Kobold Wizard's Journal

Chapter 252 To Go or to Stay

As Ruger looked at the new dish that was still twitching slightly on the plate in his hand, his thoughts began to wander. Even the strange appearance and the tempting, unique aroma could not immediately pull him back.

The so-called correspondence, I wonder if it is possible to use the underground world to have some influence on the nightmare world. It seems that it is not a simple thing to do, but there must be someone who can do something unexpected, or conversely, do something in the nightmare world to have an impact on the underground world. That should be very difficult, even more difficult than the former.

"Are there any normal humans leading those teams? What kind of relationship do they have with those red-skinned, fanged people when they interact?" Ruger suddenly asked.

Vito was clearly hungry and had already begun cutting the food on his plate into edible strips. Upon hearing this, he immediately began to think.

"It's subtle. They're not subordinates, nor are they special enough to order them to their deaths. It's more like some kind of cooperation, with a seemingly normal human as the team leader and a tall, strong fanged man. The two sometimes discuss things together. The fanged men are generally quite tall, but that guy is even taller. When too many of the fanged men die, his temper gets really bad..."

Vito tilted his head in thought.

"But... I could sense that the tall, fanged man wasn't grieving the deaths of his kind... Moreover, those fanged men who willingly died, I couldn't sense any fear or pain from them. They were all conscious before their deaths, with a... very solemn expression, and even a sense of pride. I could even sense that they were happy..."

Vito tilted his head as he spoke, finally putting the first piece of food cut from the plate into his mouth.

Despite how strange the thing was, he seemed to have great faith in Leiden's culinary skills. His eager eyes suggested that he was more than just hungry; he genuinely believed that this oddity would be a delicacy.

Ruger nodded and began to taste it as well, still using only one spoon. As the temperature dropped, the food calmed down and became soft and glutinous. By pressing down with the spoon, he could scoop a piece from the bottom of the plate. The soft and glutinous food contained a mixture of meat and spices, some of which were Nightmare World creations that Leiden had sourced on-site.

In Ruger's view, the things in the Nightmare World can be roughly divided into two types, or perhaps three types. One type consists of creations born from inexplicable dreams or other distorted causes. The other type consists of things that are truly born in the Nightmare World over countless years of evolution, in an environment constructed by those seemingly real yet illusory things. There are also some things that can be said to be somewhere in between the two types.

Ruger ate in small bites, his mind wandering without stopping. As time passed, the texture of the food on his plate changed, gradually losing its softness and becoming chewy and firm.

Vito and Leiden finished eating first and chatted casually over tea by the campfire.

“I wanted to leave, but I didn’t act rashly. We wizard apprentices who accepted the commission took turns using the magic circle so the others could rest. But from the middle of the journey, some unknown danger began to haunt us. Even when we rested, they seemed exhausted. I watched them go mad or die one after another, without any pattern, until I got an opportunity and fell into that ravine…”

As Vito spoke, he looked at Ruger and Leiden.

"But that still didn't get rid of them. I left the rabbit hut and reappeared in the ravine... I was glad I didn't see them, but not long after, when I tried to find a campsite and seek a chance to return to the underground world, I was harassed again... Luckily, I'm good at hiding..."

Vito finished the last drop of tea in his cup and stood up. "Thank you for your hospitality, but I think it would be best if I took my leave."

Vito took off his dried hat, shook off the mud, and put it back on.

“Of course, I have a feeling that even returning to the underground world won’t necessarily get rid of them,” Vito said with a smile. “But I believe I am insignificant enough, I’m quite confident that. As long as I hide for a while, this insignificant wizard apprentice of mine will be forgotten by them. After all, I don’t really know anything. They just hired a few wizard apprentices and drove them crazy with their work, even causing them to die mysteriously. Such trivial matters are not something a holy judgment wizard would concern himself with…”

Vito, on the other hand, seemed quite nonchalant.

Although he didn't say it explicitly, judging from the implication, the person in charge of leading them here should be a formal wizard, but Vito probably didn't know exactly what level of wizard he was.

But Ruger thought that someone who could wander around this area unnoticed would probably be a first-ring wizard.

The first-ring wizard was still in charge of the subsequent exploration, pinpointing locations one by one in that bizarre way of dying. It was unlikely that he would personally come to pursue Vito. Vito's escape last time was largely due to luck, which was what surprised the wizard. It was falling into the ravine and inexplicably entering the space where the rabbit hut was located that allowed Vito to successfully escape the wizard's sight.

Otherwise, Vito would have had no chance of escaping. He would most likely end up like his fellow commissioned companions, repeatedly using the magic circle to sense and listen to that voice, until he was used up like a consumable, killed, and discarded.

After a long silence, Luger looked up and found Leiden looking at him.

"Your Excellency Vito Belfort, here is a new job offer, I hope you will accept it."

Ruger called out to Vito, teasing him softly.

“Although I don’t want this encounter to turn into a tea party of mutual complaints, since Leiden already has some rather bitter tea that we can just brew and drink, I still have to say that we are also working for a wizard, and being alive here is our reward, do you understand what I mean?” Ruger said. “So your problems are nothing, at least in our opinion. Our wizard has a much worse temper, and you don’t need to worry about causing us trouble. Perhaps, as you said, you are insignificant and not worth their effort.”

Leiden poked the campfire and said softly, "I hesitated when you were about to leave, mainly because I was afraid that we would cause you trouble. If they stop bothering you, it's better to let you leave on your own than to stay here."

“A compromise is that you can stay here and help us with our work. Set a deadline for it, and you can decide for yourself. If those guys who are bothering you haven’t shown up by then, you should be safe and it’s time for you to leave us,” Ruger continued. “Until then, you should follow your instincts and guide us around this area. That will probably help us get through our current problems faster.”

(End of this chapter)