Scholar Path, Sequence 9: Reader

Scholar Path, Sequence 9: Reader.

This extraordinary sequence's abilities were centered on reading, browsing, and listening. Specifically, it granted exceptional memory.

A Reader's memory was good enough to remember anything at a glance.

That was a Reader's most basic ability. Their advanced ability was interpretation through reading.

For example, they could read an ancient text and decipher its meaning and secrets.

Arthur realized this ability was tailor-made for a scholar. Nothing was more useful than remembering everything at a glance.

"Interpretation" was linked to "reading": the more books one read at this stage, the stronger one's ability to interpret became.

A Reader could hear "unspoken meanings" that ordinary people couldn't, uncover the "subtext" hidden in newspaper articles and literature, and decipher the mysteries of unfamiliar ancient texts...

It fit perfectly with Arthur's plans for his future career.

At the same time, the [Reader] had certain taboos.

Reading too much knowledge and uncovering too many secrets, or interpreting ordinary social relationships and shifts in the political landscape, posed no major problem.

But once it involved the supernatural, too much "interpretation" could easily invite "misfortune"—a mysterious death or mutation.

The [Reader] reminded him: "Empty your mind."

As Arthur tried to empty his mind, a shout from outside shattered the blankness in his thoughts.

"Captain! We've reached Blue Bay Island!"

The sailors dismantled the anchor's shank and secured the arms with hemp rope before working together to cast it overboard.

The double-fluked anchor sank to the seabed. The Great White Shark shuddered, then slowly came to rest in the quiet harbor.

Arthur stepped out onto the deck and said in a low voice, "Go have some fun at the tavern."

After this voyage, Arthur was certain that the Black Devil Order's target was him.

At his hint, Arena should have taken action. He just didn't know whether reinforcements had arrived yet.

Arthur composed himself. Supernatural power gathered in his eyes, which gleamed like crystal.

He put on his leather coat, took the Fear Musket, and descended from the deck. Then he headed for the liveliest tavern, the Battleaxe Tavern.

"Relying on Arena alone still isn't safe enough. I'll have to make another effort with Deacon Wallace."

Surrounded by pirates, Arthur entered the Battleaxe Tavern.

Soon, he had changed his appearance and put on a simple linen shirt and loose hemp trousers. Wearing a three-cornered hat with a missing corner, he disguised himself as an ordinary pirate.

The grocery store behind the sun.

The shop's owner lounged lazily in a chair outside, idly turning an oyster shell in his hand and humming an unknown tune.

Arthur tapped the counter three times and said coldly, "Contact Deacon Wallace and have him come here. Tell him I have information about the Black Devil."

With that, he turned and left for the Stuart family's tavern.

The Shadow Temple's follower had no time to react before Arthur disappeared.

"The Black Devil?!"

The follower looked around nervously, afraid that a cultist might suddenly appear. "God of Light above! Please don't let me have any bad luck!"

He immediately used the Shadow Temple's secret means of communication to tell Deacon Wallace that he had urgent information.

"The Black Devil Order is a cult designated as such by the Orthodox Church. Staying on Blue Bay Island is too dangerous. Rhine Church would be safer.

"Deacon Wallace wouldn't blame a follower for leaving—a follower who had stood at their post.

"No! I'm going to Rhine Island to ask Father Roberto for help!"

After sending the message, the Believer of Light hurried to the harbor, preparing to leave Blue Bay Island by boat.

"Cautious Baker" of the Black Devil Order happened to be returning to Blue Bay Island by ship. He docked near the Great White Shark.

Baker looked at the deserted Great White Shark and smiled bloodthirstily. Then he turned to the sailors behind him.

"Seal off the harbor. Don't let anyone leave!"

"Yes!"

The grocery store's owner, who was preparing to flee, ran into Baker as he returned from the sea.

Baker furrowed his brows. They were about to perform a ritual, and he couldn't let anyone escape and send word.

"Oh, what a stench of Believers of Light!"

Baker looked the newcomer over carefully. Once he confirmed that the man was a Believer of Light, not a clergyman or supernatural being from a faith, he smiled confidently.

"Die, Believer of Light!"

Baker flashed to the grocery store owner's side and punched him under the chin.

The shopkeeper rolled across the ground, clutching his mouth and groaning.

"Get up, Believer of Light! Let's have a fair fight!"

Baker bared his teeth and laughed. "The loser gets hanged!"

The grocery store owner immediately dropped to his knees. "You've got the wrong man! You absolutely have the wrong man! I'm not a Believer of Light!

"I'm a follower of the shadows! I worship the great Black Sun!"

The shopkeeper's heart was heavy with guilt. To survive and continue devoting himself to the Church of Light, he could only deny his faith aloud.

He was enduring this humiliation for the sake of the light. Once he returned to Rhine Island and informed Father Roberto...

Baker looked doubtful. "The Black Sun? That esoteric cult from the New Continent?"

"Yes, yes! That's the one—the Black Sun!"

Cautious Baker examined the man closely. The aura of light around him was strong. At a glance, he looked like someone who visited the Church of Light often.

But the auras of light and shadow weren't strong enough. Was he a follower of the Shadow Temple?

He couldn't be one of the Black Sun's followers.

"The Black Sun is still a sun. Whatever you believe in, stand up and fight me!"

Baker laughed arrogantly as he circled the grocery store owner, punching and kicking him.

A minute later, the shopkeeper's corpse hung from a wooden davit at the pier, suspended by a hemp rope.

When Arthur arrived at the tavern, he saw Arena fully armed: helmet, breastplate, arm shield, and studded leather armor.

She was wiping down her longsword, whose crossguard was shaped like a griffin's head. The hilt had deep grooves for a better grip.

Arthur's heart skipped when he saw Arena's sword. He'd completely forgotten to get himself a suitable longsword.

A good sword was essential for performing "Despair Waltz." Without one, his combat strength would drop by 70%.

Arena glanced at Arthur, who had nothing in his hands, and asked curiously, "What can a Sequence 9 Scholar do?"

"You don't sound like a combat sequence. Don't you need a proper weapon?"

Arthur's mouth twitched. Skipping over the question, he hurriedly said, "I notified Deacon Wallace. If all goes well, he'll arrive within a day."

Arena frowned and looked him up and down. "What did you tell him?"

She didn't remember telling Arthur that the Black Devil Order had been spotted recently. Where had he gotten that information?

Arthur told Arena that he was being hunted.

"Then why didn't you go straight to Rhine Island? It would be safer there."

"Because I needed to find out whether they were targeting just anyone or coming after me specifically."

"And what did you find out?"

"They're after me. They're forcing me to return to Blue Bay Island."

Arthur asked the ultimate question: "Could we have reinforcements?"

Arena's lips curled slightly, her expression brimming with confidence. Her voice echoed through the room.

"A squad of enforcers from the Church of Night is coming to support us on Blue Bay Island. They'll arrive tonight."

Tonight.

Arthur let out a long breath. The mantis stalked the cicada, but the oriole waited behind. He would soon see which of them was the prey!