The Mountains of No Return today are darker than usual, as if there is a layer of icy shadow covering the entire forest. The birds kept silent, and the beasts also carefully lay down in their nests, not daring to make any movement.
A slender shadow sneaked in the dense forest, getting closer and closer to the distant tower. Not only did the shadow walk quietly, but it also cleverly avoided the magic detection stones on the grass and tree trunks. When it was about to enter a ring-shaped forest clearing, the shadow stopped. This place is like a fire zone. From here, magic detection stones are hidden underground in the open space and on every tree on the opposite side, and the number of arrangements suddenly increases, and the detection density is like a fine net. Ordinary humans and animals can walk freely, but strange creatures or people with magic items on their bodies will definitely set off the alarm, unless your visit has been approved by the tower master.
Shadow sighed and took off his black hood, revealing short silver-white hair. Although her hair is as white as snow, the face under the hood is not old, and even has a bit of childishness—she looks only sixteen or seventeen years old, with fair skin, delicate features, and a thin figure that seems to be ready to fight with the dark at any time. Tree shadows merged into one.
The owner of the tower should not have noticed her yet, even if that person observed the nearby magic fluctuations, he would not have noticed her yet. There were traces of casting spells everywhere in the forest, and her actions were completely covered up. In the outer forest, she deftly avoided all the detection stones, but if she wanted to go further through the clearing, she would definitely trigger the alarm. She can't go any further.
"What are you doing?"
Hearing this sentence suddenly, the girl staggered in fright. She fell down on a dead branch, and the sound startled a few tits not far away.
"Master!" After seeing the comer clearly, the girl straightened her posture and knelt on the spot on one knee.
In the shadow of the trees diagonally behind her stood the Skeleton Lord. He lost his human appearance and returned to a skull face covered with black scales. Black animal horns were bent on top of his head, the red fire in his eye sockets was slowly flickering, and black mist coiled around him like a shield... the only thing that was strange In coordination, changing the shape does not change the clothing, this form of his body is taller and stronger than his human form, so now his ankles and wrists are exposed, and the new clothes wrapped in skin become The tights and trousers are even slightly open in some places.
"Master! Are you injured?" The girl raised her head and asked anxiously, "It seems... your standing posture is a bit..."
"I'm not injured. It's just that the boots don't fit well and are worn out." The Lord of Skeletons moved his fingers, indicating that she could get up.
The girl stared at his boots, frowning and slowly stood up. The boots were made of soft sheepskin, the boots were inlaid with a circle of emeralds covered with gold, the buckles were coiled with gold threads, and the tips of the boots were also covered with thin metal sheets, which were still smooth even though they were embossed with thin dark lines. You can learn from others.
"Does it look good?" the Skeleton Monarch asked.
The girl realized that her gaze was too impolite, and hastily lowered her head to apologize. But Maharaja didn't want to apologize: "I'm asking you something. Does it look good?"
"Ugh, it's nice to see..."
The flames in Maharaja's eyes flickered brightly, and the girl knew that this meant that he was satisfied with the answer. He stretched out his hand to the girl, and the girl approached, knelt down on one knee again, and kissed the back of his hand.
"Ogilia, when did you wake up?" the Lord of Skeletons asked.
The girl named Odile replied: "Just a few days ago. I know, this means you are free again!"
"Are Sigfeld and Odette with you?"
"No, I haven't seen them yet," Odile said. "During the time you were trapped in the other world, our souls were also sleeping in the mortal world... Before we woke up, we didn't know our identities, we didn't know What kind of power do I have, even after I wake up, I can't immediately recall everything... I think, probably Sigfeld and Odette are still in ignorance, and haven't fully awakened."
Lord Skeleton nodded: "Well. You keep an eye on their news. Next, I think you should know what I want to do..."
"You want to return to God's Domain..."
