Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2877: Chapter 2878: Molted Scales

After Luigi played a segment of entrance music, he stepped out from the prism in the sky and gently descended.

Luigi’s attire was the same as last time, still wearing a grass-green robe, holding a golden harp, and wearing an elegant flat hat.

The only difference was that last time he wore a mask made by Old Stone, obscuring his appearance. This time, without the mask, his true visage was visible.

Luigi’s appearance was very handsome. If you disregard his attire and eyes, he has an assertive face, somewhat similar to the disciple of Winterce, Nereus. In Jon’s words, it is a face as handsome as the Sun God.

However, the assertive face paired with eyes gentle like water gives a slight sense of contradiction.

As Angel gazed into Luigi’s eyes, Luigi had already descended to the treetop.

”Marvelous enigma, why do you stare into my eyes, intending to make my eyes part of your illusions?” Luigi sang to Angel.

Although Angel didn’t understand why Luigi would call him ”enigma,” the message in his words wasn’t hard to comprehend.

Angel withdrew his gaze and softly praised, ”I just think your eyes are beautiful.”

Luigi, with a smiling expression, said, ”Thank you for the compliment. I also wish to praise your eyes, but regrettably, all I see is a disingenuous mist.”

Angel: ”...” He had only used an illusion to change the color of his pupils. An illusion is just an illusion, why call it a disingenuous mist?

At this moment, Laplace spoke from the side, ”Luigi, enough with the small talk, bring out the item.”

Luigi held up the harp and gently plucked the strings, allowing a melodious tune to flow forth.

Just as Angel thought Luigi was about to create something with the sound of the harp, Luigi stopped playing, ”Alright.”

Angel: ”...” So plucking the strings was merely background music, wasn’t that a bit extravagant?

While Angel wore a puzzled expression, Luigi’s voice with its undulating tones appeared once more:

”Let’s sing, to praise the arrival of the Sacred Object!”

”My dearest and most beautiful other self, and this enigma from a distant land, join me in this hymn of praise.”

”This is the fragrance that emanated from ages past.”

”This is the garment that emerged, scoured clean by the passage of time.”

”This is the light brought by stars and the moon in the night sky.”

”This is the brilliance bestowed by the King of Mountains.”

”It is the spring that remains fresh after tribulations, and also the long spear that strikes fear in countless weaklings.”

”It deserves the praise of the Sky’s Mirror and should bask in the supreme glory.”

”It...”

Before Luigi could finish chanting, Laplace interrupted, ”Alright, that’s enough, you should stop now.”

Luigi, slightly aggrieved, said, ”But I’ve only recited the first stanza, this is an eight-part epic, you used to at least let me read half of it.”

Unaffected by Luigi’s tone, Laplace continued plainly, ”You can read it later if there’s a chance. Now, bring out the item I want.”

Although Luigi looked a bit aggrieved, he stopped chanting. However, the playing of the harp continued, with its melodic notes lingering softly.

At this moment, Angel heard Laplace’s voice in his mind, ”Just wait one more minute, Luigi will soon finish playing this piece. This is his nature; he can stop chanting, but the music must have a beginning and an end.”

Angel nodded in understanding... Striving for perfection isn’t exclusively a trait of those with obsessive-compulsive tendencies, just like when someone tells you a story, a story that interests you, yet suddenly stops without reason midway; anyone would find that unsettling.

However, while Angel understood, he didn’t quite get... why it felt now as if Laplace and Luigi were two separate people?

Didn’t you just say you are him and he is you? Now, advising him feels like talking about someone else.

Angel couldn’t quite grasp the style of Laplace’s Temporal Body. It was neither like the Black Earl’s avatar, very clear in its role as an extension of the self; nor like You Nu’s Temporal Body, a reflection of different stages of oneself.

Laplace seemed to split herself into three and still insisted that all three were her.

Angel was quite interested in ’avatars,’ especially since the Black Earl previously promised to share some insights about avatars when this matter was over.

