Like a fearless warrior, [ Howling Pothos ] reappeared at the cave entrance from last night. His timing was perfect; it was still afternoon, not yet time for Enzo and the Living Wood People to be released from their enclosures.
Emerging from the ice cave and confirming that no one else was watching, [ Howling Pothos ] quickly slipped into an alley and made her way to Enzo's house, enveloped in the biting wind and her soaked coat.
This is now his base in Fir City, and of course, he still needs to talk to Enzo about it.
Using the wooden strips that Directed Alienation to probe the crack in the door and lift the bolt, [ Howling Pothos ] slipped into the room she had only seen once at dawn.
Everything here seemed normal, except for one cold, expressionless corpse lying on the bed.
What's even more amazing is that the person had the exact same face as him.
[ Howling Pothos ] carefully examined its own "corpse" on the bed; this feeling was something not everyone could experience.
After examining it for a while, he began to transfer the important items from his previous body, including the custom-made weapon fastened to his right arm and the various equipment in his pockets, all of which were quickly transferred to this new body.
After finishing this task, it gradually grew dark, and [ Howling Pothos ] began to wait for Enzo's return.
but...
He thought for a moment, then looked at his own corpse; the rationality of a professional gamer once again took over the majority of his thoughts.
This corpse of mine is worth a gold coin; is there any way to make use of it?
Retrieving this thing is obviously unrealistic. Swimming from the ice cave in Fir City to the outside of the city is already going against the current, and being able to carry some light items is already the limit.
As for finding Dragonborn NPC to run the corpse out, that's utter nonsense. Given the danger level in Fir City, not to mention whether the corpse could even be successfully evacuated, the cost alone would definitely exceed one gold coin.
But simply throwing the body away would be too wasteful...
[ Howling Pothos ] thought long and hard and finally came up with a good way to dispose of the corpse--
Give this to Enzo.
The sunlight disappeared beyond the walls of Fir City, and accompanied by the beating of military drums and the instructions of the night watchmen, the few local residents on the streets began to hurry home.
Soon it was completely dark, and accompanied by howls and wails, the tree-man monsters began to pour out of the dungeons beneath the cathedral, once again sweeping through the city.
About half an hour later, Enzo arrived near his house as promised and began to carefully observe the inconspicuous ice hole by the river, hoping that someone would crawl out of it.
However, a series of footsteps quickly interrupted his expectations. The treant turned around and saw that [ Howling Pothos ] had come from behind, dragging something that looked like a corpse behind it.
The Soul Returner looked at the Treant and took out a wooden carving, specially packaged to protect it from bumps and knocks, from his pocket:
"Your sister asked me to show this to you. Now can you trust me?"
Enzo thought for a moment about the origin of the wood carving, nodded, and asked:
"Have they arrived safely?"
"Not yet. They have now entered the Second Holy See's sphere of influence, but they are still several days' journey from the place I have prepared for them."
Seeing Enzo's somewhat anxious expression, [ Howling Pothos ] continued:
"But you don't need to worry, a Holy Crusaders squad of about ten people will escort them safely to their destination."
Enzo thought for a moment, then took the wooden carving and placed it into a hole in his body.
It then pointed behind the [ Howling Pothos ]:
What are you dragging along?
[ Howling Pothos ] released her grip on the ankle and said:
"It's a gift from me to you."
To Enzo's astonishment, [ Howling Pothos ] stepped aside, allowing him to see the face of the corpse on the ground.
The tree-man's astonished expression shifted back and forth between the two [ Howling Pothos ] creatures, one dead and one alive, and he was momentarily speechless.
"Don't worry about it. Just like how you can enter this tree-like state, everyone has their own secrets."
As it spoke, it pulled its own corpse forward:
"Take it. You go out every day but never bring back any prey. You might get punished for it."
This was the truth, but it was a bit too blunt. However, Enzo didn't seem to care. After thinking for a while, he said:
"In reality, most of us experimental subjects are unable to bring our prey back. After all, Fir City is just too big, making it difficult to capture you so-called rebels."
[ Howling Pothos ] was even more delighted upon hearing this:
"Then you should definitely take it back."
That's true. [ Howling Pothos ] originally thought Enzo would be "optimized" out by the prison warden for slacking off, but now the warden is telling him that most of the tree people are actually slacking off.
Although this slacking off wasn't something he intentionally did, the warden was clearly a results-oriented person, and the only explanation for not bringing back any prey was slacking off.
If his body could make Enzo gain the warden's favor, perhaps the subsequent plans would go much more smoothly.
After handing his corpse over to Enzo, the tree-man hung it between two subtly angled branches, creating an effect similar to "hanging himself from a southeast branch."
The tree-man looked at the Soul Returner was much shorter than him, and asked:
"I approve of you, so how would you like to collaborate with me?"
[ Howling Pothos ] had thought about this before. Now that Enzo's family has become a weakness, theoretically, the other party has settled their mind and can go all out.
But firstly, it wasn't the right time yet, and secondly, [ Howling Pothos ] didn't want to send him to risk his life so soon after establishing contact with him.
After thinking it over, [ Howling Pothos ] said:
"What I need you to do is simple. You don't need to come here every day anymore. Just join the hunt against us like the other tree people. There are just two things to keep in mind. First, if there are no other tree people around, you can let my companions go or help them a little. Second, if anything new happens in the prison, you need to keep me informed."
Enzo and asked:
"Then how can I find you?"
This is indeed a problem. [ Howling Pothos ] feels that it is usually quite free and does not usually refresh in one place.
He looked at Enzo and asked:
"There is a place that can serve as a regular meeting point, and it's not exactly a public place; it's relatively private."
"Where?"
"Your home."