Chapter 1013: The Queen’s Request |
Franca showed Lumian Queen Mystic's reply and asked for his opinion,
"Should I go?"
Lumian replied without hesitation,
"I'll go."
"Alright." Franca understood Lumian's meaning.
She now had to completely switch to behind-the-scenes support, and should avoid meeting important people unless she found an opportunity to make others despair.
Sometimes, they'd rather send Ludwig!
Franca considered briefly, then quickly typed on her screen:
"I have an important matter this afternoon. Can Lumina replace me to meet with you?"
"She knows more details about the relevant matters than I do."
"That's fine." Queen Mystic quickly replied.
Only then did Franca say to Lumian,
"Go meet Queen Mystic in your female form. Don't reveal your identity as security guard Li Ming. Although Queen Mystic is our ally, we can't let her know everything, especially identities that still need to remain undercover."
The last time they cooperated with Queen Mystic to deal with Zaratulstra, Lumian had also transformed into a Demoness of Despair.
Lumian raised an eyebrow and said teasingly,
"It feels like your IQ has increased since you fell into a situation where you'd lose control and die if kicked out of the dream."
Franca was used to trading barbs with Lumian, and retorted,
"What does that prove? It proves I'm inherently smart, I just usually can't be bothered to think. Anyway, you're not stupid either, so you can do the thinking for me."
Ludwig, who had finished his burger in the back seat, raised his head in agreement:
"That's right, that's right."
This made Franca fall silent.
Somehow having the child Ludwig agree with her didn't seem quite right…
"I'll go buy you lunch, then scout out the location and wait to meet Queen Mystic," said Lumian, once again stirring up Franca's emotions and making her feel more alive. He opened the car door and got out.
…
2 pm, 15 Jinhua Street.
Lumian, dressed in a woman's shirt and loose pants, wearing sunglasses and a mask, used teleportation to bypass the security guard and went directly inside the book warehouse—Lumina was still a wanted person, so he couldn't openly find an excuse to enter.
There was no one in the book warehouse. Lumian looked at the piles of packaged goods and tall metal shelves, walking forward leisurely.
Suddenly, a lush peach forest with blooming flowers appeared before his eyes. A winding stream in the forest flowed into a towering mountain range and into a small cave.
This isolated Lumian from the outside world.
Then, Queen Mystic Bernadette walked out from the peach forest.
Her slightly curly brown hair was simply tied up. She wore a loose white T-shirt with patterns, tied at the waist, exuding youthful energy and giving a strong student vibe. It wouldn't make anyone suspect Bernie Huang of being overly mature.
"Good afternoon, Your Highness Bernadette," Lumian greeted, removing his sunglasses and mask.
He still greatly admired Emperor Roselle, so naturally, he was quite respectful towards Queen Mystic.
Bernadette nodded slightly and said,
"Good afternoon."
She didn't engage in small talk and went straight to the point.
"Tell me everything that happened last night, not just about the Mirror People."
Lumian only omitted some details about his own changes. He started from when Luo Shan used her Reporter ability and suddenly heard Franca and Jenna talking, realizing she was just an illusory figure in someone else's dream. He continued up to returning to Mushu Hospital, seeing Grisha—Peng Deng's roommate—at the scene through someone else's short video, and the issue with the colorful parrot in the oil painting.
Queen Mystic listened very quietly, without interrupting or asking for details.
Only when Lumian finished did she ask,
"Is Luo Fu a transmigrator?"
Queen Mystic knows about transmigrators too… Well, transmigrators have done quite a few things over the years, possibly even helping her translate the Emperor's diary, and she can enter and exit Mr. Fool's dream city… Lumian nodded.
"Yes."
"Since Luo Fu saw her past self in those 'cocoons' on the light gate, does she believe that everyone in the cocoons is a transmigrator?" Queen Mystic further inquired.
"Without a doubt, that's what she thinks," Lumian replied cooperatively, although he had roughly guessed what Queen Mystic really wanted to ask.
"What are her guesses about the three empty 'cocoons'?" Queen Mystic's youthful face remained calm.
Here it comes, the real question… Lumian thought to himself, then answered truthfully,
"She suspects they are the Ancient Sun God, Emperor Roselle, and Mr. Fool."
Bernadette's expression changed slightly, but she showed no signs of shock.
She said to Lumian,
"The Ancient Sun God may not have come from a 'cocoon', He has a different origin."
"Uh…" Lumian was stunned.
If it wasn't the Ancient Sun God, then who came out of that "cocoon"?
Bernadette didn't explain, she just mentioned this.
She said with a hint of sighing,
"No wonder Mr. Fool's dream contains all the fairy tales and legends I've heard.
"No wonder those fairy tales and legends have the power of mystical reappearance…"
Lumian closed his mouth, not knowing how to respond for a moment.
