You don't even want to call me godfather

"Respected Godfather, I'm sorry to have frightened you." Seeing Zoya reluctantly pulling Skadi away, the captain finally calmed down and bowed to Koshe in front of him. "I'm the captain here, Ludwig Jones, you can just call me Ludwig."

"No, um... Actually, we in Syracuse don't have the custom of bowing. There's no need to be so formal, Ludwig."

Koshe still showed the most basic courtesy to the mercenary leader who was obviously not from Syracuse.

"Ah, I'm very sorry. I got used to this custom when I was with the king before." Ludwig realized that he seemed to have made a fool of himself, and then laughed and continued, "Um... Skadi has been under a lot of mental pressure recently. Please don't pursue her outrageous behavior, Godfather. I will definitely punish her for you."

"It's okay. Everything has its reasons. I believe Miss Skadi must have her own reasons as well." Koshe nodded and said, "In fact, the main reason I came here today is to thank you for my sister's matter."

"Is it Miss Destiny's business?"

Ludwig glanced at Destiny who was standing behind Koshe. She also looked at Skadi who was still staring at Koshe not far away with confusion.

She remembered that in the few days she had been with this mercenary group, she had never seen this powerful woman have such murderous intent.

And why, to her brother?

"Miss Destiny, and Godfather," Zoya, who had tried her best to pull Skadi aside, came over. She bowed slightly to Koshe, then raised her head again. "We are sorry that we did not prepare for your arrival in advance. If we had known that you would come today, perhaps we could have prepared food and wine in advance to entertain you."

"No need. We didn't plan to stay too long. We just happened to know that my sister had been taken care of by you for a period of time, so we came here to thank you." Looking at the girl Ludwig called Zoya, she just bowed her head slightly, which was the gesture of respect for the party members when they saw the godfather. So Koshe asked, "Zoya, right? It seems that you are also a member of the Cascade family?"

"No, it's not, Godfather," but Zoya gave a negative answer. Her eyes were a little evasive, and her gaze escaped to Destiny. "Actually... I originally thought about becoming a party member, but if I did that, I would probably not be able to leave Syracuse."

"People who long to go out into the world..." Koshei suddenly thought of something and consoled her, "I once had a friend who also always wanted to go out into the world and see what the 'ocean' her mother described to her was like. Although it's a pity that she didn't become a member of the party, if she gave up in order to pursue what she wanted, it's also noble."

"Is that so..." Zoya seemed to have suddenly realized something after hearing what Koshe said. "Thank you very much for your guidance, Godfather."

The conversation between the two seemed ordinary, even in the eyes of others, it was just the godfather's guidance to a runaway girl.

But Skadi, who was standing not far away, lowered his head and wondered what he was thinking.

"The ocean...?"

She looked at her hands, then at the sword beside her.

"If possible, I really hope that no one will yearn for the ocean..."

Everyone's attention was on Koshe, except Skadi, who stayed alone under the tree. Because of Koshe's unintentional words, she recalled the painful past.

She leaned her back against the tree, her body slowly slid down, and finally sat weakly on the snow-covered ground. She raised her head and looked at the gray sky with her scarlet eyes.

……

"Hey, are you back, Outcast?" At the same time, on Rhodes Island, as soon as Outcast returned to the landship, ACE was already standing at the door, waiting for her, "How was the talk? With the godfather from Syracuse."

"You look quite free, ACE. It seems Kal'tsit has given you fewer tasks." As one of the older and more experienced operators on Rhodes Island, ACE is often idle, just like Outcast. "Let me guess who leaked the secret to you this time. Is it Kirara?"

"What are you talking about? You know it very well, don't you?" ACE smiled. He walked towards the interior of Rhodes Island with Outcast and said, "You know how loose the mouth of that big Film is. Sometimes she tells me everything before I even ask."

"Forget it, that's just a special case for veteran operators," Outcast crossed her arms. She looked relaxed and more easygoing than when she was in front of Koshe. "Huang trusts us, so she's willing to talk to us. If it were the new operators, they'd be lucky if they weren't scared away by her."

"Haha, that's true."

ACE agreed with a smile.

Just as the two of them walked around the corner of a corridor, they saw a person leaning against the wall with his head down and his eyes closed.

"Hey, Outcast," the person slowly opened her eyes, turned around, and faced Outcast and ACE, "How do you think of the information I gave you?"

A strangely shaped long knife hung on one side of the man's waist, while on the other side hung a blood-stained pistol. There were several traces of stitches on his leather coat, and the exposed part of his stomach was wrapped in gauze, with some blood even seeping out.

