Open the box and find a set of blueprints and a coin inside.
The drawing depicts a network-like ring decorated with gems and feathers. The thin line structure is intertwined like a spider web, as if to capture the ethereal memories one by one.
"What is this?" Ed wondered.
[A ritual instrument called a "dream catcher" can temporarily connect dreams and reality. 】
Is there a way to bring things out of dreams?
Ed rubbed his palms and suddenly felt that the future was bright.
Wow, then am I invincible? If I dreamed of two thousand gold bars every night, I could become the richest man in the world within a week.
[Of course not, what are you thinking? Fictional objects in dreams cannot be taken out of the dream, but real objects can be brought into the dream. 】
So what's the use of this thing?
Ed frowned, his dream of being rich was shattered.
[You will understand later that the most important thing is the coin. 】
"oh?"
Ed picked up the coin. The face value side had already been worn away, and there were a few dark red rust pits that reminded people of the mottled moon shadow in the sky.
On the other side is a portrait. The strange thing is that when he focused his eyes on the portrait and wanted to see clearly what it looked like, the portrait suddenly began to become blurry and unrecognizable;
And when Ed turned his attention away, the portrait became clear again.
"What is this coin?" he asked doubtfully.
[Dream peepers like to call it "faceless iron coin", and it is often used as a general equivalent in their circles. Its origin cannot be verified, and most importantly, most people do not know its true value. 】
"True value?"
[The basic unit of computing power. The Keeper program stores more knowledge than you can imagine, and this knowledge is preserved in the program through a deep compression algorithm. As long as you invest a faceless iron coin, you can decode the valuable knowledge for your own use, or use it to improve the crystallization level. 】
Improve crystal level? Secret Keeper Program 2.0?
According to what Sylvie said before, Ed's promotion method is different from that of a true Extraordinary. Regular Beyonders need to use potions or rituals to induce the transformation of personality crystals, while Ed needs to upgrade the code of the Keeper's program.
[Now is not the time, your brain cannot bear such a huge program structure. 】
Sylvie rejected this idea:
[Take Extraordinaries as an example. It takes at least one to two years for a first-level Extraordinary to keep his personality crystallization in a stable state, and it often takes three to four years to enter the transformation period. 】
"Well, I don't want to rush this matter. I have money in my pocket and I don't feel panic."
Ed skillfully flipped the coin up with his thumb, flipped it around on his fingertips a few times, and then put it into his pocket. Then he seemed to realize something and asked:
"By the way, if I take away these treasures, will Tia be affected?"
He was worried that if his employer found out that the wooden box was empty, it might be detrimental to her.
【I think not. The vast majority of people acquire ancient scrolls just for collection and display to satisfy their own insignificant vanity. To them, knowledge is more like an exhibit than a tool. 】
"What if the employer knew the true value of the scroll?"
[1. Secret text is a secret language that even professional archaeologists are not proficient in; 2. Even if the coordinates of the dream are mastered, only dreamers can enter the dream; 3. Even if you enter here, you cannot confirm what happened before. Has anyone been here, or is the box itself empty. 】
"I can rest assured that."
Ed also took out the blueprint of the dream catcher, and when he was about to close the wooden box and put it back, he found that there was something strange about the interior space of the wooden box.
Is it possible...
He groped carefully and found that there was indeed a mezzanine at the bottom of the box.
Opening the mezzanine, there was an ancient notepad inside, wrapped in leather cover, with yellowed footers. It was blank, with no text in the entire book.
strangeness? Why would a wordless book be tucked into a secret book? Could it be that invisible ink was used...
Just when Ed was puzzled, crooked words appeared on the notepad, as if someone was writing stroke by stroke——
…
Catalina Oakland's bedroom is located on the third floor of this country house. The room is spacious and airy, with white oak walls that look like a layer of blowing snow, and the walls are covered with tapestries and landscape paintings.
The ancient fragrance of myrrh and ambergris burned in the room, ethereal and deep. The steam radiators and fur rugs should have been comfortable, but she couldn't feel the warmth.
