Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 914 - 31 The Courtyard in the Night

Chapter 914: Chapter 31 The Courtyard in the Night

Along the path, the night breeze carried the sweet scent of the grain from the fields on either side. Scattered ponds lay adjacent to the fields, with the croaking of frogs emanating from them, lending the night an even more tranquil air. In the middle of the road, a small river cut across at an angle, with a wooden bridge spanning it. Stepping on it, the bridge swayed gently. Beside the bridge, a waterwheel perched above the riverbed turned slowly with the fine flow of the stream, issuing a regular creaking sound.

Reaching the end of the path, there appeared a courtyard brimming with rustic charm, yet it was large, occupying a considerable expanse. Passing through the courtyard gate and over the stone walls, the sight that greeted was a verdant bamboo forest. A winding path snaked through the bamboo grove, leading deeper inwards. Behind the bamboo stood an artificial lake with a faux mountain placed at its heart and a few unknown green plants scattered atop the mountain. The path skirted around the lake, guiding travelers straight to a room illuminated by lamplight.

"Who on earth is inside?" Catherine asked for the third time, her curiosity piqued, "Why are you two being so secretive?"

"Heh, you’ll know once you go in," Pannis said with a mysterious smile, feigning ignorance, "Anyway, I’ve completed my task of bringing you here successfully, and with Maya and Tiya around, we can’t possibly be kicked out. So what happens next is none of my concern. As for who’s inside, that’s also none of my business. I’ve never been in there. But, Maya came from inside, she must know who’s in there. You can ask her, heh heh."

"It’s a human, of course," the winged girl also seemed to be intentionally helping Pannis with the concealment, speaking vaguely, "Humans, to us, pretty much all look alike. I can’t tell who he really is. Oh, if you recognize him, make sure to let me know too, so I can finally know who he is."

"You two..." Catherine, teeth clenched in frustration, glared at the two half-gods beside her who were deliberately playing dumb and huffed angrily, turning her head away, "Fine, I won’t ask you anymore, Pannis, just you wait, hmph."

"I’m innocent, I really don’t know anything," Pannis seemed not the least bit afraid, chuckling as he tried to reason, but before he could finish, another clear female voice interrupted from inside the room: "Haha, I can hear Kyle being silly as soon as I approach. You guys are so slow. Why is it taking you so long to get here? Dillie, Dillie, hurry up and open the door for them."

"Are you an idiot? Making me open the door for you. Watch it or I’ll bite you to death," the voice of the scorpion-tailed lion, Dillie, although sounding somewhat aged, was still filled with authority, "Have you ever seen a scorpion-tailed lion that opens doors? Use your brain, will you?"

"Haha, weren’t you bragging about how capable you are? How come you can’t handle such a simple thing?" "Exactly, exactly. Just yesterday, a certain lion was saying it knew how to do everything." "And even boasted about writing novels with a pen before." "Everyone knows it was Kera who helped you write it, actually." "That’s right, that’s right, in reality, you don’t know how to use a pen at all." "Yes, yes, a certain lion seems to think others don’t know." "In fact, everyone in the Yarran World already knows."

Inside and outside the house, two identical voices relentlessly attacked the unfortunate scorpion-tailed lion, alternating their coherent sentences as if they were one person, not requiring any breath or pause, their clear voices and rapid speech left no room for interjection or rebuttal. Therefore, after a dozen seconds, a lion’s roar ended the winged twins’ verbal onslaught, and the room filled with sounds of scuffling and Tiya’s ringing laughter, without doubt, the pair had completely forgotten the question of who would open the door.

However, if one listened carefully, amidst the chaos, there were still the sounds of footsteps gradually approaching the door—these seemed heavier, not the light steps of professionals, likely belonging to an ordinary person. The heavy footsteps reached the door and, with a creak, the decades-old door slowly opened. Just as the door opened, Maya of Light Feather squeezed past the person who had opened it, flapping her wings eagerly to join the sisters and the magical beast in their war, leaving the five members of the adventure team and the door opener exchanging puzzled looks at the entrance.

The moment Catherine’s gaze fell on the door opener, it cut across Pannis’s face like a knife, but Pannis was well-prepared, looking up at the eaves as if there was something very worthy of study there.

"I’ve memorized you," Catherine bit her lip and whispered a threat with lowered voice, then she flashed a perfect smile, gently hooking Pannis’s arm as if they were not in a quaint courtyard filled with rural charm, but at a noble banquet, and with an air of aristocratic propriety, greeted amidst unexpected but unsurprising giggles from Vivian and Freya behind her, "It is an honor to meet you, Marquis Snape, I am truly delighted to see you in such good health."

Inside the room, the bald and white-bearded Old Marquis Snape stared expressionlessly at Catherine as if she was a stranger, the overwhelming presence in his gaze making even Catherine, a Legendary Rank professional, unable to resist. After being stared at for a moment, she had no choice but to lower her head and speak softly, "Okay, okay, hello Grandpa Snape."

The indifferent Old Marquis disappeared instantly, replaced by an old man with a face full of smug smiles. Laughter filled every wrinkle on the old man’s face, even his shiny bald head seemed brighter as he said with a huge grin, "Little Catherine has come to see me voluntarily, hahaha, what an obedient good child."

"Hehe, hehe," Catherine could only laugh lightly with her head down, embarrassed, but it was still apparent from Pannis’s expression as if someone had suddenly stepped on his neck and his rigid, trembling arms that the knightly girl’s heart was clearly not as gentle and amiable as she appeared.

The Old Marquis, utterly lacking in sympathy, deliberately ignored Catherine’s fingers pinching Pannis’s arm. He indulgedly patted the female knight’s head, while Catherine slightly bent her knees to let him touch the top of her head smoothly, yet she complained unwillingly, "Grandpa Snape, I’m not a child anymore, stop patting my head."

"Hahaha, alright, alright, I’ll stop," said the Old Marquis cheerfully, giving her head a few more vigorous rubs before letting go, then he greeted the three girls behind her with a nod, and with an appreciative glance towards Pannis, he took Catherine by the hand and turned toward the inside of the house, "Come in, come in, hahaha, Little Catherine has come to visit me. Linda, Linda, don’t be lazy, go get the blue liquor chest from my secret room, today we must celebrate properly." (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to vote and support it on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)