The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 138 Two Catherines and a New Spell (Please Subscribe!)

Tang Qi was suddenly awakened from his sleep.

The nightmare vanished in an instant, leaving only a suffocating feeling in his chest that made it hard to breathe. At first, he thought it was the quagmire of the dream affecting reality.

But a moment later, he gently pushed away the snow-white arm that was pressing against his chest, only to realize that it was Catherine unconsciously stroking his heart in her sleep.

An oppressive feeling in the chest is indeed a trigger for frequent dreams.

Not long afterward, the girl fell into a light sleep.

Because of his movements, he murmured babyish sounds in his dazed state:
"Is it morning yet?"

Tang Qi glanced out the window at the night, where not a ray of dawn had yet broken through the darkness, save for the intermittent, joyful calls of nightingales courting their mates.
"not yet."

You're sweating a lot.

The girl was still a little sleepy, but almost subconsciously she wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with the back of her hand.

Tang Qi's breathing gradually stabilized:

"Had a nightmare."

"What did you dream about?"

Tang Qi tried to recall the dream, but found that he couldn't remember anything.

But he seemed to have a vague idea of ​​the source of this fear:

"Perhaps it's because of that assassin at dusk that I've been feeling uneasy."

I'm wondering who's watching me—

I need to find the answers myself.

Tang Qi had considered whether to wait until the book was officially published and his reputation was confirmed before venturing into the dungeon to explore the legendary "Dragon Vault".

While waiting to become famous, he could take a few more baths on the ground and think about dwarf jokes.

But this sudden threat almost shattered Tang Qi's dream of this peaceful life, making him realize that he shouldn't be so complacent.

It also instantly brought back the tension I felt in Xingmei Town—

My heart feels like it's being gripped tightly:
"I heard Chuck mention before that the Red Scarf Gang's stronghold is not in Dragon Gold City, but in [Deep Well]."

To confirm the assassin's identity, we must delve deep into the dungeon to investigate.

In Tang Qi's judgment, a skilled wanderer who can lurk in the shadows can only belong to one of two camps.

They were either gang members who came to avenge their brother.

It could be a subordinate sent by a high-ranking member of parliament who covets Iwu to test the waters.

Besides that, he couldn't think of anyone else whose interests he had infringed upon.

Knowing Tang Qi's plan, Catherine quietly rubbed her fingertips and asked:
How long will you be gone?

"I'm not sure. But I should be back before the Double Moon Feast at the latest. After all, it's a grand festival, and I want to take a good look at it and record it in my next book."

"Then when are you leaving?"

"I packed the necessities before going to bed, and I'll set off after dawn."

"All right……"

Catherine rubbed her sleepy eyes and turned over.

Tang Qi felt something soft against his body for a moment, then realized that it wasn't just his heart that was being grasped:
"and many more?"

He was fully awakened and tried to get up, but was pressed back down onto the bed.

"Since you don't know when you'll be back, don't you want to take another shower before you leave?"

Tang Qi couldn't deny that, due to the recovery of his [Superhuman Energy], he did indeed have this idea at the moment.

Catherine reached out and grabbed the dimensional bag that Tang Qi had placed beside his pillow, as if she were rummaging through something.

"What are you looking for?" Tang Qi asked.

“Ambi mentioned yesterday that you seem to have a copying ability.”

"what!?"

Tang Qi blinked, and suddenly felt his legs go weak.
"Isn't that...unnecessary?"

“To prevent you from sneaking food in the dungeon, I think we need to take some necessary measures—the tavern now depends on your protection, and I can’t let you get away.”

"I didn't say I would definitely steal food, did I?"

Tang Qi couldn't imagine who he could bathe with underground.

"So you're not sure either, right?"

Tang Qi suddenly felt the weight on his legs double, and the slippery touch became twice as strong. He rubbed his eyes, and two beautiful figures sat down on either side of him, making his vision blur.
"Two, two Catherines?"

For the original owner, the copy was as natural as having an extra arm.

For the vast majority of intelligent beings, it does not cause discomfort; at most, it is difficult to control.

It's like a person's ring finger.

Most people find it difficult to perform complex actions with their ring finger, but when using other fingers, they will unconsciously pull the ring finger to move.

Those who are more intelligent can quickly adapt to the extra finger and make it move at will.

Catherine is definitely one of the clever ones.

This allows 'they' to make drastically different choices at the same time:

"It's not dawn yet, we still have a long time."

In a daze, Tang Qi suddenly recalled the beach he had once walked along.

It was a sunset reflecting the evening glow.

It lingered on the crimson, distant horizon, no longer dazzling or eye-catching.

It was as if the rising moon also blushed with a rosy hue.

He walked towards the sea until his waist was submerged in the water.

