The Skylark slowly docked at a fairly large Cloud Dial harbor at the edge of Angel Island.
"We're here, guests. This is Angel Island."
Gan·Fall jumped down from the ship first.
"The commerce here is fairly convenient. You can replenish supplies or browse the marketplace. Would you like me to act as your guide? I know this place well—some shops might even give a discount if I'm around."
Riberra Sami exchanged glances with his companions and nodded.
"Then we'll trouble you, Captain Gan·Fall."
After tying the ropes to the cloud moorings, Riberra Sami left a few crew members behind to guard the ship. Then he took Aldo, Hans, and the others and followed Gan·Fall into the town floating above the clouds.
The island's architecture was mostly white or light-colored, with a unique style. Various applications of Dials could be seen everywhere.
The streets weren't crowded. The residents of this Sky Island seemed no different from those they had seen on the lower White Sea.
Their first stop was the busiest market on Angel Island. Although there were many shops, most of them sold everyday Dials such as Wind Dials, Lamp Dials, and Tone Dials, along with fruits, fabrics, and crafts native to the cloud seas.
Aldo enthusiastically looked around at first, but soon lost interest.
"Boss, these things… don't they look about the same as what they sell below? We came all the way up here just for this?"
Riberra Sami also let a hint of disappointment show on his face. He picked up a finely crafted Tone Dial, examined it briefly, and then gently put it back.
Gan·Fall quickly noticed the change in Riberra Sami's expression.
"Mr. Riberra Sami, what's wrong? Are you dissatisfied with the goods?"
Riberra Sami sighed.
"To be honest, Captain Gan·Fall, it costs us a great deal to venture across the heavens and seas. If the products are only slightly different from those on the lower Sky Islands… then it may not be worth the expensive entry fee we paid to reach the White-White Sea."
Gan·Fall scratched his head awkwardly.
"Well… the truth is, most Sky Islands have similar resources. Everyday Dials are largely the same everywhere. Angel Island's advantage might lie in more refined craftsmanship, but the essential differences aren't significant."
Riberra Sami nodded thoughtfully and lowered his voice.
"I heard something while we were below—that on the higher White-White Sea there might be rarer and more valuable items. For instance… certain combat-type Dials with special abilities. Does Angel Island have any channels for acquiring those?"
Gan·Fall's expression turned serious, and he shook his head.
"I'm afraid not, Mr. Riberra Sami. To be frank, the kind of combat Dials you mentioned are strictly prohibited from being sold openly in the Kingdom of God's official markets. They're considered strategic resources and are tightly controlled. Private trade is banned as well. I'm not sure where you could obtain them even privately."
Then he laughed awkwardly.
"Still… the entry fee really isn't small. If the trade doesn't meet expectations, that's certainly frustrating."
Riberra Sami nodded slowly, a faint gleam flashing in his eyes.
Just then, a commotion erupted in a distant street.
People began rushing out of shops and houses, their faces filled with anger as they hurried toward the center of the island.
"It's about to start!"
"Beat him to death! Avenge our loved ones!"
"Kill him! The demon of Shandia!"
Riberra Sami and the others stopped walking.
More and more residents were converging toward the same direction.
"Captain Gan·Fall," Riberra Sami asked, "what's happening over there? Why is everyone running that way?"
Gan·Fall looked toward the crowd. The relaxed expression on his face slowly faded. After several seconds of silence, he spoke.
"…They probably caught another criminal to execute publicly."
"A criminal?" Riberra Sami raised an eyebrow. "What kind of criminal causes such public outrage? Captain Gan·Fall, shall we go take a look?"
Gan·Fall sighed.
He didn't seem eager to go, but under Riberra Sami's curious gaze he eventually nodded.
"Alright. Since we're here anyway, it won't hurt to take a look. Stay close and don't get separated."
Following the crowd under Gan·Fall's guidance, they soon arrived at a wide cloud plaza near the center of the island.
In the middle of the square stood a crude wooden platform.
A man was tied up on the stage.
Below it, a crowd of furious Sky Islanders surrounded the platform, shouting curses and calls for death.
Riberra Sami's gaze moved past the sea of heads and settled on the bound prisoner.
The man's clothes were tattered, and his body was covered in wounds. What stood out most was his appearance—it was completely different from the Sky Islanders around him, carrying a primitive and wild aura.
A Shandian?
