nownovels Chapter 188 Farewell on a Moonlit Night
Chapter 188 Farewell on a Moonlit Night
Chapter 188 Farewell on a Moonlit Night
The peacock died.
He died without dignity—the grudge from the knife wound inflicted on him at the Seven Seas Pharmacy was finally avenged, but Gebu didn't feel particularly happy.
The man in the golden mask showed no mercy to his subordinates, abandoning her before she could even finish speaking.
The wizard is being so friendly to him now because he has expectations of Geb—if Geb becomes useless to him one day, he will probably suffer the same fate.
However, it doesn't matter. We can use each other. As long as we can become stronger, even if we turn against each other in the end, Gebu won't hold it against him.
A statement made by the golden mask piqued Geb's interest: "To create a future that belongs to all wizards."
This guy has a grand vision, playing a long game—but Geb doesn't care too much. Right now, he can't worry about such a grand goal. Raising his wizard level is the priority; everything else is secondary.
Back in reality, Geb walked up to Goliath, waved his hand in front of the orc's eyes to confirm that the golden mask was gone, and said, "Big guy, do you remember what happened just now?"
"What's wrong? Ah, I think I just took a nap—I heard a voice that sounded like an old man telling me to rest well and not to think about anything—oh, right."
The orc scratched his ear, pulled something out of his ear canal, and placed it in Geb's hand.
"The old man asked me to give this to you, saying it's a gift for you."
Gebu looked closely and saw that the object in his hand was an unremarkable brass ring.
Huh? What is this thing?
Gebu took the ring in his hand and examined it. There were no inscriptions on the surface of the jewelry; from any angle, it was just an ordinary ring.
This...is a keepsake I received?
Gebu thought for a moment, then held the ring in his hand and played with it for a while. Just as he was about to put it away, the ring suddenly made a soft sound.
Whoosh.
A gold coin that had fallen to the ground was sucked into the magical vortex formed by the ring.
Hey, a storage ring?!
Gebu looked at his belongings scattered all over the ground with nowhere to be stored, and instantly felt a surge of warmth in his chest, almost bringing tears to his eyes.
This is truly a timely help, so thoughtful! You are my little angel, Golden Mask.
The dimensional bag shattered, but in return, it became a storage ring.
Yvette's jaw nearly dropped when she saw that Geb had suddenly acquired a magical ring.
"What on earth happened—Gebu, how can you use magic—Goliath, how can you use magic too?? Who am I? Where am I?!"
Geb patted the half-elf on the shoulder.
"You really want to know?" The halfling gave the dark-skinned elf a subtle look.
"I—well, I won't ask anymore." Yvette thought for a moment and wisely shut her mouth. "Let's hurry up and leave, or the Hundred Flowers Guard will arrive and things will get messy."
"What exactly is the Hundred Flowers Guard?"
"The mercenaries in Martina City who are responsible for maintaining order in the city—they're quite troublesome."
"Okay, give me a minute, I'll get ready."
Ivite nodded and turned to treat Goliath's arrow wound. It has to be said that this big oaf's physical fitness is really amazing. He was pierced through the stomach by a crossbow bolt and lost a lot of blood, but it didn't hit any vital organs.
Gebu put on the storage ring, spent a minute vacuuming up the debris on the ground, and then, after thinking for a moment, stored the Book of Sand inside as well.
The man with the golden mask probably wouldn't try to scam me with the ring; if I wanted the book, he could have taken it earlier.
After finishing their preparations, Gebu and the other two took advantage of the fire to escape from the maze. Just as they ran out of the entrance, they ran into a group of Faceless Guards.
"Magnubier's—"
"It's that halfling!"
The guards surrounded the three. Goliath, sword in hand, was about to strike when Yvette stopped him. The half-elf gave Geb a look, and Geb, understanding instantly, stepped forward.
"That was terrifying! Thank goodness you came, hurry and put out the fire!"
Gebu recognized several familiar faces in the group (in terms of voice and build). They were the same people who had escorted Peacock and himself to the garden maze and were then attacked and knocked unconscious by the vulture.
"What happened?"
"I've been kidnapped by that despicable peacock—that guy betrayed Her Highness the Princess!" Gebu said to the faceless leader. "Quickly, take me to see the princess! Everyone else, get out of here and put out the fire! Don't just stand around!"
