Yarra's Adventure Notes-Chapter 1370 - 156 Consensus Reached

"Is that your answer?" Pannis tapped his forefinger on the stone tabletop, slowly drumming it, despite receiving no response from the other party, only prolonged silence. Yet Pannis acted as if he had heard an answer, stroking his chin with his other hand at the same frequency as the tapping, nodding affirmatively. He chuckled softly, "A very interesting answer, isn’t it?"

The one he had asked was naturally Catherine, seated at the other end. The knightly girl mirrored Pannis’s actions and expressions, equally stroking her chin without responding immediately. After some contemplation, she offered Pannis a faint smile and said softly, "Indeed, a very interesting answer, and to be honest, I like it."

"What a coincidence, I like it too," Pannis picked up his wine glass and clinked it gently against the one in front of Saen, speaking languidly, "Hmm, I like it, and I like it very much."

"Even when faced with the commands of a deity, your hearts hesitate. This alone indicates that you do not harbor the idea of attacking the living or destroying their world. Otherwise, you wouldn’t need to hesitate," Catherine sighed in relief, as though a weight had lifted off her chest. She spoke with a smiling face, "Knowing this is already enough for us. Perhaps, I’m just saying perhaps, the wish of the undead that Shiela spoke of earlier might actually come true? After all, the world is so vast, anything could happen."

"Yes, the world is so vast, there are always unexpected events," Shiela repressed the jubilation in her soul, striving to appear normal. The female ghost had never envied Saen, who was but a skeleton with a glistening cranium like jade, as he couldn’t betray emotions through expressions and thus avoided the struggle she now faced. Shiela maintained a composed smile and probed cautiously, "Yet, aren’t you really worried about the question you raised earlier? If a god were to issue such an oracle, we cannot even ensure that in the end, we wouldn’t carry out that command."

"Of course, we’re worried. It’s a very important matter; how could we not be?" Catherine gestured towards her companions with a hand and said, "I, we, everyone, is concerned. But that is the issue we need to resolve, it has nothing to do with you. Don’t forget, we are guests, guests of your master. It is our responsibility to convince your master not to entertain such terrible thoughts. It’s true that you cannot predict your choices when faced with a dilemma, so why not create a situation where you won’t have to face any dilemma in the first place?"

"When you discover some questions cannot be decided upon, it might help to consider a different approach, address the root problem and eliminate the need for a choice. That’s the best way," Pannis said indolently, hands behind his head, "A lion once made a wise statement; instead of adding water to a pot to delay it from boiling, it’s better to simply take out the firewood from the stove. Hmm, but then the food won’t cook. Never mind that, it’s not important. We’ll take care of this trouble, and as for how... that will be our secret."

"This statement? Our king seemed to have mentioned it too," Shiela said, surprised. "He said it was referred to in the master’s oracle. How could you... "

"Shh," Pannis pressed his finger to his lips in a silencing gesture, speaking mysterously, "There are things you need not ask, for if you do, I wouldn’t tell you anyway. Let me keep a sense of mystery; it’s much better that way."

"Rattle rattle," Saen made a clicking sound incomprehensible to the living as he caressed his shiny skull, slowly nodding.

"That’s true. If they had no connection with the master, why would he have invited them alone?" Shiela laughed at herself and shook her head, "It seems my question was foolish to begin with, no wonder you didn’t answer. But are you truly confident in persuading the master to ensure that he will not make a dangerous decision?"

"No one can be sure about such matters; even between people, persuading each other can sometimes be a difficult affair, let alone when the other party is a god looking down upon the mortal world," Catherine sighed, "But now that it has come to this, all we can do is try our best."

"No, we are confident," Pannis suddenly interrupted Catherine, asserting confidently, "A large part of why we accepted the invitation is to prevent some undesirable events from occurring. If we weren’t confident, we wouldn’t have come at all. It’s precisely because the master understands this that he was so certain we would accept his invitation."

"Pannis, you..." Catherine turned sharply towards him, hesitating as if wanting to say something, then she just sighed softly and said with a wry smile, "Well, when you think about it carefully, it essentially is true."

"Alright then, let’s celebrate the preliminary consensus we’ve reached," Pannis winked at Catherine to avoid dwelling on this sensitive topic. Lingering on it might let the undead gathered here in celebration guess something about their unconventional method to persuade the master; if the undead discovered their plan, those eagerly hospitable excited creatures present might not remain as warm and welcoming as before. Thus, Pannis deliberately changed the subject, raising his glass with a jovial smile, "In the history of the Yarran Continent, there has never been a large-scale peaceful coexistence between the living and the dead. This time, let us be the ones to make history and bridge the gap between the living and the undead."

"We hope that this goal can be achieved soon." Shiela and Saen raised their glasses in unison, "We have longed to visit our homeland for so long, sometimes we even dare not dream that such a day would truly come. Thank you very much..."

"Hmm, I think we can hold off on those words for a moment," Pannis’s ears twitched as he slowly set down his wine glass, pursing his lips, "Otherwise, I suspect we’ll have to repeat them shortly."

"Hmm?" Shiela paused momentarily, "Why? Oh, they’re almost here now, I didn’t expect that you, as a guest, would perceive it before us."

"If it were you, I definitely wouldn’t have noticed before you," Pannis remarked, "But among those undead who are coming, there are more than just ghosts. The sound of their footsteps and the scraping of their bones seem to travel further than energy, don’t they?"

"Ah, I can hear it now," only then did Catherine begin to hear a series of messy footsteps approaching from outside the tavern, "Such chaotic footsteps."