On the Argo.
Odis, feigning prayer, offered a vague final compliment, then smiled at Bernadette and said, "The problem is solved."
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The Hermit just intervened, preventing further conflict between the three churches. Although Odis still feels a lingering fear when she thinks about it now, the problem is ultimately resolved.
If those three extraordinary properties do not return to the hands of the three gods, the angels and demigods who come to support them will continue to fight for them, and the battle will continue.
The current situation, where the three churches have not engaged in any major battles for centuries, could very well lead to a series of conflicts.
At the same time, this outcome is the best possible result, as there were no further casualties.
Bernadette, who was standing nearby, nodded: "Let's go back."
She didn't find anything wrong with Odis's prayers.
Bernadette knew that some mysterious beings, whose conditions were not good, needed a "coordinate" to guide them in order to stably bestow their power.
She had just noticed it as well. On the surface, the mysterious being did not seem to be insane or chaotic, but the state of its power seemed unstable, and it might need to constantly target Odis.
The Argo began its return voyage, and the Golden Dream, which had been protected by Grace Harriet and Alfred, was also largely undamaged. The two ships rejoined the fleet and sailed toward normal waters.
...
The backyard of the Storm Church on Tiana Island.
The priest hurriedly pushed open the bishop's door: "Your Excellency, 'Sea King' is here."
The bishop, who was reclining in his armchair, paused for a moment: "Who?"
"Aquaman! Lord Arne Cortman!"
The bishop, who was in his fifties, jumped up as nimbly as a young man, and with a flick of his wrist, he created a gust of wind that blew the soft hat hanging on the coat rack into his hand.
The bishop put on his soft cap and ran ahead, frowning as he asked, "Why wasn't there any prior notice?"
Upon arriving at the chapel, the bishop and priests saw "Aquaman" Arne Cortman, dressed in somewhat tattered clothes, kneeling before the "Storm Emblem" in repentance.
The two people stopped, not daring to go forward and disturb them.
Although Arne Courtman was powerless to change the situation in this battle, he had to bear some responsibility for the Pope's downfall.
Moreover, his bowing to the "Elf King" was seen by the "Lord of Storms," so he also needs to sincerely repent.
As he repeatedly whispered his confessions, Yann Courtman felt his spirit being suddenly elevated. He seemed to suddenly appear under a sky filled with gales and lightning, with waves crashing beneath his feet.
Amidst the lightning, the majestic and imposing figure of the "Lord of the Storm" appeared. Yann Courtman dared not raise his head and continued to repent while kneeling on the waves.
"The new Pope has been promoted!" the Lord of Storms declared in a majestic voice. "Adam's conspiracy is not over yet; remain vigilant."
Arne Coltman breathed a sigh of relief; the Lord of Storms hadn't pursued the matter of him bowing to the Elf King.
So he cautiously asked, "Master of the storm and the sea, who is that hooded being?"
His main concern was whether he needed to interrogate the "Mysterious General" about who the deity behind him was.
The Lord of Storms did not answer immediately, but after a few seconds said, "He has returned."
...
The Argo and the Golden Dream left the dangerous waters without incident.
Bernadette then took her leave, but Odis suddenly said, "I'm going to Backlund tomorrow."
After all, he now possessed a magical item comparable to a demigod through the "Sailor" pathway, and before confirming the "Storm Church's" stance, he planned to hide on land.
Bernadette hummed in agreement: "Find me when you get here."
Seeing the "mysterious queen's" figure become illusory, Odis used "travel" to come to the "Golden Dream" to find "Admiral Iceberg".
In the captain's study, Odis met Edwina, whose expression was still somewhat somber.
"Please accept my condolences," said Odis, who had already learned that one of the demigods who died this afternoon was the mentor of "General Iceberg."
Edwina took a deep breath and said, "The teacher has returned to the 'ocean of knowledge,' and I should be happy for her."
Moreover, the church has already assigned her a new mentor.
