"Madman? Mute?

Hmm...

Looks like a madman."

Liszt's literacy was low because someone, too, only knew that many words.

May 8th.

Narrow Sea.

This sea area was peaceful and harmonious, with a daily lottery for the dead—a bona fide gambling jackpot.

Pirates in flames, navy men dying violently—doesn't that sound delightful?

The currents of the Narrow Sea are not as unpredictable as those of the East Sea; they are traceable. The land and islands are far less scattered than in the East Sea; coasts are everywhere, with bodies frequently washing ashore.

Brothers from the lower floors of the adventurer's guild, it's our time to shine when the stars align! We've got offers now! And Old Tumor is the one to approach.

In the Narrow Sea, the Triad Gangs fight and kill, and they dominate the entire fishing industry. Ordinary folks barely get a share, leaving personal fishers. But there's a very unique job that still exists in the Narrow Sea.

They're called corpse collectors.

While earning a little extra from daily seafood, occasionally they'd also scoop up a corpse.

In these overpowering times, everyone carries their coins on them. You live with your money; there's no reason not to—it's especially true for those in precarious professions.

On a good day, you could find a few Aran Golden Dragons—like opening a mystery box, but most of the time it's a few silver coins, ten at best. A hundred silver coins would be a ceiling, and for some with golden teeth, you could pry those out directly.

Narrow Sea, eastern part.

The sun shone brightly, with gentle breezes and clear skies, cloudless as far as the eye could see.

A small sailing boat, less than ten meters long, with a total of eight people onboard—all part-time corpse collectors.

Wind Radiance Adventure Team, a group of eight, with the captain and the vice-captain being Silver adventurers; the remaining six were new blood.

"Darn it, what's happening to the world? It's become too peaceful; hardly anyone died this month."

One member, with no regard for decency, tossed his cigarette butt into the sea, grumbling. Initially, there were already few bodies afloat; many sunk to meet the Holy Spirit. Now, even fewer died, making the elusive floating bodies even rarer.

"F*ck, these days, men are all poor as hell, while women seem to have more money than men."

Another team member couldn't make sense of it.

This month, they did fish out some bodies, but the men were poorer than the last, pocket cleaner than their face. There was a woman, probably a courtesan, with over forty silver coins on her—she was quite wealthy.

"Live life to the fullest, die to the fullest, struggle for an entire lifetime, heh heh."

Another team member smirked slyly, uttering crude phrases.

Already in a foul mood, the brawny captain with closely cropped hair, a face chiseled as if by a knife, rough dark skin, and both ears cut off, felt even angrier hearing such spiritless talk.

He grabbed some Leather Armor from the boat and went after the member, thumps and bangs resonating—clearly, he hadn't held back.

"Celebrate your life! Mourn your death!"

"Stop it, damn it, I'm wrong, isn't that enough?"

"If you're dying for Qili, maybe that makes sense, but those stale goods you've been after, aged thirty or forty, damn..."

Captain Wind Radiance beat with more vigor, disgusted how these scoundrels had no backbone at all, utterly unreliable.

While the one-armed vice-captain, who acted as the brains of the adventure group, said,

"I've read reports from the Atomic Heart Church..."

But before he could finish,

"Don't start with that; those people are going against nature, against the Holy Spirit above. One day, they'll get what's coming to them," the captain had finished blowing off steam, "Everyone, show some ambition. We might be scraping by for another decade, and when we're old and can't wield a blade, that's when we're truly done for. While we're young, let's get our life savings together. Damn."

The crew's mood was starkly at odds with the splendid views of the nearshore breeze.

Today the sea was calm, which from a corpse collector's perspective, meant a higher chance for a good haul.

One member with a limp, holding a telescope, kept watch for bodies afloat.

"Corpse incoming! Corpse incoming!"

The limping one shouted, overcome with excitement.

"Let me see!"

The captain immediately snatched the telescope and looked in the direction the limper had indicated. Indeed, there was a black dot. The limper had sharp eyes; that's why he was put on this task.

Immediately, the captain ordered to change course, heading towards the corpse.

About a quarter of an hour later.

Cast the net, scooped up the body—it was done in one fell swoop.

They hauled the gruesome corpse onto the boat.

"This poor bastard met a really fucking nasty end. Probably burned on the ship and then soaked for a long time before dying."

Even the Wind Radiance Adventure Team, no strangers to corpses, seldom encountered a body so revolting as to make one's stomach churn, more frightful than the creations of Necromancers, with a face scorched beyond recognition.

"This guy, even in death, looks pretty tall and sturdy. He must have been an officer or something key in life. This might be good."

One team member speculated.

"Look at you all acting like you've never seen the world."

The captain, struggling to suppress his disgust, searched the burnt and bloated skin for any sign of a coin pouch.

Fortune smiled upon him.

Upon turning the body over, he found a pounch in the front pocket of the trousers. He weighed it, feeling the contents inside.

The entire adventure group watched with bated breath; this was like opening another splendid treasure chest, wasn't it?

Just like a gambler putting on airs as they slowly reveal their hand, the captain also began to show off, slowly undoing the pouch's strings, taking a deep breath, then spreading it open.

The contents were shockingly extraordinary.

Silence befell the entire ship, only the sound of the sea breeze remaining.

"Holy shit…"

The intense light of the sea shone on the coins, reflecting gold onto the captain's face.

Inside the pouch... there were no copper or silver coins, only Aran Golden Dragons, easily seen, around forty to fifty of them.

"Am I dreaming?"

One team member held his head, his throat bobbing. Divided among the eight of them, the captain and vice-captain getting a bit more, he would still have four to five coins himself, enough to live lavishly for several years.

The captain made a swift decision, drawing the scimitar from his waist. It wasn't that he didn't trust his brothers, but... this was striking it rich!

He gripped the pouch tightly in his hand, slipping it into his chest.

"Let's head back to shore immediately. Once there, we'll divvy this up. All in favor? Any opposed?"

The captain called the vice-captain over to stand close by, to prevent any splits due to hard feelings.

Silver was certainly more reliable than a newcomer, possessing some tricks up his sleeve, but when it came to risking lives, the flesh and blood of both seasoned Silvers and new recruits were hard to differentiate in a fight.

"Captain!"

The team members were utterly astonished, their legs shaking.

"I, Galen, am a man of loyalty and brotherhood. Don't give me that look. We'll divide it by the old rules. I won't shortchange any brother; it's just that I fear you might harbour thoughts of killing."

Galen spoke the truth, but his breathing was erratic, the amount too substantial.

"It's not that... behind you!"

A team member alerted him.

Perhaps due to the environmental change, the skin, completely exposed and burned, had been stimulated during the search.

The charred body, as if living a nightmare, began with unconscious twitching and weakly swiping at something, then suddenly...

Snapped awake.

The Wind Radiance Adventure Team all turned around; this corpse was playing dead?

Ivory white flames of spell power eroded the body. The bloated body expelled all the seawater, and the burnt flesh began visibly mending strand by strand.

He surveyed everyone aboard.

The group was so scared they couldn't speak. You couldn't expect to fool the type of person who had faced Death Spirit creations.

"Madman? Mute?"

Liszt thus inquired.

Silence fell for a while.

"Um...

Seems like a mute."

Liszt became aware of the threat of the Thief Guild. Any person could be an enemy; the Emperor of the Night was omnipresent, his reputation no mere vanity.

He could feel it.

It would be soon.

In a completely rational state, he was ready to embrace a noble death, even if facing a magician who could command the universe or a god that could destroy the world. He was just a bully who could command the universe, a bully who could destroy the universe.

First to the Aran Imperial City, to find Sharon.

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