The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 187 I Grant You Dreams Come True (4.2k)

"The sixth day."

Sitting on the stone steps of the Deep Well Staircase, Orion Silver Shield counted the passing of time.

Looking into the distance, at the various entrances to the mine, guarded by squads of cavalry.

He felt a quietness around him, with only the "gurgling" sound of the dragon breathing beside him, interspersed with the "crackling" of the torches, which was particularly clear in the dead of night.

He clutched the birthday letter tightly in his hand until he crumpled it into a ball, then threw it into the brazier beside him, letting it turn to ashes.

"I actually want to dream."

Recalling the problems Tang Qi had when he left, Orion snorted coldly and sighed.

"Only then would one choose to believe a bard."

These foreign spies, court jesters, tavern singers… consistently fabricate stories that never existed.

"Father."

Suddenly, he heard a voice calling his name.

No one can forget their daughter's voice.

Orion drew his longsword almost instinctively.

The sharp blade, reflecting the intense light of the brazier, traced a bright trail in the night.

Like fire, mixed with rage, it mercilessly slashed at the throat of the 'daughter' beside it.

A milky-white force field shield suddenly rose in front of 'Venti,' who was clad in plate armor, blocking the attack three inches from his neck with a crisp clang:

"So rude?"

"Don't fucking talk like my daughter."

Orion forced out a furious roar, his longsword trembling as he tried to plunge the blade in, at least to cut off her head.

"I thought this would make you happier."

Wendy could only raise her hands in defeat.
"After all, the feeling of watching your daughter die is not pleasant."

"She's not dead yet!"

"Do you believe that? We all know that the Silver Medal entered the Deep Well a month ago—they were short of food supplies, unable to find food in the dark, and their escape route was blocked."

Do you really think she's still alive?

"Go to hell——"

"Stop it, I'm not joking with you anymore, okay?"

Just as Orion was about to swing his sword again, Wendy took two steps back, transforming his form into a powerful one, until finally he became a lion, even his voice becoming deep and resonant.

"Wouldn't that make you show some respect?"

Orion snorted coldly, but reluctantly sheathed his longsword:

"Expect me to respect a shapeshifter? Don't even think about it."

"The dwarf union in Longjin City has been making a huge fuss lately and has proposed an 'Anti-Racism Act' to the council. Do you want to vote against it?"

Can shapeshifters really be considered a 'race'?

Orion found it difficult to define this matter.

But he knew that shapeshifters were an extremely unstable factor—

After all, the other party murdered the real Masked Lord, transformed into his appearance, and thus obtained this position.

Even though Lord Lionheart assured him that the shapeshifter possessed absolute loyalty.

He also didn't find the 'loyalty' spoken of by a [sworn oathbreaker] to be particularly credible.

But he represents the core interests of the family.

Lord Lionheart has always upheld this principle.

This made it difficult for him to say 'no' to the decision.

"What kind of bullshit bill is this?"

"It seems to be because of a bestselling book called 'The Guide'."

"If Parliament is going to consider something like this, why is it turning a blind eye to my Anti-Brothers Club Ordinance?"

“Long Jincheng has never been against diversity.”

"You'll all stumble because of this sooner or later."

Orion waved to the lion beside him.
"I'm not in the mood to chat with you. If you have nothing else to say, get lost."

"I don't obey you. Do you think I came to Deep Well to deliberately annoy you because I have nothing better to do?"

"The deep well is sealed off, what business is it of yours?"

"Of course I'm here to inform you."

"what?"

"The entire Deep Well is now shrouded in darkness, and the bunker is no exception. But someone has not only broken into the bunker, but has also activated the bunker's mechanisms, altering the entire layout of the shallow level—thus making their way to the surface."

"Damn it, you mean those undead from the underground city found the bunker and are trying to use the bunker's passages to escape from the deep well!?"

With surprise and doubt, Orion stood up and directed the cavalrymen who were encamped in the deep pit to form ranks.
"Could they possibly possess wisdom?"

"We don't know much about those zombies, and nobody knows the truth."

"What exactly have those sorcerers been researching these past few months?"

The fire caused a brief commotion, and Orion then deployed his armored cavalry to various cave entrances.

