Chapter 50 The Goddess Appears in Ashlin's Dream?! Are you alright? ...
Suddenly, the rabbit meat tasted bland and tasteless.
Lucas calmly replied, "Then please begin with what you remember, sir."
Like other Noreira, Billy Mara wasn't very popular in Coldpaw, but that wasn't the real problem. The real problem had two aspects.
First: He inherited his father's irritable temper and impulsive nature;
Second: Although he was a leopard, he was not strong.
In Coldclaw Forest, a weak Noreira is no different from a piece of trash.
Last month, he suffered a crushing defeat against a Greta guard with deer ears and antlers, nearly losing an eye and becoming slightly lame. The deer-man guard knew nothing but bullying Noreira, which infuriated Billy, but he was no match for his strength.
As a Norira leopard, he was not skilled in combat and was born weak and sickly. What way could he possibly have to fight back against that damned Greta deer-man?
But what if, what if there's some way...
Humans without divine blood can learn magic, and so can elves. So why is it that orcs have weak magic, and why is the Norira among the orcs considered inferior to Greta?
He began browsing through his father's old bookcase.
Indeed, Andrew Mara is a book lover who can find books from all over the world. His bookshelves are full, and they would satisfy any book lover. You would want to live in those two rows of shelves for several lifetimes.
However, there weren't many books about magic. He only found one, titled "An Introduction to the Fundamentals of Magic".
“My last memory is closing that book.” Billy spread his paws. “Everything else is blank…”
Ray and Mr. Mara looked at him with concern.
An Introduction to the Fundamentals of Magic?
Ashlin was extremely surprised. She had seen the table of contents of this book before! It was an essential foundation book for all wizards.
She hated that book the most because it was as dry as a dried-up river; all the interesting knowledge was kneaded into dry mud or cut into cardboard by the author, making it impossible to chew.
Lucas immediately went to the bookshelf, quickly scanning all the spines, his eyes soon settling on a purple book. Ashlin guessed he must be very familiar with this book to have found it so quickly.
He pulled out the book, blew away the dust, revealing the title: "An Introduction to the Foundations of Magic," without a single mistake.
Ashlin also stepped forward.
The problem is, in her memory, this book didn't look like this. It was indeed purple, but a lighter shade, and the paper was thicker. Perhaps this was a poorly made manuscript; after all, it wasn't easy for a book written by humans to reach orc territory.
Below the book title is a handwritten initials of the author's name:
LKD
LKD? But the author of "Introduction to the Fundamentals of Magic" is the ancient archmage Iller Corinna, and the abbreviation should be EC.
She looked at Lucas with a puzzled expression, expecting to receive the same confusion. Lucas, however, simply gazed thoughtfully at the book, about to open the cover.
The cover remained completely still, like a stone.
“This book is quite unique,” he said with great interest. “Is it under a spell? A binding curse?”
“I don’t know,” Mr. Mara frowned. “I’ve never really paid attention to this one. It looks a bit… cheap.”
“I have absolutely no recollection of how I opened it or what I read. This memory is a complete blank.” Billy rubbed his head. “But I think I used something… no, I don’t remember what it was! Damn it.”
Lucas turned his back to Ray, his hands hidden behind his back.
“Miss Mara, you know something,” he said sharply. “Billy doesn’t have an ordinary illness. He’s ingested some kind of poison, hasn’t he?”
Ray looked at him warily: "How did you know?"
"Of course you told me. You tied me up and asked me about that herb."
Mr. Mara raised his hand: "Hey, I don't want anyone being kidnapped! That word is not to be used in this room again, understand?!"
Ray hesitated for a moment, then took out a drawing.
Ashley recognized it as the blueprint she had shown Lucas when she "kidnapped" him.
Above is a pale green plant, exquisitely painted, with a shape so symmetrical it's almost bizarre.
“That’s right. I found this by Billy’s bedside the day he fell ill. I couldn’t find the poisonous herb itself, only this picture, and Billy was unconscious at the time, only coughing,” Ray explained. “I used all the money I stole to ask botanists and herbalists for clues about the poisonous herb, but no one could answer my questions. And without knowing what the poisonous herb was, there was no way to make an antidote. That’s why I came back… If there really was no solution, at least I had to be with him in his final days. Thankfully, Ashlin’s magic worked.”
