Mystery: A Spark

So, he asked, trying to make conversation:

"By the way, what place is that?"

Edwina glanced out the window. "That's the Gargas Islands, the furthest human colony in the Sunia Sea. Most of the people living there make a living by whaling, so the products there are mainly whale meat and whale oil."

"As for food, there are grilled whale meat, fried whale steaks, raw beluga whale slices, etc., which have a unique flavor and are worth trying."

So this place is the Gargas Islands… Arthur gazed at the distant islands, and for some inexplicable reason, suddenly laughed:

"I think the name is too awkward to pronounce. This place looks like a cookie that has been smashed on the ground. Why not just call it the Broken Islands?"

"How do you know its ancient name?" Edwina asked, somewhat surprised.

"Huh?" Arthur looked at her, completely bewildered.

Is this place really called the Broken Islands?

“In the early days, human navigation technology was not advanced, and this place was just a wasteland. The pirates who occasionally came here called it the Broken Islands.”

"After all, as you said, this place is like a cookie that has been smashed on the ground, so the uncultured pirates simply gave it that name."

Arthur, who wasn't very educated, scratched his head somewhat awkwardly.

Edwina continued her explanation:

"Later, with the Industrial Revolution initiated by Emperor Russell, the industrial level of various countries was greatly improved, which in turn led to the improvement of shipbuilding technology and greatly improved mankind's ability to sail long distances."

"As a result, more and more ships were able to reach this place, eventually turning it into a colony of the Fussacs. Because the Fussacs who built this place thought the name 'Broken' sounded bad, they renamed it the Gargas Islands, meaning the land of courage and hope."

“Then…” Arthur pointed to the vast beach in the distance and asked in a somewhat hoarse voice, “That beach… isn’t called Broken Beach, is it?”

“No, that’s not it. This beach is located in the southern part of the Gargas Islands. It’s a completely worthless wasteland, so no one has given it a name. If I had to name it, I’d just call it Gargas Beach,” Edwina said.

“Oh…” Arthur responded vaguely.

Edwina looked at Arthur's profile, observing his expression, and said softly:

"There were rumors circulating at sea that the Deathstalker often appeared in this area, which means that the Gargas Islands may have a stronghold planted by the Undead King, and the Undead King can be basically confirmed to be a member of the Blood Cult."

Arthur's lips twitched slightly.

Well, the Broken Isles and demons are all that's missing is the Salamani in my hand, right?

Are they just stacking buffs here?

"Arthur, would you like to visit the Gargas Islands?" Edwina asked, looking at the young man before her.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Arthur replied firmly.

He first pointed to the sky.

"I, Arthur, am ready to die!"

Then he pointed to the ground.

"Die outside! Jump off the Golden Dream!"

His tone was incredibly firm.

"And we will absolutely not set foot on the ruins... nor will we ever take even half a step onto the Gargas Islands!"

Edwina's lips twitched slightly, but she quickly returned to normal, as if she wanted to laugh but forcibly held it back.

Arthur was unaware of this; as he watched the Gargas Islands gradually disappear outside the window, he suddenly felt a sense of unease.

However, just as he was trying to figure out where this awkward feeling came from, it vanished as if it had never existed.

Arthur shook his head, thought for a moment, and changed the subject.

"By the way, madam, do you think it's better for Shatas to continue down the storm route, or to switch routes?"

Edwina smiled and immediately dropped a bombshell:

“Actually, you don’t need to worry about Shatas, because I have already discussed with her and plan to bring her into our Church of Knowledge. She has a lot of lost history, and I can use that to get the church to accept her.”

"Shatas is going to join the Church of Knowledge? Then what about her faith..." Arthur said in astonishment.

“We members of the Church of Knowledge are more lenient in this regard because we are explorers of knowledge and only focus on knowledge itself. Although we also have faith in the Lord, we can still be flexible in some matters,” Edwina explained.

Expediency...that makes sense. How could someone who can switch sides so easily not understand expediency? I'm afraid no god is more adept at expediency than this one...Arthur silently complained to himself.

"So that means I don't need to worry about Shatas's problem?"

“Of course, I’m their comrade-in-arms too, so there’s no reason for you to bear all the trouble alone. Not only Shatas, but I’ve also tried to persuade Snowman, but I haven’t succeeded yet,” Edwina sighed softly.

“Snowman, that ascetic is indeed difficult to deal with,” Arthur agreed wholeheartedly.

Snowman's faith in that ancient sun god was far too devout, even more so than that of the people in Silver City. At least those killers would convert to the "Fool" under the pressure of survival.

