Kobold Wizard's Journal

Chapter 236 Smile and Nightmare

The rabbit's silent departure was unexpected by Ruger. Of course, he could understand; such a shift and sense of loss was very subtle, and he could only understand it. The true feeling could never be truly grasped without experiencing it firsthand. Human emotions are complex. From the moment it saw Ruger on the recliner, it must have experienced many ups and downs in its heart. As for saying it left silently, that's not entirely accurate. It did say a lot when it left, but those things about fixing the door were just empty excuses.

Perhaps, Tuzel the rabbit could be considered a person too? Ruger thought to himself.

Perhaps this was the scene that the old wizard, whose back was only seen, was happy to see.

Ruger strode toward the distant campfire.

Leiden was sitting by the campfire, but Vito Belfort was nowhere to be seen, and his tilted hat was gone.

The sizzling sound of grilling meat, and the familiar aroma of meat.

“You’ve been in there for quite a while…” Leiden fiddled with the campfire.

The tone was as if they thought Luger had vanished forever in that strange place.

Ruger smiled. "Did you find the well?"

Leiden adjusted the fire with a stick and surprisingly nodded.

“It seems you’ve gained something as well,” Leiden glanced at the spot where the rabbit had disappeared, “and you’ve also helped that talkative Mr. Rabbit.”

“It wasn’t exactly help, just a fair little deal,” Ruger said, sitting down beside him. “When you went inside, what did you see there? Were they all portraits too?”

Ruger really didn't expect that Leiden would get a spot.

In this way, including the old woman whose arm transformation had a very high probability of success, the three of them completely ruined what the wizard apprentices had been preparing for so long.

Thinking of the old woman, Ruger inevitably began to worry about what she would do next.

“As soon as I entered, I saw a painting. Although it was small and not very close to me, even with just a blurry glance, I felt it was the most soul-stirring painting I had ever seen in my life,” Raiden shrugged, poking at the campfire stick. “It doesn’t sound like me, but that’s really how I felt. It was a coincidence, and also a strange feeling. The painting depicted a fire and a burning heart. I felt that heart was beating, and the blood was flowing within it. As I looked at it, I ended up at the well…”

Ruger nodded; it was indeed quite amazing.

He compared the paintings to those he had seen along the way. The content of these paintings seemed to be related to the wizard apprentices who had entered, but it only referred to one aspect or one corner. Ruger thought that if he continued to wander, there should be more paintings that could attract him. For example, if he was lucky enough to come across a painting of a kobold, it could probably lead him to the well. However, the place was too big. It seemed that the spirit was guiding him invisibly. Otherwise, the probability of encountering a painting that touched his soul was too low.

“I’ve decided to wait three more days… If you still haven’t shown up, I’ll have to return to camp alone,” Raiden said.

Ruger raised an eyebrow upon hearing this.

"It seems to be taking longer than I expected?" he said.

"Once this meat is cooked, we'll have some stew, and after that meal, it will be about seven days."

Leiden took out a small pot and gently placed it over the campfire.

Ruger thought to himself that seven days had passed simply from sitting by the well for a while and chatting with the rabbit.

He was somewhat surprised, but at the same time, another question came to mind.

“That wizard…” he said.

“She hasn’t been called, her shoulders haven’t gotten warm, she must be very busy right now,” Leiden said.

The two began to share the roasted meat. The stew simmering in the small pot was a tempting reddish hue, but they would have to wait a while longer. They discussed it and decided to continue exploring the deep valley. After all, breaking the door, encountering the strange rabbit, and the wizard apprentice were just chance occurrences; their original purpose was to explore the place.

As for the old woman, there's no good solution right now.

Ruger, on the other hand, was secretly calculating, leaving the matter to fate. If the old woman went too far, he would have no choice but to take out the symbol he had obtained from the book and give it a try. If everything could be resolved amicably, he naturally did not want to take any risks.

After a period of rest, Luger and his companion continued their journey into the deep valley.

Squeak happily ran around exploring again, but this time Luger had given the order not to dig too deep.

Furthermore, it is forbidden for Zhizhi to bring back any small gifts for him without permission, such as door panels or door handles.

The two began to walk into the dark depths of the valley.

If they see something that interests them, they will stop and study it.

First, after assessing the ingredients, Leiden naturally put away those that were fine. Some of them were new and unknown, which could bring new flavors. Eating things they had never tried before could help them and Zizi be accepted further into the Nightmare World. The only risk was to be careful not to eat themselves to death, but Leiden was quite confident about this.

The ticking sound could be heard from time to time!
A black pool of water, which appears somewhat clear from a different angle. The sound of dripping water is not from water falling onto the surface, but from time to time from time to time from which a drop of black water flies out of the pool in a straight line and drips into the sky. The dripping sound is the sound made when the drop leaves the surface.

Ruger looked at the pool of water but did not approach it rashly. Sometimes he stood, sometimes he changed his position or squatted down to examine it.

Leiden had already prepared the campfire for their escape.

"here……"

As Luger spoke, he suddenly stopped and beckoned to put Zizi away.

Leiden also stopped what he was doing.

The two men exchanged a glance; their shoulders were burning. The old woman was calling to them, and she wasn't showing favoritism; this time, it was the two of them together again.

In the hazy distance, the sound of dripping water had ceased.

Ruger quickly glanced around; it was still the same library.

The two were somewhat uneasy, but they didn't dare to delay and ran down to the next floor.

Before even reaching the room, we could hear the old woman's laughter, sometimes loud, sometimes soft, but it never stopped, as if she had something incredibly happy to hear.

"You've come, two little ones who bring me good luck."

The old woman glanced at them, then laughed again.

Ruger and Leiden stood in the doorway, and no matter how much the old woman laughed, they quietly completed the slouching bow.

A sharp gaze, like a knife, shot towards Luger. Luger, who had just finished bowing, immediately raised his head. Raiden seemed to sense it and also looked up, clearly also being looked at by that gaze.

Ruger paused for a moment.

Inside the room, besides the old woman with the long staff, there were four other people. Ruger and his companion were there, as was the witch apprentice, Muriel. The last person to appear was a familiar face. He was wearing an old, dark yellow wizard's robe and had long, dry, yellowish hair that reached past his shoulders. His eyes were coldly fixed on Ruger and his companion.

(End of this chapter)