"Yes, I want to find that black lake." The Skeleton King's body slowly floated into the air, his gaze passed through the layers of tree canopies, looking at the twilight at the end of the forest, "My father's domain, my mother's tomb... and Everything that should be mine."
Odile lowered her head, her eyes burning with excitement: "When you find all of this... Master, what is your plan?"
"If you haven't done the first step, don't worry about the 'then'." Lord Skeleton floated down and leaned back on the tree. After returning to his original form, his feet also grew bigger, and his boots forced him to curl his toes. "I have many plans for this world... many, many. I want to make up for the lost time and enjoy the happiness that I should have... During this process, I don't want to cause extra problems, and I don't want to be disturbed by your recklessness."
Ogilia raised her head, and the Skeleton Lord raised his finger to the tower: "You should know where that is."
"Yes, master. That is the tower of the necromancer Boris. After sensing your location, I have collected various information about this mage."
"Ogilia, remember, you must never get close to that tower, and you must not harm Boris and his followers, and you must not show up in front of them. In short, you must try your best to hide yourself from him. This is my Give your orders."
The Skeleton Lord's tone was not very fierce, but every word revealed an indisputable majesty. For living beings like Ogilia, the Maharaja's solemn orders are like mantras of laws, which have absolute restraint on them.
"I have kept it in my heart." The girl bowed her head and replied.
After waiting for two or three seconds, Lord Skeleton tilted his head: "Don't you wonder why?"
"...not curious."
The majesty answered without asking: "Boris is my important ally, and I respect him very much. There is no need to let him know about things that have nothing to do with him, it will only increase his troubles. More importantly, that tower is My biggest source of pleasure and source of income at present, I want to ensure that there will be no cracks in this stable and comfortable mutually beneficial relationship."
"I see." Odile nodded again.
"So, if you encounter any strange elves or humans next time, don't take the initiative to attack them, unless you deliberately want to make me angry."
Odile frowned aggrievedly: "I remember your order. But master, please allow me to argue, I did not take the initiative to attack that elf, he shot me first."
"How did you meet him?"
"I came face to face with him on the road. He thought I was a traveling mage, and thought I was going back to the tower of Boris. He stopped me and wouldn't let me go. He also cast spells to scare me, and forced me to ask me something about the mage Boris. Things... But I don't know Boris, and I don't quite understand what he wants to ask. I want to leave, but he actually wants to cast a hold spell on me, so I cast a spell to fight back... But don't worry, I have been covered with a veil, He didn't see my face."
"I understand, I really don't blame you for this." Lord Skeleton smiled lightly. Just now he had sent the black pine to Holly Village, he quietly climbed up to the second floor of a tavern, and casually threw the black pine into a guest room. The black pine hummed in a daze, as if he was about to wake up, so the Lord of Bones found a bottle of anisette vermouth, and poured down about half a beer glass for the black pine with a wine dispenser, and the black pine poured it immediately Going back to bed, he fell into a deep sleep, talking nonsense like "his son's name is Koref", "the ghost king appeared five hundred years ago", "dead knight riding a dark hippopotamus" and other nonsense before falling into a deep sleep.
"The next time you encounter a similar situation, you should evacuate in time and don't fight back in a fit of anger," the Skeleton King added, "In short, don't let Boris be aware of your existence, let alone hurt anyone related to him. If When you see Sigfeld and Odette, convey my order to them too."
"I remember. But... What if the opponent is powerful and I really have to fight?"
"Even if you have to do it, you must aim to get away, and don't beat the opponent to death."
After hearing this, the girl's face showed a trace of panic: "What... did I beat that elf to death?"
"He was almost dying, but he was revived again." The Lord of Skeletons stroked the girl's hair like a child, "Ogilia, the life you can touch now is nothing more than humans, elves, and dwarves. , goblins, orcs... At most there are rock giants and the like, these things are very fragile, don't deal with them with the energy of slaughtering the devil army. Well, you leave first, leave the Mountains of No Return, and find Sigfay and Ol Jeta, also help me find the entrance to the Black Lake."