She shook her long silver hair that was scattered on her forehead, revealing her eyes.

Her left eye was now also wrapped thickly with gauze.

"After all, that was information I exchanged half my life for, outcast."

Chapter 77: Lack of Humanity

"The truth is consistent with the information you provided. You can rest assured," Outcast said, looking at the silver-haired girl in front of him, "The purpose of the cooperation has been achieved. Rhodes Island will not treat you unfairly either."

"Humph, after all, you shouldn't have doubted the information I gave you from the beginning, right?" Silver Wolf had a playful smile on her face. She raised her head slightly and looked at Outcast. "You should also know that as a native of Syracuse, my words are valuable."

"But to be honest, I'm still curious as to why you would be willing to share the inside story of Syracuse with Rhodes Island, Lapland."

Seeing that Lappland was gradually becoming proud, Outcast resisted the urge to complain and asked instead.

"Well... everyone has some unspeakable secrets, right? Even the white Filin from your Rhodes Island is the same." After Outcast said this, Lappland's expression froze, but she still responded unceremoniously, "But don't worry, I'm not that interested in your affairs. As long as you can fulfill your promise as promised, I can still continue to provide information."

Although Lappland said some harsh words, both Outcast and ACE could see some unnaturalness in her expression.

Even though he has been a killer for so many years, in the eyes of the two "old men" Outcast and ACE, Lapland is still like a child who doesn't know how to hide himself and exposes his inner thoughts completely.

Just like now, no matter how high-spirited Lappland pretended to be, even the small operators on Rhodes Island thought she was a powerful person, these two people could still see that Lappland was injured.

Not only physical scars, but also some other...

"Well, since you have reached a cooperation with the Cascade Family, you should stay here for a while. I might as well go out for a walk."

Lappland walked between the two of them and headed towards the exit from Rhodes Island.

"Are you leaving?" ACE asked at this time, "You just arrived not long ago, are you in such a hurry to leave?"

"Just go out for a walk, don't think too much." Laplande turned her back to the two of them, so that no one could see her expression. "Based on my understanding of that guy, you won't be able to leave Syracuse in the short term. If someone from Syracuse lands, remember to tell me. I will leave on my own. After all, I am a wanted criminal now, and I don't want to have any conflict with them here."

"Pay attention to your wound, don't let it split open again," Outcast reminded him with a concerned attitude, "You've been playing like your life depended on it in the training room recently. I can't even remember how many times you've been sent back to the infirmary because of a split wound."

But Lappland just waved his hand and disappeared from their sight.

"Don't worry about her?" ACE pushed his sunglasses tactically and said seriously, "If she continues like this, she will exhaust herself to death sooner or later."

"Do you think she doesn't know her physical condition, ACE?" But Outcast said, "She is a 'madman' with high logic and insight. Although she is still young, it is not our turn to point fingers at her. After all, even we can't be as crazy and calm as she is, right?"

"Ha, that's true," ACE laughed helplessly and said to himself, "Maybe I'm getting old. I'm actually starting to worry about these young people."

"Okay, stop worrying about it." Hearing the hidden meaning in ACE's words, Outcast patted him on the back. "Go back quickly, or Kal'tsit will come to catch you. Don't think I don't know that you skipped work and sneaked out."

"Okay, okay, be gentle. It's been a while since we left the battlefield, and you're still hitting me so hard."

……

"So the one who saved my sister was Miss Skadi, and the one who successfully brought my sister back to life was Miss Speranzha?"

Turning his attention back to Koshei, he was sitting by the campfire with Ludwig, listening to Ludwig telling him about what happened at that time.

"Yes, Godfather," Ludwig nodded and said, "Speranza is the doctor in our group and also... the only one left."

Seeing that Ludwig seemed to have his own difficulties, Koshe didn't know what to say for a moment and could only remain silent.

"So, may I ask where this doctor is now?"

After a long while, she asked.

"She... went out to look for food. Although she is a blood demon, Speranzha has always been reluctant to let the people in the group see her eating. She always said that she must look very ugly in that state." Ludwig sighed and said, "Also, I want to sincerely apologize to you for this matter, Godfather."

"what?"

"Regarding Miss Destiny, I apologize to you on behalf of Speranza," Ludwig suddenly stood up and wanted to bow deeply to Koshe, "Everyone in the group is infected, so it's not a big deal to receive treatment from Speranza on weekdays, but Miss Destiny is not infected, but..."

