Baator Hell Promotion
Page 77
The guard paused for a few minutes to let them admire this artistic hall and began to introduce it, "Prince Pipe has the most unique requirements for architecture and beauty. He personally selected every decoration in this hall and every subsequent one."
"This must have cost a lot," Hopper said. The gray-blue marble alone was not a common stone. Taking into account all the ingenious combinations, this hall alone might cost a town several years' worth of taxes.
The guard's expression remained unchanged, but his eyes still revealed that he thought Hopper was a philistine. He replied with considerable pride, "Of course, but if the Prince and Lady Natalie like it, who wouldn't want to, even if the taxes are doubled?"
Then, the guard opened the second door for them. The hall transformed from a gloomy, cold gray-blue, reflecting the noble character of its owner, to an elegant, luxurious pink-purple. Every inch of its walls was covered in rich pink ivory, and every inch of its floor was covered in a deep pink carpet that felt like sinking into it. Naturally, the room's lighting was as delicate as apple blossoms. To mitigate the frivolous tone, the wooden tables along the wall were decorated with blooming agapanthus and roses.
Repeating this process, the guards led them through four more halls, each of them extravagant and exquisitely decorated. Each hall was decorated in a different color. The third hall was as green as a deep forest, the fourth hall exuded the fragrance of oranges and wheat ears, and the penultimate hall was so white that it looked as if the entire hall was carved from a single piece of ivory.
The prince himself welcomed them in the sixth hall, the purple banquet hall which symbolized the royal power and dignity.
"Welcome, distinguished guests from afar." Prince Piper was tall, with shiny black hair reaching his shoulders. When he saw Hopper and his party coming in, he opened his arms and welcomed them warmly.
It was obvious that the prince was a noble who cared very much about his appearance. Under his luxurious scarlet cloak was a tight embroidered dress, and his hair, neck, wrists and fingers were all adorned with just the right amount of jewels.
"We all agree that splendor and luxury are the hallmarks of our noble lineage. But after meeting you, I realize no jewelry or furs can embellish your face." After the hug, the prince generously praised Hopper. "I really hope my little Natalie can be as dazzling as you."
The prince personally led Hopper to his seat. Quite a few people were already seated at the long banquet table.
"I am the one who fears being restrained, my dear lady." The prince sat back in his seat and raised his glass to Hopper. "So please don't be restrained either. Eat and drink to your heart's content."
The succubus raised her glass high in a gesture, then took a sip. The wine was as red as blood, fragrant and fragrant, emitting a shimmering purple light. But Hopper's attention was focused on the two people sitting diagonally across from her.
Perhaps to show respect for the prince, Dan Brown, with a bald head, covered his shiny head with a turban. A crow, lifeless and looking like it was about to fall asleep, stood on the turban. The blond monk next to him, wearing a dark brown robe and a gold-threaded shawl, must be Oha.
Apparently, Oha had also been influenced by the will of the plane and transformed into a human. Perhaps due to the malicious intent of the plane, the three-lobed mouth of the half-beast man had been transformed into a deep cleft lip, distorting his originally resolute face.
Perhaps for this reason, no one sat down on either side of Dan Brown, and no one went up to talk to them.
Hopper thought about it and raised his glass to the two of them.
Author's words: A tribute to the Mask of the Red Death
Chapter 225 Girl
As he introduced himself, the prince showed little regard for formalities. Although not all guests had arrived at his long table, he allowed those who had arrived to help themselves to their food. Servants bustled about in a relentless and orderly manner, refilling the guests' wine and food.
"Louder, gentlemen, let our guests feel your joy!" the prince shouted happily to the musicians sitting in a row against the wall.
The music echoing in the hall suddenly rose in volume, like a hundred melodious birds singing in unison. Several nobles, who had already drunk a lot of wine, began to sing along to the tune.
Amidst the joyous and peaceful atmosphere, only a few people noticed that the door on the wall behind the prince, which had been closed until then, had opened. Hopper and Oha were two of them.
A ray of light as bright as a ruby shone from the open door. Unlike the prince's other rooms, this last room was not as bright red as its light source, but as dark as the abyss.
In the middle of the pitch-black mouth and the blood-red tongue stood a little beauty like a lily.
As the door opened, a young girl, clad only in a long, white silk nightgown, ran out in terror. Her golden hair trembled like sunlight as she ran, and her face was like a jasmine blossoming in the morning dew. Even the most hardened heart would be enraged by her sorrow.
The girl threw herself into the prince's arms, buried her face in his cloak, and let out a faint cry.
"What's wrong, my little beauty?" the prince whispered softly to comfort her.
