Patch was left speechless, forced to continue his story. "There's only so much I can tell you. After you extinguished—er, usurped the Flame, the world plunged into darkness. Fortunately, most people managed to transfer into the Painting World, waiting for the day the world would see light again. Well, if there ever is such a day."
Patch shrugged, his tone indifferent. "I haven't seen it happen, but I don't really care anyway."
"I don't think I would have invited you."
Ash glanced at Patch and spoke coolly.
Even without his memories, he knew one thing for sure—
He would have invited a dog into the Painting World before he ever invited Patch!
"True."
Patch nodded, his expression dead serious. "I also didn't think you'd invite me, and I was indeed very heartbroken not to receive an invitation..."
Then, Patch's tone shifted as he grinned. "So, I decided to take matters into my own hands and sneak in."
"And here we are."
Patch shrugged and sighed. "I was kicked out and could never go back. Everyone there shunned me, as if I'd somehow offended them all."
"But that's also why I have no idea what's going on inside the Painting World right now."
Patch continued to mutter complaints under his breath.
"You really need to keep them in line. After all, I'm your good buddy, aren't I? You're their King, so that makes me a Prince, right? And yet they threw me out like trash..."
Patch's voice cut off abruptly as a greatsword was rested against his neck.
"Alright, alright, I'll shut up."
Patch shrank his neck back, his survival instincts kicking in.
Ash didn't strike immediately; he had more questions to ask.
"Were you the one asking around for our whereabouts?"
"Yes... and no."
Even with a blade at his throat, Patch maintained his smug, irritating grin. "I just heard someone was looking for you, so I figured I'd look for you too."
"As for the ones who were originally looking for you, it was Odel, the 'Silver Coin Viper.' And the person behind him...most likely someone from the Rose School."
"But don't worry, I didn't give Odel your information."
"Also..."
Patch paused, then suddenly pulled out a gold coin covered in rust spots and tossed it to Ash.
Clap!
Ash caught the rusted gold coin with his free hand, still holding his sword in the other.
[An ancient gold coin covered in rust spots.
When crushed, it temporarily and significantly enhances treasure-hunting abilities.
Those who lose their wealth will one day encounter an even greater fortune.
In that case, isn't it better to lose more?]
"Can you let me go now?"
Patch looked at Ash with a face full of sincerity. When Ash remained unmoved, his expression shifted to a threat. "If you don't agree, I'll have to kneel down!"
"..."
Alger had been listening to the two of them with a sense of bewilderment, but when he heard Patch's final, menacingly delivered line, he nearly lost it.
But hearing this, Ash suddenly sheathed his weapon, walked past him, and headed toward the Azure Avenger.
Seeing this, Alger immediately followed, simultaneously beginning to communicate with the Azure Avenger.
The ghost ship began to stir.
Soon, the anchor was hauled in with the clanking of chains, and the white sails unfurled automatically without any crew at the helm.
Caught in the wind, the Azure Avenger carried its two passengers and slowly sailed away from the harbor.
Patch remained crouched on the pier, his eyes narrowed as he watched the ghost ship recede into the distance.
"I'm a simple man, completely unburdened," he muttered.
"I have nothing to gain, and nothing to lose. That's how I've survived this long."
"But you..."
"I've seen people like you, time and time again..."
"You want to save everyone. How pitiful, when you can't even save yourself."
"The more you help, the more you lose."
"Will you risk everything for honor? Or perhaps offer up all you possess?"
"I will never understand what drives you."
"Is it a thirst for knowledge? A sacred mission? Or pure revenge?"
"Whatever the case, you carry a burden far beyond your own strength."
"After passing all the trials, you realized... you were worthy after all."
"Even the gods have fallen into despair, fleeing their responsibilities."
"The First Flame is fading, and the Abyss has seized your courage."
"Yet you grip the burning embers in your hand, facing the end head-on, trusting yourself even when deceived."
"There is only one thing I do not understand..."
"Why?"
"Never mind."
He shook his head, his tone incredibly light. "It is none of my concern anyway."
He was just an ordinary Undead.
Whether it was Kindling the Flame or Usurping it, whether it was conspiracies or schemes, or even challenging the gods themselves.
In the end, none of it had anything to do with him.
He was, after all, just an outsider.
Just as he had been discovered and expelled from the Painting World, even after managing to sneak inside—
So much for this being the homeland for the forbidden and the dispossessed, he thought bitterly.
