Chapter 682: Seeking "Food"
Cattleya controlled herself without looking at The World Gehrman. She
said in a deep and slow voice, "Northeast from the Gargas Archipelago,
there's a safe sea route that allows one to enter those dangerous
waters..."
She began her description with the deep abyss which separated the seas,
the sun chariot which couldn't be viewed directly, the night which
required sleeping, the terrifying ravings that filled the entire sea,
and the shadow of the Giant King's Court which stood on the opposite
mountain peak in the dream world.
During this process, she didn't mention Gehrman Sparrow at all,
deliberately avoiding any mention of him. As for the abnormalities that
happened en route, she described them simply, such as the remnant aura
of Earth Mother which caused hair to grow rapidly.
Towards the end, she placed her focus on the ruin with a sleeping corpse
and the adventurers' sailboat which had the words written in blood,
"Fountain of Unaging."
"This might mean that the Fountain of Unaging is in that ruin, and the
corpse that produced such loud breathing is the keeper," Cattleya
mentioned the common theories on the Future, but it didn't mean that it
was hers.
*Fountain of Unaging... One of the six major treasures at
sea...* Alger was tempted by what he heard as he considered the
possibility of exploring those ruins after reaching Sequence 5.
Audrey finished listening attentively as she shook her head slightly.
"I don't believe that the decisive meaning behind those words in blood
mean that the Fountain of Unaging is in those ruins."
After a second's pause, she attempted to analyze the deceased's state of
mind.
"A person who's about to die after being attacked by monsters wouldn't
point out matters regarding the treasure. If he wishes to warn
companions or relatives who come looking for him, then he should've
written that it's dangerous here, or speak about the source of the
danger. If he plans to tell passing ships that the Fountain of Unaging
is there, then he lacks the motivation to do so for a living creature at
death's doorstep. Unless, a conspiracy is hidden in this matter---the
conspiracy of enticing people to enter the ruin to seek out the Fountain
of Unaging might be how he can be rescued."
"Yes, if I were in his shoes, I wouldn't think of desperately telling
others that there's treasure here. What's in it for me?" Emlyn echoed.
"Only hatred---bone-deep hatred---will make me write something like that
on the brink of death. Otherwise, I'd rather tell others how I should be
buried or what kind of burial items I want!"
He tsked and shook his head.
Klein nodded indiscernibly. Controlling The World, he said hoarsely,
"The Fountain of Unaging is a scam."
He used absolutely certain words without any additional words that would
signify other possibilities.
The Fountain of Unaging is a scam... Cattleya looked at The
World before retracting her gaze in thought.
It seemed to corroborate with certain theories and guesses she had.
Alger frowned, not that he didn't agree with The World's judgment or
that he believed that Miss Justice's and Mr. Moon's explanations were
devoid of reason. Instead, he realized that he had completely failed to
consider this possibility!
To him, this was a mistake he shouldn't have committed!
*...After all these years, I'm still being temporarily blinded by
immense profit...* He fell silent for a few seconds and sighed.
After exchanging what everyone had seen and heard recently, everyone
began to teach Little Sun ancient Hermes, and they learned some
mysticism from each other.
Time quickly passed as The Fool Klein surveyed the area after everyone
came to a stop.
"Let's end it here for today."
"By your will." Audrey stood up immediately and curtsied with her
illusory dress. The rest of the members said the same almost at the same
time.
As he watched the blurry figures vanish before his eyes, Klein wasn't in
a rush to leave. He conjured a goatskin and fountain pen and wrote down
the divination statement:
"The hope for my advancement to Sequence 4."
Putting down the fountain pen, Klein held the goatskin and leaned back.
As he closed his eyes, he entered a Cogitation state and began silently
reciting the divination statement.
After chanting it seven times, he quickly fell asleep and entered the
dream world.
The gray, blurry sky cracked open as he saw a towering mountain tear
through the clouds.
At the mountaintop, there was a collapsed palace whose walls were
covered with weeds and moss as they showed obvious holes.
Inside the palace's hall was a huge throne carved out of stone. It was
adorned with dull gemstones and gold. It was mostly mottled and damaged.
It looked as though it wasn't prepared for a human, as countless
translucent maggots were bunched densely together. They squirmed slowly
as they kept growing.
Around the throne was a raving that seemed to penetrate the long rivers
of time and history. It was illusory, ethereal, and constantly echoing.
"Hornacis... Flegrea... Hornacis... Flegrea... Hornacis... Flegrea..."
The moment the ravings entered his ear, Klein jolted awake before he
frowned.
*It really is the main peak of the Hornacis mountain range. Furthermore,
I can see and hear it more clearly than before...*
This made him recall Queen Mystic Bernadette's prophetic words: "Your
fate lies on the main peak of the Hornacis mountain range."
*Is that my fate? It really makes me want to be rebellious and not go...
Sigh, I can't deal with absolutes. It depends...* Klein sighed
and conjured the five bounty notices provided by Emlyn White. Combining
the information he had, he used the methods of divination to find the
locations of the Primordial Moon believers.
Finally, due to his lack of information, he could only confirm two
points.
Galis Kevin, Windsor Behring, and Argos are all in Backlund.
*Dandy and Lara are at Enmat Harbor and Pritz Harbor
respectively.*
This is as good as nothing... Klein shook his head and
returned to the real world.
Recalling how he had already agreed to provide Little Sun with the
Notary potion formula within three days, he wore his coat and a top hat,
and he prepared to head out to find a target.
