"I originally thought it was the Triclops Demon, because even the Half-Blood Demon became a guard, so it made sense for a Demon Dominator to appear. But unexpectedly, it turned out to be the Triclops Blue Demon..." Vay murmured, narrating his feelings.
Although the others didn’t speak, most of them felt similarly to Vay. Because Day had previously raised their psychological expectations to a sufficiently high level, yet they hadn’t anticipated that the birth of that entity would be so unique.
No wonder Day had previously said with deep meaning that they would definitely be surprised to see that entity.
And why Day mentioned that the Wood Spirit would be scared when seeing that entity and still doesn’t trust it. Now they understood, because in the Wood Spirit’s eyes, judging by appearance, the Triclops Blue Demon is taller and more terrifying, much more intimidating compared to the Ghosteye Witch’s slender figure.
"I also didn’t expect the Triclops Blue Demon in the intelligence to be an entity we can’t afford to offend." Angel’s face showed an apologetic expression.
Before this, the projections in the Nightmare Realm were weak becoming strong, even becoming unpredictably powerful. But unexpectedly, when it came to the Triclops Blue Demon, it went the opposite way.
It was precisely because of this misinformation that Angel made an incorrect judgment.
"No need to blame yourself, sir. This outcome was beyond our expectations. Moreover, isn’t there a solution now? As long as we can subdue that Wood Spirit, the problem can be solved easily." Undoubtedly, the one speaking was the newly initiated little fanboy, Vay.
Vay completely stood on Angel’s perspective, which is why he thought this way.
But others had some different thoughts.
For instance, Dox: "Is the intelligence you received so unreliable? The Triclops Blue Demon wasn’t even marked as untouchable, just listed alongside the Ghosteye Witch like that?"
Dox’s tone carried a touch of complaint, but he didn’t directly blame Angel, instead using it as an opportunity to criticize the source of the intelligence. If Angel were to respond to him, besides sharing indignation, most likely he could only explain the source of the intelligence, which was precisely Dox’s intent.
Angel understood Dox’s intention, but he still couldn’t disclose the intelligence source, so he chose to express with silence.
As the atmosphere grew increasingly tense, the Black Earl suddenly initiated a ’private chat’ with Angel as the conversation target.
"Speaking quietly again, is there anything that can’t be discussed together? Let’s deliberate it openly." Dox, sensing this, immediately voiced his thoughts and tried to involve Kaier and Vay, but those two quietly stepped back...
Yet the Black Earl completely disregarded Dox, in the private chat channel, he asked Angel: "Are you sure the deviation in your intelligence source has occurred?"
Angel: "At least from my intelligence source, the Triclops Blue Demon is not worth mentioning."
The Black Earl listened, falling into contemplation. After a long pause, he said: "Is your intelligence source Sanders?"
Angel remained silent.
It could be said to be Sanders, but actually, it was more what he witnessed personally. However, for the Black Earl to suddenly mention Sanders, had he guessed something?
From Angel’s understanding, those who know Sanders can go to the Nightmare Realm are basically the highest core layers of the Barbarian Cave, and only outsiders like Greya know.
Could it be that there’s now another who knows, the Black Earl? The Black Earl has a good relationship with Rhein, and seems to have a love-hate relationship with Sanders, could he truly know the secret of the Nightmare Realm?
While Angel was caught up in wild thoughts, the Black Earl didn’t continue to probe further, instead he said: "I understand."
Angel: "??????"
What do you understand? Did you figure out the Nightmare Realm? Or was it something else?
Angel was full of doubts, yet the Black Earl said with deep implications: "After we leave the relics this time, I will have a chat with Sanders."
Angel: "...chat about what?"
Could it be that the Black Earl doesn’t know about the Nightmare Realm, he just guessed that Sanders was the intelligence source?
If that were the case, then... then it actually isn’t bad. Besides, Sanders has already taken the blame for him several times, it wouldn’t make a difference one more time.
The first time Sanders took the fall for Angel, he was anxious; but now, although his emotions were still complex, he was at peace with it. Moreover, in this incident, Sanders truly cannot be disentangled.
After all, it was Sanders’s projection that killed the Triclops Blue Demon in the Nightmare Realm before.
After the private chat ended, the Black Earl told everyone: "If you can find the Wood Spirit, then do your best to find it. If that doesn’t work, we can always choose another entrance."
The Underground Labyrinth isn’t limited to one path, there is always a path that avoids that entity.
Even though the Black Earl didn’t mention Angel in his words, everyone clearly felt that he and Angel probably established some sort of agreement, at least the Black Earl believed Angel’s statement.
Dox was eager to inquire about what they talked about, but after holding back for a long time, he only managed a flattering line: "Anyway, I am also an Official Wizard. Next time when you chat, could you include me?"
Angel and the Black Earl tacitly chose to ignore Dox.
And they found a very convincing excuse: the mascot’s current inspiration has begun to deliberately act up, it’s better not to listen to him at all now.
As for whether this is the real reason, it doesn’t matter.
"Sir, you mentioned earlier that the situation changed, may I know what situation?" Vay suddenly asked.
Although this question was of concern to everyone, Dox always felt that Vay was helping Angel change the subject... hmph, the guy who stands against us.
The Black Earl: "Weren’t you all guessing where my last scent mark was left earlier? Now I can tell you the answer, near that narrow path."
"Narrow path?" Angel paused, hesitantly said: "Sir, are you referring to that small rectangular narrow passage on top of the high wall, resembling a dog hole?"
The Black Earl nodded: "That’s right."
Everyone recalled that dog hole at this time, they had even thought about whether to walk through it, but under Dox’s suggestion, they took the main path. As it turned out, Dox’s suggestion was reliable then, as the dog hole didn’t necessarily lead anywhere, but the main path led to the Hanging Jail Stairway.
"I was originally planning to place the tracking point inside that narrow path, but my intuition told me something was off about that path, so I spent some magic power and placed the scent mark point in high altitude."
As to why not place it on the ground, everyone didn’t need to ask because there were many mutated Carrion Squirrels on that path...
"Sir, do you think there’s a problem with the path itself, or a problem at the end of the path?" Angel questioned.
"I couldn’t determine the situation back then, perhaps it’s the path itself, or perhaps it’s something within the path that made me feel uneasy, regardless, I gave up placing the scent mark point on that narrow path."
Black Earl: "And what happened later proved my decision was correct."
When they met Day, the Black Earl first discovered an anomaly with that narrow path.