up, it meant he had other intentions—most likely wanting to send someone to monitor Loren. In the end, Loren refused the King's proposal.