Chapter 57: A Late-Night Operation

Chapter 57: A Late-Night Operation

“When an outsider takes up this holy sword, God shall reappear upon the earth.”

“But what if the holy sword shatters?”

Those two sentences echoed through Kalat’s and Edmonton’s minds, completely touching upon a blind spot in their knowledge.

For dozens of seconds, they stared at the shattered holy sword, their expressions blank, unable to speak.

They could not believe that the holy sword, merely touched once by an outsider at dusk, had suddenly broken apart like this!

What did it mean? What did it represent? Neither of them dared think too deeply. It was as though they had returned to the past, to the moment when one of the rebels’ hidden strongholds had been discovered by the Loenese military and swept away without the slightest warning. The fathers of both men had all died in that slaughter, while their female relatives had been carried off and sold to different places. Before receiving that terrible news, Kalat and Edmonton had felt exactly as they did now:沉重, panic, anticipation, and unease all mixing together into a powerful oppression.

“Return to the jungle. Find the High Priest and uncover the reason. Perhaps this is God’s newest revelation…” Kalat turned his wheelchair and said in a deep voice.

Edmonton immediately stood and spoke to the remaining subordinates.

“Continue searching for those blasphemers, but do not remain here.

“And tell the believers outside: recently, they are not to hold any rituals. They are not even to pray!”

The matter had undergone an unforeseen change, making him exceptionally vigilant.

…

Bayam, a street corner near the Church of Waves.

Holding a folded stack of white papers, Danitz, a little nervous, a little worried, and a little confused, turned his head and asked, “You mean I should paste them in different places along this street, with the last one on the Church of Waves’ main door?”

He was extremely afraid that the church doors would suddenly open and a crowd of priests and bishops waving their fists would rush out, paying no attention to why he was posting notices and attacking him directly.

Klein maintained his cold and stern state.

“Yes.”

His original plan had been to hand the matter of Sea God Kalvetua over to Mr. Hanged Man and have him warn the Church of Storms. But considering that the other party still held the secret of Bansy Harbor, and might already have handed it over, throwing out another important piece of intelligence in such a short time could easily draw suspicion. In the end, Klein decided to do it himself.

As for the method, it was very simple: paste a few notices at the Mandated Punishers’ doorstep so they could see them the moment they came out.

A small problem had appeared during the execution of this plan. Klein could not tell which shop or company near the Church of Waves served as the Mandated Punishers’ public-facing identity, so he could only make Danitz work a little harder, pasting the notices everywhere conspicuous—including, but not limited to, the front door of the Church of Waves.

… I really should have just run earlier… Why did I ever think this fellow counted as having saved my life? Maybe because if it had been some other powerful adventurer, I would have already turned into gold pounds… No, who could have expected that this madman would resolve Sea God’s curse so easily? Running might have been even worse… Danitz lamented inwardly. He unfolded the stack of white paper and casually swept his eyes over the contents.

“Leticia Dorella and her companions entered a ‘Sea God’ ruin on Simim Island and departed afterward. They are currently being pursued by the rebels. At the same time, rebels such as Kalat are selling a strange, slightly curved bone sword. The form of Sea God Kalvetua is on the verge of collapse, and His mental state is extremely deranged.”

…Danitz froze for two seconds, then instinctively looked at Gehrman Sparrow.

I can understand the first parts, but why is there a description like Sea God Kalvetua’s form is on the verge of collapse and His mental state is extremely deranged… How does Gehrman Sparrow know that? Did he discover the problem while resolving Sea God’s curse? And how exactly did he resolve Sea God’s curse? The organization behind him is even more powerful and terrifying than I imagined… Could it be—could it be something like the Aurora Order, serving a true deity? The more Danitz thought, the more his heart trembled.

The first time he had heard of the Aurora Order had been during a plunder at sea. It was also the first time he had seen a solemn expression appear on the captain’s face. Afterward, she had successively taught him certain so-called “common knowledge” of the mysticism world.

Klein answered Danitz’s gaze with eyes that held no emotional ripple.

In that notice, he had discarded his own subjective guesses and described only the matters that could be confirmed, so as not to interfere with the judgments of the Church of Storms’ higher-ups.

Among them, he had removed the content about Leticia and the others taking away some important object. The lost temple had been changed into the broader, more inclusive term “Sea God ruin.” He also omitted the stronghold that Kalat and the others would clearly abandon after realizing something had gone wrong with Sea God.

Danitz suddenly withdrew his gaze, not daring to look anymore.

The captain once said: the more of other people’s secrets you know, the more dangerous it becomes! After thinking for a moment, he said worriedly, “If I paste this on the church’s main door, it will definitely draw a great deal of attention from the Church of Storms.

“Will they discover that I did it?”

Klein gave a concise answer.

“Yes.”

…Danitz forcibly squeezed out a smile.

“Then am I not in serious danger?”

Klein used the Clown’s abilities to control his expression and calmly replied, “You were already a wanted pirate.”

Do you think you can currently strut through Bayam’s main streets? Klein inwardly retorted.