The guard captain, having been interrupted by Gebu, turned to the faceless men who had just been knocked unconscious and then regained consciousness, nodded, and said, "We were attacked by that old elf's subordinates."
"So that's how it is—who are these two guys?" The captain looked at Yvette and Goliath, one big and one small, with suspicion.
"They were innocent bystanders, but luckily I bumped into them, otherwise I wouldn't have had a chance to escape," Geb fabricated a lie on the spot. Yvette immediately put on her acting skills, feigning shyness and saying, "It was just a rendezvous, a rendezvous."
"A rendezvous in a maze in the middle of the night?" the captain asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What do you mean by 'secret rendezvous'? I'm here to fight," the big guy said with a silly grin.
"Oh right—field battle—night battle? Night battle in the field?" Yvette quickly tried to cover up, pinching Goliath's stomach. "Hey, you rascal, why are you being so explicit?"
"The bones are showing, the intestines are showing, and the head is showing too—my greatsword is thirsting for blood—"
"Shut up, you big idiot." Yvette glared at Goliath, then smiled sweetly at the captain, secretly gesturing with her hand to indicate a length of over thirty centimeters, and mouthed:
It's huge.
"Oh—oh!" Seeing the woman's reaction, the captain suddenly understood something.
"Never mind all that nonsense—the princess is waiting to see me, you all hurry up and put out the fire!" Gebu interrupted the group, not wanting to give the captain time to think, and said bluntly.
Seeing the fire growing larger, the Faceless Man quickly ordered his men to put it out, then he and two others escorted and escorted Geb into the palace. Meanwhile, Yvette took the opportunity to lead Goliath away from everyone's sight.
After midnight, few customers remained on the dance floor, and the music shifted to soothing yet provocative folk songs from a foreign land.
After the revelry, people dispersed in twos and threes in the hall and the surrounding private booths, whispering sweet nothings, the scent of incense, tobacco, perfume, and sweat mingling into a decadent aroma. The low moans of men and women filled the gaps in the music.
Hey, you behind the curtain, what are you doing?
That chubby thing—is it a sheep? You're playing pretty big, bro.
"It really is a place of pleasure," Gebu thought.
After passing through the first, second, and third floors, Gebu was led by the Faceless Ones to the open-air garden on the fourth floor.
It was now well past midnight. Under the bright moon, firelight flickered in the garden, the flames spreading rapidly along the winding, labyrinthine shape. Viewed from the high-rise, it didn't appear frightening at all; instead, it possessed a unique, destructive beauty.
Two women sat facing each other, drinking tea, while a servant lit a stove for them to warm themselves. The warm and exquisite scene contrasted sharply with the life-or-death struggle that Gebu had just experienced.
"Gebu!"
The swordswoman turned to look at the dust-covered half-man, calling out with a mixture of worry and joy. She put down her cup, rushed to Gebu's side, and examined him closely. Seeing that the half-man had no wounds and was not missing any limbs, she felt somewhat relieved.
"Peacock—" the swordswoman asked softly.
"It's all done." Geb winked at her.
Princess Hilian calmly crushed some dried rose petals and sprinkled them over her hot tea. She glanced at the two reunited and gave a slight smile.
"Your Highness, unfortunately, that Peacock had planned this all along, setting up an ambush in the garden—as you can see, the maze was reduced to ashes, and she escaped with the book in the chaos." Gebu bowed to the princess, speaking respectfully and regretfully, "I did everything I could to prevent this from happening, but alas, I am merely an unarmed halfling—"
"So, the peacock betrayed me, is that all you're saying?" the princess said calmly. "An old elf who can barely walk, stealing the sky right under the guards' noses?"
"Someone is helping her."
"Who?"
Gebu looked hesitant and glanced at the servant beside him.
"Say it. You can pretend they don't exist."
"—It was a witch hunter. The witch hunter helped her," Geb whispered, as if revealing some taboo.
"Gascoine." Princess Shirley frowned slightly. "You know what your accusations mean."
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"I am not accusing anyone, Your Highness. I am merely stating what I know—I do not wish to be involved in any events beyond my control, and God help me, I would never dare to falsely accuse my master's servant. However, I also do not have the courage to lie to you."
"I see you've got quite the nerve," Shirley chuckled. "Do you think I should trust you?"
The halfling thought for a moment and replied, "If I had any ulterior motives, I would have no reason to come back to you. It would be the peacock standing here making accusations, not me."
