Chapter 38 Dispute
Upon inspection, the Kraken's attack had indeed caused some damage to the ship. The cunning mollusk had slipped its tentacles through the cannon port at the bottom of the hold, accidentally destroying the "Glorious Blessing"'s power center. After an inspection, the sorcerer, versed in magic circles, regretfully informed the cardinal that to ensure safe passage, they would have to dock and repair the ship's magic circle—unless, fortunately, Alanbey, the god of luck, granted them no mishaps along the way. However, having encountered the mad mollusk and the mad Etilo maiden just after leaving the harbor, it seemed that the god of luck might be temporarily unavailable.
The Cardinal's expression was unfathomable. His fingers stroked his scepter, as if in deep thought, but his gaze drifted inadvertently to the dark-haired young man not far away. He was crouched beside the crater punctured by the Kraken's tentacles, studying something, completely oblivious to the strange looks that drifted from his surroundings.
"How long will it take to reactivate the magic circle after docking?" Bishop Miller asked calmly. After receiving the reply that it would take at least four or five days, he pondered over the sea chart for a moment, then turned his head to consult the White Tower University team leader. "Not far from here is Morris Bay. I remember the local Radiant Church also has a ship capable of deep ocean voyages. How about we go to Morris Bay for now, change ships, and then set sail again?"
The team leader readily agreed. The invited guests were scholars from the seminary, intellectuals purely engaged in research. In other words, they couldn't fight—in unfamiliar waters rife with unknown dangers, it was natural to follow the orders of those with higher military power.
Percy stood in the crowd, still in shock, looking around trying to find his cousin. Although he didn't want to admit it, when the Kraken's tentacles were about to fall towards him, he was very embarrassed and stood there. If his mortal enemy hadn't quickly pulled him away, he might have died on the spot.
This was completely different from the knowledge learned from books or the discussions between classmates and teachers. They had encountered a real level eight monster - you know, a level nine monster is enough to destroy a city, and the legendary level ten monster can even destroy a small country.
When his fear-filled brain finally began to function again and the giant Kraken quietly escaped, Percy suddenly thought of his cousin - his cousin was just an ordinary, fragile person, and perhaps a flying piece of wood could kill him. Later, he heard that a priestess of the god of love had sneaked onto the ship and caused great chaos. He suddenly became nervous, and only when he saw his cousin on the deck did he breathe a sigh of relief, and then a complex emotion surged in his heart.
"I'm talking to you!" Little Bartman impatiently tugged at him roughly. "By the God of Light, Mr. Brody, I hope you're not an ungrateful person for saving you just now. Tell me, how much have you told your brother?"
"I'll say it again, I know nothing!" The mortal enemy was indeed quite capable. Percy, who was already upset, was entangled by him and cursed as well: "My brother already said that he was deceiving you, are you done yet?!"
Little Bateman sneered: "Oh come on, you talk as if he can read minds!"
Little Brody sneered without giving in: "Then come up with a more convincing reason!"
The two of them stared at each other for a while, unwilling to admit defeat, snorted at the same time, and turned away in disgust.
"For your 'risking your life to save me,' Mr. Bateman." Little Brody regained his elegance, maintaining a fake smile, and reluctantly squeezed out a sentence from between his teeth: "I'd like to give you a piece of advice - I don't know how my cousin did it, but since he said he's not interested in your secret, don't go and provoke him foolishly, and it's best not to try to use any crooked means."
"Why do you sound so proud?!"
"W-I didn't, and what's it to you?!"
Over there, the teenagers were arguing heatedly, while here the professor stared at the wooden board that was broken by the Kraken, deep in thought. People walking around him looked at him with strange eyes, but the scholar seemed to be oblivious.
He simply pulled off a newly bought glove, pinched a little of the mucus left on the Kraken's tentacles with his fingers, rubbed it carefully, and then leaned in to smell it - it was just as fishy and smelly as he had imagined.
"I once read a travelogue," he muttered, perhaps to himself. "The author claimed that Kraken slime is actually a very useful ink material. It's fireproof and waterproof, and has strong adhesion. Unfortunately, there's no way to remove the unbearable fishy smell—it's really unbearable."
Nova clapped his hands and stood up. It was hard to tell that this guy had just escaped from the life-and-death battle between two groups of gods' believers, and still had the mood and energy to satisfy his curiosity.
"I'm tired. I'm going to go back and rest for a while." The professor announced calmly, then walked towards the noisy cabin.
