On the food street of Cruz Island, a gentle sea breeze blew, making the pirates enjoying their meals feel as if they had rediscovered the feeling of living a normal life.
For a moment, they didn't want to speak, because if they did, they would have to swear and wouldn't be able to enjoy this brief peace.
On the entire food street, there is only one bar, which is getting more and more customers, but it is very quiet.
It was the bar where Odis and Klein were drinking. The patrons were quiet, hoping to overhear their conversation.
Unfortunately, they were disappointed. Odis casually used witchcraft, making it impossible for anyone to hear their voices or even read their lip movements.
Having already each had a few drinks, Odis and Klein finally relaxed and began chatting.
They first talked about their previous battle against the "Apostle of Desire" in Backlund, then about the Great Smog of Backlund, and the helplessness of ordinary people in the face of the extraordinary.
"Being extraordinary has its advantages," Odis said, holding up his wine glass. "For example, I am no longer worried about the loyalty of my subordinates, nor do I have to worry about whether they will hide anything from me."
"Because they know that many things can be predicted, they won't try to fool me."
"But in the world of ordinary people, this is very difficult to do. As a manager, I have to spend most of my energy dealing with the struggle of human nature."
Klein agreed, "Divination is indeed quite useful."
After hearing what Odis said, he realized that the followers of the Church of the Sea God really dared not disobey the "Sea God" or hide anything from him.
This is indeed an advantage that comes with being extraordinary.
Then the two began to discuss the rigid Rune people and the free-spirited Intis people.
They chatted until after 9 p.m., when Klein had to go back. As usual, the "Mirror of Arrodes" was impersonating Dawn Dantes.
One of his previous impersonations almost ruined Dawn Dantes' image.
After waving goodbye, Klein entered the spirit world.
Looking at the spirit world before him, where he couldn't distinguish up from down from left from right, Klein suddenly smiled.
Tonight's drinks didn't involve any serious business, but everyone enjoyed themselves immensely.
He thought back and realized that he had rarely engaged in such "useless social interactions" since he transmigrated.
...
After watching Klein leave, Odis went to the cabin on the mountaintop, where she made herself a simple stir-fried clam dish and ate it while drinking wine.
Looking at the brightly lit town outside and the waves lapping the beach under the night sky, I felt that this was what life should be like.
Odis vaguely remembered that she had wanted to go to the beach before she traveled through time.
So we joined a tour group and went to the beach. But it felt like a forced march; we hadn't even had enough time in one place before we had to move on to the next.
At that time, he thought that one day he could sit by the sea, leisurely drink some wine and eat seafood.
Our original wish has now been fulfilled.
Odis sighed, feeling that sometimes it's good to be alone, to not think about anything, and to clear your mind.
Otherwise, he could reminisce about his previous life, indulge in some pointless whining, or fantasize about some inappropriate scenes with Bernadette. That would be more like the life of a normal man.
It wasn't until midnight that Odis returned to Backland to rest.
After waking up, Oddess immediately felt much better and then spent the rest of the day working at a leisurely pace.
At nine o'clock the next morning, the messenger appeared as agreed: "Are you ready?"
Odis had already gone to the "Wilderness of Knowledge" to perform astrological analysis beforehand, and had learned that today's actions would not pose any danger to her and would result in a very smooth outcome.
So Odis, who had brought good equipment such as the "Gus Staff," said, "I'm ready."
They agreed today to go and steal the auxiliary materials for promotion to Sequence 3.
The messenger raised his hand, and a soft light enveloped the two of them. Odis felt as if he had merged with the light, and then vanished in a flash.
A dozen seconds later, the messenger Elbera stopped in front of an ancient stone door.
Odis looked around; they were now in a corridor made of stone bricks.
This corridor seems to be very old; the stone bricks have darkened in color due to oxidation.
It seems like no one has been here for a long time. Although there are no insects or small animals living here, the entire corridor still looks very sturdy, with no signs of collapsing.
