Sudden Incident

That night, recalling the "comical" expression on her face at the time, Xio couldn't help pulling the blanket over her head. She had a feeling she'd utterly embarrassed herself this time.

"So awkward..." It would have been one thing if she had "changed faces" like that in front of strangers, but Abner, her friend, had seen it. She was too ashamed to lift her head. Now, she could only silently rejoice: "Thankfully Fors wasn't there. If she saw it and wrote it into a novel, I... I'd have to threaten everyone who bought the book into burning it!"

Meanwhile, in another dormitory room at the school, Abner was conducting a ritual.

"I pray for the power of knowledge;

"I pray for the power of reason;

"I pray for the grace of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom;

"I pray that You grant the item upon this altar the ability to conceal one's face..."

As lines of inexplicable text surfaced and quickly vanished one after another, Abner praised the god's generosity before picking up the sailor's cap at the center of the altar. He opened his Pure White Eye and examined it, then nodded in satisfaction. The potion has been further digested, and the ritual is more effective now. This hat should remain effective for at least ten days. Mm, I'll give it to Xio tomorrow. After she uses the Ring of Prediction, she can put it on. That way, she won't refuse to use a Clown's abilities out of fear of "social death," which could put her life in danger.

Just as Abner finished putting away the various materials and was about to sleep, he suddenly heard faint roars coming from the streets in the northern part of town! Since the town was not large, the sounds practically carried from the north all the way to the school in the south.

He no longer dared sleep. Quickly dressing, he left his dormitory and happened to see Xio emerging from the room next door. The two exchanged a glance and, without a word, tacitly ran in silence toward the school warehouse, one after the other.

At this moment, Mr. Gaston was still grinding points in the Dream Labyrinth Tower, completely unaware of what was happening outside.

Arriving before the door between dreams and reality, Abner used a talisman to enter the labyrinth tower and urgently woke Mr. Gaston, who was still engrossed in a maze scenario.

However, by then, the commotion in the streets had grown louder and louder. It seemed the entire town had been alerted.

With a grave expression, Mr. Gaston took out an exquisite mirror. After seeming to sense something through it, he said to Abner, "The monsters in the forest in the northern part of the island have broken through the seal left by the Church of Storms."

"Monsters? How could there be monsters on this island?" Abner asked in surprise.

"This place is called Damir, and it bears that name because, in the Fourth Epoch, it was the territory of a Devil named Damir Andariel! I only found the relevant records back when I was searching everywhere for the Door of Dreams." After explaining, Mr. Gaston led the two briskly toward his storage room, where he kept some powerful Beyonder items he had collected.

"Andariel? A Demon family?" Following behind Mr. Gaston, Abner felt a headache coming on. It seemed he had once again become entangled in some extraordinary incident.

"That Devil was ultimately killed in the Sunia Sea by a saint of the Church of Storms, and the monsters and other things on Damir Island were thoroughly cleared out as well. Unfortunately, the northern forest of the island was tainted by the aura of that demigod-level Devil, and only time could smooth it away... In the years that followed, monsters would always be born from the contaminated land, though none were particularly strong. Instead, they attracted many adventurers seeking materials. That was one reason a colonial town existed on this small island." Mr. Gaston spoke as they walked, arriving outside the storage room.

"So Damir Port's famous cured meat can temporarily enhance some people's spirituality because of this?" Abner recalled that, in the original novel, the little girl named Donna had seen Gehrman's messenger after eating this local specialty.

"I heard a few days ago that Fear Parasites had appeared in the northern mountain forest." Xio, who had remained silent until then, suddenly spoke. Over the past few days, she had been gathering information on the main ingredient for the Sheriff potion, and she had unexpectedly found something. The eyes of Fear Parasites were one of the main materials!

"So there were signs a few days ago... I was so absorbed in the Dream Labyrinth Tower that I didn't notice... The Church of Storms cleared the northern forest only two years ago. There should have been no way for powerful monsters to emerge so quickly! Besides, there's a seal outside the northern forest. It does nothing to humans and ordinary animals, but monsters should have little chance of getting out... Something must have happened!" As Mr. Gaston lamented, he took two Beyonder items from the storage room and equipped them, then handed Abner and Xio thirty Demon-Hunting Bullets each.