That is true. No matter what, they would arrest me and place a bounty on me… No, there is a problem here! Danitz blurted out, “But my bounty will rise!”

Klein looked at him without speaking, only slowly drawing up the corners of his mouth.

In that instant, Danitz seemed to hear a rhetorical question:

Is that not a good thing?

A good thing my ass! Danitz laughed dryly twice, took the stack of notices, and, under cover of deep night and fierce wind, pasted them in conspicuous spots along the streets near the Church of Waves.

He really looks like someone posting small advertisements… Klein watched from afar with one hand in his pocket and silently made that evaluation.

Then he sighed inwardly:

Having an assistant really is quite nice. At the very least, I do not have to personally do things that lower my status so much… If this had happened back in Tingen or Backlund… That image is too beautiful to imagine…

Danitz finally arrived outside the Church of Waves and pasted the notice on the front door. Then he raised his fist and knocked. Dong! Dong!

After doing all of this, he turned and ran, as if ten Mandated Punishers were already charging out behind him.

Klein did not dare be careless either. While pulling out a paper figurine, flicking his wrist, and letting it burn into ash, he strode quickly toward another street.

After his recent contacts with them, he had already developed a profound understanding of the Mandated Punishers’ style and dared not show the slightest negligence.

Only after they were far away from the Church of Waves did the two slow down and resume a normal walking pace.

Danitz had a decent physique. At this point, his face was neither red nor was he panting.

Somewhat puzzled, he asked, “Why not simply write a letter and drop it at the police station, or throw it into the Governor-General’s Office?”

Before Klein could answer, he suddenly understood.

“Right. The lower-level police and the Governor-General’s Office staff are locals. They might sympathize with the rebels, or even be hidden Sea God believers themselves.”

As they spoke, the two turned a street corner and saw ahead of them an enormously wide red building. Inside, lights blazed brightly, music drifted faintly outward, and people and carriages flowed constantly at the entrance, making it feel nothing like deep night.

“Hah. We actually walked here.” Danitz froze for a second, then revealed a smile all men would understand.

The Red Theater? Klein, whose theoretical knowledge was abundant, instantly understood.

Danitz chuckled.

“This is one of the most famous places in the entire Sonia Sea. There are mysterious and exotic Balam girls, passionate and fiery Feynapotter women, open and tempting Intis maidens, tall and athletic Feysac ladies, conservative and quiet Loen madams, and gentle, obedient local women…”

This fellow knows quite a lot… Does he come here often? Klein swept a glance over Blazing and said nothing.

Danitz inexplicably felt as though he had been seen through. He immediately laughed awkwardly.

“This is all what pirates say when they brag. I have only come a few times.

“Back then, I did not have much money, so I could only find ordinary ones. Besides, I mainly operated around the Fog Sea. Later, after joining the Golden Dream…”

No wonder… Although Vice Admiral Iceberg treats her crew well, and they often receive a share of treasures, saving up several houses in Bayam is still rather difficult… Compared with ordinary pirates, this fellow at least understands restraint and knows how to save money… Klein thought in enlightenment.

Danitz did not want to continue this topic, so he changed the subject.

“In Bayam, there are many streetwalkers, especially there.”

He pointed into the distance.

“Some pirates once tried something. They randomly knocked on doors, took out money, and asked to sleep with the woman of the house. Out of ten households, three or four agreed. Tsk, tsk. If it is someone with a standard Loenese appearance like yours, then almost no one would refuse. They would only secretly hide their daughters so you would not notice them. Heh. Every year, Loen’s navy commits multiple murders and rapes of young girls here. They are no better than pirates, yet they are only expelled back to the country, and at most pay a small fine…”

Klein listened quietly. In his mind, he suddenly recalled the group of Sea God believers who had gathered around the fountain at dusk to pray. He recalled their fanatical yet numb faces.

…

Backlund, inside the Odra family’s villa.

Emlyn White, who had proactively exposed certain problems, somewhat nervously followed Casimi into the underground area. Once again, he arrived inside that gray-stone hall where the black-iron coffin was placed.

“Honorable Lord Nibbs, why have you summoned me?” Although Emlyn had rehearsed similar scenes dozens of times in his mind, he still could not completely eliminate the tension and unease within him.

In such a state, he suddenly figured out one thing. From the perspective of drama, the role he was playing ought to be hiding worry and fear at this moment.

There is no need to deliberately disguise anything… I am doing very well! Emlyn suddenly calmed down considerably.

From inside the coffin covered in symbolic marks and magical labels came an aged, heavy voice.

“To commend you.

“For the sake of the Ancestor, you took a risk and prayed to The Fool. Although you did not obtain a response, you still bore considerable danger. Such conduct must be rewarded.

“Here is a 7,000-pound banker’s draft. It is your reward. Because of the Great Smog of Backlund, it was not given to you in time, but it is not too late even now.

“At the same time, you must always pay attention to yourself. Do not relax. If any abnormality appears, inform Casimi immediately.”

They are really giving me money… Emlyn almost forgot to close his mouth.