When he opened the door and came to the stairwell, he saw Anderson Hood
walking up, twirling his deer-hunting cap with his hand while humming a
folk song.
*This fellow is really good at recovering from setbacks... He was just
taught a lesson by a demigod in the morning and was forced to apologize
and agree to a request, but I don't see any sign of trauma from him
anymore... It's no wonder he became a Sequence 5 powerhouse. Just this
state of mind alone makes it difficult for him to lose
control...* Klein looked at him, nodding slightly as a greeting.
"Good afternoon, Gehrman." Anderson chuckled as he waved his hand. "I've
received the bounty and characteristic money. I'll pay you the rest
now."
As he spoke, he took out stacks of cash of different thickness from
different pockets.
"It happened pretty smoothly I see," Klein commented without much
emotions involved.
Anderson immediately laughed.
"That's right. It happened far smoother than I imagined! Those fellows
who should have rocks for brains were surprisingly friendly, polite, and
efficient! I even suspect whether I've become a Blessed of Lady Luck!"
"There's no such deity." Klein ruthlessly shattered his fantasies.
"Why so serious? It's life. Relax a little. Relax a little." Anderson
handed over the remaining 1,200 pounds. "Actually, I'm very clear about
what happened. That gentleman doesn't want me to waste my time, so he
secretly 'exhorted' those people."
Klein glanced at the cash, pressed down on it, and asked in passing,
"Have you confirmed which pirates gave you the problem?"
He was asking about the prey that resulted in the Manipulator's
involvement.
"There's no way for confirmation," Anderson said with a bitter smile.
"Do you think I didn't confirm it ahead of time? Although I appear
nonchalant in front of you, I will investigate the prey's background and
situation ahead of time to avoid provoking someone I can't afford to.
Who knows... Sigh, I can only blame it on my bad luck."
*...This fellow is more careful than I thought... That's right, his
previous Sequence was called Conspirer...* Klein thought in
enlightenment before asking indifferently, "Who deserves death the most
in this area?"
Anderson was taken aback before he chuckled.
"Does our craziest adventurer plan on beginning his hunting activities?
"However, you have to consider it well. I do not wish for you to be my
partner when completing the demigod's mission."
*Don't worry, we're different. I'm a Seer. I have all kinds of means to
hide my tracks. I will not allow someone to come knocking at my door.
Besides, that's a demigod of the Spectator pathway. He's not good at
divination or prophecies...* Klein maintained his cold attitude
that was unique to Gehrman and said, "You don't have to bother."
Anderson immediately gave a thumbs up.
"Your craziness is worthy of praise!"
He thought for a moment and added, "The person who deserves death the
most is Molsona from the Loen's New Party. He's one of the pirates' best
friends. He has in his control some kind of plant that's similar to
cannabis, which is highly addictive. This helps him control many people
in the Toscarter government and the police department. He's one of the
most powerful mob bosses over here...
"He has committed many crimes, killed plenty of people, and basically
did it with the help of pirates. On the surface, there's no apparent
problem.
"Heh heh, he isn't a Beyonder, but the difficulty in killing him is how
troublesome it is, yes---troublesome!
"He has three to five Beyonders from different pirate crews providing
him with protection. On the rooftops, outside the building, beneath the
windows, everyone there belongs to him. To finish him off, the only way
is to forcefully storm in and kill a large number of people.
"I have the means to do it, but it's too troublesome. There's also a
certain level of danger. You'll become a wanted criminal after that, so
I didn't deal with him and only dealt with his safe at home."
*Safe... To talk about banditry in such a fresh way... Yes, I previously
heard that Toscarter's main industries are its plantation economy and
pirates' black market trading. It also has flourishing bar, brothel, and
gambling industries. I never expected that it includes new-age drugs...
Molsona is an ordinary person and not a Beyonder... Perfect, Creeping
Hunger happens to lack food...* Klein nodded and indicated for
Anderson to go deeper into detail.
Evening, in the Oaktree Bar.
A boxing match was about to unfold in the boxing ring. Many alcoholics
surrounded it with mugs in hand.
They were like sharks who had caught the scent of blood. As they placed
their bets, they loudly yelled words such as "kill him"!
This was a business of the head of the Loen's New Party, Molsona. The
unique thing about the boxing matches held here was that death was
permitted!
Molsona greatly enjoyed matches that resembled ancient wrestling
competitions. He often came to watch a few matches. At that moment, he
was seated on the second story, overlooking the ring.
Around him were several bodyguards. They were watching every direction,
and among them were no lack of Beyonders sent from the pirates he worked
with, as well as experienced adventurers he hired with large sums of
money.
These people either had their backs or sides facing Molsona as they
surrounded him, and they prevented anyone from approaching him.
Revolvers, rifles, and hunting rifles were all aimed outside to leave
the masses intimidated.
After confirming the situation, Klein pressed down on his top hat,
entered the bar, and saw Molsona sucking on a cigar.
This mob boss had a very discernible face. Be it his brandy nose or thin
brows, they were all very unique.
Klein retracted his gaze and first went to the bar to get a cup of local
malt beer worth 4 pence. Then, he made his way to the railing beneath
the second floor.
Although he wasn't directly under Molsona, as it was heavily guarded, he
was already not very far from him.
I'm within five meters... Klein silently muttered to himself,
raised his cup of beer, and looked at the boxing ring.