"Merlin's beard …" Chloe moaned, unable to speak.
As usual, Anker ignored everyone and ran away.
The other three followed closely behind, none of them daring to risk their lives. The street had been swallowed by the fog, and they could not see anything. The man who had turned into a centipede was following Hoffa from behind, twisting his body in an extremely strange posture.
"Where should we go!?" Chloe asked anxiously.
"How do I know where to go?" Hoffa was going crazy. He pointed at Aldo as he ran. "Ask him! These are all projections from his subconscious! "
"Hey, pull yourself together!" Chloe cheered Aldo on.
Aldo's breathing was rapid, and he wanted to look behind him.
Chloe pressed his head firmly, not allowing him to look back. "Quick, think, where is the safest place for you!?"
Chloe's words seemed to have a strong calming effect. Aldo's emotions stabilized, and the thick fog dissipated in an instant.
This time, a hill forty to fifty meters high appeared in the fog. In the middle of the hill was an old and abandoned pit. The pit was paved with iron tracks, and it was probably a mine that used to produce coal.
There was no need for further reminders as the four of them rushed into the mineshaft.
As soon as they entered, the giant half-human half-insect monster behind them crashed heavily into the pit. The whole hill shook, and rocks fell.
There was a large amount of wood and stones in the cave. Hoffa did not dare to hesitate, and immediately broke the wooden beam that was used as support at the entrance of the mine. Losing its support, even more rubble fell down under the violent impact. It was not until the narrow hole was completely sealed that it regained its stability.
There was no light in the cave, and he panted as he retreated. He did not know whose leg he stepped on, but he fell to the ground with a thump. He was so tired that he could not move, and could not get up at all.
"Hiss!!"
The monster outside the cave let out a frightening cry, and countless legs pierced through the stone walls like extremely sharp metal javelins.
It was a nightmare.
"Shh! Shh! Shh … It's all over. It's all in the past. It doesn't exist. "
Chloe pressed down on Aldo's shoulder and quickly whispered into his ear. Finally, after he calmed down, the monster outside the cave quieted down, and the stomachs slowly disappeared.
Chloe stopped comforting her and leaned her head against the wall. She was so tired that she couldn't say a word. The other three weren't any better. Anker was panting heavily. He was the fastest among them. Aldo was still breathing heavily due to the shock. Hoffa was seizing the time to meditate and try his best to recover his magic power.
After an unknown period of time, a flame lit up in the dark cave.
It was Anker who lit a match.
Hoffa realized that he was leaning on Aldo's leg and moved away in disgust.
There were many old and decayed wooden boxes in the cave. Anker gathered some of them and started a fire in the middle of the four of them.
The fire lit up the cave. There was a huge shadow entrenched in the cave. When they saw the shadow, their hearts skipped a beat.
However, the shadow didn't move. Upon closer inspection, it was a rusty steam locomotive that was more than ten meters long. It was probably part of Aldo's childhood memory.
It was a false alarm.
They wiped the cold sweat off their foreheads at the same time.
Hoffa asked, "Aldo, is this cave safe? If the monster comes in again, we won't have anywhere to hide."
"It's absolutely safe here." Aldo's voice was as soft as a mosquito's. "When I was young, all my treasures were hidden in this cave. I was … When I was in a bad mood, I would often come here and sit for a while."
"Tsk," Anker snorted. "Don't talk about this nonsense. You seem to be highly valued by the higher-ups in the association. I didn't expect you to be so weak in real life. You can't even withstand the ravages of this inner demon. "
Aldo didn't refute. He sat in the corner and didn't speak.
"When we go back this time, don't blame me for reporting this in writing. Your condition is too unstable. I really don't know how you passed the assessment."
Anker kept scolding, but Hoffa stopped him.
"Alright, stop talking. If he's emotionally unstable, the monster will become stronger."
Anker had a stomach full of complaints, but he was also quite afraid of the monster in the nightmare. He chose to shut up.
The four of them stopped talking. They sat in a circle around the fire. A certain pessimistic mood began to spread among them.
Under the influence of the darkness, their minds seemed to have wings of imagination. They began to imagine things that might appear in the darkness.
Hoffa hit his head. He couldn't help but think of other people. He thought of himself in first grade playing cowboy and Native American games with two friends in the Hogwarts. His two friends would hide and sneak a peek outside. Then, they would sneak to another tree and hide again.
At this time, Hoffa could see their skirts or robes swaying in the mottled light in the forest. Then he would take out his magic wand and "fire" at them. But even if he hit them. They didn't want to dirty their clothes and always refused to lie on the grass and pretend to be dead.
