Chapter Ten: Subtle Hints Emerge

I instinctively glanced at the spot Miss Vilyric pointed to, where a small house was bustling with mermen coming in and out. The merman girl instantly wore a dazed expression and opened her mouth without much thought.

“Oh, that? That is…”

“That is our clan’s medical office, providing treatment for the injured. Even with the protection of Goddess Veil, injuries from various accidents are unavoidable while at sea, so it tends to be quite lively. I hope it doesn’t embarrass our guests.”

A clear, steady female voice suddenly chimed in, joining their conversation. Vilyric and the merman warriors turned to look, and they saw two figures rising from below the lake’s surface, gracefully making their way to the shore.

Clearly, the newcomers had a significant affinity for the water element and were skilled in similar types of magic.

Compared to Alec, the young merman who had just departed, the other figure was much more eye-catching.

She was draped in ethereal fabric resembling the texture of water, her deep blue hair flowing like a surging tide. Just by her appearance, she was a beautiful woman of no more than twenty.

Unlike Alec, who had the distinct tear markings of the bright merman clan, her fish-scale-like patterns were surprisingly minimal for a typical merman. If her hair were more ordinary and she wore a dress suitable for land dwellers, she might easily be mistaken for a human.

She arrived faster than I expected…

Smiling gently, the woman, who adeptly continued the conversation initiated by Miss Priestess, walked to the shore. She greeted the black-haired girl with a simple gesture of courtesy, then continued in flawless Veil language.

“I heard from Lord Alec that some special visitors have arrived. To be honest, I can sense a unique aura from you, much like the golden dawn rising from the coastline at daybreak—brilliant and sacred. It seems you possess quite remarkable light magic prowess.”

“Oh, I hope you don’t mind my baseless assumptions; it’s a habit of mine. My name is Miss Silisa Hailing, and I currently oversee this island. Welcome to the East Sea Pearl.”

Miss Priestess also smiled politely in return.

“It’s no problem; your guess isn’t entirely wrong. My name is Vilyric, and I suppose I’m… a rather unlucky traveler.”

“Ha ha, you’re quite open-minded and humorous, so very different from those priests or great mages I’ve encountered who revere the Source of Light~”

Miss Silisa giggled, waving dismissively to the other merman warriors, sending them away. After leaving only Alec behind, she walked directly toward Miss Priestess.

“So, Miss Unlucky Traveler, may I have the honor of hearing about your story?”

…

About an hour and a half later, Vilyric passed through the forest with Alec by her side, returning to the coast of Parut Island, boarding the Noah’s Ark.

“Boss! How’d it go?”

Sighing helplessly, Miss Priestess patted the shoulder of the eager Miss Thief, signaling her to calm down.

“The situation is a bit complicated; it seems we need to plan for the long term. By the way, Ming Lan, you’ve been to the East Sea a few times before, do you know anything about the rumors of the Ghost Sea?”

“Ghost Sea?”

The fox-eared youth, Vice President of the Lingyin Merchant Association, was momentarily taken aback, exchanging glances with a few other clan members. He then looked towards the massive silhouette of the island not too far away, gradually revealing a look of realization.

“Ghost Sea, merman clan… If that’s the case, is this the Emerald Sea Region? Are these islands the East Sea Pearl?”

“They do introduce themselves that way.”

Ming Lan nodded slightly, his expression growing serious.

“Miss Vilyric, if this truly is the East Sea Pearl, the royal court of the merman clan, then our current position is rather awkward.”

“Though I’ve never been here personally, the Emerald Sea Region is quite renowned in the entire East Sea.”

“You might not know, but the location of the sea exit, the Great Whirlpool, is calculated to be exactly the midpoint of all the sea areas west of the storm zone. It is one of the most mysterious spots in the Endless Sea, and even the Lingyin Merchant Association knows very little about it, only that the formation of the Ghost Sea seems to be related to the Great Whirlpool.”

“Oh? Is there really such a thing?”

The center point of the Endless Sea is an enormous whirlpool with a diameter of over a hundred kilometers, which is indeed thought-provoking.

However, it’s clear this isn’t something that can be easily explained in just a few words, so there’s no rush to figure it out immediately.

She immediately instructed a few clan members.

“For now, let’s put aside the secret of the Great Whirlpool. I’ve already discussed arrangements with the person in charge of Parut Island to temporarily dock the Noah’s Ark nearby. You all go and organize the disembarkation of the crew, making sure they board the island in an orderly manner.”

“Remember, it’s okay to appropriately communicate or trade with the islanders, but don’t disrupt their daily lives too much… We probably won’t stay long.”

The existence of the Ghost Sea is indeed a concern.

If it were just Vilyric, she might have risked charging straight through the Ghost Sea. After all, with Miss Priestess having traveled far and wide, she had seen her fair share of storms and wouldn’t be intimidated by a mere name.

But currently, the Noah’s Ark was carrying a large number of crew members, most of whom were carefully selected core members of the Lingyin Merchant Association. Miss Priestess couldn’t completely disregard their safety.

After all, she was not the same as before; she now had dependents and forces to look after. The Lingyin Merchant Association could be considered half her subordinate organization. What she inherited from Ming Xi wasn’t just power, memories, and divine spark… but also more ties and responsibilities.

Ming Lan appeared young, but as the head external manager of the Lingyin Clan, he was surely wise to the ways of the world. He quickly grasped Vilyric’s intentions from her arrangement and attempted to confirm.

“Do you mean… we will be staying on this island?”

The girl nodded slightly, glancing again at the central building’s silhouette draped in jungle cover, a hint of unusual expression flashing in her eyes.

“Once you’ve settled the merchant association members, come back and tell me the relevant information you know about this island… There are indeed some things here that cannot be ignored.”

Afterward, both sides engaged in orderly negotiation and communication.

Docking the Noah’s Ark didn’t require much complex operation. Although after all the crew had disembarked, Vilyric could easily retract it, transforming it into a miniature size to fit into her backpack, she didn’t want too many outsiders to know about this capability for now.

After instructing the ship’s control—equivalent to an AI central control system for the ship spirit—the Noah’s Ark settled at the shore and entered standby mode, with outsiders prohibited from boarding. Vilyric then sealed the central control room, disembarked, and returned to the coastline of Parut Island, reunited with Le Qiao Qiao and the others awaiting her.

Her negotiation with Miss Silisa, who called herself the Sea Priestess, was not too difficult. Compared to Alec Mingjiao, who was said to be merely stationed by the royal court on the outer islands, she appeared much more hospitable and less guarded. After understanding Vilyric’s intent to temporarily stay on the island, she readily agreed without much thought.

Of course, the precautions Miss Priestess had previously mentioned were also proposed by Silisa as terms of engagement. According to her, the merman clan never excluded guests or merchant travelers as long as they held no malice or intentions to harm them; anyone could reside in the East Sea Pearl.

This principle has always been upheld by the royal court.

   

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