Chapter 30: Is It Over?

Chapter 30: Is It Over?

After Klein retrieved his hat, Bishop Miller’s Beyonder characteristic had already finished condensing. It was only the size of a thumb, pale-blue and translucent, but from time to time, traces of greenish-blue wind would sweep through it, and dark, nearly black “tides” surged within.

Opening the revolver’s cylinder, Klein flicked his wrist and shook the spent shells—golden, silvery-white, and brass—onto the ground, where they rang out with a clear series of clinks.

Then he unhurriedly took out the speedloader he had prepared in advance and loaded a new set of Beyonder bullets into the gun.

After finishing this, he put away the revolver, bent down, picked up Bishop Miller’s Beyonder characteristic, and tucked it casually into his pocket.

After taking a few diagonal steps, Klein picked up his cane again. As he turned to walk toward Cleeves and the others, he casually drew out a paper figurine and flicked his wrist as though cracking a whip.

Snap!

The paper figurine rapidly ignited, flew from his hand, and drifted away, turning into specks of crimson that fell to the ground and extinguished into dust.

“So cool…” Denton forgot the pain from his fall just now and stared without blinking.

Uncle Sparrow looked like he was setting off fireworks… Donna nodded in agreement with her younger brother’s words.

After using the Paper Figurine Substitute method to interfere with information and residual traces at the scene, Klein looked toward the direction from which they had come and said, calm and concise, “Leave this place.”

With that, he turned directly and began walking at an unhurried pace, receiving the Sun Brooch and Azik’s copper whistle from Elland and Danitz respectively.

Urdi and the others said nothing and made no complaints about pain. Quiet as quails, they followed behind.

In the battle just now, they had fully witnessed the strangeness of Beyonders. Danitz’s fire abilities in particular had been the most conspicuous and obvious, leaving an extraordinarily deep impression. They now understood, truly and clearly, that this was not something ordinary humans could involve themselves in. The only thing they could do was obey instructions and do their utmost to follow.

Only then could they ensure their survival!

Compared to Danitz’s side, Klein’s battle with Bishop Miller had mainly involved almost invisible wind blades and the truly invisible domain of the mind. Apart from the holy light that seemed to have been descended from the heavens and Bishop Miller’s terrifying appearance after losing control, the whole process had appeared rather plain and uneventful, failing to give the spectators too strong a feeling of shock.

When they passed through the area of the fight, Cleeves, Cecile, and the others suddenly paused, because they saw that the ground was covered in slashing marks, densely packed and everywhere.

This… They instantly understood one thing: the battle between Gehrman Sparrow and the fallen bishop had been far more dangerous and terrifying than the performance on the other side.

Fear and a sense of security surged up at the same time. They all quickened their pace.

Twenty or thirty seconds later, Klein stopped on the street outside the telegraph office and, expressionless, said to Captain Elland, “Are you going to send the telegram?”

After saying this, he could not help adding a reminder.

“Do not force your way in.”

“Understood.” On this strange night, Elland was just as cautious.

He hurried a few steps to the telegraph office door and raised a hand to knock three times.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Amid the slightly muffled echoes, someone inside asked, “Who is it?”

Klein, who had already been on guard, abruptly frowned, because the speaker was a man!

Elland also found it strange.

“I want to send a telegram.

“Who are you? I remember the person on duty earlier was a lady.”

The man inside answered in a calm, flat voice, “I am Pavo Court, Melanie’s colleague.

“She is right beside me. She is fine.”

No sooner had Pavo Court finished speaking than the earlier female voice followed.

“Yes, I am fine.

“You do not need to keep watching for Pavo Court anymore. He has returned.”

Friend, isn’t your folk custom not to respond and not to open the door? How did Pavo Court get inside? Klein restrained the urge to question them.

Elland took one step back and cleared his throat.

“I want to send a telegram to the Church of Storms headquarters.”

“I am sorry. We cannot open the door,” Pavo Court replied without emotional fluctuation.

Elland also sensed the strangeness of the situation and did not dare press the matter. He offered an alternative.

“Can you help me send it, then pass the draft through the crack under the door?

