The Book of Hibernation

On the day of their escape, Ryan and Dorin did not go to the Black Fish Boat Tavern, but went to the South Fishing Port area.This side is far away from the city, and there are no serious houses, only some simple shanties built by the poor with wood and mud.

The person who received Dorin was an old man living alone.Dorin helped him before, so the old man took him in without asking any questions, and let him and Ryan live in a low and simple house.

After that, Dolin was very weak and couldn't go out. Ryan took care of him for a few days and didn't leave South Fishing Port much.

Today Duolin's fever subsided, his wound healed well, and his spirit improved a lot.He and Ryan set off in the afternoon, and wanted to go back to the Blackfish Boat Tavern to check the situation, get their belongings, and it would be best to say goodbye to the friends they met in the tavern.

Ryan walked over to Dorin with his back on his back, and put him down at the door of the tavern, letting him support his crutches.When dusk just climbed into the sky, the tavern was unexpectedly quiet, and there was not a single customer inside.

Based on Duo Lin's experience, there are indeed fewer customers at this time, but it is not impossible to see no one.

A kitchen worker heard the movement and came out from behind, yawning.Seeing Duo Lin, he was a little surprised. On the one hand, he was surprised that Duo Lin reappeared after disappearing for a few days, and on the other hand, he was also surprised by his current appearance.

Duoling asked what happened to the tavern. The cook said that the tavern was closed. The boss seemed to have done something wrong. He couldn't tell what it was. If you can't get it out, you will take it away from the tavern.

The boss was dissatisfied, and originally wanted to take people to the theory, but suddenly changed his mind and said that he would go out of the city to join distant relatives.So the boss just left and never came back, and he didn't even want the tavern.

The penalty order was served a few days ago.After the cook told the exact date, both Dorin and Ryan realized that it was the same day that the elf rescue team disappeared.

Although the boss never came back, the chef is not afraid of losing his job.He said the tavern would still be open, and the fishermen in the neighborhood needed it.

The tavern should have been taken away by Harbor City and sold to the next person.The new owner has come to see the store today.

Dorling and Ryan didn't talk to the cook any more.They went upstairs and found Dorin's room.The door lock of the room was broken, and the inside was turned into a mess.

It must not have been messed up by the little workers in the tavern.Next door is the room of a maid. She has not been there these days, but her room has not been touched at all.

In the room, the spare weapons hidden by Duo Lin were gone, as were the books, maps, and letters. Fortunately, there were no secrets in the letters.The tools and fodder he used to raise Xinying were also destroyed, but the money bag was still there, and the coins inside were thrown on the bed and the floor.

Seeing all this, Ryan's face was heavy.

He urged Dorin to take the money and what he could still use, and leave as soon as possible.Seeing that Duo Lin was almost cleaned up, he carried Duo Lin on his back and left the black fish boat without looking back.

After hurriedly returning to the hut of the poor old man, Ryan asked Dorin to stay and have a good rest, and he was going out for a while.

Seeing that there was something wrong with his expression, Dorin asked him where he was going.Ryan said he was going to talk to Winter Thistle about it.

Hearing Winter Thistle, Dorin frowned.

He struggled for a while, but still didn't say much, he just advised Ryan not to go back, not to talk to Winter Thistle about it.

Seeing Dolin's appearance, Ryan also vaguely had some thoughts.

But he just shook his head, dismissing those uncomfortable thoughts.

Ryan insisted on leaving, and Dorin couldn't stop him, so he could only tell him palely to pay attention to safety, and if the situation was wrong, he must leave quickly.

===========================

Before the start of today's dinner, Dongji arrived at the banquet hall in time.His sprain is much better and he no longer needs crutches, but he still can't walk too fast.

Aldin greeted him.Aldin was satisfied to see that Winter Thistle not only put on the new robe, but also combed her hair a lot more neatly.After the hair was tied back, Winter Thistle's elven blood became more conspicuous. Not only could people see the pointed ears, but the hairstyle was also closer to the elf style.

The first time I saw Winter Thistle was also in this banquet hall.Dong Ji's clothes are plain and old, and his expression and posture are also slightly sluggish, far less attractive than his younger brother.

Now he looks much better, and he really looks like a senior spellcaster.

Although his eyes were still a little evasive, it didn't matter, on the contrary, it made him look more humble and gentle.

It is said that many legendary archmages have this temperament, and the sharp-eyed type like Kanai is a bit scary.

Aldin brought the winter thistle to the long table and introduced it to the guests from the Carlos family.

Winter Thistle originally thought that the speaker would be a typical middle-aged merchant, just like the previous member of the Adventurer's Guild.Unexpectedly, it was a young woman who got up to greet him.

She was wearing trousers, her upper body was dark red leather armor, and even her hair was fiery red.To Winter Thistle's surprise, she is also a half-elf.

The tips of her ears were less pronounced, but Winter Thistle could still tell her Elven blood from the other features.

Aldin said: "This is the person in charge of the Carlos family. We all call her 'Dris the Witch'."

