Drizzt fondled the finely carved figure of the panther, which was smooth and smooth even in the muscular neck.Like Guenhuffa itself, it looks so perfect.How could Drizzt bear to be separated from it knowing that he would never see him again? "Farewell, Guenhyvar." The dark elf ranger whispered.His expression was so sad, so pitiful, as he gazed at the statuette. "My conscience does not allow me to take you on this trip. Because I am more worried that you will encounter misfortune than myself." He sighed, resigned to his fate.He and his friends had fought long and hard, and made great sacrifices, to obtain a moment of peace, but Drizzt gradually realized that this was only an illusory victory.He once wanted to deny it, and he also wanted to put Guanhaifa back in the pouch, and walked blindly with good expectations.

Drizzt sighed at the moment's weakness, and handed the statue to the halfling Regis. Regis stared at Drizzt in disbelief, and there was a long silence, stunned by what the elf had told him and asked him to do. "Five weeks," Drizzt reminded him. The halfling's childlike, innocent face scrunched up.If Drizzt doesn't come back within five weeks.He would have to deliver Guenhwyvar to Catti-brie and tell her and Bruenor the truth about Drizzt's departure.Hearing the dark elf's sombre tone, Regis knew that Drizzt never expected to return. With a flash of inspiration in his mind, the halfling put the statue on the bed and fumbled for his necklace.Its loops were caught in his long, curly brown hair.But he finally pulled it off, along with the pendant, from which hung a large magic ruby.

This time it was Drizzt's turn to be surprised.He knew the value of the pendant, and how dear the halflings were to it.It would be an understatement to say that Regis' move was against nature. "No." Drizzt argued and declined, "I may not come back, it will be lost..." "Take it!" Regis demanded sharply. "What you've done for me, for us, of course you deserve to have it! Keeping Guan Haifa is another matter—if Black Panther It would suck to fall into the hands of your wicked brethren - but the stone is only a magic item, not alive, and it helps when traveling. Carry it like your machete ’” The halfling paused for a moment.Looking gently into Drizzt's lavender eyes, "My friend."

Regis snapped his fingers suddenly, breaking the moment of silence.He slipped across the floor, his pajamas rustling on the cold stone with his bare feet.From one drawer he conjured something else, a remarkable mask. "I got it back." He said, not going to explain how he got the familiar item.In fact, after Regis left Mithril Hall, he found Artemis Entreri hanging helplessly from a protruding rock on the edge of the canyon.He quickly looted the killer's belongings, then cut the seams on Entreri's cloak.The guy was bruised and out of his mind, and it was all because of the cloak that hooked him to the edge of the cliff.The halfling heard the tearing of the cloak with delight.

Drizzt stared at the mask for a long time.He took it from the banshee's lair over a year ago.Wearing it, you can completely change your appearance and hide your true identity. "It will make it easier for you to get in and out of various places," Regis said hopefully.Drizzt remained motionless, however. "I want you to wear it," Regis insisted, mistaking the reason for the dark elf's hesitation, and thrust the mask at Drizzt.Regis didn't realize what the mask meant to Drizzt Do'Urden.Drizzt once wore it to hide his identity, for a dark elf who walked the surface world was always ostracized by great prejudice.Drizzt came to understand that the mask was a lie after all, no matter how useful it might be; he resolved never to wear it again, no matter how convenient it might be for him.

Or can he wear it?Drizzt wondered if he could refuse such a gift.If the mask would help him achieve his purpose--a purpose that would affect all those he left behind--could his conscience refuse to wear it? No, he finally decided, the mask wasn't so helpful in accomplishing his goal.Thirty years away from that city is quite a long time, his appearance is not very special, of course he is not notorious enough to be recognizable.He waved the gift down, and Regis shrugged after another pushback, setting the mask aside. Drizzt left without another word.There were hours before dawn, torches burning faintly on the upper steps of Mithril Hall, and no dwarves had yet woken up.Everything seemed so peaceful, so peaceful.

The dark elf's slender fingers touched the door lightly, without making any sound, they just slid along the grain of the wooden door.He didn't want to disturb the person behind the door, though he doubted she'd be able to sleep peacefully.Every night, Drizzt wanted to be there to comfort her, but he couldn't, because he knew his words couldn't heal her heartache.Like so many nights before, he stood at the door like a cautious and helpless sentinel.The ranger walked lightly down the corridor, passing through the shadows cast by the flickering torches, without making a sound.

At the other door, the door of his closest dwarf friend, he only stopped for a short moment.Drizzt then walked out of the living quarters quickly.He entered the great hall of the gathering, where the King of Mithril Hall had entertained his envoys.A few dwarves - probably Dagna's party - were here, but they neither heard nor saw the dark elves slinking by. At the entrance to Dumathoin's Hall, Drizzt stopped again.Here, the Warhammers keep their most cherished items.He knew he had to keep going, get out of this place before the dwarves woke up.However, he couldn't ignore the emotion that tugged at his heartstrings.He hadn't been to the sanctuary for two weeks since the dark folk had been driven out, but he knew he would never forgive himself if he didn't take a look at it.

The mighty hammer, the Fang of Aegis, rests on a pillar in the center of this splendid hall—a place of highest honor.It fits that position very well.Shining chain mail, battle axes and helmets left by ancient heroes, anvils left by legendary blacksmiths... In the purple eyes of Drizzt, the teeth of Aegis are far more dazzling than these treasures .The hammer had never even been wielded by a dwarf, Drizzt smiled at the thought.The weapon had once belonged to Drizzt's friend, Wulfgar, a man who would sacrifice himself to save his teammates. Drizzt stared at the mighty weapon, at the shimmering mithril head.This warhammer has gone through hundreds of battles without leaving a scratch, and still clearly shows the mark of Dumathoin, the god of dwarves.The dark elf's gaze followed it, and landed on the dried blood stains on the dark adamantine handle.Bruno stubbornly refused to wash the blood off.

