When they returned to the city, they went to another hotel some distance from before.

The first thing Aaron did was lock himself in his room to write a letter, and he needed to contact the "Mystery Queen" as soon as possible, tell her all about the past few days, and then close the previous deal as soon as possible.

When Esther followed Alexander and Aaron to dinner at the hotel, she seemed a little absent-minded, with a mediocre interest in the Intis-style lamb chops on her plate, and she had always been very keen on food, and Alexander could easily have noticed this by her unusual behavior.

Alexander took a sip of champagne: "You haven't made up your mind to leave yet. ”

"Huh? Ah, it's a little ......," Esther replied vaguely, and then realized that she was a little rude, and quickly adjusted her mentality, "I sometimes unconsciously express my emotions, but I have no reason to continue to walk with you. ”

Thoma bared his teeth: "You can follow Alexander to Trier to continue visiting the library, anyway, you like to study, it is better to follow him and let him continue to teach you." ”

Alexander frowned rarely, and glanced at Thoma disapprovingly: "This has nothing to do with learning, and I am not a believer in the god of knowledge and wisdom, and I don't have a 'fetish' that I must find students to teach." ”

Thoma shrugged his shoulders and tore hard at the bread in his hand: "It's all the same in my eyes, it's very annoying. ”

Alexander turned to Esther with a blank face: "I don't know if you've heard the legend of the 'Clover' first mate robbing the Church of Knowledge?" ”

"How do you pick the most hated stories to tell? How many years ago! Thoma protested irritably.

Esther couldn't help but chuckle and asked curiously, "So Mr. Thoma, do you like or hate studying?" ”

Thoma sighed heavily, his eyes revealing a look of memory:

"Alas...... I used to be a believer in the Church of Knowledge, but I could never like that atmosphere. I actually did very well on my exams, I was like that when I was a kid, I was quite proud at first, but the longer I stayed, the more annoyed I became!

"Everyone, I mean everyone! They're all trying to teach you how to do things and how to learn! This doesn't work, that doesn't work, it seems that everyone is hanging their lives on heavy books and learning, and everyone takes 'guiding others' as a natural habit!

"I couldn't stand the atmosphere and started my own business after leaving the church. When I earned my first pot of gold, I was still complacent, and even my mind was hot, and I was induced by others to take potions and become a 'voyeur'. It wasn't until that moment that I realized that something was wrong with my life plan......"

Alexander tapped his temple with his hand: "It doesn't feel good to be indoctrinated with knowledge, not to mention the whispers that are deliberately trying to bewitch him." ”

Esther's gaze was slightly pitying: "I can probably imagine that I have also experienced other 'babbling', which is a pain that people absolutely do not want to repeat a second time." ”

Thoma drank the champagne from his glass in the middle of the narration, smacked his lips, and continued: "There's nothing to be painful about, hehe, I'm used to living now, and I often hear about some windfall.

"I did, however, provoke the Church by sneaking into the library of the local Church of Knowledge in an attempt to verify the identity of the Hidden Sage. Can you imagine the anger of a group of people who value knowledge more than life, and after this incident I went straight to Intis and wandered the streets of Trier, and then there was nothing more to say. ”

Alexander smiled and wiped the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief: "Yes, then you were accidentally developed by me into an informant of the Church of the God of Steam and Machines, and then almost hunted down by Aaron as a member of the 'Morse Ascetic', and finally we were 'taken on the thief ship' together." ”

"Haha, you still remember what I said at the time, it's a really annoying memory." The little gloom on Thoma's face before was swept away by Alexander's words, and he raised his chin at Esther, "So there are enough weirdos traveling with the princess, you don't have to worry about anything special about yourself, Miss Hamel." ”

Esther was suddenly stunned, she was just listening to other people's stories, but she didn't expect to be pulled to herself so bluntly. She should have been moved by Thoma's words, but apart from the faint warmth, it was difficult for Esther to feel more intense.