Billy looked completely bewildered. "I have absolutely no recollection of this kind of grass."
Lucas waved one hand, while his other hand remained hidden behind his back.
“It’s alright. You’re fully recovered now, so it doesn’t matter whether you remember or not,” he said softly. “The amnesia is probably because the poisonous herb severely injured you. I can ask the herbalist about the poisonous herb. Ashlin, Sanova will know, right?”
“It’s getting late,” Lucas interrupted her. “Let’s rest first. We’ll start the trial tomorrow.”
"What are you hiding from me?" Ashlin whispered in cat language to Lucas, who had turned back into a black cat, after Mara's family had fallen asleep again.
Lucas had finally shaken off the flowers with great difficulty and felt much better.
“You don’t need to think about that,” the black cat said. “The only thing to worry about now is the trial.”
The black cat's tail swayed. "Go to sleep, okay? Billy's recovered, there's nothing more to say. You don't want to wake them up again, do you?"
Ashlin suppressed her anger and turned away. What did he have to hide? She didn't care whether he told her or not. She didn't like people keeping things from her, especially Lucas, but she didn't want to keep asking.
In the end, she decided to write to Sanova to ask him about the poisonous weeds.
She checked his messages every five minutes, but he didn't reply. Since she embarked on her journey, Sanova had also become quiet and withdrawn.
On the bright side, he might still be practicing calligraphy diligently so that he can reply to her in a more perfect way.
The black cat was fast asleep at her feet. Ashlind looked at him, her feelings complicated. She stroked his fur and the little blue petals she had missed, then closed her eyes.
Then it opened its eyes again.
wrong.
She never mentioned practicing calligraphy to Sanova.
She just thought about it for a moment, and then, like everything else, she put it out of her mind.
Ashlin took out the letter again, flipping through their chat history and comparing it back and forth. His latest reply was written in response to her anxiety before the Star and Moon Party; the handwriting carried his usual relaxed tone, but it was indeed much neater.
Well, maybe someone reminded him to practice his calligraphy.
The cat meowed angrily a few times, then went back to sleep.
However, this time the handwriting was completely different: serious and neat, like a well-behaved little girl.
The reply contained only three sentences:
Ashlin?! Are you alright? Where did you go?
She paused for a moment, wanting to see what would happen next, but to her despair, she discovered that the paper used for the text transmission spell was all used up. She had never studied text transmission; it was an extremely sophisticated magic, far more complex than illusion or healing, because it involved space and language.
She flipped through Sanova's notebook, which also lacked any text transmission spells. Clearly, Sanova assumed they saw each other almost daily, and that the stationery was inexhaustible.
This is Mia Collins's handwriting, without a doubt.
Ashlin used to copy Mia's theology assignments during class, and she knew those neat, square characters by heart.
But why did Mia and Sanova reply? Did something happen to him?
Judging from Mia's tone, she was terrified by Ashlin's letter. Had Sanova not told Mia about her adventure? That shouldn't be the case; Sanova and Mia have always had a good relationship.
However, even if you stare at those three sentences all night, Mia won't respond or reply. The only way to contact Mia is through raven messengers, but that takes days, even weeks, and there's a chance of error.
If only she and Mia had the same spiritual connection as Aisusa...
An idea flashed before her eyes.
She is a descendant of the gods. In those legends, deities can send messages through dreams. Theoretically, those born of the moon goddess are best at doing this, but what if she can?
Mia, she murmured to herself, "Hello?" She was calling for Mia Collins.
A gust of wind could be heard outside the window.
"How stupid," Ashlind said to herself. She didn't even know a spell to transmit text, and now she was thinking about sending messages through dreams.
Oh, forest goddess Silvina, can you tell me how to send a message in a dream? She gazed at the room full of green vines and prayed.
In the end, she simply fell asleep amidst countless failures.
Ashlin woke up groggily to find herself lying on the grass.
All around was silent except for the gentle breeze, and there was a dilapidated temple beside me.
The Temple of Celeste, the Moon Goddess, on the Stormy Plain.
