Chapter 599 450 A Line of White Deer Ascends to the Sky

Despite the velvety night of winter that had covered the forest, the banquet hall was illuminated with dazzling brightness and color. Dacius did not open his mouth at the sight of such incredible beauty. He was already accustomed to these things, that is, his threshold was high. He sat at an elegant curved table that grew out of the soft floor of the hall, and beside him was the laughing Asrai, telling lyrical stories and singing heartbreakingly beautiful ballads in the beautiful language of music.

The enchanted walls were tall and majestic, with pale branches twisting into spirals and weaving intricate natural patterns, leading to a huge needle-pointed icicle vaulted ceiling. There were wood spirits, and the ice surface shimmered with the golden light of the creatures playing inside.

Each wall was decorated with bundles of branches and garlands, and a pile of dead wood burned in the center of the hall, surrounded by tables and benches made from the roots of the towering trees surrounding the hall.

As the elves gathered to enjoy the food and sing, the hall was filled with warmth and vitality. Perhaps a hundred souls came to rejoice with their companions? Human children shuttled through the hall, carrying plates of meat, fruit and a jug of wine. Each of them wore a simple light green coat with a white stag embroidered on it.

Dakwus seemed to realize something after seeing these children, but it seemed to have nothing to do with him. He was not a saint. If you want to talk about saints, it is Elsa's business. The problem is that Elsa didn't say anything.

"Moon Spring Forest" Agviron is a very unique place. Magic is filled in every corner here, even in the body of every creature. The forest spirits and Asrai coexist harmoniously. Once the moment of threat and chaos comes, they will work hand in hand to make the villains who dare to invade their sacred home die in pain and wail.

In addition, the Grismeri River is full of river fairies, and they make ghostly sounds in the water and waterfalls. It is a land of spellcasters and magic, where everyday events would be considered miraculous in other corners of the forest. It is also the only realm in Athel Loren where many of the traditions of Ulthuan are preserved and where detailed historical records are kept.

As a result, the asrai of Moonspring consider themselves superior to their kind, an attitude that does not please either the others or the river faeries of the realm. Indeed, the Grismori River has a unique way of communicating that makes it possible to tolerate conversation with them. In contrast, the great eagles of the Grey Mountains rejoice in their close friendship with the Moonsprings, for the asrai can no longer speak the ancient language anywhere else in Athel Loren.

The great eagles have their own language, colloquially known as "English," not... English is simply... compared to the Eagle Language, a complex rhythm in a simple whistle. Learning the Eagle Language requires a legacy, and not every elf can communicate with the great eagles. The Cloud Walker family of Lauren Loren preserved the Eagle Language heritage, which is why Talos could call the giant eagle for help at the critical moment. Similarly, the Asrai of Moon Spring Forest maintained the tradition of Ulthuan, and they also knew a little bit of Eagle Language.

Of course... some giant eagles can speak the languages ​​of other races, but they don't speak... because they are proud and think it is unnecessary to do so.

So... the assault ship is more cost-effective. The sky-slashing ship driven by the giant eagle... where can there be so many giant eagles willing to let the elves ride.

The team did not go south along Alan Lock to the Winter Dome, but came to Agravelon next to Alan Lock. It may be due to customs and other reasons that Ms. Liv did not suffer the embarrassment and vigilance in the past, and the team was welcomed to a certain extent.

Now is the time of winter and spring. Winter is a sad period for Athel Loren. The forest sleeps in a long darkness before the joy of spring comes, but even in this dark period, there is life and joy. For this reason, the Asrai of Moon Spring Forest held a winter feast to celebrate life in death and welcome the arrival of spring.

The scent of new blooms was welcome if discordant, and the sense of kinship and love shared among Tyrandor Duskstar's kin was infectious, though Dakwus knew he was not truly participating in the celebration. Perhaps it was this detachment that allowed him to better see the tensions lurking behind the revelers' happy faces, to sense the underlying wariness of the Asrai.