Before he could introduce Winter Thistle, Deli took Winter Thistle's hand without any surprise: "Don't listen to him, I'm not a spellcaster, and I have nothing to do with a witch. He just wanted to show that I'm good-looking. You are the refiner Winter Thistle ? I have heard about you, so you are also a half-elf, it seems that we are from the same village!"

Winter Thistle responded politely.Kanai next to him interjected: "You are not from the same country. He is the child of a human and a tree sea elf."

De Lisi said: "Don't spoil the atmosphere, I'm getting close to him."

"So straightforward?" Kanai laughed.

"I've always been honest." Doris shrugged, picked up the wine glass, and introduced several of her subordinates to Winter Thistle.

In fact, Winter Thistle didn't remember the names of other people very much.Anyway, he won't have any contact with them in the future, so there's no need to remember.

Fortunately, De Lisi is a lively and talkative person, and she doesn't have the airs of a middle-aged businessman, so Winter Thistle quickly relaxed.

Today's dinner was really like an ordinary gathering of friends, and Winter Thistle really listened to Aldin's words, instead of hiding aside as before, she was able to participate in the jokes.

When the moon rose, De Lisi deliberately made things difficult for Kanai, saying that he did not take the initiative to toast herself, and asked him to sing to apologize, but Kanai refused, so she called a maid who was good at singing to replace him.

De Lisi disagreed at first, but fortunately, the maid's singing voice was really beautiful, and she gradually became fascinated by it.

After the song was over, the maid held up her skirt and bowed her knees, and even Winter Thistle applauded in amazement.

De Lisi asked her to sing another song, Aldin said, this is my subordinate, you have to pay her to sing.Everyone was laughing and joking, drinking wine, the maid sang another song, and De Lisi also beat the time.

At this moment, Ryan walked to the door of the mansion and heard the brisk singing.

The lyrics are about a local legend in Harbor City.

Once upon a time there was a fisherman's family with an old father and two brothers.The father disappeared at sea, the elder brother went to look for it, but the elder brother never came back, the younger brother went to look for it again.The younger brother managed to find his father and elder brother, but found that they were all seduced by the siren and jumped into the sea and turned into monsters.

The younger brother begged Siren to let them go and let their family reunite.But the siren said: As long as you jump down too, you can be reunited with your relatives immediately.

The father and elder brother also said, son, come too, we are all waiting for you.

Finally, the younger brother rowed away without looking back.After returning home, he wrote a song and sang it to all the young people in the village every day, teaching them to beware of the devil in the sea, so that no one will be deceived.

From then on, whenever the siren sang to lure the sailors, the sailors sang this song written by the younger brother to fight against the singing and drive the siren away.

When he was at the pier a few days ago, Ryan heard this song more than once when someone was working.

The voice of the dock worker is rough, but the female voice in the mansion in front of him is soft and sweet. It doesn't sound like a sailor, but more like a siren in the story.

Ryan walked into the gate, but the guard at the gate still did not stop him.

Ryan was a little surprised. He always thought that he would be hostile after saving Dorin last time, but now the guards still regard him as a guest.

Could it be that the guard of the dungeon was too badly injured and still not awake?Or are those people only on duty in the dungeon, not outside the mansion, they haven't seen him, so they can't tell his identity?

Ryan couldn't figure out the reason for a while, so he didn't continue thinking about it.

He followed the singing through the garden, all the way to the banquet hall.

Intuition led him, and he felt that Winter Thistle was there.

The door of the banquet hall was open, and the inside was brightly lit, while the corridor outside was somewhat dark.

As Lane approached, the singing ended and there was a burst of applause from the hall.Someone clamored for some reward for the maid, and then a group of people clinked glasses and drank.

Most of the voices were unfamiliar, and Ryan had no idea who they were.

When he was considering whether to go in, he heard one of the female voices say: "Winter Thistle, this is a toast to you. I want to thank you on behalf of the Carlos family."

Ryan stopped and continued to listen to the conversation inside.

Seeing that Winter Thistle was a little shy, De Lisi said, "Don't be shy. If you hadn't delivered the news in time, our caravan would never have known that there would be elves attacking that day. The captain of the bodyguard is too arrogant. He thinks only one or two An elf followed them secretly, and said that the elves dare not mess around in the human port."

Aldin interrupted her: "You only care about thanking the 'community', so don't you respect me with this glass of wine?"

De Lisi said: "Of course I also respect you. If it weren't for your help, would we have been able to get the customs clearance documents so quickly? Why are you in a hurry, I'll have a glass of wine with him first, and I'll drink with you later." Gin go."

After speaking, she went to Dong Ji to clink the glass, and drank the wine in the glass in a few sips.

Winter Thistle didn't have her momentum, so she could only take a sip slowly.Strange to say, the wine in the glass today seems to be less exciting than before, and it smells and tastes easier to drink.

The wine was no different, it was just ordinary purple wine, Dong Ji thought, maybe it was because he often drank a little now and then, and gradually got used to it.

When putting down the wine glass, Winter Thistle noticed that the guests across the table were all looking at the door.So, he also looked along their line of sight.