A curse ripped through the woods, startling the birds into flight, and Ashlin turned abruptly.
“Damn! You scared me, Elaine. I thought you were a dark wizard.” A strong woman dressed as a witcher sheathed her longsword and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Cassandra!" Ashley exclaimed excitedly, but Cassandra didn't look at her and walked straight through her body.
This is so bizarre; she must be dreaming.
Oh. She really is dreaming.
She reached out in surprise, but nothing came out.
Her body is not here.
A dream, or some kind of illusion, some kind of memory, just like the past that Sheeta had shown them before.
Could it be that she kept thinking about receiving a message in her dream before going to sleep, so the forest goddess sent her a message in her dream?
Ashlin's mind was already unclear, and now it was even more confused.
Across from Cassandra, the girl with a black ponytail raised her eyebrows: "It's nice to meet you too, Cassandra."
"So, did you get it?" the Witcher asked.
Elaine Deville, clad in full armor, with a light blue cloak billowing behind her, stepped onto the altar and pulled a vial of silvery-white potion from her pouch.
“Sanova has disappeared again, but thankfully Manette can also concoct the blood-testing medicine. It’s very difficult to concoct, so we’d better succeed on the first try,” Elaine said. “Do you remember the letter I wrote to you? In my reply, my brother explained the matter of the moon god and the riddle, and guessed that Knox was a descendant of the moon god. Moreover, Knox tested the blood of the Trigods and finally determined that the blood of the forest was effective for the altar.”
Cassandra nodded. "That's right, and if that's the case, then he must have shed his own blood at the altar. That way we'll know who he really is."
Elaine knelt down and carefully examined the bloodstains on the altar.
“Lucas said that Knox already knows the riddle and is also looking for the items,” she said. “But strangely, the riddle hasn’t manifested yet. This means it has a time limit, and may only last for one moonlit night. So how did Knox, who had already failed, learn about the riddle?”
She opened the medicine bottle.
Cassandra also knelt down.
"So if Knox knew the riddle, it could only be here. Did he later find other children of the forest?"
“That possibility cannot be ruled out,” Elaine said cautiously. “But divine offspring are rare to begin with, and descendants of forest gods are even rarer. I tried to find Ashlyn Bailey’s real family members based on their characteristics and the era, but I only found a woman named Talia.”
"Golden hair, green eyes, and legend has it that she possesses powerful earth elemental energy; she is very likely Ashlin's mother."
Ashlin was completely stunned.
Mother?
"How is she?"
"She is dead."
Cassandra's eyes darted around. "Your father."
“Talia is not entirely innocent. She couldn’t control her power and it seems to have affected the Edoro Labyrinth, tearing apart several key labyrinth doors. That is her crime.”
“I don’t know what Sanova thinks, but as far as I know, he’s a rather… capricious person,” Elaine said helplessly. “And also, he’s quite lonely. Maybe he doesn’t want his adopted daughter to go down the path of tracing back to her biological family and leaving him. Or maybe he just doesn’t care at all. After all, that man left his entire wallet in his office when he resigned from the court.”
“A typical Sanova.”
“I am more inclined to believe that Knox was also present when Sanova, Ashlyn, and Lucas revealed the riddle at the altar.”
This is chilling news.
Ashlin tried hard to recall what was unusual about her surroundings that night. Were there any glowing white birds or crows?
Cassandra nodded. "That makes sense. Knox is a follower of Cynthia, and very likely a descendant of the moon goddess; Cynthia is also a descendant of the moon goddess. And the descendants of the moon goddess are notoriously fond of illusions."
"Remember how he trapped me in the tavern? Time loops are a type of dark magic illusion. Knox may have transformed himself into some kind of bird, or a tree..."
Elaine smiled slightly: "That's right. Well then, it's time for this illusion master's blood to tell us the truth. The blood test medicine is mixed with a truth-revealing potion that can reveal the owner of the bloodstains."
With a gentle sprinkle from the medicine bottle, the dried bloodstains on the altar instantly shone with silver light.
Ashlin leaned closer. Four names appeared on four different bloodstains, in order of the most recent bloodstain:
Ashlyn Bailey
Sanova Bailey
Manette Varian
Aidan
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
