That night, everyone was fast asleep.
Nol turned the power of his earrings up to the maximum, set up an illusion on the spot, and teleported to a certain rocky area a hundred miles away. Only after confirming that no spells or mechanisms had been triggered did he reignite Kando and temporarily return to the Lost Tower with Teest.
Most of the neighbors were asleep. Only Lynn and Gatekeeper Uncle Ma were still awake. Fortunately, the unique shuttling of the black candle allowed Nol to come in with his shiny new look, narrowly avoiding being kicked out on the spot by Uncle Ma.
Hearing the news of The Manor, Lynn woke up Officer Luo and held an impromptu meeting on the spot.
Teest kept his promise.
He made two cups of hot cocoa, deliberately adding a lot of cotton candy. He was the first to sit in the soft armchair and sighed.
"This is comfortable. I really hate the wilderness."
The Mad Monk leaned against the fireplace in the meeting room, took a sip of the hot cocoa, and melted into the chair.
Nol looked at him helplessly and then cleared his throat, detailing the eerie manor and the bottomless rift.
"Didn't you go up and look? You just came down like that?" Lynn asked curiously.
"Eugene tried, but there are anti-magic crystals placed beneath the castle."
Nol held the warm ceramic cup. Not needing to play "Drake" here, he and Teest were a pair, looking soft like two shell-less oysters.
"Flight spells and magical flying objects can't be used, and below there's a rift. It's really too dangerous. Those Investigation Knights drew the topography of the castle, then we descended the mountain."
"Hey, these foreigners just know about magic and don't have real experience," Uncle Ma said with disdain.
The succubi had been freely active lately, well-fed and watered. Uncle Ma's shell was no longer a living skeleton but a female warrior as fit and agile as a leopard.
But as soon as she opened her mouth, that captivating beauty disappeared without a trace.
"We can set up a temporary cable car." He gestured enthusiastically. "If that doesn't work, we can build a ladder out of wood and stone. If all else fails, put some explosives at the bottom. You hide in armor, fly upwards—then throw a grappling hook, hey."
"That makes too much noise and would be easily discovered by the target—the people of The Manor," Officer Luo immediately objected.
"I can make an adaptable soft ladder. I just need one person to go up and connect the route." Lynn pondered. "The problem is, we need to get up there quietly."
Nol nodded.
The bottom of The Manor was a bottomless abyss, and there was no leverage point in mid-air, making it very difficult to ascend by physical means. If there were other protections at the bottom of The Manor, it would be even more dangerous.
We need to think of a sufficiently reasonable method that can also conceal our movements…
"I want ten parachutes with strong light bulbs attached at the bottom," Teest casually suggested as he savored his hot cocoa.
Nol turned his head curiously. "Are you talking about those toys?"
The parachute toys were about palm size and were shaped like deformed umbrellas. Merchants would paint the top with bright colors, then stick trinkets like flowers or dolls on the counterweight below.
Children liked to throw it into the sky, watch it unfold in the air, and then slowly descend vertically to the ground. Nol had seen it a few times in Grape Collar, where it was popular to stick grape leaves on the counterweight.
This thing was cheap and indeed employed pure physical means.
"It descends very slowly, creating a brief 'floating platform'." Teest put down his cup. "You just step on the top to go up."
Wow, listen to what this guy is saying.
Just step on the parachute's surface and go up? Not to mention a palm-sized air parachute, even stepping on plum blossom piles nailed to the ground, Nol was confident he'd take a spill. Such bizarre maneuvers, he had only seen in martial arts films.
Sure enough, the neighbors all looked at Teest with varying degrees of skepticism in their eyes.
"The strong light is necessary. It can create shadows. When the time comes, Ben can kick towards the sky with its claws, and it'll be able to kick Nol up," Teest continued leisurely. "And I'll go up first, hanging Nol with the thinnest silk line, just in case. The strong light can help me disrupt the knights' vision."
It turned out to be special effects with wires. The neighbors suddenly understood.
Nol remained silent. The shadow wolf's ability to travel through shadows was a trait of its own and wouldn't be blocked by anti-magic crystals. Teest's idea was theoretically feasible, but the problem was…
"What if, cough, in case I don't stand steady, flailing in mid-air, or being hung up like a dead person? Eugene will definitely notice something wrong." Nol's hand holding the cup trembled slightly. This was scarier than having to perform a talent at a team-building event.