So much for this being the final sanctuary.
Could I, the great Patch, not even qualify as a resident?
Damn it!
Patch cursed inwardly, his resentment simmering.
"Boss, what are our next orders?"
Shortly after the Azure Avenger set sail, a figure in a black trench coat appeared silently behind Patchy, asking respectfully.
Patchy turned his head and said leisurely, "Go inform Odel. Tell him we have found the one wearing the ten rings."
"But—"
The man behind him looked completely taken aback, his expression turning strange. "Didn't you tell us not to notify Odel, boss?"
Patch had come to see them behind Odel's back. He'd assumed he would have to help cover their tracks to prevent Odel and his backers from tracking them. But who would have thought Patch would say something like this?
"I've changed my mind."
Patch stood up and grinned. "Who am I? I'm the indomitable Patch, after all!"
"I thought you were friends..."
"Friends? I suppose we are. But that doesn't stop me from doing whatever I want, does it?"
Patch paused, then simply shrugged, his voice leisurely.
"No matter how many dynasties rise and fall, human desire always remains the same. For someone like me, who desires nothing, it's truly hard to understand."
.........
"Do you have any questions?" Ash suddenly asked on the deck of the Azure Avenger.
"No, it's just..." Alger shook his head. "I thought you two were friends."
"Friends?" Ash shook his head impassively. "If you're his friend, you have to be careful he won't screw you over at any moment. Let me give you a piece of advice: never trust Patch."
"You don't believe what he just told you?" Alger asked, his expression a mix of surprise and bewilderment.
"Of course not," Ash replied calmly. "Be careful. The journey ahead might not be peaceful."
As he spoke, Ash tossed a gold coin to Alger.
Alger caught it and took a closer look. The coin was extremely old. Not only was its surface covered in rust spots, but even the rounded edges were heavily dented and worn, making it look incredibly shabby.
The surface of the coin bore the image of a woman with wings, her back turned, her face obscured.
Alger instantly recognized the figure—an Angel.
From the perspective of an Extraordinary, those at Sequence 2 and above were known as Angels.
Alger had never seen a true Angel, but his intuition told him they should appear no different from ordinary people.
After all, they all advanced step by step from low Sequences. Why would they suddenly grow a pair of wings and turn into another race upon reaching Sequence 2?
Of course, in the scriptures of the major religions, the angels who serve the gods are always depicted this way.
Some even have more than one pair of wings; the highest-ranking angels even have twelve pairs!
To ordinary people, these angels are the incarnations of the gods. They believe in their existence without a doubt and are utterly devout.
And although Alger questioned the authenticity of these religious texts, he had no doubt about the strength of the angels.
In any case, angels are the absolute symbols of strength within the major religions!
And right now, although the gold coin Ember had tossed to him looked completely ordinary...
Alger had a feeling that it was definitely not that simple!
"This thing..."
Alger hesitated.
"It's yours," Ash said with a wave of his hand. "Crush it when you need it. It can temporarily and significantly boost your Luck value."
Rust Coins, Rust Gold Coins... he had too many of these things.
His Soul Space couldn't even fit them all.
"A one-time use Sealed Artifact? Or perhaps some kind of charm?"
Alger was somewhat surprised. Those who could boost Luck were all from the Monster Sequence.
And it's at least Sequence 7, possibly even Sequence 5.
How could he just give away something so important?
And...
Based on what I know about Ashes...
After all, most of his Sealed Artifacts have no side effects. The ones that do are just spoils of war.
At the same time, Alger's curiosity about Ember's identity grew even stronger.
"What exactly is Mr. 'Lovers'?"
"Judging from his conversation with that man named 'Patch,' they seem to have known each other for a long time."
"And 'Patch' appears to be from the Painting World, though he was kicked out by its ruler."
"Moreover, he seems to possess the 'Immortality' trait. Because it seems 'Lovers' has killed him many times?"
"So is that why 'Lovers' dismissed the Ring of Sacrifice?"
"Because he's already immortal?"
"But what Sequence's ability is this? What Sequence can grant immortality?"
"This is already beyond the realm of mortals. Even an ordinary Demigod wouldn't be able to achieve this! Otherwise, Demigods wouldn't fall."
"But no matter what, even for a High Sequence beyonder, immortality is still too exaggerated, isn't it?"