"Yes, master. If necessary, please call us at any time."
Accompanied by a puff of smoke, the girl's figure and voice disappeared into the mist.
==========================
From that day on, the Mountains of No Return seemed to have temporarily regained their calm.
After Boris woke up, his body returned to normal. The Mage Tower and nearby magic protection were intact. The Skeleton Lord lost the ball with three dogs in the open space in front of the tower, and Black Pine did not run back from Holly Village.
Burris has checked the detection stones in various areas of the forest. The detection stones in the core area are all normal, but some stones in the outer forest have recorded abnormal fluctuations. Even so, he couldn't judge what exactly attacked Heisong. In fact, it was the fastest to ask Heisong himself, but Boris didn't want to have too much contact with him, so he was really in a dilemma.
He had inquired with the people in Holly Village, and it was said that Hei Song drank a large glass of anise absinthe in the Willow Tavern, and after sleeping for a day and a night, he was still talking nonsense. He claimed to have been attacked, but he was obviously intact, and he ate too much in the morning. He also said that he saw a black armored knight riding a hippopotamus skeleton, a jungle giant with three heads and six eyes, and white hair that killed all the creatures on the mountain. The banshee, the seven-colored dragon that turned into fireworks in the sky... Even he himself is not sure if these are hallucinations he saw while drunk. After he left in despair, the owner of the Willow Tavern always thought that the elf was a poet who played the role of a necromancer in a play.
Boris always felt a little sorry for Heisong, and he silently decided that he could quietly make up for this unlucky apprentice when he had the opportunity in the future. In short, Boris no longer mentioned that attack, because he already had a preliminary answer in his mind—no matter who the enemy was or what creature, it probably had something to do with the Skeleton Lord.
Because... Lotter was too calm. Whenever Burris was thinking about this matter, Lott would either change the topic, or comfort Burris with some untenable inferences. His conclusion was: this matter is not important, so don't spend all day Thinking about it, don't you still want to study my magic immunity? let us start.
Crott is not the type to stand on the sidelines and calm things down. Imagine, if a person can even enjoy watching dogs fight, how can he not be interested in elves being attacked
Once thinking of this, Burris stopped the investigation instead. Judging from Lott's behavior, he took the initiative to go out on patrol, probably to deal with the hidden attacker. Regardless of the current situation of the attacker, it is clear that the attack was not ordered by Lott, otherwise why would Lott help save the black pine.
Heisong's attack was probably just an accident. For Lord Skeleton, this matter is causing him trouble, and I am afraid he does not want similar things to happen again.
As for who the attacker was and what the Skeleton King wanted to hide, Boris has no way of knowing at present, and he doesn't want to ask for the time being. Since Lott didn't want him to know at all, he wouldn't get the correct answer anyway.
He will tell you everything when he wants to say something, and you won’t hear a single serious word when he doesn’t want to say it... This is the character of Lord Skeleton. It's just that Boris was young and down-and-out back then, and he hadn't realized what the character of the Skeleton Lord was.
Back then, when the Skeleton Lord first appeared, he did not reveal his identity, but called himself "Death". Although Boris was young at that time, he was still a qualified mage apprentice. He knew that this person was not telling the truth, and that "Reaper" was just an image in a fairy tale. No matter how much he questioned, the person who called himself "Death" refused to reveal the truth... Until the last day they got together, the Lord of Skeletons suddenly revealed his identity, and even provided Burris with clues to find related documents...
Burris couldn't help but sigh whenever he recalled these. If they hadn't met in those seven days, then... perhaps he would have died at twenty.
Burris couldn't forget those seven days of his youth. The tall tower burning in the snow, the cold wind that almost cuts the skin, the rime forest with bloody smell, and the frozen lake that seems to have no edge...
He would never be where he is today if he hadn't met the man who calls himself "Reaper". Maybe he will turn into a ghost in the ice and snow, wandering in pain and cold forever.