But she laughed out loud the next moment, and her smile was very sincere: "Thank you for being willing to give me a place on the 'Clover', although it was purely unplanned to set foot on this ship, I am also very happy to meet you." ”

"Don't say goodbye," Alexander shook the empty glass in his hand, he didn't seem to be very good at drinking, and his face quickly turned crimson, "You can change your mind at any time before Aaron brings that queen's reply." ”

Thoma smiled brightly: "It's not necessarily a bad thing, maybe the day you leave, we can see Aaron hugging his head and crying!" ”

"What kind of nasty bullshit are you talking about?" Aaron's voice rang out.

He walked over and glared at Thoma with disgust on his face, and Aaron didn't hear the conversation of the people in front of him before he heard Thoma's irritating remarks at the end. If it weren't for the laziness to fight Toma in public, Aaron would definitely take the opportunity to give Thoma a blow to the back of the head.

After Aaron sat down at the table, he nodded at the only lady at the table: "I have already sent the letter out, until my teacher replies, we will stay at the hotel first, if you want to go shopping, go to the town, don't go too far." ”

Esther shook her head, she also wanted to go back to her room later and write a letter to Klein: "I'll probably take a break in the next two days, and I won't run around." ”

Alexander's gaze turned to Aaron: "Did you say your own business?" ”

"Yes, now that I've digested the potion, I've also asked my teacher to be promoted to 'Doom Mage', and I don't know if she'll agree...... After that, it's the same old thing, gathering materials, preparing for the ceremony, and waiting for the right time. Aaron stretched, his face full of anticipation.

"It should be going well." Esther smiled and said, "Trust me, you'll have good luck." ”

Aaron looked at her smile and looked very serious: "I believe it." ”

Thoma suddenly interjected: "But judging from the name of the sequence, it should be bad luck to play, right?" ”

"You don't speak, no one treats you as a mute!"

——

Late at night, several people went back to their respective rooms to rest.

Esther was still in a single room, sitting in the only easy chair in the room, her fingers playing with the silver Night Badge.

If you carefully explore the lines like this, there are a few lines on the coat of arms that are similar to the background of the Night Kingdom crest, which is why Esther suddenly remembered and turned this thing out.

She always felt that the goddess of the night knew many things, but she had never prayed to her. Especially after leaving Tingen, Esther deliberately kept her distance from the night watchmen who belonged to the Church of the Night, and she didn't know why, but she subconsciously resisted returning to Chanismen.

The crimson moonlight poured through the window, illuminating most of the room, and Esther didn't light a candle, she had a whim before going to bed to see if she could use the emblem to contact the god.

This is Intis, not Rune, and even the Church of the Night can't go over the mountains to arrest people, and if he communicates with the Goddess of the Night here, he doesn't have the local manpower to mobilize...... No, what if this goddess wants to mobilize the extraordinary at the angelic level? That's dangerous.

But the Goddess of the Night has never shown any ill will, and has even been willing to help her, including the act of leaving this badge, and she is very determined to show favor to me, who is also a "time-traveler...... Esther recalled her experience in Tingen and turned the night emblem back and forth.

Esther struggled for a long time, but finally tucked the badge under her pillow, she always had to try, and for the time being, she couldn't find a way to get rid of "Zoya" completely, and it would be nice to learn more from the goddess.

Like Amun himself, the Goddess of the Night seems to know "Zoya", and it is tens of thousands of times safer to ask him for more information than to face Amon directly.

Within a few minutes, Esther's breathing, which had been suppressed by a slight nervousness, calmed down, and her consciousness sank into darkness.

After such a long time, she ushered in a dream for the first time in a long time.

And just as Esther thought, the scene around her was hazy and dim, like a faded oil painting. Esther couldn't make out what it was, at least not any of the streets she remembered, and the style of the houses was more austere and rugged, out of touch with the Black Iron Age of the current era.

Only the mild red Full Moon overhead is clearer.

