Chapter 2505: Chapter 2506: Contract
"Speaking of which, what kind of dream is she having? Why didnât you wake her up and let her keep sleeping?"
Dox seemed like someone who couldnât keep his mouth shut. Even though Angel appeared very cold, he still forced himself over.
Angel was silent for a moment before slowly saying, "A dream that allows her to see the truth."
"So, you used some method to make her have a dream where she saw the truth? Is this dream a nightmare for her?" Dox immediately began analyzing.
Angel said nothing.
But Dox continued his chatter: "Whatâs the point of seeing the truth? Even if you see it, it doesnât mean you can understand it."
Although Doxâs words were offhand, there was truth in them. There is a vast distance between seeing the truth and recognizing the truth.
"Moreover, for her, since this is a nightmare, maybe when she wakes up, she wonât want to recall it at all. You know, people with fragile hearts always protect themselves within walls they build and donât want to, nor are they willing to, face all the negative emotions."
"Your analysis is quite thorough," Angel wasnât sarcastic; he genuinely thought Doxâs analysis was quite good.
Dox: "Iâve seen many similar situations and similar people trapped in worlds theyâve created, indulging in self-perceived beautiful dreams."
Angel: "So what do you do about it?"
Dox: "When Iâm in a good mood, I just slap them awake. If one slap doesnât work, Iâll give another. When Iâm not in a good mood, who cares about them?"
Angel didnât think there was anything wrong with Doxâs frankness about his violent approach; in fact, he found this person rather interesting.
Dox: "Anyway, I wouldnât guide the juniors as patiently as you do."
Angel: "I just did it casually, let her see the truth. But as you mentioned, seeing the truth doesnât mean you can recognize it. I only ensured she saw those images, but how to choose is her business."
Angel wasnât familiar with Abulei, but he knew Gu Yina well. She was both pitiable and malicious, and it was Angel, as her Guide, who brought her to the Barbarian Cave. It was for this reason that Angel provided Abulei with a chance to see the truth. But whether she could seize this opportunity depended on her own choice.
Another ten minutes passed.
According to Angelâs calculations, Abuleiâs dream should have ended by now, but she seemed reluctant to wake up.
Unexpectedly, it was the Crowned Parrot that woke up first.
As soon as the Crowned Parrot woke, Dox, as if self-harming, engaged it in a war of words.
The Crowned Parrot trembled a bit, secretly glanced at Angel, and when it saw the latter showed no sign, its confidence returned, resembling a machine gun, reversing Doxâs advantage in an instant, visibly crushing him.
Defeated again... When Dox was speaking with Angel, he had actually been summarizing in his mind where he went wrong in the previous quarrel. Having believed he patched up all weaknesses, he challenged the Crowned Parrot again to vindicate himself.
Dox was shaking with anger, but this time he didnât start a fight with the Crowned Parrot again but hovered by Angelâs side: "What did you do to it just now? It seemed to fear you so much that it didnât even dare to look at you."
The Crowned Parrot also heard Doxâs words and immediately retorted: "Who said I was afraid to look..."
Before it could finish speaking, Angel turned his head, calmly fixing his gaze on the Crowned Parrot.
The Crowned Parrot instantly went submissive, lowered its head compliantly, and stopped speaking.
Doxâs eyes lit up as he witnessed exactly the kind of effect he desired!
"Teach me, let me try it on it too," Dox looked at Angel with eager eyes.
Angel: "It was just an Art of Fear."
"Mental illusion?" Dox appeared disappointed. Even though the Art of Fear was just a first-level trick, he had never learned illusion techniques. To truly practice across disciplines, it would probably take at least six months to a year.
On the other hand, the Crowned Parrot took a stealthy peek at Angel. Fear Art? It knew this trick.
It had just experienced the worldâs most terrifying nightmare, and that was definitely not the Art of Fear. Because the things in those dreams truly existed, they could even tear it apart in the dream, causing it to die utterly in reality. The Art of Fear couldnât achieve such an effect.
This man, who appeared the gentlest, was a downright liar! And, the most terrifying Great Demon King!
Angel didnât know about the Crowned Parrotâs inner grumbles, but if he did, heâd probably smile and correct it. What he used was definitely the Art of Fear, only... it was activated with the Power of the Nightmare Realm in the green pattern on his right hand.