“The contents are: Abnormal changes in Bansy Harbor. Bishop Miller and Priest Jess are dead. Signed, Elland.”

“Alright.” Melanie’s voice grew distant, as though she had returned to the telegraph machine.

After they waited a while, the sound of tapping came from inside. Before long, a telegram draft was slipped out through the gap beneath the door.

Elland bent down and picked it up, resisting the impulse to peek through the crack.

He glanced at the telegram draft, and his nose suddenly twitched. From the paper, he smelled a faint trace of blood!

He hurriedly turned his head to look at Gehrman Sparrow, signaling with his eyes that there was something wrong inside the telegraph office.

However, the response he received was a deep, restrained gaze without ripples, and a calm, indifferent sentence.

“Return to the ship.”

Leaving those words behind, Klein turned directly and walked toward the end of the street, his figure gradually merging into the thin fog.

Danitz, holding the broken lantern, immediately broke into a run after him without hesitation. Donna and the others did the same.

Elland pondered for two seconds, then held the telegram draft and hurried to catch up with the main group.

No more sound came from the telegraph office. It was abnormally quiet.

…

Perhaps because the fallen Bishop Miller had already been eliminated, Klein and the others did not encounter any more headless people in black cloaks on the way back. The mold-covered heads appeared only twice, and they were dealt with easily.

After walking for an unknown length of time, they finally saw the dock and the White Agate, whose candlelight shone out from one window after another.

This restored strength to Urdi and the others. They changed from walking quickly to jogging, running all the way to the lowered gangway.

Klein held his blood-stained cane and stood guard below. Only after everyone had boarded did he pull and leap his way back to the deck in a few swift movements.

At this time, Elland had already begun summoning the first mate, second mate, navigator, gunnery officer, and other subordinates, having them organize sailors, adjust the cannons, and prepare to set sail at any moment. Although leaving port at night carried no small safety hazard, if the situation clearly deteriorated, that would be the best way to avoid danger!

“Uncle Sparrow…” Donna pulled her younger brother Denton and jogged to Klein’s side, her stomach full of questions.

Klein nodded, pointed toward the cabin, and said, “Return to your room first.

“We will talk tomorrow.”

The danger had not yet been lifted!

Donna obediently nodded. Together with Denton, she raised her index finger and pressed it to her lips.

“Shh!”

After the Branch family and the Dimodo family entered the cabin, Klein walked to Elland’s side, took out Bishop Miller’s Beyonder characteristic, and tossed it over.

“If any Mandated Punishers are still alive, return it to them.”

A Beyonder characteristic left behind by a bishop who might have been Sequence 6 would inevitably be pursued forcefully by the Church of Storms. Everyone on the White Agate would be considered a suspect. Klein did not wish to be wanted by the number-one power on the ocean right after setting sail.

If none of Bansy Harbor’s Mandated Punishers survived, and support from headquarters would take some time to arrive, leaving Klein ample opportunity to deal with it and leave, then he certainly would not bear to return it. He would find a reason to ask for it back.

Elland caught that thumb-sized object and glanced at it with some doubt.

He did not ask what it could be used for. Instead, he chuckled and said, “There is no need to worry about an investigation from the Church of Storms. I will hint to them that you and I are on the same side.”

So I will be regarded by the Church of Storms as someone from MI9? Klein gently nodded and said no more.

Elland looked at Danitz beside him and probed, “Blazing?”

“Haha.” Danitz dryly laughed twice, imitating a certain someone. “Guess.”

“Then I believe you are not,” Elland replied with tacit understanding.

After briefly explaining matters, Klein walked to the ship’s rail and gazed toward Bansy Harbor, shrouded in fog, guarding against the danger hidden within.

Time passed minute by minute. At the peak of the mountain range by the shore, thunderstorm light lit up once again.

Silver-white, violent bolts of lightning rampaged there, then gradually quieted.

The fog around Bansy Harbor began to disperse, and the crimson moonlight became clearer and clearer.

Is it over? Seeing this, Klein did not dare fully relax.

More than half an hour later, three men claiming to be Mandated Punishers arrived at the dock and requested to meet Captain Elland.