As for Hoffa, he would die tragically and realistically every time. In his opinion, the purpose of this game was that his two friends wanted to see him die in various ways and then watch him roll on the ground and become dirty.
Thinking back, Hoffa couldn't help but think that since he came here from England, he had not sent any letters to his friends or mentors. All of his actions were secret to them.
So, he didn't receive any letters or postcards from Miranda, Dumbledore, or Ossivia. This was completely different from the future Harry's adventure fifty years later. Perhaps when he was on an adventure, his owl would travel around the world with letters in its mouth, allowing him to keep in close contact with the outside world.
If he wrote a message asking for help, saying that he wanted to eat chocolate cake, he should receive it in a few weeks.
Hoffa thought that if he died in this darkness, no one would know. Maybe to his friends, he was already dead when he decided to lose contact. Maybe Chloe was right. Double death had already befallen him. He had already decayed and fallen.
"Hoffa, how are we going to get out of here?"
Chloe's question interrupted his fantasy. He looked up and found that the two German wizards were also looking at him with bright eyes.
No one wanted to stay in this terrible place. They hoped that they could give some more important information.
Hoffa sighed and shook his head. "There's too little observable information. It's not enough to unravel the nature of this nightmare."
After a moment of silence, Anker stood up. "Enough. This dark place is really annoying. Sitting here is no different from waiting for death. I think it's better to take the initiative."
"Without magic, how are you going to attack?"
Hoffa sneered. "Even if the monster outside has magic, we may not be able to defeat it."
"What if Aldo loses consciousness?"
Anker said. Aldo was shocked. He looked at his cold-looking companion with a pale face.
Then, Anker suddenly pulled out a wooden stick that he had hidden behind his back and hit Aldo's head hard.
Thump!!
With a dull thud, Aldo fell to the ground.
His head swelled up at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Chloe gasped and shrank back. Hoffa immediately stood up, picked up a torch from the fire, and stood in front of Chloe.
Anker threw away the wooden stick in his hand, spread out his hands, and smiled. He put his hands behind his back and walked around the fire.
"When the nun was singing, I noticed that the more stable Aldo's emotions were, the weaker the monster. Could it be that if Aldo lost his emotions, the monster would disappear?"
Hoffa was speechless. He felt that it was possible. But to hit his companion with a stick just because of this conjecture, this guy was too heartless.
"Let's make a deal, Bach."
"What deal?"
"I'll collect observation information, and you'll think of a way to get us out of here. As a reward, after we get out, I'll let you and Miss Lemour go. How about that? "
"Aren't you afraid that your superiors will blame you?"
"To be honest, I don't care. Muller Manse is just a Muggle who knows how to paint a picture. I'm only working under him because of the Empire's Wizard Association's arrangement. Even if I can't complete his mission, he can't do anything to me. "
Hoffa looked at the unconscious Aldo on the ground and said slowly, "But I'd be too stupid to do a deal knowing that I'll be betrayed."
"Don't jump to conclusions, my dear Mr. Bach. This is just one part of the observation. If the monster outside disappears, it means that the nightmare is over. You've made a profit, if not … "
"If not."
Hoffa interrupted him.
"If not, we'll just continue the experiment." Anker smiled. "Until we find a way out of the dream."
Chloe whispered, "Don't agree, Hoffa." She walked to Aldo and pressed on his neck. "He's just using you."
"Using each other," Anker said confidently. "It seems that Miss Lemour doesn't understand the world of men at all."
"You're right. I can't find a reason to refuse."
Hoffa nodded. He walked to the blocked hole and put his ear to it. Anker shot a glance at the enraged Crowley and revealed a mocking smile.
After listening for a while, Hoffa turned his head. "There's no sound. Your method seems to be working."
"Great. Is the nightmare really over?" Anker picked up a torch and walked to the hole, putting his ear to it as well.
There was no sound outside. It was as quiet as a vacuum.
"It's working," Anker said.
Anker said, "But it's useless to just listen. We have to go out and take a look. Only then can we be sure that the monster really disappeared."
"You're right, f * cking right."
Hoffa said indifferently. He stepped aside. "Then you can open a path for us."
"You're so nice," Anker complained with a faint smile. He reached out to move the rubble that had been knocked down by the monster.
But when he touched it, his expression changed. He didn't know when, but the rubble had disappeared. In its place was a smooth and intact stone wall.
He couldn't believe it. He touched it again carefully.
There was no doubt that the stone wall was so intact that even the most delicate instruments couldn't find a crack. It was as if it had been perfect since the beginning of the world.
"What's going on?" Under the light of the torch, Anker's face was filled with confusion and fear.
Hoffa looked at him with a half-smile. "As you can see, we're completely trapped in the cave."
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