Klein had already gotten a rough read on Danitz's personality. He didn't proactively ask about the legends, remaining seated in his chair and gazing calmly at the other man.
Uninterrupted, Danitz shook his head:
"The legend says that over three hundred years ago, when the Loen army first occupied this island, more than five hundred soldiers mysteriously disappeared after a thick fog. Not long after, many white bones turned up on the shore and on the mountains. Similar incidents happened several times, until the
While historians credited the formal onset of the colonial era to Roselle's fleet discovering a safe route to the Southern Continent, the truth was that nations across the Northern Continent had been exploring surrounding waters and colonizing islands for quite some time before that. These efforts simply hadn't scaled up enough to constitute a major movement.
Disappearing mysteriously in the fog... bones appearing on the shore and mountains... Klein's mind inexplicably turned to the "
Danitz gazed at the lighthouse that stood out prominently against the setting sun and continued:
"Based on the tombs and murals unearthed on the island, the natives here apparently had a tradition of cannibalism.
"This island sits in a zone of extreme climate change—earthquakes, storms, and heavy fog are common occurrences, bringing disaster after disaster to the natives. To survive, they began worshipping a self-created 'God of Weather,' holding four ceremonies a year. Heh—the ceremony involved killing the chosen favored one of the god, sharing his blood and flesh, and burying his head in the altar.
"However, such traditions were long ago replaced by the Storm's rites, and the natives' original language has also vanished."
The God of Weather... an island that had been conquered and once maintained living sacrifice traditions... Klein formed a preliminary judgment.
Danitz withdrew his gaze and said casually:
"Because of these legends, Banchi Port has two unique customs. One is that on nights with heavy fog or severe weather changes, you keep your doors tightly shut, don't go outside, and don't respond to any knocking sounds.
"The other is that they're fond of various kinds of animal blood, and they learned from the migrating elves to add salt to it, letting the blood coagulate into peculiar chunks. Paired with several locally grown spicy condiments, it comes out tender and fragrant."
Wasn't that just blood pudding? Klein blinked for a second, then furrowed his brow and asked:
"Elves?"
Based on the stereotypes he'd formed in his previous life, elves were supposed to be elegant vegetarians—so how had they come to research the proper techniques for consuming blood and a hundred ways to make blood pudding?
"Yeah, the rumor is that many elves enjoy congealed blood," Danitz replied with a shrug. "Pity—they're hard to come by these days, those creatures skilled in cooking."
...The little "Sun" had mentioned that the Elf King Sonia Solem, an Ancient God, wielded the Authority of Storms. That meant the elf race was likely akin to Beyonders of the Sailor Pathway... Hmm, in that light, it wasn't hard to understand why elves would be fond of blood-based foods. They probably also tended toward a short temper en masse... The mental image was quite something... Klein's thoughts raced before gradually settling on the "blood pudding."
It had been so long since he'd had any... He began to feel the urge to disembark and sample the local delicacies.
At that moment, Danitz proactively suggested:
"There's a Green Lemon Restaurant here that's quite famous—their pig's blood is especially delicious. Want to... want to go give it a try?"
He always felt that being alone in a room with Gehrman Sparrow was dangerous, fearing that this monster wearing human skin might suddenly go berserk.
He'd probably be more restrained around a crowd... By the
As a pirate, he worshipped the Lord of Storms as well, but he lacked proper respect for the Church.
Hearing "Flaming Arrow's" suggestion, Klein—who was already inclined to go—felt his heart stir with interest.
However, the legends and customs the other had described left him with a vaguely unpleasant feeling, so he pulled out a gold coin and performed a divination right in front of Danitz.
The result was that, as far as he was concerned, Banchi Port harbored no hidden dangers.
Hmm... Klein stared at the gold coin in his palm, eyes fixed on it for several seconds, still feeling uneasy.
Seeing this, Danitz suddenly realized that the monster before him was skilled in divination.
So... even if he ran away, he'd be easy to find... "Flaming Arrow" felt a wave of frustration, a faint sense of sorrow welling up inside him.
Just as he'd composed himself, Klein abruptly stood up and headed for the washroom.
Just before closing the door, Klein turned back with a blank expression and said:
"You can take this chance to run away."
With that, Klein slammed the washroom door shut.
Danitz's hands opened and clenched. He took two steps toward the main door, then ultimately stopped.
The unknown was the most terrifying thing. Before he'd figured out what other Beyonder powers Gehrman Sparrow possessed, he didn't dare risk escalating the conflict.
At least... at least he'd been relatively kind and hadn't actually harmed him... Once they reached Bayam, he would probably let him go... These hopeful thoughts took hold of Danitz's mind.
Inside the washroom.
Klein took out a paper figure, used it as a disguise, and took four steps backward to enter Above the
He sat at the head of the bronze long table, removed the spiritual pendulum from his left wrist, and wrote out the corresponding divination statement:
"Banchi Port harbors hidden dangers."
He lowered the pendulum, assumed the proper posture, and murmured the statement several times. Then Klein opened his eyes and saw the citrine pendant rotating clockwise—violently and at great speed!
This meant that for Klein, Banchi Port harbored extremely great danger!
How could this be? The island had been colonized by the Kingdom for over three hundred years and had served as a major port on a key trade route for over a century—never had any rumors of danger leaked out... Could it be several powerful pirate crews cooperating to raid this port? No, those coastal defense cannons weren't just for show... Klein frowned in puzzlement and divined whether he would soon encounter any misfortune related to pirates. The answer was no.
Hmm... He was silent for a few seconds, enveloped himself in spirituality, and sank into the Gray Fog.
Back in the real world, Klein pressed the mechanical button on the toilet, retrieved the substitute paper figure, moved to the adjacent washbasin, and ran water over his hands.
In that brief time, he quickly organized his thoughts and decided to avoid trouble wherever possible—to play it safe above all.
He pulled out a paper towel to dry his hands, opened the door, and found Danitz still standing in the middle of the living room.
A pirate so cautious he bordered on cowardly... In a way, all of Admiral Iceberg's subordinates were adventurers moonlighting as pirates... Klein regarded the other man and said flatly:
"Let's go to the first-class dining hall."