Seeing Edwinaâs gaze warm up, Anderson curled the sides of his mouth and shook his head with a sigh.
âYouâre always so inflexible. Thatâs why you arenât able to become an artist your entire life.â
After sighing again, he looked at the corpse on the chair.
âWe canât keep watching. We have to do something. Doesnât Siatas wish to find her race? Letâs bury her near an elvish ruin in Sonia Island. Mobet looks like he wants to be with Siatas. We should bury them in the same tomb.
âDoesnât Frunziar want to return to Backlund? Burn his remains to ashes, store the ashes in a box, and bring it to the city when possible. If time permits it, then someone can look for his descendants. As for Snowman, itâs not known if he believes in the ancient sun god or the original Creator. Who knows if the two are the same. Heh, to us, itâs the same. Thereâs definitely no way to find the corresponding cathedrals or altars. Therefore, the only thing we can do is bury him beside Groselle.
âGroselle⌠He wishes to return to the Giant Kingâs Court, but thatâs a city in myths and legends. Thereâs no way to find it in the real world. However, there are Giant ruins in the Northern and Southern Continent. We can bury him there and allow him to have a proper burial.â
Giant Kingâs Court⌠Backlund⌠Klein listened in silence as he deliberated for a few seconds.
âLeave the ashes of Groselle, Snowman, and Frunziar with me.â
He believed that in the time to come, the City of Silver would manage to reach the Giant Kingâs Court. When that happened, he could hand Groselleâs and Snowmanâs ashes to Little Sun and allow him to bury the two ancient figures. As for Backlund, Klein needed to return to it, as it was the final destination of his travels. He could then bring back Frunziar, who had left his hometown for more than 165 years.
Edwina added, âThe Golden Dream often goes to Sonia Island. Iâll handle Sonia Islandâs and Mobetâs remains.â
âAlright. Youâll be in charge of the cremation later.â Anderson turned to look at Danitz as he chuckled and sighed. âLook, everyone plays a part in this. Thereâs no need to feel inferior.â
He originally imagined that Danitz wouldnât understand his consoling and would glare at him angrily. To his surprise, this well-known pirateâs expression turned heavy as he nodded in silence.
âAhem. As companions who faced the King of the North together, letâs each choose one. Treat it as though weâre inheriting their legacy.â Anderson gestured at the shimmering items on the floor. âHeh heh, these Beyonder characteristics definitely have remnants of their psyche. I wonder what kind of influence they will bring. Be it concocting it into a potion for consumption or getting an Artisan to craft it into an item, there should be something special about them. The former can be digested with the acting method, but nothing can be done about the latter. Ah, from the looks of it, you donât know the acting method. Treat it as though I didnât say a thing.â
The last two lines were said to Danitz.
Klein didnât have the mood to lampoon Anderson. He looked at the four Beyonder characteristics and said, âGive Siatasâs to me.â
This was the main ingredient of an Ocean Songster!
Edwina thought for a moment before saying, âIâll take Snowmanâs.â
It corresponded to the Priest of Light which Klein already had one of. Hence, he didnât choose it.
Anderson glanced at the remaining two Beyonder characteristics as his gaze paused at the strange item that resembled a babyâs palm.
âI have to say that this guy is very interesting. Perhaps it can be made into a mystical item that can talk to me. That way, everyone wouldnât be too lonely.â
At that moment, the âgiantâs heartâ didnât have an owner. Klein glanced at Danitz and indifferently said, âItâs yours.â
âMine? I didnât do anything. I didnât participate in the battleâŚâ Danitz was extremely surprised.
Klein said simply, âYou scouted and took on a risk.â
To Klein, this was a form of compensation. This was because Danitz had chanted The Foolâs honorific name and knew Gehrman Sparrowâs secret. Therefore, he had to force the faith of The Fool on him; otherwise, it would only leave latent risks.
Although this was a risk which Danitz was willing to take, Klein still wished to compensate him. Of course, he hoped that Danitz would view it as a bestowment from The Fool.
And regardless of exchanging Groselleâs Beyonder characteristic for money, using it to purchase the corresponding formula and ingredients, or making it into a defensive mystical item, all of them would be very useful for Danitz.
âTake it,â Edwina said as she looked at Danitz.
â⌠Alright.â Danitz nodded after a few seconds of silence.
After distributing them, Klein took a few steps forward and bent his back to pick up Siatasâs Beyonder characteristic. Looking at the azure-blue seawater sloshing inside the translucent membrane, he could vaguely hear the elfâs beautiful singing.
Just as he stood up, he saw Danitz nodding as though he was responding to a question. However, no one had spoken!
Kleinâs gaze swept past Edwinaâs expressionless face and suspected if this Mysticism Magister was communicating with Danitz in a way others couldnât hear.
