Chapter 580 431 Champagne at Halftime

Unlike the next room full of clocks, the room Celire went to was locked, physically locked, but this was not a problem for Belloda at all.

Two armchairs, a heavy wooden chair beside the desk, a row of bookshelves, decorations and furniture on the east wall next to the door, and five masks hanging along the north wall complete the room. The books and documents on the desk were rendered useless by the dampness. The drawers of the desk were open, but there was only dust inside.

The books on the bookshelf were either falling apart due to their age, or they were not very readable. The most noisy thing was that Selilei who was checking the bookshelf was tested. Fortunately, his agility was high enough to avoid the collapse of the structure, which was no longer strong. There was no secret door behind the bookshelf, just a thick patch of red mold.

"Interesting." Belloda turned around and glanced at the collapsed bookshelf, then continued to turn his head to look at the mask hanging on the wall. With the ability to sense magic, she can feel that each mask is made of different materials and produces different magical effects when worn.

There are masks used by warriors, masks used by gangsters or brokers. These masks are delicious poisons. The magical effects will give the wearer blessing properties, but the punishment is permanent and cannot be lifted, and it will be worn until entering the grave.

However, one of the masks caught Belloda's attention the most, and she considered this mask to be the most valuable. The mask looked like it was made of paper. The beautifully folded paper mask had the face of a Nibon woman on it. After observing carefully for a moment, she believed that the mask would turn to dust the moment it was put on, but the magical effect would remain on the wearer, permanently granting charm, imitation, simulation, and seduction bonuses.

"I think you can wear it."

Yilanya glanced at Belloda unhappily. Although her magical attainments were not as high as Belloda's, she noticed something fishy in the mask. She didn't think Belloda had any good intentions.

"I know you don't believe me, but... I remember, didn't you say before that you planned to become an Assati priest? Then this mask suits you, maybe you can fight for it, I'm not kidding."

"I..." Yilanya hesitated a little. Just when she was about to continue saying something, her words were interrupted by Seli Lei.

"There is a secret door here."

The secret door is different from before. It requires a key to open. There is an impenetrable magical power on the secret door. Only a specific key can open it. Of course, this is the case for adventurers. The secret door was forcibly opened by Belloda. Inside was the real library, and the study outside was just an illusion.

The library has eight rows of bookshelves and two writing desks. Belloda turned around and found that the books on the eight rows of bookshelves covered archeology, history, heraldry, mythology, medicine, alchemy, exploration of the mysterious continent and Geography, history and legends of Chaos invasions, and numerous works on theology, heresies, witchcraft persecutions, etc.

Then Belloda went around again and placed the soybeans in his satchel on works related to Chaos and Heresy. Most of the books were worthless, and they were all found in the libraries of Verena in some of the larger cities in the empire. The only ones of value that can be found are those heretical works. Then, she placed a red bean in front of a book called "The Stone Philosopher of Bretonnia". In her opinion, this book was quite valuable because it was related to advanced alchemy.

"Lermontov's magic book? Interesting." Beloda noticed it, showed a playful smile, and then placed a red bean on it.

Washing the floor is a must, otherwise it will be in vain. Darkus is well-educated. Even if he doesn't bring anything with him when visiting other people's houses, he must bring something with him. Master De has lived for 15,000 years and has existed since the ancient sage came to this planet. There must be good things for both young and old.

For this reason, Darkus prepared three kinds of beans before setting off, namely mung beans, soybeans and red beans. Mung beans are harmless, soybeans are moderate, and red beans are dangerous. Once everything about the castle has been explored, it’s exciting time to bring something.

"His psychology needs to be evaluated." Asanok said coldly after taking a look.

"In which way?" Cradin responded.

"Physical, of course."

The room Kradin went to was decorated with the shields and crests of the Imperial, Bretonnian, and Tyrell noble houses, as well as a number of swords and maces, several decorative spears, several crossbows, and eight suits of plate armor , placed on both sides of the door.

Underneath each shield is a bronze medallion engraved with the symbols of the Forces of Chaos. Asanok believed that this was the record of Lord De, recording when and how he killed the nobles. He saw the symbol of Nurgle on a bronze medal. It was obvious that the owner of that shield died from the plague. Similar symbols abounded. In addition, there were some complex mixed or connected symbols. Obviously, these nobles died miserably. .

"Prepare to fight," Asanok shouted as the members entered the room and formed their formations, then waved his staff to cast the dispel spell.

It was obvious that there was something wrong in the room, and the plate armor started to move as if it had been given a soul. Asanok could feel that there was something wrong with those swords, and there was magic attached to the blades. What he had to do was to remove those magics and make the battle go more smoothly.