However, Odis's spirituality clearly sensed that there had been no human presence here for a long time.
Odis was about to ask where this place was. He had originally thought he was going to some demigod to steal materials, but this didn't seem to be the case!
Before she could ask, Ellebella had already gently touched the stone door with her hand.
Clack~
The extraordinary mechanism was activated, and the stone door opened instantly.
There was also a stone corridor outside, but there were torches there, and it was clear that people often walked or maintained it.
Without a second thought, Elbera stepped inside, and Odis followed her in.
The messenger looked around ahead and said, "This way... no, it's more like that way."
Odis asked somewhat helplessly, "Are you sure this is what we're looking for?"
"I know it's here, but I'm not sure which room," Ellebella explained. "It should be here."
She led the way, and the two quickly arrived at a stone chamber. This stone chamber had no stone door, and one could see the scene inside.
When Odis saw the "Mechanical Holy Symbol" pattern on the box inside, she felt like her hair was about to explode!
Just as he was about to use his extraordinary abilities to escape, hurried footsteps came from the end of the corridor. A guard dressed in the robes of a steam church bishop appeared at the end of the corridor. The guard was stunned when he saw Elbera Odis.
Because this is a very enclosed space with only one entrance and exit, and he had been guarding it just now, he really couldn't figure out how these two people got in.
Perhaps they only hesitated for a second, or even less, before they immediately reacted and rushed towards one of the stone chambers to put on the sealing artifact to deal with the intruder.
As Ellebella raised her hand, a tremendous force suddenly struck from nowhere, knocking her opponent down and pinning her to the ground.
She said to Odis, "Go quickly, the demigods stationed here should be coming to our aid soon."
Odis paused for a moment, then asked as he entered the stone chamber to search, "Where exactly is this?"
Elle Bella replied, "Underground in the steam church of Constance."
Constance is an important industrial city in northern Loen, with a large number of believers in the "God of Steam and Machinery," and the Steam Church also has a large church here.
The Steam Church has three cathedrals in Loen, each guarded by a demigod: the Lever Church in Backlund, the cathedral in the industrial city of Enmat, and the church where Odis and Elbera reside.
As Odis searched, he asked, "Why didn't you say you were here to steal materials from the Steam Church!"
"You didn't ask!"
"I…" Odis thought to himself: How the hell would I have thought you were going to rob the Steam Church?
At the time, from Ellebella's tone, it seemed like he was going to steal materials from a demigod, but he never imagined that the demigod would be the archbishop of the Steam Church.
However, Odis realized that the "God of Steam and Machinery" could not attack him directly. Today's action seemed dangerous, but if he acted quickly enough, he would only face the obstruction of a demigod at most.
Having figured this out, Odis stopped running and focused on finding the auxiliary materials he needed.
Guided by her spirituality, Odis quickly found the "liquid brain of the Phantom Multibodied Worm," and found two of them at once, and also discovered the "blood of the Colorful Wyvern" nearby.
That was another auxiliary material, which Odis took without any hesitation.
At this moment, the demigod stationed in the cathedral had arrived to provide support. He used the power of faith in the cathedral to make his body grow taller, and illusory metal parts rolled out from under his skin, forming a somewhat bloated large mechanical puppet.
Odis was slightly taken aback by the design. The mechanical puppet had a strong industrial aesthetic for the time, with its gears, springs, and levers appearing very precise.
The large mechanical puppet clenched its fists and slammed them together in front of it, producing a soft, gray light with a "thud".
Odis felt that the life force of the entire corridor was being rapidly drained away.
Ellebella flicked her gleaming index finger, as if writing something rapidly in the air.
In the next instant, a wall of light formed in front of her, blocking that feeling of being detached from life outside the wall.
"Let's go!" Odis said, taking out the "Staff of Gus".
"Do not use any magic to escape from here," Elbera said as she returned to the stone door and opened it again.
