Velma was one of the most beloved workers inside the Inn, not just because she loved to listen to every piece of gossip anyone could share, but because she herself was so helpful and loving that none could resist her charm! In fact, if it weren’t for Gerard’s intervention, her charm might have caused her to start a harem with thousands of members!

Besides that, she was the founder of the Nyxhearts, the head of the Midnight Newsroom, the hidden writer behind a popular gossip column though hardly anyone knew about that because she wrote with a pseudonym.

She was also one the original few workers who had the closest relationship with the Innkeeper, and a kind of a spiritual mentor for countless workers in the subsequent generations. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Everyone knew that she had been sent on an external mission by the Innkeeper, which was an honor reserved for the very most trusted confidants of the Innkeeper. The fact that she was returning now, and as a part of a delegation that wished to seek an audience with the Innkeeper, excited all workers.

If the workers were excited because of Velma, then the guests were excited because of the origin of the delegation. It was led by the Celestial race!

In the universe at large, there were many well respected races. The Sage races had such an honor, but they were powerful and mysterious, as well as fearsome. They did not usually mix with the general public, and stayed out of sight of the common folk, which was perhaps for the best.

Regardless, among the races that were more well known across the universe, as well as respected and admired, Celestial ranked near the top, if they weren’t at the very top. While there were certainly races that were more famous, such as the Dragons, the Celestials had the most respect.

That was because the Celestials acted befitting the powerful and noble. They had helped countless races rise from the ashes, and they were the de facto leaders of the Humanoid Alliances - though of course, they called it the Celestials Alliance.

Regardless, it was well known that the Innkeeper seemed to have a positive relationship with the Humanoid Alliance, or at least humans, considering how he employed mostly humans. However, considering the fact that the Innkeeper seemed to have an alliance with the Henali and not the alliance, the extent of their friendliness had come into doubt.

Thus, the arrival of the Celestial race sparked all kinds of speculations about what was about to happen. More importantly, many who were waiting for a new exit from the Midnight Inn finally saw a hint of hope.

The delegation, while carrying an air of grandiosity, was not ostentatious or overly gaudy in any way. It consisted of six Celestial Immortals and Velma, all of whom carried a special letter. Their task was to deliver the letter to the Innkeeper, and that was it.

As soon as the delegation settled into their accommodations, Velma prepared to go and arrange a meeting for them, but before she could even leave, one of the workers delivered a message from the Innkeeper.

The letter was fairly simple. It explained that the Innkeeper was currently occupied, and would not be free for a short time. A meeting had been scheduled for them in eight months for the handing over of the letter.

Eight months was not a long time for them. In fact, during normal times, a meeting in eight months might even be considered somewhat rushed. Yet ever since the Dream realm revealed its sinister design, things kept happening at a rapid pace. Eight months could mean many things might happen during that time.

Yet the Celestials weren’t displeased. It was understood that some things could not be rushed. Besides, eight months in the Midnight realm and eight months in the Artica realm from which they came were two entirely different timelines, so they felt no pressure at all.

Seeing that she wasn’t being blamed for the delay, Velma returned to her lively self. After so long, she finally had some time to enjoy herself, and catch up with everyone about what had happened.

Considering that many workers and guests were still lost inside the Dream realm, the mood inside the Inn for the past ten years had been somewhat complex. Anyone even remotely close to Anita or Almira, especially, felt incredibly complex.

When she disappeared she was a baby, and now some of the most important, formative years of her life had been spent in some unknown realm. No one knew whether she was with her father or if she was alone, and no one knew what she had experienced during this time. The only redeeming factor was that the flow of time inside the Dream realm was that of the average Mature realm, meaning that time flowed about 9 times slower than the Midnight Realm.

On the bright side, the protective measures Anita and Lex had left on her were still intact so they at least knew she was safe. That was how everyone consoled themselves. Or, well, most people.

Lex didn’t bother wasting his time trying to make himself feel better - no he had wholeheartedly focused on the Masterless technique so that he could master it faster.

Well, there had finally been some good news on that front. In the eighth year since he began receiving the technique, Lex finally acquired the entire technique.

However, now that all the information regarding it had been transferred, he had to comprehend it. While the thirteen statues all around Lex expected that the comprehension would take far longer than receiving the technique, reality proved otherwise.

In just two years Lex had made tremendous progress. The reason he had delayed Velma’s meeting by eight months was because he fully expected that, by then, he’d finally have mastered the technique!

What’s more important was that as Lex’s understanding of the technique grew, his expression within the Temple of Fasting changed somewhat. This was not what he had been expecting that the Masterless technique was far. If Nuwa had made the Masterless technique with this express purpose in mind, then he needed to reevaluate what he knew about the universe, and even humanity as a whole.

After all, the sole purpose of the Masterless technique was to...