Sword of Dawnbreaker

Chapter 339 - 338: Allies

Patty seemed very excited, her questions came one after another—regarding the story of Gawain Cecil leading humans across the wastelands, the tale of the Anzu Knights fighting the western barbarians, the story of the underground Great Wall in the southern borders, and those ridiculous tales that in Gawain’s eyes were purely fabricated by later generations—such as the secret pact between Gawain Cecil and the black wizard, or the fairy tale of Charlie and the Three Golden Crowns...

Gawain answered them one by one, for those events that truly happened, he responded based on his own memory, and for those legends fabricated by later generations, he tried to outline a fairy tale for Patty.

But even though the little girl was very excited, her energy was ultimately limited. After chatting for a while, Patty visibly began to tire out, and Lady Ropeney immediately reminded her daughter, ”Patty, you should go to sleep.”

Patty tried to hold on: ”But I still want to chat a bit longer with Uncle Gawain...his stories are so interesting...”

”Listen to your mother, you should go to sleep,” Gawain said, stroking the little girl’s head. At the same time, he sensed the flow of her energy within—after confirming the little girl’s vital signs were all stable, he heaved a slight sigh of relief, ”I will come see you tomorrow.”

”...Okay.” The little girl nodded obediently and then turned her head to look at a certain corner of the room.

Patty’s maid had been there all along, and upon receiving her young mistress’s command, the maid immediately stepped forward and assisted Lady Ropeney in carefully taking Patty to the bedside. They undid the straps that held Patty’s body in place and slowly transferred the little girl to the bed. During this process, Gawain noticed that Patty would occasionally furrow her brows slightly.

Her physical condition was very bad, really very bad.

After finally settling the little girl, the maid retrieved something from a nearby cabinet.

Gawain keenly sensed the magical power fluctuations contained within the object and immediately stepped forward.

It was a peculiarly styled magic tool, appearing like some sort of hair accessory but larger and more complex. It comprised several curved metal pieces with complex, dense magic symbols on them, connected by mage lines and crystals. The inside was lined with soft leather and fabric, and there were several straps to help secure it on the head.

It looked like a metal ”coronet” brimming with mystery.

Before the maid could put this on Patty, Gawain spoke up: ”What is this?”

”A magic tool for calming the spirit,” said Lady Ropeney. ”It helps Patty fall asleep.”

”Calming the spirit?” Gawain frowned, looking at Patty who was already lying in bed.

The little girl did not think much of it, and even with a hint of show-off said: ”It’s a gift from a passing mage for me! With it on, I can dream for a long time and won’t feel pain while sleeping!”

”Dreaming?” Gawain feigned ignorance, ”What kind of dreams?”

”Hmm...really nice dreams!” Patty laughed, ”I can run, jump, and I don’t feel unwell at all in the dreams—and Uncle Gawain, let me tell you, I used to see very few people while dreaming with this, but recently, I can see lots of people playing with me! Uncle, do you want to try it?”

”...No, it’s your treasure,” Gawain said, ruffling the little girl’s hair and standing up, ”Get some sleep early.”

His expression remained calm, but a question had already formed in his mind:

Patty clearly remembered how she connected to the network in the real world, and she knew that this magic tool which helps her ”enter dreams” was a gift from a passing mage!

But in the dream realm, her memory of this was very vague, and she couldn’t explain how she first connected to the network...

Was some of her memory obscured or altered when she was in the spiritual network? Who did it? Why do that?

After leaving Patty’s room, Lady Ropeney spoke immediately: ”My lord Duke, is there something wrong with that magic tool?”

Gawain turned his head slightly and glanced at Patty, who had already lain down and entered the spiritual network through the still-unclosed door. After a few seconds of silence, he finally shook his head: ”No, there isn’t.”

He then asked, ”But I am very curious, who exactly gave her that gift?”

”A mysterious mage,” replied Lady Ropeney, ”A few years ago, Patty’s condition was very bad, her wounds couldn’t heal, and she couldn’t rest for nights. I sought scholars, physicians, and priests from both within and outside the territory to no avail, but just as I was helpless, someone claiming to be from a hidden mage association came to the castle, saying he knew how to calm Patty’s spirit—after showing actual results, I believed him.”

Gawain understood: Without a doubt, that so-called ”mage” was an Eternal Sleeper.

Considering the complex nature of the Eternal Sleepers, there’s a chance all the mage’s identities were true.

”Did that ’mage’ appear again later?” he asked Lady Ropeney seriously, looking into her eyes.

Lady Ropeney shook her head: ”Never appeared again...but before leaving, he said that if the magic tool had any issues or Patty’s mental state deteriorated, he would sense it and definitely show up in time...”