Upon arriving at the seemingly deserted corridor, Ellebella quickly closed the stone door before saying, "Use any escape magic inside... not just magic, but any extraordinary ability to escape from there, and your ultimate destination will be the headquarters of the Steam Church."
Then she transformed into a ray of light once more, taking Odis with her as she departed.
Instead of returning to Backlund, the two men went to a wilderness.
Elle Bella smiled and said, "The operation was a great success."
"Next time we have such an operation, we must discuss the destination," Odis said seriously.
He was thinking to himself: I thought you were going to take me to the Steam Church and hand me over to their angels to be imprisoned!
Odis was deeply annoyed, feeling he shouldn't have trusted Elebella so easily and had made such a serious misjudgment. He was also very puzzled as to why the astrological predictions made in the "Wilderness of Knowledge" were all inaccurate.
"I know that place very well," Ellebella smiled. "It used to be a secret hideout for the Stiano family, and almost no one knew about the secret door."
Odis was taken aback: "The 'God of Steam' doesn't know either?"
"He knows," Ellebella said. "It is precisely because he knows that I am certain that the auxiliary materials you need are there."
Odis suddenly realized: "Perhaps the 'God of Steam' is the one who most supports my promotion."
According to Elbera, only when Odis is promoted to Sequence 3 can the "God of Steam" take the opportunity to influence him.
Moreover, the "God of Steam" obviously guessed that if Odis couldn't find those key auxiliary materials elsewhere, he would definitely seek the help of the messenger, who would most likely take him to the underground of that cathedral to try his luck.
After all, for Ellebella, going there was as easy as going to her own backyard.
Thinking of this, Odis said to Ellebella, "Next time, you should make things clearer."
He thought to himself: Otherwise it would be really scary. For you, it's just a sister going to her brother's place to get something, but for me it's like going to my mortal enemy's house to rob him!
Elle Bella agreed and added, "Remember to call me when you get promoted."
After saying that, she disappeared into the void.
Odis checked the auxiliary materials she had obtained again to make sure the crystal box that sealed them was still effective before putting them back into the "Wilderness of Knowledge" and back to Backlund.
All the main materials have been gathered, and now all that's left is to wait for the ceremony.
That evening, Odis received a letter from Hugh confirming that Dawn Dantes had left Backlund aboard a military airship.
In that case, there will be less than a week before he gets his revenge.
Odis had no intention of going to the southern continent with them, because this event would involve encountering Adam, and she wanted to stay as far away as possible.
However, he then realized that even if he encountered Adam again, there was nothing to be afraid of. Adam was focused on his promotion and wouldn't cause any trouble at this time.
Moreover, the opponent is an angel king, who is not within the protection range of the "newbie period," making it too easy for him to deal with Odis.
Odis is still alive and well, which is enough to show that the other party had no intention of harming him.
Thinking about this, Odis was even considering whether he should go and see the spectacle and witness his "prophecy" "come true"?
However, I eventually gave up on the idea; Backlund is fine too.
For the next few days, Odis waited for news from the southern continent, or rather, for spiritual insight.
If one's "prophecy" achieves the effect of advancement, then one's spirituality will certainly be able to perceive it.
Three days after Dawn Dantès left, Odis felt one of her "prophecies" come true.
It seems the prophecy that Silver City severed the connection between the "artificial Grim Reaper" and their former chief's mausoleum has been resolved.
This "prophecy" is only barely enough to qualify for promotion; we should wait and see if Klein's revenge will have a better effect.
Then Odis suddenly realized that the recent actions of the "artificial death god" and the "Spirit Cult" might be something they had foreseen.
The "Death God" path does not have "prophetic" abilities, but at higher levels, one should have some premonition about one's own fate.
The "artificial Grim Reaper" may have vaguely sensed that the "Goddess of Night" might be about to make a move, which is why it tried to use the contact of the former chief of Silver City to escape to the "Forsaken Land"? At the same time, the arrangement on Bradrick was also attempting to revive him at this time.
Odis shook his head, unable to say for sure whether it was a coincidence or a deliberate scheme.