Seeing Danitz give an affirmative answer, Edwina reached out to pick up Groselleâs Travels from the desk and closed it. She then handed it to Klein.
âThis is a token of my gratitude.â
âWithout me, all of you wouldâve defeated the frost dragon.â Klein didnât reach out his hand as he looked at the book comprised of yellowish-brown goatskin.
âNo, we definitely wouldâve died. We had no way to defend against the King of the Northâs final frenzy. Besides, you were taking a huge risk entering the book.â Edwina was like a teacher, explaining to him the reasons in a serious manner. âMy only request is that you will tell me the answers if you figure out its origins and principles.â
Klein was very curious about the secrets hidden in Groselleâs Travels. He couldnât reject the offer as he reached out to take the magical book.
âOkay.â
At this moment, the importance of the Giant Kingâs Court became more obvious. He even thought of buying the black iron key belonging to the giants and was worth 5,000 pounds while he was at it. However, he didnât immediately make the request, to prevent Edwina from thinking that he was trying to fleece her.
He prepared to wait a few more hours, or perhaps tomorrow, before borrowing the key from Vice Admiral Iceberg. He would head above the gray fog to divine its worth before offering to purchase it.
Seeing Anderson and Danitz pick up their Beyonder characteristics, Edwina glanced at the darkening sky and said to Klein, âWhere are you heading to next?â
âBayam,â Klein replied frankly.
Edwina nodded.
âYou can head there on the Golden Dream. We have plenty of rooms.â
Klein nodded indiscernibly as he agreed.
Who wouldnât want a free ride?
After dealing with the remains and cleaning up the captainâs cabin, Edwina walked to the door and opened it.
There were gasps of pleasant surprise as the mood in the corridor turned jubilant.
âAlright, itâs fine now.â Edwina looked around as a smile formed from her cold expression.
The crew cheered loudly, making Anderson stroke his chin and frown.
âItâs more exaggerated than I imaginedâŚâ Without a doubt, his words were drowned by the ebullient cheers.
After everything came to an end, Klein and Anderson left the captainâs cabin under Danitzs lead and headed for other rooms on the same level.
Half-turning his body to look where they were, Anderson suddenly sighed.
âIs that it?
âAlthough we didnât get to know each other for more than half an hour, people who fought alongside you often leave a deep impression. But to think they suddenly died in a baffling manner. All of themâŚâ
Klein was silent for two seconds before saying, âThis world is filled with baffling deaths to begin with.â
â⌠Thatâs right.â Anderson immediately smiled. âThatâs why optimism is needed to enjoy life. If I were to face death one day, Iâll definitely be composed and cool, not losing my elegance at all. I would face it in the most handsome manner possible.â
Donât raise flags for yourself⌠Klein didnât say a word as he entered the room Danitz opened for him. Anderson took the room beside him.
In the room, Klein stood at the window as he silently watched the darkening sea for nearly ten minutes. Then, he entered the bathroom, took four steps counterclockwise, recited the incantation, and went above the gray fog.
Sitting at the high-back chair of The Fool, he conjured The Worldâs figure and made him make a praying pose.
âHonorable Mr. Fool, please inform The Sun that Iâve obtained the Sequence 6 Notary potion formula he wants. I also have clues to the Priest of Light formula and main ingredients. He can delay payment by putting it on credit and pay for it in the future.â
Klein was doing this to prepare for his advancement to Sequence 4. The City of Silver had rich resources, so it was possible that particular main ingredients or difficult supplementary ingredients that were hard to come across would exist over there. Therefore, with him in no rush to get anything, he planned on letting Little Sun owe him.
The reason why he didnât say that he had obtained the main ingredients and potion formula for Priest of Light, was because he felt that it was too exaggerated. He planned on telling him once Little Sun was more or less done digesting the potion.
After checking the conjured scene twice, he transmitted it into the crimson star representing The Sun as a stream of light.
âŚ
Afternoon Town.
Having just finished patrolling the periphery of the newly established camp, Derrickâs vision suddenly blurred, and he saw an endless gray fog and an indistinct figure praying inside a dark red glow.
Immediately following that, he heard The Worldâs voice and learned that his Notary potion formula had been acquired.
Mr. Worldâs efficiency is really high. Itâs the exact number of days that he promised. Furthermore, he even got clues to the Priest of Light potion formula and main ingredients! Derrick felt joy after a moment of alarm.
He couldnât help but admire The World, wishing that he would possess similar strength and styles in the future.
Above the gray fog, the busy The World made another prayer after Mr. Fool confirmed that there werenât any problems with the Ocean Songster potion formula.
âHonorable Mr. Fool, please inform Mr. Hanged Man that Iâve already obtained the Ocean Songsterâs potion formula and the corresponding main ingredient. Iâll give it to him during the next Tarot Gathering. Please get him to consider what he would like to provide in exchange.â