The Strongest Hunter... Klein was taken aback by this title. After careful consideration, he realized that the other party did not have a bounty.
In other words, Anderson Hood's self-narration in the dream world is authentic and reliable; he is more of a treasure Hunter!
Unfortunately, Gehrman Sparrow hasn't taken down any of the pirate generals yet, otherwise I would be the Strongest Hunter... Klein remained vigilant, his gaze fixed coldly on the opposite side.
As soon as Anderson Hood shows the slightest abnormality, he will immediately throw out the talisman in his hand. After all, activating the incantation is the same, and for him in his current Sequence, infusing Spirituality can be done at the same time.
Upon hearing the introduction of " Admiral of Stars," Anderson shook his head seriously.
"No, not the Strongest Hunter."
"Wow, quite modest indeed..." Klein thought to himself.
Anderson chuckled and added:
"If you still insist on the title of ' Admiral of Stars,' it would be best to add a qualifier before it: below the level of Demigod."
"Hmm, the Strongest Hunter below Demigod."
... I take back what I said earlier... Klein's lips twitched almost imperceptibly.
Seeing that the " Admiral of Stars " did not respond, Anderson lowered his hands naturally and said:
"This sea area is dangerous, but it also holds many treasures, a fact I believe you both understand."
"Many adventurers, or more accurately, treasure Hunter, have entered this place in search of adventure, but most of them have not made it out alive. Hehe, I said most of them. There must be some Bravehearts who have both acquired items and materials and managed to leave safely."
"This treasure hunt team was assembled by two experienced treasure Hunter who claimed to have figured out which ruins to avoid, which relics to try, which Monster to hunt, and which out-of-control evil creatures to avoid in the first half of the safe route."
"I've always been curious about this place, and I was successfully persuaded to join their treasure hunt team."
"And then? Admiral of Stars," Cattleya's slightly purplish-black eyes already reflected the other person's image.
Anderson sighed and said:
"It started off very smoothly, really smoothly. We avoided danger, obtained a lot of relics from the explorers before us, hunted some Monster, and harvested several pieces of materials."
"The turning point came after we discovered a strange temple on a submerged island, where there were many well-preserved murals, which this gentleman had also seen in his dream world."
He gestured with his chin towards Klein.
"That's not the point," Klein replied calmly.
Anderson shook his head and smiled wryly:
"One of the murals is particularly eerie, depicting a pilgrimage procession moving through parted seawater."
"The leader of this team is depicted as Angel with long, silver hair that reaches down to her vest, and very gentle features."
"When I first arrived at that mural, I stretched out my right hand and habitually sketched various lines in the air. Really, I didn't touch it; it was at least 5 centimeters away. But then, the Angel in the painting seemed to open its eyes for a moment."
"... Your title of Strongest Hunter must have been earned because you got into too much trouble..." Klein sneered silently, showing no sympathy whatsoever.
"A silver-haired Angel?" Cattleya asked in return.
"Yes, but I don't know which Angel it is. It hasn't appeared in any of the paintings of the seven major churches. Of course, it may have been added by the mural Author at random and may not be real." Anderson was about to raise his hand to smooth his hair when he noticed that the man opposite him, wearing a crew neck shirt, a brown jacket, and a baseball cap, was staring at him coldly, as if he would attack without hesitation if he made the slightest move.
But at that moment, Klein was thinking about something else entirely:
"This guy is really professional in art; most people couldn't possibly understand so many religious paintings."
Having received no satisfactory answer, Cattleya immediately turned her head to look at Klein, her gaze questioning.
She had just heard Anderson Hood say that Gehrman Sparrow had seen the mural.
Perhaps, some of the organization's members, blessed by God, could recognize which Angel it was... " Admiral of Stars " Cattleya inexplicably felt that Gehrman Sparrow might actually know the answer.
Knowing that the " The Hermit " lady could easily find the answer by casually asking at the next Tarot Club, Klein didn't hide anything and simply said:
"' The Tail Devourer ' Ouroboros."
" The Tail Devourer " Ouroboros? That " Angel of Fate "? That Angel King? Cattleya unconsciously pursed her lips, and the purple in her eyes seemed to become even more pronounced.
The last time she heard this name was at Tarot Club, thanks to Miss " Justice ".
That was the first time she learned of the existence of the Angel King, and she never expected to encounter clues in the real world just a few months later!
"' The Tail Devourer ' Ouroboros?" Anderson pondered the name with a hint of bewilderment.
Klein didn't say anything more, as if to say, "I have no interest in explaining."
Seeing that the " Admiral of Stars " hadn't spoken, Anderson could only laugh and continue:
"At the time, I thought it was a hallucination, because nothing unusual happened after that mural."
