Huff! Hah!
A slow, rhythmic sound of heavy breathing reached Klein's ears, sending a chill down his spine and filling him with an inexplicable fear, yet without any sense of danger.
It wasn't only him. "Star Admiral" Cattleya, "Toxin Expert" Frank Lee, and all the other pirates also heard the breathing. Some turned their heads, some looked outside, some picked up their weapons, and some went on high alert, displaying their wealth of experience.
After some discernment, Klein realized that the violent gasping came from the ruins ahead to the side, from between the piles of rocks and stone pillars above the sea.
Just then, "Bloodless" Heath Doyle emerged from the shadows, clutching his head and groaning in pain:
"A corpse...
"There's a corpse there!"
A corpse? A corpse that makes heavy breathing sounds? As Klein's thoughts raced, he saw Cattleya, who had subconsciously taken off her heavy glasses to look at the ruins, suddenly turn solemn. She turned to the pirates in the dining cabin and said:
"Quick!
"Speed up and go around it, don't get close!"
Her voice, tinged with magnetism, instantly woke everyone up. The sailors immediately rushed out of the dining cabin to their stations. Under the direction of Navigator Ottólov and Boatswain Nina, they adjusted the sails, changed course, and bypassed the ruins at a distance.
Only when the peak of piled rocks and stone pillars disappeared over the horizon did "Bloodless" Heath Doyle lower his hands, his expression no longer so pained.
Klein narrowed his eyes at this scene, feeling that this "Rose Bishop", the second mate of the "Future", might become a major hidden danger on this voyage.
This wasn't discrimination against Beyonders of the "Secret Supplicant" pathway, but a judgment based on the "Star Admiral's" description and Heath Doyle's performance just now:
Just now, everyone had heard the heavy breathing, but only Heath Doyle had become pained and intuitively believed that a corpse was buried in those ruins. Cattleya's reaction after her scrutiny indirectly confirmed his words.
That is to say, even if Heath Doyle didn't actively listen to the voice of the "True Creator", as a Beyonder with the "Listener" ability, he would naturally hear more than ordinary people and most mid- to low-sequence Beyonders in normal environments. When encountering sounds like the one just now, when the source was close enough, he would be even more affected and receive more dangerous information.
But that didn't mean that avoiding such ruins and remnants could solve the problem. According to "Star Admiral" Cattleya, this sea area was filled with sounds that shouldn't be heard, sounds that could even cause a demigod to lose control. If Heath Doyle were in a bad state or too good a state one day, he might hear that "fatal whisper."
Similarly, a Sequence 6 "Rose Bishop," even if not as skilled as a demigod specialized in listening, wouldn't be far behind. To use the "Die of Probability" to explain, it would only take a roll of 2, not even a 1, for Heath Doyle to go mad or lose control from those sounds that shouldn't be heard... He needed to remind "Hermit" about this, though she should have already thought of it and made preparations... Klein withdrew his gaze and heard his own stomach emit a faint gurgle.
He hadn't had breakfast yet.
At that moment, light beer was spilled all over the ground, cream was stomped everywhere, and food like pan-fried fish, toast, and white bread were either lying around or hanging, all now quite dirty.
Peel off the outer layer and it should be edible... Klein looked at a loaf of bread leaning against a table leg, hesitating whether to act on the idea.
This would be somewhat inconsistent with the persona of Gehrman Sparrow!
As he decided to wait for lunch, "Star Admiral" Cattleya instructed the cook:
"Prepare breakfast for the remaining people again.
"Give these to Frank. Maybe, maybe he'll find them useful."
Training "monsters"? Klein commented inwardly.
After a while, he finally had his breakfast, though not as abundant as before: a smoked pork sausage with two slices of toast, the outer layer toasted to a crispy brown, and a glass of light beer used as plain water without any added sedatives.
Because they were sailing in a very dangerous sea area where changes could occur at any moment, Klein employed the style he had in university when eating in the cafeteria, finishing his breakfast in a minute or two.
Leaving the pirate dining room, he went to the deck, half for a post-meal stroll and half to observe the surroundings.
At this moment, the sea was still bathed in the midday sunlight, faintly tinged with gold.
Klein stopped and looked into the distance, seeing a light spot ahead to the side growing larger.
Under the sunlight, the light spot refracted a dazzling, dreamlike, and multi-colored radiance, like a huge, transparent gem.
As the "Future" continued forward, the light spot gradually revealed its true form.
It first split, then became clear: it turned out to be four enormous pillars carved from pure diamond.
They were like giant sea-supporting pillars from myths and legends, extending downwards, firmly standing, supporting a sizable floating island.
On the floating island, the soil was scorched black, without a trace of green. In its depths, the light was exceptionally bright, surpassing the midday sky.
Suddenly, a long neigh came from within.
The sound was loud and unrestrained, but without the hair-raising sense of danger.
Before long, Klein heard the clatter of horse hooves and saw two horses that seemed forged of gold rush out of the floating island, pulling a similarly golden and magnificent chariot behind them.
At that moment, "Star Admiral" Cattleya's voice was amplified in some way, echoing urgently in every corner of the "Future":
"Lower your heads!