The original guest room had been almost completely destroyed. Fortunately, Nova always carried important things with him, such as his precious parchment book, so they were not affected. Otherwise, the professor swore that he would definitely kill the neurotic priestess and the sinister cardinal.
He simply asked for a new room. After everything was ready, Nova locked the door and poured two more cups of tea.
"Your brain is driving me crazy—go ahead." The professor lazily sat in the chair, picked up the teacup and took a sip slowly. His slightly pale lips suddenly became more lively.
Silence fell. The black-haired young man lowered his eyes indifferently, his fingers unconsciously stroking the delicate and ornate carvings on the cup.
After a long time, someone picked up another teacup and a figure slowly emerged.
The one favored by God stood in place, staring at him quietly with an incomprehensible look in his eyes. His beautiful blue eyes were like the shimmering shallow sea water, with unknown undercurrents hidden beneath the clear and transparent eyes.
"What are you thinking about?" Nova said in a calm tone, a hidden irritation that he himself hadn't yet realized. "Did my fabricated story of drifting at sea coincide with the prophecy, causing those believers to mistake me for you? Or are these coincidences too numerous to be suspicious?"
He snorted lightly, raised his eyes and glanced at the person: "Don't say that you are resentful because I stole your role - I'm kidding, you shouldn't be such an idiot."
As always, countless pieces of information almost jumped into his brain excitedly. Through instinctive analysis, reorganization, elimination, and selection, he came up with a series of iron rules: the observation subject named Azuka cast some kind of spell on the priestess before she escaped, the effect of which was not yet known; the observation subject named Azuka was aware of the existence of the Kraken when he was talking to the cardinal; the observation subject named Azuka quietly cut a secret slit on the back of little Batman's pants, and perhaps the other party would have to wait until he changed clothes at night to find out... ?
But he still struggled to decipher the other person's emotions. He tried to match the angle of the other person's eyebrows, the curve of the mouth corners, the contractions of the muscles, and other micro-expressions with the words in the book, but he could only barely conclude that the other person was dissatisfied and worried about something.
“…”
The teacup was placed on the table with a dull thud. Then someone grabbed the back of the black-haired young man's neck.
Oh, now this person's levator palpebrae superioris muscles have contracted, Nova thought absentmindedly, this probably means that the other party is angry.
"...This isn't something to be joked about." The warmth in his palm was slightly warmer than his neck, and the heat seeped into his flesh, following the pulse. Someone approached him, their voice lowered.
"Why, isn't it funny?" The old enemy who easily provoked people to anger looked at him inexplicably. The serious, confused, and even somewhat naive look made the other person silent for a while, and he sighed softly.
"It's not funny, professor." The savior slowly loosened his hand, and at an angle that the other person couldn't see, his fingers twitched subtly.
He simply held onto the back of the chair, leaned over, and stared into those clear, smoky-gray eyes.
"I'm worried about you, and I'm also considering whether our current plan is sound. Perhaps I should deprive you of some of your decision-making power." He frankly revealed his concerns and anxieties, while also calmly revealing the arrogance and arbitrariness buried deep within his soul. "I've said before that because I'm the leading actor, countless disasters and coincidences have naturally befallen me."
"--To put it another way, I'm more suitable to be the leading actor than you."
Instead of letting this guy take risks like this... without any scruples.
"I don't want to repeat myself. I'm not a reckless person." Nova was a little annoyed and confused, and he was really angry. He didn't think he had done anything wrong. Everything was clearly the optimal solution. The other party's questioning was an insult to his decision-making ability.
“But you will easily put your life on the line,” the God-favored One said softly.
Extreme pressure, a life-or-death game, the underlying essence is despair. Because nothing matters, everything can be compared.
Nova didn't want to continue this conversation. He felt an unprecedented sense of oppression from the other person, and instinctively wanted to stay away from things that made him uneasy.
But on one side was the arm of the God-favored One, and on the other side was the table. He suddenly found himself almost trapped in someone's arms, and the only way he could escape was to jump onto the table.
"I won't die as long as you are here." He repeated the lines that had successfully appeased others with a blank expression.
The other party replied gently, word by word, "But you obviously have a more reliable way, don't you?"
Just as Nova began to think about whether to punch the man on the chin or jump onto the table, the man suddenly loosened his grip and took the initiative to create some distance.
"...I'm sorry, I shouldn't blame you so condescendingly." The God-favored One sighed, pinched his brows, and his eyelashes drooped tiredly. A strange and bewitching melancholy and fragility appeared on his breathtaking face.
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