Volume 1: The Nobles Who Lost Their Territory Chapter 19 The World of Oil Painting
The headless girl Varissa.
Marvin suddenly remembered this name.
When he was playing games in his previous life, he often took time to browse game posts and forums. One time, he saw a picture posted by an anonymous ID.
The picture shows an accessory that looks like a gentian flower.
The accessory was a faint light item, but its effect was amazing. Marvin still remembers its properties:
[Valissa's Gift]
Quality: Glimmer
Effect: Fear Resistance +10
Requirements: Help the headless girl fulfill her wish.
…
There is no doubt that this is a mission reward item.
The guy's purpose of showing off his equipment was probably to show off, and most people would forget it after seeing it. Fortunately, Marvin had a good memory and was able to recall the properties of that thing.
Perhaps there were too few items in this world that could increase fear resistance. The few that existed were extremely difficult to obtain, as far as Marvin could remember.
Originally, I had no idea what this gift from Valissa was.
But now he suddenly figured it out. The anonymous player posted the picture exactly one week after the Scarlet Monastery dungeon was opened.
That guy might be one of the first players to enter the Scarlet Monastery and trigger the Headless Girl's quest.
"Valissa...why can't I look at you?"
After thinking through the whole process, Marvin's mind became active.
He could feel that the girl didn't seem to have any ill intentions.
"Because I look extremely scary now. Every normal human being will be cursed with fear after seeing me. You might go crazy."
Valissa explained, "So, please don't turn around and look at me, okay?"
Marvin nodded.
The headless girl was probably under the spell of [Strong Fear] or something like that. Anyone who saw her true form would face a fear test.
Although Marvin thought that his soul was strong, if his body couldn't bear it and he failed the test, he would be doomed. It was better for him not to take the risk.
"Why did you show up?" he asked tentatively.
"My head was stolen by a despicable person. Can you help me get it back?" Valisa said quietly.
In the silent room, the girl's voice seemed a little creepy.
Marvin looked down at the shadow on the ground.
Under the moonlight, a vague outline appeared on the ground.
"Damn, it really has no brains!"
Ma Wen cursed inwardly, it really is the [Headless Girl].
He laughed dryly, "I'm just an ordinary human. What makes you think I can help you?"
"I can sense that you have a strong will. And you are very skilled in martial arts." Valyssa whispered, "You are good at stealth and can easily steal my head without being discovered by that despicable guy."
"I need more detailed information to decide whether to intervene in your affairs." Marvin spread his hands: "I don't want to lose my life."
…
Ten minutes later, a sneaky shadow returned to the ghost corridor.
He approached the last painting: The Headless Girl.
After careful consideration, he finally accepted the task at Valissa's request.
Items that can increase fear resistance are rare. In addition, this mission should not require any physical effort, just stealing things, so he is still very experienced.
After he agreed to the headless girl's request, a new task suddenly appeared in Marvin's task bar.
Marvin already knew the content of the mission, but the reward was a series of question marks.
This kind of random task has always been a gamble on luck, but fortunately Marvin already knows what the task reward is.
Following Varissa's instructions, he gently placed his hands on the painting.
"Relax, relax."
Valissa's gentle voice came to his ears.
"Close your eyes."
"Now, take a step forward."
Marvin did so.
Creak! A door was pushed open by him. He closed his eyes and took two steps forward. The surrounding environment suddenly changed from silence to noise.
Birds were singing on the branches, and he seemed to be in a forest.
The next second, Marvin opened his eyes and found that he was indeed in a small forest!
[You discovered the mysterious place——Bokenning]
[Your Knowledge - Strange Stories +5]
[Knowledge - Strange Stories - Bokenning World]: This is a twisted space composed of oil paintings, located between the Fenan Continent and the evil spirit world. It looks like an ordinary farm, but the evil spirit messenger Morris rules every inch of land here. The patrol crows and the black knights are his two major forces. Here, all beautiful things are false.
[You have entered the world of oil painting——Bokening...]
The air is filled with the chirping of birds and the scent of life.
Behind him was an old locust tree that was about to die. He remembered the appearance and location of the tree. This was the route he would take when he returned.
The soul of the headless girl could not enter , so he had to act alone.
His target was a castle on a hill in Bokenning. The castle belonged to a local lord, an old man named Maurice, who was said to be an evil spirit messenger from the lower plane, specializing in extracting people's souls and sealing them in his own oil painting world.
You have to be careful when you act in such a place, otherwise you might end up staying in this horrible oil painting world forever.
