Chapter 140 - 140: Arrival at Bansy

Fog? Could it be that the polluted influence from the sealed City of Calamity behind Bansy was already starting to spread outward? "Have the residents of Bansy Harbour been affected?" Edward asked. The bartender laughed. "Not at all. Just a few days ago, I was still having pork blood at the Green Lemon Restaurant over there. I'm telling you, the blood delicacies in Bansy are truly amazing." Edward thought for a moment and asked again, "Are there still pirates or adventurers heading to Bansy to explore?" "Probably not anymore. So many people died and brought nothing back. Honestly, if even one person had managed to return with a single gold coin, there would've already been a crowd of reckless fools swarming the island." "True enough." Edward tossed him a few more coins. "Thanks for the information—it was interesting." "Hahaha, no need to be so polite. I love chatting and making new friends with strangers." After finishing their juices, Edward and Audrey greeted Hibbert and left the bar. Just then, a man in bartender's clothing walked over and glared at the 'bartender' from before. "Anderson! Not only did you sneak in to drink again, you even impersonated me?! You didn't talk nonsense to the customers, did you?" "What nonsense could I possibly say? I was just sharing a few fun stories about recent happenings at sea." Anderson laughed heartily, lifting a half-full bottle of Sonia Blood Wine. "This one's mine now—put it on my tab." "You bastard! Do you even know how much you owe?!" The man named Anderson chuckled sheepishly, then raised the bottle toward Hibbert as he guzzled it, swaggering out of the bar. Hibbert raised his glass from afar. "Hah, interesting fellow." ——— After leaving the bar, Edward sent Audrey back to the Emerald. He instructed seriously, "If anything dangerous happens, don't hesitate—use the portkey and return to Backlund immediately." Audrey pressed her lips together in resignation. "This is the third time you've reminded me. You're being way too nervous." "There's no such thing as too nervous." Edward had considered asking Audrey to return to Backlund outright, but without any signs of danger, such a request would be overly forceful and disrespectful. He waved at Lilith, who was nestled in Audrey's arms. "Lilith, take good care of Audrey, alright~?" "Got it!" "Then I'll head out. If everything goes smoothly, I might even be back before the ship departs." "Good luck!" After bidding Audrey farewell, Edward found a quiet spot, donned his invisibility cloak, mounted his flying broomstick, and sped off toward Bansy. ——— [Somewhere in the Sonia Sea] "Damn it! Dogsh*t! Bloody hell! You go out and make a splash, gain fame and fortune—why am I the one suffering for it?!" Danitz cursed and grumbled as he paddled along in a little boat, looking exactly like a homeless vagabond. After several days of struggling—stowing away, swimming and rowing—he finally caught sight of the ship he'd been dreaming of: the Golden Dream. "Finally! I'm finally back!" He scooped up a handful of water and scrubbed the grime off his face. Then, with practised ease, he clambered up onto the Golden Dream and tiptoed across the deck, intending to give everyone a 'surprise'. But just then, something hard jabbed into his lower back, and a low voice barked, "Hands up!" Danitz froze and obediently raised his hands. Behind him, the voice grew smug. "Heh, where did this rat come from? Even dares sneak onto Vice Admiral Iceberg's ship? You'd better get lost before—" Before he could finish, Danitz spun around, snatched the stick away, and slammed the kid to the ground in one fluid motion. "Heh heh, Little Carlo, you don't even recognise me anymore?" "Huh?" The one pinned under him was a stocky boy around thirteen or fourteen years old. Just as he was about to struggle and shout, he recognised Danitz's voice and exclaimed, "Boss, you're back! Mr. Orpheus said the Captain kicked you off the ship!" "Don't listen to his nonsense! He's just jealous because I was out carrying out a secret mission for the Captain," Danitz scoffed and helped him up. "Heh heh! Let me tell you, Little Carlo—I did something big this time!" Little Carlo had only been on the Golden Dream for less than half a year. The passenger ship he and his parents were on had been attacked by Admiral of Blood, Senor's flagship. His parents and relatives all perished in the assault. Carlo had survived by hiding in the ship's hold and was eventually rescued by the passing Golden Dream, where he was assigned to Danitz's sailor team. At first, he had harboured deep hostility toward the Golden Dream. It wasn't until he realised that the people aboard this ship were more like adventurers—and enemies of Admiral of Blood—that his attitude began to change, and he became Danitz's little tail. Danitz pulled young Carlo up. "So, did you stir up any trouble while I was gone these past few days?" "No!" The boy shook his head vigorously. "Oh, right, Boss! The Captain promised me that by next year, I can take my first potion and become a Beyonder like you!" "Impressive!" "Hehe." A sparkle lit up Carlo's eyes. "When that time comes, I'll be able to avenge my parents!" Danitz immediately smacked him lightly on the head. "You little brat, if you wanna talk revenge, you better give it another ten years at least." Carlo didn't argue. He suddenly lowered his voice and gestured for Danitz to come closer. "Last time we docked, I used my saved-up allowance to buy you a bottle of Blood Wine—Sonia Blood Wine. They all wanted some, but I didn't share it with anyone!" "You sneak a sip yourself?" Scratching his head with a sheepish grin, Carlo said, "I did. It was good…but made me dizzy and sleepy