Amidst soft laughter, the magic stone lamp went out.
In the quiet, gentle night, only a few rays of moonlight filtered through the gaps in the window frame and curtains, while the warm flames in the fireplace rose gently. Occasionally, soft, drowsy chatter would rise from either side, gradually turning into muffled murmurs of weariness due to the fatigue accumulated during the day and the growing drowsiness, followed by soft, long breaths.
Shen Xue, wrapped in a cotton quilt, sat cross-legged to the side, clutching her beloved sword. She sat in the nearby shadows, unlit by the moonlight or the firelight. Only the subtle interplay of light and shadow could outline her figure, and one could barely sense the presence of a reserved, breathless figure there.
Her half-closed, icy eyes resembled an eternal, unchanging iceberg, and her long, flowing hair showed little sign of movement. Her muscles and posture were neither completely tense nor entirely relaxed, yet perfectly balanced. It was as if she was confident that whatever danger might follow, her sword would arrive immediately and eliminate it.
"It's okay, I do this all the time. Don't worry about me."
She suddenly spoke softly, as if telling me not to worry, or as if she was just talking to herself. Her voice carried far along the ground in the silence, but her body did not move at all.
I don't know if she can see me, but I nodded and imitated the cat next to me, stretching out my front paws and comfortably resting my chin on the down pillow that was only a little bit high in front of me.
This is a pillow perfectly suited to the height of a cat's head. It's neither too high to cause neck pain, nor too low with too little feathers, which would create the illusion that the chin is directly against a hard board.
Gentle breaths rose and fell gently beside my ear, like a rising river overflowing my consciousness, or like a mother's tender lullaby, gently patting her palms to send me into sleep.
I seemed to be having a dream, or perhaps I wasn't dreaming at all. Beside the warm fire, the long-lost comfort of sleep made me stretch and let out a soft groan from the tip of my nose.
"Ah, good afternoon, Chief."
A familiar girl's voice rang out from ahead: "Are you awake already?"
Hmm, it doesn't seem to be Hikari or the others?
I belatedly opened one eye and looked around. As the fog slowly dissipated, I noticed the girl standing not far away. She was Xiaoxi, who had changed into casual clothes.
Well, after those guys caused such a ruckus, I almost forgot about this place.
However, I've already turned into a cat, so how can I still connect smoothly to the world within the [Simulated Law Ring]?
Aside from a scaled-down version of the [Saint's Earring], the cat wasn't adorned with any other jewelry. This was to be expected given the already somewhat odd silver key, which was a symbol of the authority of the mentor that could be summoned at will with the mentor's permission... Now it seemed the [Simulated Magic Ring] wasn't exactly an ordinary piece of equipment either.
Anyway, since we're already here, let's push the task forward first.
I stood up and first asked Xiaoxi if anything had happened, or if there was any urgent problem that needed to be dealt with.
"The fourth main quest was just announced to have ended, just moments before you woke up, Boss." Xiaoxi obediently followed me and we walked together in the direction of Sheng. "According to the other Boss, the fifth main quest will begin soon."
"Didn't we finish the fourth main quest last night?" I asked, somewhat confused.
Although the initial goal was to explore the hidden dungeon containing the fourth main quest monster, which was not yet open, in search of hidden rewards, and the difficulty inside was abnormally altered due to an unknown event, the overall result was good, and it could even be said that it was solved without much effort.
This was largely thanks to the participation of the much calmer Sword Demon, even though that bastard wasn't entirely willing, and after finishing the hidden dungeon, he unilaterally attacked the demon [Mephisto], who clearly had the aura of a late-game boss, and destroyed the hidden dungeon that might still have some explorable content.
As I mentally reviewed the information I had confirmed when I logged off, I heard Xiaoxi nodding and continuing to explain: "Indeed, as you said, we did successfully defeat the source of the monsters in the fourth main quest yesterday, but that doesn't mean the fourth main quest will be skipped. It just means the monsters that appear will be replaced with other slightly weaker monsters... at least that's what the demon said."
"You mean... [Mephisto]?"
"Hmm." Xiaoxi looked around nervously, then held up her index finger to her lips. "Lord Sheng also told me to remind you that if possible, it's best not to call that guy by his name casually, because that way he can hear what we're saying directly, within the three sentences before and after his name."
This is the first time I've heard anything about demons, including the previously confirmed claim that "you can't reveal your name to a demon, or it will reveal the name's owner's information."
When I get back, I might need to look for relevant books in the library to verify this, or perhaps visit Teacher Gulu, who is now working as the academy's gatekeeper, to see if he knows anything.
To avoid further aggravating Xiaoxi's worries, I nodded and said, "I understand. I'll be more careful from now on."
Xiaoxi patted her chest reassuringly.
According to her, while I was asleep, a large amount of black water erupted from the site of the destroyed art museum exhibition hall, just like the final boss we faced earlier.
The black water split into individuals of varying sizes. Some transformed into humanoid figures with charred black shells, like the one in the first exhibition hall. Others changed into animal shapes, and still others attacked other wandering smaller individuals, as if they were being used as their own bodies, strangling them and attaching themselves to them, using the bodies as a vehicle to attack lone individuals.
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