Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2997: Chapter 2998: Insufficient Mastery

Angel coughed slightly.

In the instance where time and space were mostly frozen, the sudden sound of coughing startled Luigi. However, he quickly realized where the cough had originated.

”Is it Angel?” Luigi asked softly.

Angel: ”It’s me, and Lady Laplace is next to me, watching you.”

Luigi scratched his head: ”Why have you two come again.”

Again? Angel: ”What? Judging by your tone, you don’t want us to come?”

Luigi sighed deeply and plopped down on the dusty ground: ”It’s not that, it’s just that with you watching me, I feel embarrassed to open the main storyline again.”

Angel remembered that the last time he came, Luigi didn’t have this attitude. Suddenly feeling embarrassed now suggested his mindset had undergone a tremendous change recently.

As for where this change originated? Angel silently glanced at Laplace.

Laplace said indifferently: ”He’s feeling ashamed.”

Angel truthfully conveyed these words to Luigi.

Luigi’s expression rarely showed embarrassment: ”It’s really embarrassing; I thought this challenge wasn’t difficult. But for some reason, I’ve made no progress each time. I’ve restarted ten times already. Initially, I was full of confidence, but now I’m somewhat confused.”

Restarting the main storyline ten times isn’t actually a lot. If the cycle continues without rest, Luigi could even reach hundreds of restarts by now.

The reason it’s only ten times is purely because Luigi reflects on himself each time he fails.

Initially, his reflections were only about his shortcomings, but later on, his failures began to shake his confidence, leading his reflection periods to drag on longer and longer because... he also had to mentally rebuild himself.

Yet until now, there hasn’t been any progress, causing Luigi’s confidence to wane more and more.

Due to the lack of unwavering confidence, he demonstrated resistance to the presence of Angel and Laplace.

Looking at the dejected Luigi, Angel didn’t know how to console him, so he could only say: ”How about taking a break before challenging again?”

Luigi immediately shook his head: ”I’m not tired, and I would never avoid it.”

Angel: ”I’m not asking you to avoid it, I just think you might need to calm your emotions now.”

Luigi still shook his head: ”My mood is actually very calm.”

Angel was about to say ’I can’t see that,’ when Laplace spoke first: ”His mood is indeed calm; his self-regulation ability is the best among all my Temporal Bodies.”

”It’s just that, being calm doesn’t hold any significance for him right now.”

Angel: ”If he can truly calm down, it does hold significance, at least he can recognize the current situation clearly.”

At this point, Angel re-established the conversation with Luigi.

”If you’re calm now, you should be able to analyze why you keep failing.”

Luigi remained silent for a long while before speaking in a barely audible voice: ”Perhaps I misunderstood Uriel’s mind, or maybe... my mastery is lacking.”

Angel: ”Since you know your mastery is lacking, why keep confronting Uriel? Are you eager for your confidence to crumble even faster?”

Luigi weakly responded: ”Didn’t I also say there could be two possibilities? Maybe I’m misunderstanding Uriel’s mindset. As long as I understand Uriel’s thoughts correctly, I might succeed.”

Angel: ”Do you believe that yourself?”

Luigi held his head in his hands, remained silent for over ten seconds, messed up his hair, and then sighed: ”I admit, it’s my mastery that’s lacking.”

”But... I don’t want to give up.”

Angel: ”I didn’t ask you to give up either, nor did I urge you to avoid, I just said you could choose to calm down.”

”What do you mean?” Luigi raised his head dazedly, staring at the sky as if truly seeing Angel outside the Miniature Garden through the false sky.

Angel replied irritably: ”What do you mean? You can’t pass it now, and you don’t want to give up the main storyline, so there’s only one way out: go offline.”

”As for what to do offline? Certainly, it’s to learn. If your mastery is lacking, then go learn! Learn until you can engage in dialogue with Uriel, then tackle this instance.”

Luigi thought it over carefully, and it seemed reasonable: ”But, who should I learn from?”

Angel: ”Don’t you know anyone who understands art?”