Only when he looked up at the starry sky and could see that the edge of the well was covered with dragons and cavalry did Orion frown and look at the shapeshifter:
"Shangcheng District—"

“I arranged for guards to patrol.”

"That's good. Where's the lion?"

“He has other things to do.”

"What could be more important than guarding the deep well?"

"You think the cavalry can't stop those zombies?"

"of course not."

Orion gritted his teeth and looked at one of the cave entrances that was blocked by earth and rocks.
"But who the hell knows if something other than the undead will come out... More than ten years ago, those earth elementals that came out of the sixth level were already bad enough."

“Every entrance was forcibly sealed by the Stone Shaping Technique of the Fourth Ring. Ordinary zombies could not dig through it even if they used an iron pickaxe for a whole year.”

"I hope it's really as sturdy as you say—"

I can hear them coming.

Orion felt the floor beneath his feet tremble slightly and heard a faint rumbling sound.

Just as he was trying to figure out what kind of footsteps they were.

A deep roar first came from the depths of the well:
"Roar--"

Almost instantly upon hearing the roar, the dragon beside him cried out in alarm, began flapping its fleshy wings, and instinctively stumbled and fled backward.

"what happened?"

Orion looked around and found that the same thing was happening to every cavalryman.

The dragons beneath them simultaneously began to thrash their throats, trembling in terror as they fled in all directions.

The cavalrymen tightened their reins, trying to quell the commotion:

"Stop! Stand still! Damn it—why won't it obey me?!"

"What exactly emerged from underground...?"

While directing the cavalry to dismount from the wyvern and restore discipline, Orion stared in astonishment at the entrance.

Although these dragons are just ordinary lizards, they are warriors who have undergone rigorous training.

How could someone be so terrified by a simple shout?!
"Roar--"

The second roar was even more muffled, causing the earth to tremble violently. As it shook, Orion could clearly see the sealed entrance in the distance, where the thick stone wall had cracked open.

For a fleeting moment, Orion wished the stone wall would simply crumble.

Even if the pouring darkness brings chaos to the entire city.

Then he could have a good reason to go deep into the well and search for his daughter.

The shapeshifter's surprise and disbelief pulled him back to reality:

"how come!?"

He quickly slapped the ground and chanted the spell for "Stone Shaping"—a spell that would activate the stone beneath their feet.

The stone slabs underfoot flowed like water towards the cracked stone wall, filling the gaps and increasing its thickness, making it more solid in the end.

"Roar!!!"

A third roar followed immediately, like the thunderous roar of lightning.

Beneath the crevice, a jet-black ray pierced through like a sharp sword, its chaotic repulsive force tearing apart the stone wall and shattering the scattered stones.

The stone wall did not completely collapse, but through the cracks, Orion could only see a bottomless darkness—the darkness of the well seemed to be spreading towards the surface.

The sound of footsteps beside me was extremely clear due to the resonance.

Heavy and urgent.

That doesn't look like the gait of a zombie.

The city's impending doom created immense pressure in an instant, like a keel from a deep well crushing down on Orion's shoulders.

The approaching footsteps made his breathing quicken, drowning out his inner thoughts. Suddenly, a dark purple figure emerged from the darkness, revealing its form.

"attack--"

Orion shouted, as if to give an order.

But when he saw the fake dragon flapping its thin wings and hovering in front of him, he was completely stunned.

and many more……

Could the roar just now have come from this seemingly harmless pseudo-dragon?
"Ugh?"

Iwu never expected that his roar would throw the army outside the cave into chaos.

Seeing a sharp, cold glint on Orion's sword, it cried out in alarm and quickly darted back into the darkness.

"How could a pseudo-dragon possibly achieve that level?"

In his surprise and doubt, Orion tried to call upon the shapeshifter beside him to at least seal the entrance to prevent more spores from leaking out of the city.

A bright ray of light caught his eye first.

The noise around me grew louder, and I could vaguely hear singing.

Before Orion could react, the earnest call had already pierced his eardrums:

"father!"

Orion instinctively looked in the direction of the shapeshifter, only to see that it was still in the form of a lion, but in surprise, it took out a black stone with engraved patterns—

That's a communication stone.

But he no longer cared who the object connected to this stone was.

The shapeshifter beside him showed no abnormality, which proved the authenticity of the call:
"Wendy!"