"Also, how much does Mr. Fool know about 'The Lovers'?"
"Mr. Fool likely knows a great deal. He invited 'The Lovers' to join the Tarot Club precisely because of his uniqueness."
"..."
Alger's mind was filled with questions, and he desperately wanted to ask for clarification.
But he had always known his place. He knew that asking a question rashly would only make things incredibly awkward for him.
After all, Ashes was under no obligation to answer his questions.
Forget it.
Alger shook his head, putting these distracting thoughts out of his mind.
If Ashes wanted him to know, he would have told him already.
Since the other man chose not to say anything, there was no need for him to keep obsessing over it.
Instead of pondering these unsolvable questions, he should focus more on his current situation.
Ash had said that 'Patch' was untrustworthy, which meant Patch would betray the two of them.
Though he didn't understand why Ash hadn't just killed him.
But these weren't the questions he should be considering. What he needed to think about was what would happen to him after being betrayed.
And if what 'Patch' said was true—that 'Silver Serpent' Odel was investigating them—then who had hired 'Silver Serpent' to do the investigation?
Could it really be the Rose School, just as Patch had claimed?
Alger's eyes flickered.
He knew of "Silver Serpent" Odel, a notorious information broker. He dealt with numerous pirates but was no pirate himself. His name had never appeared on a bounty list; his reward remained at zero.
Though "Silver Serpent" claimed to serve the Dawn, the ship of the "Mysterious Queen," one of the Kings of the Five Seas, such a claim would only fool a fool. Anyone with a modicum of knowledge knew that an information broker like him would never serve a single client.
Besides, Alger was certain they had no connection to the "Mysterious Queen."
The most likely suspect was the Royal Family of Loen.
But that didn't make sense either. Though the Loen Archipelago was merely a colony, it was still under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Loen. If they wanted to find someone, they could have done so themselves.
And if it wasn't the Kingdom of Loen, if it truly was the Rose School...
But why would they be looking for Ember?
He had only arrived in Bayam yesterday. He shouldn't have had any dealings with the Rose School!
Still, caution was always the best course of action.
...............
Bayam, the City of Generosity.
Inside a villa not far from the Governor's Mansion.
Odel, the "Silver Coin Viper," walked up the stairs and cautiously approached a bedroom on the second floor.
His body trembling slightly, he knocked on the door and spoke in an unsteady voice, "Lord Señor, I may have the information you're looking for."
Thud!
The bedroom door swung open, and Señor appeared before him, completely naked.
Even without a stitch of clothing, Señor's demeanor remained as overbearing as ever.
"Where?" Señor demanded, his tone imperious, utterly disregarding the fact that he was in Odel's home.
"He has already left Bayam," Odel replied, then quickly added, fearing a misunderstanding, "I only just received the information. Someone spotted the man with the ten rings at the port."
"But they couldn't get a clear look at his face before he boarded a ship and sailed away."
"Whose ship?" Señor asked, his voice low and heavy.
"I don't know," Odel said, his expression tense. "The ship was using white sails, making it difficult to determine which faction it belonged to."
"Useless!"
Señor's face was grim. His light brown eyes swept coldly over Odel's face, forcing the renowned adventurer to lower his head.
Señor snorted coldly.
But he still had use for Odel, so he didn't kill him.
He simply picked up his clothes scattered on the floor, dressing as he walked downstairs.
Throughout this, Odel remained standing with his head bowed.
He didn't move until Señor pushed open the front door and completely vanished from the villa.
Odel silently breathed a sigh of relief, his gaze sweeping through the open doorway into the room.
A woman with a graceful figure and exquisite features lay asleep on the bed, completely naked. The bruises on her body indicated she had been thoroughly ravished the night before.
A distinct scent of musk filled the room, and a faint, satisfied smile of happiness lingered on the woman's face.
This woman was Odel's mistress, Vivian.
But the one who had shared her bed last night was not Odel.
A flash of rage crossed Odel's eyes. He turned and entered the room, shutting the door behind him.
"Bitch! If I can't get to him, I can still get to you!"
........
North of the Gargas Islands in the Sunia Sea.
A clean, well-kept sailing ship, dozens of meters long and gleaming golden in the sunlight, was riding the waves, breaking free from the perilous waters and heading into a nearby safe channel.
When the crew spotted land faintly appearing in the distance, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
After nearly ten days of sailing, they were finally about to reach Sunia Island.
