From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 443 Traitor
“There’s more to this inn than what’s out in the open.” Minsara, who had gone underground with Evil Thought and Leezel, returned.

She took off her iron gauntlets and placed the magic longsword from her back on the table.

"What's down there? Did you find the lock for that key?" Ivy asked.

He was still in the hotel lobby, while Tifflin and the Ironhand Dwarfs had finished setting up their lodgings and were now setting up large pots in the open space outside to cook dinner.

Jahira went to arrange a new sentry duty roster, and Floric also indicated that he would conduct a new round of mobilization for the Flame Fist soldiers. As the priest of Selenne, Isobel returned to the second floor of the inn to look after his ritual altar.

After all, the entire inn is under the protection of the Moon Shield, and the altar and she are both absolutely indispensable.

“We found a secret temple belonging to Serene, hidden in a cave in the basement. But apart from a simple statue, there's only a group of monsters that thrive on the underground river.” Minsara picked up the wine glass in front of Ivy, bringing her prominent nose close to smell it. “You don’t seem worried about someone poisoning your wine? Is it because of your professional knowledge as an alchemist? Even the Drow matriarch, who deals with poisons all day, wouldn’t rashly drink any beverage of unknown origin. You’re very confident in your judgment, aren’t you?”

Minsara was referring, of course, to the scene at the door where Jasila handed Ivy a glass of spiked red wine.

“You’re right, I’m practically immune to all poisons that harm the body.” Ivy nodded, then turned her attention to the situation underground, “Where are Evil Thought and Leezel? Why didn’t they come back with you? Is the space down there big?”

“Our conversation isn’t over yet, DOOM. I don’t like it when you talk about other pretty girls while we’re chatting.” Minsara downed the drink in Ivy’s glass in one gulp, the bottom of the glass making a disgruntled sound as it hit the wooden bar.

Ivy didn't react to this, she just stared at Minsara silently.

“Damn it…” Mingsala cursed under her breath, looking away. “I thought you liked this kind of awkward, girlish style…”

“You know what? That morning when you and Shadowheart returned to the camp together, I doubted my own charm for the first time…” Mingsara frowned as she poured herself a large glass of red wine, still using Ivy’s glass. “Back in Menzoberranzan, men and women flocked around me, groveling at my feet, racking their brains just to win my favor… But you actually chose a naive and awkward follower of Shar…”

"Wow!" Minsara suppressed her anger and looked to the side. The strange noise was made by Karak.

She wore her signature silly grin, perhaps with a hint of schadenfreude.

Of course, that could also be Minsara's own feeling.

Karak leaned on the bar, propping herself up on her elbows, her thumbs pressed together in a lewd gesture: "You're flirting with Ivy! Aren't you?"

Minsala's eyebrows furrowed even more tightly, as if they were about to form a knot: "Are your eyes just for show, like your brain?"

"Please! I've been in Afonas for a full ten years! Do you expect me to fall in love with a devil or a demon?" Karak moved her elbow closer to Minsara, who subtly leaned back slightly, maintaining her elegant demeanor while keeping as far away from Karak as possible.

"So, for reference, tell me some romances from the Underdark?" Karak's enthusiasm didn't wane because of Minsara's resistance; instead, she continued to ask with great interest, "Like your own?"

The exile from Menzoberranzan hardened his face: "When you were just the first spark in your father's eyes, I already had my first love, child."

"Hmm... and then?" Karak ignored Minsara's qualification card.

“She was a Spider Queen priestess, elegant yet cruel.” Minsara was undoubtedly nostalgic; her gaze deepened. Perhaps a part of her first love was now living within her. “I admired her greatly and shared a bed with her for a long time, until the day her death order was given. When the poison took effect, I stayed by her side, whispering comforting words as I watched her life slowly slip away.”

“Oh—no! It’s too dark, far too dark!” The light in Karak’s eyes went out. Undoubtedly, she would have preferred to hear a story of love triumphing over societal norms or instincts—like the worldly love stories mass-produced at Baldur’s Gate, the kind Shadowheart would read.

However, if that kind of thing really happened to Minsara, she wouldn't be at the End of Light Inn.

“But on the bright side, at least Ivy won’t die from the poison of unrequited love.” Karak shrugged and straightened up again.

“Now that your ladies’ chat is over, where is the answer I’m waiting for?” Ivy tapped her fingers lightly on the table, turning the cork that Minsara had pulled out into another wine glass, and poured herself another glass of wine.

“Ivy!” Minsara’s words were interrupted by the wicked thought that burst in all the way. Behind her were Leezel, who had just finished a battle, and Shadowheart, who looked drunk. “You have no idea what we found down there!”

Running made the bright red-haired lady a little thirsty. When she saw the wine glass in front of Ivy, she snatched it without thinking and gulped it down in one go.

“A hidden temple in an underground cave?” Ivy sighed slightly. “Right now, I’m only concerned with whether it can accommodate the adamantite golem, or whether there’s any possibility of expanding in a wider area.”

"Did Minsara tell you?" Evil thought wiped the wine stains from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. "If you're planning to use magic to dig a tunnel, then of course you can. The underground space is no longer limited to the island we're on; it's connected to the eastern mountain wall, and those twisted plants that break through the surface have even penetrated the wooden floor of a building. Leezel and I even found Shadowheart completely drunk there."

“This isn’t being completely drunk!” Yingxin hiccuped. “It’s just a little tipsy!”

“Buildings?” Ivy estimated the distance from the island to the mountainside, then confirmed, “We’re already out of the Moon Shield’s range, right?”

"Hmm." Evil thought shook the empty wine bottle. "The harpist seems to have put up a sign there. I guess that room originally belonged to the inn's owner because the furniture inside is quite luxurious. At least Yingxin slept very comfortably on the cushioned sofa. She didn't wake up even though we made such a commotion downstairs."