But Snowman was different. He only believed in the Russian old pigeon and spent his days meditating in his room, which made him stand out as a recluse.

Although Shatas was also loyal to Queen Goshinam, she was persuaded by Edwina to join the Church of Knowledge, provided that she was allowed to retain her faith.

Why not just send him to Adam? Leave the pressure to the fellow countryman, since he's a follower of Adam anyway... Arthur thought with a sense of resignation.

"You have a plan?" Edwina asked when she saw Arthur's expression change.

"It's a half-baked solution, but I don't know if Snowman will agree. But even if he doesn't, it's fine, since the time difference won't be too much after the Grosser and Shatas issues are resolved," Arthur replied.

“Yes, but there’s one thing you need to be careful about: all the potions Longzel takes are fake. He needs a real Retribution Knight Extraordinary trait,” Edwina reminded him.

As for auxiliary materials, they are not needed, since they are used to assist in advancement, and Long Ze'er has already successfully advanced.

"Don't worry, I already have a solution to this problem," Arthur said confidently.

Where do you get the recipe for the Retribution Knight? By killing people, of course.

As for his target, he has already found one.

Arthur left, and Edwina sat quietly in her seat.

After a while, many illusory and mysterious symbols appeared in her eyes.

As the mysterious symbols appeared and disappeared, Edwina's expression became indifferent.

"The Broken Isles... Unfortunately, the time is not yet right... Please wait patiently, my dear senior..."

……

Two days later, on Olavi Island.

This place is located northeast of the Roside Islands and southwest of the Cargas Islands, and is not far from either of them as the crow flies.

However, because the safe shipping route is winding, it adds hundreds of nautical miles to the journey.

It was originally a pristine island inhabited by many extraordinary creatures and was uninhabited by humans.

However, after the end of the hunting era, the Kingdom of Rune used this place as a place of exile for some criminals, which gradually led to the development of villages and towns on Oravi Island.

As islands further east were discovered and colonized one by one, this region, relying on its convenient shipping routes and abundant natural resources, attracted many new immigrants, which led to the development of relatively prosperous port cities.

At the dock, a young man with black hair stepped off the ship. He rented a carriage and headed in a certain direction.

……

The bell tower of the Church of San Draco.

After hearing a knocking sound, a tall, strangely-looking man opened the wooden door.

He looked at the black-haired youth in front of him and asked in confusion:

"What can I do for you?"

"Mr. Cano, hello. Is Congressman Rejoic in?" the young man asked with a gentle smile.

"Who are you?!" Cano's expression immediately became wary.

"Don't worry, I mean you no harm. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come to greet you; I would have gone straight to cause trouble for that councilor who lives under the bridge." The young man didn't seem to care about Cano's wariness, and his smile remained friendly.

Kano composed himself, sized up the young man before him, and asked:

"What do you want to do?"

“I just want to visit Congressman Rachaud and discuss something with him. Could you introduce me?” the young man said politely.

Kano frowned, unsure of what to do for a moment.

He had absolutely no idea what the person in front of him was like.

However, even though the other party knew the location of the congressman, he still came to visit him first and asked him to help introduce him.

In this light, perhaps the other party really did not have any malicious intent?

“I need to… ask Mr. Rachel’s opinion,” Cano said hesitantly.

“Okay, I’ll wait here.” The young man took two steps back and stood quietly outside the door.

Kano glanced at the young man, picked up a lantern from the corner, and walked down the stairs towards the bottom of the clock tower.

After a while, he returned to the room, and his attitude became much more respectful.

"I'm sorry, sir, I've been negligent. Please come with me."

"Your attitude has changed quite a bit," Arthur chuckled. "Can you tell me why?"

“Because Congressman Rachaud said you would bring us a turning point,” Cano replied.

A turning point? But you probably don't know that when I was in Backlund, your little brat, the Speaker, avoided me every day... Arthur thought to himself as he followed Cano to the bridge arch.

Cano stopped some distance from the bridge arch, while Arthur stood even further away.

After all, he didn't want to be associated with bad luck.

"What is your name, sir?" A hoarse voice came from the depths of the dark bridge arch.

“I was just a kind passerby,” Arthur replied with a smile.

There was a two-second silence in the underpass, then sound resumed:

"So, kind sir, is there anything you need?"

“I need your intelligence on all the original Moon Believers in this city, and it would be even better if you could find out where they gather.” Arthur grinned, revealing a warm smile.

After a few seconds of silence, Senator Rachaud said:

"no problem."

……