The Innkeeper

Chapter 2207: Limelight

Vana stared at Callon, an unsaid question in his eyes. He wondered if they had been sucked into a hyper realistic dream such that they were unable to differentiate between the dream and reality. After all, it was easier to believe that they were trapped in a dream that had fooled them than the fact that the Midnight Inn was conveniently running a tavern inside one of the most notoriously difficult realms to navigate.

How could there be such convenience- nay, such luxury found in the middle of what was effectively a death sentence for most living beings? It was not just the convenient freedom from the laws and restrictions of the Dream realm that made the existence of the tavern so surreal.

No, there was more to it. There was an old goat with a long, white beard, sitting in a field of reeds, playing some exotic version of a guitar. The calm yet beautiful melody was spreading throughout the entire space, as if welcoming all incoming guests to salvation from what would have certainly been their demise had they not escaped.

Nearby, in a half open tent, a number of survivors were celebrating by preparing and marinating some meat for a celebratory festival. In another corner, Vana spotted some dwarves, working together to create some quickly formed, yet classic mead. Callon, instead, noticed twelve beautiful Valkyries that were patrolling the space, checking everything from time to time.

As if that sight was not enough, he noticed that high up in the clouds, directly above the tavern, there was a juvenile Kun Peng circling the tavern, as if keeping an eye on things. Even more absurd was that upon the Kun Peng stood a human!

While many might not realise the relevance of such a thing, as a member of one of the older races of the universe, Callon had access to some ancient records which mentioned the glory and majesty of Kun Pengs!

"If you need anything, feel free to reach out to one of our workers - they’ll help you out. I need to get back to work," said Leonidus, before nodding to them and stepping back out of the Inns space. He had already sent a secret message to the other workers letting them know that the dwarf was going to be a... challenging guest. It was best to keep an eye on him to make sure there were no accidents.

"It seems like we’ll be able to return safe and sound," said Callon as relief finally began to settle in, replacing the tension that had gripped him for so long.

"Yeah," responded Vana, as if he was distracted.

Vana had not known much about the Midnight Inn, but as he looked at the surroundings, and saw the relaxed atmosphere, and all the other guests getting ready for what promised to be a grand picnic, he could not help but feel that he needed to memorise everything he saw.

No matter what, it was a fact that his ancestor was not a fan of the Inn. If he could learn some key information about the Inn and present it to him, it might win him some favor!

Conveniently, he did not need to identify what was, and wasn’t important himself. He merely needed to take in all that the Inn had to show him. His ancestor could sift through Vana’s memories and find the important things himself.

He glanced at Callon, and saw that he was looking up in the sky. He glanced, and saw some kind of big fish flying in clouds with a human on its back. He rolled his eyes.

"Now that we’re safe, I think it’s a good time to part ways," Vana tells Callon. "Hopefully the next time we run into each other, it will be in better circumstances."

Callon woke up from his reverie and looked towards the dwarf. Honestly, he did not mind splitting at all! Historically speaking, Elves and Dwarves hardly ever got along, almost as if they were natural enemies. It was only due to growing universal pressure that the two races had temporarily set aside their differences for the sake of mutual survival.

"It was a pleasure," Callon lied, and nodded. Although they had both helped each other survive this long, neither of them wanted to spend any more time here than necessary.

Vana and Callon were just the latest guests to arrive at the tavern, but they were certainly not going to be the last.

As the rescued guests used the tavern to leave the Dream realm and then either go to the Midnight Realm or the Origin realm, word began to spread that the Inn had access to the Dream realm.

Previously, many forces had been working to restrict the Midnight Inns’ reach across the universe because it could seriously compromise their plans. Now, however, the Midnight Inn became a lifeline for them to rescue their respective members who had been lost to the Dream realm.

Many forces wondered if they should ingratiate themselves, or if they should go seek out an alliance, or maybe even threaten the Inn. But as time passed and more and more guests were rescued, leaving the Dream realm, everyone realized it was not necessary.

True to its reputation, the Midnight Inn accepted all guests as long as they obeyed the rules of the Inn. Sensing the lack of discrimination, and the fact that the Inn was already seemingly conducting a rescue operation, many forces of the universe formed a tacit understanding to not interfere with the Midnight Inn.

Of course, no one could say for certain what some might do in secret. Being in the limelight was never good unless one had the strength to survive it. Now, with Wu Kong conveniently missing from the Midnight Inn, some may develop ideas about testing the waters.

While all of this was happening, Lex sat in his office, frowning. Everything was going smoothly. The operation was a success, and rescue efforts were under way. It would take time, yes, but there were ways to increase the efficiency of the rescue efforts themselves.

In fact, he’d already assigned many quests within Obsidian to acquire items that might help expedite the rescue. Yet he could not help but shake the feeling that he could rescue everyone else, yet Almira would remain out of reach.

There was no solid reason for such a feeling. It was simply an instinct. The thing was, though, that Lex trusted his instincts quite a lot. That could only mean one thing - someone, or something was preventing him from rescuing Almira.