Esther looked up at it, deeply feeling that the moon was very different from the real world, which made her feel familiar and reassured. More importantly, it was surrounded by a bright and gentle ball of light, emitting a humming sound calling for Esther.

The ball of light is like a wandering star, connecting Esther and the moon, providing a channel for communication between the two parties.

Instead of knowing nothing at the beginning, Esther now knew that the orb of light contained the same "offspring" as the one in her hair, and that the badge was not powerful enough to sustain a stable dream, so the Goddess of the Night could only appear through a more ethereal symbol.

Since she was in demand, Esther greeted first: "Good evening, respected goddess of the night." ”

Her attitude, which was much more awe-inspiring than the last time, seemed to amuse the other party, and the voice from the moon had a little smile in it: "Good evening, Esther, you seem to have gotten used to your current life." ”

When the voice on the moon came, a circle of ripples appeared around Esther, swinging across the entire dream, and it seemed that this kind of communication would not last long, and the dream could end at any time.

Esther was stunned, but did not open her mouth to explore the deeper meaning of this sentence, but took the time to ask the question that she had already thought of: "I have something to ask you, there is a past about 'Zoya', you can choose to tell me what I can know, I know that you may not be able to tell me the whole truth." ”

As if sensing what Esther was worried about, Moon replied very quickly: "Of course, you can ask." ”

"My inability to be remembered, to have long-term friendships with people, seems to have something to do with the abilities of the 'Trojan Horse of Destiny' in the second sequence of 'The Thief', and you warned me to watch out for that ...... Angel, so I wonder if my current situation has something to do with Him? ”

Esther said this long list of words, as much as possible to inform the other party that she had a lot of relevant information, hoping to get clearer instructions or answers.

The red moon shook slightly, and the gentle crimson moonlight fell on Esther's shoulder, as if to soothe her: "Yes, I have limited information, but according to my speculation, he did steal something that once belonged to 'Zoya'. This kind of thing is more of a conceptual connection than a physical object. ”

Instead of taking the time to digest the information, Esther quickly jumped to the next question: "Do you know why Amon is after 'Zoya'?" ”

"Because He wants to transcend the limitations of the sequence and gain greater power, there are other high-ranking people behind Him who support His choice. You need to be careful, for they are likely to exert too strong an influence on you and shake your present state. ”

It is difficult for Esther not to think of the "fantasy angel" who is also the creator, but instead of checking the speculation in her heart, she further asks: "Does this transcendent limit refer to the master of the spirit world?" ”

"Yes." This time, the cold female voice replied very succinctly, and Esther immediately realized that the other party could not reveal too much about this aspect to her.

The ripples of the dream were getting stronger and stronger, and there was a possibility of breaking almost at any moment, so Esther had to speed up her speech as fast as she could: "Is it dangerous if I want to continue to be promoted in the sequence of 'thieves'?" Is there a way for me to switch paths and return to the 'fate' path that should belong to Zoya? ”

"At the very least, you need to be promoted to a demigod, which is Sequence Four, and then consider this possibility. If you're lucky, you won't need my reminder then, and fate will give you the answer. But it's also extremely dangerous for you, and you need to measure it yourself. ”

The dream begins to disintegrate, blending into the darkness.

Esther didn't know how to prolong the conversation, so she struggled to get to the last question in her mind, something she had been worrying about for a long time: "I know 'Zoya' seems to be with me all the time, is there any way to get me out of this state completely?" Is that danger a threat from Him? ”

However, the goddess of the night did not give her an answer, and the voice dissipated with the red moon:

"Goodbye, Esther, I hope I'll get a chance to see you next time."

Consciousness fell and floated up, and Esther opened her eyes suddenly.

She lay on the bed like that, staring at the ceiling in a daze for a long time, the room had been sprinkled with a thin layer of morning light, and the night passed quietly.

Esther quickly reviewed her conversation with the Goddess of the Night, remembering every single word, including her final goodbye.

His goodbye seemed to have a deeper meaning.

(End of chapter)