Chapter 2509: Chapter 2510: Princess Castle
Arriving at the tavernâs front hall, Angel immediately spotted Dox and Abulei.
Abulei sat in a corner by the wall looking pitiful, while Dox was on the opposite end. The reason they sat so far apart was because Abulei was afraid Dox might slap the Crowned Parrot out of anger.
At this moment, the tavernâs front hall was bustling with activity.
Dox, after taking a few sips of small wine, felt emboldened and decided to start a war of words with the Crowned Parrot.
Dox thought happily that without Angel around to shield it, the Crowned Parrot might lose its nerve and lose its prestige.
But Dox was completely wrong; the Crowned Parrot had a fiery temper and would flare up at the slightest provocation.
Of course, the Crowned Parrot wasnât reckless; it had carefully assessed the situation and judged that Dox definitely wouldnât dare to harm it here, and even if he did, considering Angel, it wouldnât actually be in lethal danger.
Since it wouldnât die, what was there to fear?
At first, since Dox was prepared, he had some ready insults to throw in the verbal exchange, so there was some back and forth. But in a battle of words, just having prepared insults isnât enough; itâs like combatâyou have to respond to whatever move your opponent makes.
No matter what insult Dox prepared, the Crowned Parrot could catch it, and even continue along that line of thought, spewing beautiful sarcasm.
Dox managed to hold on for a few minutes before he started to falter.
Meanwhile, the Crowned Parrot was speaking non-stop. It rarely used curse words, mostly just calling out stupidity or foolishness, but its words were piercing.
Even an Official Wizard like Dox felt his anger rising upon hearing it.
This was why Abulei sat far away, trembling. She watched as Doxâs face turned red with anger, and several times she secretly wanted to pull the Crowned Parrot away, but the parrot would glare at her with fierce eyes each time, making her sit up straight and not daring to make a move.
It wasnât until Angel appeared that Abulei secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Previously, whenever Dox tried to lay hands on the Crowned Parrot, he was stopped by Angel, though she didnât know why Angel treated this parrot differently.
The Crowned Parrot wasnât bothered whether Angel came or not, as long as it wasnât stopped, it continued its beautiful verbal assault on the world.
Angel didnât stop the Crowned Parrotâs performance, leisurely leaning against the doorframe by the bar, watching this nearly one-sided verbal battle.
Eventually, Dox couldnât take it anymore, leaving with a phrase like "Iâll be back" as he hurried over to Angel.
"Youâre out? Just in time, Iâm in a great mood. Letâs get to business quickly. When we return, Iâll have another go with that parrot over a hundred rounds."
Angel wasnât sure where Dox got the confidence to say such things and lightly replied, "A hundred rounds, I believe you can last that long."
Doxâs expression froze, his lips trembled a bit, but he ultimately said nothing, somewhat dejectedly following Angel out of the tavern.
After they left, they didnât head straight for the Princess Castle; instead, they wandered leisurely. Since the castle was at the center of the entire Princess Town and covered a vast area, no matter which way they wandered, they would eventually pass by some side of the Princess Castle.
So, there was no rush.
Upon leaving, Dox sidled up to Angel: "Donât you think Abuleiâs Crowned Parrot is a bit strange?"
Angel dismissed it: "Canât win the war of words, so now youâre resorting to rumors and slander?"
Dox shook his head: "Who says I canât win? I just didnât perform well. Next time, when Iâm prepared, Iâll show you what..."
"A vanquished foe." Angel chimed in.
Dox retorted, frustrated: "What defeated foe, Iâll surely win next time. Anyway, what I mean is, I really think that Crowned Parrot is a bit off. I might not be from the Summoning System, but Iâve dealt with and studied summoned creatures, and no other Crowned Parrot Iâve known is like this one."
What Dox mentioned, Angel was also aware of.
A normal Crowned Parrot has abilities like controlling wind, mimicry, and can be summoned to become the eyes and ears of the summoner, much like Eulicaâs Owl magic pet.
Because of its mimicry, the Crowned Parrot is one of the few summoned creatures that can speak. If well trained, it can communicate normally with its owner.
But itâs merely normal communication.
