fool who doesn't belong to this era..."
On the lower deck of the "Azure Avenger," privateer Captain Alger Wilson devoutly chanted the name of God. Beside him, a tall, fair-skinned man with dark blue hair, pointed ears, and long hair dressed in the attire of a hunter from ancient novels crossed his arms. He impatiently tapped the carapace-like armor covering his right elbow with his index finger, listening to the low murmurs echoing in the enclosed space, and hesitated several times before speaking.
After all, from the perspective of a traditional elf, the honorific name spoken by Alger simply did not match the classic three-part structure on the title page of the Holy Scripture.
But soon, just as the elf's patience was about to be worn down by the unanswered prayers, and he was about to personally demonstrate the correct procedure to the mixed-race child in front of him, he was surprised to find that the environment around him was slowly being enveloped by a thin mist, and the deep black of the candles at the center of the ceremony had replaced the orange-red.
Alger, who was fortunate enough to be favored by the gods, closed his eyes and listened to the divine message coming from infinite distance without saying a word. Only at the very end did he bow his head and kneel down to show his faith and loyalty. At the same time, the strange phenomenon that swept through the lower deck like the wind disappeared.
"...Lord, what did you say?"
The elf didn't react much to the manifestation of the object of worship. Compared to the fear of ordinary believers, he was only slightly surprised that the name he had never heard before from Alger's mouth could actually work.
"The Lord will send His apostles, and His faithful will act on His will, and go with you and me to your homeland."
Alger brushed the dirt off his knees and said in a low voice.
Even in the darkness, the extraordinary one of the "Storm" pathways maintained excellent vision. His gaze swept across the cargo hold, which hadn't been cleaned in some time, watching as the two rats moved away from the faint light of the burning candles and returned to the shadows.
There are hardly any living beings left on the "Azure Avenger." Whether it's the sailors of the Faith Storm or the rats and insects that inhabit every corner of the ship, they have all become the puppets of the "Ancient Scholars." Those two rats from earlier must have been eyes sent by Lord Tristan.
The Earl overheard our conversation… Alger, sensing something amiss, looked in another direction, his sudden movement drawing the attention of the elves as well.
Scattered specks of azure blue gathered in a corner of the cargo hold, and two blurry human figures gradually enlarged. Large and small fragments of abruptly dark and jarring colors collapsed from the surrounding area, clinging to the blurred outlines and filling them in, soon piecing together two complete figures.
Klein, who was issuing a divine oracle under the guise of "The Fool," looked around and nodded slightly to Alger, the "Hanged Man," who met his gaze, as a greeting.
Tristan is really efficient. If he were any faster, he could probably catch up with my return from the gray fog... Adjusting to the discomfort after each trip to the spirit world, Klein stepped forward calmly, quickly glancing at the strangely dressed other person, his gaze lingering briefly on the man's ear.
Without a doubt, the man before them was the elven scout that the "Hanged Man" had been talking about.
Having finally seen the East Asian-style faces he had been longing for, Klein had no time to marvel at them.
"I need to meet with the high priest of the elves immediately."
"Mr. Lewis came for this reason; he is our guide." Alger was surprised by the barely concealed urgency in "The World's" tone and quickly introduced the elf beside him.
"The elves' settlement isn't located on any of the islands of Rosde; it's situated in the deep sea. Its situation is strange; it possesses both physical land and views of the spirit world, yet it lacks a direct physical entrance or exit—it's like..."
Having visited once before, Alger described the impressions of the elven settlement's unique scenery, only to suddenly realize that he couldn't find the right words to describe certain details.
"It's not as complicated as you say. You can reach our residence in reality, but you don't know the incantation to open the entrance."
Unable to stand Alger's dawdling, the elven scout Lewis took over the conversation.
Like Klein, who couldn't wait to see what was going on in him the moment they met, he was equally curious about this messenger of the gods he had only recently heard of.
With black hair, brown eyes, and a thin, angular face, Lewis was surprised to find that this messenger looked somewhat like one of their elves, and his features also seemed quite familiar to him.
However, upon realizing that the divine messenger was a "faceless man," he quickly suppressed his rare goodwill and his expression remained indifferent.
"If you want to leave, let's set off now."
Acting faster than speaking, Lewis headed towards the only staircase leading down to the deck before receiving a reply.
