Chapter 250: Imprisonment Play in Progress
On the bank of the River Styx, Lorne stood on the shore, watching Charon, who was holding up the ferry, go farther and farther away. He only withdrew his gaze after Charon disappeared in the thick fog.
Although this guy who added money was very professional and sensible, he did not ask the disguised Melinoe on the boat about her identity and where she came from, and just thought it was an ordinary business. But considering the connection between Charon and Hecate, Lorne was still a little more cautious.
He used his divine sense to carefully investigate several times and confirmed that Charon and the ferry had completely left his perception range. Only then did Loen feel completely relieved. He turned around and called Melinoe who was waiting on the side, and walked towards the depths of the fog.
Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, Melinoe couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Is this not the way to Elysee Paradise?"
"The banquet hosted by Her Majesty the Queen of the Underworld will not officially begin until tomorrow. Hecate, who was invited, probably hasn't officially set off yet. Now the palace and Elysian Garden are not safe. We must find a place to hide for the night and wait for the opportunity to act."
Loen explained a few words casually, then glanced at the new generation conspiracy goddess beside him who suddenly realized something, and shook his head secretly.
There is a serious lack of experience and thinking, and it is too immature.
Her level is not only comparable to that of the first generation conspiracy goddess Hecate, the goddess of wisdom Athena, and the sea fairy Thetis, but even she herself could be easily fooled.
For example, he only said half of what he said just now.
The reason for choosing to disembark here is that both the Queen's Palace and the Elysee Garden are unsafe.
But more importantly, it was Charon, a god related to Hecate, who led them across the river.
In order to avoid being sold out by the guy who charged them extra money, how could they go to the Elysee Gardens with such an obvious purpose and leave room for others to use them as evidence?
Of course, one must first fabricate an alibi to clear one's suspicion before taking action.
As the dim entrance to the dungeon hidden in the rocks came into view, Loen breathed a sigh of relief.
"arrive."
"Woof!"
At this time, Cerberus, the guard dog of the underworld, heard the noise and rushed out quickly from the depths of the underground cave. He raised his three dog heads to the approaching Lorne and barked happily.
"Okay, there's more."
While chuckling, Loen stroked the dog head in the middle of Cerberus, opened the magic circle, took out new honey cakes and ambrosia mead, and came to bribe the gatedog of the underworld.
Under the temptation of the delicious taste, Cerberus screamed even louder. He quickly made way for the passage behind him and even tried to lead the way for the two stowaways beside him.
"No, we need to stay here tonight."
Lorne smiled and moved Cerberus's dog head closer, then turned around and motioned for Melinoe to go into the cave and rest.
Seeing the situation before her, the pampered Princess of the Underworld suddenly became unhappy.
"You want me to live in a doghouse?"
"The human world is above the Arima Crypt. We can attack or defend here, and can deal with many troubles. And according to the route of the Styx ferry before, everyone will think that we have left through this passage. Even if there is trouble in some places in the underworld later, others will not easily suspect us, understand?"
While engraving defensive and warning magic circles nearby, Loen explained why he chose this place.
After hearing the detailed explanation, Melinoe finally understood the complex considerations behind this small decision and nodded as if he understood.
As the basic arrangements were completed, several hours had passed and the night of the underworld had arrived.
Loen led Melinoe into a cave in the underground, and fell asleep on the dry grass and stone slabs on the ground, preparing to recuperate and wait for the next day.
In the deep night, looking at Lorne, who was breathing evenly and relaxing, as if he had fallen into a deep sleep, Melinoe clenched his itchy finger bones.
But in the end, the goddess of conspiracy's eyes flickered for a moment, and she just lay down obediently and fell asleep quietly.
And at the moment when Melinoe's breathing stabilized, the "sleeping" Lorne opened his eyes slightly, turned over to a more comfortable sleeping position, and muttered to himself.
Well, I probably won’t have to make up for it tonight.
~~
The next day, a familiar trembling in his arms woke Loen from his sleep.
He opened his coat, took out the Horn of Plenty, and looked at the flickering light on it, and he suddenly became energetic.
Hecate has arrived, and Elysian Garden is now empty!
"Melinoë!"
"What?"
Hearing the shout, the princess of the underworld beside her was suddenly awakened from her dream, and sat up, rubbing her sleepy eyes.
However, before she could react, a knife accurately chopped the back of her neck, followed by a familiar shock of divine power.
...I'll fuck you!
Melinoe's eyes went dark, he cursed inwardly in grief and anger, and his consciousness immediately sank into endless chaos.
Loen looked at the unconscious Melinoe on the ground and explained sincerely.
"How can I let you take risks with me in such a dangerous place like Elysee Garden? If something unexpected happens, I won't be able to explain to the Queen of the Underworld. Okay, stay here and I'll take you out as soon as I finish my work."
After saying that, he skillfully cast a dozen spells of suppression, restraint, and coma on Melinoe to ensure that the goddess of conspiracy would not wake up before he returned. Then he stood up and left the cave, sealing the exit with a huge rock.
He has too many secrets. Not only is this rebellious girl, Melinoe, restless, but she also always wants to take the opportunity to stab him.
In order to avoid too many uncontrollable variables during the trip to Elysee Garden, Loen would naturally not bring Melinoe along.
Knock her out and hide her, waiting for the matter to be over before leaving together, this was the plan that Loen had thought of early on.
But he was unfamiliar with the underworld, and after much thought, the only two places that could hide people were the [Court of Inquisition] and the [Alima Crypt].
Although the former has King Minos as an insider, it is a public place after all, with ghosts and gods coming in and out, and it is inevitable that there are many people and eyes. Once the truth is exposed, there will be too many hidden dangers.
