One-Eyed Monster

”Why do you all have such astonished expressions? I’m telling you, my identity as an apothecarist is legitimate, so don’t be so surprised!” said Perkins.

”Well, because...” Igor didn’t know what to say. In short, Igor couldn’t articulate himself clearly; he had never heard of the profession of apothecarist before.

”Brother Perkins, do you really know what you’re talking about?” Hustace couldn’t bear it anymore. He really didn’t want to see his brother Perkins lost in his own world again, unable to pull himself out.

Hustace’s question made Perkins a bit surprised; he didn’t quite understand: ”What do you mean? I don’t understand. Of course, I know what I’m talking about!”

”But you keep saying things that are quite illogical, Brother Perkins!” Hustace couldn’t hold back any longer. He wanted to pull Perkins back to reality because he didn’t want his brother to be consumed by fantasy.

This was indeed something incomprehensible.

Perkins looked at Hustace with not a hint of anger, but instead, he was smiling, ”Hehehe, why don’t you tell me? What did I say that’s illogical?”

Perkins seemed genuinely curious. He was quite clear about what he was saying, and now that Hustace said it was illogical, he was quite eager to know.

”Brother Perkins, I know you’re in pain inside because you can’t be one of the adventurers with class, but indulging in your own world is wrong!” Hustace began to persuade sincerely, feeling there was a need to pull his brother back.

”I’m not indulging in my own world; this is our world too. Why do you see it that way?” Perkins was feeling confused. What was Hustace thinking?

”Brother Perkins, admitting mistakes bravely is not a shameful thing.” Hustace was getting anxious, almost rambling.

”What mistake have I made?” Perkins looked at Igor, hoping for some help from him.

Igor was at a loss, not knowing what to say. He had no clue what Hustace was talking about either.

Nakasha, however, was quite relaxed because he felt this situation was advantageous to him. Someone always lost in their world, what credibility would their words have? Not much.

”Brother Perkins, let me tell you now, just how unrealistic the things you’ve said are.”

”Okay, go ahead, tell me, I’m curious too.” Perkins was very curious; he couldn’t understand how something he had personally experienced could be called unrealistic.

”You just said Queen Wensi is breathtakingly beautiful; do you really not know that Queen Wensi wears a mask? How many people in the world have seen her true face!” Hustace exclaimed. He believed just citing this example would wake his brother up.

”Oh, you mean that? Indeed, Queen Wensi wears a mask, but it’s not like she wears it all the time.” Perkins was unconcerned.

”That’s not the point, Brother Perkins. The point is not many people have seen Queen Wensi’s true face, not even our King Kayne!” Hustace said.

”Uh, coincidentally, I happen to have one of Queen Wensi’s masks. Originally, it had many garnets on it, but later, you know, we dug them out to exchange for money at the Gold Room to stay at an inn!” Perkins said, then dragged out a box from under his feet and took out a mask from it.

The mask looked ordinary, without any special features, but it was somewhat exaggerated. Upon close examination, you could see many small holes on it.

Hustace thought, my brother Perkins must be deeply poisoned to be this imaginative. How could just randomly grabbing a mask be Queen Wensi’s; this was simply too far-fetched!

Igor examined the mask: ”Why does this material look so special and yet so ordinary?”

”At least you have some insight. This mask isn’t made of ordinary materials; it’s ground from the shells of pearls from the deep sea and then reconsolidated. This method, there are probably only a few people on this continent who know it, although many dwarves possess this skill...” Perkins began to chatter on again.

”Enough! Brother Perkins, you can’t keep doing this!” Hustace almost shouted.

”Huh? What am I doing?” Perkins was puzzled.

”You can’t just pick any mask and claim it’s the real deal!”

”This really isn’t just any mask; this truly is Queen Wensi’s mask.” Perkins said, ”If you don’t believe me, feel it yourself, Hustace.”

”I’m not looking. From the start till now, you’ve been saying things that are baseless. Do you really not know how childish this is?”

”Huh?” Perkins felt quite puzzled as to why Hustace was upset.

At this moment, Stan Sol picked up the mask. Igor had been playing with it for a while before handing it to Stan Sol. Igor felt that Stan Sol could clarify the doubts because the Sol Family had spent a long time in the Vero Realm, and with their special status, Stan Sol should be quite skilled in such matters.

Sol stroked the mask, then flicked it with his fingers.

A clear, melodious sound rang out, spreading beautifully inside the carriage.

This sound silenced even the previously anxious Hustace. For such an ordinary-looking mask to produce this sound, it definitely wasn’t just any mask.

Stan Sol handed the mask back to Igor and nodded.

”Sol says this is indeed Queen Wensi’s mask!” Igor said, unable to contain his own excitement.

Hustace was shocked. He looked up at his brother, who was looking at him with a smile as if nothing had happened.

This feeling was really unpleasant, like a runner suddenly tripped.

In the carriage, aside from Igor, everyone was astonished, and their understanding was overturned.

Could it be that all the things Perkins said were true?

A lot of things defied logic, how could anyone accept this!

This feeling was really unpleasant; everyone felt a bit dumbfounded because truly, when the facts you believe are overturned, it’s like getting a hard slap in the face.

Hustace felt a stab in his heart; he didn’t know what to say. If everything his brother Perkins said was true, then did that mean all the knowledge he had acquired from books was false?

This question temporarily troubled Hustace...