Swift and decisive... Klein met the gaze of the "Hanged Man" and found his relatively familiar companion shrugging his shoulders helplessly, as if to say that he would get used to it. He then followed the footsteps of the elven scout.
The deck of the "Azure Avenger" was sparsely populated with sailors, and most of the positions were held by unseen ghosts. Although it was noon, the sun was obscured by the sea of clouds in the sky, which was perfect for the ghosts to move around.
The salty sea breeze filled his nostrils. Klein, who was walking at the back of the group of four with Ludwell disguised as a servant, breathed in the fresh sea air and found that the elven scout Lewis was already waiting at the ship's side, while Alger was standing not far from the exit.
"We're too close to the Rothschild Islands now. My ship has suddenly deviated from the reported course, which could very well attract the attention of the Storm Church." A melodious and soothing song rang out. Looking at the scout standing on the ship's side singing to the sea, Alger explained, "Mr. Lewis is an Elven Singer, that is, Sequence Five of the 'Sailor' pathway, what we often call a 'Sea Singer'."
"With the blessing and help of that elven high priest, he can command sea creatures through song."
"We're not going to have to ride dolphins, are we...?" Klein, who wasn't a very good swimmer, suddenly had a bad feeling, but in order to maintain the image of Gehrman Sparrow, he had to remain silent and calm, anxiously waiting for the result.
The Elvish song grew increasingly ethereal, and the "Azure Avenger" beneath their feet seemed to have been summoned by the ocean's favored ones beforehand, defying common sense by keeping its bow still while forcibly moving its hull sideways.
Just then, a huge roar erupted from the left side of the ghost ship, as if a giant object had broken through the water. A colossal creature resembling a whale leaped out of the water, its upper body raised high.
Even with advance warning, the "Azure Avenger" was still affected by the appearance of the behemoth. The ship rocked violently, and only the sailors were able to keep their balance. Even Ludwell, who was physically strong, almost fell over, not to mention Klein, who barely managed to stay upright thanks to his superb balance.
"Jump into his mouth."
Lewis, who was on the side of the ship, shouted something and used the gangway to flip down.
Alger didn't hesitate much. He took two quick steps, then stopped and turned around. After hesitating for two seconds, he looked at Klein, whose expression wasn't very good, and said, half to comfort him and half to defend the elven scout.
"It's an elf tradition; crossing the deep sea is actually safer than sailing a ship."
"We're already sitting in the whale's mouth, how could it not be safe..." Klein shook his head, indicating that Alger didn't need to worry, and then jumped down, with the three of them landing near Lewis.
The enormous sea creature, packed with passengers, closed its mouth, and its tentacled oral cavity instantly turned pitch black.
Then, it sank into the water, carefully avoiding the "Blue Avenger" floating on the surface, and swam toward its intended target.
"Alright, it will still take some time, you can take a break."
Lewis waved his right hand, casting two "deep-sea membranes" and "underwater breathing" protections on Klein and Ludwell, and then leisurely sat down, leaning against a tooth taller than himself.
Klein, who was navigating water for the first time, felt the unique moist membrane on his skin. Looking around and finding nothing to do, he followed Lewis's example, found a tooth, sat down, closed his eyes to rest, and focused on manipulating Ludwell, keeping watch at the edge of the sea creature's mouth.
Alger glanced at Lewis, who was sitting some distance away, and then at Gehrman Sparrow, who had his eyes half-closed. He gritted his teeth, decided not to rest, and after a moment's hesitation, walked over to Gehrman's vicinity.
"How are the resistance fighters on the Rothschild Islands doing?"
Although he had been at sea for days and had not been able to set foot on land, the demigod who was traveling with him had a habit of reading newspapers, and he had been keeping up with current events by taking advantage of the demigod's hobby.
After hearing about Rune's third development plan for the Rosed Island, Alger could almost guess the possible developments without even thinking.
"Demonstration, to build up strength." Klein did not open his eyes.
Yesterday, near the dense forests of Blue Mountains Island, he discovered numerous traces of Intis and Fusak activity.
"They are unwilling to give up their reservations, are looking for cooperation and outside assistance, and seem prepared to confront the Runes head-on."
"A direct confrontation?" Alger exclaimed in surprise. "Who did they hire?"