"Then, our group split into two parts. Most of them were frightened by my description and thought we shouldn't explore the temple. The remaining third, eager to find more treasure, set off into the depths of the temple. We waited for a whole day, through three cycles of noon and Evernight, but they never returned."
"We are all skilled treasure Hunter. We knew something was wrong. After a quick check, we dared not linger or wait any longer. We immediately left the temple and boarded the ship to return the way we came. We have already gained enough and do not want to take any more risks."
Wait, none of you plan to rescue your companions? Hmm, members of this hastily assembled adventure group will definitely only care about themselves and their closest friends when faced with danger... Based on my experience, your missing companions might be eating the fingers of corpses... Klein muttered to himself, without uttering a word of reproach to Anderson.
Anderson sighed again:
"After leaving that temple, we found ourselves undergoing some strange changes. On one hand, we became very unlucky, and nothing we did went smoothly. Even when we were quietly drinking a few sips of light beer, we would find that someone had mistaken the beer barrel for a toilet and urinated in it. Well, this was not my experience, but that of my companion."
"On the other hand, we gained control over ourselves in the dream world. We were no longer in a daze, knowing something but unable to take action. So, some of my companions, about a third of the Original group, curiously ventured into the depths of the dream world for a while. Heh, they never came back."
Cattleya had been listening quietly, finally asked:
What about their physical bodies in the real world?
"They mutated into Monster, killing many of our remaining companions and most of the Sailor." Anderson took a noticeable deep breath. "Although we successfully killed those Monster, due to a lack of enough Sailor and a series of unfortunate events, we failed to reach the island before the storm. So, our ship sank, and our spoils sank too. The rest of our companions either drowned, were struck by lightning, or Devouring by the Monster in the water. I didn't see them all with my own eyes."
"Only I, relatively stronger and luckier than them, was tossed about by the waves and managed to swim to this island. I started trying to make a canoe to go out. Ah, you saw it too, my last axe shattered, and that was reflected in my dream."
Anderson's last words were directed at Klein.
What Misfortune treasure-hunting team... Klein mentally drew a Crimson Moon for them.
He believes Anderson's account is likely true, and his experiences don't seem fabricated, but whether he's hiding anything remains to be seen.
Perhaps Anderson really did go deep into that temple, ate the corpse's finger, and came out thinking he was fine. Perhaps he had already explored many places in the dream world and suffered subtle contamination in the dreams of some unknown creatures.
After recounting his experiences, Anderson Hood smiled at Admiral of Stars " Cattleya and some unnamed person:
Am I fortunate enough to travel aboard the ' Future '?
"I will pay the fare."
He acted as if he was open to whatever price you offered.
Cattleya turned her head again to look at Klein, as if asking him if he would agree.
In other words, you're more inclined to agree? Aren't you going to do any vetting? I have to go above Divination Gray Fog to do Divination before I can give a clear answer. Why are you so confident? " The Mystery Pryer " has acquired the extraordinary abilities of Sequence 5? Klein deciphered some information from the glance that " The Hermit " Cattleya gave him.
While he hesitated and speculated, Anderson said urgently:
"I am very familiar with the upcoming route!"
"I can help you avoid the dangers lurking in the safe routes, I can tell you which ruins you can't explore, and I can help you avoid the mermaid's song in time!"
"The song of a mermaid?" Klein's eyes nearly lit up, barely managing to maintain his composure Gehrman Sparrow.
"Yes, another day's voyage from here—I mean, one day in the outside world—rounding a ruin, turning towards..." At this point, Anderson suddenly realized something, smiled, and shut his mouth, saying no more.
Klein thought for a moment, then took out a gold coin in front of Anderson and muttered:
"There's something wrong with Anderson Hood."
He repeated it seven times in a row, following the standard procedure of Divination, but he didn't actually expect any answer.
This is a test of the other party.
If Anderson truly had a problem, he would likely have shown signs of unease, since he couldn't ascertain Gehrman Sparrow's Divination skills or guarantee the interference would be successful.
Clang!
The gold coin bounced up and fell back down. Klein glanced at it, then simply stuffed it into his pocket.
"No problem."
"Go back up to the Gray Fog and double-check..." Klein added to himself.
Cattleya then looked at Anderson and nodded:
I grant your request.
"But once we're out of this sea, you must give me half of your belongings. If you have nothing, then I won't take anything."
Anderson paused for a few seconds, then smiled again and said:
"Make a deal!"
Having found a way out, he visibly relaxed a bit, and then smiled:
"Also, I must remind you that although my Misfortune is limited to myself, you must still be careful, because I might attract Monster. Of course, I believe that with you, ' Admiral of Stars,' this gentleman, and me as a team, our safety can still be guaranteed."
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire island suddenly shook, and smoke and dust billowed out from the primeval forest.
"Could it really be Monster...?" Anderson's mouth dropped open in surprise.