By the time Darkus came in, the battle was over. The ground was covered with scattered plate armor structures. The warriors led by Cradin smashed the moving armor to pieces with blunt objects.

"What are you looking at?" Darkus looked around and followed Kalien's line of sight. He saw a crossbow hanging on the wall.

"Strange crossbow, a trap." Drusala took a look and found the problem with the crossbow, and then she began to answer.

The crossbow is a magic crossbow, but it does not have magic such as hit, but strength bonus. The most weird thing is that there is indeed a hit magic on the crossbow, but this magic is backward, which means that when shooting, there is a chance that it will shoot backward, directly at the crossbow holder, and automatically hit, which is more dangerous than exploding.

"Nerve."

"However, this magic is valuable and can be extracted." Drusala said while taking out a red bean from his bag and throwing it at the crossbow. The red bean drew a trajectory in the air and landed on the crossbow bow.

The secret door in the room was opened, presenting a gloomy and bad scene. The walls and floors were covered with a large number of blood-stained tapestries and carpets, and the bodies of murdered victims were placed around the room, which were killed in a way that represented their desires.

The body of a fat man who was overeating was curled up there, his eyes bulging, suffocating from the large amount of food forced into his mouth. The body of a miser was cut into pieces by thousands of coins, and a drunkard was drowned in a glass barrel of brandy. There are dozens of bodies like this, carefully displayed as exhibits.

"There is a problem."

"Yes, there is a problem." Dacus responded to Asanok and pulled Kladin back as he was about to go in. Seeing that Kladin was going to go in, he slapped him hard.

"Wake up, you idiot."

Maybe Dacus's big ear thunder worked. Kladin, who was standing there, was stunned for a moment and then returned to normal.

"What did you see?" Dacus asked before Kladin blushed and found a crack in the ground to crawl in.

"I... I saw a cold lizard... a cold lizard bigger than the big guy, it waved me over."

"?" Dacus was speechless. It seems that there is a third party lurking between him and the big guy?

"Your psychology also needs to be evaluated."

"I disagree. I think it may be because he has seen too little."

"Indeed." Asanok agreed after thinking for a moment.

"Leave here." Dacus said as he closed the door, then took out a handful of red beans and sprinkled them at the door.

It was obvious that behind the closed door was a problematic display room. Kladin, who failed the test, saw what he wanted to see most at the far end of the room, just like facing the Sword of Cain. The illusion will present a variety of things according to the needs of the heart, such as gems, gold, a magic weapon, a religious relic, or a powerful magic book. Of course, it may also be a cold lizard or a dragon...

The affected people will be forced to walk over and take what they see. At this time, the expression on the face of the displayed corpse will suddenly change? Become distorted, or something else? In Dacus's opinion, isn't this a routine? He is not interested in getting himself splattered with blood.

The lock on the other side of the corridor was opened by Koronia. The wall opposite the door was covered with a stained glass window, showing the Chaos God Khorne sitting on a pile of skulls in an almost exaggerated way.

There was a staircase in front of the right side of the door. The throne on the staircase was undoubtedly Deye's, but he was not here now. Surrounding it were heavy black ribbons hanging from the ceiling. The edges of these curtains had very heavy gold lines, which looked extremely luxurious. The neatly inlaid black ribbons looked like they were just hung up yesterday.

"Don't look! Idiot! Idiot! Get ready for battle." When Koronia roared loudly, the magic energy was shot out, knocking the bloodletter that suddenly appeared from the mirror to the ground.

The pressure-free battle began, the elves against the Khorne demons. Maybe there was some problem, the rift was not opened, and the demons all appeared alone. The elves who had already started waiting there attacked the demons. The whole scene was like blocking the door and killing indiscriminately, sending one out and sending one away. After the elves killed five bloodletters and six fleshhounds in succession, the demons no longer appeared, as if nothing had happened before. Only the arrows on the ground proved that a battle had taken place here before.

Malanur looked at Colonia with lingering fear. He knew that the demons of Khorne were dangerous. If these five bloodletters and six fleshhounds appeared at the same time, it would be troublesome. Colonia glared at him fiercely, and after seeing his sister's eyes, he moved his eyes away with a guilty conscience.

The trouble was caused by Malanur, but he felt very innocent. There was an oval mirror facing the door under the steps of the throne. You can see it as soon as you enter the door. It is difficult not to see it.