Luigi shook his head: ”I don’t know if there’s anyone skilled at piano in the Daylight Mirror Domain.”

Angel was about to speak when Laplace suddenly intervened: ”Piano, why only piano? If he wants to improve his mastery, shouldn’t it be the harp?”

Angel conveyed these words to Luigi, who responded earnestly after hearing them: ”I can be certain, my harp mastery is already sufficient; what I don’t understand is Uriel’s piano.”

In Luigi’s view, the lacking mastery isn’t about the harp but rather his appreciation of piano, his depth and breadth in the artistic domain.

Angel remained indifferent to this; Luigi’s harp skills were indeed top-notch, and his failure to pass the main story of this instance was indeed because he was too specialized.

People often say that music is the best language for communication or that music is universal.

Understandably, from a broad perspective, Angel didn’t deny this.

But if you delve into the details, you’ll find that there are barriers between different instruments.

Of course, there are music pieces that merge different instruments well, but this involves a premise where the creator of such music has an in-depth understanding of different instruments; or the performers of different instruments exchange ideas, complementing each other’s weaknesses, to jointly create music with multiple instruments.

But in Luigi’s current situation, neither of these conditions applies.

He’s unfamiliar with piano and lacks a piano master to communicate with; he’s relying solely on his natural musical talent to crack Uriel’s mindset.

However, no matter how high one’s musical talent, it’s impossible to see clearly through the frosted glass.

So, if he doesn’t want to give up on this task, the only thing he can do is find someone knowledgeable to teach him after going offline.

Angel: ”If we’re just talking about piano, I do have a recommended person, and he’s keen on mentoring.”

Luigi: ”Are you referring to a human?”

Angel nodded without hesitation: ”Yes, he’s human and also my mentor in enlightenment.”

Luigi trusts Angel’s suggestion but...

”Is he truly available to teach me piano if he’s your mentor in enlightenment?” Luigi: ”What I mean is, it’s not just piano that I need to learn, but the art of piano, the understanding of piano.”

These are all about theory, which actually takes more time compared to straightforward piano learning.

In Luigi’s view, Angel’s mentor is surely a Wizard, and Wizards are likely researching the so-called truth. Would they really have the time to impart piano theory knowledge to him?

Angel understood Luigi’s meaning and laughed, ”My mentor is a regular person who, due to illness, can only stay in the Wilderness of Dreams for a long time. So, you don’t have to worry, he has time, and he’s still teaching two kids piano every day.”

The ’kids’ naturally referred to Adar and Shanni.

Luigi’s eyes lit up, ”So you mean, let me go to the Wilderness of Dreams to learn piano from your mentor. After mastering it, I’ll resolve Uriel’s inner turmoil?”

Angel nodded.

The more Luigi thought about it, the more feasible this method seemed, and learning piano would also help broaden his artistic scope.

”This indeed sounds good, but is this considered cheating?” Luigi murmured softly.

Angel blurted out without realizing, ”Can learning be considered cheating?”

Luigi felt that Angel’s logic was somehow flawed, but he didn’t dwell on it. To clear the level, he could only enhance his artistic achievements. Besides, Angel offered a candidate, which meant the person was indeed a piano master.

If it were such a top-tier master, perhaps he wouldn’t need to study long before finding an unlocking point.

”Should I go offline now to find you? Are you still in Qingkong Poetry Room?”

Angel: ”No, I’m in the Heart Space, you can come to the Heart Space first.”

Heart Space? Luigi’s eyes showed question marks.

”You’ll understand the specifics after you go offline.” Angel didn’t explain further; no amount of explanation would be quicker than Luigi going offline to share Laplace’s information.

Luigi didn’t pursue it further, nodded, and disappeared entirely, clearly having gone offline.

Although Luigi went offline, ”Uriel’s Choice” didn’t dissipate; he remained in a state of space-time pause, with only the outside acre around the attic remaining vibrant.

Even though Luigi had disappeared, this unfrozen space-time remained vibrant as if waiting for Luigi’s return.

...

Half an hour later, Luigi arrived in the Heart Space.

