As An Antique Shop Owner, It's Only Reasonable That I Know A Bit Of Magic - Chapter 110

At the small harbor that night, after gaining her trust, Ciprian explained his identity and purpose in detail.

He told Rowan about the situation she was currently facing.

“It sounds complicated, but I understand what you mean.”
“So, you’re saying my bloodline family has a contract with a demon, and that demon now has its eyes on me, right?”
“That’s correct.”

Ciprian was somewhat surprised by her calmness.
The conversation was going almost too smoothly; he had expected it to take more time.
But now, it seemed that wasn’t necessary.
It was probably because Rowan’s emotions had recently stabilized, no longer so tense, allowing them to communicate peacefully.

“Haven’t you ever been curious about your origins?”
“I don’t know… I grew up normally until now… Things just kept happening one after another. God, my mind feels like a tangled mess right now.”

The overload of information made Rowan instinctively raise a hand to her forehead.
“You aren’t the first person to ask me to investigate my background…”
“Who else was?” Ciprian immediately seized on the key information.
“When I was at the hospital, I unintentionally heard my colleagues talking about a very famous exorcist. So, a few days ago, I went to visit him.”
“With his help, I haven’t had any more incidents of telekinetically hurting people.”

Rowan’s explanation left Ciprian somewhat incredulous.
“You mean he erased your contract with Lasher?”
Lasher was the demon who had contracted with the Mayfair family.
He was powerful and very dangerous.
Their organization took him very seriously.

“I’m not too sure about that. But it feels more like shielding than erasing.”
Rowan took out two yellow talismans from inside her clothing.
“These are the anti-evil items he sold me. One suppresses my power, and the other prevents other external entities from influencing my emotions…”
“Can I… touch them?”

Ciprian became eager almost immediately, but he quickly noticed Rowan’s strange look and began to explain.
“My special ability is that I can view memories related to people connected to an item by touching it.”
Rowan’s gaze swept over his hands, which were clad in black leather gloves.
“I’m very curious about this exorcist you mentioned.”
“Why?”
“Lasher’s power is immense. Although he can’t leave the Mayfair ancestral home for now, he can still influence the outside.”
“That includes, but isn’t limited to, causing people to dream, see illusions… Anyone who can shield Lasher’s power must be extraordinary.”
Ciprian honestly shared his assessment with Rowan.
“I must investigate whether this individual is a malevolent entity with ulterior motives.”
“Within the organization, I’ve been assigned to handle matters related to you, Rowan.”

Rowan didn’t immediately hand over the talismans.
Although she was communicating peacefully with him, that was the extent of it.
These two talismans were her current guarantee of a peaceful life; she couldn’t just let anyone touch them so easily.

Ulterior motives?
Compared to his stalking behavior, the other guy was openly running a business in his shop, seeming much more normal than them.

“I don’t think that’s necessary. If you really want to know more, go find him directly.”
Seeing Rowan’s unwillingness to cooperate, Ciprian had no choice.
“Alright, could you please give me the address?”
“Go to the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He’s in the only antique shop on the street.”

Just then, Rowan noticed Ciprian’s expression change.
Following his gaze, she saw that the yellow talismans in her hand seemed to have developed fine cracks.
“…It seems I need to go with you.”
—————————

The two took a car and quickly arrived at their destination.
Pushing the door open, they didn’t see anyone inside.
“It seems Master Fan Su might be busy with something in the back. Let’s wait a while,” Rowan suggested.

While waiting, Ciprian didn’t idle around; he began looking around.
Judging by the shop’s setup, it indeed seemed like a legitimate business.
The various antiques filled with Eastern flair made him quite admiring.

However, Ciprian soon sensed a rather unusual presence.
A chilling atmosphere washed over him in waves.
Following the source, he saw a deck of Tarot cards placed on the counter.
Curious, he moved closer to examine them.

The Tarot cards were covered in hand-drawn, ferocious patterns. Just one glance made Ciprian’s face change.
This deck was seriously problematic!
It absolutely must not be touched!

