novelraw Chapter 387: Her Bunting
Chapter 387: Her Bunting
"The Twentieth-Tier... Eimhart, do you know of any existences that can be classified into this stage?"
After the Death Minister left, Fisher, who had been meditating on the spot, finally turned to Eimhart beside him and asked. But actually, before he even spoke, Eimhart had already begun flipping through the pages in his stomach. Driven by flashes of golden light, he also grew distressed.
"Hmm, in my impression, the living beings humans can crown with this Tier are probably the ultimate entities they can imagine. Just as that strange guy who was resisted by death said, the meaning this Tier represents is the pinnacle of living beings... If categorized this way, there are exactly four that I can currently confirm."
"Four?"
Fisher raised his eyebrows, evidently somewhat surprised by this result. He thought that even Eimhart couldn't possibly possess clues regarding Twentieth-Tier beings; he hadn't expected the book to immediately list four.
"Right. You know I was created by the great Holy Progeny. In my memory, above the vast multitudes of the Holy Progeny, there is an omnipotent leader whom the Holy Progeny generally revere as the 'Chain of Heaven'. He governs the entire Sanctuary."
"And this Lord Chain of Heaven has two siblings. One is the mother of the Elf-kin, the archenemies of the Holy Progeny—the colossal World Tree situated in the outer seas south of the Eastern Continent. The root at the bottom of the Wutong Tree previously was a part of her. The other sibling of Lord Chain of Heaven is the Dragon God Fafnir, the creator of the Dragon-kin in the Southern Continent. They all share intricate connections with the God of a Hundred Faces, and are all existences that can be classified into the Twentieth-Tier."
"And the last one is the God of Destruction from the Ocean, who is said to be extremely adept at combat and destruction. Roughly during the Mythological War several thousand years ago, this mysterious God of Destruction once took action in the Eastern Continent. I highly suspect the sinking of the Eastern Continent is related to this... Hmm, these four are the only ones I currently know."
The God of Destruction from the Ocean?
Fisher immediately recalled the mysterious ruin he had seen at the bottom of Nari Lake, where he had obtained a clue named 'Crown of the God of Destruction'. Based on his subsequent deductions, the one who left that ruin's clue was highly likely Jasmine's mother, the Ocean Emperor Xuan Shen—who was also the legendary God of Destruction.Thinking about it this way, the fact that Xuan Shen, as a Whale-kin whose race's average Tier was only around the Tenth-Tier, could leap to become the Twentieth-Tier God of Destruction was absurd enough to leave Fisher Staring Dumbfounded. Even with an item like the Demi-Human Girl Completion Handbook, elevating his level before the Mythical Rank was very slow, let alone after reaching the Mythical Rank, where differences grew unfathomably vast.
No wonder even the contributor to the Demi-Human Girl Completion Handbook once complained that an exceedingly antisocial and short-tempered individual had suddenly emerged amidst a group of amiable killer whales. So they were talking about Xuan Shen after all...
But the problem was, if Xuan Shen was a Mythical Creature excelling in combat, could she take action to rid him of his death?
"The God of Destruction... I think I know her. She is the mother of a student I had a very good relationship with in the past, that Whale-kin girl."
After Eimhart finished his earlier words, he paused, curled his lip, and muttered,
"Why are you being so polite with me? It's not like I haven't seen her before. It's fine if you just say your ex-girlfriend. However, this is the first time I've learned that the whale-kin girl's mother is actually the God of Destruction... Her name was Jasmine, wasn't it? Geez, Fisher, I realize you're really brave. You dared to date the God of Destruction's daughter, and not only that, but you dared to keep picking up other girls afterwards. Truly brave!"
Fisher suddenly recalled that when he snuck out with Jasmine at night on the Iceberg Queen Ship and met Xuan Shen, Eimhart was fast asleep in his room, so he hadn't seen the true form of the Ocean Emperor and God of Destruction with his own eyes.
Too lazy to explain it to him again, Fisher just changed the subject and reminded Eimhart,
"...Keep going, regarding the situations of the other three Twentieth-Tier existences."
Eimhart, his golden light flashing, was long familiar with Fisher's temperament. He didn't press the issue and simply continued,
"Hmm, the others... The World Tree vanished during the First War of Living Beings, and all records concerning her disappeared into the sea along with the sinking of the Eastern Continent during the Second War of Living Beings, that is, the Mythological War. I reckon she's already been caught by that Hela guy you mentioned. As for Lord Chain of Heaven, honestly, while I feel the great Holy Progeny haven't completely disappeared to this day and might still be hiding somewhere in the world, the probability that Lord Chain of Heaven still exists is infinitesimally small. Because Baimon's records stated that Lord Chain of Heaven, the Dragon God Fafnir, and the God of Destruction once engaged in a massive free-for-all. Fafnir left safely, but the record was silent on Lord Chain of Heaven..."
