Lord of the Mysteries

In a corner of the Amyris Leaf Bar.

Elland found a man wearing a coffee-colored jacket, patted him on the shoulder, and laughed.

“Why aren’t you drinking Lanti Proof?”

The man was in his thirties, having a rather common face. It was obvious that he had Loen blood running through his veins.

He had brown hair and eyes, with a somewhat high nose bridge. His tipsy appearance instantly vanished as his eyes turned sharp.

He swept a glance at Elland and Klein before his eyes turned turbid again. He said, sounding completely intoxicated, “I’ve already drunk. I’m drinking Zarhar to lessen the effects of the alcohol.”

Zarhar was a locally-produced malt beer. It was cheap and tasted quite good.

Elland chuckled and pointed at Klein.

“Gehrman Sparrow.”

Then, he introduced the man to Klein, “Oz Kent. You can call him Kent.

“Chat amongst yourselves. I’ll have to return to make preparations. I’ll be setting off early, tomorrow morning.”

He waved his hand and left without any hesitation.

Klein pulled over a nearby chair and sat down. He didn’t get any alcohol as he expressionlessly looked at Oz Kent.

The staring made Kent feel extremely uncomfortable as he downed a mouthful of Zarhar and said, “Find me if there’s anything in the future. You’ll be paid as long as you provide any intel of value, or if you help us do certain things.”

He wasn’t worried that the drunkards around them would hear their conversation, as many gangs and pirate crews would say the same thing. The words used to rope in informants were usually the same.

“Alright.” Klein had the strong urge to ask if he could be reimbursed for dressing up as Helene to assassinate Vice Admiral Ailment despite it being paid by Danitz.

However, it was just a thought.

Oz Kent chuckled while appearing completely drunk.

“I heard Elland mention some things about you, but I have to remind you that one shouldn’t be too crazy out at sea. You need to take note and try your best not to provoke the pirates. What I mean is to not fight them head-on. Privately providing us information would be fine. We will keep it a secret for you.”

This time, he had clearly suppressed his voice.

Seeing no response from Gehrman Sparrow, he added, “Pirates wouldn’t bother with any chivalrous code, nor will they abide by the kingdom’s laws and rules. Burp . If you have a family at different port cities or some island colony, they’d definitely be capable of attacking your family.”

Family… Klein fell silent for a second before calmly saying, “I do not have a family.”

“…” Oz Kent was nearly at a loss for words. All he could do was say, “They will also attack your friends.”

Then, he heard Gehrman Sparrow reply in an unperturbed tone, “I do not have friends.”

“…” Oz Kent instantly choked up. He subconsciously drank a mouthful of Zarhar beer to calm himself.

After coughing twice, he said in a deep voice, “They will also ambush you. They will also bribe people to learn about your schedule and intercept your ship. At sea, a single person’s strength is often so inconsequential.”

Klein said rather calmly, “I wouldn’t reject them from giving me money.

“That’s basic courtesy.”

Giving money? Oz Kent was clearly taken aback as he found Gehrman Sparrow’s words incomprehensible.

A few seconds later, he realized that the man was treating pirates as mobile bounties.

He drank mouthful after mouthful of beer, momentarily at a loss for words.

…

In the basement of the Amyris Leaf Bar.

“An unknown adventurer?” Wormtongue Mithor King’s mind stirred as he sat straight up.

Strongman Ozil nodded.

“According to Blue Eyes Meath, that adventurer is new. He likely hasn’t been to the archipelago for long, but Meath felt that he was considerably dangerous.”

Considerably dangerous? Could he be the person who killed Steel Maveti and company with Blazing Danitz? Could it be the person who disguised himself as Helene to attack Captain? Mithor immediately made certain connections as he asked with a deep voice, “Do you have his photograph or a portrait?”

Ozil beckoned to a subordinate and received a piece of white paper.

“We used a ritual to get Blue Eyes Meath to draw the unknown adventurer’s appearance. As you know, it’s different having a firm footing in Bayam’s underground world than being a successful pirate. I need supporting members. Sigh, to hire them, I spent quite a bit of money.”

Mithor could read between the lines as he chuckled.

“As long as you get to the bottom of this matter, Captain wouldn’t be stingy with her reward.”

He took the portrait, spread it out, and discovered a cold-looking man with black hair and brown eyes. His face was slightly thin, and he had a cut face. He wore a black double-breasted frock coat and a half top hat.

Never seen him before. It’s impossible to confirm if he’s the person who disguised himself as Helene… Mithor raised his head and said, “Find out his identity and whereabouts.”

“I’ve already instructed my men to do it,” Strongman Ozil said with a deep laugh.

The two fell silent at the same time as they drank their Southville red wine.

A few minutes later, a bar bouncer entered and broke the silence.

He glanced at Wormtongue Mithor, leaned in towards his boss’s ear, and whispered.