Because the "artificial Grim Reaper" doesn't seem to have a high level of intelligence, it's unknown whether it can complete such a plan.
Two days later, around nine o'clock in the morning, Odis appeared in his office as usual, seemingly doing embassy work, but actually reviewing letters and documents sent by messengers from his subordinates.
Because of the existence of extraordinary messengers, Odis can completely "work from the cloud." Even if he is not in the Raging Sea or Lunburg, he can still keep track of the intelligence there and the development of his own forces.
Just then, as if sensing something, a woman dressed in an elaborate and gorgeous black dress suddenly appeared from the void.
She had no head, but a clean cut at her neck, and held four identical blonde, red-eyed heads in her hands.
Odis was taken aback. Wasn't this Klein's messenger? It was the first time he had ever seen Klein's messenger.
One of the heads, carrying a letter, was placed on Odis's desk.
After thanking him, Odis opened the letter and read it. The letter was very simple; Klein asked him to meet at the dock on Cruz Island at three o'clock in the afternoon.
Odis pondered for a moment, unable to quite understand what Klein wanted to talk to her about. Did he want to have a drink with her?
Odis then discovered that Klein's messenger, Renette Tinicol, had not left.
So he asked, "Is there anything else?"
The messenger's four heads spoke in succession: "Pay...the reward for delivering the message...one...gold coin."
Odis then remembered Klein's act of "profiting from others".
As he took out his wallet, he thought to himself: I'm already a millionaire, what's one more gold coin to me?
He was embarrassed to discover that he had no gold coins in his wallet, only a few copper pennies.
So Odis asked, "Do you want copper coins?"
"don't want."
"What about paper money?" Odis asked again. "Paper money is more convenient to carry and you don't have to worry about losing it."
The old gentlemen of Rune still had the habit of carrying a few gold coins in their wallets, but most people no longer did so, because coins were easy to lose. Losing a penny was not a big deal, but a gold coin was too valuable, and losing it would be a huge loss.
Odis didn't have the habit of carrying gold coins. To be honest, when he first transmigrated, he didn't even have the habit of carrying a wallet. He would check his keys and cell phone before going out.
The messenger remained unmoved: "No."
"Could you write an IOU first, so the person who sent the letter can pay?"
"cannot."
"Then please wait a moment." Odis called his secretary with some helplessness and asked her to come to the finance department as soon as possible to get a few gold coins.
After obtaining the gold coin, the messenger vanished into the void.
After the messenger left, Odis suddenly wondered: What did the messenger want the gold coins for? Could it be that gold coins are the currency of the spirit world?
Odis scratched his head: Could it be because the money-grubber's messenger was also a money-grubber?
Oh, right!
Odis thought of the five gold coins that possessed the special aura of the "Fool".
The messenger girl seems to have a knack for sensing that she can obtain a special gold coin from Klein.
Thinking of this, he smiled and began to wonder what Klein wanted to talk to him about.
But he didn't think too much about it, because he remembered very clearly that Klein's revenge this time, although it was three mid-level beings fighting a demigod, had Adam as the "referee" and the help of the "Goddess of Night", so the whole process went relatively smoothly.
The only regrettable thing is Daly's sacrifice. At this moment, Odis was also wondering if he should save her? After all, it would be very easy for him to beat up a Sequence 4.
"0-08" is a problem, but Odis remembers that Adam will help deal with this level 0 sealed artifact.
Thinking of this, Odis shook his head and decided to "go with the flow" and help if he encountered someone, even if it was Adam's arrangement.
If we don't run into each other, then so be it.
Odis then thought: "Perhaps in the afternoon, if Klein wants to see me for help, I can give him a few scrolls of demigod level."
Odis no longer needs this high-level scroll. He originally intended to reward his subordinates with it, but there haven't been any major actions lately, so he can't give it away legitimately.
Therefore, he still had more than a dozen high-level scrolls in his hand, all of which could damage demigods.