"Don't worry, honey. We can handle this." Teest cruelly ignored Nol's opinion. "Miss Lynn, can you provide such props?"
Lynn looked at Nol worriedly—the Master of Paradise had lost his mood for cocoa, sweat appearing on his forehead, yet in the end, he didn't speak again. So she sighed deeply. "No problem. But I need two hours to adjust the strong light ball."
After speaking, she pursed her lips. "During the time you were away, Grape Collar got a new bishop."
"That guy recently came to visit and brought four neighbors back with him. I pretended to be the Master of Paradise to meet him. Compared to the previous old man, this new bishop isn't easy to deal with… The Temple of Life is very sensitive. You must be careful with Eugene."
Nol nodded gravely.
"Anakin also came by. We gave her the backup copy you left." Officer Luo took over the conversation. "The little girl is quite vigilant. She said some things can only be discussed with you in person. For now, we can only carry some idle conversation—she has secured the rights to the 'Festival of New Green', telling you to rest assured. There's nothing much happening on the Players' side."
"Got it. Once The Manor issue is settled, I'll find an opportunity to talk to her," Nol said.
Uncle Ma looked left and right. In the end, he also frowned and spoke seriously about "important matters". "Xiao Xu, the pickled cabbage is ready. Want to eat it? There's some pork belly left in the kitchen. Let's roast it together."
Nol: ".….."
Nol: "I'll have some."
After the little exchange with the neighbors concluded, Teest also helped himself to quite a few ingredients from the kitchen. While waiting for Lynn to make the props, Nol was caught by him outside the Lost Tower.
Looking at the towering giant tower, Nol had a bad premonition. The Lost Tower was crawling slowly, its thick limbs occasionally coiling and stretching, carrying the tower body with a gentle undulation, smoothly gliding along.
"I told you before, you lack coordination." Teest said, "As long as you practice in advance, our Mr. 'Drake' won't easily embarrass himself."
"I… uh…" Nol hugged his magic staff tightly.
For so long, he had relied entirely on magic to move around and never thought he'd need to practice physical fitness like a warrior. Keep in mind, when he was still on Earth, he could barely pass the pull-up test.
"Don't be afraid. You have talent." Teest walked behind him. "You can completely control your own body, remember?"
"This is a different matter," Nol said dryly.
"You just need to remember the movement patterns." Teest's tone became even sweeter. "Your memory is as miraculous as you are. I've seen it."
Then he quieted down, waiting for Nol to mentally prepare himself—his dear Lich would always pay any price for his "neighbors" and "the truth". This was something Teest was well aware of.
Nol turned to look at him, and Teest could just see a full profile of his face.
Nol's hair had been dyed a pale gold by him, almost silvery white under the moonlight. Coupled with those golden eyes, it was as if Nol had been "eroded" by Teest… leaving continuous marks on him—a sensation so intense it made one's scalp tingle.
Even hanging the high-ups of the Eternal Church on golden threads hadn't given Teest such a satisfying feeling.
"…I understand." As expected, in the end, Nol compromised.
Such a terrible sense of responsibility. Teest clicked his tongue. He spread his arms and touched Nol's wrists from behind with both hands.
"Relax, relax… It's actually quite simple," Teest whispered in Nol's ear. "Imagine you are a falling leaf, drifting with the wind."
The golden threads crawled up Nol's skin from Teest's fingertips, neither too light nor too heavy, guiding Nol's bodily movements. Their body heat mingled, their limbs softly breaking through the night breeze.
Nol's body tensed up. This kind of "marionette" teaching obviously made it difficult for him to relax. This tension lasted for a dozen seconds before Nol's muscles gradually relaxed again.
'…That was trust—Nol's heartfelt trust in him,' Teest thought.
That intoxicating sense of comfort appeared once more.
The two revolved and danced on the platform at the entrance of the tower, like a silent pair skating routine.
"This is the first point. Don't focus too much on specific parts or specific details." Teest's voice brushed against the tip of Nol's ear. "It's about the sense of coordination…"
The two moved to the edge of the platform, and Teest suddenly flashed elegantly from behind Nol, stopping in front of him. The Mad Monk had a radiant smile. He pressed his finger to his lips and, like blowing a kiss, touched Nol's forehead.