The mirror is very evil, somewhat similar to the Eye of Destiny in the throne room of Malekith. The user can see the distant scene he wants to see through the mirror. With Dragonstone Castle as the center, the mirror extends to Middenheim in the north, Nuln in the south, Bretonnia in the west, and Tarabheim in the east. But the mirror also has limitations. You can't see details, such as the scenes in the room behind the street windows. You can only see the streets, rivers, the movement of troops or caravans, etc.

Unfortunately, if the viewer is not De Ye himself, there will be double danger. The danger is that when the observer stares at the mirror, a demon will walk out of the mirror...

"Do you want to go up and sit, my brother?" Colonia said, and used magic to pull down the curtain to cover the mirror.

Maranul glanced at his sister unhappily. He could clearly feel that his sister was trying to trick him. The whole room was full of evil things.

The throne was made of very solid wood, carved with symbols and sigils of all the major chaos and evil forces. About forty black opals and similar gems inlaid on the throne were like twisted eyes, which were indescribably evil and disgusting. Fortunately, these stones and gems did not really move like eyes.

"If I am not mistaken, after each gem worth 10 sovereigns is removed, there is a chance that the demon will reappear, and... removing the complete gem requires gem cutting technology." Colonia checked and commented, and then she said to Maranul, "Are you really not going to sit down?"

"If you want to go, go."

"Okay."

Just as Maranul was surprised, his sister had already sat down.

The tentacles ejected from some chaos faces in the wood tried to grab Colonia's ankles, but she was dodged by her crossed legs, and the tentacles grabbing her wrists were also cut off by the sharp blade wind surrounding her. The face carved on the chair began to creak, and screamed in anger, echoing in the room.

"How about this pose?"

At this time, Colonia's temperament was very strange. She crossed her legs and leaned her elbows on the chair, looking evil. The tentacles kept waving, being hit by the sharp blade wind, and the face on the chair was twisted, as if it was incompetent and furious. There was a trace of unfathomable light in her eyes, which seemed to imply the mysterious connection between her and the chair. Her posture seemed to imply that she had merged with the chair and became part of the weird atmosphere in the room.

"Very good, but I'm not going to draw it. I don't like the way you look now." Tolandil's eyes wandered over Colonia and shook his head. He felt a little scared, but at the same time he was deeply attracted by this evil scene. He felt as if he was being pulled by an invisible force.

"Okay." Colonia, feeling a little bored, stood up and walked across the room.

There were all kinds of altars of evil gods on the wall facing the throne. The well-informed Colonia found that some of the altars came from Kulish, Zhendan and Nipeng on the other side of the world. She took out a handful of red beans and scattered them over. She didn't think these altars had any value. But she still hesitated for a moment, took out a yellow bean and placed it in front of the altar of the multi-armed Naga Queen related to Kulish. Perhaps this altar would be useful in the future. Sooner or later, she would return to Kulish.

The wall on the left hand side of the entrance was full of shelves, and the shelves were filled with terrifying antiques and twisted decorations. A reverse clock, an hourglass filled with white sand flowing upwards, and a pipe rack made of fused vertebrae with a pipe made of a demon head on it.

Colonia stopped in front of each item like visiting a museum, occasionally talking to Alatar and telling Alatar what these items were used for. She knew what most of them were used for. These items were related to the altars. If used correctly, they would summon incredible things. Finally, she scattered a handful of red beans, picked up a white fork bell and left.

Daquus had already jumped up. His jump was not a big jump on the spot, but a dance. He sometimes danced around Drusala's waist and sometimes interacted with Genevieve. The hall he was in was very spacious. It was a huge banquet hall, reception hall or terrible exhibition venue in the center of the castle. It was completely up to De Ye's whim.

When the team entered, the hall had been arranged for a concert or performance. There were podiums and music scores on the high platform on the west side. There were candlesticks, goblets and wine bowls in front of the chairs. There was a harpsichord on the stage that was still usable. There were many framed paintings on the wall, depicting warriors and nobles from the Empire, Kislev and Bretonnia.

The whole room gave people a sense of being traditional and friendly. Although its huge size, darkness, disturbing echoes and ominous atmosphere seemed a bit weird, it was indeed harmless.

Genevieve seemed absent-minded as she danced. Her perception told her something she didn't want to know. It was as if a million insects were crawling on her skin, biting her with silver jaws, and making shrill screams. She could feel that there was a great danger nearby, a great evil. She was wandering on the edge of a huge and terrible darkness. The torches and lights looked pitiful against the darkness inside the castle.

