Returning to the real world, Klein extinguished the candle, put away the remaining items, and carefully checked the condition inside the warehouse.
What he felt lucky about was that the seawater whirlpool created by Kavitua had completely cleaned the place, leaving only the later rain, some charred marks from lightning, a small amount of ash, and the furrows plowed by Klein's feet.
The traces were easy to deal with; he would have Danitz use fireballs to "wash" the place later, disguising it as an internal fight among pirates… Klein nodded almost imperceptibly, took out one of the few remaining paper figurines, and with a snap swung his forearm, shaking his wrist.
The paper figurine flew out, combusted on its own, and turned into black ash.
After doing all this, Klein walked toward the door, frowning more and more as he went.
His boots had lost their soles, and were tattered in other places; his clothes and pants were similarly split, soaked, and charred.
These were unavoidable under those circumstances, not something the Paper Figurine Substitute could bear – the tearing came from the immense suction of the seawater whirlpool, the soaking from the torrential rain Kavitua had spewed, and the charring was a sign of Klein being hit by a small amount of lightning during intervals of using the Paper Figurine Substitute. Even now that he had calmed down, his right forearm still retained some spasms from the electric shock.
"This outfit cost me 8 pounds 6 soli… I'll need to get a new set… I divined the danger and made preparations, but I didn't expect Kavitua to be stronger and more insane than I anticipated… I hope I'll get something out of it later." Klein shook his head silently, composed his expression, endured the pain, and walked to the door blocking the exit. He bent his fingers and knocked three times.
Danitz had been somewhat uneasy, and after a two-second delay, he moved the door.
When he realized that Gehrman Sparrow had returned to his cold and restrained state, no longer emitting the hunger and madness that made one's spirituality tremble, Danitz breathed a sigh of relief. He peered inside and asked casually:
"It's over?"
"No." Klein curved his lips, revealing a cultured smile.
Not over yet? Danitz was startled. "What, what else needs to be done?"
Klein maintained that smile with a hint of madness: "It still needs cleaning. It's polite."
Cleaning… Danitz was stunned for a moment, then raised his right hand, pointing at himself: "Me?"
Klein's grin widened: "Or me?"
Then I'll be eaten by "Creeping Hunger"! Danitz chuckled dryly: "How should I clean it?"
"Use a fireball," Klein replied succinctly.
As a part-time pirate, Danitz had no trouble understanding Gehrman Sparrow's meaning. He passed him and walked into the warehouse.
In the process, he muttered to himself, quite puzzled: "The captain said that 'Creeping Hunger' needs to devour a living person every day, but Gehrman Sparrow only satisfies it after battles, and doesn't bother with it at other times. And what just happened was also a battle, Gehrman Sparrow used the ice-cold power of 'Steel' Maivitti, yet he didn't 'feed' it afterward… Strange… What secret is hidden here? Some form of seal? He, or rather, his organization can actually seal 'Creeping Hunger'?"
While Danitz was "cleaning" the warehouse, Klein stood outside, looking at the stacked dark clouds in the sky, eagerly anticipating the next events.
He had already sent away the tin cigarette case stained with the aura of the gray fog, waiting for Kavitua, the false "Sea God," to collapse and die on his own… He hoped that the beyonders of the Storm Church and the Kingdom's army either hadn't found the place yet or had left behind something they considered unimportant but of some value… Klein took a slow breath, listening to the dull muffled rumbles behind him.
......
In a certain hotel, Alger stood by the window, looking out at the gloomy sky.
"Not long after the last Tarot Club meeting, I obtained the anesthetic gas of the vampires, preparing to set sail to gather materials. As a result, nearly a week has passed and I'm still stuck in Bayam…" He twitched his mouth and shook his head.
First there was the matter of "The World" hunting "Steel" Maivitti, which earned him a lot; then he had to wait for the bounty. As soon as the bounty was in hand, he encountered Kavitua the sea snake's collapse and was asked to find Latitia and other adventurers and archaeologists.
"I heard that during yesterday morning's search, Latitia and the others were found. The Punishers and the military seemed to have obtained quite important clues. Many went to Semyim Island… Hah, this kind of thing is never meant for me…" Alger withdrew his gaze, tugged at his short robe that didn't reach his knees, and murmured to himself: "Let it end as soon as possible."
Once Kavitua was completely dead and the tsunamis no longer hidden, he could leave port, depart from the "Generous City" Bayam, and strive to advance to Sequence 6 "Wind-blessed."
As his thoughts turned, Alger's heart stirred, and he turned to look out the window.
He saw the clouds high in the sky quickly dissipating, and the crimson moon hanging quietly.
......
Klein woke up in the middle of the night, suddenly alert, vaguely sensing something.
He turned over and got out of bed, went to the window, and pulled open the curtain.
Crimson moonlight immediately shone in, covering everything like frost, cold and dreamlike.
Klein cast his gaze outside and saw that the low-hanging clouds had disappeared, the red moon in the high sky bright, and the bright stars sparse.
This indicated that the confrontation between the "Sea God" and the "Sea King" was over? Klein pondered for two seconds, withdrew his gaze, closed the curtains, took four steps counterclockwise, and entered above the gray fog.