Chapter 117: An Unusual Night

Iriush’s antics, whether intentional or not, alleviated the somewhat heavy atmosphere in the spirit spring, and Miss Vilyric, who had introduced the previous topic, couldn’t help but sigh in relief.

It turns out the relationship between the Puppeteer Clan and that “Father” was such; no wonder everyone was reluctant to mention him.

Before being abandoned, that “Father” was likely the only trustworthy and reliable figure for the newborn and naive puppets, their relationship akin to that of Miss Vilyric with Little Dragon Daughter and Snow Wing.

One can only imagine the immense psychological trauma that must have inflicted upon them. Though it is said that puppets lack souls, from this brief experience, Vilyric could already confirm that each puppet indeed possesses a rich emotional life.

The core of the mind is truly magical; the one who created such things and the puppets piqued Vilyric’s interest even more.

Unfortunately, in such a scene, it was not appropriate to ask for the other party’s name. Perhaps the puppets themselves were also unaware of these things; otherwise, Iwen wouldn’t be aimlessly searching everywhere.

But one thing can be certain.

From what Ini’s words suggested, it wasn’t hard to deduce that the birthplace of the Puppeteer Clan was right here in the Mountains of Ten Thousand Demons. It is said that Iwen had been searching for that “Father” under the guise of traveling in this paradise of magical beasts, implying she must have confidence that there were some clues related to him here.

Could this “Father” of the Puppeteer Clan be one of the players who crossed over in that notebook exploring the “Phantasmagoria”…

Currently, Vilyric couldn’t ascertain that.

Even if it weren’t the case, she certainly wanted to meet this guy. However, if Iwen had been searching for so long without finding him, he must have either hidden deep in some mountain forest, left the place, or perhaps even passed away. It was a bit unrealistic to think she might meet him right after arriving here.

After comfortably soaking in the spirit spring for a long time, fully enjoying the nourishment of magic and heat, everyone casually chatted about lighter topics. Then, Ini led them to their resting quarters.

After days of travel, even in the territory of the mountain wolves, they had only slept in caves. Experiencing well-decorated bedrooms and soft beds was naturally wonderful for Vilyric and her group.

Although the magic contained in the spirit spring had little effect on Vilyric, after that cozy soak, even as a priestess of the divine race, she couldn’t help but feel a bit drowsy. Tilysha, with the weakest physical constitution, was especially exhausted, yawning all along the forest path.

The rooms arranged by the puppets, while not lavish, could be described as “meticulously crafted” because they were nestled in the forest and had thoughtfully taken care of keeping mosquitoes at bay.

Given such attentive hospitality, everyone naturally harbored no complaints, quickly bid farewell to Ini, and went to sleep.

…..

…..

…..

In the middle of the night, in the room where Vilyric was staying.

Curled up in the blanket, the originally peacefully sleeping black-haired girl suddenly furrowed her brow.

Soon, she opened her eyes, sat up in bed, and a hint of confusion and vigilance flashed across her exquisite face.

“What is this strange feeling… what’s going on?”

The girl’s silver-blue eyes scanned the dimly dark room. She didn’t turn on the special magical lamp made by the Puppeteer Clan; instead, she pondered for a moment and then lightly lifted the warm blanket, gracefully jumped out of bed, and went to the desk in her slippers.

Little Dragon Daughter was not beside her. All rooms only had small single beds, standard singles. Originally, Ini had prepared separate rooms for each of them, but Xiao Guang did not like being alone outside, so since they couldn’t sleep together, she simply returned to her pet space to keep Snow Wing company.

Vilyric instinctively raised her hand but gradually lowered it.

Forget it; there’s no need to disturb Xiao Guang’s rest right away. I can summon her at any time. First, let’s see what’s happening.

The magical energy in the surrounding air felt off.

It was too much, completely exceeding the reasonable fluctuation range, hitting ten times the usual amount, and even still expanding. Everything seemed normal before resting—what happened?

Though she hadn’t turned on the lights, the divine race’s exceptional eyesight enabled Vilyric to clearly recognize everything before her in conditions that were pitch black to ordinary people. Since the situation was unclear, she temporarily wanted to avoid drawing attention.

First, she had to ensure everyone’s safety.

The distance between their rooms wasn’t far; they were practically next to each other. Vilyric first came to Tilysha’s door, who was next door and had the weakest self-preservation ability, and lightly knocked.

……

After waiting for more than ten seconds, the priestess frowned.

No response. Is she sleeping too deeply…?

She could sense that Tilysha’s presence was indeed still in the room, but the oppressive concentration of magic felt like being submerged in thick spirit spring liquid, making it hard to breathe. The weaker individuals should be feeling worse; given Tilysha’s strength, there was no reason she should still be sound asleep.

No, something is definitely wrong.

Feeling a tightening in her chest, Vilyric no longer hesitated. She took out the “Universal Key” from her bag and directly unlocked Tilysha’s door.

Inside was the expected darkness. The arrangement and decor of their rooms were essentially identical, so Vilyric immediately directed her gaze toward the bed. Brown-haired girl was indeed there, eyes closed, breathing evenly.

She lay on her side, covered by blankets except for her head and shoulders, with the hem of her nightgown half-exposed. This outfit wasn’t provided by the Puppeteer Clan; instead, it was something Tilysha carried along in her storage item for changing clothes.

From Vilyric’s perspective, she could see that while Tilysha’s face was not exceptionally beautiful, it was youthful and pleasant, with the corner of her lips twitching slightly as she unconsciously drooled in relaxation, appearing somewhat comical.

She seemed normal enough.

The black-haired girl stepped closer and shook her shoulder.

“Tilysha, wake up. Something feels off.”

“Zzz ~ Zzz ~”

However, the one being touched did not awaken, and her lips continued to emit deep, prolonged breaths indicative of a deep slumber.

“…Tilysha?”

Vilyric frowned again and timidly patted the girl’s smooth, pink face. This action was already somewhat rough, yet Tilysha remained unresponsive.

There was definitely a problem.

By placing her hand on the green-haired girl, Vilyric instinctively activated “Information Detection.”

As a result, the priestess’s knitted brows tightened even more.

“Could it really be…?”

The magical energy inside Tilysha’s body had disappeared.

No, to be precise, some force was continuously extracting her magic outward, keeping Tilysha’s body in a state of severe depletion. A creature accustomed to magic circulation would automatically fall into deep sleep to reduce consumption in a state of distress and weakness upon suddenly losing that magic.

That was why she couldn’t wake up.

In the short term… perhaps it wasn’t much of a problem, but if Tilysha remained in this state for too long, her body would surely face issues—she could even collapse from the dysfunction of magical circulation.

If one were to compare, this situation was somewhat similar to the “Magi-Rampage Syndrome” Vilyric once treated in Demon Town, just reversed.

   

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