This is a very unusual arrangement. Usually, when a mentor passes away and his students need a new mentor, the students are given a period of time to remember him, usually about two or three months before a new mentor is assigned.
Edwina, on the other hand, is a different case. As is customary, she can now teach other students, so there is no need to assign her a new tutor.
But the church assigned her a mentor, who was also a saint.
Although neither her new mentor nor the church gave her any new instructions, Edwina knew very well that this meant the task of winning over the "Mysterious Admiral" was even more urgent than before.
Thinking of this, Edwina stood up and said, "Didn't you invite me to Cruise Island? Now that we have nothing else to do, let's go together."
Odis breathed a sigh of relief; this was the main reason he had come today.
After today's events, Odis hopes to quickly establish in-depth cooperation with the Church of Knowledge to strengthen his own power.
Having determined the new destination, Odis returned to her studio, wrote two letters, and then summoned a messenger.
The two letters were addressed to Bishop Dean and Admiral Emilius, respectively. The contents of the letters were similar, both saying that Odis and his friends had discovered a clue to a magical item from the "Sailor's Way," and after searching along the way, they found that it was a magical item of demigod level.
Please inform the Storm Church and convey Odis's assurance that this magical item will never be used to attack the navy or the church, but only to attack pirates or the navy of other countries.
In reality, the Church of Storms didn't care what Odis intended to do with this magical item. All they knew was that magical items and properties of the "Sailor" pathway belonged to the Church of Storms.
Bishop Dean and Admiral Emilius understood this perfectly well; their notification was merely a statement of the attitude of the Navy and the Church of the Goddess of Night.
Odis was absolutely certain that these two would come forward, because in recent months, Bishop Dean had accumulated many merits through the "intelligence exchange meeting," which were said to have given him the opportunity for promotion and advancement.
Bishop Dean had repeatedly expressed his gratitude to Odis, and now was the time to use those accumulated favors.
Odis's attack on the Phineport navy and his harassment of the central waterway have become one of Admiral Emilius's major achievements.
There are even rumors that Emilius's transfer back to Backlund is largely related to this achievement.
Emilius would not refuse Odis's request.
If the two of them step forward, the Church of Storms will probably accept this outcome on the surface, but they will definitely make some efforts behind the scenes.
This is why Odis is going to Backlund. As long as the other party can't find her in the next few days, the matter will basically be a fact. If the Storm Church wants her back later, it will be unreasonable.
Because of Adam's "guarantee", Odis felt that the matter could be resolved smoothly, and that magical item eventually became his second level 1 sealed item.
At this moment, Odis realized that he did not know the power of that magical item, so he entered the "Wilderland of Knowledge" through "meditation". As soon as he entered, he saw the scepter floating in mid-air.
A smile instantly bloomed on his face. This was a Level 1 sealed item, and the most useful Level 1 sealed item for the "Sailor" route on the high seas.
He held the scepter in one hand and placed the other on the "Central Processing Unit." Using the layers of the "Knowledge Wilderness," he learned about the abilities of this magical item: it could create weather disasters such as erupting lava, hurricanes, torrential rain, and lightning strikes; it could stir up giant waves and create whirlpools; and it could intimidate sea creatures or communicate effectively with them.
Aside from creating tsunamis through rituals, the "Disaster Priest" possesses almost all of the main abilities.
Moreover, the negative effects are not significant: once the scepter is used, one will increasingly enjoy staying in the cemetery and keeping company with corpses. Sometimes, one will involuntarily enter the cemetery, crawl into a grave, and spend the night in a coffin.
Odis immediately realized that the reason for this negative effect was that this magical item had once been sealed away by the "Emperor of the Underworld".
Such seals are usually made with the help of the power of the underworld, similar to how Mr. Azik helped Klein seal the "wriggling hunger." So even though the "Underworld Emperor" has fallen, it does not affect the sealing of magical items.
