crown of stars

"Dragon slaying warriors, after a long day, go to the fire and rest." Sam surrounded the fire, stirring the soup pot vigorously.

Turin was the first to go to the fire, using the residual heat of the campfire to re-thaw the frozen wine.

"It's getting dark, let's spend the night here, the tent can accommodate people after cleaning." The dwarf said vaguely, a little soup spilled from the corner of his mouth.

"I think so too. It's too unsafe to go on the road at night." The halfling raised a spoon and filled a bowl full for Messiah.

"I agree."

Messiah did not refute. Within his range of perception, the white dragon showed no sign of going away, and the fluctuations it emitted were very stable.That being the case, it makes no difference whether it is today or tomorrow.What's more, a day's journey consumes a considerable amount of energy of the dwarves and halflings.

"Then let's decide who will watch tonight?"

"I'll come first, the first half of the night is mine." The dwarf suggested first.It was only then that Turin realized that the blood of the dwarf was still flowing in his body. He thought that the year of disaster had polished off all his recklessness and impulsiveness.Now, he still wants to do something big in this remote and barren land.

"It doesn't matter if I sleep or not. With me, I can go to the White Dragon's Nest tomorrow."

"With you guys, I won't join. However, I can put some gadgets by the side of the camp." Sam confidently dug out a bunch of small parts from his bag.

"Oh, it belongs to thieves."

"Call me a loafer, I never did that kind of work, I was in legitimate business, don't associate me with those who ruin the reputation of the profession."

Turin shrugged awkwardly and raised his hands.

"Okay, I apologize. Even in Winterhold, I haven't heard of any missing items. You are indeed a serious person."

After eating and drinking, the sun fell completely below the horizon, and a little bit of afterglow still remained on the zenith.

Sam took a bunch of parts and silk threads to assemble several alarm devices, and buried them deep in the temporarily dug ditch. If a monster approached the camp at night, it would make a piercing alarm sound after stepping on the mechanism, and spray fire. Acid attack.

The halfling moved swiftly, and the moon had not yet risen when he re-entered the tent.

"There's still some time now, should we play first?" Sam rubbed his frozen hands, and took out a stack of leaf-like things from the bedroll, which were popular cards among various races.

"No, it will be troublesome if you forget to watch the night. It's okay if there are no monsters. If there is any movement, it will be too late. I only brought the casting letter. Can you understand what I wrote?"

"What about you, dear Messiah?"

Messiah was busy oiling the newly bought long knife, when he heard this, he raised his head.

"I won't. What's that in your hand?"

"Oh my god!" the halfling exaggeratedly opened his mouth, "You don't know how to play? Even the most old-fashioned aristocrat's family will occasionally use this to relax. You must come from some... which isolated place Bar?"

Messiah's heart trembled, if he was not convinced that he knew nothing about himself, he would have strangled Sam's neck and asked him where he knew it.In a sense, the prison demiplane is a truly isolated place.

"That's fun?"

"That's not much fun in itself, the real fun is the people who play cards, man." Sam hooked his hands, and after trying a few times, he could only pat his arm regretfully.

"Don't be too obsessed with those elegant arts, occasionally you need to come down from the sky and look at the things on the ground."

Art?

Putting the knife back into its sheath, Messiah decided to wait until he got back and ask the halfling about those unfamiliar terms.

"Speaking of which, everyone in Cold Winter Castle thinks I'm whimsical, why do you want to go to slay the dragon with me?"

"What's wrong with the white dragon?" Du Ling disagreed, "If you asked me to fight a red dragon, I might not dare to go, but the white dragon is still very easy." The dwarf lifted his robe, revealing the beautifully crafted heavy armor inside, Intricate magic patterns were etched on the smooth surface, shimmering in Messiah's vision.

Very familiar.

The magic pattern on the heavy armor is very similar to the record in the brain of the illithid. It has three effects in total, force field shield, frost resistance and a power increase. The three independent magic patterns are at the beginning and end. They are skillfully connected together to form a strange and beautiful pattern.Three gems are inlaid on it as the energy core.

It's just that there is no weight loss magic pattern engraved on it.

"Dragon skin and keel are good materials for forging. Dragon blood can be made into ink and sold to mages, or it can be used to quench swords. Dragon meat can be eaten. It can be used anywhere. Of course, I want a white dragon to come to me."

"Wow." Sam gasped in admiration, "You are amazing."

"It's a dragon, what is more magnificent than a dragon? More wild and ferocious? More pure power? I want to cast his strength and flesh and blood into a more perfect work and dedicate it to Durga, the great father of the hammer. Let my skills go to the peak!"

