Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

Halfway through her sentence, Echer stopped. "What nonsense am I talking about? We're not going to get poisoned."

The crunching sound under Reed's feet never stopped throughout the journey.

"Are you crazy? Or is this some kind of beast graveyard? The traps here are more numerous than all the previous ones combined!"

“I’ll give him a piece of my mind,” Echel turned her head, “if he listens. Although I think the kid is being obedient by only setting some bear traps.”

Led by Echer, we turned left and right, passing through serpentine vines, and in the heart of the dark woodland, a dilapidated treehouse, resembling the dwelling of an ugly witch, came into view.

"We've arrived."

"Welcome to the Night Owl Squad's camp, currently the only ranger squad I can still nominally command."

Lyle stared at the dilapidated, worm-eaten wooden door; the darkness of the cabin seemed bottomless.

"Should we go inside and wait for them, Night Owl Squad?"

“No need. They’re already here, and they’ve even followed us for a while. No one else can get here. Intruders will face deportation or execution. It’s a privilege of freaks.”

The sound of grass falling occurred almost simultaneously around the three of them, and dark shadows appeared on the once empty grassland.

“That’s right, old king, welcome back to the House of Freaks!” A smiling boy appeared behind Lyle, his smile as gentle as sunshine, as if to greet him.

"Hello, Mr. Lyle, I'm Dove, the receptionist for the Night Owl Squad. It's a pleasure to meet you." Dove extended his right hand, presumably to shake hands.

"Hello, I'm Lyle." Before Lyle could even shake Turtledove's hand, he was already lifted up by Echel, his legs flailing wildly in the air.

“Turtledove, Lyle is my guest, so don’t play your pranks, they won’t work.”

The dove chuckled. "Don't worry, old king, it's just some thorny thistles." The dove flipped its wrist, revealing a small section of brown twig at the base. "I only added a little bit of a muscle-twitching toxin, and with Sister Zhen here, it'll be fine."

"Lyle is an undead, just like me. Can you stop embarrassing yourself here? I've told you so many times, call me by my code name. The current Queen Levis is Keira."

The turtledove blinked. "Ah, using a code name? That's not appropriate, old king."

"Your codename is [Silver Falcon], how insidious, how despicable."

Echer gritted his teeth and twisted the dove's ear, listening to its pitiful cries.

"Nightingale! This is your squad! Is this how you discipline these brats?!"

The tall, thin man looked at the old king.

“The dove is doing a very good job, and I will not interfere with his other actions.”

"You said that Night Owl would stop at nothing to achieve his goal."

Being convinced by something you once said is probably the most embarrassing thing. Echer impatiently changed the subject and began to introduce herself to everyone.

"Nightingale, the current squad leader, is skilled in tracking and assassination."

The man wearing a feathered hood nodded in acknowledgment.

“Acting Captain, the King’s orders are paramount.”

"Hibari, vice-captain, suppressive fire."

Lark's dark cloak had a light-colored lining, and he had several small quivers at his waist. Besides the large bow on his back, he also carried a small crossbow in his right hand. He didn't like to communicate; his communication skills were all converted into firepower.

"Swift, the scout, the fastest runner, a master of petty theft."

The seemingly unremarkable man smiled, not ashamed, but rather proud.

"Zhen, apothecary, poisoner. Provides simple medicine and deadly poisons."

She was the only woman in the Night Owl Squad. A forced smile appeared on her pale, malnourished skin. She pulled her cloak tighter and took a small step back.

"Zhen has a special talent: her skin is extremely poisonous. Her sweat, saliva, and blood are all highly toxic. However, she is a good child at heart."

"You little bastard, Turtledove, in charge of setting up the traps. You're smart, but also have a lot of bad intentions and talk a lot of nonsense."

The turtledove didn't say anything, only giving a harmless smile.

"Parrot, the disguiser, the imposter. Responsible for all kinds of infiltration missions."

He was a cold-blooded man, and in Lyle's eyes, his demeanor was somewhat similar to Ralph's. But he seemed much gentler than the Wolf of Cassandra.

"The Lyrebird, a master bird domesticator, a pigeon breeder, and also an excellent infiltrator."

Lyrebird is an easily overlooked man; even without using the natural camouflage ability of the Leviathan Ranger, he is easily ignored.

"Raven, you must be familiar with Lyle as well. Greer, the Death Hunter. A tool that can be sold, cannon fodder."

Greer shot an arrow directly into Echel's forehead... and into the tree trunk next to her.

"Finally, I, Silver Falcon, can do everything, that's how awesome I am!" Echel introduced herself.

The turtledove immediately clapped its hands with a mocking expression, looking like a loyal subject following in the footsteps of the old king.

Echer then introduced Lyle.

“My friend, Mr. Lyle, the promising necromancer, my current face is his masterpiece.”

The Night Owl team showed great interest in the change in Echer's expression.

"And this one, you'll all recognize him when I tell you."

"Ryder Derekjavik".

"The founder of Dereia".