The Crowned Parrot showed submission to Angel but had no fear towards Dox. Dox was idle and thus ended up trembling with anger, now featuring against the Crowned Parrot once more.
Angel was quite amused by this scenario, and even though he had just used the Nightmare Illusion Fear Art on the Crowned Parrot, he actually still quite admired it.
Abuleiâs personality was too weak. If paired with the insightful and verbally adept Crowned Parrot, it might prove more useful than the dream Angel had given.
Precisely because of this thought, Angel chose to protect the Crowned Parrot, sparing it from Doxâs violent tendencies.
The argument escalated, and the Crowned Parrot grew fiercer with bravery while Dox, apart from clenching his teeth and fists, had run out of insults.
Defeated once again, Dox lay next to Angel like a salted fish. Meanwhile, the Crowned Parrot lifted its head proudly, its face filled with glee.
Dox himself couldnât understand: "As a Wandering Wizard, for at least fifty of these past eighty years, Iâve roamed various regions. From the lowest to the highest levels of discourse, Iâve experienced it all, yet I still canât outmatch a mere parrot in a quarrel!"
Why is that?!
"Is this parrot a summoned creature? In the dimension it comes from, are daily conversations peppered with insults or something?"
Angel didnât know either, but he truly sympathized with Dox. His rich experiences were no match for the little parrotâs verbal jabs, an enlightening moment of defeat for Dox, I suppose.
In the depths of Doxâs depression, a sound of a soft "whimper" echoed from the side.
He raised himself to take a look and found that Abulei, who had been sleeping, had finally awakened.
She dazedly propped herself up, looking around, tears unconsciously streaming from her eyes.
"Youâre awake," a gentle voice sounded beside her ear.
"Sir, why are you here?" Abulei subconsciously asked.
"Werenât you the one calling for me to rescue you?" Angel said as he stepped aside to reveal the Gumman Kingdom Royal Knight Group members lying scattered on the ground not far away.
Only then did Abulei remember, yet those memories were quickly overshadowed by her darkening mood once again.
"Master, that dream... was it real?" Abuleiâs voice was trembling.
Angel replied indifferently, "True or false, you judge for yourself. For personal matters, find time to deal with them on your own. Now, letâs talk about the situation here."
Abulei opened her mouth, the words filled with surging emotions reached her throat, but ultimately, she quietly swallowed them down.
Angel was right; matters have their priorities, and her personal affairs... were insignificant.
As Abuleiâs gaze turned gloomy, the Crowned Parrot beside her suddenly spoke, "You really are a fool. How did I end up with such a servant? That woman is clearly using you, yet you still doubt the truth. You simply donât want to face the reality, wishing to hear âfalseâ from others, so you can comfortably hide in your own little world and continue living by the facade, right?"
Abulei looked at the Crowned Parrot in surprise, "How do you know about Gu Yina?"
No need to doubt, this was surely Angelâs doing. He had used Nightmare Illusion and the Art of Fear on the Crowned Parrot and tucked some of Abuleiâs stories into that illusion dream.
Angel only did so casually, thinking that since the Crowned Parrot was so eloquent, maybe it could influence Abulei.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Abulei awoke, the Crowned Parrot started its barrage.
Though the words were harsh, Angel realized the Crowned Parrot truly understood "human nature." In comparison, Abulei was just a blank sheet of paper.
"Donât worry about how I know, but youâre indeed silly. If my servants were this foolish, I wouldnât consider entering a contract with them," the Crowned Parrot said arrogantly.
"Iâm not foolish; I just feel Gu Yina is pitiful..."
"Ha ha, another excuse to retreat into your little world. Pitiful? She might be pitiful, but whatâs it got to do with you? Sheâs using you, donât you sense it at all? No, you do, but each time, just like now, you use âpitifulâ to deceive yourself and deliberately ignore all the discrepancies. Foolish, too foolish!"
After being scolded by the Crowned Parrot, Abulei hesitated to speak, fearing that anything she said would be labeled as "excuses" or "reasons" by the Crowned Parrot.
But, to be honest, the Crowned Parrotâs words directly hit Abuleiâs heart.
When she woke earlier and asked Angel, she indeed harbored a little desire to "whitewash" things. However, after the Crowned Parrot brutally exposed the truth she didnât want to face, whitewashing was no longer useful.
Now, what she could do seemed to be only confronting and making choices.