"You are a little absent-minded, my baby, dancing in the dark, don't you feel that this experience is strange? A group of guests who entered without the owner's permission, strolling in the owner's territory, until..." At this time, Daquus was a little evil, which might be related to the surrounding environment, or his smile and words.

"We are in its body..." Genevieve kept moving with Daquus's dance steps, and she murmured a little uneasily. She felt that the castle was that person, the towers and battlements, the corridors and rooms, and the rock that held up Dragonstone Castle, were the arteries and organs of the great wizard, the blood and bones of Drakeferth. The team was like a knife piercing into Drakeferth's body, hitting his heart, or it might be the fragments of food rolling down Drakeferth's esophagus.

"So what? Don't worry, I'm here, today! Everything will end, and you will no longer face this terrible nightmare." Dacus said with a smile, and threw Genevieve out. He stretched out his hand while spinning and jumping, and said to Liv, "Ms. Liv, can I dance with you?"

"Of course, I believe this will be an unforgettable experience." Ms. Liv dignifiedly made a classical elf lady's salute, and smiled and gladly accepted Dacus's invitation. There was a hint of excitement and expectation in her eyes, as if she was full of expectations and longing for this dance. This was a novel experience for her, and she hadn't danced for a long time, and even if she did, it was solo.

Dacus stretched out his hand to Liv, and gently and politely led Liv to the center of the dance floor. An Enel played a moving melody, soft and cheerful, as if telling a beautiful story, which was completely out of tune with the scene at this time. He and Liv began to dance to the rhythm, their steps were light and elegant, perfectly matching the beat of the music.

Liv's long sleeves fluttered in the dance, like a blooming flower, exuding a faint fragrance. Her eyes were different from the past, full of vitality and spirit. Dancing with Dacus seemed to inspire the tenderness and tenacity deep in her heart. Her figure intertwined with Dacus's figure, forming a beautiful picture. Their dancing was graceful and energetic, attracting the attention of the elves around them.

"I like the way you are now, Ms. Liv."

"Thank you, thank you, Dacus." Liv knew what Dacus was expressing. Dacus' words brought her a touch of warmth. She could feel Dacus's sincerity and care. She smiled and nodded in response.

Even though she was in the joyful dance floor at this moment, Liv's heart was still shrouded in worry and uneasiness. Although she had a high status in Athel Loren, she was not welcomed by Asrai, who regarded her as a disaster and an ominous sign, but she didn't care about it.

In fact, Liv's worries often made her uneasy, and the unknown future made her feel uneasy. She didn't know what would happen next, nor did she know whether she could cope with the upcoming challenges. She had to stay alert and be ready to meet the challenges that might come, and this pressure often made her feel exhausted.

At this moment, Liv chose to temporarily put aside her worries and enjoy this moment of happiness and beauty. Under the guidance of Dacus, she danced to the rhythm of the music in the dark, trying to temporarily put aside those uneasy emotions and let her heart get a moment of comfort and comfort in the music and dance steps.

"This is what I should do, lady."

Under the guidance of Dacus, the elves who entered the hall one after another joined in and began to dance to the melody. They were light and graceful. With the addition of Tolandir, the music became more moving, like a clear spring, which made them feel relaxed and happy. They jumped and turned, and their movements were full of vitality and vitality, as if they were celebrating some kind of event, for Drakfers?

As the chosen one of Loik, Dacus dances gracefully and skillfully. He keeps spinning on the dance floor. In addition to men, he dances with ladies such as Delina and Malagos.

As the rhythm of the music gradually speeds up, the elves on the dance floor also increase their movements, and the dance becomes more and more enthusiastic and passionate.

"You are a little nervous." Dacus can feel Nestra's nervousness. Nestra holds his hand too tightly. He doesn't think it's because Nestra has explosive power, although Nestra has a strong figure and tight muscles that look like a bodybuilding champion.

All elven women are like this, whether they are Duruchi, Aslai, Asur, Ainir, whether they are warriors or spellcasters. As long as conditions permit, they will do proper exercise. All this is caused by the Great Schism. Scholars, spellcasters, and noble ladies not only use staffs, but also wield sharp blades. Long swords are equally deadly in their hands, especially warriors. Using a bow and arrow is a science. It is not like in a game where you can fire endlessly as long as you have ammunition. Without a strong body, you cannot shoot sharp arrows in a short time. Moreover, you must shoot with accuracy, which is not something that muscular weakness can do.

"I... I..."

"Enjoy it. It's an unforgettable experience. You won't have this opportunity next time, right?" When Nestler nodded and stopped clenching, Dacus took the opportunity to pull his hand out.

