O... One of Our Own?

"Oh? Useless mutt, all your injuries are healed! That was fast." Pu'er inspected Giragon's body and found that the wounds she had inflicted yesterday were completely gone, leaving not a trace behind. This was the true disparity between their current strengths. After last night's bout, Pu'er and Kevin had fallen dead to the world, utterly unable to wake; for this fellow, meanwhile, it had been nothing more than sending out another ripple of consciousness. Giragon nudged all three of his heads against Pu'er. Seeing this, Kevin immediately stepped forward with a warning growl in his throat, signaling him to mind his manners! "Listen, you can't keep coming over like this every day. I need to rest—no, wait, I need to wake up! Do you have any idea how exhausting it is to show up here with you? So exhausting that I'm completely out cold and can't wake up at all. Besides, relying on potions to maintain vital signs can easily cause side effects, like... puffiness." A look of bewilderment appeared across all three of Giragon's canine faces. Clearly, he had no idea what Pu'er meant by "out cold." "Do you have a true body? Useless mutt." "Roar." "Oh, you do? Beneath that volcano on the island? Then how big is your real body?" Giragon took on a contemplative look; the question clearly stumped him. He could only open all three of his maws as wide as possible and shake them back and forth continuously. "All right, I get what you mean. Extremely huge, right? By the looks of it, you're still a whelp, so where are your parents?" "Roar." "You've never seen your parents? Huh, that doesn't make sense." This Abyssal Cerberus was clearly underage. How could he have no parents? A fierce beast like this would almost certainly have been active during the previous epoch, the era when the gods roamed. In the current epoch, along with the absence of the gods, many legendary beasts had likewise vanished without a trace. Therefore, judging from the era of the seal, it was impossible for him to have been sealed as a whelp back then and remained one until now. At this point, Kevin stretched out a dog paw and drew a circle in the sand, then drew a smaller circle inside that one, followed by an even smaller circle inside the smaller one. An ordinary person likely wouldn't understand what this meant, but Pu'er understood. "Oh, so that's how it is, meow." Pu'er looked at Giragon and suddenly felt a twinge of pity for this useless mutt. For no living being could break free from the shackles of time and years—not even gods. Otherwise, the God-Burial Grounds would never have existed. Many ancient beings were often reduced to nothing more than an "outer husk." Take Gaitanbert and Furnites, whom Karen had received from inside the Gate of Samsara last time. They did indeed still exist, but their original souls had long since been diminished and altered; strictly speaking, they had turned into entirely different "existences." Truly terrifying fierce beasts possessed exceptionally long lifespans, but they were by no means infinite. Under harsh conditions, their lifespans would inevitably be compressed even further. The so-called "suppression and extermination" actually relied on this method—using time to forcibly wear away their existence. Kevin's meaning was simple: this three-headed hound did have parents, but its parents were itself. A sealed beast unable to withstand the erosion of time had only one way to perpetuate its lineage: using its own flesh and soul as nutrients to nurture the next generation. Nurturing generation after generation like this inevitably weakened the new generation's power continuously. At the same time, the new generation would never see its parents, because it was born only after the "mother" died. Yet such a method managed to preserve the bloodline's continuation—an inheritance beyond conventional understandings of gestation and reproduction. This explained why this three-headed hound was so silly. It had received no guidance from any parents, and quite possibly, it had remained sealed the entire time. "Are you sealed?" Pu'er asked. "Sealed beneath that volcano?" The three-headed hound thought for a moment, then nodded. It truly couldn't get out, but... "Roar! Roar!" "You're saying you can feel that you'll be able to come out and play soon? Someone is going to let you out?" "Roar!" Kevin's eyes instantly widened. From the magnitude of the consciousness ripples this three-headed hound could emit, one could sense that even though its true body had weakened through generations of inheritance, it was still remarkably powerful. Kevin could roar back and forth with it during conscious connection, but once its true body emerged, Kevin felt he wouldn't stand a chance. After all, in reality, he was currently just a Golden Retriever. Imagine a Golden Retriever standing on a small pirate ship, facing an incomparably colossal three-headed hound. Kevin suddenly felt a surge of irritation, but he quickly suppressed it. He knew he was different from Pu'er. Pu'er could bluntly ask Karen for ways to increase her strength, and could even beg Karen to perform surgery, but he couldn't. He could only wait patiently until Karen grew stronger, and then, depending on the circumstances, unseal another layer of his seal. "Then what do you plan to do after getting out, meow?" Giragon shook his heads, indicating he had no idea. "Oh, wrong question. Who is going to let you out?" Only now did Pu'er realize—someone was about to unseal a ferocious ancient beast! Though she hadn't been present during the Dark Moon Island incident, she had heard about the terrifying spectacle Dorons had caused back then. Giragon continued to shake his heads. "You don't know who wants to release you either? Well, that's strange." Pu'er turned to Kevin and said, "Remember to tell the Radio Fairy about this later." Kevin nodded. In truth, Karen had already transmitted this news to