Chapter 155: Future

Chapter 155: Future

“Are you ready?” Colin asked with his back to the window, his tone betraying nothing unusual.

Derrick, with the Axe of Hurricane at his side, lowered his head slightly.

“I’m ready.”

Over the past two months and more, through repeated patrol missions and painstaking practice, he had fully mastered the various Beyonder abilities of a Solar High Priest. He was no longer far from digesting the potion.

What he hoped for most now was to obtain the Sequence 6 potion formula of the Sun pathway within the next two or three Tarot Gatherings, laying the foundation for further advancement.

The release of “Shepherd” Lovia had given him an intense sense of danger. He believed that only by reaching the same Sequence 5 could he effectively restrain her and eliminate the hidden danger within the City of Silver. Of course, in a place that understood the acting method and was not particularly lacking in Beyonder ingredients, Sequence 6 was absolutely an attainable goal—provided he survived patrols and exploration missions again and again, accumulating enough merits. Sequence 5, however, which required a specific ritual, was far more difficult.

Colin, his gray-streaked hair in disarray, gave a faint nod.

“In two days, I will lead an exploration team to the vicinity of the Giant King’s Court and carry out a second cleansing of the Afternoon Town we previously discovered. Your abilities are very suitable for such a task.”

“Afternoon Town…” In recent months, Derrick had been frantically catching up on mythological knowledge, so this name was no longer unfamiliar to him. It had once been an unavoidable point along the road from the Silver Nation to the Giant King’s Court. There, humans and giants had lived together in a town clustered around the ancient god’s dwelling, where dusk was eternally frozen in place—as though it were the final gate between the real world and myth.

“Yes, Your Excellency,” Derrick replied, finding no reason to refuse.

…

Nas, the White City. Inside a certain hotel.

Klein sat behind a desk, watching clouds outside the window shift endlessly in shape while quietly waiting for evening to arrive.

At eight o’clock, he would board the flagship of the Star Pirates at Pier Six—the Future—and head for the easternmost reaches of the Sonia Sea. No matter what happened in the Gargas Islands or in these waters known as a pirate paradise, it would no longer have anything to do with him.

That was why he had been so tolerant toward the few pirates with bounties who wandered the streets and lanes or mingled in bars and casinos. He had made no attempt to hunt them, lest he disrupt his own plan to search for mermaids.

My spiritual intuition tells me that “Slaughterer” Gilchies from noon seems to have set his sights on me… If he really wants to deliver himself to my door, I wouldn’t mind too much. Mm, strategically I can look down on him, but tactically I have to take him seriously. Without using the Sea God Scepter or the Fire Seed glove, I’m only a little stronger than him at most—my advantage lies in being comprehensive and bizarre… Klein half-closed his eyes and imagined countless balls of light gathered together, using that to enter a meditative state and keep his spirituality sharp.

After some unknown length of time, his spiritual perception was suddenly touched, and his eyes snapped open.

By then, the sun had already sunk toward the west. Fiery red light scorched the sea, and the shadow of the curtain stretched long across the room.

That shadow seemed to come alive. At first, it swayed and rustled, then twisted upright, projecting itself onto the wall.

It was pitch black and deep, as though formed from the thick, viscous malice hidden at the bottom of the human heart.

Expressionless, Klein watched this unfold. He lifted his left palm and slowly unfurled his five fingers before him.

The dark shadow, its voice rough as if a piece of sandpaper were lodged in its throat, said while facing…