At the moment she is reading a knight novel:
In the story, under the blue and crimson burning clouds, the world is endless. The groups of horses are like a moving wall, the lances as dense as a forest erect thousands of cold lights, and the war flags are flying and shining with golden light...
What a beautiful story!
People always say that chivalric novels are boring and lack content. But Catalina always reads with gusto and forgets to eat and sleep. This may also have something to do with her family——
The history of the Oakland family seems to be the history of knights:
From the ancestor of Brandon, the sworn knight "Aoki Shield" who followed the founder of the country, Prince "Kagero" Hal, to the "last legend" "Silver Knight" Galt, the Oakland family will always have its rise or fall. A legendary knight.
Especially Sir Galt, the "De jure Emperor of Elysion and King of Lyria", the most trusted friend of Richard II, the Reflection Guard and Oath Knight, and the deputy leader of the Sunfire Knights (the grand leader only serves as The honorary title is directly tied to King Lyria), Catalina's idol.
As a man who witnessed both the rise of Lyrea's kingdom and the fall of the knight class, Galt's legend not only comes from his astonishing height and martial arts, but also from his extraordinary moral character and loyalty.
Of course, another important reason is that Sir Gelt is her great-grandfather's brother...her family blood relative!
Catalina has collected a complete set of knight novels based on him: "Silver Knight and Black Prince", "Silver Knight's Sword of Light", "Silver Knight and Blood Queen", "Silver Knight vs. Red-Eyed Demon Wolf", "The Silver Knight's Last Journey"...
——There are even limited edition metal badges.
It is said that the Silver Knight even attended her birth celebration, but she was too young at that time, so it was impossible for her to have any impression...
"Ding - ding - ding -" the eleven o'clock chime rang. Catalina slowly moved her left hand, closed the knight novel in her hand, and carefully opened the diary.
This book is already full.
Katarina pursed her lips stiffly and held onto the table to push her body up. Her muscles were shaking uncontrollably and she almost fell.
Crystal malignancy seems to be getting worse again...
My muscles are stiff, my movements are clumsy, my speech is slurred, and it continues to get worse with age. I don’t know how much longer I can hold on...
The vast majority of extraordinary people must produce personality crystallization through acquired stimulation, but occasionally there are a few lucky ones with good blood or extraordinary talents. For some people, this is a gift from heaven, but for Catalina But it’s a nightmare——
Her birthstone is a crystal called "phosphophyllite", which is precious and fragile, and therefore more prone to distortion.
Once the crystal clusters grow abnormally in the brain, they will cause permanent damage to the host nerves - such as epilepsy, auditory hallucinations, paralysis, sensory impairment, limb deformities and even insanity.
The cold green crystal clusters spread and grew in her brain, as messy as thorns, sucking her life out all the time. Like the pendulum of fate, calculating her time limit.
She stared down at her palm, her fingertips trembling slightly but feeling nothing, like someone else's hand. Maybe then arms, calves, then the entire torso...?
I remember there was a spare diary in the drawer...
Catalina did not press the bell to call the maid, but struggled to hold on to the wall and walk to the bedside. She stumbled along the way, but luckily she did not fall. She successfully dug out the old notepad from the bedside drawer. .
This was found in the attic of the former residence of Catalina's great-grandfather's brother, Silver Knight Galt. Because it was so deeply hidden, everyone thought it was some kind of secret note written with invisible ink—but after searching through many chemists and alchemists, they discovered it was just an ordinary blank page.
So, as the Silver Knight's number one fan, Catalina was honored to get this notebook from her father. The dark green old book cover can still smell the faint smell of leather, and there is a bookmark made of sterling silver leaves inside.
Catalina wrote her self-introduction on the homepage in crooked handwriting:
[Dear Diary: This is the first time we meet. I am Catalina from the Oakland family. Please take good care of me in the future. 】
This was a habit that her tutor guided her to develop when she was a child: Due to physical reasons, Catalina was unable to study in school. Most of her knowledge came from tutors and self-study out of interest.
Just when she was hesitating about how to write what she saw today and her thoughts after reading the knight novel into her diary, a line of pale flame text appeared on the old beige page:
[Hello, Catalina. 】