He saw Ryan.

Ryan stood in the shadow of the corridor outside the door, only half of his body was illuminated by the lights in the hall.

Winter Thistle stood up, with a look of surprise on his face for a moment, and then, he suddenly realized—Lian heard it, he heard the conversation about the businesswoman's toast just now.

Ryan walked out of the shadows slowly, stopped only between the gates, and did not go any further.

De Lisi didn't recognize Ryan. She saw that others were silent, so she didn't say anything, just chewed her food and watched quietly.

Winter Thistle quickly stood up and walked towards Ryan: "You...you're back? It's just right, we can sit down and have dinner together..."

Ryan looked at him with a frown, and Winter Thistle's whole body was shaken by that gaze, and he stopped halfway unconsciously.

Winter Thistle forced herself to move forward, and approached Ryan almost cautiously.

Ryan still didn't speak to him, but glanced at everyone present.

Those who didn't know him avoided looking at each other, while Aldin and Kanai looked back at him straight.Kanai was expressionless, and Ardine even smiled.

Ryan withdrew his gaze, and finally looked at Winter Thistle beside him.

"It's you?" Ryan's voice was not loud, just like everyday speech.

He always felt that he was about to yell uncontrollably just now, and when he really spoke, he was also surprised by his calmness.

Winter Thistle glanced back at Aldin, then turned back and grabbed Ryan's arm: "Let's go out and talk..."

Ryan shook off his hand with such strength that Dong Thistle staggered.

"So it was you? You told them about the rescue team..."

Ryan sneered, and Winter Thistle looked away, not daring to look at him again.

Behind Winter Ji, normal conversation gradually came from the dining table.

Talk about the taste of wine, recommend guests to taste a certain flavor and so on.

Driven by Aldin, the guests continued to talk normally, deliberately keeping Winter Thistle and Ryan aside, so that the conversation between the two brothers only existed in a corner of the banquet hall.

Winter Ji took a few deep breaths, lowered her head and said, "Let's go out first and have a good talk..."

Ryan said: "No need. Winter Thistle, you are so disappointing, you..." He stopped and shook his head slowly, "Forget it. From today onwards, we officially bid farewell. I'm going to continue my tour. Just leave Harbor City."

"Wait!" Dong Ji hurriedly said, "don't go yet, we... don't we still have to investigate father's matter, do you remember that female necromancer? We should also check to see if she is telling the truth ..."

Ryan sneered and said, "Why did you bring up this matter again? Is it still important? It's been 19 years. The murderer and the envoy are dead. What else can I do? You want me to learn from the barbarian's father." Is that what debts are paid for?"

Winter thistle has nothing to say.He didn't really want to continue to check these, but he was eager to find a reason to keep Ryan.

Ryan looked at the others present with contemptuous eyes, and turned to leave.Winter Thistle caught up with two steps and grabbed his arm: "Wait a minute! I know...I know I have let you down. There is a reason for you to support those elves, I just want to explain, you know why I want to do that?"

"I don't want to know," Ryan said, his back turned to him.

But Winter Thistle continued: "If a conflict breaks out in the warehouse, what will happen to your tour period? What will happen to your reputation? What will happen to your future? Maybe you will be expelled from the temple, and if it is more serious, you may be arrested Accept inquiries... Wouldn't it be better if we could stop all this in advance and avoid conflicts directly?"

Ryan asked: "These things in your mouth, reputation, future... Are they more important than those barbarians, gray mountain elves, and island elves combined? Is it more important than justice?"

Winter Ji smiled bitterly and said, "For me, it's not reputation and future that are important, but you are important...you are more important than those things."

Ryan was not moved by this sentence, but gritted his teeth and whispered, "Let go. I'm ashamed of you."

Winter Thistle trembled all over.

But he didn't let go, instead he used two hands to hold Ryan tightly, not wanting him to leave.

In fact, Ryan will leave sooner or later, but Winter Thistle just has the urge to hold him back.

Even if you want to leave, it can't be in this situation...

"Lian...you can't say that about me..." Winter Thistle's voice trembled, "After all, I was the one who raised you..."

"That's right. This is the greatest shame of my life."

After speaking, Ryan shook his arm vigorously.Originally, this was enough to push Dongji away, but Dongji just grabbed him tightly.

A surge of anger surged from his chest, almost reaching his throat... Ryan growled irritably, and waved his other hand vigorously.Thistle hit the nearest chair and fell to the ground.

The guests and servants in the banquet hall stopped talking, and the guards who were on standby outside the corridor gathered together.

At this time, Aldin raised his arm and made a gesture, and the guards immediately retreated, dispersed, and returned to their original positions.

Ryan's head was in a daze.

Dongji lay on the ground, slowly raised his upper body, his forehead and eyebrows were stained with blood... Then Ryan suddenly realized that he had actually hit his brother.

Ryan stared at Winter Thistle for a few seconds, tears welling in his eyes.He stretched out his hand to help, but his posture froze in place; he opened his mouth to say something, but no sound came out of his throat.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and turned around, leaving the mansion as if fleeing.