A faint glimmer flashed in Fisher's eyes, and he suddenly spoke up.
"...Wait. I went to the Southern Continent before, and it seems I've never heard any records regarding the passing of the Dragon God Fafnir. I, along with all the Dragon-kin of the Southern Continent, considered Fafnir to be a fictional religious belief. There is no record of the Dragon God's passing within this religion. Do you have more texts concerning the Dragon God Fafnir in your stomach?"
Eimhart nodded and said,
"I do. The Dragon-kin during the ancient Dragon Court era very much enjoyed praising the Dragon God Fafnir. They composed many poems, songs, and odes for him, and also recorded his luxurious residential palace and imposing physique. These can be seen in many ruins across the Southern Continent, which is far better than Lord Chain of Heaven and the World Tree, who have almost no records at all. Perhaps this is because the relationship between the Dragon-kin and Fafnir was quite harmonious... But without exception, their poetry never contained any news of Fafnir's fall until the Dragon Court's demise."
At this point, Fisher's train of thought finally cleared up. It was as if a hazy light of hope was emerging before his eyes.
"In other words, the Dragon God Fafnir might not be dead and is still hiding somewhere in the Southern Continent?"
"That is indeed possible! Although I don't know why he hasn't shown himself for so long, going to the Southern Continent to take a look is a good idea. We absolutely must not give up!"
Fisher hadn't even spoken yet, but Eimhart flew onto his shoulder, looking even more excited than him. Bouncing around, Eimhart continued talking to him. The stifling gloom of Fisher giving up treatment and awaiting death was finally somewhat dispelled, and he quickly grew energized once more.
"How about we make the Southern Continent our first stop? Anyway, according to my deductions, if you go to Nari first, your ex-ex-ex-girlfriend Empress Elizabeth will definitely never let you leave again!"
"How has it become my ex-ex-ex-girlfriend again?"
Fisher cast him a speechless glance, but Eimhart merely clicked his tongue and glanced in the direction of the distant Sema Mountains.
"Did you forget? You still have an ex-wife lying inside the Wutong Tree!"
"..."
Fisher coughed in exasperation and turned his head away, speechless. Consequently, he saw that Ilos had quietly sat down beside him at some point. However, she clearly didn't understand the conversation between Fisher and Eimhart at all. She merely tilted her head in confusion, appearing as if she were Hesitating To Speak with a complex expression.
"Ex-ex-girlfriend, and an ex-wife?"
"Ah, that is... never mind, it's hard to explain right now. Ilos, thank you for your hospitality. I only came over to check on your situation. I'm preparing to leave now."
Fisher smiled and stood up. Ilos hastily stood up as well, looking Fisher's currently supremely frail body up and down, and said,
"Eh? So fast... Wait, Mr. Fisher, are you going to Hearthome Castle? Why don't I walk you there? You are currently..."
"It's fine. I'm not yet at the point where I can't walk, don't worry. I don't know if we'll have the chance to meet again, but I've already memorized your phone number. If the opportunity arises later, I will call you. May the Mother Goddess bless you."
Ilos started slightly, then smiled and made a devout gesture of blessing, replying,
"Alright then, since continuing to stay with me won't solve your problems either. May the Mother Goddess bless you. I hope you can recover your health soon, Mr. Fisher."
"I definitely will."
Fisher nodded and tucked the Fluid Sword back into his coat. Eimhart on his shoulder, terrified of adding any extra weight to him, immediately flew up as well, following him toward the door.
Ilos opened the main doors for Fisher in advance. The blizzard of the Northlands' new year was raging at its peak. It was obvious that the Death Minister from eastern Cardu had only walked out moments ago, yet his footprints were basically invisible now. It was impossible to tell which direction he had gone.
Ilos wanted to see him off further, but Fisher waved a hand at her, gesturing that it wasn't necessary, and walked alone into the world of ice and snow outside the Defiled Church.
"Mr. Fisher, remember to call me later!"
"No problem!"
Replying to the demi-human nun standing in the doorway, the coughing Fisher slowly walked toward Hearthome Castle in the distance, until Ilos could eventually no longer see him.
In the snowy landscape, man and book walked and conversed for an unknown amount of time. Eimhart hovered belly-down over Fisher's head to shield him from the wind and snow. Watching him trudge slowly through the snow, Eimhart couldn't help shaking the snow off his own back and complaining to Fisher,
"So why didn't you let the slimes come with you to the Defiled Church? You had them wait for you in the city instead. It's so cold outside, and walking such a long distance, I really fear you'll bite the dust before we even reach the Southern Continent to find the Dragon God Fafnir..."