Prior to this, Angel felt the Black Earl’s avatar was rather eerie, and even if he were to learn a similar skill in the future, he wouldn’t take the Black Earl’s route.

But comparing now... Angel realized that the Black Earl’s avatar appeared eerie, but it was at least still himself.

If he were to learn the technique of avatars, perhaps he should gain knowledge from the Black Earl instead.

While Angel’s thoughts drifted, Luigi’s music still hadn’t reached its conclusion.

Accompanied by the music, Angel couldn’t help but recall the poem Luigi had just recited, and from Angel’s perspective, it wasn’t very good.

Too many forcefully constructed words.

Only third-rate Bards create forced words, while first-rate Bards can convey the most profound hymns with even the simplest language.

However, because Luigi enjoyed fabricating some words, Angel came to understand why Luigi addressed him as ”Enigma.”

It was likely due to his solving the mural’s puzzle, thus being forcibly granted the title of ”Enigma.”

What could Angel say... at least it didn’t sound derogatory, so he just accepted it.

On another note, even though Luigi artificially created many words, the poem he praised actually revealed considerable information.

Setting aside the ”illusory” words, the most tangible ones were ”garment” and ”spear.”

According to Angel’s preference for a potent offensive item, the spear seemed most fitting.

Yet, based on the context, the ”spear” likely serves as a metonym, a synonym for ”weapon,” not necessarily a literal spear.

Replaces spear with cannon within the poem would work as well, though it would disrupt the rhyme.

Therefore, setting aside the spear, Angel personally felt the item Luigi brought should be ”garment.”

If it were ”garment”... Angel cast a sidelong glance at Laplace’s grand, heavy attire.

Could it be Laplace’s clothing? Luigi mentioned in the first line of his chanting, ”This is the fragrance that emanated from ages past,” thus is it a garment imbued with scent? An outfit worn throughout the ages?

This thought led Angel’s expression to become somewhat peculiar.

While Angel was lost in thought, Luigi finally reached the last pluck of the harp strings, the long tail note carrying endless lingering regret.

After the sound of the harp ceased, Luigi sighed, reached out, and touched the rhombus-shaped gemstone below the harp.

Immediately, a mist enveloped the scene.

When the mist cleared, a transparent bottle appeared in mid-air.

The bottle wasn’t large, and with a gentle beckon from Laplace, it flew over, lying flat in her palm.

”This is what you wanted,” Laplace said to Angel, while releasing a glass cover to enclose the bottle yet again.

Angel instinctively tried to probe it with his spiritual power, but the newly appeared glass cover blocked his spiritual power from entering.

Evidently, Laplace did not want Angel to delve into research.

According to the agreement between Angel and Laplace, he indeed didn’t need to conduct deep research, as the Dream Conch would directly pull it into the dream.

Although Laplace didn’t want Angel to research it, she didn’t stop him from observing.

Angel previously guessed that Luigi might have brought a ”garment,” but it seemed different from what he had imagined.

In Laplace’s palm was a glass vial, to be precise, a glass vial containing something.

It was somewhat akin to a ”ship in a bottle,” but instead of containing a ship, the vial held a creature composed of countless silver scales.

This creature was large, occupying eighty percent of the vial’s interior.

At first glance, it resembled a whale with silver scales. Its body was wide at the front and long at the back, with a round head and flat tail, and veils of silver light; if it were truly a whale, it might belong to the white whale species.

One had to admit, this ”whale” in a bottle possessed a dreamlike beauty.

It was hard to look away.

”This is...” Angel raised his head and looked at the cold and aloof Laplace, ”This is your true form?”

Laplace’s lips twitched as if unwilling to speak, but after a moment of hesitation, she said, ”It’s just the appearance of the true form, empty inside.”

So it really was her true form?! Angel was surprised, but outwardly remained calm.

Angel had once imagined the true form of Laplace, and didn’t expect it to be so... fairy-tale like and dreamy.

