13 Mink Street

“Captain, why are we here to get to Kerona Island?” Fannie asked.

“I don’t know myself. This was Karon’s request.” Nio stood on the shore while stretching lazily. “I doubt he’s suggesting we swim across, unless he’s gone insane.”

Paige asked, “Is there still time to call a ship over?”

“There is, but we’d first need to head back to York City and board in York Harbor,” Fannie replied.

“Hah...” Paige shrugged. “Pretend I said nothing.”

At that moment, two more vehicles arrived. Gray and Wynn stepped out of the front car, while Memphis emerged from the one behind.

The captain leaned close to Fannie and whispered, “You notified Memphis?”

“Wasn’t that what you instructed, Captain?”

“Oh, right, it was. I just didn’t expect him to actually come. Looks like he genuinely enjoys our team activities.”

“When Memphis received the notice, he agreed immediately, but Richard didn’t. Apparently he’s injured.”

“Oh, Richard being present or not doesn’t really matter.”

“Captain.”

“Captain.” Gray and Wynn walked over. Memphis also approached, gave Nio a nod, then silently stood to the side.

“Hey, what kind of car is that?” Paige asked.

Fannie looked over and replied, “Looks like a hearse. A new model, too.”

Paige laughed. “Is it here to offer blessings? Why does it look familiar?”

Fannie shook her head. “It belongs to the Pavaro Funeral Home. When we sent Karon home before, this hearse was parked outside.”

The hearse rolled to a stop. Alfred stepped out and first walked over to Nio. “Greetings, Captain. I am Young Master Karon’s valet. You may call me Alfred.”

Nio nodded to him, and Alfred immediately turned to Fannie next. “Miss Fannie, I truly appreciate what you did last time.”

“You’re too polite.”

“Miss Paige, you remain as wild and beautiful as ever.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

Alfred smiled at Wynn before turning to Gray. “You must be Mr. Gray. Thank you for guiding our young master. Young Master has always been very grateful to you.”

“You’re too courteous, too courteous.”

Finally, Alfred stopped beside Memphis, and Nio called out to Alfred, “Where’s Karon?”

“Young Master will arrive shortly. Please wait just a little longer.”

No one present found it strange that Karon had a valet. After converting their church salaries into rels, any one of them could live lavishly within the city. Servants and maids were entirely affordable.

At last, the used black Pons sedan entered everyone’s view. Karon parked behind the hearse, stepping out a moment later.

Then, everyone saw the two people following behind him. One was a woman holding a wand. She wore leather boots and a hooded cloak, and had a cat perched on her shoulder.

The other person was a middle-aged man in a gray robe and sunglasses. He held a leash connected to a golden retriever who walked ahead of him.

Pu’er’s puppet stepped behind Karon and quietly asked, “Karon, was it nice to touch my face?”

“Hm? Puppets can preserve memory?”

“Only for two days. You just happen to be within the limit.”

“I simply wanted to confirm what sort of material it’s made of.”

“Then you could’ve touched the stupid dog.”

“Wouldn’t touching Kevin feel weird?”

“I suppose that’s true. Next time, if you want to touch me, I’ll control it and let the puppet lie on the bed for you.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It’s just a puppet anyway. Hehe.” A teasing smile curled across the puppet’s lips. “Besides, groping around a coffin completely kills the mood.”

“You’re being naughty.”

“No, you’re the one getting embarrassed.”

Karon raised a hand to greet the crowd ahead of him. “Sorry, I’m a little late. Let me introduce these two, they’re friends of mine and family faith system practitioners. This is Miss Pu’er.”

“Hello everyone. It’s a pleasure meeting you all.” Pu’er’s puppet bent her knees slightly to greet the group.

“This is Mr. Kevin.”

“Woof!”

The golden retriever barked first, but immediately realized something was wrong. Kevin’s puppet promptly nodded toward everyone.

Paige asked suspiciously, “What family faith system do they follow that they bring pets with them?”

Karon explained, “A characteristic of their system is beast taming.”

Paige pointed at the cat and golden retriever, wanting a bit of clarification. “Are you calling those... beasts?”