Even in such an apparently informal setting, though, Dakwus saw a hierarchy, perhaps a reminder of Ulthuan tradition? Tyrandor and his family sat on a pale wooden dais at the end of the hall, with Liv and the Dusk sisters below, and behind them stood the Eternal Guard, a neighboring band. He and Drusara sat opposite Ariel's Handmaidens with Malanul and Alatar.

"A bit boring." Maranul muttered to himself, then picked up the averring fruit and started to chew it. The air was filled with a sweet and bitter aroma. After swallowing the fruit, he frowned and said, "Are we going to chew this fruit every day?"

"What else? They have some kind of agreement with the forest. This kind of prey can't be hunted, that kind of prey can't be hunted, and we have to leave the meat we brought to the cold lizards." Dakuus responded a little boredly, leaning on his chin and watching the Asrai gracefully walking around the table and dancing slowly by the fire pit. He could see that the Asrai were very respectful to the painted war dancers, but he could also see that the Asrai felt uncomfortable with the approach of the war dancers, as if there was some taboo he didn't know about.

A shadow-dancer-like being is leaping and tumbling on the high arches of the hall, moving as if unconstrained by gravity.

"It's so gorgeous. The wonderful acrobatics and somersaults dazzled me. The most elegant human acrobats in Ulbrik performed moves like pregnant sows, like rolling in a pig pen."

Darkus trembled after hearing Alatar's sharp remarks. He suppressed the desire to laugh and reached for the wine glass, only to find that it was empty. He was about to look for more when he heard a small voice coming from beside him.

"Sir, would you like more water or fruit?"

Darkus turned his head and saw a page boy in green uniform standing behind him, holding a pot of water in one hand and a plate of fruit in the other. He nodded, picked up the wine glass and asked the waiter to pour the wine. After the waiter moved, he noticed the boy's rosy and healthy face.

"Sir, do you have any other requests?"

"No, thank you, are you a human?" Darkus' hand that wasn't holding the wine glass grabbed the boy's clothes. When the boy was turned around by him, he saw more, a round face and a dark face. skin and human ears.

"Are you human?!" Darkus confirmed again.

"Sir? Can I...can I go? Your Majesty?" The boy said, with a trace of doubt flashing in his eyes.

"Before you answer my question, no, what's your name, boy?" Darkus had heard of this before, but now that he had bumped into the real owner, he had to ask carefully.

"my name?"

"Yeah, what do they call you?"

"Aidan, my lord."

"A good Bretonnian name. Tell me, Aidan, why are you here?"

"I'm here for the Winter Feast."

"No, no, no, I mean in Athel Loren, why are you here?"

"I've always been here." Aidan responded with a confused look on his face. He was baffled by the words of the elf in front of him.

"How long have you been here?" Darkus asked the most curious part of his heart.

"I don't know, my lord, it's always...?"

"Very well, Aidan, very well, tell me which king sits on the throne of Bretonnia?"

"King? Let me see... I think his name was Louis? I think they called him the Fearless."

Darkus leaned back and let go of the boy's coat. He felt something really strange.

Louis was the son of Gilles. After he was recognized as the ruler of Bretonnia, he immediately set out to find the miracle of the Lake Goddess. He also became the first adventure knight in Bretonnia. After completing many heroic deeds, he received the blessing of the Lady of the Lake, and that was when he received the title of Fearless. But these are not important. What is important is that it happened in 996-1001 of the Imperial Calendar. It has been a thousand years ago.

"If I remember correctly, this Louis the Fearless was a person from thousands of years ago? The king of Bretonnia? How is this possible? This little monkey is actually bigger than me? Could it be..." Maranur Turn your head at the end to look for the most peculiar person in the group.

"He is not, dear. The flow of time here is different from the outside, and it is also different from the forest we have been in before." Alatar stopped Maranur's move and explained patiently.

Athel Loren is different from Lauren Loren. Asanok, who lives in Lauren Loren, is a real-life elf who has come through the War of Revenge. As for Athel Loren, Darkus remembered that Liv once told him that he lived for more than seven hundred years? He also asked the Twilight sisters, and the twins told him that they lived for more than three hundred years.