The blonde girl burst out of the darkness, and Orion, no longer caring about maintaining his image as the leader of the system, embraced his daughter who rushed towards him.

Her face was gaunt, and her frizzy hair was disheveled over her tattered, blood-stained armor. Orion could tell what she had been through.

He somewhat regretted indulging his child in becoming an adventurer.

But this selfish desire was shattered by the beautiful dream before him:

"No matter what, it's good that you're back... So, has the darkness underground disappeared?"

"No, Father, the darkness still exists. But thankfully—"

We have a guiding light.

As Wendy spoke, she turned to look at the deep entrance.

They saw clearly the man who held the light deep within the passageway.

Countless figures surged behind him.

Echoing the synchronized footsteps, it was as if they were the rhythm of a pulsating drum.

The singing in my ears gradually became more passionate and stirring.

It is every adventurer who opens their throat.

Regardless of fatigue or hoarseness.

Express your joy through song, and sing in harmony:

Today we flee the darkness.

Cherishing a bright future;
Even if the process is full of regrets,

At least we still have each other for company.

Support and help each other to overcome difficulties.

Only then can one claim the crown of courage;

Salute to you, my friend.

I'll fight for you tomorrow too!

The ray of light finally emerged from the tunnel, allowing them to see the source of the light—

A bard was playing cheerful music, and the purplish-blue 'pseudo-dragon' was coiled on his shoulder.

Although he consumed many magical items, he truly mastered the skill of [Breath].

However, for a fledgling dragon, the consumption is still too great.

“Donkey Weinberg, Dad, I’ve mentioned him to you before.”

Wendy quickly introduced Tang Qi.

Orion frowned.

He vaguely remembered that a long time ago, when he first visited his wife's home, his wife seemed to have introduced him to his father-in-law in the same way.

"We've met before."

That's what his father-in-law said at the time.

Yes, we've met.

Tang Qi responded with a smile.
"I grant you the gift of dreams coming true."

"I……"

"There's no need for pleasantries, is there?"

A deep voice interrupted their conversation. They both saw a lion approach and look at Tang Qi.

"You should know that breaking the ban and putting the entire Longjin City in danger is actually violating the laws of Longjin City."

Tang Qi was not surprised that the Lionheart Lord was aware of his movements.

He believed that as long as he left Longjincheng's territory, even if he left secretly, the other party would have a chance to find him in a short time.

The only surprise was that he timed it perfectly, appearing the instant he left the deep well:

"So you were waiting for me here all morning?"

Orion was surprised that Tang Qi was actually acquainted with Lord Lionheart.

But the lion in front of them was clearly a shapeshifter.

However, in public, he neither would nor needed to expose the other party's identity, so as to avoid causing any unnecessary suspicion.

The shapeshifter skillfully impersonates Leon Lionheart.

After all, this wasn't the first time he'd done this:

"You're lucky, today is the last day of the two months ago."

If it were this time tomorrow, that wolf cub would probably already be on the guillotine.

"Hey, you lion over there, watch your mouth when you talk to our benefactor! Or I'll knock your head off!"

Four dwarfs emerged from the dark tunnel.

Following the scattered footsteps, more adventurers who had survived the ordeal stood behind Tang Qi.

Their faces were generally thin, but perhaps due to the support of the "Resting Song" along the way, they maintained a certain level of mental well-being.

So when they shouted, they showed absolutely no politeness.

Even though everyone could recognize that the lion in front of them was the open lord of Longjin City.

But adventurers rarely fear authority.

They had just been rescued, and they should at least let Tang Qi know that someone was standing by their side.

Looking at the densely packed adventurers, whose numbers were no less than those of the dragon cavalry, Orion realized that Tang Qi had done more than just save Wendy and grant him a beautiful dream—

He gave everyone dreams and hope.

"So, their attitude is also your attitude?"

Leon narrowed his eyes slightly.

He was surprised by the adventurers' support, which did soften his attitude somewhat.

However, the tone still carried a warning connotation.

Tang Qi knew that with the two months approaching, it was time for him to make a choice:

"Don't look at me like you're threatening me, okay? If you provoke me into a rebellious state, neither of us will benefit."

"Oh? What do you mean..."

"Is the deal right? I'll go with you."

(End of this chapter)