Chapter 205: The Blatherer

Chapter 205: The Blatherer

Picking up the slender blood crystal and smelling the faint scent of sulfur, Klein vaguely sensed the corrosive power hidden deep within it.

“Legend says the Abyss is the most contaminating place. Even angels can fall and lose control there. Those who guard the Abyss will ultimately be assimilated by the Abyss… The traits the Death Knell displayed do fit that rather well. Mm, a deepening of the Apostle of Desire?” Klein let his thoughts wander.

Very quickly, he noticed one detail: Gilchies had sworn loyalty to the Death Knell, not to the Undying King Agalito!

“Does that mean the true Undying King is actually the Death Knell, while Agalito is only its representative—or perhaps the manager of those it contaminates? Heh, rumor says Agalito isn’t a demigod and hasn’t reached Sequence 4, that he relies entirely on the Death Knell to become one of the Four Kings. If that’s true, then his actual condition may be even worse than I imagined. He may have no autonomy at all…

“Of course, I can’t rule out the possibility that he is Sequence 4 and that he has a cooperative relationship with the Death Knell. Devils are always cunning and fond of misleading others…”

Klein pondered for a few seconds, then once again attempted divination to see whether he could obtain a revelation regarding the use of the slender blood crystal.

He was not worried this would bring him great trouble. Or rather, he was already prepared to face great trouble. Even if this connected him to that demon king in the Abyss, at most it would be equivalent to another backlash from the True Creator or the Eternal Blazing Sun. Klein believed the gray fog could still block and suppress it.

This is the first time, so I won’t be locked onto. The problem shouldn’t be too serious… And I already divined its origin just now. There was no danger, so the Death Knell definitely isn’t a Sequence 0-level demon… Huh, isn’t that obvious? If it were truly a Sequence 0-level demon, or a Sealed Artifact at the level of the King of Angels Amon, there would be no need for it to avoid the combined forces of me, the Queen of Mysteries, Admiral of Stars, and Anderson… Klein suddenly realized he had frightened himself for no reason, and he seriously began dream divination.

In the gray, hazy world, he saw a world filled with viscous black fog.

A monster composed of huge dark lumps of flesh wriggled closer. From inside its cavity burst a furious roar:

“Blatherer!”

The scene shifted. An altar of ancient style appeared, drenched in blood. Upon it were carved one filthy word and symbol after another, as though they were calling out to something.

The gray world then shattered, and Klein slowly opened his eyes, sitting upright.

He tapped the edge of the mottled long table with his fingers and silently said to himself, “Does ‘Blatherer’ mean that before the Death Knell became a Sealed Artifact, it was a Blatherer from the Abyss? Or does it mean that the enormous monster made of dark lumps of flesh was killed by a Blatherer and became a Sealed Artifact?

“Heh heh. Either way, a ship must have participated in the end. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have solidified into its current form.

“Mm… Judging from that laughter that nearly made people lose control, the Death Knell is more likely to correspond to the Blatherer. I can preliminarily judge that it isn’t a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact. Otherwise, the Undying King would be the foremost of the Four Kings… Probably Sequence 3? And Agalito’s match with it is clearly not ideal. The degree of power it can display isn’t especially high—Sequence 4 at most…

“That altar with a sense of filth and calling out symbolizes that this blood crystal can be used to summon a high-ranking demon? For example, a Blatherer?”

Klein, who had no idea how to summon a high-ranking demon and had no intention of doing so, casually threw the slender blood crystal into the junk pile together with the glowing crystal—the Beyonder characteristic left behind by the Priest of Light. Then he gave the former an extremely perfunctory name:

“The Blatherer’s Aura!”

After finishing that, Klein cautiously attempted another divination. He wanted to confirm whether he would face danger tonight—danger from the Undying King Agalito.

In truth, he already had a certain expectation of the divination’s answer: the Undying King Agalito would not come ashore!

First, Toscarter had a hidden demigod. Ordinary Beyonders might not know this, but the Four Kings most likely had some understanding of it. Agalito was unlikely to clash head-on with another demigod. Forcing his way into someone else’s “territory” was not his style.

Second, based on Klein’s earlier guess, Agalito might not dare leave the Death Knell at all, while the Death Knell could not sail onto land!

As expected, Klein obtained the revelation that tonight would be very safe.

That meant he did not need to change his appearance and move to another inn.

…

The next morning, shortly after nine, Klein had just walked into the first-floor dining room and found a seat when Anderson Hood popped out from who knew where and welded himself into the seat opposite.

While combing his short blond hair back into a side part with his fingers, this Strongest Hunter looked at Gehrman Sparrow and clicked his tongue with a smile.

“Impressive. One against three, and you still managed to hunt Gilchies!

“The sight of you dragging the demon corpse downstairs has already spread through all of Toscarter Harbor.

“Heh. Apparently, every pirate with a bounty on their head has decided to stay far away from your line of sight and not appear within five kilometers of you!”

Having basically quit milk after meeting Frank Lee, Klein raised his hand and ordered coffee, a piece of white bread, two slices of toast, a roasted pork sausage, and a dish of butter. Then he replied with great calm, “Your intelligence-gathering abilities are not bad.”