After Gehrman Sparrow confirmed their identities through divination and tested them once, Elland had the sailors lower the gangway.

The three Mandated Punishers first signaled for the surrounding crew to leave. Then, lowering their voices, they informed the captain of the situation.

Klein did not approach to listen. He patiently waited for the matter to conclude.

A few minutes later, Elland returned Bishop Miller’s remaining characteristic to the Mandated Punishers and watched them leave the White Agate to go everywhere and deal with the aftermath.

“Whew…” Elland exhaled, then came to Klein and Danitz’s side, speaking with both relief and lingering fear. “The matter is resolved. There is no problem now.”

Is it really resolved… Klein suddenly thought of Pavo Court and Melanie behind the telegraph office door, and of Fox, the owner of Lime Restaurant, along with the lodging guests who had watched him silently.

Elland continued, “The specifics are like this. Jess accidentally discovered that the ancient cannibalistic custom and the tradition of live sacrifice were reviving, confirming that a small number of Bansy Harbor’s residents had become evil cultists.

“He hurried back to the church to report to Bishop Miller. But unexpectedly, the person before him was the cultists’ leader, the true fallen one. He was decapitated on the spot by Miller’s wind blades and died inside the Lord’s church.

“Miller was about to handle the corpse, but he was discovered by the servants, and so the matter became impossible to contain.

“Some servants were transformed into monsters, while others, guided by the priests, hid underground.

“Seeing that he could no longer cover things up, Miller left the church, summoned the evil cultists, and went to the mountaintop altar. The weather changed because of this. After taking out three Sealed Artifacts, the Mandated Punishers rushed over, and a fierce battle broke out.

“During the process, Miller was injured and fled, while the remaining cultists held fast at the altar, only to eventually be breached.

“Church headquarters has already replied by telegram and will soon send people to thoroughly investigate the reason behind Bishop Miller’s fall. Heh. I told them that it was because Bishop Miller was heavily injured that we were able to join forces and kill him. Oh, right—the Mandated Punishers also asked me to have the Branch family and the Dimodo family sign confidentiality agreements.”

After roughly clarifying the cause and course of the incident, Elland let out a long breath and busied himself with handling the remaining matters.

Klein did not dare truly relax. He remained on guard on the deck until the clouds at the horizon looked like burning fire and the sun slowly rose, illuminating the entire harbor.

He saw the residents gradually leave their homes, bathing in golden sunlight, chatting and laughing as they went to their respective jobs.

Bansy Harbor once again had the scent of humanity.

…

It really is over… Klein turned back with slight confusion, preparing to catch up on sleep once the ship departed. As for Danitz, although he had already begun yawning, he did not dare move when he saw that Gehrman Sparrow had not moved.

On the way into the cabin, Klein encountered Elland, who likewise had not slept all night.

“Good morning. We will soon leave port. There is no need to worry anymore.” Elland greeted him with a smile.

As he spoke, the White Agate’s steam whistle sounded with a woo.

Hearing this, Klein silently exhaled. He decided to throw all doubts to the back of his mind and stop thinking about Bansy Harbor. He nodded in response.

Elland moved his neck and sighed.

“Last night, I had a curious feeling—that ancient Binsy and the modern Bansy Harbor had overlapped.”

Klein had been about to simply walk past him when he suddenly caught one word. His expression darkened as he asked in return, “Binsy?”

“Heh. That is Bansy Harbor’s old name. Three or four hundred years ago, this place was called Binsy Town. Later, due to pronunciation and various other factors, it gradually evolved into Bansy,” Elland explained casually.

Upon hearing this answer, Klein’s pupils instantly contracted.

He remembered very clearly that the evil spirit in the underground ruins of Backlund had once said that, if he wanted to find one of the founders of Redemption Rose—the former King of Angels, Medici, and His bloodline descendants—he could try his luck in Binsy Town!

Binsy! It was as if Klein’s heart were freezing inch by inch. Cold seeped out from the depths of his bones.

He abruptly looked back toward the harbor outside. Before his eyes, the telegraph office with its tightly shut door reappeared, along with the silent overnight guests in Lime Restaurant who had quietly watched him.