Gawain nodded, not surprised: with the mind network’s monitoring, the Eternal Sleepers didn’t need to be on-site to keep tabs; they could know Patty’s condition real-time. From Patty’s account just now, she had been using that magical artifact even before the ”eternal dream-realm” was activated. At that time, the Eternal Sleepers had only just formed a rudimentary, small dream world—their mind network, and Patty might have been among its initial users...

Lady Ropeney sensed something from Gawain’s demeanor, and her face inevitably tightened with tension. ”Do you know anything... about that magical artifact, and about that mage?”

Gawain hesitated for a moment, then ultimately chose to tell Lady Ropeney part of the truth: ”If I’m not wrong, that magical artifact likely has some connection with the Eternal Sleepers.”

”The Eternal Sleepers?!” Lady Ropeney was shocked, ready to turn back immediately. ”That thing...”

”Don’t panic yet,” Gawain immediately stopped Lady Ropeney’s actions, ”I only said that thing has some connection to the Eternal Sleepers—it doesn’t necessarily harm Patty.”

Lady Ropeney stopped in her tracks but remained silent, staring straight into Gawain’s eyes, waiting for him to say more.

”You should know that in the Kant territory, I once dismantled an Eternal Sleeper conspiracy and destroyed one of their nests on the southern borders,” Gawain explained. ”Since then, I have investigated and learned about the Eternal Sleepers, including their magic skills. Based on my observation, the artifact Patty uses to sleep doesn’t have negative effects like mind invasion or corrosion. At least judging from the artifact itself, it is harmless.”

”But it’s something from the evil cult followers!” Lady Ropeney seemed a bit in denial. ”I really can’t believe... I’ve let Patty use that for over three years...”

Gawain sighed. He understood Lady Ropeney’s worries, but he had to remind this mother of a fact: ”Patty needs it.”

Lady Ropeney sharply lifted her head, then slowly lowered it.

”You’re right... I also know Patty’s current state. She’s already become like that... As long as I can let her sleep peacefully, I’m willing to pay the highest price,” this mother said softly, ”But I hope this price is paid by me, not my daughter.”

”At least for now, Patty can’t be without that device,” Gawain said, ”but I will try to verify its condition. My domain has been researching the Eternal Sleepers’ technology for a long time. I will write a letter, asking the best scholars in the domain to come and examine the artifact, to confirm if it’s truly safe.”

Then he paused, and continued, ”If it is truly safe, then my suggestion is for Patty to continue using it—until a better alternative is found, it’s the only means to temporarily relieve Patty’s suffering.”

He wasn’t lying: Patty’s situation was already dire, and any means to alleviate her pain was worth attempting, better than letting her condition further deteriorate.

Moreover, he had a reason he hadn’t disclosed: Patty’s connection to the mind network clearly wasn’t an arbitrary decision by the Eternal Sleepers. Given the fact that the little girl could freely move around the Dream City Central District and was personally attended to by Selena Gerfen, Patty being ”selected” by the Eternal Sleepers clearly bore special significance.

Thus, they were certainly monitoring Patty’s condition and had subsequent plans in place.

Suddenly severing Patty’s ”connection” might provoke the Eternal Sleepers. Could it potentially lead to a worsening situation? Or might it cause those cultists to think their plans had been exposed and compel them to ”destroy” a node?

These were issues that needed consideration.

Furthermore, Gawain wanted to dig deeper through this clue, to understand what those mysterious Eternal Sleepers actually schemed...

No matter what, keeping Patty connected was currently the safest course—of course, he also needed to call in those ”professionals” studying Eternal Sleepers technology from his domain to personally verify the artifact’s condition.

After all, their opponents were the evil cult followers of the Eternal Sleepers; one couldn’t be too cautious.

Although Gawain hadn’t laid out all his reasons, Lady Ropeney was convinced. The lady barely nodded, albeit reluctantly: ”We’ll have to follow your advice. But there’s one thing I can’t understand... those insane cultists, why did they choose my daughter... why give her such a ’gift’? I... can’t believe they’d do it out of genuine goodwill.”

”To be honest, I don’t believe it either,” Gawain smiled slightly. ”Rest assured, I will continue to investigate this matter. When it comes to dealings with the Eternal Sleepers... I have endless business with them.”

Lady Ropeney took a long look at Gawain. She detected a deeper meaning in his tone but didn’t press further. After a brief silence, she suddenly said, ”Thank you.”

”Thank me for what?”

”Patty was very happy today,” Lady Ropeney spoke softly, ”She hasn’t been this happy in a long time.”

”I said I wouldn’t let my little admirer down,” Gawain laughed. ”After all, in her heart, I’m a great hero—just like her father.”

”Do you still remember the topic we discussed earlier?” Lady Ropeney said quietly. ”About that noose.”

”Of course, I remember.”

”I’m very interested in it.”