Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 744 - 687: The Dark Star
Kristo felt that his brother, Alcalon, had been acting very strange lately; he frequently opened the portal between Sahazaan and the City of Wandering unilaterally, without moving, just standing quietly in the profound cavern on the other side, staring this way. Every time he thought of greeting him or asking about his intentions, Alcalon would start to tremble and emit a bizarre laugh for no apparent reason. Moreover, the laughter grew louder, as if it intended to shatter the robust physique of the Black Dragon.
"Is Lyle there? He... huh... does he have any free time lately?"
"Probably not, he’s busy with academic gatherings in Andrey." Kristo directed his brother to the person he was looking for, hoping the frantic war-scarred eldest son would head straight to Lyle’s troubles, thereby reducing the frequency of disturbances to himself.
"Ah, never mind then. Let him be busy. I can wait. Hahaha..." Alcalon closed the portal, leaving Kristo in silence. Such incidents had already occurred two or three times; his brother seemed to treat him like some kind of megaphone.
Kristo touched his own back and pulled a dazzling Mana Crystal from Dragon Ridge.
"My back has been hurting lately... These byproducts are a bit troublesome to clear, and there’s absolutely no time to squeeze out..." Sighing, Kristo stepped back through the portal and went to the Dream Forest to continue maintaining the virtual game server. "When exactly is that guy Lyle coming back? He released so many previews, having whetted the Dream Elf’s appetite. That inhuman scoundrel wouldn’t be planning to delay it, would he?"
...
Lyle knocked on the peculiar door of the club, wearing a smile with his eyes narrowed to slits, and greeted the familiar doorkeeper, joyfully slipping into the mushroom house inside the bubble barrier.
This was the headquarters of the Literature Club, and the purpose of Lyle’s visit was simple, revenge.
Upon returning from the chapel, Lyle noticed something off about Raymond. Blessed by the Lich Crown, Plague Doctor Mr. had greatly enhanced his thinking capacity, unraveling the threads and reconstructing the original appearance of the event through all the clues. At last, by some unspeakable means, Lyle personally got hold of that issue of the Andrey News, the one that the Literature Club had collectively hidden from him.
Even with the phantom’s suppression of malice, Lyle’s mood still instantly merged with ill omens. Crumpling his own on-site photograph into a ball, the heart filled with shame and anger being laughed at and publicized turned into the fury of Andrey’s dark new star.
Conveniently, Mr. Dark’s dream performances required some Lich volunteers to take a beating, and Lyle was delighted that the Literature Club had shown such strong enthusiasm. Although he still had no idea who the mastermind behind the candid shots was, Lyle did not care at all.
If he did not know who that scoundrel was, he would just treat the entire Literature Club as his target for revenge. After all, these bastards deserved to die, and Lyle was quite happy to play the serpent that tempted Eve to eat the fruit of evil, smiling as he sent the entire Literature Club into Raymond’s heaven.
"I’m sorry, Plague Doctor, Mr. Dark had to leave the academy for some business, and the Literature Club is now managed by us," the gentleman, the reporter, and the delusional sat on the other side of the table, with the three people of the Literature Club squatting inside the club recently, rejecting all social interaction. Now that the victim had come calling, they secretly prayed that Lyle was still the easy-to-deceive newcomer from before, as Mr. Gentleman offered Lyle a cup of Alianna’s Earl Grey Tea with a smile.
"Mr. Dark isn’t here? That’s fine... I mean, if Mr. Gentleman is in charge, it couldn’t be better." Taking his most familiar Earl Grey tea but without taking a sip, Lyle focused all his thoughts on the three dead men opposite him.
Each party harbored their own ulterior motives, yet maintained a facade of harmony.
Gently tapping the glowing Mithril Crown atop his head, Lyle invoked Andrey’s privilege of "Academic Gatherings Above All Else".
"The situation is this, gentlemen," I am conducting a new experiment that will help the Liches to be further ’alive’, for which I need some positively optimistic volunteers, just like the guests I once invited with flesh camouflage. But this time, due to technical issues, I want to concentrate this group of participants and select a single club with stronger unity."
"So, the Literature Club?" The reporter’s tablecloth moved without wind, and the gaze from behind the holes was like flickering will-o’-the-wisps, "Why us? You know, Plague Doctor, our club is renowned for... being unpredictable. With this kind of advantage, wouldn’t it be difficult to cooperate with your Spirit Summon research..." Years of scamming had given the club members an instinct to dodge risks. Although Lyle appeared extremely normal, the reporter still subconsciously rejected his proposition.
"Academic Gatherings Above All Else" is an attitude, not an enforceable rule, and even if it were a rule, the greatest rule of the Literature Club is "Rules Are Meant to Be Broken".
Lyle maintained his smile, showing no concern for the reporter’s refusal, and pushed aside the Earl Grey Tea of Alianna. He placed both hands on the table and logically, yet passionately, attempted to retain his audience.
"You’re right, but the unpredictability of the Literature Club is exactly why you are the best choice." Lyle began to reveal some superficial details of the experiment, alleviating the concerns of those sly and shrewd Liches. "In fact, I am researching how to make the Liches dream! You should know, you must remember the feeling of roaming in dreams! This time, my friends, like the artistic creators of the Literature Club, we are all dreamers; we will be natural allies, weaving wonderful dreams together. For this, I need to collect a vast array of bizarre and whimsical dreams, I need your wildly imaginative and quirky inspirations and ideas to clash with each other and produce the most dazzling sparks! Isn’t this the original purpose of the Literature Club? I need your unpredictability! My friends! We will make each other’s dreams come true!"
"In all of Andrey, who can create better than the Literature Club, who understands fantasy better than the Literature Club, with love, wine, and songs, isn’t that your most laudable strength? I truly need your help, my good friends."
The delusion seemed to be persuaded, and the virtual projection inside his metallic box-head shone with beautiful radiance, his magnetic voice reciting like a poem.
"How many volunteers do you need, Mr. Plague Doctor."
"All of them!" Lyle stood up, extremely excited, even slightly dancing with joy, "The more samples of dreams, the better! I want everyone from the Literature Club to join my academic gathering, our time together will be most delightful!"
Lyle certainly knew, he was all too aware.
The rascals of the Literature Club had a certain group psychology, similar to ’safety in numbers’, a derivative of the principle that the law does not punish the masses. The more people involved in a bad deed, the lighter the punishment that befalls each individual when it comes, and suffering as a group significantly reduces the embarrassment felt by individuals. Additionally, the Fun Seekers of the Literature Club especially loved dragging their peers into trouble; if a club member was duped or cheated, they found more joy than the deceivers themselves, even if they also suffered.
Through prolonged contact and experiences accumulated by being repeatedly ’schooled’ by the Literature Club, Lyle pulled off an exquisite counterstrike this time.
When Mr. Gentleman slammed his hand down signaling that the Literature Club would definitely respond actively to the call of the academic gathering, Lyle displayed a radiant smile.
This time, he was genuinely happy.