"Well said, well said. My wish now is to find my lost goods as soon as possible, sell them in the city if they are undamaged, and hurry home. I don't want to suffer through this bad weather any longer."

"Speaking of which, I kind of want to go home. Sam, I moved here in the Year of Calamity. Are there any pus-covered monsters in the Brand Mine and Silver City in the south?"

"You mean those aberrants?" The halfling replied cheerfully, "After the Year of Calamity ends suddenly, those things will not be so powerful, and the temples and organizations in various places have basically eliminated all those on the avenue. But You may occasionally encounter a few in the wild."

"Then I'm relieved. I'll go home to visit relatives when I have time. I haven't seen my teacher for decades." The dwarf put down the jug with a little sentimentality, looked through the tent, and looked into the distance.

"Hey, Messiah, why don't you talk?" The halfling poked his waist, "Why do you want to come and slay the dragon?"

"for money."

"Money? That's a normal answer." The halfling touched his chin, "Are you so sure that you will be able to slay the dragon this time? A person like you should have a lot of money." He walked on the street like this. The existence that can make people bump into street lights and make gems eclipse when they walk into jewelry stores, looks like they just walked out of the palace.

"Money is not important to me, but it is important to someone."

"It's so kind of you to that man to come here to slay the dragon at such a risk. You must be a knight who wants to win the lady's heart. I don't know what kind of beauty it is to make you fall in love like this." Sam also saw this kind of person There are too many, there are always some empty ladies in noble families, when their husbands and lovers get together, she goes to hook up with handsome knights when she has nothing to do, preferably young people who are not deeply involved in the world.When you get tired of playing it, let him do an almost impossible feat, and use it as a bad joke and conversation material.

What kind of woman could be cruel enough to let him go to die?

Messiah cast a sideways glance at the halfling without emotion. Lady and knight were unfamiliar terms to him, and he could only vaguely sense the prying intent behind him.

"Lady?" Messiah raised his eyebrows, chewing repeatedly in his mouth, "Beauty, huh?"

Sam knew he had made a slip of the tongue, and quickly made up for it:

"It must be for your friend, your relationship is really enviable, let you challenge the dragon for him."

friend?If it is said that he fished Nigel out of the illithids, dealt with all kinds of monsters along the way, and came to the ground, then he was indeed a very good friend.

"He's a silent person with a weird temper." Messiah nodded, with a slight smile on the corner of his mouth, wondering what the weird-tempered little guy would look like when he heard the word "friend".

Sam breathed a sigh of relief.

"After slaying the dragon, can I meet your friend?"

"have you seen."

The halfling tilted his head and thought for a while, and found out from his mind a jaw that was covered by a cloak and only showed a graceful arc.

It's him.

He should still have a hoarse voice, and an extremely impatient tone, and his exposed fingers are clean and slender, like a living mage template.It is said that mages experiment like gold piled up and burned. No wonder their handsome warrior follows him, a little businessman who has nothing, with empty promises.

"You are a businessman." Messiah suddenly remembered something he had missed.

"Well, what happened?"

"Are there any weird things for sale?"

"Yes, whether it is the pearl from the deepest seabed, the tears of a fish, or the breath of a bird, a vampire's heart is for sale."

"I need some soot and salt, a box of candles, a large block of sulfur, several fireflies, a large coil of copper and silver wire, some bells, a tube of quicksilver, turtle shells, talcum powder, mica..."

From the time the half-elf tore off the notice, Messiah had a premonition that he would be separated from himself for a long time.Messiah had no doubts about Nigel's magical talent, and the aura that shrouded him could blind an unsuspecting ordinary person.Even if his belongings are about to be taken away by a mage, he is not willing to go against the will of the half-elf.

"Wait, wait, what you want is the elementary mage material package?" The halfling hurriedly interrupted him. He was always very excited about business matters.

"When I was in the south, I also did a mage business. The packaged materials were always popular, even if it was more expensive. There were no mages in the north, so I didn't pack too much in the box. I hope the white dragon Didn't throw that mess out."

"Is your friend following His Excellency the Eye of Prophecy? I've heard that this is the strongest mage in the north. It is said that he has been guarding the remains of the last battlefield. I don't know if it is true." The halfling's eyes sparkled , and then returned to the topic after a brief moment of emotion, "If your friend is interested in long-term purchase, we have a happy cooperation."

The dwarf, who had been neglected for a long time, suddenly opened the door curtain, and a gust of cold wind came in wrapped in snowflakes.The sky outside has turned sapphire blue, and twinkling stars are densely arranged on the dome.

It was time for the vigil.

Sam slipped into bed and whispered good night to his companion.

"Good night."

"Good night."