Even though the races are different, it doesn’t hinder Angel’s aesthetic sense.

After a moment of silence, Angel said, ”Is this... shed scales?”

Laplace didn’t deny it and nodded, ”Sort of.”

Angel’s face showed a look of realization, no wonder Luigi said, ”it’s a garment that the years have revealed,” for some scaled creatures, shedding scales is common, much like shedding skin, changing their protective layer. Comparing the shed scales to clothes is fitting.

Moreover, the shed scales matched what Angel mentioned as ”something always by Laplace’s side.”

However, typically, shed scales should serve a protective function, right? Do they really have any offensive capabilities?

Faced with Angel’s doubt, Laplace calmly said, ”This is my true form’s first shedding, blessed by the World Will, which gives it formidable attack power.”

Laplace spoke restrainedly and did not specify what kind of attack methods it possessed or the degree of attack power, but since it was blessed by the World Will, Angel believed its attack power couldn’t be weak.

Angel took a deep look at the shed scales in the bottle, then raised his head and said to Laplace, ”Since it has arrived, my study should be able to start. Lady Laplace, do you have any other questions?”

Laplace: ”Besides using the Dream Conch to draw my shed scales into the Dream Realm, do you have anything else I need to assist with?”

Angel: ”Perhaps there might be, it depends on the specific situation after observing the effects.”

Laplace still didn’t understand what Angel meant by ”effects,” but she did not inquire further. Instead, she gently tossed the ”whale in a bottle” into the air.

Then Laplace turned to look at Luigi, who was curiously peering from the side, ”Return now, to my true form.”

Luigi, who had been looking around, instantly froze, his beautiful eyes showing a trace of grievance, ”The mountain rain buries the palace, the storm sweeps away the shattered tiles, lightning ignites the remains, seemingly merciless, yet the mountain rain brings warnings, the storm purges impurities, and even the lightning has a moment of radiance... And all of this is more affectionate than you.”

Laplace: ”Continue, and I’ll ground you for ten years, right here, not allowing you to go anywhere.”

The lines Luigi had prepared instantly got swallowed back.

”Alright, alright, I’m going back, I’m going back.”

As he spoke, Luigi, with a sense of grievance, began playing a sorrowful tune, drifting away with the wind.

Watching Luigi leave, Angel couldn’t help but say, ”Actually, wouldn’t it be fine to let him stay here?”

Laplace: ”Aren’t you worried that he’d interrupt your research? He was the only Temporal Body forbidden to enter when The Sage was researching here.”

After much contemplation, Angel couldn’t help but say, ”Isn’t he you? Can’t you make him be quiet?”

Laplace gave Angel a strange look, ”He is me, but he also has his own personality, why should I make him quiet?”

Angel: ”...” Having their own personality but still him?

Angel was confused.

Angel had originally wanted to continue asking about Laplace’s Temporal Body strategy, but Laplace had already turned away, leaving the ”research area” to Angel.

Angel pondered a bit and stopped asking questions, realizing it was more important to try and construct a new ”Wilderness of Dreams” here.

Angel closed his eyes, slowly eliminating irrelevant thoughts.

Once his mood gradually calmed down, he opened his eyes and took out the Dream Conch from his bracelet.

In the distance, Laplace noticed the Dream Conch and seemed intrigued by this ”mysterious object full of legend,” examining it closely.

At this moment, Angel no longer paid attention to the outside world, slowly raised his hand, held his breath, and activated the Dream Conch.

As the Dream Conch was activated, a vast amount of mysterious aura surged forth.

The mysterious aura, resembling a torrent, was directed by Angel towards the whale in a bottle suspended in mid-air.

Soon, the mysterious aura enveloped the whale in a bottle.

In less than a second, the mysterious aura disappeared without a trace, and meanwhile, the Dream Conch was also put back into Angel’s bracelet.

The entire process was without any ripples.

Laplace was puzzled, wanting to ask Angel what had happened, but saw that in the distance, Angel had already closed his eyes at some unknown time.