novelraw Chapter 316: Pollution
Chapter 316: Pollution
"Look at me."
Loren lifted his hair, revealing his black eye that remained as calm and still as an ancient well. However, upon seeing this eye, the Dreamwalker began to twist and contort frantically, performing a series of incomprehensible movements, before finally tearing desperately at its own eyes, ripping them apart with brute force.
A multicolored liquid sprayed from its eyes, making the scene here increasingly absurd. Finally, its head exploded outright, dyeing the pure white space in a riot of colors.
Dreamwalkers possess the ability to transform dreams into reality. People they kill in dreams die in reality as well. Conversely, if they are killed within a dream, they also perish directly.
"My corruption is this severe..."
At this moment, Loren gained a clear understanding of the contamination he carried. It could directly kill a Divine Envoy by sheer corruption. If this were within a dream, Loren estimated that even the God of Dreams wouldn't dare to meet him face-to-face.
This deceased Dreamwalker was likely the culprit behind the nightmares Loren had been having recently. To deal with Loren, the God of Dreams had prepared two layers of contingencies.
In fact, Loren suspected the God of Dreams itself didn't believe these two could actually solve the "Loren problem." They were probably just sent to investigate him, and likely weren't even expected to uncover anything substantial. At most, their failure would just make the God of Dreams more wary of Loren in the future.
And this wasn't necessarily a bad thing. While it wasn't a big deal, being occasionally harassed by the God of Dreams was still quite troublesome.
What if later, the God of Dreams sent a few more "Players"? Dealing with them would still require some effort from Loren.Moreover, being messed with like this disrupted Loren's sleep. When Loren finally woke up, it was the middle of the night. The sound of Scarlett's snoring reached his ears, drowning out even the breathing of the others.
Loren turned over, pulled the cool-bodied Lilith into his embrace, and drifted back into sleep.
...
Loren slept very soundly, so much so that when he woke the next day, he found he was still holding Lilith, his position barely having changed.
Lilith had also been awake for a while. Nestled in Loren's arms, she too remained motionless.
After letting go of Lilith, Loren glanced at his watch. It was noon—his usual waking time.
"Let's go down for a meal..."
Having been held by him the whole time, Lilith had likely missed breakfast. Normally, her routine was quite healthy.
Feeling a bit apologetic, Loren picked Lilith up and carried her downstairs.
To block out the sun, even though it was already noon, the villa's windows were still tightly shut. Fortunately, Loren had previously replaced the lights here with ones he brought back from Uridia; otherwise, it would have been truly dark.
The living room had already been cleaned by Mirrorheart. Since the new maids arrived, Mirrorheart rarely did housework, but her hands and feet were still nimble, and she had quickly tidied the living room.
"After eating, I'll make a trip to the Church. I need to report what happened last night and have them be on guard against Dreamwalkers. I'll also find a craftsman to help us repair the wall and windows."
Yawning, Loren spoke up.
Hearing this, Jessica nudged Luna with her elbow, leaning close to whisper in her ear:
"Quick, say you'll go with Master Mentor. Such a perfect chance to be alone together, you absolutely can't miss it..."
"..."
Loren was speechless. Jessica didn't know Loren's hearing was excellent and was completely unaware that their secret exchange had fallen on his ears.
However, Loren didn't expose them, giving them plenty of face.
"I... I'll go with you, Master Mentor."
Luna suddenly stood up, drawing everyone's gaze.
Loren saw she had been practically yanked upright by Jessica, and the words were uttered with great difficulty.
"Alright."
Loren didn't make things hard for Luna and agreed straightforwardly. The smoothness of it somewhat took Luna by surprise.
"I plan to leave now. Do you need to get ready?"
"No need, I'll go with you right away!"
Jessica looked at Luna with eyes full of approval, a feeling akin to watching one's own child finally grow up.
"Good, let me just get dressed."
Loren put down his chopsticks, stood up, wrapped explosives around his waist, then hung himself with magical potions and magazines, finally draping over himself the black robe inscribed with runes.
"Does Master Mentor always go out so heavily armed..."
Witnessing this scene, Jessica whispered a complaint to Luna.
"Of course. What if the day I go out, I happen to get ambushed by Cultists of Evil Gods?"
The one answering Jessica wasn't Luna, but Loren. He had heard her.
Only then did Jessica realize that all her and Luna's whispers had been heard by Loren. However, she didn't feel embarrassed; instead, she felt a thrill of excitement.
That meant Loren basically knew all the advice she had been giving Luna, and he had tacitly allowed it.
Silence itself spoke volumes about his attitude. Jessica really wanted to share this good news with Luna, but Luna had already walked to Loren's side, forcing Jessica to hold off for now.
...
"Master Mentor, how long do you plan to stay in the Royal Capital..."
Walking on the road, Luna clasped her hands behind her back, head lowered, silently watching the heels of Loren's shoes.
She hoped Loren wouldn't leave just yet. Jessica was in the Royal Capital and could give Luna advice anytime. Moreover, her parents were also here—getting married required parental consent...
Luna shook her head, dispelling these unrealistic thoughts.
"I don't know. It depends on Anna and the others. If they want to stay longer, we'll stay a bit more. My laboratory is still at home; conducting experiments here isn't very convenient.
"If you'd like me to leave later, that's fine too. I could probably borrow a laboratory at the Academy. They'd definitely be willing to lend me one, though the equipment likely isn't as comprehensive as what I have at home."
This was the truth. The things in Loren's house were indeed more complete than those in the Gedlan Royal Magic Academy, the highest-level academy in Gedlan. Moreover, Loren's home allowed for research into things like necromancy.
Simultaneously, Loren was observing Luna's reaction, seeing if she dared to directly admit that *she* wanted him to leave later.
"Then... could you leave a few days later... please?"
Loren's footsteps suddenly stopped, and Luna tensed up accordingly.
She pinched the hem of her clothes, awaiting Loren's reply.
"Alright. Actually, I could even move here. The transportation here is indeed much more convenient."
Many trains passed through the Royal Capital of Gedlan, making travel easier for Loren.
Many subsequent events would occur within the Gedlan Kingdom. As long as Loren didn't leave the country, given his current mobility, he could get there quickly anyway. So, it didn't really matter where in Gedlan he usually lived.
"As for furniture, Master doesn't need any. Just moving my experimental equipment over would suffice. However, moving is something I need to ask Anna and the others about. After all, we've lived there for twelve years."
Luna hadn't expected Loren to actually be willing to go this far. Biting her lip, she gave a soft hum of acknowledgment.
So, her position in Master Mentor's heart wasn't that insignificant after all.