To evade the possible search of the Kingdom of lone, they had dared not travel along the safe routes. Instead, they had braved the Raging Sea, a perilous and stormy stretch of water, just to reach Sonia Island as inconspicuously as possible.
Though the Kingdom of lone might not necessarily cause them trouble, it was always better to be safe than sorry.
"Once we reach Sonia Island, the Kingdom of lone's lapdogs won't dare come after us!"
"Hahaha! The Kingdom of lone is nothing special!"
Danitz laughed out loud, standing on the bow deck as if finally able to vent his frustrations.
The surrounding sailors, however, seemed to have long grown accustomed to his outbursts and ignored his antics.
After all, their own moods were not much different from Danitz's right now.
For a long time, they had been on edge, fearing pursuit from the Kingdom of lone.
"Speaking of which, the Captain hasn't come out in a while," Second Mate Orpheus said, stroking his chin in confusion. "Do you think something happened?"
"I'll go check," Third Mate Flower Bowtie said, his expression shifting slightly.
"Get lost," First Mate Bru and Second Mate Orpheus said in unison, with Orpheus adding a kick for good measure.
Meanwhile, in the captain's cabin of the Golden Dream...
The beautiful woman—with her oval face, high-bridged nose, and thin lips—now wore a look of utter conflict on her exquisite features. Her pale blue eyes, once as clear as spring water, were now filled with awkwardness.
They had just entered safe waters today, and she had received both good news and bad news.
The good news was that Teacher Klana had written back, meaning she had finally awakened from her long slumber.
That was a good thing.
The bad news, however, was that Teacher Klana's letter instructed her to bring the "Ash Black" she had found back to Lunburg.
Teacher Klana had even gone so far as to explicitly state that she must, under no circumstances, pass through the Kingdom of lone's territory!
Don't go through the Sonia Sea, and definitely don't go through the Raging Sea—
We'll take the North Sea route through the Fosak Empire, loop around the Mist Sea, and then head back to Lunburg.
But the problem is...
Is there a possibility—I mean, a possibility—that Ash Black disembarked at Toscart Island ten days ago?
"..."
The lady's beautiful face was a picture of conflict. She had absolutely no idea how to handle this situation.
Knock, knock, knock!
Just then, a knock sounded at the door of the captain's cabin.
Edwina hesitated for a long time before finally rising and opening the door.
Thud!
The moment the door opened, three figures stumbled into the cabin.
But Edwina seemed to have been prepared. She nimbly stepped aside, narrowly avoiding being knocked over by the three.
"Captain."
The three First Mates looked a bit awkward, greeting her with sheepish smiles.
"Bru."
Edwina looked at the three and instructed, "Tell the sailors to change course. We're not going to Sonia Island."
"Not to Sonia Island? Then where are we going?"
Bru looked surprised and asked curiously.
Edwina fell silent for a moment, her crimson lips parting to utter a single word.
"Port Pritz."
"Hiss!"
The three First Mates all gasped in unison. Flower Bowtie exclaimed in disbelief, "Captain, are you sure you didn't mispeak? Even without that incident, we're still wanted fugitives in the Kingdom of Rune! The total bounty on our crew alone must be at least one hundred thousand pounds!"
"That's right, Captain! Going to Port Pritz is like walking straight into a trap!"
"Captain, are you sure you don't want to reconsider?"
"Tell the sailors," Edwina said, her tone unusually firm and uncompromising, "anyone who doesn't want to go can disembark now."
She continued, "We're not far from Sonia Island; they can reach it by dinghy. But the Golden Dream is my ship, and she will go to Port Pritz!"
The three First Mates exchanged glances, knowing their captain was in no mood for persuasion.
"Should I make an excuse about attending the Pirate Assembly?" First Mate Bru suggested hesitantly.
"No."
Edwina shook her head gently. "Tell them the truth."
Bru seemed on the verge of speaking but ultimately chose to remain silent. He knew the Captain had always been this way.
"Fine. I'll go inform them, but I won't be disembarking," Orpheus said, his voice heavy as he took a deep breath. With that, he turned and left to notify the crew.
Flower Bowtie's face was a mask of conflict, yet he made no move to leave. He simply sighed in resignation and followed Orpheus out of the captain's cabin.
Edwina watched their retreating backs, a shadow of worry clouding her delicate features.
