Ethan, I want to create a world without you.
When he was slammed to the ground by an over-the-shoulder throw, it was as if he heard such a roar in his ears.
Ave glared down at Ethan, who was lying flat on the floor in a "big" shape. Her good noble manners restrained her impulse to step on Ethan's chest with her high boots; she was always a person who valued etiquette. However, when she was startled by that sudden sneeze and stuck her finger into the sea, she couldn't help but curse.
Her first curse in life was thus dedicated to Ethan.
After a long stare, Ave said, "Don't sneeze when someone is casting a teleportation spell in the future!"
"I never thought the Reception Bureau recruited a knight."
Tree-man Old Mu also snapped out of his shock, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief — luckily this girl wasn't here to beat him up.
"I'm not a knight."
"What? I thought only knights could muster the strength to execute such a perfect over-the-shoulder throw!"
Old Mu witnessed the perfect rotation Ethan's body formed in the air before he ended up on the ground. He could only say that the fall was artistic, reminding him of the stage plays at the Imperial Capital Grand Theater.
The subject himself, Ethan, silently listened to the exchange between the two of them. In fact, Ave's over-the-shoulder throw technique was more refined than Old Mu imagined; she had controlled her strength when smashing him to the ground, which resulted in a showy display that wasn't very painful. He thought that Ave could become an all-star level contestant in WWE.
It was easy to see that Ave was merely venting her anger and didn't really want him to disappear from this world.
Sneezing while someone is performing a teleportation spell can lead to the result of the other person being teleported into the sea; Ethan gained new knowledge today, indeed a day with gains.
Although this fall didn't hurt much, Ethan just lay on the cold floor for a while without intending to get up — kidding, the leader just gave you an over-the-shoulder throw, and you immediately dust yourself off and climb up; wouldn't that be embarrassing her?
This time Ave used physical techniques; if she got angry again, who knows, next time it might be divine power.
He stayed put and observed the exchange between Ave and Old Mu, waiting for Old Mu to pack the base station equipment into a box. Ave then gallantly took out a gold-trimmed savings card and handed it over; exchanging money for goods, Ethan knew this was finally the moment to get up from the floor.
Getting all wet made Ave uncomfortable, and although she was still simmering with fury, for some reason, her anger dissipated when she saw Ethan drifting ghost-like toward the counter and proactively holding the box close to his chest. The guy's micro-expressions and subtle actions amused her slightly.
Fortunate for her, she had received professional training, and she was wearing a mask, which helped her hide her feelings well.
Having been accidentally teleported to the sea, the first thing she did upon arriving at Fireplace Bay was to swim to shore with a freestyle stroke. The original plan of taking Ethan around was shelved; a lady would never walk around soaking wet, how unseemly would that be?
The deck was busier than expected. The sudden commotion made the crowd gather; arms crossed, they evaluated the situation, mostly with schadenfreude comments — only a fool would attack a merchant on Lofic Consortium's territory, what a rare delight.
Ethan saw a familiar face again.
The young man who had been scammed out of a gold lion by a wine escort looked worse now, being pressed to the ground by the guards, his face held firmly. His eyes were full of blood, grimacing in pain, but powerless in the face of absolute force disparity.
Ave noticed Ethan's gaze, "Do you know him?"
"Yes, he is my teacher."
"Teacher?"
Ave was taken aback, scrutinizing a bit more. The young man wore a mask, obscuring his original appearance, "Is he from Ximu Town?"
"Don't know, don't recognize him." Ethan shook his head, "But he taught me firsthand the perils of Fireplace Bay."
The saying goes, one can always learn from others; although they hadn't exchanged a word, Ethan already considered the young man a teacher in his heart. If not for witnessing the young man's ordeal, he might've ended up in debt while freeloading esoteric books at the bookstore.
Ave's eyelids twitched; Ethan's thought processes were peculiar, not easy for a regular person to comprehend.
Presumably too absorbed in studying mysticism and dark beings, causing his cognitive abilities to be influenced to some extent by the Evil God.
"That's just right; you wait for me here for a while, don't wander off, I need to go to a place first."
"Okay."
Ethan set the heavy box down on the ground, noticing Ave holding a black cloth bag; inside, it made shimmering sounds, likely a full pouch of gold lions. She headed straight for the captain's cabin, where guards and sailors guarded, a forbidden area for free passers.
He sensibly joined the crowd, watching for excitement.
Don't pry into matters of leadership; it may involve the Empire's darkness, best not to know.
"It's been so long, yet you're still chasing after her; perhaps it's time to give up."
When Ave pushed open the door, she heard the captain's voice, deep and slightly raspy.
This was a man in his fifties, with plenty of white hair on his head, wearing a white cape, at the moment resting his hands on the table, examining the spreading nautical map over the table.
The captain didn't even lift his head and said, "It's for your own good."
Ave kept a stern face, tossing a bag of gold lions onto the nautical map.
The captain finally paused, untied the knotted rope at the bag's mouth; the whole pouch filled with golden luster. The captain weighed the bag, saying, "Looks like you haven't been home for a while."
"Want it or not?"
The captain responded with action, pulling open a drawer and placing the full pouch of gold lions inside, "I just happened to hear a friend mention this matter, about a year ago, she encountered a buyer, distinctive silver hair color, and a pair of red pupils, she went to the shop to buy some things, parchment, pens, and tools for magic power inscription, seemed like she was making a magic book."
"Magic Book?"
Ave pondered, "Why make a magic book?"
"That's not something I can know, my friend is not fond of standing out, nor of testifying in court; he hopes that after you walk out this door you'll bury this matter, well aware that mentioning these in itself carries great risks."
"I understand."
Ave said, "I was never here today."
"That's best."
The conversation with the captain lasted only a few minutes; she walked out of the captain's cabin, looking up at Fireplace Bay's eternally night sky, and sighed deeply.
Lindong had been here.
She once again found traces left by the other party, always feeling as though she were chasing a phantom.
Nevertheless, the investigations thus far finally had some substantive progress.
Though the motive remains unclear, she knows that during her flight, Lindong came to Fireplace Bay, bought the basic tools for making a magic book, and quite possibly left behind a great tome.
She must find that magic book.
It's the strongest evidence proving the Lindong Witch is still alive, also evidence the Church cannot ignore.
(The reading data for the first week is crucial, please don't stockpile books, thank you!)