Chapter 670

Lyra looked at the figure standing on the giant tree branch—that version of herself—and suddenly felt as if she were in a dream.

No, this *was* a dream.

That Lyra, with her cold expression and face full of hatred, once again drew the string of her hunting bow, causing the arrow to be wreathed in crackling silvery-white electric light.

Lu Mian was just about to "Teleport" behind that Lyra on the tree to see if he could control her in this near-real dream and ask about what she "knew," when he felt the surroundings shake and split into one scene after another.

Those scenes overlapped and instantly fell apart.

Lu Mian, Lyra, and Camus opened their eyes at the same time, seeing the crimson moonlight shining in from outside the window and hearing the howls of beasts coming from the primeval jungle.

They were still on the second floor of that house belonging to "Siso."

Camus sat up abruptly and looked to the side, seeing that the mosquito-repellent candle had burned out, with only a tiny bit left, and seeing many charred mosquito corpses scattered around.

"We're awake? We've returned to reality?" Camus couldn't be entirely certain for a moment.

Lu Mian leaned against a wooden pillar and laughed:

"That should be the case, but I can't tell you that we've escaped the dream one hundred percent.

"This needs to be confirmed through various details in the time to come."

The simplest method was to check if Ludwig was there and what state he was in.

Of course, asking Termiboros could also yield the correct answer, but that guy might not answer, and even if he did, it might not be the truth.

Camus nodded and looked at Lyra, who hadn't spoken since waking up, and said cautiously:

"We seemed to have seen another you on the edge of the dream."

Another Lyra with completely different emotions and states.

Lyra was silent for several seconds before saying:

"I saw her too.

"She expressed very much, very much like those intense emotions I mentioned before that were asleep in my heart..."

Lu Mian pressed down on the golden straw hat on his head, stood up using only the strength of his legs, and said thoughtfully:

"That dream will suck away the intense emotions within Tizamo Town and evolve them into corresponding dream people—more extreme, more emotional dream people?"

"So, the longer one stays in Tizamo Town, the more docile they become..." Camus agreed with Louis Berry's speculation, and Lyra nodded slowly as well.

Mirror people... dream people... how many more weird things are hidden in the darkness of this world? Lu Mian pinched his temples and walked toward the stairs leading to the ground floor.

"Tonight's attempt ends here." He left this sentence behind lightly.

Camus and Lyra followed closely behind, confirming along the way through details like the return of the livestock and the movements inside the house that they had indeed escaped the dream.

They waited until Lu Mian entered the Briou Hotel before stopping and hiding in the shadows diagonally opposite.

…………

Pushing open the door to the suite, Lu Mian saw Ludwig sitting in front of a dining table filled with food, stuffing a roasted banana into his mouth, while his other hand held a child's fork, reaching into a specialty salad made from palm hearts.

Seeing this scene, Lu Mian was completely certain that this was not a dream.

He glanced at Lu Jianuo, who was dozing off nearby, and asked Ludwig as if making small talk:

"Do you dream when you sleep?"

"Yes." Ludwig replied with a single word amidst his busy eating.

Lu Mian nodded as if deep in thought:

"Have you had any dreams these past few days?"

After gnawing away half of a roasted river fish, bones and all, Ludwig took the time to answer:

"Yes."

"What kind of dreams did you have?" Lu Mian took off his golden straw hat and stuffed it back into the "Traveler's Bag."

Ludwig answered vaguely:

"Eat, eat, eat..."

As expected, one shouldn't hold too high of an expectation... Lu Mian gave a self-deprecating smile and looked at Lu Jianuo:

"What kind of dreams have you had?"

Is there something wrong with the dreams here? Lu Jianuo had originally wanted to ask this, but chose to answer honestly:

"All kinds of dreams..."

He paused and added:

"Maybe it's because I haven't been out alone for too long, haha, and haven't had a chance to vent, so I dream of women from time to time, dream of that kind of thing, but in the end, I often find that something is wrong. Either the object changes and becomes a monster, or the very alluring lady grows full of tree burls, wheat ears, mushrooms... and then, and then I wake up in a fright."

As an Intis person, he wasn't shy about mentioning this aspect.

According to the psychology taught by Anthony, this is caused by a combination of long-term repressed desire and the fear of the dangers in Tizamo Town not being effectively vented... Lu Mian evaluated in his heart and said with a smile:

"You can go to the Giant Python Bar here alone and take a look, find a local lady, or try to flirt with the young ladies and maids in the plantations outside. As long as you prepare food for Ludwig, he will take care of himself."

Lu Jianuo was initially heart-struck, then remembered the dangers that might be lurking outside.