This is completely nonsense in Darkus' view. It is known that Liv is the aunt of the Twilight sisters and has taken care of them since they became twins. The Twilight sisters killed the dwarf general who tried to invade Athel Loren in 1325 of the Imperial Calendar. This incident was recorded in the chronology. It is the winter of 2028 in the imperial calendar, and this is completely inconsistent with everything.

"Really? It seems like just yesterday, I don't remember much, my mother told me this story." The boy's eyes were filled with confusion.

"Where is your mother? Where did you come from?"

"I don't remember. I'm from Athel Loren, my lord."

"But you're not an elf, you're human, you must have come from somewhere."

"I don't know, my lord, I've always been here."

"So do you have a last name?"

"Garamon, my lord, Aidan Garamon."

After hearing the surname Garamon, Darkus's face changed. If what the boy said before was true, then this boy might be... the ancestor of Bretonnia's legendary Holy Grail Knight Karad Garamon. If the timeline is normal, Kalad five hundred years later will come to Athel Loren after becoming an exploration knight, and maybe he will meet Aidan Garamon. This...

Darkus looked closely at the boy named Aidan, and he could see a ghostly glow emanating from the boy's skin, a timeless quality that spoke of a moment frozen in time.

The boy's eyes are different colors, one blue and one green, which indicates that he has second sight and has the ticket to become a spell caster. These children with magical talents will be taken away by the prophetesses in childhood.

Although it was a great honor for the child to be chosen, the family mourned the loss of their son and daughter, even though it was believed that the child would go to a better place to serve the Lady of the Lake. Many years later, a handful of girls would return to Bretonnia as prophetesses, but the fate of the boys was... unknown. Of course, it can't be said that they know nothing, there are still some sons of Bretonnia.

The boys lived in the forests of Athel Loren, forever and ever...

"Sir, are you feeling unwell?"

"No... no, I'm fine, Aidan, you have nothing to do here, just do what you have to do."

Aidan nodded, bowed to Darkus, and returned to the hall to continue his duties.

Darkus watched Aidan leave and kept thinking. There was no doubt that the lives of most children in Bretonnia were miserable, painful and impoverished, but the thought of a child being denied his natural age made him feel… but who could say whether that life was good or bad?

Liv, who was sitting not far from Darkus, was watching everything happening on the opposite side while smiling at Aslay whom she knew, enjoying the warmth she felt here now. Is this what home feels like? She had felt like an outsider her entire life, and now she felt accepted and welcomed, but she didn't think it was real, and Talos' words had touched her after all.

The Shadow Dancer performs incredible acrobatics, her nearly completely exposed body jumping and spinning in the air while the swords dance around her body. The blade swept across like a silver thread, and the waving blade kept making the sound of cutting the air.

Darkus watched quietly. He felt that the martial arts performed by the shadow dancers were incredible from a certain perspective and were better than Lauren Loren's counterparts. He has seen and participated in many performances, but the performance of the Shadow Dancer in front of him was undoubtedly spectacular. This may be the reason why this is the base camp of Loik's faith. Moreover, this shadow dancer is not yet a member of the neighboring gang of Kedas in the Forest of Deceivers, and belongs to a relatively peripheral group, even though Moon Spring Grove is already very close to the Forest of Deceivers.

Delina stood up after drinking a glass of wine, nodded to Cradin, and prepared to join the shadow dancers. However, when her feet took a step, she stopped and looked at the arch of the hall.

Darkus turned his head and looked at the arch. When he looked at the visitor, the visitor was also looking at him. He could feel the alert and appraising eyes behind the mask of the visitor. He raised the wine glass on the table to greet the visitor. Then drink it all in one gulp.

"Heglia? Welcome! Where is your father? Is he preparing for the ceremony? I haven't seen him for a long time." After seeing the visitor, Tyrandor stood up and asked in a friendly tone.

