Chapter 39 Arrival
Port Morris is one of the largest ports in the Silver Iris Empire. About three days' journey south of its hinterland is the mineral-rich Blake County, and to the east is the Casa Strait. It is the only way to the Batalha Highlands, which are rich in coffee, tea, wine, and various spices. Therefore, during the peak season, you can always see thousands of ships lining the port, and the sea surface is almost invisible. It is a very spectacular and lively scene.
Fortunately, it is approaching summer and there are more hurricanes at sea, so the shipping routes are not very busy. Otherwise, it would be embarrassing for the Cardinal of the Glorious Church to be stuck at sea.
After receiving the news, the local Glorious Church was already guarding the port. Bishop Galen Lagasha ignored the civilians watching around him, suppressed his excitement, and vaguely realized that his fortune was about to change.
People come from all corners of the world to Port Morris, and countless wealth flows like a trickle into the sea. To seize this wealth requires skill and timing. Bishop Lagasha's appointment as the Holy See Bishop of this important port diocese is due to his own unique abilities.
As a port city, the Seagod's faith naturally flourished. However, since Bishop Lagasha took office, the number of local followers of the God of Light has increased year by year, rivaling those of the Seagod. The "believer donations" they send to the Royal City Church each year are staggering. Presumably, within a few years, this money-making expert will be promoted to Archbishop, officially entering the power center of the Glorious Church.
However, Galen Lagasha is not satisfied with his current promotion progress. His goal is not just to become a wealthy and powerful archbishop, but his limited local connections are not enough for him to continue climbing up.
Now, the dear sea god Odileus has sent him a truly noble person - Oh, God of Light, please forgive his momentary slip of the tongue - an extremely noble cardinal. If he can win the other party's favor, why would he worry about his future promotion?
This also led to the professor being met by a face with a smile that was so eager and even a little flattering as soon as he got off the boat. The other party was also worried about this young man who seemed out of place among the dazzling and bright priests of the Glorious Church.
"Please come to me, Mr. Brody." After arriving at the destination, Bishop Miller gently and slightly apologetically "invited" the black-haired young man to go with him - according to the other party, this was because he felt sorry for frightening the virgin Etilo - which made almost everyone warm up to the viscount's son with an eccentric personality.
The professor believes that this is a kind of supervision, or house arrest.
The only explanation for their nervousness was that they needed him to do something, and until then, his freedom and safety would remain in the hands of the Glorious Church. With the clues fully revealed, the answer became easy to guess. How could the Cardinal determine the identity of the person he was seeking according to the oracle? The simplest and most direct approach was to ask the gods directly.
Azuka couldn't tell when the professor had begun planning this. Was it the nighttime visit to the Temple of the Sea God, sparking conflict between the Sea God's followers and those of the God of Light? Was it the farce he staged in the newspapers, attracting the attention of the priestess of the Goddess of Love? Or was it even the moment he stood up for the fishermen of Graybridge Harbor, when he began to plan all the details of the subsequent chess game?
Generally speaking, this guy is indeed fulfilling the agreement between him and me seriously. It is so frustrating that I can't find any fault with him. He is even too active.
Azuka had long been accustomed to shouldering the most difficult and dangerous missions, having initially been the one his companions worried about, and later becoming everyone's rock. But now, suddenly, someone appeared, cheerfully rushing towards the most dangerous situation, completely disregarding their own life, with no regard for their own frailty. He couldn't help but feel worried, a hypocritical attitude that was justified.
This man had a criminal record, the eyes of a god-favored being dim and unclear. The lifeless, smoky-gray pupils on the head he had severed were like a desolate moon hanging high above him, observing the love, hate, and struggles of the world without joy or sorrow. And so he began to realize how hateful this man was, so hateful that he wanted to bite him by the back of his neck, grinding his teeth on that slightly raised, cold, bony spine to vent his anger.
The savior simply attributed it to his unhappiness that his old enemy was out of his control.
Saying he believed he could protect him… Azuka sneered. He wasn't a fool to be swayed by a few perfunctory sweet words. He was a completely complex research subject, a person with a burning curiosity about things beyond his knowledge, but he wouldn't make any final judgments until he had come to a conclusion.
For an academic, this is a very good and professional quality; but for a collaborator, this guy is simply an arrogant, suspicious and neurotic tyrant - not to mention a damn self-destructive tendency that comes from nowhere.
The tyrant himself was visibly unhappy, and his face remained stern even until the ship docked, like a cat that was being forcibly stroked and became impatient.
Nova just felt that the male protagonist of the comic was a difficult psychopath. She was inexplicably nervous about him and acted as if he would happily commit suicide one day because of something that didn't go his way.