At this distance, Hopper couldn't hear what she said, but the prince's smiling face instantly darkened. He patted the girl's back and called over the servants to explain things.
Soon, two maids arrived and took the weeping girl away. The prince stood up and announced, "Dear guests, my precious Natalie has just had a nightmare and is feeling emotionally unstable. Please allow me to bid you farewell for now. Please feel free to enjoy the wine and food here."
Naturally, the guests in the hall didn't object, and they all praised the prince's deep love for his daughter. After the prince left, another group of clowns, accompanied by several puppies, entered the room, performing acts like tossing balls and jumping through fire hoops. With the clowns' curse words and the puppies' barking, everyone was immersed in the joy of the banquet.
Such a noisy environment gave Hopper an opportunity. She sat next to Oha with a drink in her hand.
"Two masters, I didn't expect to meet you here." The beautiful woman raised her glass, as if she was really an old friend meeting again after a long separation.
"What a pleasant surprise, my dear lady," Dan Brown also raised his glass and said with a smile, "Master Oha is still mourning for his teacher, Master Corbillio, and cannot drink. Please forgive me."
"Master, I express my deepest condolences to you," Hopper said with his head bowed. "The residents of the White Tooth Inn all say that Master Corbillio was a venerable elder who was deeply loved and respected."
"You must be mistaken, ma'am. My teacher lived to see his fortieth spring." Oha's voice was flat. "Of course, everyone in Jinfa Town, and even the prince, admired his knowledge and character."
"It's terrible, so terrible. What on earth could have taken the life of a young and strong man?" Hopper covered his mouth, pretended to be about to faint, and quickly asked Zis to support him.
Judging from Ouha's expression, he was about to lose his temper.
"Ahem," Dan Brown coughed twice in a pretentious manner. "Don't worry, ma'am, it's not the Red Death. Master Corbylio passed away in his sleep, peacefully."
"You're a clever man, and the two of us combined are no match for you in verbal combat. Let's just be frank."
"Oh~ I like straightforward men." Hopper winked at Dan Brown and gave him a mysterious smile. "Especially, strong men."
"Ladies first, then?"
Hopper didn't object. She sat up a little straighter, thought for a moment, and said, "Did you come with us on purpose?"
In fact, what Hopper was most worried about was that the other party's goals conflicted with hers or Lightning's. Without the ability to restore her original form, she really did not have the confidence to challenge a powerful warlock and his weird sorcerer companion.
However, you won’t get any useful information by asking directly, so it’s better to piece it together yourself through indirect inquiries.
Dan Brown flicked a silver coin at the clown running towards him, watched him thank him exaggeratedly, and only spoke after he somersaulted away: "Yes and no. I didn't expect to meet you, but I didn't give up this opportunity."
The answer wasn't beyond Hopper's expectations, so she nodded and motioned for the warlock to ask a question.
"You are not Gracia's subordinate." The warlock reached out and poked the crow on his head. His words were affirmation rather than question. "Then who do you serve? Dis or Mammon?"
It seemed the other party had the same goal as him, wanting to confirm whether there was a conflict between the two parties. After learning this, Hopper felt relieved. The other party's level of rhetoric was not particularly high.
"Neither. I serve a goddess who lives in peace with the world." Hopper didn't intend to lie, at least there was no need to use a simple lie to test the warlock's spell.
Warlock and Oha exchanged glances, clearly not expecting this answer. Hopper didn't give him time to communicate and asked his next question.
"Were you the one who guided us into that cave, including into this plane?"
"No," Oha answered this time. Due to his cleft lip, his voice was slightly hoarse. "We followed your map the entire time. It's just that I know more about planes, so I recognized it as the spirit world right away."
This answer is very interesting. First, what would make a sorcerer take the initiative to learn about unpopular plane knowledge? Second, his words reveal a problem - he used the word "recognize", which means that they may know that the destination is related to the spiritual world.
"You're not the only ones who have entered this plane?" the warlock asked. "I heard someone is missing."
"Yes," Hopper admitted frankly. "Apparently, the bastard who sold us the map was trying to sell it to multiple people. We've taken care of him, though."
"Are you involved in the string of deaths in this town?" Hopper asked, his intention less obvious. "I know of three people, including a family of three, who were killed in the forest driving a carriage, three washerwomen, and Master Corbillio."
"In fact, you don't know enough. A few days before we arrived in Jinfa Town, a thief was beaten to death in the street. On the day Master Corbillio died, two farmhands came to mourn and accidentally stepped on air and fell to their deaths. You were sitting too far away, so you might not have heard what Miss Natalie said. But I know a little lip reading, and I read the bad news - Miss Natalie's wet nurse also died, which is why she was so sad."