So Odis stopped wasting time internally and continued working. Around three o'clock in the afternoon, Odis arrived at the dock on Cruz Island.
The place was quite lively at the moment, with many merchant ships and cargo ships unloading their cargo. These were not legitimate merchant ships and cargo ships, but rather the spoils of war of pirates and the goods they were selling.
Because merchant ships and cargo ships were too slow, most pirates would choose to sell them cheaply.
After acquiring Cruise Island, it will be sailed to the port near Plains Town, where it will be painted and slightly modified before being sold at a high price.
"You've earned so many gold pounds, your safe can't hold them all, can it?" Klein suddenly appeared beside him and said.
Today, he still meets with Odis under the identity of Gehrman Sparrow.
Odis laughed and said, "Then let's buy a bigger safe."
He then said, "Everyone knows that the business of selling stolen goods is profitable, so many people are eyeing Cruise Island."
"Even the navy that provided protection for the 'Sword of Dawn' was no exception; some officers even went ashore and openly demanded bribes from me."
Klein was taken aback, but then said, "I've also heard that most of the revenue from all the channels for selling stolen goods at sea eventually ends up in the Navy or the Governor's Office."
"I'm not finished yet," Odis laughed. "I didn't give them any, and I made it very clear to them that either I would help them hold off the navy of the Kingdom of Feneport, or occasionally do some dirty work for them."
"Either I stop fighting the navy and pirates, but I can offer them bribes and let them choose for themselves."
Odis shrugged: "We can't have them all, can we?"
Klein concluded: "The Navy will definitely find a way to deal with you."
"And they did just that," Odis smiled. "I just told them that after the military in Fenneport sent three Sequence 5s and they still couldn't kill me, they were already actively talking to me about cooperation."
"So without exception, they all chose to have me continue targeting the navy of the Kingdom of Fenneport."
"For them, those are achievements, the capital for promotion. They care more about their official rank and career advancement than money."
Klein nodded slowly, surprised that Mr. Garr had such a power struggle with the Navy.
The two chatted as they walked to the beach.
This time, Odis used a spell that granted him invisibility, so no one around could see him or Klein.
After walking a few steps on the beach, Klein got straight to the point: "I've come here to seek your help."
Just a few days ago, he accompanied Mr. Azik to explore a tomb, where they encountered an "artificial death god" and a deity that seemed to be the "Goddess of Night".
Mr. Azik was forced into a deep sleep, which deprived Klein of a trusted high-level assistant.
If the only problem to deal with is the murderer of Captain Dunn, the traitorous Bishop Ince Zangwill, then simply asking the messenger for help would suffice.
However, Zangwell also possesses a Level 0 sealed artifact, making the messenger's words somewhat inadequate.
In addition, considering the old man inside Leonard's body, it's possible to take a gamble, but it would be safer to ask Odis, the demigod, for help as well.
After all, finding Zangwell's trail is no easy feat, so we must do our utmost to defeat him.
Odis asked knowingly, "What help do you need?"
"I have an enemy, the kind of enemy that I must kill," Klein said. "As far as I know, he was promoted to demigod at the end of last year, while I am currently only at Sequence 5."
Odis asked, "Is it Sequence 4?"
"Yes."
Odis laughed and said, "Leave this to me."
"He has a level 0 sealed artifact."
Odis's face did not show the surprise that Klein had predicted. Instead, he continued to ask, "Which sequence is it aligned with?"
"Sequence 1".
Odis smiled and said, "I can also borrow a Sequence 1 level seal artifact."
"You…" Klein realized that he had underestimated the strength of the "Lord of Mysteries"'s subordinates, who even possessed level 0 sealed artifacts.
But then he thought that it wasn't surprising for a secretive organization to possess one or two level 0 sealed artifacts.
On the contrary, Mr. Fool does not have a single Level 0 sealed item to date. Fortunately, no one knows the inside story, otherwise they would find it very strange.
