Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

"What are you waiting for? Don't hesitate, just take action! All you need is a serving of Miss Harley's goat milk cake or Mr. Dori's Light Bat Massage Kit to have me for a day."

"Don't you charge me?"

"Money, you mean shiny gold coins and the like."

"Yes."

“Sir, I am a bat, a mammal, not a reptile that likes useless shiny egg-laying creatures.”

This is a racist bat.

"Can money feed me? Can it make me comfortable? No!"

"Money can buy you what you want."

"Hehe, why not just give me what I want directly? Why go through all that trouble?"

He's a bat that's turning back the clock on history.

"Um, don't you want to eat meat? Like insects, spiders, or something?"

“Meat, ah, I miss it,” it seemed to have been touched on a sore spot. It stopped on Lyle’s shoulder, the light on its belly flashing. “Sir, you’re new here, aren’t you, Andre? Apart from a few societies that like to breed, you won’t see a single living thing here. There isn’t even a fly. Forget about meat, there’s no fruit to eat. It’s said that my ancestors could eat meat at first, but later, due to environmental degradation, they could only eat cake. Look at my teeth, they’re almost degenerating.”

The light bat opened its small mouth, clearly he had been overthinking it. Its sharp teeth made Lyle a little scared, and he felt that it would hurt a lot if it bit him.

Lyle felt a little sorry for it; it had never eaten meat, nor fruit, only cake. It seemed like it had never eaten cake in its entire life.

"Sir, does Andre have any other living creatures?"

"Well, although it's not explicitly prohibited, there aren't many, since the life force is too strong and not very appealing."

Is the vitality too strong? Is the excessive activity annoying? There's some truth to that.

"Life is tough. I can only afford to drink vegetable soup occasionally."

"Vegetable soup?" "Vegetable soup?" One was the exclamation of Light Bat, and the other was the exclamation of the gentleman. The gentleman's exclamation seemed to have something else in mind besides simple surprise.

As small mammals, light bats lack the patience of humans.

"Sir, is the vegetable soup you mentioned one made with vegetables like carrots and potatoes?"

"Yes."

Do you have potatoes?

"some."

"Do you have any fresh, juicy carrots? The kind you feed to horses."

"...Yes, carrots can also be eaten by people." In Lightbat's eyes, there is no difference in quality between horses and humans.

"Sir, may I eat this? I mean, you can treat me to the carrot as a service charge."

"So, how many do you want?"

"One, no, no, half a stick, about half a stick will do." Light Bat made a tentative gesture.

Lyle glanced at the gentleman.

"Is Miss Harley's goat milk cake really that bad?"

"How would I know? I've never eaten it." The gentleman shrugged helplessly.

"Don't compare light bats to humans; their sense of taste is different."

I feel sorry for Miss Harley's goat's milk cake.

"As you can see, Mr. Lightbat, I don't have any carrots right now, but I promise I'll bring you a few next time I come to Andre as compensation for our chat."

"Thank you, generous sir. It was a pleasure talking to you. Please feel free to contact me if you need anything. My name is Onion."

“You can call me the Plague Doctor, so why did you choose a vegetable name?”

"Because that was the only vegetable my father ever tasted."

"Then why don't you want to try the onion with your name on it?"

"Because I don't want my son to have the same name as his father."

Wow, what a powerful reason.

Onion returned to his original position and continued his lighting work.

Lyle and the gentleman continued on their way.

"Why haven't the light bats even eaten vegetables?" Although resources were scarce in the Middle Ages, they weren't that poor.

"Andrei has no source of food."

"Why doesn't the light bat go out?"

"To avoid causing a disturbance, the light bats are Mr. Henry's modified creatures; there aren't many things that can glow outside. Don't provoke humans; they're more fragile than you think."

"Why don't the others bring in some food? Is it really that difficult for us to come and go freely in and out of Andrei?"

"No, it's just unnecessary. Who carries food around with them? Even if you want Lightbat's help, you can just ask Miss Harley to buy some goat milk cakes."

The gentleman spoke with an air of entitlement, showing indifference to the simple act of carrying a few carrots. To Lyle, the gentleman was a helpful person, but only in a helpful "way".

We are the biggest racists.

Chapter Eleven: The Impersonator, the Strange Species

As people ascend the spiral staircase, directly opposite Lyle is a large door; if I'm not mistaken, the main hall of the castle should be behind that door.

Numerous light bats perched on the gate, arranged in the shape of the word "Andrei," and Lyle realized that the wings of the light bats were not just one color.