With a slight force from his fingers, Nol couldn't withstand the dreadful strength of the Death Knight, and he fell backwards—right into the high altitude of the Black Forest.
The sound of wind passed by his ears, and Nol only had time to widen his eyes. In his panic, he instinctively followed Teest's teaching. Unfortunately, before Nol could adjust his posture, he was about to crash to the ground.
Since this height wouldn't kill him, he gave up and closed his eyes.
Then he fell into a warm embrace.
Teest kicked downward from above, reaching the ground before Nol, who fell just right into his arms.
"This is the second point." Under the moonlight, the Mad Monk's golden eyes gleefully narrowed. "You panic because of the feeling of weightlessness, which scatters your attention… I want you to get accustomed to falling."
Nol was breathing heavily, gritting his teeth. But he had to admit, when it came to "hopping up and down", Teest was indeed an expert.
"Again!" Nol tugged at Teest's cheek, squeezing out the request through clenched teeth.
"Alright—" Teest said, grinning from ear to ear with a deeper laugh in his voice.
Before sunrise, in the early hours of the morning, Eugene specially checked the status of the temporary knights.
Most of them were still asleep, while a few were awake. These were clearly the more self-disciplined ones, as they were proactively warming up their bodies.
Before finding a way to enter The Manor, Eugene didn't intend to take these temporary knights near the fissure—having just planted the radiance of God in the hearts of these lambs, he couldn't let them think that "the Temple of Life would be obstructed by The Manor".
However, there were some who had seen the situation, and he planned to take them with him.
"Drake, Sean, Damori. Step forward," Eugene called out the three who were awake. He said with a smile, "This morning, there will be another exploration of the path—same extra bonus as last time."
"Sir, I've rested well. I also want to go!"
"Yes, Sir, they have just been yesterday!"
"I also want to offer my strength for the Goddess—"
"It's just scouting. They've been through it once, so they are more practiced." Eugene kept smiling. "Everyone will have many opportunities. Next time there's a similar opportunity, I will consider you all first."
He glanced seemingly unintentionally at Drake—being a bit late, Sean and Damori were somewhat at a loss, but Drake was as unflappable as ever, albeit a little pale.
Whether in terms of image or capability, he was a person of potential. After the team returned, he would have to confirm the recent oracles again.
It would be a waste for such an excellent person not to serve the Goddess of Life.
Yesterday evening, they hadn't acted rashly. When they returned to the starting point, The Manor's defenses were the same as before.
The knights brought equipment this time—a giant grappling hook launcher, its body imbued with silencing magic and explosion magic, capable of shooting the hook high into the air.
They tried to move the launcher beyond the range of the anti-magic crystal's influence but found that the distance was calculated just right, tightly limiting the shooting range of the launcher.
Subsequently, Eugene tied a safety rope around his waist, stood on the hook, and had the knights launch it from a distance. He then performed a double jump with his strength.
But as soon as he jumped near the lowest platform, a few giant bird monsters burst out from the shadows and slammed him towards the underground fissure.
While in midair, Eugene had no leverage, not even able to counterattack. He could only protect his body and let his teammates pull back the safety rope vigorously so he wouldn't fall into the fissure.
"This is more useful than a moat."
Eugene returned to the team with a hint of helplessness. "It's also unknown how they managed to make the castle float."
"Captain, we—"
"Continue the experiment," Eugene decisively said. "If it doesn't work by nine, we'll figure out a solution here and continue trying tonight."
"I heard that Paradise nurtures flying monsters," a knight murmured softly. "They said they were going to deal with it, but they haven't shown up yet. Damn, if there are flying monsters out there…"
"The flying monsters are right over there."
Eugene cast a sharp look and pointed towards the shadows where the giant bird monsters were hiding. "If they suddenly spoke human language, saying they could take you up, would you entrust your life to them? Remember, monsters are the enemies of mankind and must not be trusted."
The knight quickly bowed his head. "I was just wondering why Paradise hasn't appeared yet…"
"Maybe they're watching in secret," Eugene said softly.