Beside her, Nio initially thought nothing of the matter. While the two people looked extremely lifelike, they could not deceive his eyes. It was clear to him that they were puppets, and even products of the pottery studio he was familiar with. Seeing Karon arrive with two nearly indistinguishable puppets did not surprise Nio in the slightest. After all, the two of them had shared and done far crazier things already.

However, the moment Nio registered the appearance of Kevin’s puppet, his eyes instantly flared.

When in the space testing temporal power, Nio and Karon had stumbled upon a fountain. Most importantly, the statue at the center of that fountain had exactly the same appearance as this puppet walking the dog.

No... no, no... Nio rubbed the space between his brows. He immediately recalled the scenes he had witnessed through those three windows: the first scene had shown a youth, the second, a young man...

Doesn’t this “Mr. Kevin” have exactly the same appearance as the heretical god seen through that third window?

The reason Nio had not immediately noticed the resemblance was because the Rhanedar he had seen through the third window had already become a god. His image, especially his face, had been easy to overlook, because the overall impression he gave off was more of a symbol than an individual.

If one excluded the possibility that Karon simply had terrible taste and had deliberately designed the puppet this way, then only one explanation remained.

“He’s like a dog in my house...” Words that Karon had once mentioned to Nio echoed in his ears.

The captain lowered his gaze to look at the golden retriever.

Then, as everyone watched, Nio approached Mr. Kevin. No, to be precise, he approached the golden retriever leading Mr. Kevin and crouched down. The captain extended a hand, but it did not look like he was trying to pet the dog. It looked more like he wanted to shake hands.

The golden retriever raised one paw and placed it into the captain’s hand, giving him a pat.

The captain tilted his face slightly. Instinctively, he wanted to grab the dog with both hands and examine it carefully, but he hesitated. Even someone like the captain who had incited such a commotion on Darkmoon Island became reserved before this dog.

“Captain, we should depart soon.”

“Yes, right.” Nio stood up and looked at Karon, seeking confirmation in his eyes.

Karon touched his pocket, but said nothing. The meaning was obvious: your debt of secrets is growing.

“Heh.” Nio laughed once.

Fannie asked, “Karon, did you charter a ship?”

“Miss Pu’er has a way to solve that problem. That’s why I brought her here.”

“Please wait a moment.” Pu’er walked toward the shore, stepping onto the seawater-soaked beach. A red sigil immediately appeared beneath her feet, and Pu’er then raised a hand and declared, “In my name, I summon you forth, my partner, Aseros!”

The sea remained calm, but ten minutes later, the water surged upward before rapidly receding again. Then, an enormous sea beast emerged.

Although everyone had already experienced the visual shock caused by the colossal beast Torathos, standing before this giant sea creature still caused them to feel an overwhelming pressure.

“Miss, responding to your summons!”

Pu’er turned around and waved at the group onshore, signaling them to come over. The giant beast simultaneously opened its mouth and extended its long tongue. She said, “Everyone, just head inside. There’s a clean space within.”

The group entered, though Nio deliberately hung back.

“Quite the spectacle,” he remarked to Karon.

“This is faster.” Karon actually knew the truth, which was that in comparison to Pu’er’s concern for Rudd as a descendant of her family, what she really wanted was nothing more than an opportunity to use her new puppet body and have a bit of fun. The increase in speed and efficiency was simply a secondary benefit.

“By the way, Captain, I thought you’d bring the entire squad.”

“Marlow and the others took another mission in Port Mulberry with the rest of the team. It’s not a difficult one, and the reward isn’t much, so I didn’t bother informing everyone. Consider it an opportunity for them to earn a bit extra for themselves.”

“Then Gendi’s squad’s mission...”

“Strictly speaking, Gendi accepted the mission through me. They do the work, while we just take our cut. That’s why, if something truly serious happens to his squad, I’ll end up in some trouble too.”

“Captain—”

“Us Hunting Hounds used to survive this same way. Back in Port Mulberry, there weren’t many good missions. If we wanted assignments that offered decent profit, we had to take transfers from others just to drink a little soup from the leftovers.”

“So even if I hadn’t come, you still would’ve gone to Kerona Island, right?”