After all, a Crowned Parrot is a low-level summoned creature, with intelligence on par with a Heart-devouring Ghostâit has some wits, but not too high.
However, the Crowned Parrot that Abulei summoned was quick-witted, not only having no barriers to language, but its words could serve as weapons, thoroughly overwhelming Dox, a Wandering Wizard well-versed in worldly affairs.
"Moreover, not only does this Crowned Parrot have a sharp tongue, it references many Wizardsâ Realm classics during our verbal duel. Some I know, but some secrets I couldnât even understand. Its understanding of the Wizardsâ Realm seems even greater than mine."
Dox summed up these peculiarities one by one: "Strong insight, aloof personality, likes to call the summoner a servant, and knows the intricacies of the Wizardsâ Realm..."
Angel internally added: It also has a deep understanding of spell techniques. At least when Angel used the Art of Fear on it before, the Crowned Parrot clearly saw something was off.
Dox: "Putting all these together, I canât help but feel a sense of familiarity."
Angel followed Doxâs train of thought: "Since it feels familiar, perhaps, its former owner was someone famous."
Undoubtedly, this Crowned Parrot must have had a former owner; otherwise, how would it be so well-versed in matters of the Wizardsâ Realm?
Dox nodded: "That must be it, maybe itâs the former summoned creature of some renowned wizard. Who could it be?"
Dox thought about it the whole way, but still couldnât come up with anything.
"I havenât had much exposure to official records outside; you must have come across more references. Do you know?" Dox looked at Angel.
Without hesitation, Angel replied: "I have no idea."
He had only been cultivating for a few years and was still accumulating fundamental knowledge. He simply didnât have the time to keep up with such tales and anecdotes.
Seeing Angel, Dox seemed to have realized something and mumbled something under his breath before shaking his head: "I canât remember; maybe itâs just my imagination."
After this, Dox didnât continue on the topic of the Crowned Parrot, preferring to stay silent as they went along.
It wasnât until they were near the Princess Castle that Dox, after some hesitation, asked Angel: "You... are you really that Pat?"
Angel: "Which Pat?"
"The Pat that Abulei mentioned. Donât you have any other Pat in the Barbarian Cave?"
Angel: "As far as I know, Iâm the only one with the last name Pat in the Barbarian Cave."
Dox: "So you really are that... Music Box Alchemist?"
Music Box Alchemist, the next stop mysterious, Lionheart Thorns, and Illusion Master, were all titles various magazines had attributed to Angel.
Later, after Angel himself settled on "Transcendental" as his name, there were fewer of these casual nicknames.
For some reason, he used to find it annoying, but now Angel kind of misses those bygone titles.
"Although I think Music Box Alchemist sounds pretty nice, I still prefer people calling me Transcendental Wizard."
Dox: "Yes, yes, Transcendental Wizard. I just heard from a friend about your music box, and my subconscious slipped."
At that time, through the music box, Dox saw an unparalleled illusionary realm; it was the first time he witnessed such an immersive spectacle full of blanks and implications, especially the remnants on the floating island which resembled history.
That experience was very valuable for Dox. It even influenced some of his thoughts.
Of course, it wasnât the music boxâs power itself; it was that kind of blank space where everyone who looked at it had different thoughts. Just like interpreting a book, where different people have different insights. Some will grow clearer, while others become increasingly obsessed.
For Dox, some of his ideas changed, yet his thoughts became clearer.
Thatâs why his memory of the music box was too profound, so much so that he mixed up Angelâs official title.
"Did you like it?"
Dox was stunned, not understanding Angelâs meaning.
"I mean, after you listened to that music box, how did you feel?" Angel rarely wanted to hear customer feedback.
"Not bad, or rather, very good." Dox didnât want to omit that the music box changed some of his ideas, but he didnât want to go against his true feelings either. So, he emphasized the word "very" to express that he genuinely thought the music box was excellent.
"Music boxes, I havenât refined one in a long time." Angelâs gaze became somewhat distant: "Those auctioned music boxes were refined when I was an apprentice."
"Since you think itâs good, I can find time to refine one for you again," Angel said.