"I have never doubted your ability. I am amazed by your wisdom and strategy, and I remain unwavering in my belief that you will lead us to victory."
In the dim cabin, the blond God-favored One stood beside him, calmly gazing at the black-haired scholar sitting on the chair. His tone was gentle and soft, and he seemed particularly firm and pious.
Nova, however, felt like a thorn in his back. An inexplicably terrifying, oppressive feeling seeped out from him bit by bit, like a soft-bodied creature completely hidden in soft sand, ready to burst forth at any moment and trap its prey.
He didn't like hearing people apologize to him. Apologizing meant not being valued, not being trusted, not being chosen, it meant the withdrawal of love and warmth, and the pain and hurt that was about to come or had already come. So why bother with it and even try to claim the moral high ground?
"If you never questioned me, why did you deprive me of my right to decide?" He heard himself say in a cold tone: "--Or do you also think I'm a lunatic with a broken brain?"
The other party seemed to have fallen silent. The professor didn't want to stay here any longer. The extremely unfamiliar emotional exchange made him extremely irritated and uneasy, and he even began to bite his nails.
He stood up, preparing to leave the cabin. He wanted to go to the deck to collect some Kraken slime, rethink the method of mixing the luminol reagent, or simply take the opportunity to dispose of the male thunder shrimp corpse. His mind was full of interesting topics, and any of them would be better than getting entangled in these strange things that he could not understand at all.
But the black-haired young man's wrist was grabbed by someone, and when he reacted, the professor found himself being pulled into another person's arms, and his back was aching from being hit by the other person's chest.
"...Let go." He frowned gloomily.
But the other party was very rude, completely abandoning his usual courtesy, and tightly wrapped one arm around his waist, showing an extremely intimate and dangerous posture.
"I'm sorry, but this is the irrationality that humans cannot abandon." The God-Favored One spoke calmly in his ear, "Because I have long since left the age of arrogance when I believed I could fight against everything. Everything I once swore to protect was ultimately annihilated. I once lived like a joke in the eyes of the gods—so I can't stop worrying about you."
Nova felt a scaldingly warm hand clasped around his neck, forcing him to tilt his head back. The fingertips carefully pressed against his Adam's apple, then pressed against his carotid artery, causing a slight pressure and suffocation. The other person seemed to have no shame in exposing his weakness, and his attitude was unwavering and cold.
"...I can't understand it." The black-haired young man said slowly.
"It's okay, I'll tell you." The other person said softly, resting his chin lightly on the top of his head and rubbing it slowly. His tone was so considerate and gentle, and his posture was so humble and modest, just like an obedient patient telling his doctor about his illness.
"You are very important to me and I don't want to see you get hurt."
"When you are in danger, I will feel worried and anxious, regardless of whether I can solve the danger itself. So I hope you try not to take risks yourself, or at least communicate with me in advance."
"I don't think you're a 'crazy person with a broken brain,' you're just different, and no one can define what 'normal' is."
"I'm sorry for what you said earlier, maybe I could use an apology as well?"
The God-Favored One stared silently ahead. The other person tensed stiffly against his chest, unsure whether it was because he was unaccustomed to closeness or because he was frightened by his bluntness.
The Savior was very keenly aware that his nemesis was usually very difficult to deal with, but if faced with pure kindness from others, even the smallest amount, he would instinctively reveal a stiff sense of nervousness, as if he had suffered something indescribable.
The other party clearly cannot understand this, but will still awkwardly imitate and return this kindness, but usually the method will appear quite weird and strange.
As expected.
"...I apologize, although I don't understand why you're upset. I never thought you were hypocritical or stupid. It was just a joke, and I'm not good at joking."
His nemesis stood there, his eyelids drooping expressionlessly. Anyone else would have been so infuriated by his attitude that their blood pressure would have skyrocketed.
"—but if this makes you uncomfortable, then it's really my problem. I won't play that kind of joke on you again, I'm sorry."
...So good.
The one favored by God smiled silently from an angle that no one else could see.
"I forgive you." He couldn't help but rub the other person's hair with his cheek, then let go and watched the man run away from him with his hair standing on end.
"So, are you willing to accept my apology? For my arrogance and weakness?" The savior smiled and extended his hand towards the person, which always felt like a bad taste. Somehow, Nova suddenly remembered the elementary school moral education class, which included things like saying sorry for doing something wrong and forgiving others. It was all confusing and messy.
"No, I'm still angry." He gave her a cold look and subconsciously moved towards the door. "...But if I need to take risks in the future, I will let you know in advance."
Just to prevent people from getting angry at him again.
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