"But these have nothing to do with either of us, and it seems that they have nothing to do with you either."
Hopper frowned. These deaths had no signs, no similarities. The deceased's gender, status, wealth, beauty, and location were all different. It was as if the will of the plane was randomly eliminating people.
Before she could figure out what was going on, she heard a series of door openings, followed by the fragrant and cold spring breeze, and one announcement after another, from the front door to the door where Natalie came out.
"Attention! Lady Luck, godmother of the prince's women, and the fairies of eternal love have arrived!"
Chapter 226 Godmother?
Such a high-profile announcement not only attracted the attention of all the guests in the Purple Hall, but even the Prince and Princess Natalie, who had left the back room, came to greet them.
Everyone waited for a moment, and three silver-haired ladies walked in. They were dressed gorgeously, wearing golden crowns on their heads and holding flowers in their hands.
To Hopper's surprise, the hotel waitress was right. Although they were slim and graceful, their faces were deeply wrinkled under their silver hair, clearly showing that they were elderly.
"Welcome, welcome, my most awaited guest," the prince said as he quickly stepped forward, hugging and kissing each lady. Then he turned and called to his daughter, "Come forward and meet your godmothers, Natalie."
Princess Natalie seemed to be very familiar with these ladies. She jumped over like a newborn deer and saluted gracefully, with tears still on her face.
"Oh, my dear little princess, what's troubling you?" The leading lady, wearing an apricot-colored gown and matching shawl, held the princess in her arms and wiped away her tears. "Today is your day. Whoever irritates you, I, Merry, will not forgive him."
Princess Natalie was amused. She giggled and took Mary's arm and walked towards the main seat with her godmothers.
After all the ladies were seated, the prince returned to his seat, raised his glass to all the guests, and said loudly: "Everyone, please raise your glasses to these three generous, kind, and pure ladies. They have served as godmothers to my daughter, always protecting her and bestowing blessings and joy on her. Now, they must abide by the ancient etiquette and bless my Natalie to come of age. I really can't express my gratitude to you. Please let us raise our glasses together to Merry, Dior, and Nora, and bless their health and generosity!"
"Cheers to the three ladies!" Everyone in the hall congratulated in unison.
Hopper wanted to find someone to discuss her ideas with, but neither Lightning nor Ziz seemed to understand what she meant, so she had to give up for the time being.
After the congratulations stopped, Ms. Meili stood up, took a flower from the bouquet she brought, put it behind Natalie's ear, and kissed her smooth forehead.
"I wish you my beautiful child, Natalie, your beauty will never diminish until you leave this world."
After she returned to her seat, another lady stood up. She was wearing a long dress made of several layers of linen, which made her look sacred and solemn. The lady in the white dress took out a flower like Lady Meili and kissed the princess's forehead.
"I bless you, my child, good Natalie, that you will have wealth that everyone will envy, and your treasure trove will not be inferior to that of your father."
Princess Natalie pulled up her skirt to return the greeting, her demeanor graceful and elegant. The smile on the prince's face became even more pronounced.
The last lady, in a soft, aquamarine gown, then rose and, like her sisters, offered a blessing: her wish was that Princess Natalie would find a husband as brave and valiant as her father.
When she kissed Natalie, all the windows opened, and some invisible force rushed into the room with the fresh air and was injected into the princess' body. For a moment, Hopper even felt that the princess's whole body was transparent.
"Thank you, distinguished ladies," the prince stood up with great joy and even made a humble half bow. It was obvious that he was very satisfied with the gifts given by the fairy godmothers.
Hopper smacked his lips openly, feeling that these three so-called "godmothers" might not necessarily be good people. Even without considering the unclear costs and penalties in fairy tales, just listening to their blessings was full of ambiguity and operability.
But this had nothing to do with her, so she let the prince worry about it. Instead, a smaller matter began to make her distressed.
After another round of toasts to the godmother, the nobles attending the banquet began to step forward one after another and presented Princess Natalie with various treasures as coming-of-age gifts.
Hopper thought to himself, this is bad. She didn't have anything valuable to use as a gift, and judging from Dan Brown's stiff and upright posture, he didn't prepare any gift either.
A warm hand touched her arm, and Hopper turned to see Ziz handing her a scale.
"My scales, I put them away after they fell off." He looked at Hopper sincerely, with hope in his eyes. "Although they are of no use in Bartor, I think they are a rare item here."
Hopper took the scale. It was half the size of his palm, and the copper-colored scales reflected a mysterious turquoise luster in the sunlight. Its owner's hand had warmed the cold keratin, and Hopper could almost imagine Ziz holding the scale for a long time.
