Knight Commander Asland of the Imperial Knights was summoned by Duke Nelan Elvys for the ninety-eighth time to hear his last words.
The man in the study stood tall with jet-black hair and fair skin. The contrast between the black and white highlighted his sharp brows and eyes. With his long eyelashes lowered, the emotions in his eyes were obscured, making him appear like an untouchable, imposing statue. When Asland arrived, the statue came to life. His voice was clear, hiding a hint of laughter, indicating he was in a good mood.
"You're here." After listening to Duke Elvys's grave last words, Asland still had the mood to comment: "It's shorter than last time, seems to be missing the part about Marquis Wil and his land grab."
Elvys smiled slightly, readily admitting: "Yes, I sent Marquis Wil back to his hometown to grow oats a few days ago. He loves land so much; he should retire and enjoy it there."
"You say that, and I can only hope that the Blackstone Wasteland becomes a land of abundance." Asland added, "I hope it can happen during Marquis Wil's lifetime."
"It seems you've remembered my words well, and I'm pleased." After saying that, Elvys checked his pocket watch, "It's time." The two men entered the secret room in the study.
"I've just heard it too many times," Asland muttered to himself.
There was already someone waiting in the secret room.
"Asland, do not grieve. From dust we came, and to dust we shall return. Awaiting me is eternal peace and happiness, and my soul shall be with the empire."
Asland remained expressionless: A shameless vampire was stealing the eulogy of a Light Believer's funeral. If you were at peace after death, the God of Light would be restless.
Elvys, the Duke of Nelan Elvys of the Silver Empire, the head of the six elders of the Imperial Regency Council, was the de facto ruler of the empire.
This two-hundred-year-old vampire had held power for many years and one day finally revealed his world-weary tendencies. The other vampire elders of the Regency Council immediately sent the best alchemists to ensure that their long-standing ruler could leave this ugly and hopeless world efficiently.
This was his ninety-eighth attempt to leave this world.
The alchemist explained his plan: "First, you must drink this potion of transformation. It will turn you into a fragile creature, greatly limiting your magical power. Then, step into this teleportation circle, which will transport you to an extremely dangerous location on the continent."
Powerful beings always find it difficult to die, especially self-healing vampires. So, despite the alchemist's plan being far from ideal, Elvys had no objections. He took the transformation potion from the alchemist, drank it in one gulp, and stepped into the teleportation circle without looking back.
Only the two men remained in the secret room, and for a moment, it was silent.
Amidst the quiet, Asland scoffed with his back to the alchemist: "Don't think I don't know you've been using the Duke to test your immature transformation potions." The alchemist's smile was like a mask: "I also know that every time the Knight Commander comes, my teleportation circle mysteriously shifts positions."
The immature transformation potion couldn't restrain Elvys's power, and the altered teleportation circle avoided the hidden dangers of remote locations.
The two exchanged a meaningful glance, tacitly agreeing not to mention it again.
All Elvys knew was that he genuinely wanted to die in peace, but if he "happened" to survive, he could justifiably dump the cumbersome state affairs on Asland and travel around the corners of the continent chosen by the random teleportation circle.
Ina was collecting the glowing daisies in the tea tree forest into her backpack. She originally planned to let these glowing daisies spend the remaining half-day providing light for another vegetable patch, maximizing the use of their glowing effect. But she had been busy lately, especially with a branch opening in the Frozen Wasteland, which gave her a headache. So, the other vegetable patch remained barren for now.
She looked up and saw a familiar figure flying in the distance. It was The Goldfinch. Ever since Lizard started working for her, the Goldfinch had been planning to become a restaurant employee.
"I can pick some wild fruits; there are many delicious fruits in the swamp."
Ina looked at the Goldfinch, which was about the size of her palm: "How will you bring the fruits then?"
"I can ask other birds for help."
The next day, the Goldfinch brought another bird, a beautiful macaw. Ina gave them a basket. They returned today, the Goldfinch flying in front, the macaw clumsily flying with the basket in its claws.
Was the basket too big for the macaw? As Ina was about to take the basket, the Goldfinch said, "There have been many strange things happening lately. First, the four-winged Thunderhawk not stay in its territory, always hanging around the giant's house. And just now, a black cat fell from the sky and landed on the macaw."