With the "Sea King" in charge of Bayam, the capital of the Rothschild Islands, even if other countries from the Northern Continent, envious of Rune's maritime hegemony, intervene, the indigenous resistance forces' limited strength is no match for the "Sea King's" single move.
If the elves don't relent, "Sea King" Cortman has decided to silence all dissenting voices on Blue Mountain Island within the next two days. Not to mention the resistance, there won't be many natives left who haven't received legal "second-class citizen" status under the colonial government...
Supporting the Rothschild Islands resistance was the first task he received after converting to Christianity; he couldn't stand by and watch his pledge of allegiance be burned to ashes.
Before Klein could answer, Alger, disregarding any need for discretion, immediately asked again.
"There are quite a few Imperial intelligence personnel stationed on the islands... Haven't their superiors responded?"
The "sea god" worshipped by the Rothschilds was subordinate to Mr. Fool. Broadly speaking, the Rothschilds could also be considered followers of Mr. Fool. They did not believe that the officials of Trensost would have no thoughts at all.
"Archipelago…" Klein opened his eyes, hesitated for a moment, "The branch manager is still waiting for the elves' attitude."
Upon seeing the announcement at Storm Church, Klein immediately tried to report it to Colonel Taylor, but received no effective response.
In fact, judging from the timing of the announcement and the unusual behavior of the local residents, the Archipelago branch must have known about Rune's intentions earlier than Klein, and was fully aware of the Rune government's idea of abolishing the indigenous reserve.
The fact that the resistance has survived to this day is inseparable from the secret support from other countries besides Rune. The Empire also contacts them from time to time, giving them or trading equipment and supplies. There's no reason for them to remain silent when it really comes down to it... Klein thought about the information he might have overlooked or failed to obtain, and couldn't help but feel regretful.
With his authorization, he could have easily intervened in any work that had been completed or was in progress within the archipelago branch, but he was completely overwhelmed by the sudden situation, focusing only on expressing useless sympathy and overthinking the possible deeper motives behind it, thus missing the opportunity he could have had.
"The elves' attitude is very important," Klein said, trying to persuade Alger while also convincing himself. "The original belief of the Rosed Isles in the 'Sea God' is also an important part of the elven belief system."
"The essence of 'Sea God' is a part of the Lord's past that has been shed, and it is the authority that the Lord has temporarily given to the elves. If the elves can be persuaded, the resistance can truly obtain the protection of 'Sea God' and be able to fight against the Storm Church and the Rune government."
As he spoke, Klein couldn't help but doubt the true attitude of the Second Empire of Trensost towards the Rothsde Islands rebels.
The "mysterious" angels, who hold the power over space, do not actually rely much on sea routes. A single miracle can enable strategic movements that are unimaginable to mortals, sending armies thousands of miles away.
The only connection between the rebels and the Second Empire was by chance; they happened to accept the "sea god" belief left behind by the elves before the colonial era arrived and they retreated to the deep sea.
The two have never had any close connection.
For the Second Empire, it would be good if the resistance could annoy the Runes, but even if they were wiped out by the Runes, it wouldn't create an unacceptable situation.
It was always the nations of the northern continent that needed to contend for maritime rights, not Trensost, which possessed half a continent's fertile lands and a coastline protected by a raging sea barrier.
Seeing that Gehrman Sparrow had fallen silent again, Alger, who was eager to dig out more details, had no choice but to give up.
"All right."
He sighed helplessly and sat down to the side, but he couldn't bring himself to close his eyes and rest as easily as his companions.
In the dark, lightless sea, enormous sea creatures swim swiftly, using special organs to efficiently extract oxygen from the surrounding seawater.
After an unknown amount of time, it stopped moving, slowly rose to the surface, and revealed its front.
In the naturally formed underwater cave, a whale-shaped sea creature carefully avoids the stalactites hanging from below, its mouth slightly open to allow passengers inside to exit.
"Thank you very much, my friend, may the Queen protect you."
Lewis, the last to emerge, bowed to the sea creature, then pulled a bag of jerky from his pack and threw it into the giant's bottomless mouth.
After doing all this, he clapped his hands, turned around in the darkness, skillfully discerned directions, and locked onto a natural stone pillar.
"Let's go, the entrance is here."