Chapter 378: the amphitheater

"THAT elf, Alen, must have known Lhoris pretty well. He probably also knows were Lhoris went after he resigned," Luo Yan said, remembering what that NPC said about that Alen and Lhoris arguing and the elf shouting words like 'can't leave', 'crazy', and 'dragon'. 

The elf wouldn't shout things like that if he didn't. He was most likely stopping Lhoris from leaving here. Luo Yan had a feeling that all they needed now was to talk to that elf and they could get the information they needed – the location where Lhoris was now. That would mean that after that, he and Shen Ji Yun could just go around and play in the amusement park for the remainder of the afternoon.

"Yan Yan, if that elf could tell us where Lhoris is, can we…" Shen Ji Yun paused, the big rabbit mascot suit fidgeting as if he didn't know how to proceed next. And then, as if gaining confidence, he raised his rabbit head and turned to Luo Yan. "Can we still stay here and go around the place?"

Luo Yan smiled, although it couldn't be seen because of the mask, it was still reflected on his eyes which bent into crescents. "I was actually thinking of that too. Of course, we will stay. It would be such a huge waste for these VIP bracelets. And besides, I still haven't had enough fun yet."

Shen Ji Yun couldn't help smiling. "That's good."

The two proceeded to the amphitheater area on horseback. When they arrived, they quickly got off their horses and tied it to the parking space provided. 

Luo Yan raised his head and looked at the amphitheater in front of him. It's not that huge, maybe it could only hold about 1000 audience. But its design totally made up for it. It looked almost like a mini-version of the Colosseum in Rome. Of course, minus the destroyed part. 

He was once again proven how the designers put a lot of effort into the design of this game. 

There was a virtual billboard floating on the side, showing the stage plays that would be performed and the time they would be shown. Luo Yan saw that the next play would be shown 15 minutes later. He was relieved when he saw that. Because that meant that they didn't need to wait until the play finished before they could look for that elf, Alen.

The play that would be performed in 15 minutes was 'Mid-Summer Night's Dream'. If he remembered correctly, it was a play written by William Shakespeare. He hadn't really been interested in Western literature. So, Luo Yan had no idea what the play was about. 

But based on the poster shown on the billboard, it was most likely fantasy set in ancient times. Because there were people, no, they're probably NPCs, wearing ancient European dresses. There were also elves, no, were they fairies? He shook his head. Not that it mattered. What they needed to do now was to look for that Alen.

He glanced at Shen Ji Yun and saw that the rabbit was staring intently at the billboard. "Is Brother Ji Yun familiar with this play?"

Shen Ji Yun took away his gaze from the billboard and turned to Luo Yan. "A bit. It's a play consisting of four interconnecting plots that were connected by the wedding of Duke Theseus of Athens and the Amazon queen, Hippolyta. The group of people involved in these plots found themselves in a forest inhabited by fairies."

That didn't sound like just a 'bit' – Luo Yan thought. "Have you seen the play in real life?" 

"Yes. A long time ago. My mother… she liked to watch plays. She especially favored those written by Shakespeare."

Shen Ji Yun said it in a nostalgic yet very sad tone. Even though Luo Yan couldn't see his face, he knew that he must be feeling really down right now. He also noticed the word he used was 'liked' instead of 'likes'. As if it was all in the past. Remembering something like that must be really hard for him. 

Luo Yan didn't want him to be in such a mood, so he quickly hugged the other's rabbit arm. "Brother Ji Yun, let's go inside and look for that Alen."

Because of the warm touch on his arm, Shen Ji Yun quickly got out of his reminiscing. The sadness he suddenly felt while remembering the past vanished as quickly as it appeared. And it was all because of Luo Yan. 

He wasn't sure if he did it on purpose because he felt that there was something wrong with him at that moment or if he did it without much thought. But nevertheless, Shen Ji Yun was still thankful for it. He could really go into a long round of self-pity party once he started thinking of the past. 

"Okay, let's go inside," he said.

They walked inside the amphitheater and was stopped by an NPC.

"Dear guests, can I see your tickets, please?" the female NPC said. "If you don���t have one, there's a ticket booth on the side where you could go and buy it."

"We're not here to watch the play. We wanted to meet one of the actors. He was an elf named Alen," Luo Yan said and then he showed the NPC the golden bracelet.

Seeing the golden bracelet, the NPC's attitude became more respectful. Seriously, just how much money did those VIP tickets cost that these golden bracelets could change the attitude of the NPCs here? 

"Alen is currently in his dressing room waiting for the next play to start. If you want to meet him, I could ask a staff to guide you there," the NPC said.

Luo Yan raised one of his brows. He thought that it would be much harder to meet Alen. After all, that elf was a famous 'actor'. But it seemed like the golden bracelet could also act as an all-pass item.

"That would be great," he just said.

The female NPC called another female NPC that led Luo Yan and Shen Ji Yun inside. They didn't go to the audience area, but went to another area instead. They walked to a corridor until they reached a row of rooms which were probably dressing room for the actors and actresses. 

"This way please," the female NPC with them said, gesturing for them to follow.

Which they did. Until they arrived in front of a room. The female NPC knocked on the door and called;

"Alen, there are people here who want to meet you."

"I don't want to see anyone!" shouted by a voice from the inside.

"They're VIPs!"

They could hear some cursing and grumbling. But the door still opened, showing a very, very, irritated elf.