Ina looked up and indeed saw a black cat lying on the macaw's back. The macaw shook twice but couldn't shake it off, worried about spilling the wild fruits in the basket. Seeing only a short distance left, it decided to fly over like that.
Ina took the basket from the macaw's claws, neatly filled with currants, cranberries, and some cloudberries. She was about to pick up the black cat from its back when the cat glanced at her warily. Its red eyes made Ina hesitate, and the black cat immediately jumped down from the bird's back and ran away.
A red-eyed black cat? Was this also a specialty of the Midnight Swamp?
Ina pushed the door open, "Come in and eat something first." She prepared caramel pudding, apple pie, and cotton candy for the Goldfinch and the macaw.
The Goldfinch flew around the cotton candy, eating it like a tiny satellite around a "cotton candy planet." The macaw pecked at the caramel pudding, creating an enticing dent in the smooth, mirror-like surface that wobbled twice.
The macaw flapped its wings contentedly, walking around the plate with the pudding, happily enjoying the delicious food the Goldfinch was right about. It was fortunate to have snatched the job of transporting wild fruits.
Ina put the basket into the kitchen, where the bright light made the wild fruits inside look even more plump and round, exuding an intoxicating aroma after ripening.
There were so many wild fruits; it definitely wasn't picked by just one bird.
As expected, the Goldfinch answered vaguely while eating the apple pie, "Many birds picked them together, very quickly."
Before the Goldfinch and the macaw left, Ina took out the basket again, "Inside are caramel puddings, fresh strawberries, and frosted strawberry bread. Take them back for everyone to eat. You don't need to send wild fruits every day; once every three days will be enough."
After seeing off the Goldfinch and the macaw, Ina searched for the runaway black cat outside the restaurant for a while.
[You might consider taking in this poor little cat.]The system's calculations were clear; if Ina adopted the black cat, perhaps the rent for all the shops wouldn't need to be paid by the system in the future.
"What are you talking about? I don't even like cats," Ina said coldly.
The system mercilessly exposed her lie: [After searching, cat-related items associated with your account include: cute paw gloves, black cat headband, beret: sweet and cool white cat, cape: riddle cat...]
"But it looks ugly. Don't you think a black cat with red eyes looks strange?" Ina frowned.
[Do you need me to show your favorability towards it?]The system chuckled.
"I can't possibly keep it! How can we have pets in a restaurant? Customers will surely question our hygiene standards," Ina argued logically. "Besides, don't you know about the rumor in town that I'm a witch? I have to keep my distance from this black cat!"
[The reputation of the black dragon seems worse, and I don't understand why you would care about witch rumors.]Despite the disappearance of dragons from the continent for decades, there are still legends about them in various places. They commit all sorts of atrocities, burning, looting, plundering the empire's treasury, and forcing humans and dwarves to build magnificent nests for them. The system thought Ina was prepared for this when she decided to become a black dragon.
"Can't I just be an ordinary person running a restaurant? I'm hardworking, down-to-earth, and use real ingredients when cooking, without hoarding or inflating prices..." Ina didn't even know what she was babbling about anymore.
[And your pink hair.]The system added coldly. Ina's performance had never been close to ordinary.
"Anyway, the black cat is gone now, and I won't keep a useless cat." Ina shrugged and turned back to the Dragon Flame Restaurant.
In the distance, a black cat crouched on the ground, its crimson eyes squinting. Elvys had just been transported by the teleportation circle when he realized this place was the Midnight Swamp, as no other place on the continent had such perennial fog in the sky.
But he landed on the back of a bird? And the bird was carrying a basket in its claws?
Then even stranger things happened. A pink-haired woman took the basket from the bird and brought them inside to eat. Was she a druid? Why would a druid come to the Midnight Swamp?
Elvys had to be cautious. The Midnight Swamp, even now, mentioning this place in the ruling council would cause unease. The incident that happened here back then directly led to the collapse of two empires on the Moro Continent, and the remaining one was in imminent danger.
He sensed the powerful force emanating from this woman. There must be something strange about her appearing here. Elvys decided to stay and figure out her intentions.