"Yes, Uncle Tyrandor. My father is preparing the rites, the last rites! I am here for him this time."

Following Hegeria's finger pointing, the elves in the hall focused their attention on Darkus, which made him a little confused. Before he had time to do or say anything, the elves looked at him again. Be attracted.

After seeing the eyes gathered again, Heglia stopped applauding. She turned her head and nodded to her companions behind her, and then nodded to the shadow dancer standing in the center of the hall. When she received a response from the shadow dancer , she crouched down, the sword tilted upward behind her body. Then, she stood up, and every movement she made was smooth and elegant. She strode forward, ignoring Aslay who greeted her, and went straight to the empty space in front of Darkus.

Darkus already knew who Hegaria was, Phil Daric, the woodland lord of the Deceiver's Wood and Loic's chosen one. After getting closer, he could feel more emotions from Heglia's almond-shaped eyes, hostility, wariness, hesitation, anxiety, confusion, etc., but he was still not ready to do anything, he just Watch quietly.

The flames in the center of the hall suddenly erupted, reflecting the blazing flames.

Hegaria raised her arms high, holding both swords in her hands. The taut muscles on her chest rippled with the tattoos. Her companions and the shadow dancers who joined them jumped and spun in the flickering flames, shouting war and death. song.

"Them?" Cradin asked softly in Delina's ear as she sat down again.

"It seems to be the Dance of the Dragon?" Delina responded with an uncertain tone.

Hegaria stood in front of the blazing flames. Her mask looked savage and wild in the flames. Then she let out a heart-rending cry. The cry echoed in the hall, touching the most primitive heart of every elf. , with a strong desire.

The Dance of the Dragons occurs very rarely, and only a few of Loik's Chosen can perform such a dangerous and complex dance.

Tyrandor raised his wine glass, trying to block the complicated look on his face. He used his peripheral vision to look at Darkus, who was sitting there admiring it, and at Druch, who only appeared in the records. As Lord of the Woodlands, he knew what Hegaria was performing, the Dance of the Dragons.

The Dance of the Dragon appears very rarely, and only a few Loik voters can perform such a dangerous and complex dance. Tyrandor also knew what the Dance of the Dragon contained, but what he didn't expect was... Then he sighed and drank the wine in the wine glass. He had a very strange premonition that Athel Loren seemed to be changing.

Hegeria moved after howling, and then moved after the fire returned to its natural state. There was silence in the hall, and the dance of the dragons began.

Darkus looked at the Loic dancers surrounding the fire. He didn't know what was happening, but he was content to watch the scene in front of him. The paint on the dancers blurs with the speed of their movements, colors weaving into patterns as they dance in ferocious, savage ways. As the rhythm of the dance increased, a song of loss, pain and joy spread from the dancers in the center of the hall.

The dancers become wilder, their passion more intense, their joy more extreme, more sinister. They leaped, cartwheeled, and somersaulted through the flames, gathering together like a whirlpool, then falling apart as Hegaria landed in the center of the flames.

The dancers jumped towards Heglia with joy, but with a cry, she flew over the heads of the dancers, tumbled and landed on the ground opposite them. She leapt again as the dancers tumbled, her weapon cutting the air as she passed between them. She laughed maniacally, jumped and spun, and easily dodged the flying swords and spears.

The breeze of the dancing weapons blew through Darkos' hair, and the dance became more and more wild. The hall was filled with deafening drums, beating heavily with his rising heartbeat, and he could not tell whether he was really He heard rhythmic music, or whether the rhythm echoed deep in his soul. Although there was no stage effect here, it was very stage effect.

The dancers, almost too fast to be captured, detached themselves from the center of the hall, spun and twisted in the air, and landed among the stunned onlookers. Their blades flashed faster and faster, spears and swords whirling in silver light, sending the air into wild motion.

The wind filled the hall, rising from a gentle breeze, to a sighing breeze, and finally to a howling gale. The leaves rotated from the ground and fluttered in the hall under the wind. After a while, the air was filled with gold and red.