Though the Sonia Sea belonged to the Feysac Empire, it lay vast distances from the imperial capital. The island had originally been under the control of the Kingdom of lone, only to be surrendered to Feysac after lone's crushing defeat in the Twenty-Year War.
Consequently, Sunia Island was far closer to the capital of the Kingdom of Rune than to the capital of the Fosak Empire. In fact, the nearest point of the kingdom was less than a day's sail away.
(((((((((
Even the shortest route from Sunia Island to Port Pritz in the Kingdom of Rune would take less than four days.
From their current position, it would likely take just under a week.
Meanwhile, Ember would need at least half a month to travel from Toscart Island to Port Pritz. If the ship stopped to resupply at a place like Bayam, it would be delayed by several more days.
Adding the time they had spent in the Sunia Sea after parting ways with Ember, the total would be around eighteen days.
That means...
If we leave now, there's still a chance to intercept them before they reach Port Pritz!
"We should still have time," Edwina murmured softly.
Though Teacher Klana had awakened, her condition made it impossible for her to leave the Painting World and come in person. The Church of Knowledge's headquarters were in Lunburg; even if they dispatched someone now, it would take at least a month to arrive.
So, I'm the only one who can still fix this!
"Phew... I hope we make it in time."
.............
117 Banningham Road, Hillston District, Backlund.
"If The Lovers is Ember, could Justice be Miss Audrey?"
Hugh sat on a single-seater sofa to the side, earnestly analyzing the information about the Tarot Club members.
"Fors, what do you think?"
Hugh hesitated before turning his questioning gaze toward Fors, who was on the main sofa.
"Why think so much about it?"
Fors lay on the sofa, utterly bored, her voice sounding as limp as if she hadn't eaten. "Does it really matter? Do you want to go confront Miss Audrey in person?"
"I'm serious."
Hugh rolled his eyes at her and said crossly, "Aren't you the one who writes detective novels? Help me analyze this!"
"Alright."
Fors sighed softly and sat up from the sofa.
The lazy aura she had exuded vanished instantly, replaced by a look of utmost seriousness.
"If you want my analysis,"
Fors thought seriously for a moment, then stated with certainty, "Miss Justice is definitely Miss Audrey. After all, she's the only blonde noble lady I know. If you need other evidence..."
Fors paused, then continued, "Although 'Justice' deliberately disguised herself, her voice is still extremely similar to Miss Audrey's."
"The most obvious example is Ambassador Beckland of the Republic of Intis," Fors said. "You have to remember, Miss Audrey personally commissioned us to find Mr. A. That's not something you can explain away as a mere coincidence."
"Of course, there is a possibility that Miss Justice is actually a noble friend of Miss Audrey, and she was the one who asked Miss Audrey to commission us to find Mr. A to assassinate the ambassador."
"But that possibility is very small, isn't it?"
"And if I'm not mistaken, Miss Justice was probably invited to join the Tarot Club by Ash, just like we were."
"But..."
Hugh felt that Fors's argument made sense, but he still asked skeptically, "The Beyonder materials Miss Justice bought at the Tarot Club were all priced at seven hundred pounds each. That's the price for Sequence 7 Beyonder materials."
"Which means she must be at least a Sequence 8 Beyonder."
"But Miss Audrey only became a Beyonder recently, less than a month ago..."
"It's a fake," Fors said, rolling her eyes. "It's very likely that she was already a Beyonder when we first met her. The reason she still bought the 'Spectator' potion from us might have been precisely to cover up the existence of the Tarot Club."
"Although that means she'd be spending an extra two hundred pounds to buy the potion again, for someone like Miss Audrey, such a small amount of money is absolutely nothing."
The more Xio listened, the more reasonable it sounded, yet the more uncertain he felt. He murmured, "Then should I keep gathering information on the fallen nobles?"
"The Xio I know would never be this hesitant!" Fors said, looking at her friend's indecision with a touch of exasperation. "Besides, the information you collect might not even be as complete as Miss Audrey's. After all, she is a noble; the intelligence she possesses is bound to be far more detailed than what you can find."
"Not necessarily," Xio countered, feeling a surge of defiance. "The Kingdom doesn't care much about these fallen nobles, so the files you'd find in their archives would just contain official platitudes. But my intelligence network can go straight to the fallen nobles themselves. Our information might even be more detailed than the Kingdom's own records."