'That's not the case,' Nol thought. He was watching openly—the Master of Paradise observed the knights busily scurrying about from a close distance with a solemn face.
The sun had made half its journey across the sky. The knights had discovered many defensive measures but still hadn't found a secret way to infiltrate. Apart from declaring open war, it seemed they had no other choice.
The four moons rose, and the sky was filled with stars. Eugene put away the scroll filled with defensive intelligence.
"Let's call it a day. You've all worked hard. I'll go back and ponder more," he said. "Unfortunately, tonight is not the time to take action."
Nol saw his chance, and with Teest still napping on his back, he took a nervous step forward.
"I'd like to give it a try," he said.
Eugene stopped what he was doing and looked at Nol for a while, then said, "Alright."
Nol opened his backpack and took out ten prepared parachutes. The Teest brand cloak on his back woke up with a huge yawn. [Is the show about to start?]
[Almost,] Nol responded in his mind. [As long as I don't fall.]
[Your invisible lover is with you.] Teest winked at him. [Watch me closely later.]
Nol stood on the edge of the fissure, striving not to look into the darkness. He raised his hand and threw a few parachutes into the sky.
As the parachutes opened at high altitude, a few bright points like stars appeared in the darkness. Teest leaped gracefully, his toes lightly touching the soft canopy, as light as a breeze.
This unique Death Knight soared upwards. Thanks to the blessing of the "A Midsummer Night's Dream", the strange birds couldn't sense his presence. In a few seconds, Teest's shrinking figure disappeared at the edge of the floating stone platform. He popped his head out and waved at Nol.
A thread-like, dim gold line descended from the high altitude, wrapping around Nol's wrist.
The parachutes were descending, and there wasn't much time left. Nol took a deep breath and jumped toward the nearest canopy. In the deep night, amidst the shadows beside the bright light, the flesh pad of the shadow wolf threw upwards fiercely, propelling Nol towards another parachute.
…Imagine you're a falling leaf. Nol's cloak flowed with the night, creating a ripple of shadow.
…It's not about the details, but the harmony of the whole. He mimicked Teest's movements from earlier, adjusting his posture with inertia, like a cat falling from the sky.
…Don't fear the fall. Nol quietly tightened his grip on the golden line and jumped higher. The strange birds emerged in full force but became stiff under the [Bloodline Suppression], crackling as they fell into the abyss.
Nol's fingers grabbed the edge of the lowest stone slab.
Teest, with a smile brimming in his eyes, grabbed Nol's wrist and pulled him up from the void. The wind was cold at such a height, turning Nol's breath into wisps of white mist.
[Hey, is that dragon's breath?] Teest teased with his hands behind his back, in a good mood. [Worthy of being the successor to the "Dragonblood Hero"!]
[It was all thanks to you this time.] Nol steadied his heartbeat and sincerely expressed his gratitude.
Test blinked. [If you say that, I might have to think about a reward.]
[No problem.] Nol nodded decisively.
He walked to the edge of the platform and dropped down the soft ladder. The trembling ladder bridge was set up, swaying incessantly in the wind. It stretched out a frightening distance, looking like a thin line from above.
Below.
Eugene was still looking in the direction where "Drake" had disappeared.
That person's movements were simply not human-like—just by using a few cheap parachutes, he casually cracked the first line of defense of The Manor.
Eugene still remembered the change in the eyes of the two temporary knights.
Under the moonlight, Drake seemed to fly high into the air, stepping on the stars. Gravity lost its hold, and the bird monsters dared not approach. Drake was already handsome, and at that moment, his platinum hair was dazzlingly bright against the darkness, like the incarnation of a silver dragon.
…As perfect as if guided by God.
The joy of "finding a treasure" faded slightly for Eugene.
It seemed that in addition to the oracle of the Temple of Life, he had to confirm the oracle of the Eternal Church as well.
At this point, he couldn't easily let this person go—whether from the perspective of an "ally" or an "enemy".
The author has something to say:
Eugene is like the HR of the Temple of Life—
Wow, we've recruited a big shot. I'm so happy. The Goddess boss will be pleased! Let me think about how to keep him at the company.
(Husband-husband extreme operation)
Eugene: …
Eugene: Why would such a high-level big shot come to work part-time? Be wary of corporate espionage…