Alfred via black crow last night; Pu'er and Kevin just hadn't woken up yet, so they didn't know. "Alas, what a pity you're too big. I can't take you with me because my home is very small, just a single courtyard. Well, by city standards, my home isn't really small—it has plenty of rooms—but there's definitely no way you'd fit." Kevin immediately nodded in agreement. Pu'er added, "My old home did have a large manor, but if your size really is that huge, even a large manor wouldn't fit you." Giragon couldn't quite understand Pu'er's words, but he could recognize refusal. He was a stubborn three-headed hound. Upon sensing rejection, he promptly lowered his heads to Pu'er, intentionally acting subservient and ingratiating. After all, he didn't believe he had lost to that dog; aside from being a bit faster, that dog had no advantages whatsoever. He had been thoroughly bested by this cat. In his worldview, this cat was the most powerful existence in the world! "All right, all right. You want to follow me? Hey, I can't afford to keep you! Do you have any idea that having afternoon tea and drinking coffee at home has already strained our household finances?" Giragon continued to whimper pleadingly. "Well, can you live in the sea? Over there, the blue place." Giragon frowned, then nodded. He felt he could. "Then that's no problem! When the time comes, I'll introduce you to a friend. Its name is Aseroth, and it's super big too. You two can catch fish and eat together in the sea." Giragon smiled and nodded. In fact, all of this stemmed from a coincidence. Because tunnels had been excavated, the original seal had loosened, allowing Giragon to secretly peek at this unfamiliar outside world out of curiosity, like a chick newly hatched from its shell. Then, his "gaze" surveying the outside world had been captured by Kevin. Actually, another person could have entered as well, but that person had strongly repelled such an experience and chosen to resist. Giragon and Kevin had clashed on sight; both being canines, their instinct was to assert dominance over each other. Pu'er's appearance—first beating him down, then "treating" him—had completely won Giragon's favor with that one-two punch. To this three-headed hound, Pu'er was like the first person... er, the first cat he had seen upon hatching from his egg. "Since you're here, I might as well play with you for a bit. Right, you can breathe fire too, can't you? Let's play with fire together." Next, Pu'er and Giragon began playing with fireballs on the beach, tossing them back and forth like beach volleyball, except any ordinary athlete would have been reduced to charcoal upon touching the ball. Once worn out from playing, Pu'er lay down on Kevin's back. Longing shone in Giragon's eyes; clearly, he hoped Pu'er would ride on his back instead. Kevin held his doggy neck high, full of pride! Two dogs and a cat strolled along the beach. One dog had too many stories, fermented long ago into wine; too lazy to unseal the jar and let the aroma dissipate, he didn't care to say a word. The other dog had too few stories, simple as a blank sheet of paper; front or back, there was nothing to tell. Only the cat began recounting some of the adventures she had experienced in her past. As story after story unfolded, two distinct lines of paw prints trailed behind them in the sand. After a while, Kevin's and Giragon's consciousnesses began to detach, and the same situation as last night recurred. Pu'er didn't forget to call out a reminder: "Next time, come a bit later, meow!" ... When they woke, it was already the next morning. Pu'er yawned and stood up from the bed, just as Alfred pushed the door open and walked in. "Yo, finally awake?" Kevin opened his eyes: "Woof, woof, woof!" "Oh, the Young Master already mentioned that. The Light remnants have allied with the three strongest pirate families on the island to break the seal at the bottom of the extinct volcano. But that has nothing to do with us. On the island, the Young Master met Tafman, who defected to Light—Ophelia's uncle, the former commander of the Dark Moon Island fleet. He'll arrange for us to leave here tonight through a teleportation circle. So pack your things; we'll be going ashore shortly." "Ophelia's uncle?" Pu'er said in dissatisfaction. "Why do we keep running into her connections?" "Do you have an issue with her?" "Oh, of course. I have an issue with the entire Dark Moon Island." "I recall you suggesting the Young Master take Ophelia as a mistress so he could seize her family's fleet." "The problem is, her family's fleet isn't even under her family's control anymore—it's just in name. If taking a mistress isn't for utility, what else could it be for? Carnal lust?" Alfred reminded her, "I think you've got that backward." "Hmph, I'd rather pick Philomena. The more I look at that girl, the more pleasing she gets." "That's because you know very well nothing could ever happen between her and the Young Master." "Why do you always have to contradict me, Radio Fairy? As an elder, don't I have the right to use my experience and wisdom to screen Karen's love life, meow?" "Even if not as an elder, you're qualified to screen it now." Pu'er blinked, not understanding what Alfred meant by that. She could only change the subject: "Will our departure be before the seal is broken?" "Yes. Only after we teleport away will that Light remnant elder come over to undo the seal. Theoretically, whatever happens next on Fire Island has nothing to do with us. However, the Captain will report this to the upper echelons of Order. The higher-ups of Order will likely turn their attention here." "That's just psychological comfort," Pu'er scoffed dismissively. "The Church of Order doesn't have the capacity, nor the need, to pay attention to this place right now." "That's no concern of ours. In any case, returning home is the top priority." "Then what about Giragon?" "Giragon? What's