novellaaa Chapter 199 Would you be willing to take a bet?
Chapter 199 Would you be willing to take a bet?
Chapter 199 Are you willing to take a gamble?
In a hotel in the western district, near the Tasok River.
Tiny, sparkling starlight flew out from the void, quickly coalescing within the quiet hotel room to form a phantom starlight gate covered with mysterious patterns and symbols.
As the Stargate took shape, Cyril and Verdu emerged from behind it.
"Verdu?"
On the other side of the room, Lawrence, holding a black-covered book, looked at the person who appeared from behind the "door," his wariness gradually turning into stunned silence.
Although startled, he remained vigilant, one finger pressed against the edge of the book, ready to open it at any moment.
Verdu noticed Lawrence's wariness of him, but didn't pay it any mind. For Abraham's descendants, who possessed considerable knowledge and resources but were themselves very weak, only by being vigilant enough could they survive longer and avoid bringing danger to themselves and their families.
He quickly scanned the room before dragging a chair to the small round table by the window and sitting down.
"So you're the Abraham family member Cyril was talking about? What brings you to Backlund all of a sudden?"
Upon hearing this question, Lawrence's eyes darkened:
"Because I haven't heard from my brother Roberto for several years, I decided to come to Backlund to find him."
"Unfortunately, I arrived too late. He had passed away several years ago, and even his wife, Anlisa, had passed away."
Knowing Lawrence's situation, Verdu fell silent, deeply regretting that he had asked such a foolish question.
He suddenly understood why Sirion had said that Lawrence's life was coming to an end. It wasn't just the hidden wounds left by the turmoil in the Abraham family, but also the mental trauma caused by the departure of his loved ones.
The latter is even more serious; for extraordinary individuals, the mental state is always fragile and sensitive.
"cough"
In the ensuing silence, Cyril suddenly coughed lightly, drawing their attention. He then carefully chose his words and began:
"Gentlemen, would you mind hearing my suggestion?"
"What suggestion?"
Although Verdu was somewhat displeased with Cyril's actions in disrupting the somber atmosphere, he still asked politely, considering the disparity in strength between the two sides.
Lawrence didn't speak, but instead cast an inquiring glance at him.
Cyril looked at Lawrence, whose face was paler than when they last met, and asked earnestly:
"Mr. Lawrence, I can see that you are not in good physical health and your mental state is not good either. You may be nearing the end of your life at any time."
So, are you willing to take the gamble?
Lawrence looked at him calmly, his voice low and hoarse: "What are we betting on?"
Cyril: "A potential opportunity."
As he spoke, he turned his head to look at Verdu:
"Since your life is coming to an end anyway, why not try the method that Mr. Verdu dared not attempt before, and see how to safely pass through a full moon without relying on external aids?"
(Hesitant to try) Verdu glared at Cyril, then looked at Lawrence and advised:
"Don't listen to him. I just plan to try it when the full moon comes this month. You don't need to take the risk, after all, you..."
Lawrence didn't answer Verdu's question, but instead looked at Cyril and asked earnestly:
"I'm curious, what kind of attempt is it?"
Sirion explained succinctly, "Recite a sacred name during the full moon and see if you will receive blessings."
"I have a friend who is also a member of your Abraham family. During a full moon, he couldn't hold on any longer and recited that name. After that, he successfully received the protection of that being."
"I have a magical item that can artificially create a 'full moon' within a certain area, so I'm always willing to try it, but Mr. Verdu is a bit timid."
Lawrence pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly and said, "Okay."
Before Verdu could begin to persuade him, he calmly explained:
"My life is already nearing its end, so even if the attempt fails, it won't be a big loss, except that my characteristics will most likely be contaminated and difficult for future generations to use."
"If the attempt succeeds, we will have provided the Abraham family with a way out."
Perhaps sensing that his life was coming to an end, Lawrence appeared very resolute at this moment, and his originally calm tone became more determined.
He paused, looked at Sirion, and asked:
"When do we start, and what preparations do we need to make in advance?"
Cyril pointed to Verdu sitting to one side: "You two discuss it yourselves."
"As for preparations, you can arrange a ritual in advance, offering some spiritual items to please that being, although I personally feel that doing so may not necessarily have any effect."
