Chapter 113: Mourners and Poets

If you want to understand a person, the best way is to take the time to send someone to understand him.

But the elves don't have time for this now, so Naya, as Ambershu's messenger, was quickly sent to the palace. What awaited her was a face-to-face questioning by the Elf Queen and the former King.

When Catherine asked Naya: "You have seen the lich, tell me about him."

Naya recalled for a moment, then said excitedly: "That lich, he is not a human at all."

This made Catherine frown. Was the child tortured and mentally ill? Why was he speaking so incoherently? Naya seemed to realize that she had said something nonsense, and hurriedly explained: "Your Majesty, that lich is very scary. He seems to be able to read other people's thoughts. I didn't say a word, but he guessed everything."

Naya's body trembled when she thought of Amber's horror.

Catherine said to Naya gently: "My child, don't be afraid. You are safe here. No matter how terrible the lich is, it can't hurt you."

Catherine's voice had a soothing effect. Naya quickly calmed down and said guiltily, "I'm sorry, Your Majesty. Our strategic plan was guessed by this lich. It's my fault."

Catherine's heart felt as if stabbed by a knife. This child didn't even know the real plan, but she was blaming herself here.

Catherine continued to comfort her, "Don't worry, Naya, you just need to tell me what you know, and I will take care of the rest."

Naya then began to tell her story bit by bit.

From the assassination of Viscount Lightman to the encounter with Ambershu, Naya described the battle process in great detail.

After listening to this, Catherine also understood what kind of opponent Naya had encountered. This was definitely a legendary lich, and it was no wonder that the Dusk Guards fell into the hands of this lich time and time again.

"...Then, I was captured by him. After I was captured, I kept my mouth shut and said nothing. But the lich held me like this and started talking to himself. I don't know what happened. He quickly guessed that the magic contract was your power, Your Majesty. He even guessed what the effect of violating the contract would be. I swear to the gods, I have not mentioned a single word of these details."

Naya's words made Catherine confused. Elves would not be affected by charm. There were few things that could stimulate their spirits and make them do things that went against their hearts.

But after repeated questioning, Naya's answers were flawless, and it was not a false memory caused by emotional excitement. Catherine comforted Naya for a few words, then let her retreat and rest, and promised her that she would rescue Cicero and others.

When facing Naya, Catherine tried her best to remain confident, which made the elf girl feel at ease. But after she left, Catherine could no longer hide her inner shock.

What is this mind-reading effect?

Catherine asked the old king, "If a wizard of the legendary level casts the spell of mind detection, can he read the thoughts of the elves?"

The old king shook his head and said, "Not likely."

This blessing comes from the elven gods. Not to mention the legend, it is difficult for other gods to change the will of the elves personally.

"So what on earth is this lich?" Catherine became more and more confused.

The old king fell into deep thought, pondering the words "lich" and "undead". After a long while, the old king finally said a special term.

"The Mourning Poetry Society..." The old king pondered and said, "This lich is very likely a member of the Mourning Poetry Society."

"Mourning Poetry Society?" Catherine had never heard of this name, so she asked, "It sounds like an undead organization. Could it be the subordinates of the Rose Queen in the Underdark?"

Although the Nine Kingdoms did not include the Underdark, everyone knew that there was a powerful Undead Queen there. Although her territory was not large, the power possessed by her kingdom was considered to be medium among the Nine Kingdoms.

Catherine had never met the Rose Queen, but she had some understanding of her.

If they were the queen's subordinates, then it might make sense that they had some special means.

However, the old king shook his head and said, "No, you got it wrong. This Rose Queen is just a member of the Mourning Poets Society."

Catherine showed a shocked expression. The Rose Queen, who had the same status as her, was just a member of this organization. How terrifying was this organization?

“It’s unbelievable,” Kathryn said.

The old king nodded and said, "Indeed, I was also very surprised when I first heard about the Mourning Poets Society. This is a very powerful undead organization, and the minimum standard for its members is to be legendary."

"The minimum standard is legendary? How many of them are there in total?" Catherine asked.

"I don't know. I'm afraid only the president of the Mourning Poets Society knows the identities of all the members. I only met one of the members codenamed 'Poet' when I was traveling, and I learned the name of the Mourning Poets Society from him."

The old king's eyes flashed back to a scene from many years ago, when the dragon tyrant was still in power. When he was young, the Elf King was a ranger with an eccentric personality. While traveling around the continent, he met Arthur Lane, who had just received divine inspiration.

Both of them were young men with extraordinary talents, and they soon became friends who went on adventures together.

When Arthur Lane killed his first dragon, the young elf was standing beside him, drawing his bow and arrow.

At that time, he didn't know that the holy warrior in front of him would become the founding emperor of the Ryan Empire, nor did he expect that he would achieve the feat of expelling all the dragons.