When he saw Angel, his expression was complex.....he simply couldn’t imagine, just after spending some time in the Immortal Realm, changes occurred outside that he couldn’t fathom.

And the origin of these changes was Angel.

After hesitating for quite a while, Luigi ultimately chose not to comment on the Heart Space or Angel’s deeds.

After all, he had received all the information from Laplace, including Laplace’s view of Angel.

He wasn’t like Glaipnir who overthinks; if even the main body showed unprecedented friendliness towards Angel, then he just went with the flow from above.

”Should we go see your mentor now? Do I need to bring a gift?” Luigi put aside chaotic thoughts and refocused on what mattered most to him.

Angel: ”No need, and you can’t bring anything in.”

To bring gifts, he’d need to use Dream Conch. But using Mysterious Objects in Bilun Tree Court... better not.

”You just need to come with me.” Angel waved, and the Heart Space opened a slit, with a mirror passage in the middle that leads directly to the Buffer Zone.

Angel led Luigi outward.

Before leaving, he didn’t forget Laplace: ”Do you want to check out the Wilderness of Dreams?”

Laplace shook her head: ”No need, Luigi going is equivalent to me going.”

Angel: ...you all certainly have it easy.

With a hint of envy, Angel and Luigi left the Heart Space.

Laplace originally thought that Luigi would return in ten days or half a month, after all, even learning theoretical knowledge takes time to digest. But unexpectedly, not even ten days, Luigi was back in less than five minutes.

...

Five minutes later, Laplace watched Angel and Luigi, her eyes full of confusion.

The doubt was brief, and with mindful sharing, Luigi’s experiences were immediately sensed by Laplace.

”Luigi can’t enter the Wilderness of Dreams?” Laplace asked in surprise.

According to Luigi’s surface memory, he went to reality, fell asleep but couldn’t even step onto the Dream Bridge. This was completely different from the situation in Crystal Origin of Dreams.

Angel also helplessly nodded; indeed, Luigi could not enter the Wilderness of Dreams.

Angel clearly sensed Luigi lingering outside the Dream Bridge but simply couldn’t pull Luigi onto the Dream Bridge.

It was as if Luigi and the Wilderness of Dreams were in a state of separation.

Laplace: ”Is it because the Wilderness of Dreams rejects non-humans?”

Angel shook his head: ”No, there are too many non-humans in the Wilderness of Dreams, even half-step Legend elemental creatures...”

Elemental creatures exist in various worlds; since they can enter the Wilderness of Dreams, why can’t Luigi?

Angel: ”I don’t know the specifics, but I have a hypothesis.”

Laplace: ”What hypothesis?”

Angel pondered, ”Maybe because the Wilderness of Dreams and Crystal Origin of Dreams share the same body. Not only that, but Luigi is also restricted by Authority.”

The so-called restriction of freedom by Authority refers to the authority of Wonderland restricting Luigi’s freedom. After all, by the rules, Luigi was still trapped in the ”Uriel’s Choice” instance.

Plus, since the Wilderness of Dreams and Crystal Origin of Dreams share the same body, if Luigi’s body was trapped in the Crystal Origin instance, naturally he couldn’t go to the Wilderness of Dreams.

Angel: ”Whether this hypothesis is true, just needs testing.”

Laplace immediately guessed Angel’s idea: ”You mean, let me enter the Wilderness of Dreams?”

Angel nodded.

Laplace was unlike Luigi; she wasn’t trapped in the instance and was a free person. If she could enter the Wilderness of Dreams, then Angel’s hypothesis would be correct!

Laplace thought a bit and ultimately nodded: ”Alright.”

”But even if I enter the Wilderness of Dreams, it won’t greatly help Luigi.”

Laplace could at most assist Angel in testing whether Luigi was unable to enter due to the instance or if he himself couldn’t enter.

But regarding Luigi’s desire to learn piano and relative theoretical knowledge, she couldn’t help at all.

Angel understood this too; currently, he could only go see Jon and check if he had a way to resolve Uriel’s inner turmoil. If it didn’t work, Angel would have to find another piano master to teach Luigi.