The last rays of sunlight had not yet faded, keeping the seawater consistently warm.

The tides rise and fall. Gazing at the sea where the sun and moon alternate.

He thought of freedom.

……

[Facts have shown that self-discipline is the key to freedom.]

Freedom without self-discipline is painful.

Tang Qi never imagined that even his extraordinary stamina would one day be unable to withstand it.

But he managed to get dressed before dawn, shouldering his bag and lute, along with the cloak left behind by the assassin the night before—

At that time, Tang Qi pinned the cloak with his scimitar, forcing the assassin to untie the sash.

When cleaning up the battlefield afterwards, they were surprised to find that the cloak was completely intact.

I don't know if it repaired itself automatically or if it wasn't punctured at the time.

But this quickly made Tang Qi realize that it might be a strange object.

I confirmed its function by checking all the items in the [Log].

[Manta Cape (Non-Standard): Wearing the hood while wearing the cloak will give you a faster swimming speed and allow you to breathe underwater.]

"Although it's not something with protective effects or a more obvious use, considering the complex environment of the underground city, having another way to deal with it is naturally a good thing."

With that thought in mind, Tang Qi hurriedly walked down the stairs of the tavern.

Dawn, Kulu, and even Ambi have been waiting for a long time.

As agreed beforehand, Tang Qi did not keep Chenxi by his side at all times.

As she wished, Chenxi went alone to the orphanage in the Deep Well District to tell the newsboy named Jasmine the truth.

The braided rope seemed to have been returned; Tang Qi had roughly learned what had happened when he summoned her back last night.

The girl accepted the reality of the mercenary's death and then drove away the Dawn.

No one will forgive her as the 'culprit'; they all know it.

So during this month, Chenxi, who had been driven away, quietly distanced herself from her and stayed by her side, doing her best to solve any troubles she encountered.

There are always some adventurers with morals as low as hers who take the newspaper but refuse to pay for it.

She would get those few copper coins back after the girl had suffered in silence.

Late at night, I quietly put it in the orphanage's mailbox.

Tang Qi needed her protection, which is why he returned to the team first.

As for Kuru...

"Forget about the [Cloud Mist Spell], at least it's a practical spell—"

I didn't even expect you to learn any general-purpose spells like [Magic Missile] or [Shield].

But what exactly is this "psychedelic manuscript"?

【Cloud and Mist Spell (Level 1): Creates a spherical fog with a radius of 7 meters, centered on a point within a 40-meter radius. The fog fills all corners within the sphere, causing severe obscuration.】

The dense fog persists until the spell's duration ends, but it can still be dispersed by strong winds.

This is a spell used to divide the battlefield, and it is one of the few practical spells in the lower rings.

Remember when Nova used this spell to create an advantageous situation for the entire mercenary group and relieve the siege during the goblin attack?

Tang Qi had gotten some information from Chuck.

At the Starlight Mage Academy, damaging spells are strictly controlled, and learning them is not easy.

First, you need to accumulate a certain number of credits during your apprenticeship as a mage.

Then, through a competition of writing papers, about 10 students are selected each year to be eligible to study.

After going through layers of approval and application to Longjincheng, relevant "Spell Control Treaty" and "Conscription Regulations When Necessary" were signed...

Only then are you qualified to learn a [Magic Missile].

That's the most versatile and powerful damaging spell in the first ring.

【Magic Missiles (Ring 1): Creates three shimmering darts formed by magical force fields, each of which hits a designated creature within 40 meters that you can see. The darts have a tracking function and do not require aiming.

You can specify that they hit the same target, or that they hit several targets separately.

In reality, magical missiles are not as powerful as in the game, capable of ignoring defenses and causing direct damage.

Even with a magic shield or shock-absorbing armor, there is still a possibility that it can be blocked.

Even with swift movements, such as the agility of a black snake, one can intercept flying knives with a blade—as long as the weapon in hand is not shattered by them.

That's force field damage, after all.

And it's guaranteed to hit.

However, the learning requirements for some functional spells are not so strict.

This may be one of the reasons why the [Cloud Mist] spell has become an essential skill for mages.

"So... what is the [Psychedelic Manuscript]?"

As a paladin, Dawn was not very familiar with this.

Kuru then quickly began to explain another spell he had learned:
"Psychedelic, manuscript!"

While making a "Rua" sound, it spread out its left hand and pretended to hold a pen in its palm with its right hand, writing and drawing.

"They believe in books."

Actually, it's a drawing!

Tang Qi patted his head, feeling a bit overwhelmed:

"I know it's an illusion spell used to overwrite the original text and create a false image, so I didn't ask you to explain its purpose—"

I mean, why did you choose such a spell?

(End of this chapter)