"No, no need, there's no need to apologize, Ludwig," Koshe hurriedly supported him and stopped him from bowing to apologize. At the same time, he glanced at Destiny, who had a complicated expression, and Zoya, who tilted her head and didn't look at them. He said to Ludwig, "Compared to my sister's life, a mere mineralogy... you saved my sister, I have to thank you very much."

Ludwig sat down again, staring at the bonfire in front of him and said no more.

Everyone present had mixed feelings. They had also thought, is it really worth it to save a person's life and let her get oripathy?

And for the person who was rescued, what they did to her, was it salvation, or was it dragging her into a deeper abyss?

No one could figure out why. In their hometown, almost all of their compatriots were infected, and no one had ever thought about this problem.

But when they encountered and had to face this problem, they realized how bad they were before.

After leaving their hometown, they traveled to many places and experienced many things. This journey, which was completely different from their hometown, allowed them to regain the humanity they had once lost.

But human nature puts them in a dilemma.

"Let's not talk about this topic anymore. Ludwig, can you tell me about your journey? I'm quite curious about the world outside Syracuse." As if seeing the confusion of the people present, Koshei changed the subject in a timely manner. "Of course, there is also the 'king' you mentioned just now."

Chapter 78: The Tower of Babel

"Once upon a time, about two years ago, we were still in Kazdel, affiliated with a large mercenary group. No... rather than calling it a mercenary group, its size was actually almost the same as that of an army."

Ludwig sat by the campfire, watching the sparks leaping up from the flames, his thoughts returning to those unpleasant memories.

……

"Captain Garson, all members have been reviewed."

"Okay, let's rest here first and wait for the target to pass by."

After giving his orders, Garson, the leader of the Sarkaz mercenary group, walked to the rear of the team.

Ludwig took a deep breath, found an empty space in the team full of mercenaries, and sat down.

"Don't you feel that there is something wrong with this team, Ludwig?"

At this time, another Sarkaz mercenary came over with a long knife on his back, sat down next to Ludwig, and spoke to him.

"What's wrong, Alistair?"

Looking at this old friend whom he had known for several years, who seemed to be worried at this moment, Ludwig asked with concern.

"This is not the atmosphere that should exist in a Sarkaz team. It's depressing and everyone is nervous, as if the people around them will stab them in the next second."

Alistair looked around at the others and expressed what was on his mind.

"Is it because you stayed in the previous team for too long? Although I was the one who pulled you here after Kazdel split," Ludwig sighed, trying to dispel Alistair's worries, "Don't worry, it's just an ambush mission, nothing will happen."

"...I hope so."

But Alistair was obviously still worried about something.

“But to be honest, I actually hope that one day, Kazdel can be as calm as you said when he was with that prince.”

Naive idea.

Although he said this, Ludwig himself had already discovered the strangeness of this mercenary group.

But he has been in this team for a long time and it is impossible for him to change direction midway, and the guys under him also depend on him.

"I remember when I was with Your Highness before, it wasn't as hard as it is now," Alistair smiled helplessly and complained jokingly, "Since I followed you, I have been risking my life every day."

“I remember you told me that the prince’s wish was to liberate Kazdel and save the suffering Sarkaz… Well, although I don’t know how to achieve this, now that I am following the regent, maybe I can realize this fantasy.”

After all, in Kazdel, there are quite a few Sarkaz who support the Regent.

"Eh? Oh, Ludwig, I just remembered—"

"laugh--"

"Alistair!"

Before Alistair could finish his words, a long sword made of Originium crystals pierced his chest, lifted him up high, and then threw him far away.

"Enemy attack! Protect the scouts first! Prevent the enemy from getting close to the target!"

Ludwig immediately shouted in the direction of the team.

In the team that was quite quiet just now, dozens and hundreds of Sarkaz mercenaries suddenly raised their weapons and attacked the people around them.

"Damn, where did these guys come from? Or have they been mixed into the team from the beginning..." While holding a long sword to resist the sudden enemies, Ludwig kept looking for opportunities to move in the direction of Alistair, "Medical staff! Where are the medical staff!"

As he shouted, Ludwig had already stabbed the enemy in front of him into the neck with his long knife. Just as he stepped on the opponent's body to pull out the knife, an arrow flew towards him.

"Shh-"

Ludwig quickly turned sideways and cut off the arrow.

But before he could steady himself, the second arrow came from behind him and pierced deeply into his back.

"Uh--"

Ludwig felt pain, and he tried to reach out and pull out the arrow while enduring the pain. But when he turned around, he was greeted by the third and fourth arrows.

"thump--"

The attacks were too intense and Ludwig had no way of avoiding the arrows. An arrow pierced his back and he finally knelt down.