novelraw Chapter 409 - 219 - Naga_3
Chapter 409 - 219 - Naga_3
Upon hearing the elder speak in their language, everyone turned to look at him.
It seemed he had learned it just from hearing Lucilia’s words.
"No need to be surprised; it’s just a little trick."
Alka looked at this elder.
The elder seemed like an ordinary person, not even a touch-bearer.
But clearly, that’s impossible.
Since he couldn’t be ordinary yet displayed such traits, he was obviously someone not to be trifled with.
It seems I need to be careful and polite, Alka thought.
Alka nodded politely and said, "We should be the ones thanking your granddaughter for saving my crew. If there’s anything we can help with, we’ll do our best." He began with the customary pleasantries.
Hearing Alka’s words, the elder smiled and nodded.
"I have been waiting here for you for a long time. My name is Maldo White Scale, and our race is called the Naga; we are the guardian race of this gate."
"The reason I’m here waiting for you is because I have a very important matter that I implore your help with."
Upon hearing this, Alka couldn’t help but frown, though he had expected it.
Calling them over couldn’t have been for nothing. The issue is our lack of acquaintance; we’re essentially strangers to one another.
After some thought, Alka still said, "If we can help."
After all, they did owe a favor. As long as the request wasn’t excessive, Alka was willing to repay it.
Maldo pulled his granddaughter beside him and said, "This is my granddaughter, Matilda White Scale. I believe you have met her."
"I beg you to take her with you, let her join your group, and let her leave this place."
What does that mean? Upon hearing this, Alka’s frown deepened. How did it inexplicably become a matter of entrusting his granddaughter to us? Alka couldn’t understand. After all, it was his first time meeting this elder and his first time learning of their existence. Aside from the young woman previously boarding the ship to heal Pororo, they had never had any interaction.
Maldo, of course, knew how rash and hasty his request was. He explained, "I know this is hasty, but I have no choice. We were punished and exiled here by the Sea God, tasked with guarding the gate to the Endless Sea."
"The Sea God is merciful. Every hundred years, someone capable of atonement appears among our people. She is to go to the Endless Sea to cleanse the sins our race committed. Yet, for a thousand years, we have remained like this."
This meant that for a thousand years, every Naga who went to the Endless Sea to atone had failed.
Of course, it’s also possible that no true atonement ever occurred.
"This time, the atoner is my granddaughter, and I hope to entrust her to a trustworthy team."
"But among the teams leaving through the gate, how are we to know who is trustworthy?"
"So why did you choose us?" Alka asked curiously from the side.
Since he doesn’t know if others are trustworthy, why is he so certain *we* are? Alka wondered. After all, there must be at least one group passing through the gate to the Endless Sea every ten years, if not more. Moreover, a team had surely gone out before them—the one that used sea fish as mounts.
But Alka already had a guess as to the reason, likely related to Pororo. The connections were too strong.
In response to Alka’s question, Maldo simply pointed to someone on the ship. Everyone turned to look; he was pointing at Pororo.
"You’re the Storm Champion, right? A few days ago, I saw it—I saw the Spiral storm—and knew someone was undergoing the Champion Trial. I figured that person had to be you."
Pororo nodded, admitting it readily.
"Yes, I am the Storm Champion of the sea."
Maldo nodded, looked at Alka, and said, "This is why we chose you. Although we were exiled by the Sea God, it was because our ancestors committed an unforgivable mistake."
"We have continued to believe in the Sea God for generations, and a Storm Champion is worthy of trust, while an atoner can be considered a Saint of the Sea God."
At this point, patterns on the girl beside him began to show, glowing with a faint blue light.
Seeing the glow of these patterns, Pororo looked at her, and similar blue-glowing patterns appeared on him. Though the patterns on them were not identical, it was clear they shared a similar style.
Alka was certain that, given how well this elder knew the Storm Trial—knowing someone had passed just by seeing the Spiral storm and sensing the trial’s fluctuations—then that young woman’s coincidental appearance before them must have been deliberately arranged by the elder.
Perhaps he had anticipated that passing the trial wouldn’t be without injury, so he sent his granddaughter at that precise moment to heal Pororo, thereby indebting them.
This was easy enough to guess, and the elder before him surely knew his intentions were quite transparent.
He was gambling on Alka and his crew—or perhaps Pororo specifically—not being disreputable people.
Of course, the fact that the girl had saved Pororo was true, and Alka and the others indeed owed her a significant favor. The brief healing session before had already demonstrated some of the girl’s capabilities. Crucially, the girl was a healer, someone desperately needed on the ship. They had regretted it when she left.
Delivered right to their doorstep... It was a difficult decision.
Alka turned and looked at everyone. This clearly wasn’t something he could decide on alone.
Pororo was the first to state his opinion: "I agree she should come aboard. She saved me, and she’s a believer of the Sea God."
Julia thought for a moment and also nodded in agreement.
The others also voiced their opinions.
Jason suddenly spoke, "Anyway, we already have followers of the Four Gods on our ship; adding one more wouldn’t hurt. Maybe if the gods see we have followers of the Four Gods among us, we’ll receive more protection on our future sea voyages."
Upon hearing this, everyone turned their gaze to him.
How should one put it? It was certainly a unique perspective.
This was a path they had never considered.
Thinking about it carefully, it really did make sense.
There were followers of the Holy Mother: Alka, a natural believer who had received the Holy Mother’s revelation—no one would doubt he was watched over by the Holy Mother. Then there was Chadite, the former Preparatory Saintess, and Jason, who had touched a precious Treasure, causing his Magic Power to transform into Holy Light. All three could be considered affiliated with the Holy Mother Church, their connection to it exceptionally strong.
Followers of Life were represented by Julia, the guardian of order in the seas. Merfolk are natural believers of Life, maintaining the order of all life in the world. Alka had always thought she would be a believer of the Sea God, actually.
Then there was Simon, a follower of the Wise One, who had been directly blessed by the god with a Treasure. Hmm... one could perhaps say he *personally consumed* the Treasure. He definitely had the god’s attention.
As for a follower of the Sea God, that was obviously Pororo, now a Storm Champion. Although they didn’t know the specific structure of the Sea God Church, it was clear that a Storm Champion who had passed the trial was no insignificant figure.
Adding a Sea God Saint wouldn’t be a bad thing at all.
In fact, it was more than good; it was excellent. A small ship, with four True Gods backing them.
"Alright, we agree."