"Since this island is so unusual... why aren't there any Mandated Punishers stationed here?" Even without considering the underground Door of Dreams, this small island was a hotspot for Beyonder incidents. Earlier, Mr. Gaston had said the island was too small to warrant a garrison, and Abner had reluctantly accepted that. But now that he knew how special it was, the Church of Storms having no Beyonders stationed here was rather thought-provoking.

"You really do have a lot of questions. Just like a Detective!" Mr. Gaston glanced at him, but patiently explained anyway. "The reasons are complicated... First, as I said, this town is too small, and it's a colony. Beyonder incidents aren't monitored very strictly here, so there's no need to station a Beyonder team. Second, this place falls under the Loen military's jurisdiction, and they strongly resist Church of Storms Beyonders being stationed here. Third, perhaps because that demigod Devil died at the hands of the Church of Storms, as long as Mandated Punishers remain on the island for extended periods, the monsters in the northern forest will be spawned more quickly!"

"I see..." Abner nodded, but he still felt there was more to this matter. Suddenly, the image of the woman at the Beyonder gathering who had bought the main ingredient for the Psychiatrist potion flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help pondering:

"Could a suspected member of the Psychology Alchemists coming to Damir have anything to do with the monsters breaking through the seal?"

At that moment, intense gunfire reached the ears of the three. Immediately afterward, the navy's ship cannons roared as well.

Mr. Gaston's expression changed as he said urgently, "The colonial garrison has already opened fire. That means a large group of monsters has reached the edge of town! We need to head over too and help when the opportunity arises!"

Abner and Xio both understood that when the nest was overturned, no egg could remain intact. They nodded solemnly.

Capital of the Rorsted Archipelago, City of Generosity, Church of Waves.

The Church of Waves was the largest church in these waters. Classical in style, it made extensive use of stone columns and arches, with a towering dome and two bell towers.

During the early days of colonization, those pioneers often lacked the time to build churches, and this brought them extremely severe consequences. Surrounded by tribes, jungles, and ancient structures, even after conquering the locals, they would often die mysteriously, die without cause, die in large numbers.

This situation, which had caused immense panic, only gradually diminished after the churches of the major faiths were built, becoming something that happened only occasionally.

At this moment, a priest hurried in from outside, entering the grand prayer hall beneath the warm candlelight that seemed to illuminate the territory of human activity.

He clenched his right fist and struck his left chest, respectfully saying to the bishop facing him, "May the storm be with you!"

"May the storm be with you!" the bishop replied in the same gesture.

Only then did the priest take a telegram from his robes and hand it to the bishop of the Church of Waves, reporting, "A request for aid has come from Damir. Monsters have broken through the seal and are attacking the port town."

"Damir..." After pondering for a moment, the bishop asked, "Do the Mandated Punisher teams near Damir currently have assignments?"

"They do. They are all searching and intercepting an Aurora Order Listener in their respective waters," the priest answered.

"One Listener requires so many people to intercept?" The bishop seemed to be hearing of this for the first time and asked curiously.

"This was a direct order from the Cardinal Council. It wasn't mandatory, but the contribution reward was high, so almost every team without another assignment joined the hunt." The priest clearly knew more about the matter.

The bishop nodded, then said sternly, "Issue an order in my name. Send all Mandated Punisher teams near Damir to eliminate the monsters! Compared to heretics, our believers are more important!"

"Yes, Your Excellency!" After accepting the order, the priest hesitated before asking, "But what about the Aurora Order? I heard that Listener also abducted a little boy named Jack from Enmat Harbor."

"Mm... Do we have any forces nearby that can be deployed?" the bishop asked after thinking for a moment.

"Yes. Alger is currently on rotation leave!" The priest seemed to have done his homework and immediately replied.

"Alger? The one who was fortunate enough to obtain a ghost ship?" the bishop asked uncertainly after recalling him.

"That's right. Not long ago, he obtained the Fourth Epoch ghost ship, the Blue Avenger." The priest seemed quite familiar with Alger and gave a detailed introduction.

"Then issue him an order. Have him pursue and capture the Aurora Order's Listener!" the bishop declared decisively.

(End of Chapter)