“Yo, you looked half-dead just a moment ago, and now you're fine? Lively as ever.”
Cecia looked at Fekro, unable to resist teasing him.
“Pfft, if I didn't act like that, do you think that stingy old priest would've been willing to give me so many gold coins?” Fekro was clearly quite pleased with himself.
“Why did you stop me? Want to have a cowboy duel with me?”
“With just you? You can't even handle my Alchemical Magnum, and you want to compete with me?” Fekro's expression shifted. “Listen, Miss Cecia, I'm only telling you this because I see that your soul is the purest and most blazing of everyone here.”
“What is it?”
“Can the lady next to you be trusted? Though her soul is pure and flawless, it is always shrouded in shadow.”
“We know each other inside out, so speak freely.”
“There were too many people earlier, so I didn't dare say it. In the sea monsters' underground city, I found some strange things.”
“What things?”
Fekro and Cecia conversed as they walked, both lowering their hat brims and speaking in hushed voices.
“There were kerosene lamps inside the cave. That's clearly not something sea monsters would use.”
“Oh? And?”
“The sea monsters are keeping humans in captivity. Those stark white bones couldn't possibly all be from kidnapped humans. Such a massive amount couldn't have been accumulated overnight.”
Vesper followed carefully behind the two. She watched their surroundings sharply, her overall demeanor seeming completely different.
“You mean someone is helping the sea monsters breed humans in captivity?”
“Yes, and perhaps something even more brutal than that. Good heavens, I almost want to go confess in the church behind us! I swear, that was truly the most sacrilegious thing I've ever seen in my life.”
“I don't know what the sea monsters did to make humans degenerate to that state.”
“But it's obvious the sea monsters didn't kill them right away.”
“Those stark white bones, those humans who were like swine... They kept degenerating, turning into creatures that were barely human anymore.”
“How on earth did they end up like that? They were normal humans to begin with, possessing human souls, human emotions, and everything that makes one human.”
“We both know that children born from inbreeding will always have some issues, more or less...” Fekro wore an expression of unspoken understanding, as if saying one more word would violate the will of the gods.
Cecia felt like throwing up.
She could almost see the heavy bloodstains on the dark stone slabs. The wails of women and the shrill screeches of sea monsters echoed in the depths of the dungeon, while the sea monster priests chanted ancient incantations.
Filthy. Sacrilegious.
Cecia's entire body burned with rage as she listened, wishing she could slaughter all those sea monsters and chop those bastards to pieces.
Cecia took a deep breath, quickly forcing herself to calm down, and then asked, “But you don't have concrete proof, right? All of this is just your speculation.”
“Yes, there's no crucial evidence. But I have reason to suspect there's a ‘sea-traitor’.”
“Because I saw human shoes and clothes, and that kerosene lamp was still warm. Besides, setting aside these speculations, I can't think of any other reason why there would be such an astronomical number of white bones in the cave.”
“Even if we slaughtered everyone in all the villages surrounding Tide Town, we still might not end up with such a staggering amount of bones.”
The three of them had already arrived at the docks.
Drunken sailors chatted with one another.
Tonight's sea breeze was exceptionally chilly, and exceptionally eerie.
“Why are you telling us this?”
“Yeah, why?” Miss Potato chimed in suddenly.
“Because you have a pure soul?”
“A vague answer.”
“Alright, you know that maximizing profit has always been my rule of thumb.” Fekro shrugged. “To put it bluntly, I don't think many people in this town will survive. Wouldn't all that unclaimed property be mine then?”
“Greedy bounty hunter,” Cecia remarked bluntly.
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“I wasn't complimenting you, though?”
“The moment you called me a bounty hunter, I already was one. Come on, bounty hunters are cool, alright?” Fekro spoke as if it were a matter of course.
“You actually think you can get away unscathed if this town is destroyed? Fekro, I don't know if that's arrogance or confidence.”
“Not only am I confident, but I also believe you and the lady next to you will survive.”
“Do you have a lot of chips?”
“I still have some undisclosed secrets, things that only I know.”
“What you just said is worth about as much as saying nothing at all.”
“Don't be in a hurry. I naturally have the leverage to buy your trust.” Fekro produced two red gemstones.
“What is this?”
“The Philosopher's Stone.”
Although Fekro's tone was calm, Cecia knew that this thing was anything but simple. It was the pinnacle of alchemy, the cornerstone of all high-level alchemy, and something that all alchemists strove for but could almost never obtain.
Cecia cast a suspicious glance at Fekro. It was hard to imagine that this filthy alchemist actually possessed such a thing. Even though these two Philosopher's Stones were only the size of a fingernail, they were enough to drive most alchemists to ruin, forcing them to sign massive debts or even sell their souls.
Cecia looked at Fekro. “Did you rob a bank?”
“Hey!”
Vesper chimed in to twist the knife, “Flipped over some master alchemist's coffin lid?”
“That's even worse, alright?”
“Anyway, there's no way you refined them yourself.”
“Why not? I refined this golden Magnum myself, okay?”
“Because you don't have that level of education.”
“Hahahahaha.” Vesper couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Seeing himself being laughed at, Fekro's face darkened. “My dear lady.”
“What is it?”
“You have been stripped of your eligibility to possess a Philosopher's Stone.”
“Eh?”
Cecia outstretched her hand. “Hand it over.”
“You certainly aren't polite.” Fekro handed the Philosopher's Stone over.
Cecia took the Philosopher's Stone. A rich life element radiated from it. It could be used as ritual fodder, alchemy ingredients, or materials for equipment. It could even serve as a second life in times of dire peril.
Cecia examined the Philosopher's Stone in her hand. Inside were extremely fine blood vessels and many shattered souls, though she couldn't see them clearly. She looked up at the grinning Fekro.
Instead of trying to judge whether the item in her hand was real or fake, she turned her head to look at the knowledgeable Saintess of the Abyss Cult, Vesper.
“Potato, what do you think?”
Vesper took a lick of the fingernail-sized Philosopher's Stone. “It's real.”
“Oh?”
“Though I haven't seen many either, Fekro isn't lying to us.”
Cecia swallowed hard. It was red and sparkling.
Fekro quickly tossed the other Philosopher's Stone over as well.
“Didn't you say I was disqualified?”
“It's been restored now.”
“Awesome!”
Cecia still found it a bit hard to believe.
【It's real.】 A soft, dense whisper drifted into Cecia's ear. It was the King of Dawn and Dusk.
Even the King of Dawn and Dusk had spoken up.
“Why give them to us? Just to buy our trust?”
“Your trust in me is far more valuable than any Philosopher's Stone,” Fekro said with a smile. “I might do some ridiculous things next. I hope you won't stop me.”
Holding the Philosopher's Stone, Cecia suddenly felt it burning her hand for some reason.
The Philosopher's Stone. It was an amalgamation of souls, flesh, and mana.
Cecia even had a faint feeling... that she might actually be able to bring it from the Spirit Realm back into reality.
Rate on N.U.