"Good boy," she patted the soldier's bony arm, encouraging him. Seeing that she had accepted his advice, Zisi smiled a rare smile typical of a teenager.
Seeing this smile, Hopper glared at Lightning again, which made the Hellcat next to him feel puzzled.
Hopper knew that he was taking his anger out on others, and that Zis's behavior couldn't be entirely blamed on Lightning's control methods.
Zis had been raised in the barracks for years, loyalty and obedience ingrained in his bones. His apparent fawning stemmed from a fear and panic of being abandoned. This was a mixture of her own fear of leaving him to Lightning for so long, her fear of Lightning feeding him loyalty potions, and the inferiority complex of his mixed-race identity and his admiration for the powerful devil. She couldn't expect a soldier raised as a weapon to resolve such complex emotions on his own.
It will take a long time to train him into someone I can use.
But the fact that he was willing to proactively propose a solution showed that he had at least made some progress. Furthermore, his suggestion was actually quite good. This plane probably didn't have dragons, so a rare, unknown scale could be considered a fitting gift if he could just make up a decent story for it.
After all, it had the hallmarks of a typical aristocratic gift—beautiful, expensive, rare, and useless.
Before Hopper could stand up and present the gift, the door was opened again.
Unlike when the three kind godmothers came in, there was no rhythmic announcement or fragrant breeze, only a mournful horn and the hollow sound of footsteps that followed.
"Deng deng deng"
Accompanied by discordant knocking sounds, the visitor limped over the threshold of the white hall and stepped into the purple hall.
It was a woman dressed in brown linen. Her face was very beautiful, but her body was covered in mud. A hideous scar ran through her right eye, making her smooth face look twisted and angry.
"I am an uninvited guest." Unlike her appearance, her voice was soft and pleasant, even a little flattering. "But I have little magical power. Your Highness, would you allow me to give a blessing to the beautiful Natalie?"
The guests all looked at the prince, who had suddenly stood up. A vein throbbed on his left forehead, and everyone could see that he was suppressing his anger. Beside him, Princess Natalie crossed her fingers in prayer, clearly unwilling to receive the blessing of this ugly uninvited guest.
Chapter 227 The Fourth Blessing
Before the prince or princess could reply, someone objected. A noblewoman, whose seat was further back and therefore particularly close to the uninvited guest, stood up and flatly refused:
"Go away quickly, you earthworm rolling in the mud, please don't defile the prince's banquet and our eyes."
The filthy woman didn't move, not even acknowledging the approaching guard. She simply retorted, "All flowers grow from mud, and earthworms are farmers underground. Isn't it more appropriate for a farmer like me to bless a flower bud than you, the buzzing bees seeking to collect pollen?"
The lady's face flushed, and she couldn't think of a response. The fairy in the aquamarine gauze dress—her name should be Nora—spoke coldly.
Ms. Nora didn't even look at the newcomer. She casually played with the thorny rose in her hand, her tone filled with unquestionable arrogance: "You are not qualified, ma'am. We are the godmothers of Her Highness Natalie, so we can have this honor. You are just a country woman from who knows where, without even a trace of magical power."
"Don't I have it?" the dirty girl asked back. "How could I not know? Who would object to more blessings?"
Seeing that the prince seemed to be unable to hold back and was about to have the guards drag her out, the girl raised her voice a little more: "Or is it that Prince Piper's daughter hasn't inherited even a fraction of his courage and is just a trembling baby hiding behind her father's clothes?"
Her words were undoubtedly very offensive, and they deeply hurt the princess and the prince. Prince Piper's face flushed red, but when he was about to order the guards, his sleeve was pulled by a slender little hand.
Princess Natalie stood up. Her golden hair had just been tied into a long braid and hung down in front of her chest, which made her face look particularly pale. However, she still mustered up the courage to take a few steps forward, her tone firm and restrained.
"I don't know who you are, and I don't want to know what tricks you can play. I am willing to accept your blessing. This is not because of how nice your words are, but because I am willing to prove to you and anyone who doubts me that I am as brave as my father. I also believe that no matter what witchcraft you have, it is not better than that of my godmothers, and you can't hurt me!"
The princess's powerful words aroused thunderous applause and cheers from the crowd, and the wave of praise almost blew the roof off.
The sharp-eyed Hopper saw that the princess's clenched fists were trembling slightly. Dan turned around and exchanged glances with her.
"Who do you think has greater magical power, the three godmothers or the newcomer?"
"I am now a human being like you. I don't know the same information as you do."
Even in her succubus form, Hopper couldn't tell which woman was more powerful. But she could sense that these four women had more than a hint of ulterior motives, and even a clear sense of theatricality. Could they be planning something together?
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