Riberra Sami's heart stirred as he recalled the background of the Sky Island arc.
"Captain Gan·Fall," he asked, "what crime did that man commit to provoke such public anger?"
Gan·Fall pressed his lips together.
He looked at the man hanging his head on the platform, then at the furious crowd below.
"…He's not one of our Sky Islanders. He's a Shandian."
"A Shandian?"
"Yes. A race that has been fighting our Sky Islanders—or rather, the residents of the Kingdom of God—for more than three hundred years."
Gan·Fall's voice grew heavy.
"He was probably captured during the last conflict. According to our laws, Shandian warriors usually have the blood of Sky Islanders on their hands, so they're sentenced to death. The families of the victims are allowed to come up and… carry out justice."
Aldo glanced at the crowd around the platform and couldn't help clicking his tongue.
"Damn… are all these people victims' families?"
"Hatred…" Gan·Fall said quietly. "No one can clearly say who it's directed at anymore. Over the past three hundred years, too many Sky Islanders have died at the hands of Shandians. Nearly every family has lost someone. So often, the person being executed isn't just a specific murderer… but the Shandian race itself."
Riberra Sami noticed the fleeting heaviness—and faint disagreement—in Gan·Fall's expression.
"Captain Gan·Fall… you don't seem to approve of this scene."
Gan·Fall stiffened slightly.
After a moment of hesitation, he nodded slowly, his eyes drifting toward the restless crowd.
"Yes. I think it's… too bloody. And too blind."
"This war began in my grandfather's grandfather's time. Hatred has kept growing like a rolling snowball, dragging generation after generation into it. What was it all for? When will it end? Sometimes… I truly don't understand."
As captain of the God's Army, he still didn't know the core truth:
The Sacred Land of Upper Yard (Apayado) occupied by the Kingdom of God was originally the homeland of the Shandians.
That secret was known only to the gods of each generation.
"Well… who knows," Riberra Sami said calmly. "In the Blue Sea, I've seen many cycles like this. Fathers teach their sons to hate. Sons teach their grandsons to hate. In the end, no one even remembers why the hatred began. The hatred itself becomes the reason."
Riberra Sami withdrew his gaze.
He knew the real cause, but he had little interest in reconciling a three-century racial feud.
His only goal here was the Poneglyph hidden in Upper Yard.
Still, he didn't mind throwing out a thought to guide the conversation.
"War tends to work like this. Many times, it starts with a single decision made by those at the top. Then countless people below must fight and die for it, planting seeds of hatred that last for generations. Like you said, hatred grows like a snowball. Eventually, even if the leaders want to stop, they can't anymore—because the hatred has grown too deep."
Gan·Fall suddenly turned to look at him.
"The people above… Mr. Riberra Sami, what do you mean?"
"I'm just an outsider merchant making casual remarks." Riberra Sami shrugged. "Take your war with the Shandians, for example. If your leaders and theirs had both decided from the beginning not to fight… do you think these ordinary people would still have fought for three hundred years?"
Gan·Fall froze.
Thought flickered in his eyes—along with a spark of something new.
This perspective was entirely unfamiliar to him.
The decision of leaders?
The will of the god?
If the god chose not to fight anymore…
"Th-that… I…"
He opened his mouth but couldn't find the words.
"Then… is it still possible to stop now?"
"The snowball of hatred has been rolling for over three hundred years," Riberra Sami replied lightly. "The resentment on both sides must run very deep by now. If you want to stop it at this point… then the only way would be—"
Riberra Sami suddenly patted him on the shoulder, as if the conversation had been nothing more than idle chatter.
"Let's go."
He turned and walked in the opposite direction of the gathering crowd.
Aldo and the others immediately followed.
Hans adjusted his glasses and glanced thoughtfully at Gan·Fall—who still stood there in a daze—before following the captain as well.
Gan·Fall eventually snapped out of it.
He looked at the departing figures of Riberra Sami and his crew… then at the fanatical crowd surging toward the execution platform.
Finally, he took a deep breath, suppressed the turmoil in his heart, and hurried after them.
----------------◇ Bonus Chapter Reward◇-----------------------
Every 10 Reviews = 1 Bonus Chapter
◇ Every 100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
◇ You can read 60 chapters ahead on Patreon if you're interested:
patreon.com/Luna023
Your support helps the story grow and motivates faster updates.