Screaming guard dancers spin flickering blades and let tornadoes of leaves float with their movements. Hegria whirled like a dervish in the gathering spiral of flying leaves, her blade carving circular spiral patterns in the leaves as she jumped from table to table. The tornado of leaves moved slowly, its course slanting, until each leaf passed through the roaring flames in the center of the hall. Each leaf burst into flames, spinning in the air and burning like fireflies.

Thousands of burning leaves swirled as the pillars of fire around which the dancers swirled and shaped their swords and spears into some new, majestic shape. The dance speaks to the spirits present on some deep and visceral level, their bodies responding with intense ecstasy, their souls soaring with the magic they see.

Slowly at first, but faster and faster as the shape takes shape, the sinuous shape of a massive beast emerges from the burning leaves. A huge body of light takes shape, then a long tail and huge wings of fire emerge from the dancers' creation. Finally, the blazing leaves formed a huge dragon head with a wide and powerful jaw.

A huge fire dragon twists and turns in the air, leaping dancers supporting it with deadly dance and flashing blades. It swooped down, its roar of fire bringing a powerful sound.

A lonely figure stood in front of the power and majesty of the fire dragon. Heglia stood motionless, holding both swords in front of her, laughing wildly. The dragon rushed towards her, opened its flaming maw and swallowed her whole. The visual impact was so exquisite that the elves present had to resist the urge to draw their swords and fight the monster. She jumped out of the way of the swooping dragon, then somersaulted onto the dragon's neck and slashed with her weapon.

Guided by the dancers, the dragon attacked Heglia again and again, but each time it could only bite into thin air. Heglia expertly dodged its attacks and turned around to fight back each time. .

The confrontation continued, with the dragon biting and Hegolia rolling and leaping around it.

Darkus marveled at the incredible scenery in front of him and Hegolia's incredible skills. Maybe Hegolia can really kill a dragon? He looked around, and he could feel every elf present feeling wildness deep within, stirring in the primal heart. When he turned his head, he saw two animals appearing at his feet

"Weasel?" Darkus tilted his head back and looked at the weasel who was standing upright and looking at him with a confused expression, sniffing something. For a moment, he was really worried that the two Wong Tai Sins would open their mouths and ask him something.

In the center of the hall, Heglia completed the final blow. In an instant, the Fire Leaf Dragon fell from the sky, and its powerful figure disappeared as the dancers suddenly stopped dancing.

There was no cheers or applause. The elves present once again turned their attention to Darkus, who was staring at the two weasels. Feeling that he was being watched, he stopped and was about to touch the weasel's hand. He raised his head and saw Heglia's eyes close at hand, with madness and anxiety in them.

After looking at each other for a long time, Heglia took a step back and gestured to the boy not far away. She picked up the jug and poured the wine into Darkus's glass. After everything was done, she greeted Darkus.

"Mormo and Mauro like you, please drink this cup."

"It's very exciting, very exciting. But... maybe you don't know, I have many titles, one of which is Dragon Slayer, and I have faced many dragons not long ago, and my relationship with them is very friendly, yes, them."

The wine was still the same as before, but it was not the same as before. Dacus knew that there must have been some special ceremony or sacrifice just now, and this cup of wine should be no longer ordinary under the blessing of the ceremony. Thinking of this, he shrugged and raised the wine glass to his lips. However, when he was about to drink the liquid in a big gulp, he gave a speech praising himself, and then he raised the wine glass to signal the elves present.

Amid the cheers of his companions, Dacus drank the liquid, and the sweet honey aroma of the wine filled his senses.

It is more accurate to say that Asrai drinks wine as a drink, a honey-flavored elf wine fermented from the averring fruit, a unique and powerful drink. For elves, this wine is like the beer of dwarves, with other effects. Within a few hours after drinking, you can get a bonus of magic perception, and you will feel your soul rising from your body, which is similar to the effect of soul projection spell.

Of course, this is for elves. If humans drink it, the soul is more than just rising. It can even leave the body directly, and if it does not return to the body before the effect disappears, then the human will not die, but become a plant that is vegetarian for the ogre, and the soul will lose contact with the body forever.