"Then go do it," Fors encouraged him. "What's there to be afraid of? Our ability to secure a foothold in the Tarot Club depends entirely on you, Hugh!"
"What about you?" Hugh retorted, feeling a bit speechless.
"What am I supposed to do?" Fors replied with unabashed confidence. "I don't have the overwhelming strength of the others, nor do I have your extensive connections and intelligence network in the East District. But don't worry, I'll be cheering you on from home."
Hugh rolled his eyes, speechless in the face of this total slacker.
...............
Backlund, Queen's District, Count Hall's luxurious villa.
"Information on the bankrupt noble... I should be able to obtain it from the Royal Heraldry Officer."
Audrey sat on the piano bench, her hands resting on the keys without playing, her mind drifting.
Every noble had their own coat of arms and family crest, and the Royal Family employed officials specifically to record them. If she approached those officials under the guise of studying history, she shouldn't arouse any suspicion.
"But..."
Audrey hesitated.
Yesterday's Tarot Club meeting had revealed a great deal.
She had considered bringing Miss Fors and Miss Hugh above the gray fog, but she hadn't expected it to happen so soon. They must have already realized that she was 'Justice.'
Hmm, Mr. The Lovers' identity should have been exposed as well.
But this might not necessarily be a bad thing.
Because if that's the case...
Excluding Mr. Fool, there are seven members in the Tarot Club. The four of us could form a small group, which might give us a huge advantage...
"Ah~ Audrey... what are you thinking, Audrey!"
Audrey's face suddenly flushed, and she hurriedly shook her head to banish the stray thoughts.
The Tarot Club was established by Mr. Fool to facilitate their convenience and was intended for mutual aid. How could she even think about forming factions within the Tarot Club?
It was truly improper to have such thoughts.
To even harbor such blasphemous ideas... I must pray to the gods.
"Hmm~"
Audrey paused, suddenly uncertain.
Should I pray to Mr. Fool, or to the Goddess of the Night?
Silver City.
Derrick sat on his bed, his expression conflicted.
On one hand, he had already obtained the Light-Seeker potion formula from Mr. World.
Furthermore, his current potion was nearly digested, meaning he should be able to advance soon.
Therefore, he had been planning to accumulate enough Merit and payment to acquire the two main ingredients for the Light-Seeker potion from the Silver City's official or private markets.
According to his original plan, he should be able to obtain the main ingredients just as his current potion finished digesting, allowing him to seamlessly advance to Sequence 8: Light-Seeker.
But on the other hand, Derrick felt a pang of guilt.
After all, Mr. World had already given him the potion formula and even compensated him with an extra 150 pounds to pay off his debts.
Yet, the Mist Tree Man's root he had promised would still require him to advance to a Light-Seeker first.
This left Derrick with the guilty feeling of having "eaten and wiped his mouth clean before tossing the other party some money to get rid of them."
That was why he was torn between acquiring the main ingredients for the Light-Seeker potion first or helping Mr. World obtain the Mist Tree Man's root and sap.
"Perhaps..."
After struggling with his decision for a while, Derrick murmured in a low, hesitant voice, "I could borrow a little from my friends first?"
Miss Audrey's proposed solution had inspired him.
He didn't have enough Merit to acquire all the Beyonder materials, but if he could borrow from his friends, it should be enough.
This way, he might be able to hand over the items Mr. World needed at the next Tarot Club meeting.
The Azure Avenger slowly sailed away from Bayam and entered the vast open sea.
Inside the captain's cabin, Alger pointed to the unfolded map and explained concisely, "We have two options now. One is to sail directly north, but there is a certain chance we will be intercepted."
"The other is to detour through the Sea of Fury. This will add four or five days to our journey, but it is much safer."
"Let's go with the second option," Ash said casually, glancing at Aljer. "It's better to be safe."
"Alright."
Aljer breathed a sigh of relief, as he had also intended to take the second route and detour through the Sea of Fury first.
The Sunia Sea lay to the east of the Northern and Southern Continents, while the Sea of Fury was located between them. Thus, these two oceans were actually connected. In fact, the southernmost island of the Rothsted Islands was less than a day's sail from the Sea of Fury.
To travel from the Northern Continent to the Southern Continent, taking the Sea of Fury was undoubtedly the shortest route.
Yet the Sea of Fury had always been infamous for its countless natural disasters and treacherous currents.
