[Bayam—washroom of the Wind of Azure Inn guest room]
Klein leaned back, his figure fading from the grey fog as he returned to the real world.
As usual, Klein pressed the flush handle, washed his face, and stepped back into the room.
He had arrived in this so-called "City of Generosity" earlier that morning.
If one travelled by passenger ship, the journey from Bansy Island to Bayam would take roughly four to five days, not counting supply stops or occasional rest breaks. But with the help of the Sea God Sceptre, commanding a giant sea creature, the trip had taken him less than two days.
However, once Klein actually arrived in Bayam, he was at a bit of a loss. This whole voyage had been meant to help him play the part of a crazed pirate hunter, but now…there were no pirates in sight—or at least none visible on the surface.
Where was he supposed to find someone to hunt?
Ah, miscalculation.
Klein was still pondering what to do next when the door suddenly rattled with knocks. His body tensed instantly, hand closing on the revolver in his underarm holster. In a low voice, he asked, "Who is it?"
A voice came back—both unfamiliar and strangely familiar:
"Is Mr. Sparrow inside?"
"!!"
His nerves tightened. Although Klein had used the identity of Gehrman Sparrow for this voyage, aside from the brief time on the White Agate and later on Aldrich's Nameless, no one else really knew that identity. After all, his current appearance didn't match the "Gehrman" on the wanted posters everyone "knew."
So how had someone recognised him—and even come directly to find him?
"Mr. Sparrow, I'm Elland Kag, captain of the White Agate. Do you remember me?" the voice outside continued.
Elland?
Ah, that explained the mix of familiarity and strangeness—they'd met briefly before, not enough to call it an acquaintance, but the man did know his "identity."
Come to think of it, the White Agate should also have arrived in Bayam around now.
(Original canon timing: departed on the 4th, arrived on the 13th, with some delays in between.)
But that only raised a new question: how did he know Klein was staying here?
Klein took slow, deliberate steps toward the door. As his hand touched the knob, he let the image beyond the door surface in his mind—a slightly nervous Elland.
The hinges creaked as the door opened.
Klein retreated a few steps inside, regarding him coolly.
"How did you know I was staying here? I'm not stupid enough to register under the name Gehrman Sparrow."
"Well…you might not believe it, but one of my crew from the White Agate happened to see you walking into the Wind of Azure Inn." Elland smiled faintly. "At first, I didn't think much of it—until a friend came to me at noon with a job he was having trouble with. It made me think of you immediately."
"A job?"
Klein drew the gold-cased pocket watch from inside his coat, popped it open for a glance. "You have five minutes."
Turning back into the room, he gestured for Elland to follow.
"That's right. This job would help my friend, and I believe it could benefit you as well."
Benefit me? Just pay me, that's benefit enough…
Elland went on, "Mr. Sparrow, you can change your appearance into anyone's, can't you? After all, you don't look like the man on the wanted posters now."
Klein neither confirmed nor denied, simply watching him in silence.
"My friend is helping a certain important person look for a double."
"How important?"
Elland cleared his throat. "You should know him—he's the kingdom's highest-ranking navy commander of the Central Sonia Sea, and also the Governor of Bayam: Admiral Amyrius Rieveldt."
"…"
Klein was silent for a few seconds, then let out a cold laugh.
"Captain Elland, are you joking? You do know that I have a history with that governor, don't you?"
Elland actually looked surprised.
"Mr. Sparrow…you…you don't know? The governor has already lifted your wanted status and even issued an official statement clarifying that the earlier matter was just a misunderstanding."
Klein raised an eyebrow. Oh? Could this be a trap—meant to lull me, or Edward, into lowering our guard and walking right into their net?
But if it was an official government announcement, wouldn't such trickery severely damage Loen's credibility? Who would trust them again after that?
So maybe there really was another reason the warrant had been lifted…Could it be related to Edward?
"I thought you knew, and that's why you came to Bayam." Elland gave a bitter smile. "Turns out you had no idea. Truly worthy of the name Gehrman Sparrow…"
"Why did he lift the warrant?"
"That…I have no idea."
Elland continued, "I asked you here for this job in hopes it could help ease the tensions between you two. Who knows—it might even spark a friendship."
"Heh, I wouldn't dare get chummy with that kind of 'big shot.'"
Klein chuckled lightly.
"How much?"