Just as Daxus judged, the wine was wrong, and its warm nectar taste was unlike anything he had ever drunk before. After he put the wine glass on the table, his world burst into golden light. Light and color filled his senses, and when the sky changed, it was as if the branches were on fire. The brilliant light was diffused, and clouds of red, green and jade smoke rose. The flame in the center emitted a bright blue. At this moment, he could see the golden life line saturating every object around him.

Daxus's normal vision began to weaken until he could not see anything worldly. When all he saw was the golden life line, touching and connecting everything in the hall, and the colors of movement and emotion appeared in the aura around him, he smiled. The colors swirled and swirled, blending together to form a vague essence of life. He could see the answers to everything, all encapsulated in color, but he could not describe this color, which was more indescribable than colorful black.

As the wine flowed through Dacius's senses, he smiled dreamily and chuckled drunkenly, waving his hands in front of him and laughing at the colors around him as his hands moved. He could see no flesh or bones, only the pulsating yellow light of life roaring around his body. Swirls of sparks and light followed him, and embers fell around him, spinning in a golden web.

Dacius could not hear the noise, he felt like he had fallen into a tunnel, spinning and tumbling in a vortex of colorful colors. The increasingly faint sound of the fire echoed in his mind, as if it came from a distant corridor. When it was over, his vision returned to normal and he found himself in the forest. He looked at the pond in front of him for a moment and chose not to stir the water, but turned to look at the forest in the distance.

The trees were like pillars of fire, and the leaves were like bright spots in the dark night. The sap flowed through the trees like a molten river, flowing into the ground and spreading through the forest, forming a network that connected everything.

Everything is connected by life, and this realization is so profound and clear that it makes Dacus look surprised.

All life is one, everything is a circle.

Dacus's consciousness is no longer at the pond. He moves, he soars above Athel Loren, he is intoxicated by his newfound freedom, his spirit is no longer bound to his body. He can see and hear the heartbeat of the world, full of countless fertility, full of vitality everywhere...

Of course, it is not all vitality. Deep in the forest, Dacus saw pain, hot, burning, deadly, his golden flame through the trees, going to pain.

The light of life of an elf is weak and flickering, stumbling from one tree to another, and the flame of despair burns in bright red waves. As a voice sounded in front of Dacus, he cast his eyes to the source of the sound and found that he was back at the pond.

A white deer appeared in front of Dacus, its body majestic and strong, covered with snow-white hair, like a crown of a snowy feast. Its muscles were thriving, exuding a majestic aura, as if it was a true king of the forest. Its appearance made the surrounding air seem solemn.

While Dacus was admiring the beauty of the white deer, he could also feel the confusion in the white deer's eyes? It seemed that the white deer was stunned after seeing him? It seemed that it saw something extraordinary, or foresaw something that had a way out from before? He looked at the confused white deer with the same confused expression, staring at each other for a while. When he was about to raise his hand to greet the white deer, he woke up...

"What did you see?"

"You are a little..." Dacus stretched out his finger and pressed against Heglia's mask. He didn't like this feeling. Who knew what was behind the mask? Even if he knew, he still didn't like this feeling. After he pushed the mask away, he continued, "White deer! Two orioles sing in the green willows, and a line of white deer fly into the blue sky."

"It appeared in my sight, it was nearly two meters and a half tall, of course, not counting its gleaming ivory crown antlers, and it turned a pair of shining eyes with amber spots." After saying a cliché that no one cared about, Dacus continued his speech.

When Dacus was halfway through his words, all the Asrai present, regardless of their status or strength, stood up from their chairs, with shock on their faces and exclamations.

"What? What do you mean by white deer? Or what is the meaning?" Dacus was not shocked. He was shocked for nothing. He didn't understand the ins and outs of it. However, when he asked the question, he suddenly thought of something, such as the stag that Arthur saw several times in Wild Whore 2? (End of this chapter)