Lu Mian turned his body and, while walking toward the master bedroom, left a sentence behind with a smile:

"Of course, by the time you're done playing, whether those ladies turn into monsters or whether abnormalities appear, I wouldn't know."

"..." Lu Jianuo imagined such a scene and couldn't help but shiver.

He glanced at Ludwig and still felt it was safer to stay by the little boy's side.

Before the other party finished eating all the stored food, he was safe!

…………

In the shadows diagonally opposite the Briou Hotel.

Lyra monitored for a while in silence, then suddenly spoke:

"Since the General's Guard won't have any new reinforcements, and only Deputy Captain Lei Yasa will be coming for the Patrol Force, why don't you just leave Tizamo Town? Why must you stay here and try to solve the 'Dream Festival' problem?"

As long as one escapes Matani State, the General's Guard and the Patrol Force wouldn't have the resources to track and punish them; at most, they'd issue a wanted poster, and they couldn't even offer a high bounty.

Camus scratched his fluffy brown hair and said with a wry smile:

"You know, my previous sequence was 'Sheriff,' and it combined perfectly with the daily work of the Patrol Force, which leads me to still be unable to help but want to maintain the order of Matani State and the lives of the people here.

"Potions don't just bring power; they also influence you in many aspects."

He let out a breath and added:

"Besides, Captain Lei Yasa is arriving soon, and I have to help him. What is owed to others must always be repaid."

A reason Camus didn't mention was that he still had a lot of confidence in the great adventurer Louis Berry and the "Fool" Church behind him, feeling that with the former present, the whole matter should be dangerous but ultimately safe.

Lyra didn't press further and quietly continued to watch the Briou Hotel diagonally ahead.

Camus glanced at her:

"What about you? Why don't you just take Loban, Maxlo, and the others and leave Tizamo Town now? If the three of you form a squad, there are plenty of local generals willing to take you in."

Lyra stared at the suite where Louis Berry was staying and didn't speak.

After a long silence, just when Camus thought she wouldn't answer, Lyra suddenly said:

"During my most painful and desperate times, it was the Church that gave me help. Afterward, it was the Patrol Force that gave me a new beginning, a new life..."

Thinking of the cold Lyra in the dream who was full of hatred, Camus sighed sincerely:

"You really haven't had it easy."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lyra scoffed:

"You are the most contradictory person I have ever met. I used to often hear you talk about which state or island the Feynapot Kingdom should invade, which mines or valleys should be snatched into their hands, and how more colonies should be established in the Southern Continent. Yet now, you are pitying my plight.

"I can feel your sincerity just now; you are feeling pain for me from the bottom of your heart, but precisely because of that, I can't help but want to say something."

Camus suddenly didn't know how to respond.

This was indeed very contradictory.

At the same time, he discovered that after Lyra saw the version of her in the dream, her emotions were more volatile than before, and she was more willing to express herself.

Was this caused by encountering extreme emotions? Or, if someone who hasn't stayed in Tizamo Town for a full year understands the truth of being "docile," is it possible to escape the influence of the dream to a certain extent? Camus quickly associated this with the plantations outside the town, with Sir Petit, Miss Amandina, and Mr. Robert.

These gentlemen and ladies were not docile.

And that special dream just now clearly encompassed both the plantations outside the town and the garrison barracks.

Camus thought of the reason:

Those gentlemen and ladies spend at least half of every year in Pylos Port.

This was also the reason why he was very familiar with them.

…………

The next day at noon, not long after Lu Mian sent the letter, he received a reply from Madam "Magician":

"Is this price offered by the Church of the 'Eternal Blazing Sun,' or by you?

"Is a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact something that can be traded back for such a small amount of things?

"If I didn't know what kind of person you are, I would have suspected that you hid more than half of the quote given by the Church of the 'Eternal Blazing Sun.'

"Besides the intelligence related to this Grade 1 Sealed Artifact, have the Church of the 'Eternal Blazing Sun' produce another 50,000 pounds in gold, based on the highest exchange rate within three months.

"Rest assured, gold is the one thing they are least lacking."

50,000 pounds in gold... that's almost 1.2 million Vergold in gold. What does Madam "Magician" need so much gold for? Lu Mian thought of the significance of gold in mysticism, the need for the Armor Shadow to reshape its golden body, and the fact that the "Death" related domain also extensively uses gold, so he quickly felt relieved.

He immediately noticed a detail:

Madam "Magician" used the gold pounds of the Loen Kingdom to describe the value of the gold this time.

Does this mean she has been more active in the Loen Kingdom recently? Lu Mian nodded gently, considering whether to summon Jenna's messenger, Xia Zuotu, to relay Madam "Magician's" request, or to return to Trier himself, and by the way, discuss the "Dream Festival" problem with Franca, Jenna, and Anthony.

(End of chapter)