“I thought you went to confess to Shar.” Ivy glanced at Shadowheart, whose cheeks were flushed. “Of course!” Shadowheart’s dark green eyes widened. “I promised Lady Shar that I would become her Dark Judge! You’ll help me, won’t you?”

Ivy nodded: "If this is indeed your wish... however, we will travel to the Temple of Shar after you return from the Tower of the Moonrise. That temple holds the secret to Katheric's immortality. Once we break his spell, we must immediately launch a full-scale attack on the Supreme God..."

"Shh—" Yingxin put her finger to her lips as a shushing gesture, but her finger, which smelled of alcohol and a little sweat, was not on her own lips, but on Aiwei's.

“I don’t care about any general offensive plan... because I know you definitely have a way to handle everything.”

After saying that, Yingxin yawned and asked sleepily, "Where is the Mediocre Treasure Chest? I need to get my blanket out... It felt nice to be nestled in Ms. Shar's arms, and that cushioned sofa was very comfortable... Where will you be sleeping tonight?"

“The basement, I need to expand that cave and start repairing the adamantite golem.” Ivy pinched Shadowheart’s cold fingers and moved them away from her nose. “We can go get the things together.”

“Okay… I heard it’s a temple in Serenne… Why does this place smell like the Moon Witch everywhere?” Yingxin was clearly quite drunk, but few people could speak so clearly and logically while intoxicated. “But we’re not too far apart. If you get cold tonight, you can come up to me. That’s how Xie Nian and Leezel got up here…”

Before Yingxin could finish speaking, she started to stagger out, and Ivy had to quickly follow. If she accidentally knocked over the mediocre treasure chest and spilled its contents, that would be a real mess.

Watching the two figures chase each other away, Karak rested her chin on her hands and said leisurely, "She's so cute."

The expressions on Mingsala and Xie Nian's faces were not good, especially after Xie Nian discovered that the wine glass in his hand was just a cork turned into a glass.

“Cute?” Leizer shook his head disapprovingly. “The current situation just seems strange to me.”

She recalled her experience of being held at knifepoint on the bedsheets by Shadowheart: "In some ways, Shadowheart is terrifying, but she would reveal herself to Ivy even when it was of no benefit to her... It's very strange, I'm not sure what adjective to use..."

In the tactics of male-female interaction, feigning weakness is a fairly effective method. But for the four ladies at the bar, that kind of tactic was never part of their repertoire. So now, no one can give Leizer a reasonable explanation.

The mediocre treasure chest was still under the care of the Iron-Handed Dwarf, but only Bedron was still standing by the chest; the others were holding their bowls and plates, waiting for their meal.

"Where did Bacchus go?" Ivy looked around the crowd but didn't see the other leader of the Ironhanded Dwarfs.

"Hmph. That guy discovered a whole set of tools alchemists use to extract raw materials and's planning to make a scene." Bedron still didn't get along with Bacchus. "Never mind him. What can I do for you, Master Doom?"

“Give Shadowheart her bedding,” Ivy said, supporting the unsteady Shadowheart with one hand. “Then take the treasure chest and come with me. We’ll go and place the Adamantite Golem underground. It’s quite spacious there and suitable as a workshop.”

“Great!” Bedron jumped down from the fountain's stone platform and yanked Shadowheart's deep purple bedding roll out of the treasure chest. “I think you definitely need the Ironhanded Dwarf's help! Rune gunpowder can also be stored underground! And kept away from these clumsy fellows! At least five harpists have already tried to throw their instruments into the chest and take them out again! And three of them have already done it! Phil Romin! Come and help!”

Yingxin, carrying her bedding, said goodnight to Ivy, then staggered through the crowd toward the innkeeper's cottage.

Ivy, accompanied by two Iron-Handed Dwarfs, bypassed the inn and came to the side staircase leading down. Above them was Isobel's room, with a makeshift altar made of mirrors and candles on the protruding balcony.

From this direction, you can clearly see two beams of silvery-white light shooting into the sky, forming a hemispherical shield that envelops the entire hotel not far above.

It is said that Serene and Shar were originally the first gods of the world of Toril. They were originally one, like two real sisters.

Even the prime material plane of the world of Toril was created by two ancient deities working together. Later, a goddess representing the earth was born on the barren land, who was like a daughter to Shar and Serene.

It was at the request of the Earth Goddess that Serene created the sun and other light sources in the world of Toril, which led to the birth of life.

However, this behavior angered Shar, whose essence was emptiness and tranquility, causing the two sisters to become bitter enemies. Their struggle has lasted for an unknown period of time, and to this day, no victor has been decided.

As the primordial gods of the world of Toril, Ivy believed that Shar and Serene were fundamentally different from other later gods, especially those born from the development of civilization and the activities of intelligent life.

However, these are all just Ivy's conjectures, and there is not enough evidence to support this view. Even in his research on divine power, Ivy is only just beginning, and the only material he has is the blood of Losanda.

Losanda's divine duties include the sun, travel, and creativity, making him a deity with mixed aspects, possessing characteristics of both a nature deity and a human deity. If Ivy can understand his divine powers, he might make significant progress in his understanding of deities.

Just as Ivy was immersed in thinking about her next research topic, a scream came from above: "You can't trust the Supreme God! Marcus! Whatever Ketherrick promises you, you will never get it!"

“I’m so sorry, my lady!” It must have been the man Isobel called Marcus speaking. “Katheric has already given it!”

An even more piercing shriek rang out from above the inn, and the sound of flapping wings began to come from all directions in the darkness. Judging from the sound alone, the monsters in the darkness were not small.

Ivy decisively cast an amplification spell on herself: "Everyone, prepare for battle! They're coming from above, archers, get ready!"

(End of this chapter)