As the gate slowly opened, Lyle's excitement grew, as if the mystical side was also opening its doors for him.

The world behind the door...

Actually, there's not much difference.

There was no one on the stone steps directly in front of them; it seemed the dean hadn't arrived yet.

The disguised figures gathered in twos and threes, whispering among themselves. There were no delicacies to accompany them, nor even tables and chairs for them to rest. They simply stood in the hall and talked to each other.

The people of Andrei don't have much talent for entertainment; perhaps their talents lie entirely in their pursuit of knowledge.

The welcoming concert was being played in the stands on both sides.

But clearly the performer's mind was also extraordinary; Lyle could hear Cassandra's Requiem in it, a funeral dirge played when the dead were buried.

The dozens of pieces mixed together are chaotic and irritating, but the somber and melancholic tone suggests that their meaning is no different from that of a requiem.

The entire hall could be summed up as follows: unreasonable, out-of-town musicians were passionately playing their own funeral music, dozens of versions of which were mixed together in a chaotic cacophony. I truly admire them; despite all this noise, their playing remained on key. Downstairs, people silently endured this torment, pretending to be nonchalant as they chatted with others, as if Lyle was the only one feeling oppressed.

Fortunately, the welcoming concert ended quickly. The musicians put down their instruments and joined the crowd in the hall, while people outside also rushed in. The main hall was spacious enough that it didn't feel crowded.

"Mr. Plague Doctor, about the vegetable soup you mentioned to Light Bat earlier..."

The gentleman seemed to want to express his true feelings.

“Anle, gentleman.” A passerby in disguise greeted the gentleman.

“Anle, Mr. White.”

Mr. White nodded slightly and walked away.

"Mr. Epidemic Doctor, about the vegetable soup..."

"Peace and comfort, sir." Yet another greeter.

"Anle, Miss Yinxing." He left indifferently once again.

"Vegetable soup..."

"Peaceful, gentleman."

"..."

Lyle smiled. The greeters seemed to be deliberately interrupting, turning away after receiving a reply, as if to say, "Gentleman, I just wanted to call your name."

The gentleman didn't seem to think so. He shrugged at Lyle. "Mr. Plague Doctor, I'm afraid my questions will have to be put on hold for now. If I don't handle my friend's warm greetings properly, I think our conversation will be difficult to continue. Please allow me to take my leave, Mr. Plague Doctor."

“Yes, sir.” Lyle indicated that he didn’t mind.

The gentleman raised his top hat, held it to his chest, bowed slightly to Lyle, and disappeared into the crowd.

Lyle found a supporting pillar in the main hall and leaned against it. This was his first rest of the night. Even though he was a young man, he felt uncomfortable with the amount of activity he had done that night. He wondered where the others got the energy to continue discussing. Was it their enthusiasm for learning?

People like Andre are inflexible in terms of emotional intelligence, rigid in their dealings with others, and indifferent to things outside their purview, but they maintain a passion for knowledge and tireless energy. Will I become like that in the future?

This is the general situation, but there are some exceptions, such as the enthusiastic gentleman who seems to be very good at socializing, as evidenced by his popularity among his companions.

Lyle discovered an interesting phenomenon.

Everyone's disguises are different, but broadly speaking, they can be divided into three categories.

Ordinary human beings.

Including Lyle, the majority of the crowd was dressed in full-body coats or formal business attire.

An abnormal human being.

Strange attire.

Lyle spotted the imposter dressed as a king not far away. He wore a diamond-encrusted crown, a golden scepter, a red shawl, and silk clothing—his entire appearance exuded unimaginable wealth. The disguise didn't look like a theatrical costume; the wealth displayed by this attire alone suggested someone richer than a nation.

In addition, there were knight armor, mascot costumes, and humanoid figures wrapped in bandages. Lyle wasn't sure if they were mummies, but they certainly looked like them.

The addition of these outlandish costumes turned the hall into a masquerade ball, but it also brought a lot of novelty, while the uniform dark-colored attire caused aesthetic fatigue.

Lyle also noticed that these colorful imposters seemed to be at the heart of various social circles. So that's why, these bizarre clothes are only for the strong.

The third category.

Non-human.

Lyle could barely tolerate outlandish clothes, but have you ever seen a wardrobe swaying back and forth at a party, its sharp corners thumping on the ground with each movement? Did you not choose your clothes well, so you brought the wardrobe instead?

There is also a huge pillow, with a human figure protruding from it, indicating that someone is moving inside.

Curtains dragging on the floor, and a door with four sides forming a square box.