Chapter 93

There is a notice about updates at the end.

When Xingkai joined the knights of Zacharhaven, they also seemed to know that the magic airship belonged to the elves and understood when they learned that we had been brought here.

"Still, I wish we had been informed in advance..."

When they said this with a troubled look, I could only think of saying, "I'm really sorry." I wanted to contact them, but it was such an emergency...

Xingkai and I entered the town with the knights. Despite it being early in the morning, the port was quite bustling. When we were told, "The 'Sea Monk' is gone, so everyone is happily going out to fish," it made us feel good.

We parted ways with the knights in front of the inn where Lark was supposed to be. They said the mayor would also want to meet us, but I vaguely replied, "Sure, when I have time."

No, it's not that I want to refuse, but it's uncomfortable to be seen as a "hero"...

When Xingkai and I entered through the entrance, the inn staff were just preparing breakfast.

"Oh... Hey, Cook! Cook! We're back! With a boy and an unbelievable beauty!"

A female staff member shouted and went upstairs—well, that way of distinguishing people. I understand the "unbelievable beauty," but I'm just roughly a "boy."

Then, from upstairs, came a thumping sound, followed by a "Whoa!" and a thud. "What are you doing, already!" "S-Sorry," they exchanged, and Cook came down, rubbing his waist, accompanied by the woman.

"Are you okay?"

"Embarrassing. I almost got injured."

"Getting injured is fine, but if you damage the building, I won't forgive you."

The woman left, muttering.

"Oh, scary, scary."

"Cook, where's Lark?"

"Yeah, right. The lady is sleeping. Actually, she's been sleeping almost all the time lately."

"Is her condition stable?"

"That's right. She's trying to heal her body properly... Non and Master come every day. It's not that they're not helpful, but it's a bit sad that she's become so well-behaved—"

"Wait a moment. What about Dantes and Mimi? Oh, and Zelly? Didn't they go to meet the 'Sage of Pharmacology'?"

It was a quick return from the Sylvius Kingdom, but the trip there took days, with boat and carriage rides. The islands where the 'Sage of Pharmacology' is supposed to be, while not visible from here, should be reachable in a few days round trip.

Cook frowned.

"Actually, they haven't returned yet. They're talking about sending a search party from the port."

Lark's face, sleeping in bed, looked peaceful. Her complexion seemed to have improved—[All Things] showed that her vitality had recovered more than before. Non's [Healing Magic] was working well, even though Master said it was difficult.

"...Lark."

In this room, the天赋珠玉 (Tianfu Zhuyu) was taken. Lark was angry that I had taken the [Shadow King Sword Technique] from her without permission.

It's been since then that I've seen Lark's face.

(I would be angry too if someone took my [All Things] without permission, especially if it was someone with incomprehensible and unreasonable strength...)

I didn't think that far.

So, when Lark's treatment is on track, we need to talk properly.

We are, after all, just two siblings.

"...Let's go, Ashia."

"Is it okay? Shouldn't we wait for her to wake up?"

"Yes."

I asked Cook to continue taking care of Lark. Cook and the others said they would stay with her until she recovered.

(Lark has wonderful friends, even without her talent. I need to do what I can too.)

The next place Xingkai and I went to was the church. I was worried about Dantes and the others, but I thought it would be best to gather information from Non first.

The church in Zacharhaven was a clean, white-walled building. Despite it being early in the morning, many people visited, prayed, and left. The Kingdom of Light Knights has a deep connection with the church, and there are many devout citizens.

"—Oh, how enlightening..."

"—What other stories are there?"

"—Teach us, we who are lost..."

When we entered the chapel, we noticed something. In a corner, there was a table with bottles of wine and a woman drinking from a copper goblet. About five men—of various ages and appearances—were gathered around her, pouring wine or kneeling on the floor, pleading for something.

"Oh, but I've already talked enough, haven't I?"

The woman—indeed, she was wearing a nun's habit, almost identical to Non's, except for the purple embroidery—did not look like a nun at all.

Her skirt was open, revealing plump thighs. Her right hand, holding the goblet, moved seductively, and the chest she was supposed to be supporting with her left arm looked like it might spill out.

Her long strawberry blonde hair shimmered, covering one eye. A beauty mark under her amethyst-like purple left eye added to her allure, which was not typical of a nun.

Seduction, yes, seduction. She was a block of seduction, a seduction ghost.

"—Just a little more."

"—Just the tip."

"—I live for this time."

The men were busy trying to please her.

"Whoa..."

Ashia let out a strange sound and sparks.

"You shouldn't look."

"Ow."

I turned Ashia's face to the front. It felt like we had seen something we shouldn't, and it was best to ignore it since it was none of our business.

Strangely, the other visitors seemed not to notice the unusual space—sitting in their respective seats, praying.

(Those people are a page in Zacharhaven's daily life... Scary.)

I headed to the back of the chapel, where five statues stood, and the pulpit was empty, but I knew who was cleaning nearby.

"?"

The person noticed our footsteps and looked up.

"—Raiji."

"Back from the trip. Non."

She dropped the broom and ran over,

"Whoa, what? What's wrong, Non?"

She hugged me tightly.

I was at a loss. Her soft body and warm temperature were transmitted to me.

"Thank you for coming back safely... If Father and the others didn't return—If you didn't return, I don't know what I would do..."

"Non..."

Right. Of course. No matter how strong Dantes is, if he goes missing at sea, it's natural to worry.

I put my hand on Non's back and hugged her tightly.

"Don't worry. I'll go search for them."

The first thing to do is search. Borrow a boat and go out to sea. If I had known this would happen, I might have asked Matvey for the magic airship, but without fuel, it's difficult.

"So first, tell me what you know... Okay?"

"Y-Yes... Yes, I understand—"

Non started to say but froze, looking behind me.

"Wow... So this is the Raiji Non was talking about?"

The seduction ghost was standing there.

"Yes, Master."

And Non answered—Master, huh? This person?

I knew (I knew) she was the Master.

As mentioned in the preface, I plan to change the update frequency from daily to once a week, on Sundays. I will increase the word count to make it more engaging and include a brief summary of the previous chapter in the preface.

There are several reasons for this:

(1) Chapter 5, or the end of the story, is coming into view. I need to refine the structure to avoid a collapse (Chapter 5 has been long...).

(2) Other manuscripts and book-related tasks are backed up (finally, the first draft of Lulublue 8 is almost done).

(3) It's the end of the year, and things are busy (thanks to COVID, it's better than usual).

(4) I want to write new works (I want to).

The main reason is (1). I've been spending a lot of energy and time on daily updates, and there are many inconsistencies in the settings, which have been a significant stress for me.

I want to end the story well. It's almost a million words.

I am truly grateful to everyone who has been waiting for the 6 PM updates every day. Thank you so much.

I hope you will continue to follow me until the end.