The killing intent was as chilling as the smiles that appeared on the lips of the Night Owl Squad. Dove quickly added a comment.

"Livisser's mortal enemy."

Chapter 338 The Source of Everything

Every member of the Night Owl Squad harbored immense hostility towards Reid Derek, their bloodthirsty gazes carrying a depth far more profound than any national conflict Echel had so casually dismissed.

Only after Echer's repeated warnings did everyone look away.

“Obey orders. Reid is not your enemy, nor is Dereya. The past disputes are history. Now, my friend, Mr. Reid is the one you must protect; it is your mission.”

"Your will." The Night Owl Squad lowered their heads, and when they raised them again, their gazes were calm once more. They had not forgotten their hatred, but had simply buried it deep in their hearts.

Reed didn't react to any of this, or rather, he was already mentally prepared for it, remaining silent like a statue.

"When the moonlight appears in the third canopy, we will set off for Derya."

Lyle watched all this and walked over to Echel.

"They harbored an extraordinary hatred for Mr. Reed."

“It wasn’t Reid’s fault, and they weren’t wrong either.” A hint of sadness flickered in Echer’s eyes, before she flashed a smug smile.

"Don't worry, Lyle. This is just a family visit, and although it's a clandestine operation, it's not very dangerous."

Leaving the jungle where Levisser was, there was a desolate plain. Apart from a few scattered bushes providing cover, there was nothing else in sight. The moonlight dyed the earth a pale blue, a cold and sorrowful color.

The walls of Deria came into view the moment we left the dense forest—a city-state rising abruptly from the barren plains. Even as just a tiny black dot in the distance, it was incredibly striking.

Under the moonlight, only the shadows of three people riding forward on horseback could be seen.

The Night Owls seemed to have vanished into thin air, but Reed's silence indicated that they were right beside him.

“The Leviathan elite rangers possess natural camouflage abilities, allowing them to blend into their surroundings even without cover,” Echel said proudly. “As for their mobility, they are even faster than you on horseback.”

Riding his horse, Reid led the group; he was the most skilled rider of the three, accompanied by steel and horses. Echel, however, was simply having fun, using her ranger's balance to cling tightly to her horse.

Nevertheless, Lyle was still the last one, pulling on the reins to adjust to the bumps and patting Nia's whiskers as she curiously reached out to the horse.

"pony!"

"Don't bother with it, we need to keep going."

"But doesn't Lyle have a spinal wheel?"

"..." Lyle didn't want to answer Nia. The Spinal Wheel could certainly travel faster, but he was a guest now and it was best to accept Echel's kindness. Was he really going to let Nia kill the horse and then tell Echel, "You can't do this"?

Lyle calmed her down with Mr. Raymond's holy light cuisine and continued on his way.

Suddenly, Lyle felt someone behind him.

“It’s me, Mr. Dove.” Dove patted Lyle on the back. “I happen to be a bit interested in this beast too, Mr. Lyle. May I play with the rope?”

Riding a horse is definitely not a reason for the turtledove to approach him, because he handles the reins very skillfully, much better than a beginner.

“Mr. Lyle, can you tell me why the old king brought you to Dreya? Gathering intelligence will benefit our work.”

Why don't you just ask Mr. Eichel directly?

"The old king didn't like our suspicions about the dead king, and he probably wouldn't tell me. Death made him a bit indifferent, but we won't."

"...We're going to visit Deria's granddaughter, who is now Queen Deria. But we'll probably only take a sneaky look, as Reid has a strong aversion to the dead interfering in the lives of the living."

“I see. However, this journey may not be as easy as you think.”

"why?"

"Dreya is a sinister place. They maintain the facade of an armed nation, but something else is hidden within..."

“Mr. Reed never said any of that.”

“Who knows, perhaps a despicable heart lurked within that iron armor, or perhaps the armor blinded him. He’s been dead long enough, long enough for anything to change. The people of Dreya have always been hostile towards us.” The dove scratched its head. “The lyrebirds told us that birds no longer linger in Dreya, that sole kingdom on the desolate plains, is brewing something.”

"Something terrible."

"Is Mr. Echer aware of what you're talking about?"

"I don't know, I didn't tell him. These are just things I subjectively imagined during the reconnaissance based on instinct and disgust. Even if I told him, he would probably say that hatred has blinded Night Owl." Dove hummed casually. "Everyone in Night Owl's team says that the old king has changed, and death must have taken something from him."

"It took away his hatred for Derya."

Lyle didn't like the dove's words. He had seen Mr. Echer and Mr. Reed interact in Twilight Memories. They were friends, very good friends.

"Why should Mr. Echer hate him? Putting aside disputes arising from cultural differences, they don't have any conflicts."

The turtledove spat disdainfully.

"No contradictions? Night Owl died in Deria! Isn't that enough?!"

Night Owl died in Deria? Before Lyle could ask, a breeze blew by.

A wonderful fragrance wafted in the air, like a pair of hands encircling Lyle's neck.