afterwards." "Hahaha! If your tolerance is that low, how're you gonna be a proper pirate?" Carlo immediately put on a serious expression. "I'm not a pirate!" "I'm a pirate hunter!" Danitz was momentarily stunned, then rubbed his hair with a grin. "Alright, alright—pirate hunter it is! I'm gonna check in with the Captain first, then I'll come back and tell you all about my grand adventure." "Okay!!" Danitz gave his clothes a quick dust-off, spread his arms wide, and strode onto the deck with a booming laugh. "My friends, I'm baaaack!!" ——— Meanwhile… Although Edward's broomstick was a slightly older model, its speed still vastly outmatched any passenger ship. A little over an hour later, he arrived at the famous Bansy Harbour—frequently mentioned and described with vivid strokes in the original novel. Under the daylight, Bansy showed no signs of trouble. The skies were blue, dotted with clouds, and the weather pleasant. A few figures—locals or perhaps tourists—were leisurely fishing by the seaside. Small groups strolled along the beach, creating an overall picture of peace and tranquillity. Edward picked up a stick by the roadside and used dowsing magic: "Direct descendant of the Medici family." As expected, it failed. He walked up to an elderly man fishing by the water, his skin tanned deep brown like a native. "Excuse me, sir, do you happen to know anyone with the surname Medici?" The old man looked puzzled and shook his head. "Never heard of it. There's never been anyone by that name in Bansy." No surprise—they must have changed their surname. "How am I supposed to find them, then? Ask every single person I meet if they're named Medici? Even if I ask the right one, they'd never admit it." Hmm…time for the usual trick: stir the grass to scare out the snakes. With that in mind, he began questioning people all along the way—locals, tourists, anyone who caught his eye. Unsurprisingly, it yielded nothing. After half a day of wandering, Edward had a rough grasp of Bansy Island's layout: it was a typical port town. Most of the few hundred residents lived near Bansy Harbour, which occupied less than a quarter of the island. The rest was mostly undeveloped mountain valleys and forest. Edward circled the island twice on his broom but found no signs of human habitation in those areas. "So it's either that the Medici descendants are hiding among the port's residents…or they've secluded themselves in some secret cave or underground hideout. But I lean toward the former. In the original novel, though it never clearly states who or where the Medici descendants were, it does mention that the people of Bansy worshipped the so-called 'God of Weather' and held sinister rituals—ultimately inviting the destruction of Bansy." "The 'God of Weather' is an easy link to the Medicis—after all, the Hunter pathway's Sequence 2 is Weather Warlock. Perhaps after Medici's death, his family never gave up praying to him. In time, influenced by the City of Calamity, it devolved into a heretical cult." Edward made up his mind. "At worst, I'll have to collect a blood sample from every resident on this island." Just then, a gust of wind howled through. Dark clouds rapidly enveloped the sky. He quickly rushed toward the port buildings for cover. Within minutes, the sky opened up in a torrential downpour. Edward dashed into the "Green Lemon Restaurant" that the so-called bartender had mentioned earlier. Quite a few people were already inside, clearly seeking shelter from the rain. "Truly deserving of the name 'Weather Museum,' don't you think?" The speaker was a man who looked like a university professor, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and holding a rain-soaked silk top hat, which he gently tapped dry. "These past few days on the island, I've seen every kind of weather imaginable—just short of snow." "Well, even if it is a weather museum, it should at least follow basic climate logic." Edward brushed the water off his shoulders. "Hard to imagine it snowing here." "Hahaha." The man laughed aloud. "I believe anything is possible." He took a seat at a nearby table. "Since I'm here, I might as well try this restaurant's famous blood pudding." Edward caught the unspoken invitation in his tone and walked over. "Mind if I join you?" "Not at all." The man waved down a waiter and ordered all the house specialities. Since the restaurant wasn't too crowded at the moment, the food arrived quickly. Soon, over a dozen dishes covered the entire table—the centrepiece being a giant bowl of spicy blood curd stew. The man eagerly ladled out several large chunks of pig's blood and slurped them down, hissing from the heat but clearly delighted. "Hahaha, forgive me—I'm just a bit impatient by nature. I've been eating blood dishes every day since I arrived, and yet I still find them delicious." Edward, having already snacked quite a bit while touring Damir Island with Audrey, wasn't particularly hungry. He sipped a glass of iced sweet tea and asked, "You've been in Bansy for several days?" "A week or so." The man took another bite of pig's blood. "I'm a scholar—one with a keen interest in the occult and buried histories. When I heard about the ancient ruins discovered near Bansy Harbour, I made a special trip out here to investigate." He extended a hand, smiling. "I nearly forgot to introduce myself. I'm Verdu, a scholar of historical studies." Edward shook his hand. "Hello. I'm Emlyn." ——— [Note]: If you guys want an Extra Chapter tomorrow, we'd need to hit 120 Powestones. Go, VOTE! But if you are like me and want to read 40 Chapters in advance of the current story right now, you can support me on my Patreon. Trust me, it's awesome~ Really. Link - (P)atre(o)n.c(o)m/ Iseeblack [Remove the brackets]