Klein thought for a moment and then said, "It doesn't seem necessary to borrow a level 0 sealed artifact."
He knew very well that if he simply asked "Mr. Gar" for help, he could easily pay off the debt after advancing to demigod status. However, if he borrowed a level 0 sealed artifact, the debt might take a very long time to repay.
Odis countered, "Are you sure?"
"Confirmed." Klein took a deep breath and said, "According to the information I have, that level 0 sealed artifact has a very strong will to resist and will often only do more harm than good."
This information came from Mr. Azik, because he once single-handedly fought against Ince Zangwill and a royal demigod.
At that time, Azik discovered that the level 0 sealed artifact desperately wanted to kill its owner.
Klein also learned from other sources that stories written using "0-08" should be as logical as possible. If an emergency occurs and illogical "plots" appear, then the "0-08" will be even more determined to kill the holder's "will".
These conditions give Klein enough room to maneuver, or rather, making good use of the negative effects of the enemy's sealed objects is also an important way to strike the enemy.
However, the prerequisite is that there must be sufficient information about the corresponding sealed artifact.
So Odis asked, "What kind of help do you need?"
"Please wait around the battlefield," Klein said. "If I cannot stop the enemy from escaping, please intervene."
"But if I can barely solve the problem, you just need to stand by and watch, and even if you just stand by and watch, I will give you a generous reward."
Odis hesitated for a moment, even wondering if this was Adam's arrangement, but he finally nodded: "Okay."
He realized that if it was Adam's arrangement, even if he refused now, he would still arrive at the battlefield due to various coincidences.
Moreover, even if Adam had made arrangements, Klein would not have stood idly by if he asked for help.
After saying that, Odis took out a crystal ball: "Before you begin your actions, infuse this crystal ball with spiritual energy, and I will be notified and follow the path of the crystal ball."
After becoming a demigod, the signals transmitted by Odis's crystal ball could travel over much greater distances.
However, given the vast distance between the Southern and Northern Continents, real-time communication using a crystal ball is impossible; only a weak signal can be transmitted, but that is sufficient.
Klein breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Okay."
"If there is anything else I need your help with, I will write to you again."
After finishing their business, the two chatted for a few minutes and then went their separate ways.
Back in Backlund's office, Odis smiled, never expecting that he had gone from being an observer to a participant.
But it's all good, this way we can save Daly.
But what made Odis somewhat uncertain was whether Daly needed her rescue. Perhaps sacrificing herself in revenge would be a relief for her.
After thinking it over for a moment, Odis decided to rescue the other party first.
If the other party still chooses to commit suicide for love, he won't care.
If the other party intends to live, then it's none of his business.
After that, the waiting began again, and Odis made some preparations while dealing with work-related issues.
Two days later, the crystal ball in Odis's hand finally reacted. He put on the "Gus Staff" and the "Disaster Scepter" and took out the "1-86" Ironblood Gauntlets for later use.
Immediately afterwards, Odis "recreated" Suzaku and flew toward the location of the crystal ball.
A few seconds later, Odis landed on the ground. This place was now the Resurrection Square of Kukva, Uttar Pradesh.
Upon arriving at the square, Odis sensed a dangerous atmosphere permeating the air!
He glanced around. The square was bustling with people, and many locals were traveling in coffins, a local custom. To the passersby, everything seemed perfectly normal.
Until Odis saw Anderson kneeling on one knee with a stiff expression, and Danitz praying with his eyes closed in fear.
This made Odis immediately realize that the battle had begun, but at this moment it was still a battle between Adam and the "Angel of Fate," Ullolius.
The former came to snatch the "0-08" score, while the latter arrived driven by the "0-08" score.
They were engaged in a contest that no normal person could perceive, and even Odis, who had become a demigod, could not see it without activating his "Eye of Secrets".
At that moment, Odis saw a one-eyed man suddenly appear in the Resurrection Square.
That was Ince Zangwell, who wanted to escape from the spirit world, but was stopped by Adam.