This Lich Requests More Remuneration-Chapter 211 - 195 Speculations on Entering Dreams
Chapter 211: Chapter 195 Speculations on Entering Dreams
Chapter 211 -195 Speculations on Entering Dreams
Previously, Amberser thought that the Dreamweave Barrier was a marvel of the Emerald Dream Forest.
Maintaining such a vast magical barrier must consume a vast amount of energy, and it was entirely due to Laine causing trouble that the Druids chose to operate in such an expensive and laborious way.
But when Amberser heard that the Dream Entering Ceremony also covered the entire Emerald Dream Forest, he had a guess.
The Dreamweave Barrier must have been adapted from the Dream Entering Ceremony.
The reason was simple, less hassle, cost saving, labor saving.
The Dream Entering Ceremony requires a preliminary password, probably a unique prayer script known only to the Druids, chant it, fall asleep, and you can enter the Natural Dreamscape.
The Dreamweave Barrier, however, simply causes one to fall asleep as soon as they enter its range.
If you take it apart, the sleep effect and the dreamscape are two different components; the Dreamweave Barrier forcibly drags people into sleep but doesn’t allow outsiders to enter the Natural Dreamscape.
Amberser felt that his guess had a good chance of being correct, but it needed verification.
First off, he needed an environment that would allow him to fall asleep peacefully. Though shapeshifting didn’t require his continuous control and wouldn’t automatically dissipate during sleep, he couldn’t guarantee that nothing unexpected would happen after he fell asleep. If the shapeshifting were to fail, his identity would be exposed.
Secondly, in order to verify, he also needed to get his hands on the Druids’ prayer for entering dreams.
This is something he couldn’t just bluster through and coax out of Saress, as it could accidentally raise his guard and lead to mishaps.
Amberser could only pray in his heart, “Oh Katherine, give me strength, help me dig out this secret.”
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On the other side of the dense forest, Naomi crept through the night, quickly making her way back to Katherine’s side.
As the noble Elf Queen, Katherine received the highest level of treatment in the Emerald Dream Forest.
While Amberser had to settle for a wooden house, Katherine was living in a castle entirely grown from trees, custom-made for her by the Grand Druids on-site. They even consulted with Katherine about her preferences while building the house, fearing they might neglect any of her wishes.
The Druids’ preferential treatment wasn’t surprising after all; the Elf Tribe and the Druids had always had a good relationship, being allies for thousands of years. Katherine, being the Elf Queen and inherently irresistible, deserved such treatment without any exaggeration.
Moreover, unlike Amberser who had to force the Druids to remove their surveillance, the Druids wouldn’t dare to spy on Katherine, fearing to cause any dissatisfaction to the Elf Queen.
Thus, when Naomi returned, she didn’t alert anyone. At most, the Druids only knew that the Elf Queen’s bonded companion had run off, which they wouldn’t concern themselves with.
For a Ranger, letting their animal companion out for a romp while they went hunting was the most normal thing in the world.
Naomi had just returned to the beautifully grown tree castle when Katherine promptly asked, “Did you meet with that guy? Did he give any instructions?”
Naomi looked at the Elf Queen and thought, if anyone else heard this, they might be scared to faint.
“Master wants you to continue inquiring about the Dream Entering Ceremony’s details. He also wants to facilitate a trilateral talk,” Naomi relayed Amberser’s orders in full, leaving nothing out.
Katherine was shocked.
“A trilateral talk? Wasn’t he sailing to find a Divine Artifact? How did he suddenly become an envoy for the Fury Tide Kingdom?”
Naomi shook her head and said, “Master didn’t explain in too much detail, I am not very clear either. But he’s escorted by the Fury Tide Kingdom’s princess as a bodyguard, so Master’s status there must be pretty high I guess.”
“A princess as a bodyguard?!”
Katherine’s eyes widened in disbelief. Was this Lich too outrageous, with power, status, money, and beautiful women throwing themselves at him wherever he went? This was too unreasonable.
Laine’s religious fanatics were kneeling down to give him money, the battle-hungry people of the Fury Tide Kingdom even had to provide their princess as his bodyguard—it was so outrageous that even a drunk Bard couldn’t concoct such a tale.
Katherine could only console herself, thinking that the decision to venture out with Amberser was the right move. In a matter of days, she had gained more insight than she had in the previous hundred years.
So this is how the game of power and cunning is played; wealth can be deceived in such a way; and the human heart can be so complex yet so easily manipulated by others.
Since Amberser wanted her to continue inquiring about the Dream Entering Ceremony, Katherine had no choice but to comply.
“But how should I inquire about this? It’s a secret of the Druids. Even if I ask, they probably won’t tell me, right?” Katherine said with some helplessness.
Naomi replied, “Sister Katherine, you think too much. As long as you ask, there is no secret that can’t be uncovered.”
This sentiment was not wrong at all. A certain Grand Druid was madly pursuing Katherine to the point of obsession. These last couple of days, Katherine had to stay indoors to avoid his constant pestering.
As long as Katherine spoke up, no secret would remain a secret.
However, Katherine was reluctant to do so.
Having once assisted Amberser in duping Laine’s Paladin, she initially found the acting exhilarating. But upon further reflection, she realized she was putting the reputation of the Elf Tribe at stake for Amberser’s sake. Had it not been for Amberser repairing her reputation afterward, the consequences could have been enormous.
The formerly naive and innocent Queen had started to think more strategically. She was willing to help Amberser gather information, but absolutely not through deceit, as she now represented the entire Elf Tribe.
