He felt as if he had heard something incredibly unbelievable, even witnessing a miracle with his own eyes.
Peter looked at Merchant John with disbelief and asked, "Were you praying to Odin for someone to save you all this time you were trapped?"
Merchant John excitedly replied, "That's right! Ever since I got trapped, I've been praying to Odin without a moment's rest. It seems Odin has heard the prayers of his most devout follower!"
Peter also firmly believed that Odin must have heard his prayers, otherwise, the Divine Emissary would never have known that Merchant John was trapped there.
Then, he suddenly remembered that Hiccup had sent him to bring John back.
So he said to John, "Now, drop the anchor! Let's go meet the Divine Emissary!"
When Merchant John heard this, he was stunned for a moment, then cautiously asked, "Divine Emissary?"
Peter looked at Merchant John proudly and said, "Odin conveyed your prayers to the Divine Emissary! That's how we were able to find you so easily!"
Merchant John's eyes widened, and he happily exclaimed, "Where is the Divine Emissary? I must kiss his toes!"
Peter said somewhat awkwardly, "You'll know when we get back."
Afterward, the Dragon Riders helped John drop the anchor and took him directly back to Second Island.
As soon as John landed, he eagerly asked, "Where is the Divine Emissary? Quickly, take me to him."
At this moment, Hiccup had also landed beside Peter, riding Night Fury.
Peter stepped back and said, "This is our Divine Emissary! He is the one who sent me to the southern sea to rescue you!"
"Hiccup? You are the Divine Emissary?" Merchant John found it hard to believe that Odin had chosen such a weak Divine Emissary!
Hiccup chuckled indifferently and said, "You were trapped on the sea because of the blizzard!"
Upon hearing this, Merchant John no longer doubted. To everyone's surprise, he immediately knelt on the ground and devoutly said to Hiccup, "Odin above, please accept my most sincere respects!"
Before Hiccup could understand what was happening, Merchant John crawled forward and lunged towards his foot.
Then, to everyone's astonishment, he kissed Hiccup's foot.
However, this was outdoors, and even with a dormant volcano, the temperature wouldn't be too high. After all, this place is in the Arctic Circle, and the outdoor temperature was already below minus twenty degrees Celsius!
Now that the blizzard had arrived, it was the coldest time, possibly below minus thirty degrees Celsius!
With that kiss, he instantly stuck to Hiccup's foot.
What's the difference between this and tasting a metal gate in winter to see if it's sweet?
Hiccup felt somewhat helpless. He had initially thought it was some special ritual, so he didn't dodge, intending to cooperate.
But he never expected that he would actually kiss his foot.
There was nothing he could do. To free him, he had to take off his boot and then let him go inside to thaw it with hot water…
However, after Merchant John was rescued, he had no intention of returning the boot, as if he wanted to enshrine it like a precious treasure.
Hiccup said with a cold expression, "Odin commanded me to save your life. Do you intend to embezzle a god's possession?"
Hearing this, Merchant John quickly knelt on the ground, personally put the boot back on Hiccup, and devoutly said, "I am Odin's most devout follower! How could I dare to disrespect Odin?!"
Then Hiccup glanced at the surrounding Dragon Riders and said, "You all may leave! I need to speak with Merchant John alone!"
Upon hearing this, everyone left with great envy, and Merchant John was even more excited.
After everyone had left, Night Fury and Yaya made the flames in the stove burn brighter, then curled up beside Hiccup.
When Merchant John saw this scene, he immediately marveled at the greatness of the miracle, that such a weak Hiccup could have two powerful Dragons by his side.
Then Hiccup looked at Merchant John and asked, "From what I know, you seem to be a born merchant!"
Merchant John quickly made a fist with his right hand and placed it on his chest in a bow, saying, "Replying to the Divine Emissary! I have lived on merchant ships with my father since I was a child! That's why people call me a born merchant!"
He seemed to be hiding something, as merchants are always synonymous with cunning, so he always spoke evasively, not daring to meet Hiccup's gaze.
But Hiccup didn't mind this. Instead, he spoke unhurriedly, "Tell me all the stories you know!"
Upon hearing this, Merchant John couldn't help but be stunned. When he used to visit Berk Island, he would try to tell his legendary experiences, but people would always find it annoying.
Especially those Vikings, they only wanted to exchange goods with him and were completely unwilling to engage in idle chatter.
Unlike the noblewomen of the kingdom, who would linger every time they came to buy goods, insisting on hearing some of his legendary experiences. Some would leave thrilled and satisfied.
However, some noblewomen would even want to hear it again, and as they listened, new stories would emerge… (New stories, indescribable!)
Hiccup tapped the stool and said, "What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and tell me, and it would be best if you could give me maps of all the places you've been to!"
Merchant John's old face flushed, then he looked at Hiccup and said, "It's just that there are too many stories, I don't know where to begin!"
Hiccup also said with a slight headache, "Start with the legends!"
"Once, a Knight of the Drake Kingdom, in order to marry the princess, killed a Dragon and brought back a Dragon's heart! But at the grand wedding, a hunter discovered that it was a bear's heart, not a Dragon's. In the end, that Knight even became king!"
"There's a Dark Forest where the people are very strange, neither like elves nor humans. They're all afraid of steel. When they captured me, I was terrified; I even thought they were going to eat me…"
Hiccup said somewhat impatiently, "Get to the point! Do the people in that Dark Forest have a Queen with black wings and horns on her head?"
Merchant John said excitedly, "Exactly, exactly! If it weren't for the small stream in their forest flowing into the sea, I wouldn't have found them!"
"Their Queen indeed has a pair of black wings, and those impressive peaks…"
Hiccup immediately thought of the Witch Queen in Maleficent, who was afraid of steel and seemed to be raising a little princess…