Right at that moment, a voice came from not far away.
“That’s a personal item, not for sale. No need to look.”
Ciprian looked up and saw a young man approaching.
It was none other than Su Fan.

“Can I ask why the talismans you sold me last time are having issues?” Rowan, upon seeing Su Fan, couldn’t hold back and got straight to the point.
“That’s normal.”
“Talismans aren’t permanent. The power contained within them is finite. It gradually depletes with use.”
“When the power is completely exhausted, they become ineffective and shatter.”
“I haven’t used them…” Rowan frowned.
“But they are working constantly.”
“The one who contracted with your family is constantly searching for your trace, trying to invade your consciousness.”
“If you didn’t have the Calming Heart Talisman, do you think you could still live and work peacefully?”
“So, ten thousand dollars only treats the symptoms, not the root cause?” Rowan asked, feeling a bit cheated.
Did that mean from now on she had to come here every so often to replenish her talismans?

“Usually, if a house is haunted, putting one up can solve it. The Evil Warding Talisman can deal with most evil spirits.”
“Having this situation just means the case you’re involved in is particularly unique.”
As Su Fan spoke, he looked towards Ciprian.
“Here to buy antiques?”
“No, I came specifically to visit you…”
“So it’s for exorcism.” Su Fan understood.
“Talismans are five thousand dollars each. Exorcism depends on the situation, starting at thirty thousand dollars, no upper limit.”
“POS machine accepted. No credit, no haggling.”

Before Ciprian could even state his purpose, he heard Su Fan fluently list his services.
Smooth talk, calm demeanor—clearly not his first time doing something like this.

Seeing this, Ciprian suddenly felt his previous suspicions were a bit absurd.
This guy was simply performing paid exorcisms. His relationship with Rowan was purely transactional.

Wait, doesn’t that mean they could potentially gain a powerful ally?
A lightbulb went off in Ciprian’s head, and he nodded before Rowan could speak.
“That’s right. We are indeed here to request an exorcism. We hope you can accompany us to New Orleans.”
“Ciprian?” Rowan looked at him, puzzled.
This was completely different from what they had discussed.
Ciprian didn’t speak, just gave her a “we’ll talk later” look.

Neither of them saw the slight smile that tugged at the corner of Su Fan’s mouth.
Plan successful.
——————

Not long after, a figure pushed the shop door open and strode out quickly.
Rowan’s face was full of anger.
Ciprian followed closely behind.

After walking some distance, Rowan turned around sharply.
“What do you mean by deciding this suddenly without discussing it with me?”
“You didn’t express any of this intention from the start!”
“It was my fault for inviting him on my own initiative, but I have my considerations.”

Ciprian quickly tried to calm Rowan and began explaining his thoughts.
The Talamasca organization had actually been investigating and handling matters related to the Mayfair family for a long time.
The successive witches of the Mayfair family, the heads of the household, had all been connected to them.
Many members of the organization had been sacrificed for this family over the years.
That alone showed how dangerous the demon Lasher was.

Ciprian saw value in Su Fan’s ability to temporarily block Lasher. He wanted to try, using Su Fan’s help, to seal Lasher away or at least weaken his power as much as possible.
“This isn’t just your matter anymore. It’s my matter too.”
“So, I’ll cover the cost.”
Ciprian tried to persuade her gently and shared more information.
“Your birth mother is in New Orleans right now. Don’t you want to meet her?”
“……”

Rowan was stunned, a flicker of hesitation showing in her expression.
Her adoptive mother had been very good to her, but she indeed held complex feelings towards the birth mother she had never met.
Why had she been abandoned back then? Did she not love her at all, or were there difficult circumstances…
It would be false to say she didn’t want to know.

Rowan took a deep breath, calming her emotions, then spoke.
“I need some time to think it over properly… Let me handle my adoptive mother’s situation appropriately first…”
“Alright…” Seeing her state, Ciprian didn’t press further.

The two parted on unhappy terms.