The latter is seldom visited by people, has a "vicious dog" inside, and is located at the intersection of the human world and the underworld, making it an ideal hiding place for both offense and defense.
So, this kennel was not for Melinoe to live in, but was specifically used to lock her up.
Loen smiled jokingly, waved his hand to call Cerberus outside the cave, and gave him instructions in a deep voice.
"Xiao Ke, watch the door and don't let outsiders in."
"Woof!"
"If I am not back in three days, or if the Gorgon emblem I left for you glows, take her out of the underworld and don't let anyone find her!"
“Woof woof!”
Looking at the dozen or so honey cakes and several jars of honey wine in front of him, Cerberus' three drooling heads nodded excitedly.
Done!
After persuading this vicious underworld guard dog to join him in committing evil, Loen snapped his fingers happily.
In this way, even if something unexpected happens on the road, Melinoe can be used as the last line of insurance.
After making all the necessary arrangements, Loen walked out of the Arima Crypt, hid his figure, and headed towards the Elysee Garden according to his previous memory.
~~
Thanks to careful planning and the cooperation of Persephone, Queen of the Underworld, Lorne had a smooth journey and soon quietly found the entrance to Elysian Garden.
After experiencing the last turmoil, the repaired and reinforced [Wall of Sighs] is even more majestic. The floating light patterns almost connect the sky and the earth, leaving no chance for outsiders to take advantage.
However, Loen, who was in the shadows, couldn't help but want to laugh when he looked at the chasm in front of him.
He recalled a fable he had read: One day, zoo managers found that kangaroos had escaped from their cages, so they held a meeting and agreed that the cages were too low. So they decided to raise the cages from 10 meters to 20 meters. The next day, they found that the kangaroos still escaped, so they decided to raise the cages to 30 meters. Unexpectedly, the next day, they saw all the kangaroos escape again, so the managers became very nervous and decided to go all out and raise the cages to 100 meters.
A few days later, the giraffe was chatting with some kangaroos. "Do you think these people will continue to raise the height of your cages?" asked the giraffe.
It's hard to say. Kangaroo said: If they keep forgetting to close the door.
In fact, the principle is the same. If you want to stop this outsider, there is no point in simply reinforcing the [Wall of Sighs].
Because King Minos and the Queen of the Underworld had told him the key to enter and exit the Elysian Garden.
After a brief wait, Loen took advantage of the gap between the patrolling spirits of the underworld outside the wall and slipped to the Wall of Sighs. He pointed at the floating light patterns on it a few times and opened the way to the interior of the Elysee Garden with ease.
It seems that "Aesop's Fables" can be updated with one more chapter.
Loen smiled, slipped into the passage, and completed the infiltration task easily.
Looking around, gurgling water meanders around, sweet fruits hang on branches, fragrant grass and flowers grow wantonly, and residents stand like sculptures, with smiles that are so bright that they are weird, as if their spirits are immersed in some kind of bliss.
Everything has remained the same.
Lorne carefully observed the nearby residents of the park for a while, but still had no clue.
The origins of their souls vary. Some are nymphs, some are demigods, some are humans from the Golden Age and the Silver Age, and there are even ancient gods and monsters and ordinary humans...
They had huge differences in strength during their lifetimes, their territories were different, and their races were not the same...
All in all, apart from being kept together in the Elysee Garden, they have almost no common attributes.
Perhaps, there is also consistent happiness and smiles?
Loen's eyes swept across the smiling faces of the residents, narrowed his eyes slightly, and walked towards the depths of Elysee Garden.
The last time they rescued someone, since the target Adonis was a newcomer to the Elysee Garden, he was automatically placed in the outer area. Loen found the pretty boy prince with almost no effort and kidnapped him in the chaos.
Therefore, they did not explore Elysee Park much.
This is a rare opportunity, so naturally I have to learn more about this most mysterious area of the underworld. Even if I cannot unravel the [secret] held by Hecate, it will be good to deepen my understanding of the Garden of Elysae.
While thinking to himself, Loen headed towards the interior of Elysee Garden.
As we continued to move forward, more and more residents appeared around us.
Brilliant smiles still bloomed on their faces. The surrounding scenery became more and more beautiful and unreal. The eerie atmosphere became thicker and thicker.
Not true?
Loen raised his hand thoughtfully and gently touched a butterfly resting on a flower, and his fingertips actually passed through the center of the butterfly.
The faint phosphorescent light then sprinkled down, dotted among the flowers, plants and rivers, creating a more dreamy and gorgeous color.
It’s a creation of dreams!
Luo En's mind suddenly came to light, and his eyes were quickly attracted by a strange gate standing in the middle of the sea of flowers.
The door frame is made of ox horns, and the center looks like flowing water waves, with all kinds of colorful colors and bizarre reflections looming in it.
Lorne walked in and observed, his eyes flickering faintly.
Legend has it that the Dreamland where the Dream Gods live has two gates, one made of horns and the other made of ivory. Dreams that pass through the horn gate provide reality, and no matter which mortal dreams of it, they will see the reality. However, dreams that pass through the ivory gate often deceive people and bring them unrealizable words and illusions.
If I'm not mistaken, this is probably the door that leads to the [real dream].
Loen looked back at the residents of Elysee Garden who were all smiling like clay sculptures or wooden carvings, his eyes filled with thought.
Could it be that these souls are dreaming the same dream?
——A [real] and [woven] dream?
After pondering for a moment, Loen pulled out a strand of silver hair from his head and tied it around his wrist as a reminder to distinguish between dreams and reality. Then he stood up and stepped into the gate with a mountain ox horn frame.
(End of this chapter)
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