Overall, this negative effect is still acceptable, after all, Odis wasn't a germaphobe, so sleeping in a coffin for one night wouldn't be a problem.
Moreover, once the urge to go to the cemetery arises, entering the "wilderness of knowledge" should immediately bring one back to their senses.
Compared to Odis' other Level 1 sealed artifact, this scepter can be carried with you at any time, while the "Alchemy Glasses" can only be used in the outside world for short periods of time at present.
If Odis can carry this magical item with him at all times, he will essentially have the strength of a "pirate king".
The reason for saying "basically" is that the strength of the other crew members still needs to be improved.
At this time, all three first officers were working hard to accumulate merits for promotion. Among them, the third officer, Bivis, had basically accumulated enough merits and would soon be promoted to Sequence 6.
Over the past month, "Combat Captain" Cleveland, "Bosun" Salina, and crew member Boris have all been promoted to Sequence 7.
Currently, Odis's crew consists of two Sequence 6s, four Sequence 7s, and one Sequence 8.
Among the "Pirate Generals," such crew members are relatively weak. Even a "Pirate General" like "Iceberg Admiral," who likes to chase treasure, has three Rank 6 subordinates.
If I were to call myself a "king" now, but my crew is so weak, I would definitely be laughed at by other "kings".
Of course, most importantly, it will most likely be accompanied by an attack from the "Pirate King".
After all, someone who dares to call themselves a "king" must have reached a demigod level of strength to some extent. However, if the crew's strength is too weak, such demigod-level strength will easily be coveted by other kings.
After some thought, Odis decided to wait a bit before calling himself "King," preferably until he reached Sequence 4.
Following custom, after naming the scepter the "Scepter of Disaster," Odis returned to the real world, went to the cockpit, sat in the captain's seat, and stared blankly ahead.
The next morning, he held a short meeting to tell everyone that he would be away for a few days.
He then returned to Cruz Island and spoke a few words to Mandy. Odis simply put on some makeup and went to Backlund under the guise of a "trip".
He appeared in the corner of an alley, glanced up at the sun, which was obscured by the fog and looked pale, and suddenly smiled: "This awful weather."
Fortunately, it was early summer in Backlund at this time, so it was no longer so cold and damp, nor was it too hot and humid. The weather was just right.
Odis looked around to make sure no one was there, then whispered a prayer: "Holy Spirit who seeks knowledge;
"A beacon in a mysterious world";
"Eyes peering into fate;"
"The King of the Sea";
"The Holy Bernadette Gustave".
"Your Majesty, I have arrived in Backlund."
Soon, a voice rang in Odis's ears: "95 Hilton Avenue".
Odis smiled and said, "Okay, I'll be right there."
He used "Travel" again to reach a corner of Hilton Avenue, then walked to the door of number 95. After glancing at the pedestrians around him and seeing no suspicious stares, he went up and knocked on the door.
I had barely raised my hand to knock when the door opened by itself.
The room was empty. Odis smiled to himself, thinking: This sounds like the beginning of a ghost story.
He entered the room, took off his top hat, and hung it along with his trench coat on the coat rack by the door, leaning his cane against the door.
To avoid revealing herself, Odis even put her bag and "Gus Staff" into the "Wilderness of Knowledge".
Just as Odis was about to tear off the short mustache that was stuck to his upper lip, Bernadette's voice suddenly came from the direction of the stairs: "Don't tear it off, you'll have to put it back on later."
Odis looked up and saw Bernadette, wearing a simple long dress that subtly revealed her perfect figure, coming down the stairs: "I didn't expect you to get here so quickly."
She just went upstairs to change into a dress.
Odis laughed and said, "I'm not here to seek refuge with the Queen; the sooner I do, the more sincere I'll be."
Bernadette smiled and glanced at the kitchen. The kettle and teacups in the kitchen seemed to come alive and started to make two cups of tea.
The two sat down naturally around the dining table. Odis picked up her teacup and glanced outside. "I was looking forward to leaving this always foggy city, but now that I've left, I actually miss it a little."