The dance music was fast, and the team couldn't dance here all the time. Dacus had political tasks and other reasons. Since he chose to dance in this way, he had to take care of all the ladies present in a limited time. He couldn't miss anyone, otherwise... it would be troublesome again. He not only knew how to cook and make cakes, but also served water.

This situation is a typical half-time champagne, but Dacus didn't think that De Ye could create a miracle, otherwise he wouldn't dance, but would keep fighting. Next... De Ye had no chance, and the team would fight like a lion against a rabbit. Maybe... it wasn't half-time champagne? Just like in the Dark Dungeon, they lit a bonfire, restored the pressure, and restored the buffs, but the elves did it in a different way, and did not trigger the night raid.

As the rhythm of the dance music gradually slowed down, the elves on the dance floor felt the signal that the dance music was about to end. Their dance steps gradually slowed down, and finally stopped in place, breathing gently.

Dakeus smiled at the somewhat bewildered Alohan, and after calming him down, he waved his arm, signaling the team to move on.

A room at the other end of the hall was the kitchen, with a large wood-burning stove in the center, ventilation ducts and vents leading directly upwards, and a hot plate on top. Unpleasantly, there was a pile of feces at the bottom of the vent, suggesting that someone was pouring something down from upstairs. It was obvious that there were living people above the castle.

There were plates, trays, long tubers and roots, and earthenware jars on the workbench, and a series of evil-looking meat cleavers, serrated spoons, fish knives, and other utensils hung on the wall, with black hooks with thorns. A pair of zombies stood by the west wall, one standing in the corner holding a meat cleaver and the other holding a fish knife.

This pair of zombies was very strange. Compared with ordinary zombies, they were very special. Their bodies turned into living meat. The hair under the chef's hat grew back, the eyes formed in the eye sockets again, and the peeled meat pieces grew around the bones again. The most disgusting thing was that when the elves entered the room, the zombies began to look like people that the elves knew, raised their arms to greet the elves, and then began to dissect themselves.

As the dissection began, the zombies' faces were painful and shocked. Their trembling hands tightly grasped the knives to shave the meat from their ribs. They made terrifying screams and thick blood kept spraying. The meat slices fell into the baking tray on the table with a snap. The meat slices were alive and rolled like dying animals. They had no intention of attacking the elves, but just dissected themselves into pieces to provide delicious food for the guests.

As the dissection went deeper, the zombies fell to the ground, their heads struggling desperately on the bloody floor, gritting their teeth, drooling, and the splattered blood turned into wriggling maggots that came to the elves.

The battle did not happen. The elves who entered the kitchen were stunned by the enthusiasm of the zombies. Then they reacted and left the kitchen and closed the door.

Dacus found some new things. He came to a small music room with very thick black curtains hanging from the ceiling to the floor. A set of more than a dozen strange string and wind instruments were placed on a table with decorative patterns. Genevieve, who had been to Nibon and Zhendan, told him that these instruments were related to there. Of course, he could tell without Genevieve telling him.

The battle happened. There were two things in the house that Dacus could not see. These two things were wearing saffron robes and looked like monks from Nibon. These two soul-like monks were like guardian spirits and would attack people who picked up musical instruments. It was obvious that these two souls could move musical instruments and had a strong resonance with them. God knows what they had experienced in their lives, and what kind of tragic fate they had experienced after crossing the ocean to come here.

As the battle took place, the confusing melody of Nibon's atonal music resounded in Dacus' ears. The sound was both familiar and strange. However, the sound lasted only a few seconds, because Drusala eliminated the two monks.

"What the hell is this?" After the battle, Dacus picked up a string instrument and studied it.

The instrument was ancient and beautiful, with a simple and elegant shape. It had a long neck and a round resonance box. On the neck, there was a row of strings, which were connected to the pillars through the bridge, forming a flat string surface. The neck was bent upward and connected to the headstock, which had a unique floral shape. The resonance box was made of wood, and the exterior was decorated with exquisite plum blossom patterns, adding to the art and beauty. The resonance box was also decorated with cloud patterns.

Even if Dacus didn't know much, he knew the value of this instrument. There was no doubt that the instrument in his hand was a pipa, and it was a five-string pipa. He was going to take the five-string pipa for himself. Since he was here, he had to gain something. As an elf noble, he needs to be well-versed in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, etiquette, music, archery, charioteering, writing, and mathematics. He still has a long life ahead of him, and he has to find some fun to kill time after retirement.

"Who are you?"

"Pages of Hoss, who are you? Why are you here?"

In another room, a conversation between elves unfolded. (End of this chapter)