Valissa's head is hidden in Maurice's bedroom in the castle. Marvin must sneak in, steal the head, and then hand it over to Valissa herself.
In this way, Vanessa's soul can be freed and Marvin's mission is accomplished.
"If it was a high-level evil spirit messenger, it shouldn't be impossible for him to subdue the soul of a girl with strong willpower."
"That Morris is probably an ordinary evil spirit messenger. He should be a second-level sorcerer or something like that."
"It's a pity that the concentration of holy water sold by the Church of the Silver God is too low. If we can get the No. 13 holy water, we might have a chance to kill Morris."
The evil spirits are different from the ghouls, although they may both be sorcerers, they are of different races. The evil spirits in the lower planes are very evil, have strong vitality, and are not human like the ghouls, who have fatal weaknesses.
Marvin tiptoed out of the forest and came to a small hill.
Looking out from the hill, there is a field in the distance where large fields of wheat are growing vigorously and some figures are appearing and disappearing in the fields.
That is a farmer working on his field.
This is a real world.
"It's amazing..." Marvin exclaimed in amazement.
At the end of the wheat field was a hill with a castle on it. Marvin crossed the wheat field without disturbing anyone.
His stealth skills are perfect, and although they are limited by his skill level, they are still very effective.
Soon, he arrived at the foot of the castle.
Outside the castle, there is only a single-plank bridge, and the other three directions are all cliffs.
At the other end of the single-plank bridge, there was a small team of guards guarding it.
“It’s a bit tricky .”
Marvin didn't dare try to sneak in under the noses of these guards, that would undoubtedly be courting death.
Stealth is not invisibility. Besides, it is broad daylight now, so the effect of stealth will be very weak.
It seems that I can only wait until night time to take action.
He found a secluded place to rest.
…
In the evening, an ox cart set out from a farm at the foot of the mountain and slowly moved towards the castle.
Marvin, who was hiding in the dark, suddenly brightened up his eyes.
"Hmm? The oxcart is loaded with vegetables and fruits? And potatoes?"
"That peasant is trying to get into the castle!"
“There is a way!”
He ran over quickly.
…
The farmer driving the ox cart waved his whip leisurely, and the old ox moved forward hesitantly on the path step by step.
After turning a small bend, the farmer suddenly saw a flash of silver in his peripheral vision!
"Huh!?"
He stopped the car immediately and jumped out.
That's a piece of silver!
Small change is hard currency everywhere, even in Bokenning.
The farmer showed a happy expression, looked around, hid the silver change close to his body, then got back into the car and continued towards the castle.
The farmer who was moving slowly forward did not notice that there was an extra person under his ox cart.
Marvin spread his limbs out, just enough to get stuck in the depression in the floor under the ox cart.
Fortunately, he is only 14 years old and thin, so his body can barely hide here.
He had had similar experiences when he was on a mission before, but at that time, he used the assassin's special [Bone Shrinking Technique] to change his body shape.
Five minutes later, the ox cart arrived at the castle gate.
After a brief check, the guard let me go.
Marvin was so tired that his limbs were weak under the car, but he still gritted his teeth and persisted. This was the safest way to enter the castle.
The ox cart moved , probably heading towards the kitchen or warehouse.
Marvin carefully stuck his head out and when he saw that there was no one around, he suddenly let go and fell to the ground silently.
The ox cart passed by leisurely, and the driver was unaware.
Marvin looked around, turned on stealth, and quickly entered the main hall of the castle.
… …
The city lord's bedroom is easy to find; it's in the highest room of the castle.
Generally speaking, only a mentally ill person would set a booby trap in their bedroom.
Marvin waited until night, and after confirming from the servants' conversation that the city lord Morris would spend the night in the laboratory, he decisively sneaked into the gloomy room.
He fumbled around the house for a while and touched some random things - bat claws, human skulls, devil's hand bones... In short, some materials for casting spells.
After a lot of effort, he found a package from a pile of debris.
The package was wrapped in dark cloth and nailed on the outside with special nails that had some strange patterns on them.
This is exactly what Varissa described.
"The transformation spell for the evil spirit servant?"
Marvin recognized these patterns. It turned out that the evil spirit messenger had transformed Valissa into an evil spirit servant. No wonder he was reluctant to destroy her soul all at once.
He hid the package in the Conch of the Void and was about to leave.
Who knew that at this moment, footsteps were heard outside the bedroom.
Ma Wen's heart tightened and he rolled over and hid under the bed.
The next second, the fire lit up and a pair of feet wearing cloth shoes appeared in his sight.