After joining the Curly-Haired Baboons Research Society, he actually knew where Emperor Roselle's inventions, writings, and famous sayings came from. After entering the dream city, he confirmed this even more.
However, he still admired Roselle, believing that the Emperor's life journey from an ordinary person to wearing the crown and finally ascending to godhood was rare in the world, very inspiring and admirable. Moreover, the Emperor did indeed change the trends of the times, the world situation, and various aspects of the country of Intis. His legacy was still frequently mentioned today, still benefiting many lower and middle-class people, and still changing some people's destinies.
Bernadette turned sideways, looking towards the brilliant and dreamy pink peach blossom forest that resembled a night sky burning with clouds, and muttered to herself,
"Actually, he rarely told me that those fairy tales and legends were written by himself, thought up by himself…
"Most of the time he would say, I've organized the fairy tales I heard as a child, I'm telling you the stories that your grandmother once told me, stories that belong only to us, these are stories from my dreams that once brought me a lot of fantasy, I hope they can make your childhood colorful and dreamy too…
"When he said these things, it was as if he was looking through me, recalling his own childhood…"
Lumian suddenly smiled and lowered his head slightly, saying,
"My sister also told me some fairy tales. Every time she told them, I had a similar feeling."
At this moment, he felt a strong resonance with Queen Mystic.
One's father was a transmigrator, the other's sister was a transmigrator, and now they have both passed away, but still retained some hope of resurrection.
Queen Mystic Bernadette looked back at Lumian and nodded gently.
"It wasn't until I entered this dream city and lived here for a while that I felt I truly understood him."
"Me too," Lumian replied with a self-deprecating smile.
Queen Mystic quickly shook off that nostalgic state and said to Lumian,
"I want to ask you for a favor."
"What favor?" Lumian perked up.
Queen Mystic was silent for a few seconds before saying,
"Whether she's currently cooperating with the one worshiped by the Aurora Society, or has jumped back to the Celestial Worthy's camp, or is swaying between the two, her ultimate goal is not what I want to see or am willing to accept.
"I've hesitated for a while, but today I've finally made up my mind. I want to kick her out of the dream as soon as possible, so she can't benefit from this real dream. For this, I'm willing to accept the consequence of never being able to come to this city again."
"You want to take action against the mirrored Emperor Roselle soon?" Lumian suddenly realized.
He noticed that Queen Mystic referred to the mirrored Emperor Roselle not with the pronoun "Her" representing Angels, but with "her" symbolizing females.
"Yes." Queen Mystic nodded almost imperceptibly. "Relying on myself alone, even with a Sealed Artifact, it would be difficult to expel her from the dream, so I need your help."
"No problem. You provided us with great help in the Zaratulstra matter," Lumian agreed immediately.
With the mirrored Emperor Roselle's wavering stance, Lumian didn't dare to bet that She would definitely side with Mr. Fool, so it was better to eliminate the hidden danger in advance.
Queen Mystic added,
"I will prepay you a fee for this help…"
There's no need to be so polite, we didn't give you a fee when dealing with Zaratulstra… Before Lumian could respond, he heard Queen Mystic state the specific amount,
"500,000."
How much? Lumian instinctively doubted his hearing.
He immediately understood that Queen Mystic was also using this matter to send money to him and his team.
And this broke through the suspected limit of 30,000 per transaction.
Does this mean Queen Mystic has made up her mind regardless of the consequences, and is prepared to be kicked out of the dream for the third time? Lumian tentatively asked,
"When do you plan to take action?"
"The sooner the better," Bernadette said concisely.
Lumian considered for a moment before saying,
"Between 3 pm tomorrow and 3 pm the day after.
"And at 2:30 pm tomorrow, I'll go to Star Dream Provisions Store to rent an item, which might also come in handy after Zhou Sasa arrives in Yangdu."
Zhou Sasa would be taking the high-speed rail to Yangdu at noon the day after tomorrow.
Lumian hoped to rent once for two uses, including expelling the mirrored Emperor Roselle from the dream and dealing with the anomalies brought by Zhou Shasha entering the dream city.
"Alright." Queen Mystic didn't elaborate.
She thought for a moment and said,
"Since Huang Jiajia and the others have all become marionettes of the Celestial Worthy, and Lu Yong'an, a Blessed of the Great Mother, has discovered the falsity of your Child of God identity, you must be on guard against them suddenly taking action against Li Keji, cutting off the last hope of curing An Xiaotian."
Hearing these words, Lumian suddenly became alert.
That's right!
After last night's events, whether it's the Celestial Worthy trying to eliminate hidden dangers or the Great Mother wanting to maintain balance, Li Keji could very likely become a key target!
Lumian had originally planned to find Li Keji late tonight when everyone was asleep, to see if the mushroom had met the requirements.
But now it appeared he had to go as soon as possible—right now!
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