Anderson laughed.

“That’s a necessary quality for a Hunter. Heh, Toscarter’s adventurers are all discussing one serious question now: who exactly is the Strongest Hunter?”

Seeing Gehrman Sparrow lift his head and look at him, his gaze cold and his meaning unclear, Anderson’s smile froze. He said awkwardly, “They all chose you.

“Haha. This is the Sonia Sea, after all, not the Misty Sea.”

Why did you have to add that last sentence? That makes it very easy to get beaten up… Klein casually asked, seemingly without much thought, “Anything else?”

“Huh?” Anderson suddenly felt that something was wrong with his ability to understand words.

“What other intelligence is there?” Klein repeated in greater detail.

“There’s also…” Anderson suddenly winked. “Mosona of the New Loen Party mysteriously vanished last night! In his own room, while under the protection of countless bodyguards, he mysteriously vanished! The official statement is that Mosona has already died, and the reason may be that he sacrificed to an evil god or summoned a demon. Heh, nobody believes that, because the Church of Storms received an anonymous letter containing a detailed record of Mosona’s crimes and the corresponding evidence.”

He stared at Gehrman Sparrow, hoping the crazy adventurer would reveal more information.

He clearly remembered that yesterday afternoon, Gehrman Sparrow had asked who deserved to be killed, and his answer had been Mosona of the New Loen Party.

Klein gave an “Mm,” saying nothing extra.

Just then, a figure rushed into the inn. After glancing around, he walked toward Klein in delight.

It was the owner of the bar from before.

“Mr. Sparrow.” The owner removed his dented soft hat and bowed. “They have confirmed it over there, but the process will still take two days. After all, the amount is too large. Heh, I knew you would definitely be leaving today, so in order not to delay your travel, I decided to advance the bounty to you. Mm, part of it is the bar’s working capital, and part of it is money I borrowed from a few friends. Please count it.”

He deliberately explained in such detail because, besides earning money, he wished to show Gehrman Sparrow goodwill and establish a friendly connection with the crazy adventurer.

As for whether that might draw retaliation from the Undying King, he was not worried. Very often, Gilchies and the others likewise collected bounties through him. In any case, spoils from pirate battles were often used to claim an extra sum of money. Everyone liked that. It was an unspoken rule of the sea.

Klein counted the thick stack of 6,000 pounds in banknotes, separated them into several piles, and placed them into different pockets. Then he nodded.

“Not bad.”

The bar owner let out a breath, vigilantly looking around before lowering his voice.

“You must be careful. The Undying King is very vengeful. He may intercept the ship you take once it reaches open waters.”

He did not dare say he had channels that could arrange for people to sneak onto certain ships and leave secretly. He feared being discovered by the Undying King and suffering retaliation.

“I know,” Klein answered without much concern.

The bar owner did not say more. He bowed again and withdrew from the inn’s dining room.

“Do you have a way to leave?” Anderson looked curiously at Gehrman Sparrow.

“Guess.” Klein revealed a cultured, polite smile.

The corner of Anderson’s mouth twitched.

“Seeing you so confident puts me at ease.

“Oh, right. The tickets. The ship departs at 1:30 this afternoon.

“Impressive. I thought earning 1,600 pounds in one night was already quite something, but who would have known…”

Klein did not respond and began enjoying his breakfast.

After that, he went out to have a new formal outfit made, lest he lack even a change of clothes.

Time passed minute by minute, and soon it was time to board. Anderson carried a newly bought suitcase, looked at Gehrman Sparrow beside him, and asked with a trace of unease, “We’re boarding and leaving just like this?

“The Death Knell should be waiting in the open sea. The Future already left yesterday after resupplying.”

He felt that leaving while bearing the Undying King’s wrath was extremely unwise.

Gehrman Sparrow can’t possibly be mad enough to rush forward knowing he’ll die… Unless this is his trap… Anderson’s thoughts shifted, and he formed another guess.

Klein did not turn to look at him. Carrying his suitcase, he directly boarded the passenger liner.

His thinking was very simple. The Death Knell should have been able to detect that something had gone wrong with its aura, and given the Undying King’s usual style, the possibility of a forced attack was very low. If that assumption proved wrong, then as long as the Death Knell appeared on the horizon, Klein would immediately enter his room, pray to himself, go above the gray fog, and respond with the scepter. He would see which was stronger upon the sea: the Blatherer, or the Sea God!

This had not been Klein’s original plan. What he had first intended was to use the Sea God Scepter’s ability to drive underwater creatures, find an underwater “carriage,” and have it pull him and Anderson—protected by layer upon layer of charms—out to open waters, beyond the Death Knell’s blockade. Then they would quietly board the passenger liner for which they held tickets.

However, considering that the sudden disappearance of the retaliation target might make the Undying King vent his anger on others and indiscriminately massacre the passenger liner—after all, pirates did not obey the law, nor did they need to possess a complete moral outlook—Klein ultimately decided, after divination above the gray fog, to leave openly and honorably.