“Yes. I have to close this mission out properly. But since I know your relationship with Allen Manor...”

“The person overseeing the island for the Allen family has already been controlled. That information is confirmed.”

“Oh, then that actually makes things easier.” Nio let out a long breath. “Strictly speaking, the route to Darkmoon Island that goes through Kerona Island is for business between Darkmoon Island and the church, while Allen Manor merely handles the middle step. Right now, some unknown faction has inserted itself into this route, which is a direct offense against our Church of Order.”

Karon knew that the captain was deliberately escalating matters. With this interpretation, even if Gendi’s squad suffered heavy casualties, the higher-ups afterward would likely have no interest in investigating the irregular task-transfer arrangements that the lower levels conducted.

“Hopefully we can resolve things quickly and smoothly.”

“That’ll be difficult. Since someone has dared to move against Gendi’s squad and even managed to gain control of the island’s representative, they clearly are quite confident. Still, once we land, we can investigate the situation before doing anything. If our current manpower is enough to handle things, we’ll resolve the matter as quickly as possible. We might even earn some merit and rewards from this. However, if our strength proves insufficient, I’ll call for reinforcements.

“Oh, right. That Kevin, no, that Mr. Kevin, what relation does he have with that heretical god?”

“The weather is pretty good today.”

Nio pointed a finger at Karon and wagged it up and down, prompting a smile. “Just wait. One day, I’ll brew up an enormous secret of my own and make you come beg me for an exchange.”

“I look forward to it.”

Nio stepped into the giant beast’s mouth.

“Young Master, I would like to go as well,” Alfred requested.

“Of course. I will always need your help, Alfred.” There was no reason to bring along the cats and dogs from home while leaving Alfred behind.

“Thank you, Young Master.” Alfred entered the giant mouth.

Just as Karon was preparing to follow, Pu’er spoke, “Aseros, close your mouth.”

The giant beast shut its jaws.

Karon said, “I didn’t sleep well, so I wanted to go inside and lie down for a nap.”

“After so many years have passed, this is the first time I’ve gone outside in human form. Can’t you stay with me for a while?” Pu’er pinched her own cheek. “Consider it compensation for squeezing my face.”

“Alright, alright. Can we put it past us now?”

“Hmph, hmph! That depends on my mood.”

Karon and Pu’er stood atop Aseros’s head. The sea beast released a pillar of water before submerging itself, leaving only a tiny portion above the surface. Its colossal body moved toward Kerona Island with astonishing speed.

“It’s been a long time since I assembled a team to go on an adventure like this.” Pu’er sighed emotionally. “Back then, I often organized journeys with a group of companions. Some people would die along the way, then new interesting people would join the next time around. As long as life continued, the adventures never stopped.”

“I can imagine what that kind of life must’ve felt like.”

“Do you envy it?”

“Not really.”

“Why not? Didn’t you tell Tiz you wanted to come out precisely to see the scenery?”

“Our mentality toward scenery isn’t the same. Just like you now, if you returned to that time from before...”

“I would still be excited, thrilled, and happy. I will always be myself.”

“Alright. You’re right.” Karon sat down, placed the sword case behind him, then reclined against it as a pillow. The sunlight was still bright, so he treated it like lying under the sun for an afternoon nap.

Seeing this, Pu’er said nothing further. She merely continued standing where she was, gazing at her own youth.

By dusk, Karon sensed the movement beneath him slowing. He opened his eyes to see that Kerona Island already lay before them.

“You stood there the whole time?” Karon asked.

The black cat on Pu’er’s shoulder turned around and said, “Does this puppet of mine need to sit down or lie down to rest?”

“Heh, I forgot.”

Aseros opened its mouth, and everyone emerged from its stomach.

Pu’er was the last to descend, and she turned back to instruct the giant beast, “Find somewhere nearby to rest and await my summons.”

“Yes, Miss.” Aseros dropped beneath the sea, vanishing.

The captain glanced at the surroundings and said, “We should be on the island’s shaded side. Alright, we’ll split into groups now. Fannie and Paige, one group. Wynn and Gray, another. Memphis and I will form the third. Karon, you and your valet, along with your two friends who are assisting us, can remain here and rest for now.