"Fifteen hundred pounds, plus three opportunities to have something crafted by an 'Artisan'!" After naming his price, Elland quickly added, "I know this isn't a particularly high fee for you, but the job really is simple—just disguise yourself to stand in for him, handle his day-to-day affairs, meet various guests, deal with his mistress without raising suspicion, and he'll be back in two or three days at most."
Klein fell into thought.
The pay was…actually quite decent. More importantly, it was a rare chance to role-play a real "big shot," and on top of that, it would be a performance built upon his current Gehrman Sparrow persona. That would be invaluable for digesting the potion.
The only real question was whether that admiral truly bore no grudges over their last encounter—or if this was just a well-laid trap.
"Give me the admiral's file. I'll need some time to consider."—I need to run a divination above the Grey Fog.
Elland let out a breath of relief. "No problem. I'll be waiting for your good news at the Swordfish Bar."
———
6:30 P.M. Inside a private room at the Swordfish Bar.
"Elland, you're insane…I honestly can't believe you actually went and got the Moody Gehrman Sparrow to impersonate the Admiral."
A man strode in, staring in astonishment at the waiting Elland. "And what's even harder to believe is that the Admiral actually agreed—agreed to let that lunatic pretend to be him."
Elland chuckled. "Sometimes, the world is just that magical, isn't it?"
"And where's Gehrman?"
At that moment, another Elland stepped out of the shadows. Except for slightly different clothes, he was identical in every way. With a faintly unsettling smile, he said, "Bilt, he's standing right in front of you."
"???"
The man—Bilt Brando—froze, then stared straight at the "Elland" before him. He stammered, "You…you're Gehrman Sparrow?"
Klein's smile faded. "Let's go. Time to meet the Admiral."
"This…this is unbelievable. He's exactly the same."
Bilt was awestruck, but the thought of how he had just been bad-mouthing this 'lunatic' made his stomach twist. Hopefully, the madman wouldn't hold a grudge.
"Elland, thank you so much for this. I wouldn't have been able to find someone who looks like the Admiral in such a short time without you."
Elland smiled. "Don't mention it. Hope it all goes smoothly."
Klein followed Bilt out of the bar, tossing him a few casual questions along the way. That was how he learned that Bilt belonged to something called the "Adventurer Association." As the name implied, members would help each other out whenever they ran into trouble on the road.
Bilt occasionally handled errands for the Admiral, earning generous commissions. The flip side was having to endure the majesty of a demigod-tier powerhouse—if you botched the job, or worse, failed outright, punishment was very possible.
Take this body-double search, for example. The Admiral had given the order two days ago, but after scouring all of Bayam, Bilt hadn't found anyone who looked remotely like him. With the deadline looming, when Elland suggested the "moody Gehrman Sparrow" for the job, Bilt thought he was out of his mind—but in the end, he'd gritted his teeth and decided to try.
To his surprise, the Admiral had agreed after only a brief moment's thought.
Klein asked, "Do you know why he suddenly needs a double?"
Bilt shrugged. "The Admiral has something to take care of in private, but he can't let anyone find out he's left Bayam."
"Why? As the highest authority in the region, does he really need to care about that?"
"It's because he's in such a high position that he has to pay attention to these details…"
Bilt coughed awkwardly. "Of course, that's just my guess. I'm just a small-time adventurer who takes the pay and gets the job done."
Around 7 p.m., Klein followed Bilt through the gates of the Governor's Mansion. His first reaction upon seeing the courtyard layout was that something was off. It looked like half the walls and buildings were newly built. Most people probably wouldn't notice, but to him, it was glaringly obvious.
Bilt muttered under his breath, "…The last time you were here, those pirates you brought along trashed half the place. It took a lot of effort to fix it, so please, Mr. Sparrow, don't—"
"…"
Ah, that explains it.
But hey, that was Edward's doing. What's it got to do with me, Klein?
While he was muttering inwardly, a chorus of children's voices suddenly rang out:
"Over here, over here!"
"Block that side, quick, hurry!"
"Use the net—catch it, hit it!"
"Got it! Number thirteen!"
"Yay!"
Klein turned his head and saw five kids crouched in a corner, flailing about in a chaotic flurry of chicken-feathers-and-dogs—while a blond man with a furrowed brow stood nearby.
Then, a little girl triumphantly held up a plump, oversized rat.
Klein's eyes narrowed slightly. That child…is Lilith?!
Her skin was a little darker, and her clothes were different from last time, but he was certain—it was Lilith.
Damn…if Lilith is here, does that mean Edward is here too?
———
[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.