Ozil’s expression instantly turned odd as an unconcealed smile appeared.

He put down the wine glass and said after pausing, “That unknown adventurer has been found.”

“Where is he?” Mithor asked.

Ozil pointed upstairs.

“At this very bar.”

Mithor looked up at the ceiling and remained silent for a few seconds.

“I’ll go up to verify.”

He believed that having had some interaction with the disguised Helene, he had a general understanding of the man’s abilities. He believed that no matter how good the man was at disguising himself, he would definitely feel a sense of familiarity; therefore, he decided to confirm it himself.

According to his usual habits, he wouldn’t have taken such initiative and would instead perform an investigation from the outskirts. Only with enough confidence would he get himself involved. But this time, he wasn’t too convinced of Ozil’s subordinate. If it was really the person who disguised himself as Helene, he would immediately change his appearance and identity and vanish once he noticed something was amiss.

Besides, Mithor knew that he was presently being punished by his captain. He had to quickly perform a deed of merit in order to return to the Black Death.

Sigh, regardless if I was lacking in ability or not being careful enough, the outcome cannot be changed. I was fooled by that disguise and brought “her” onto the Black Death, nearly killing Captain…

If it were Qilangos, he wouldn’t have spared me. Heh, he has always been very greedy. He had long thirsted for my Beyonder powers…

Captain didn’t believe that I had been in cahoots with the assassin simply because Qilangos could also change his appearance with Creeping Hunger. She didn’t summon people to surround and kill me. She only sent me to Bayam to investigate this matter. She’s already being forgiving enough… Compared to Qilangos, she is truly a captain worthy of being loyal to. I have to quickly provide some meritorious service and find an excuse to contact her, so as to live up to her treatment towards me. As Mithor King got up and walked out, he couldn’t help but have these thoughts churn through his mind.

Although he was a pirate who had killed countless and had plundered countless ships, he had a soft spot in his heart. Besides, he didn’t notice that he was being constantly mesmerized by Vice Admiral Ailment Tracy via prolonged interactions with her. His fondness for her had seeped deep into his bones. Even if Ailment Maiden didn’t have helpers, he wouldn’t have resisted, kneeling down and kissing her toes at her behest.

Of course, this didn’t affect his fantasies of doing countless deeds with Tracy. If he had the chance, he believed he would take the initiative to do so even if he didn’t get her permission.

As a pirate, he had done such things plenty of times.

When he went upstairs, Mithor King followed the guidance of Ozil’s subordinates and circled halfway around the bar’s walls. From afar, he saw the unknown adventurer sitting in the corner.

Identical to the portrait… but I don’t feel any familiarity… Is it because his disguise is sufficiently good, or is he someone else, for example, Vice Admiral Iceberg Edwina? She can mimic the Beyonder powers of those she had seen before. It’s not impossible for her to change appearance like Qilangos… Mithor’s gaze paused for two seconds before he cautiously retracted it.

But at this moment, Klein’s spiritual intuition as a Seer told him that someone was observing him.

Without concealing anything, Klein immediately turned to look back. He saw a man with short eyebrows, deep eye sockets, and bronze eyes.

Wormtongue Mithor King… Third mate of Vice Admiral Ailment’s flagship, Black Death… Klein instantly recognized the person observing him.

Instantly, two thoughts flashed in his mind.

One of them was: 5,400 pound bounty!

The other was: Why is he observing me? He managed to find me by investigating Danitz?

The military contact person, Oz Kent, discovered Gehrman Sparrow’s abnormality as he traced his gaze. However, due to his angle, he was blocked by a few drunkards.

At this point in time, Klein already instinctively came up with a solution. It was to pretend that he didn’t recognize Mithor King, retract his gaze, and get a cup of alcohol to drink. He could then secretly observe where he went, and then use his powers as a Faceless to infiltrate where Mithor hid himself before silently hunting him.

As this thought flashed past his mind, Klein suddenly discovered a problem.

That’s me being myself.

But I’m now Gehrman Sparrow, a seemingly calm but crazy adventurer!

With this thought, he suddenly turned around, drew his revolver, and aimed at Wormtongue Mithor King inside the rowdy bar.

Bang!

A gunshot rang through the bar as many customers reflexively crouched down while hugging their heads. All of them were extremely experienced.

Many drunkards slumped to the ground, with more than ten people throwing themselves to the side or rolling on the ground to dodge. These series of actions were well-practiced. And Mithor King was one of them.

However, Klein didn’t really pull the trigger, as he was afraid of injuring the innocent bystanders by mistake. There were many customers in between him and Mithor.

The gunshot stemmed from his powers of Illusion Creation!

At that moment, everything before him opened up as people crouched down. Hence, having aimed at Mithor, who had thrown himself sideways to the ground, he pulled the trigger this time.

Bang!