"Cough... My Tier has been lowered; I'm not paralyzed. Walking there isn't a problem. As for the slimes going to the city to wait for me, that was their idea. When we came down from the Wutong Tree, I gave the trolls and slimes a rough overview of the Turan Family's situation. The slimes now know about them attacking the Snow Fox-kin."
Fisher grew somewhat tired as he walked. The constitution of absolute zero within the zeroth-Tier was truly too exaggerated. A long-absent feeling of weakness continually washed over his body, forcing him to stop in place and rest for a moment.
"Without the invasion of the Base's curse, the slimes are preparing for their return to the Northlands. The Turan family betrayed the Phoenix, continues to live in the Moon Princess's fortress, and repeatedly tried to assassinate Valentiina and the six clans. The slimes won't let the Turan family off... Right now, the Turan family is mostly composed of short-lived wretches infused with Phoenix blood. Dealing with them isn't difficult. What's difficult is how to maximize taking over the businesses they've run in the Northlands for so long. That's the reason the slimes are waiting for me in the city of McDowell."
Eimhart shot Fisher a surprised look and said,
"You really are quite wicked. The Turan family is in for a fun time now... Hey, wait. When did you speak with the trolls and the rest? How come I didn't know?"
"During those few days, you were buried in the texts in your stomach every day and wouldn't even listen when called. How could you know what I said to the slimes and trolls..."
"Che, who was I flipping through texts for? Wasn't it for you?"
"Uh-huh, thank you."
"So perfunctory!"
After resting for a moment, Fisher and Eimhart continued to walk forward.
"Let's go to the Southern Continent first. We'll meet Raphaela. You probably haven't met her—she's a Dragon-kin, and she should possess some understanding of the ancient Dragon Court. It would be best if we can find Fafnir. If we can't, I'll set off for the pirate—"
"To find the God of Destruction! Didn't you just say you know that God of Destruction, that she's the mother of that whale-kin girl? If we don't find Fafnir in the Southern Continent, we'll go straight into the sea to find her and have her mother save you! Don't worry, I absolutely won't gossip about your private life. From now on, you are an innocent, flawless gentleman, a chaste young master..."
Eimhart interrupted Fisher's words, spinning his body around as he spoke. Fisher was just about to retort when he suddenly felt the temperature of the Demi-Human Girl Completion Handbook in his coat rising bit by bit. His brow furrowed little by little as he retrieved the Demi-Human Girl Completion Handbook from his left pocket. However, rows of illusory golden text did not appear before his eyes like usual.
His motions paused for a second. Suddenly, as if triggered by telepathy, his heartbeat accelerated for an instant. He froze in place, flipping past the numerous pages detailing various demi-human species within the Demi-Human Girl Completion Handbook. Finally, he stopped at a certain page due to a photograph acting like a bookmark.
Lodged between those two pages, the photograph gifted to him by a certain Witch for remote communication—a photograph that had remained silent for roughly half a year—was actually emitting wisps of visible purple light at this very moment.
Fisher's pupils contracted. He immediately pulled the photograph out of the Demi-Human Girl Completion Handbook. In the center of that photograph, a purple Bunting that Fisher hadn't seen for a long time was hopping up and down, seemingly slamming against the paper of the photograph in great anxiety.
"Help, help, Fisher. Harte saw Renee being hunted by humans. Fisher, Fisher, help!"
Saying this, the Bunting inside the photograph suddenly spread its wings and launched into the air from the palm of Fisher's hand, breaking through the confines of the photograph and heading north. Flapping its wings, it repeated,
"This way! This way!"
Eimhart, who had originally been floating above Fisher's head, also flew up, staring blankly at the Bunting hovering mid-air, continually turning its head back to speak to Fisher. He said, dumbfounded,
"A Bunting? It flew right out of a photograph, and it can talk? Have I still not woken up from my dream?"
"Renee..."
"Wait, what Renee? Is she the Witch you mentioned before?"
Fisher's breathing suddenly quickened. He gazed at the incomparably familiar Bunting suspended in mid-air. It was as if a familiar, delicate fragrance wafted to his nose again. Instantly disregarding everything else, he immediately marshaled all his remaining strength and began to run anxiously in the Bunting's direction.
"Eimhart, keep up!"
"Ah? Where are you going? Are we still going to McDowell or not?! Oh my goodness, you're still being chased by death, slow down!"