No matter when, the Elf Tribe always had a place above all else in Katherine’s heart.
Using seduction to obtain information was definitely not an option; such a method would undoubtedly shame the Elf Tribe, so she had to think of another way to gather the necessary intelligence.
What should she do? If it were the Lich in her position, what would he do?
Katherine’s mind began to conjure the image of Amberser, recalling in detail every interaction with him, especially the phrases Amberser used when he was deceiving others. She regretted not having written down and memorized everything he had said.
Seeing Katherine so troubled, Naomi also started to think of solutions, but the two girls racked their brains until dawn without coming up with any viable plans.
And then there was another knock at the door.
“I bring the most beautiful flowers from the Emerald Dream Forest, along with the sweetest honey, for you, my beloved Goddess!”
The passionate voice came from outside the castle; it was none other than the Grand Druid who was madly pursuing Katherine—Brandir Sunda, a legendary Druid who was only thirty-eight years old.
Naomi poked her head out of the window and looked downstairs.
A tall and handsome blond man stood there, holding a bouquet of flowers. Upon seeing Naomi, he gave her the brightest smile.
Appearance-wise, he was certainly a charismatic man. As the Grand Druid of the Emerald Dream Forest, his station was also one of a ruler in his own right, quite prominent indeed. And in terms of personal ability, to become legendary at thirty-eight clearly marked him as a true genius, one of the most exceptional in the Nine Great Kingdoms.
However, Naomi felt he wasn’t good enough for Katherine.
A man captivated by Katherine’s charm had completely lost his sense of self, like a slave, and could not stand by Katherine’s side as an equal, so how could he become Katherine’s husband?
But the Grand Druid didn’t see it that way; he fell hopelessly in love with the Elf Queen from the first sight of her. How could there be such a perfect person in the world? Her beauty was heart-stopping and kept Brandir awake night after night.
However, his crazed behavior frightened Katherine, who was accustomed to having other elves at the Silvermoon Tribunal deflect these frantic suitors. Now that she was in the Emerald Dream Forest, Druid territory, she had to find her own solution.
After an initial rejection did not work, Katherine could only keep her door closed.
Even though he hadn’t seen Katherine in two days, the feelings in Brandir’s heart did not fade but grew stronger.
Brandir had sworn to the Father of the Oak that he would marry no one other than Katherine in this lifetime, and he was willing to pay any price to win the Elf Queen’s love.
Simple gifts meant nothing; should Katherine wish it, he was even prepared to lay down his life.
The other Grand Druids found this behavior unseemly and disrespectful, but given his equivalent status, nobody felt it was their place to stop Brandir. Besides, if he did manage to win Katherine’s love, it would be beneficial for the Emerald Dream Forest.
Therefore, quite a few Druids secretly helped him, seeking to discover Katherine’s preferences, hoping perhaps to facilitate a magnificent love story.
With the support of his kin, Brandir redoubled his efforts, bringing gifts for Katherine morning, noon, and night without repeating any. He sought advice from many people, wrote love poems and had birds deliver them, composed love songs, and sang them loudly beneath her window.
He was not afraid of embarrassment or ridicule; Katherine was the only one in his eyes.
Naomi sighed and jumped out of the window, landing in front of Brandir.
Brandir immediately took out two pieces of fragrant jerky and placed them in front of Naomi, cautiously asking, “Sweet child, how is your mistress feeling today? Would she be willing to see me?”
While speaking, Brandir had also cast a spell for communicating with animals, though it was a wasted effort, for Naomi was not a real leopard.
Naomi bit into the jerky, swallowing it in a couple of bites, feeling a comfortable sensation spread throughout her body. The jerky was specially treated and rich in natural energy, very beneficial for one’s health. Just these two pieces could fetch a hundred thousand Gold Coins on the market. The Grand Druid was truly sparing no expense to please Katherine.
After finishing the jerky, Naomi shook her head at Brandir, indicating that Katherine did not wish to see him today—thus not accepting his gifts in vain.
A look of disappointment washed over Brandir’s face, but he quickly rallied and continued to inquire, “What kind of man does your mistress like? I promise I can change to be exactly like him.”
The image of Amberser’s skeletal frame came to Naomi’s mind. If this Druid were to know that Katherine was working for a Lich, and even paying for the privilege, would he have a mental breakdown?
Just as she was about to turn and leave, a spark of inspiration struck Naomi, and she came up with an idea.
She extended a paw and wrote a message in the dirt, “My mistress has been troubled and unable to sleep well at night due to your constant attentions. Do you have a way to ensure she has sweet dreams? If you can help my mistress rest well, I’ll speak well of you!”
Although Brandir didn’t understand why the leopard was writing, the Druids weren’t in need of written language to comprehend the animals. Still, that didn’t matter now; for the first time, Brandir saw a glimmer of hope.
“Wait here, I will prepare something right away, guaranteed to give Katherine sweet dreams,” he said.
Having said that, Brandir turned and ran off.
Watching his retreating figure, Naomi smiled to herself.
It was inconvenient for Katherine to entice Brandir into revealing secrets, but as her “beast companion,” Naomi had no such concerns. It was totally reasonable for a pet to care about its owner’s health. And if she happened to inadvertently learn some Druidic secrets, well, that had nothing to do with her—a little leopard certainly couldn’t harbor any bad intentions, right?
With this move, she wondered how much of her mistress’s skill she had managed to learn?