If an ordinary ship were to accidentally stray into its waters, it would most likely end up destroyed, with all hands lost.
That was why most people preferred to sail through the Misty Sea to the west of the Northern and Southern Continents, or the Sunia Sea to the east.
Even pirates would not lightly venture into the Sea of Fury—unless they possessed a safe route for navigating its waters.
And fortunately, Alger happened to have exactly such a route.
This was why he dared to take a detour through the Sea of Fury.
And even if someone were truly pursuing them, and if those pursuers also happened to have a route that allowed them to safely enter and exit the Sea of Fury...
...the route they controlled might not be the same as the one Aljer held.
As Emperor Roselle had said: A miss is as good as a mile.
Once they entered the Sea of Fury, no one would be able to catch up to them.
.....
"Where is he?"
Senior asked, suppressing his fury on the Bayam docks.
"He just left an hour ago."
The man in the black trench coat glanced at Senior, pulled out a pocket watch, and checked the time. Only then did he drawl, "If you leave now, you might still catch up."
Senior's face was grim. "What kind of ship was he on? Where was he headed?"
"Don't know," the man in the trench coat replied calmly. "It was just an ordinary sailing ship with white sails. How was I supposed to recognize it? As for where he's going... probably Backlund."
"Are you sure?" Senior asked, his voice low.
Even without knowing the captain's identity, knowing the destination was a start. At least it gave him a chance to intercept them. This was a mission guided by an Oracle; he couldn't afford any mistakes.
"Not sure," the man in the trench coat shrugged. "Just a guess. Believe it if you want, but don't blame me if I'm wrong."
Senior's gaze turned lethal, his expression that of a predator about to devour its prey. Yet, the man in the trench coat remained completely unfazed, as if he couldn't feel Senior's murderous intent at all.
Senior's face was cold and grim, but in the end, he chose not to strike.
Senior took a deep breath, turned and boarded his flagship, and coldly ordered, "Set sail for Tiana Island. We might still be able to intercept them."
"Captain."
The second officer, "Steel" Maiweti, stepped forward and said cautiously, "Is this information reliable? Should we ask others? There should be many people on the pier who saw the Divine Envoy's appearance..."
"Are you trying to tell me how to do my job?"
Senior swept a cold, indifferent glance at him.
"I wouldn't dare."
Maiweti's body trembled violently, and he said in terror, "I'll go and order the sailors to set sail right away."
Senior withdrew his gaze and stared coldly at the man in the trench coat, who was waving at him with a smile on the pier.
He knew, of course, that he could ask others.
But he knew even better that he had no time.
If the other party's destination was Backlund, he had to intercept them before they reached Port Prize.
An hour had already been wasted.
As long as the other party's ship wasn't too fast, there was still a chance to catch up.
But if they delayed a few more hours, catching up would become even more difficult.
And by the time they reached Banxi Island or even Damir Island, his chances would grow even slimmer.
At that point, even if the God wouldn't punish him for this, Lord Jax would never let him off!
Therefore, he had no choice but to proceed with his mistake and search along the route to Backlund.
Even if he still failed to catch up, or if he had been heading in the wrong direction from the start—meaning the target wasn't actually bound for Backlund—there would still be room for recourse.
After all, he could simply blame the error on Odel.
He could claim that Odel's false intelligence had misled him.
But whatever choice he made, it was better than staying put and waiting like a fool.
Didn't he know it would be better to wait for more accurate intelligence from the Investigation Department before setting out?
But that was impossible.
Senior knew the temperament of the Man in the Trench Coat and the person behind him all too well, for this was not their first "collaboration."
Since the man dared to sell him the information, he would have ensured it was an "exclusive" tip.
Even if it hadn't been originally, it was now.
Even if someone else had seen that ship, or even remembered its appearance, they would have certainly been dealt with by the man and his backer.
Under these circumstances, staying at the pier for another day of investigation would yield no clues.
So he chose to leave.
He would search along the main shipping lane first, while simultaneously dispatching men to conduct a covert investigation.
After all, although he was leaving, Odel remained in Bayam.
Odel's intelligence network would continue to track the Divine Envoy's whereabouts and promptly notify him via radio.
By then, if his course was wrong, he could still adjust in time—
For this was Bayam. As long as the target wasn't heading for Backlund, they could only be venturing deep into the Sonia Sea or the beserker sea.
Whichever it was, he would have ample time to make adjustments.