“We’ll investigate from three directions. Remember this well: do not expose yourselves prematurely, and do not strike first. Before we determine the enemy’s strength, avoid any contact as much as possible. Understood?”

“Yes, Captain!”

“Yes, Captain!”

“Good. Go now. We’ll regroup here four hours from now and plan for the next step.”

Soon, everyone departed according to their assigned groups.

“So what about us?” Pu’er asked. “Are we really just staying here to rest?”

“Woof!”

“Young Master, what are your thoughts?” Alfred asked.

“The captain understands that it probably isn’t convenient for you two to move around with the others. He can deceive the others, but not himself. That’s fine; I’ll take you all to investigate as well. We’ll go that way.”

“That isn’t the direction of the town or the docks, but the mountain valleys,” Pu’er remarked.

“The others are already heading in those directions, aren’t they? Let’s just take a look. Maybe we’ll discover something.”

“Karon, are you just trying to brush me and the stupid dog off?”

“Woof?”

“Yes. The more you keep saying things like that, the more convinced I become that we really might find something. I think you wrote something about that theory in your notebook before. Which church does it originate from?”

“The Xuanxue Church.”[1]

“I understood the word ‘church,’ but what does the pronunciation before it mean?”

Alfred took out his small notebook and started writing while saying, “According to my interpretation of Young Master’s words, that pronunciation can mean ‘mystery.’ It can also mean ‘the unknowable,’ ‘the unpredictable,’ or, by extension, even ‘fate.’”

“Radio demon, were you an archaeologist before becoming a demonkin?”

“I am willing to devote my entire life to excavating and comprehending Young Master’s ideology.”

Pu’er spread her hands in a helpless gesture.

The four then headed deeper into the mountains. The valleys in this area were essentially the island’s uninhabited territory. No one would deliberately wander this region.

Alfred activated his Succubus Eye and began observing the surroundings.

Kevin walked Mr. Kevin while constantly sniffing the air. Karon also paid attention to changes in the environment around them. Only Pu’er seemed more interested in looking at the sky.

As they walked, she suddenly raised a hand and pointed upward. “Those seabirds are acting strangely.”

“Let’s go take a look.”

Below the circling seabirds lay a depression in the ground, covered by a layer of white cocoon-like material. Pu’er said, “The seabirds are circling because they want to eat carrion, but they don’t dare descend. This white cocoon definitely contains poison, so I’ll try burning it away.”

She then immediately spread both of her hands open, causing two fireballs to appear. They unsteadily floated upward before landing on the white cocoon. It quickly caught fire and was burned away, to reveal what lay beneath.

Inside were enormous broken eggshells, each as tall as an ordinary adult man. Black, pus-like liquid was still inside the shells. At the cracked opening of the lowest shell, a person covered in black scales was stuck halfway out. He was already dead, and his corpse shriveled dry. Clearly, he had failed while trying to hatch from the egg.

Above the corpse, they could see strange black runes covering both the interiors of the broken eggshells and the corpse itself. Pu’er frowned in confusion. “What the hell is this? Egg people?”

At that moment, Karon noticed Kevin was staring intently at the eggs. The dog had his teeth bared and a low growl escaped his throat.

“Stupid dog, do you know what these things are?”

“Woof! Woof!”

Alfred spoke up. “They’re believers from the fundamentalist branch of the Sea God Church.”

Karon asked, “Didn’t you already destroy the Sea God Church?”

The original Sea God Church had long since fractured to form countless smaller churches. The strongest of the current churches was no better than a medium-sized church, roughly comparable to the Church of Pamireth before it had joined the Church of Order. That was vastly inferior to the current Church of Pamireth. However, one had to remember that during its height in the previous epoch, the Sea God Church had once been an Orthodox Church.

Kevin’s canine eyes darkened. He turned around to face the distant sea, raised his tail high, and let out an exceptionally low growl, “Woof!”

Alfred translated, “He, too, desires to return.”

1. Xuanxue: literally “mystic/metaphysical studies,” often associated with esoteric philosophy or mysterious principles. ☜