"I think you're reluctant to part with your companion," Shirley smiled at the swordswoman, her raised eyebrows lowering. "I don't blame you. Doffin was a kind companion, and we shared a wonderful time. It's a pity she didn't want to stay by my side—I'm a little jealous of you, Geb."
Gebu paused for a moment, then glanced at the female knight. She looked somewhat puzzled, but not particularly nervous. It seemed that nothing unpleasant had happened between her and the princess.
"What happened between you and her?" Gebu asked via text message.
"Just chatting and drinking tea—to be honest, it's a bit boring," the swordswoman replied.
"You're bored, but the princess's jaw is practically dropping from her mouth!" Gebu quipped. It was hard to say whether to call this guy oblivious or incredibly determined.
However, it's good that nothing happened, otherwise Gebu would feel quite guilty.
"Dove is a loyal and courageous companion. I feel very fortunate to travel with her," Gebu continued, following the princess's words. "If you allow us to continue our journey, I will help you find the peacock and retrieve the lost book."
"Hmph." The princess snorted softly, took a sip of her flower tea, and then turned her gaze to the garden burning fiercely downstairs.
Crackling sound.
"I love that garden. It was designed and planted by the court gardeners of Qianhu, a birthday gift to me—"
Where the clergy of the Holy Church have trod, beautiful things are often reduced to ashes.
For the heir to the Rose Kingdom, these words were somewhat blasphemous. Gebu thought about it and made no comment.
"How boring," the princess muttered to herself. She stopped looking at the burning labyrinth, picked up her teacup, and poured the tea into the charcoal stove.
"I'm tired. That's enough for tonight's dance." Shirley waved her hand wearily. "Let's go."
"Yes," Gebu quickly agreed, relieved. "I will help you find the peacock and the book—"
"Forget it, I don't want to hear about that old elf and that book anymore. This night has been very disappointing."
The princess rose listlessly, put her hands behind her back, and stood on the edge of the rooftop.
"I never want to see you again, Half-Greek. Do you understand?"
"—Understood, Your Highness. Let's pretend tonight's events never happened."
"You know that. Guys who spoil my fun usually don't end up well."
Gebu couldn't wait to leave this troublesome place; this princess's temper was really hard to please.
Hilian turned her head to the side, the firelight from downstairs illuminating the edges of her face. The princess's gaze was languid and indifferent, sweeping over Geb and landing on Dofen.
"I hope to see you again sometime in the future, Doveennis of Thuns."
"Uh... thank you for your hospitality." Dove bowed politely. "I look forward to seeing you again, though I don't know when."
"Promise me you won't let the flame in your heart go out," the woman said softly, a barely perceptible smile playing on her lips.
Gebu was puzzled. What had the two women been talking about while he was away?
Never mind, it's not important—it seems the princess gave Dove face and didn't investigate further, letting him go. Only a fool would pry; getting away as quickly as possible is the best course of action.
Dove lowered his head and gave a mumbled reply.
Hilian turned her face away, ignoring the two of them. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Geb quickly led Doffin away from the Silver Moon Corridor.
The two hurriedly boarded the carriage, and as they watched the Silver Moon Corridor disappear into the distance, they both breathed a sigh of relief.
Two groups of soldiers and carriages in rose-gold armor passed each other, their iron-tipped boots clanging on the stone pavement.
The soldiers' magnificent armor gleamed in the moonlight—this was the Hundred Flowers Guardian that Yvette had mentioned.
These people paid no attention to the carriage that Gebu and the Swordswoman were riding in, and headed towards the Silver Moon Corridor.
"I don't know if it was putting out a fire or saving the emperor—thankfully we left in time," Gebu said thankfully. These people seemed much more difficult to deal with than the Faceless Men.
The swordswoman couldn't wait to untie her corset and took several deep breaths.
"I'm so suffocating!"
"You were just chatting and having tea, but I almost lost my life," Gebu complained.
"Whose fault is it? He brought it on himself." The swordswoman rolled her eyes at the half-man. "You still haven't told me what exactly happened in that garden?"
"I'll tell you later—now, we need to go somewhere."
"Where are you going?" The woman with the sword became more alert. "I didn't bring any weapons."
"No need," Gebu smiled. "We've done something big for the Rat King; we need to go collect our reward from their people."
The halfling tapped on the carriage window and said to the driver, "Please take us to the 'Dandelion Dance' theater."