During their adventure together, the two of them once drank in a tavern.

The two people who had just completed a commission were very happy and drank a lot of wine. In their excitement, they forgot the etiquette.

"The bard in the bar sang awfully. I was drunk at the time, so I went up to him and made some sarcastic remarks. Arthur did the same thing. He completely forgot the rules of a paladin. He put his arm around my shoulder and laughed loudly at the bard... Then, we realized we had offended the wrong person."

Even powerful figures have been foolish and childish at times, but they were just really unlucky at the time, as the bard they met had a bad temper.

"That bard is a member of the Mourning Poets Society?" Catherine asked.

"Yes, his code name was the Poet, which I learned later. That night, Arthur and I were both severely taught a lesson.

"Arthur and I suffered the biggest defeat of our lives, but we both thought we were just drunk and didn't perform well. So the next day, we went to trouble the bard again. I have to say, this was a very stupid decision.

"Even though Arthur had the power to kill a dragon, he was still fooled by this bard. If this bard had not intended to kill anyone, the Lion Empire would probably no longer exist, and I would have no chance to inherit the throne of Silvermoon High Court."

The old king touched his nose somewhat awkwardly, as if he could still remember the severe pain when his nose was broken by the lute.

There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!

These young talents who would become famous across the continent in the future suffered a severe setback and were then tied up and taken home by this "poet" and forced to listen to poetry for three days and three nights. This was a shame in their lives.

The young elf was particularly good at poetry, so he talked a lot with the "poet". Only then did he hear the name of the Mourning Poets Society. This terrible "poet" was just one of the members of the Mourning Poets Society.

"The Mourning Poetry Society has a mysterious president. I only know his code name is the Mourner. The poet I met must have a special relationship with the Mourner. He claimed to be an ordinary member of the Mourning Poetry Society, but judging from their code names, the poet is more like a vice president. I have always suspected that he is very likely a god."

Catherine quickly asked, "The God of the Dead, do you mean the God of Liches or the Lord of Bones?"

“No, these two gods are not playful people. If we met their incarnations, we would have been turned into undead spirits long ago.

"The poet gave me the feeling that he was more than just a dead spirit. His power seemed to be even more ancient. I couldn't even guess his race. He himself admitted that he was a dead spirit, not me. He didn't have the kind of hatred for the living. He was as free as a true bard.

"It's just that the poems he wrote were really bad. They were as lame as love letters from goblins."

Catherine was embarrassed by the old king's words. It really sounded like a loser trying to save his face. She didn't expect that this mature and steady old king had such a past.

"Okay, let's get back to the point. You should already understand how powerful the Mourning Poets Society is. The Rose Queen in the Underdark is also a member of the Mourning Poets Society, as is the mysterious poet. By analogy, you can imagine how powerful this lich is. Your Majesty, even if you are promoted to Legend for the second time, you may not be his opponent. He also possesses the special power to read the minds of elves, and is likely to be another one favored by God. So, this negotiation..."

Before the old king finished speaking, Catherine interrupted and said, "I must go. Please forgive my willfulness, but I need to find the strength to support me to live."

Catherine covered her chest tightly with her hands and her face turned very pale.

"Your Majesty, you..." The old king realized that something was wrong. This behavior looked like a sign of death from a broken heart.

Most elves are sensitive and delicate. When the mental pressure becomes too great to bear, their hearts are likely to break and then die completely.

The crisis of national destruction and the heavy sense of guilt made Catherine breathless and close to mental collapse. If confessing her guilt could save the entire elf race, Catherine would have revealed the secret and put herself on trial.

But she couldn't say it at all, because there was no cure for the magic addiction. Once it was exposed, it would cause panic across the country. By then, Catherine would not be the only one to die of a broken heart. The elves would immediately split and then completely disappear.

In this situation, the life and death of Cicero and the others is the last string that supports Catherine's spirit. At least one of them must be rescued so that Catherine can find a chance to continue to hold on.

"well."

The old king sighed. When he chose Catherine as his heir, he was impressed by her sense of responsibility. But now it seems that this sense of responsibility has become the reason for the destruction of the elves.

"Okay, the negotiations will continue, but before we begin, we need to know more about this lich. I will have people prepare a ritual to calculate the past and future of this lich. So, you just have to be patient until we get enough intelligence," the old king comforted.

Catherine said "thank you" gratefully.

The ritual the old king was talking about was a magic unique to the elves. It could use the power of divination to see the target's past and future. This was much clearer than what Naya said, and it might even be possible to find the opponent's weaknesses and gain an advantage in negotiations.

Under the power of prophecy, everything hidden will be revealed.

By then, we will be able to find out what this lich is planning.

(End of this chapter)