Doxâs face lit up with surprise: "Really?"
Angel nodded: "Of course itâs true. Next time you bring Little Gold, I will give the music box to you."
Dox: "..." He really believed Angel was giving him one for free, but it turned out to be a veiled reminder not to forget Little Gold.
Still, even like this, Dox was quite lucky. After all, Little Gold was something Dox had promised to give Angel.
"My Little Gold has already entered the gestation period; once the energy is sufficient this time, it wonât be long before it gives birth. At that time, Iâll choose the best cub for you." Dox promised.
Since Dox said it like this, he definitely wouldnât give him a subpar one. This was indeed a pleasant surprise.
Perhaps because Dox expressed his love for the music box, they chatted much more casually than before. However, Angel noticed that Dox occasionally looked at him with complex eyes.
Especially when talking about things King Gumman had done.
Angel said: "I havenât studied King Gumman much."
Instantly making Dox speechless.
The reason for his speechlessness wasnât Angelâs lack of knowledge, but his realization of this statementâs underlying reason... Angel was still an actual young man, no, a teenager.
A prodigious talent crucial to cultivation in the Southern Domain.
Previously, Dox had always assumed Angel was at least a thousand-year-old monster. Now, knowing the otherâs cultivation time didnât even compare to him, this was the reason for his complex thoughts and emotions.
Despite being a wizard in his youth, at eighty years old, facing Angel made him feel... weathered.
Angel had no idea Dox had been overthinking from Sandworm Market till now, so this complex gaze of Dox was also beyond Angelâs comprehension.
Yet, Angel noticed no malice in Dox, so he didnât mind.
Moreover, Princess Castle had already arrived.
...
The location they found themselves in was the right fence of Princess Castle, a low fence but with magical patterns flickering, showing its formidable defense.
Through the fence carved with birds, they could clearly see the lush woods behind the fence and the castle vaguely visible deeper in the forest.
It seemed peculiar to see a forest at Princess Castle, but actually, it wasnât. That forest wasnât the focus. The focus was the phantasmal beasts and magical beasts raised inside.
Angel: "According to the map given by Old Porter, we are on the right side of Princess Castle; this side is the Phantasmal Beast Forest. Correspondingly, the left side is the amusement park."
Dox frowned slightly: "Are we really going to infiltrate from the Phantasmal Beast Forest side? Wouldnât it be easier to remain unnoticed from the amusement park side?"
Angel: "Itâs the same wherever we go, but if we choose the amusement park, we might run into the Grand Princessâs daughter. According to Old Porter, she goes to the amusement park sporadically, and the amusement park faces her roomâs window."
Angel wasnât afraid to meet this so-called Princess; he had made up his mind to rescue people without meddling in King Gummanâs royal affairs, so if he could avoid meeting the Princess, he would.
This was why he opted to enter through the Phantasmal Beast Forest.
Seeing Dox hesitating, Angel said: "Donât worry, these phantasmal beasts wonât notice us. Donât forget, I am a wizard from the Illusion Series."
Dox: "Iâm not worried about the phantasmal beasts, as I have concealing capabilities, but rather about how to break through these magical patterns without being detected."
"Oh, magical patterns, donât forget, I am an Alchemist from Enchantment Studies."
Angel repeated the same phrasing twice.
It was merely stating the key points, yet it inexplicably hit Doxâs sore spot. Indeed, not only was Angelâs cultivation time shorter than his, but his illusion techniques were astonishing, and heâs an Alchemy Master from the Research and Development Institute!
This comparison made Dox feel worthless... Even though he spent a lot of time, why was his efficiency several times lower than Angelâs?
Silently nursing his wounded soul, Dox momentarily didnât want to speak with Angel or walk alongside him.
Dox did as he said.
Once Angel quietly lifted a corner of the magical patterns, they entered the Phantasmal Beast Forest, and Dox indicated to Angel that he wished to go separate ways.
Angel thought about it and didnât mind.
Dox prepared to watch exciting scenes, like near the Princessâs area.
Meanwhile, he planned to head to the dungeon to rescue people; indeed, they were going separate ways.
If you find any errors ( Ads popup, ads redirect, broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.