Angel also noticed Abuleiâs psychological shift, secretly applauding the Crowned Parrot. Though it was a bit harsh, the Crowned Parrot was actually quite kind to Abulei.
Abulei began to seriously consider how to confront and choose, which wasnât easy.
Angel believed that as long as the Crowned Parrot remained by Abuleiâs side, she would eventually embark on the path of change.
"Abulei, do you believe in your summoned creature?"
Before Abulei could respond, the Crowned Parrot exclaimed, "Whoâs her summoned creature? We havenât even signed a contract yet."
Abulei nodded repeatedly.
"I see the contract hasnât been signed yet. Well, you can sign it now; I can witness your friendship." Angel said.
The Crowned Parrot was somewhat intimidated by Angel, but still said, "Who wants to sign with such a coward? She doesnât even qualify to be my servant..."
As the Crowned Parrot spoke halfway, it turned to find Abuleiâs expression was also hesitant!
A foolish human dared to hesitate about signing a contract with a noble being like me!
Unforgivable!
The more unwilling you are to sign a contract with me, the more I want to sign!
The Crowned Parrot immediately changed its tone, "She has some qualifications to be my servant. I agree to establish a master-servant contract; Iâm the master, and sheâs my servant!"
Abulei didnât expect the Crowned Parrot would agree to sign a contract with her. Her hesitation was merely worry that the Crowned Parrot might despise her; however, the Crowned Parrot took it as Abulei despising itself.
In a twist of fate, this also counted as serendipity.
In the end, with Angel as the witness, they signed the contract. But it wasnât a master-servant contract; it was an equal contract.
Even though the Crowned Parrot complained, still calling Abulei a foolish servant, it acknowledged it.
After binding the Crowned Parrot with Abulei, Angel felt relieved. With the Crowned Parrot present, Abuleiâs life should become more interesting. At least, Angel believed, the Crowned Parrot would never allow Abulei to continue being a weakling.
After resolving this matter, Angel turned back to Abulei: "As I said before, personal matters, solve them yourself. Now, we need to address the issue of the Knights of the Gumman Kingdom. Speak, why are they chasing you?"
Because of the Crowned Parrotâs interruption, Abuleiâs previously downcast demeanor had improved considerably. Earlier, she thought Gu Yinaâs truth was more important than anything, but now that the facade was stripped away, she could naturally set it aside.
Currently, what was most crucial was relaying what Old Porter had said to Angel.
"Hereâs what happened. After I parted ways with you, I went to a nearby wizard market named... Princess Town."
"Princess Town, the name alone suggests a connection to King Gumman," Dox said coldly.
Abulei didnât know Dox but, seeing him with Angel, assumed they were friends and didnât avoid them: "What this gentleman said is correct. A long time ago, the market was named Blackland Market because of a soft water source called Blackland nearby. Later, when the Blackland Soft Water was depleted, the market was renamed Merlandi Market."
Where the Blackland Soft Water appears, there must be Merlandi Magic Ore, which is an inert mineral difficult to react with Magic Power.
It must be said, the renaming of this market is quite logical. You use what you have and rely on what you have.
"However, the name Merlandi Market was only used for a year or two before it changed again. This happened because the daughter of the Great Princess of the Gumman Kingdom came here, so it was changed to Princess Town."
Actually, people in the Southern Domain Wizardsâ Realm know well that King Gumman controls almost all transcendent markets in the kingdom. However, previously, King Gumman at least maintained good superficial appearance, allowing various wizard markets to operate freely, rarely interfering.
But now, just hearing a market name change to âPrincess Townâ indicates that King Gumman seems no longer intent on manipulating wizard markets secretly.
From secret to overt, fully consolidating all transcendent markets.
Abulei continued, "After I arrived in Princess Town, since it was late, I decided to rest for the night and convey my message to the White Shell Sea Market the next day. I knew of a hidden outpost of an organization in Princess Town, managed by a brewer named Old Porter. So, I went to Old Porterâs place."
Although various witcher organizations donât trust King Gumman and are unwilling to station personnel in the wizard markets here, there are quite a few hidden outposts to observe the domestic developments of the Gumman Kingdom.
"I went to Old Porterâs place while he was trying to send urgent intelligence back to the Barbarian Cave."
"Then, from Old Porter, I learned about that intelligence..."
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