"This feeling isn't surprising," Bernadette said. "After all, you grew up in this city."
She took a deep breath: "Sometimes I miss Trier."
Bernadette had been eagerly anticipating Oedis's arrival, because only in Oedis's presence could she reveal another side of herself.
She is the "Mysterious Queen" and the leader of the "Elemental Dawn," but these identities do not grant her much humanity. Only when she is with Odis can she show her feminine side.
Aside from being a queen and a leader, Bernadette also perceives herself as a woman with a "psychological age" of around twenty-seven or twenty-eight.
She discovered long ago that this kind of understanding is key to maintaining humanity, but usually she can only show this side of herself when no one is around.
Until he met Odis, when others were around, this guy kept calling her "Queen," as if he respected her more than anyone else. But when it was just the two of them, he was more like a friend, or rather, he didn't treat her as a queen at all.
Bernadette asked, "What are your specific plans for this trip to Backlund?"
"Let's visit a few friends first," Odis replied. "Then we'll rest for a day and officially begin the surveillance."
Bernadette was taken aback: "You're going to personally keep watch?"
"The death of a duke will definitely attract the attention of the Rune royal family, and they will thoroughly investigate this matter," Odis said. "The intelligence network we established before cannot be used in such a situation."
He paused for a moment and said, "The target isn't hard to kill; the difficulty lies in finding the right opportunity."
Odis recalled that Duke Negan was a Sequence 6 "Judge", his secretary was a Sequence 5 "Chaos Mentor", and he should have had other extraordinary beings protecting him.
For Odis, dealing with a Sequence 5 and a Sequence 6 is not difficult, and even adding another Sequence 5 is not a problem, but it will take at least half a minute.
Because they wanted to kill him to cover their tracks and destroy all traces.
If it were just facing Duke Negan alone, that would be the simplest thing; even without using the now-iconic "Guth Staff" and those powerful scrolls, an instant kill would be possible.
However, such an opportunity is unlikely. If Duke Negan had a Sequence 5 member by his side, he would need to use the "Gus Staff" or a scroll to quickly complete the assassination mission.
In that case, they would have to kill him to silence him and prevent the official extraordinary individuals from obtaining any clues pointing to them.
Bernadette said, "I can send invisible servants to help."
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
"No," Odis said, "this matter must not involve anyone."
He leaned back in his chair and said, "Being able to stay here saves me from having to stay in a hotel or rent a place, which is already a huge help."
Bernadette smiled, put down her teacup, and said, "Come on, I'll show you the room prepared for you."
The two went up to the second floor one after the other. As they went up the stairs, Odis's gaze fell on Bernadette's waist, where the lines were beautiful.
Bernadette, who was walking ahead, said without turning her head, "If you keep looking around, I'll let you walk in front."
Odis was taken aback and immediately protested, "I didn't use the 'Eye of Secrets' to look!"
Bernadette snorted: "You still want to use the 'Eye of Secrets'?"
"I..." Odis smiled somewhat helplessly, suddenly feeling that neither refusing nor admitting was appropriate.
Bernadette, who was walking ahead, had a smile on her face: There was no such pleasure when you were a queen or a leader.
Upon reaching the second floor, Bernadette casually pointed, and a door slowly opened by itself: "That's your room."
Odis looked inside and saw a desk, bed, wardrobe, and everything else she could need: "Pretty nice."
After glancing at each other, the two sat down in the small hall on the second floor. Their teacups, which had been sitting downstairs, flew up and landed in front of them.
Odis picked up her teacup and continued the conversation: "I just thought your dress was pretty, nothing more."
Bernadette glanced at Odis: "Just looking at the dress?"
"right."
"Heh, lying."
"Okay, it's not just the dress that's pretty."
"Heh, you bastard."
The two then looked at each other and laughed.