that? Sounds somewhat familiar... That ferocious beast from the Church of the Abyss's mythological accounts?" "Yeah, the very one beneath the extinct volcano." "Legend has it, however, that this was a sealing ground set up by the God of Fire. I've never heard of any connection to the God of the Abyss." "Are you doubting me, Radio Fairy?" Alfred pulled out a chair from the desk, sat down facing Pu'er, and said: "I believe you. And now, I'm quite interested to hear what you two have been up to during these past two days of deep sleep." ... Old Captain Jin Luo went ashore first, taking one of his younger sons to the bazaar, with Bart tailing him from behind. Although there was theoretically no possibility of the old captain betraying them, the squad naturally took precautions in advance—mostly because they had manpower to spare, and nobody had anything better to do. Bart watched the old captain walk into a shop selling souvenirs. While billed as souvenirs, it was actually akin to an "antique curio shop," stocking divine robes, artifacts, and books from various churches. In many church tales, so-and-so would often chance upon a high-grade sacred artifact in such a shop. Generally speaking, however, over ninety percent of the goods in these shops were replicas. Yet as long as one knew how to haggle, buying them as "souvenirs" wasn't a total loss. The old captain began searching the shop for items related to the Church of the Abyss. He had never harbored any thought of betrayal; he was simply here to repay a favor. He had offered to withdraw the point coupons he had deposited in the island's bank and present them to Karen, but Karen had flatly refused. Seeing that they were about to leave, the old captain decided to buy Karen and the others some gifts. There were also three people in the shop—two men and a woman—all clad in black robes with only their eyes exposed. They, too, were browsing the merchandise. Before long, however, the old captain's persistent selection of Church of the Abyss items caught the trio's attention. Once the old captain haggled, settled the bill, and left the shop, the three exchanged glances and followed him outside. "The church doesn't have a mission here on Fire Island." "Running into an unaffiliated believer in the wilderness isn't unheard of." "Except that battered artifact hanging on him gives off the aura of seawater. He most likely worships some declined branch of a Sea God church; he couldn't possibly be a believer of our Abyss." "We have to wait until tonight anyway, so why not follow and see? It's rare for us to get out like this. If we run into local believers of our church, it'll make gathering intel easier." "True enough. Our church has kept far too low a profile over the years. Since the three of us arrived here, we've had virtually no outside news. I've never believed our church's strength is any weaker than Order's." "Remember our mission. We're only here to witness Giragon's awakening, to confirm whether Giragon still harbors hatred toward our church. Unless absolutely necessary, we cannot expose our identities." "Got it, got it. No need to warn me, I remember my assignment." "Someone behind us is tailing us." "Where?" "He's gone." "You probably sensed wrong?" "Maybe. I'm not sure. The old man went into an inn." "Let's follow him inside and check it out." ... The old captain carried a large pile of Abyss souvenirs and presented them to Karen, leaving Karen somewhat amused and exasperated. Karen had falsely claimed to be a believer of the Abyss in front of the old captain purely to be safe; he hadn't expected the old captain to be so earnest that, when Karen refused his point coupons, he insisted on delivering gifts to his doorstep instead. Karen had no choice but to have Ventura accept the gifts. Although these items were bought with point coupons, converting them back into cash was virtually impossible. Once the old captain left with his son, Karen looked at Pu'er, who was perched on Kevin's back, and resumed their earlier conversation: "We cannot stay behind to watch how things unfold—you have to understand that. Furthermore, there's no way we can take that Giragon with us. Too many eyes are watching it. Our wisest choice right now, regardless of whether the island's seal can be broken, is to leave beforehand. That is the best course." Pu'er flicked her tail and said, "I know, I understand, I won't throw a fit, I'll be good. When Giragon comes to play with me between afternoon and dusk, I'll explain to him that I'm leaving. Sigh, he really is quite a pitiful dog, isn't he, stupid dog?" Kevin didn't budge. Pu'er patted his bald head with a paw; Kevin immediately nodded in agreement. Just then, Alfred touched the blue seashell by his ear and said, "Young Master, someone tailed them all the way here." "Where are they?" "Inside the inn, heading upstairs." ... The three black-robed figures—two men and a woman—climbed the stairs and walked straight toward Karen's room. Just then, the door ahead swung open, and several people stepped out. People also approached from behind, and more figures appeared at the top of the stairs. "Look at that, we're surrounded. The elder was right; we lack experience, which is why he told us not to do anything and just watch quietly." "Shut up. What's the point of spouting nonsense right now?" At this moment, Karen stepped out of the room, looking at the three people in front of him. The sole woman among them stepped forward and spoke up: "If I said we came to make friends, would you believe me?" "I'd believe you. Why wouldn't I?" Karen wore a genial smile. "Making friends happens to be my favorite thing." "Then how about a formal greeting?" "Of course." Then, both sides raised their hands together, placing them across their chests. Karen: "Praise the God of the Abyss." Woman: "Praise the God of Order." The two sides exchanged a look, both inwardly startled: *One of our own?*