Memories of fighting alongside the tall, brawny, blond-haired and bronze-skinned barbarian flooded the dark elf, and memories of Wulfgar eroded his steps and resolve.In his mind, Drizzt saw Wulfgar's clear eyes again, a pair of ice blue eyes like the blue sky of the Northland, always shining with a passionate fire.Wulfgar was only a child, not yet terrified of the unforgiving realities of this cruel world. Still a child, willing to sacrifice everything for those he called friends. "Farewell." Drizzt whispered, turning to leave.It is time to grasp the time now, but he did not make any louder noise than when he came before.A moment later he was through the balcony and down the stairs into the high porch.The statues of the eight kings of Mithril Hall were set in the stone walls, and he walked under their burning eyes.The last statue of King Bruno Warhammer is the most eye-catching.Bruno's expression was grim, made even more grim by a deep scar running from forehead to jaw and the missing right eye.

Bruenor had hurt more than his eyes, Drizzt knew.It wasn't just the rock-hard body that left the scars.Bruno's heart was the part that hurt the most, losing the boy he regarded as his own was like a sword.Are dwarven souls as tough as their bodies?Drizzt didn't know.At this moment, watching Bruno's wounded face, Drizzt felt that he should stay and sit beside his friend to help heal the wound. The thought just passed by.What will continue to hurt him?Drizzt reminded himself.What will continue to hurt him and his friends who are still alive? ※※※※ Catti-brie tossed and turned, reliving those unfortunate moments, as she did every night—at least, like every night she couldn't sleep until she was exhausted.She heard Wulfgar sing the battle hymn of Tempus, saw the eyes of the strong barbarian calmly enduring the pain, and finally, as he swung his hammer toward the rocky zenith, heavy blocks of granite collapsed and fell around him. . Catti-brie saw Wulfgar's wound showing bone, skin torn from his ribs by wax-melted, eerie white teeth.The Waxmelt Demon, this evil external monster, is a pile of ugly flesh that is white and soft like wax, like a half-melted candle. Catti-brie was startled from her bed by the crash of the ceiling falling on her lover.She sat in the dark: thick auburn hair stuck to her face with cold sweat.It took her a long time to catch her breath, telling herself over and over that it was just a dream; that it was a terrible memory, but it was over.The past is gone.The light of the torches outside the door comforted her and calmed her. She wore only a flimsy nightgown, which dropped the blanket as she turned uneasily.Goosebumps rose on her arms, and she was shivering, cold and wet, and heartbroken.Grabbing the thickest coat, she wrapped herself tightly up to her neck, lay down and stared into the darkness. Something is wrong.Something is not right. The young woman rationally told herself that she was thinking wildly and that the dreams were disturbing her.The whole world was wrong to Catti-brie, so wrong.She convinced herself that she was in Mithril Hall, surrounded by friends. She told herself she was just thinking wildly. ※※※※ Drizzt was far away from Mithril Hall when the sun rose.Unlike in the past, he didn't sit and enjoy the morning sun today.He dared not face the rising sun, which now seemed an impossible dream.After the initial dazzle, the dark elf looked to the southwest, looked at the distance behind the mountains, and thought about it. Stretching his hand towards his neck, he touched the hypnotic ruby ​​pendant given by Regis.He knew how much Regis depended on and loved it, and thought of Regis's sacrifice, a real sacrifice made by a real friend.Drizzt knew what true friendship was: ever since he stepped into the place called Icewind Dale in Faerun and met Bruenor Warhammer and his adopted daughter Catti-brie, his life had been marked by it. And full.Drizzt couldn't help but ache in his heart at the thought that he might never see them again. The Dark Elf was glad to wear the Pendant, which might help him find the answers he needed and return to his friends.Yet deciding to tell Regis he was leaving made him feel guilty.It seemed cowardly to Drizzt—to rely on friends at such a bad time, when his friends were already too busy to take care of themselves.He thought he had prepared the necessary security for the friends who stayed behind.He instructed Regis to tell Bruenor the truth in five weeks' time, so that if Drizzt's trip had failed, the Warhammers would at least have time to prepare for the danger that would follow. It makes perfect sense to do so.But Drizzt had to admit that he had told Regis out of his own need, because he needed someone to talk to. As for the magic mask?He hesitated.Was it also cowardice to reject that?The powerful magical item would have helped Drizzt, and thus his friends, but he hadn't the courage to wear it, or even touch it. Doubt wandered around the dark elf, swirling before his eyes, mocking him.Drizzt sighed, rubbing the ruby ​​between his slender black fingers.Even with the knack of two swords, even with allegiance to the creed, even with the ascetic ranger, Drizzt Do'Urden still needed friends.He turned around and glanced in the direction of Mithril Hall, hesitating: Is it appropriate to choose to complete the task quietly and independently for his own sake? This is even more cowardly.The stubborn Drizzt came to a conclusion.He let go of the ruby, brushing away the doubts lingering in his mind, and slipped his hand into the forest-green cloak.In one of the inside pockets, there is a parchment, which is a map from the Spine of the World to the Wild Bull Desert.In the lower right corner, there is a point marked by Drizzt, a cave where he has stepped on the surface-and will return to his homeland.