933
"Anderson Hood?"
Leonard murmured the name, feeling an indescribable sense of familiarity.
He watched Anderson warily, feeling that something about him was strange. Having spent so long in Utopia, he had become well acquainted with almost everyone here, naturally including the excellent painter who appeared in the square almost every day. Was Anderson's full name Anderson Hood? I never asked him, but that name sounds so familiar. Where exactly have I heard it?
Mr. Anderson the painter was mute, but the Mr. Anderson before him seemed shocked by his inability to speak and kept trying to communicate in writing-he had originally been adept at expressing short phrases through simple sign language.
In a flash, an idea suddenly struck Leonard.
"Anderson Hood! Wasn't that the name of an explorer who used to be famous at sea? If the Church's archives and deductions were correct, the pirates even called him the 'greatest adventurer below demigod.' He must be a Sequence 5, and a very powerful one at that."
A powerful Sequence 5 had suddenly appeared in Utopia after disappearing for over half a year?
That doesn't add up either. The painter is usually very friendly, and his hands have no calluses or scars from years of combat. He has no Beyonder powers either... wait, in the mystical world, names are also a special kind of incantation. Judging by his condition, could that "Anderson Hood's" spirit have suddenly appeared inside the painter's body?... Hmm, a displaced spirit. That doesn't seem so difficult to deal with anymore.
"Put your hands up. No using Beyonder abilities!"
To prevent this "adventurer" from doing anything that might endanger others, Leonard adopted the stance he used when dealing with unaffiliated Beyonders.
Anderson gave him a surprised look, then raised one hand while rapidly writing on the drawing