"As for the rest."
Cyril glanced around, walked to the desk, opened the cap of the round-bellied fountain pen on the table, and then casually tossed it aside.
The round-bellied fountain pen seemed to come alive in mid-air, landing nimbly on an open notebook page, scribbling down lines of Old Fussac words.
After finishing writing, the pen bounced around, leaving a few black dots on the paper, before disappearing back into its cap and lying quietly on the table.
Cyril reached out and ripped the page from the notebook, then flicked his wrist and tossed it at Lawrence.
Lawrence reached out and took the paper, then lowered his eyes to examine it closely:
"From the unknowable sublime..."
Cyril turned to Verdu: "You two can figure it out yourselves, but before that, take me back first."
"it is good."
After nodding in response, Verdu realized that he seemed to have been too obedient to the other party, completely becoming the other party's subordinate.
But when he thought of Cyril's previous feat of taking on three powerful extraordinary beings single-handedly, he immediately suppressed the slight displeasure in his heart.
Back at her home in the southern part of the bridge, after letting Verdu, who had been working as her part-time "driver," leave, Cyril went straight to the living room on the first floor.
He found a small, palm-sized piece of paper torn somewhat shod, with two lines of Rune words scrawled on it on the floor in front of the gate:
Father Utravsky asked me to tell you that the revelation Goddess gave you regarding your question last night is:
You can believe some of it, but you need to be vigilant.
"We need to be careful... Does this mean the oracle Nibais spoke of wasn't actually issued by Lilith, but rather came from the 'Primordial Moon'?"
"Nibais wouldn't actually believe in the 'Primordial Moon,' would he? Perhaps his advanced age caused his condition to decline, so he was affected by the 'Primordial Moon' during the last full moon?"
"And Lilith said I can believe some of it, but which part should I believe...?"
"Am I someone favored by fate, or will I help the moon regain its rightful place, or is it the ambiguous third sentence, or should I believe in the vampires' goodwill towards me?"
As he whispered, he suddenly heard illusory, layered prayers in his ears.
After a moment of silence, he gently rubbed his fingers together, causing the note on the floor to spontaneously combust.
After the note had completely burned away, he turned and walked to the center of the living room, where he leisurely leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes to meditate.
His spirit then detached from his body and continued to climb through dimensions.
In the blink of an eye, he arrived at a dimension overlooking all things.
After calming his mind, he looked down at the echoing prayers and saw House praying to himself in front of the bathroom mirror. I can understand praying in front of a mirror, but why does it have to be in the bathroom?
As his doubts lingered, House, sensing the gaze cast upon him by the "great being beyond dimensions," became extremely devout and fanatical, his voice trembling slightly with excitement:
"O Lord, I have discovered that the followers of the false god of storms are trying to investigate your incarnation on earth."
"Those despicable scoundrels even tried to seek the assistance of those steam-powered false gods, but were rejected by Captain Ikonser of the Mechanical Heart."
"Today, Ikonser also gave me a task: to keep an eye on the movements of those Storm False God followers."
"O Exalted Lord, is there anything I can do for you?"
Listening to House's constant use of the term "false god," Cyril felt an urge to facepalm.
...I finally understand why those cult members all seem rather dim-witted; their minds are completely filled with piety and faith, and all truly useful knowledge has been driven out.
After muttering to himself for a while, Cyril snapped his fingers and used a "fog-making" trick to cover the mirror in front of House with a thin layer of white mist.
The mist churned and undulated for two seconds, and then lines of Runic words, interspersed with starlight, appeared:
Don't worry about it.
"Storm" wants believers to have time to act before praying to me.
"As you command!"
House bowed respectfully and earnestly to the mirror on the washstand in front of him.
Unable to bear the sight of the other party's mindless fanaticism any longer, Cyril withdrew his gaze and then detached himself from the dimension.
He can accept fanatics, but not mindless fanatics.
On the sofa in the living room, Cyril, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and stared into thought at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling above him.
...It's no surprise that the Church of Storms will investigate me, after all, I've already incurred divine punishment twice from that petty "Lord of Storms," especially the second time which involved Amon and Adam.
But why would the Steam Church help me?