Ever since Odis advanced to Sequence 5 and the two of them talked on the deserted island in the rain, he felt more and more that the "Mysterious Queen" was like a split personality. She seemed unapproachable in front of people, but was a different person in private. At most, she was just a bit aloof.
However, Odis thought about Roselle's personality and believed that Bernadette wouldn't be too cold-hearted under his influence. Besides, she was an Intis, so she wouldn't be as rigid as the Rune.
Odis felt that when the two of them were alone, Bernadette's slightly aloof demeanor was more like her true self.
After taking a sip of tea, Odis brought up another topic: "What would you like to eat tonight? It's my treat, let's go out for a nice meal."
"Make a salad, lamb chops, and chicken," Bernadette said. "Eating out is pointless."
After arriving in Backlund, she found the Rune cuisine a bit unpalatable, and she got tired of the Intis cuisine even though she ate it every day. The main problem was that the chefs weren't very good; they were far inferior to the chefs at the Emerald Palace on Lasha Island.
Bernadette ordered several dishes, which, if translated, were cold appetizers, braised lamb chops, and stir-fried chicken—dishes that Odis had previously prepared for Bernadette.
Having grown accustomed to royal cuisine, Bernadette found it quite nice to occasionally enjoy these unique dishes.
"Okay." Odis immediately stood up: "I'll go visit two friends and buy groceries on my way back."
Bernadette nodded and hummed in agreement, watching Odis hurry downstairs before finally turning her gaze away after a long while.
...
19 Pinster Street, Joewood District.
Fors sat at her desk in her room on the second floor, scratching her hair with some frustration. She dipped her quill pen in ink but couldn't bring herself to write.
This made her even more frustrated, because the manuscript was due tomorrow, but she had only written two words for this short story.
Ring ring~
Just then, the doorbell rang.
Fors gave a wry smile, put the pen in the ink bottle, and slowly went downstairs, asking as he opened the door, "Who are you looking for?"
Upon seeing the young man in a trench coat and top hat outside the door, Fors paused for a moment before recognizing him: "The ship..."
Odis smiled and gestured for silence: "Isn't Hugh home?"
Fors quickly stepped aside, glanced at the clock, and said, "She should be back soon."
Odis entered and glanced at the spacious living room: "This townhouse is quite nice."
"Thanks to your help," Fors said with a smile as she closed the door. "Would you like something to drink?"
Fors's exploration with Odysseus allowed her to escape her financial predicament.
Since becoming the new leader of the "Mysticism Research Society," Hugh's income has increased several times over, and this trend is only growing.
About two months ago, the two of them rented this townhouse to live in.
"Black tea, please," Odis said.
Fors first invited Odis to sit on the sofa, and then went to the kitchen to make tea.
While the water was boiling, Fors came to the kitchen door and asked, "Why did you suddenly come to Backlund?"
"I have some business to attend to in person," Odis said with a smile. "Don't tell anyone that I'm in Backlund."
Although MI9 has stopped hunting him and the Church of the God of Steam and Machines seems to have stopped looking for him, the premise is that they simply cannot find where he is.
But if they offered themselves up, they wouldn't just let Odis go.
Fors immediately nodded and said, "Okay."
By this time, no one was looking for Odis anymore, and if he simply applied makeup like this, no one would recognize him.
Just then, the door opened, and Hugh, who was not tall and had a slightly chubby face, appeared in the doorway.
Upon seeing Odis, Hugh was briefly surprised: "The ship... how did you get here?"
"I have a gift for you," Odis said with a smile, taking out a wooden box.
After Hugh closed the door, jumped up, and hung up his coat, Odis said, "This is the extraordinary characteristic of the 'Interrogator'."
Having already obtained the formula and digested the potion, Hugh happily took the box, opened it, glanced at it, and then asked, "How much?"
Odis smiled and said, "This is your reward."
He paused for a moment and said, "You've been doing a great job lately, allowing me to accurately grasp information about Backlund even when I'm at sea."
Hugh immediately replied, "No, I also..."
She wanted to say that she had also earned a lot of money in the process, but Odis interrupted her, saying, "That's what you deserve, it's a reward, and the two don't conflict."
Fors, who was making tea in the kitchen, felt a pang of envy. That was a Sequence 7 trait, with a market price starting at £1200. In Backlund, a Sequence 7 trait from the "Arbitrator" pathway would certainly command a significant premium.
Odis didn't continue the conversation, but instead asked, "Any news about Edward's family?"
He had already written a letter a couple of days ago, asking Hugh to help find news of Edward's family.
"I've got it." Hugh stopped refusing and put away his special ability, saying, "Although the Northwest District is gone, De La Hele Street is still there."
"However, this street has been renovated once, and most of the original residents have moved away."
"I used my connections with MI9 to look up relevant information and found the three Edward brothers who used to live on De La Hale Street. One of them had just moved to Gard Street next door."
As she spoke, she sat down on the sofa. This was something Odis had specifically instructed her to do, so she took it very seriously and had been investigating it for the past few days.
The tea was ready, and Fors poured it for the two of them.
Hugh continued, "I went to check and found out that the man living on Gard Street is named Reece Edward, and his great-great-grandfather lived at 18 De La Hare Street."
"At that time, they were the only family on the whole street with the surname Edward, so it must have been them."
"By the time of Reese Edwards, there were three cousins, the 'Edwards' I just mentioned, as well as some female family members, all of whom had already married."
"I have already visited these three brothers and the female members. This is their current address…"
As he spoke, Hugh opened his bag and took out a document: "...and their current general situation."
Odis took the document and nodded in satisfaction. The document was very detailed, including the work and current situation of the Edward family members.
Hugh continued, "I also found out the location of the family's burial site, as well as some important events in their family history."
"This is a military family. In each generation, young members have died on the battlefield. So for more than a hundred years, this family has not prospered. It has only changed from old Edward to the 'Edward Brothers'."
"I also heard a strange story: more than a hundred years ago, a member of their family suddenly disappeared while serving in the military."
"He didn't disappear during the war, but just disappeared right before his comrades' eyes."
"The military's response was also strange. In general, in this situation, it would be treated as missing, but the military issued a death certificate."
"It is precisely because this matter is so strange that it has been passed down in the family for so long."
Odis nodded, took a deep breath, and said, "That's exactly why I came."
He paused for a moment and then said, "I found the missing Edward, um, isn't his name Longzel Edward?"
Hugh gaped in astonishment, and after a couple of seconds he said, "He...he's been missing for over a hundred years, hasn't he? I mean, he's still alive?"
"He encountered an extraordinary event," Odis explained simply. "He was trapped in a special space. I only recently met him and am preparing to bring him back to the real world."
Hugh stood up, somewhat excitedly: "So it was him who was looking for his family?"
"That's right," Odis said. "That's why the military's handling of the matter was a bit strange; they treated it as an extraordinary incident."
He waved the document in his hand: "I'll take this document with me. I'll bring him back in a few days after he's adjusted his mindset. You can take him to see his family descendants."
"Whether or not to acknowledge each other or anything like that is up to Long Ze'er's wishes."
Hugh nodded immediately: "Okay, okay!"
Helping someone from over a hundred years ago find their relatives even excited Hugh somewhat.
Meanwhile, Fors suddenly had an inspiration. The material for the novel that had been bothering her earlier was now available!
After chatting for a while, Odis got up to take his leave.
His second stop was 51 Henry Street, where Gard Herbalist Shop was located.
Looking at this familiar herbal shop, Odis was overwhelmed with emotion. She recalled the days when she borrowed money everywhere to open the shop, and then she thought of the research she had conducted here, until…
Odis suddenly smiled, and his relatively peaceful life underwent a tremendous change after he met Bernadette.
Then he lamented: "If I had dared to joke with her like I do today back then, I probably would have been killed by her long ago."