With the pressure relieved, Klein casually pulled a chair over and placed it by the door, sitting opposite King of the Five Seas Nast with the entire hall separating them.
Although the Pirate King was more than 1.9 meters tall and was sitting on a black platform, allowing him to look down in a domineering manner, Klein didn't play second fiddle in this encounter. He wore his tall top hat again.
After a brief silence, Nast, who had the official title of Earl of White Maple, said with a solemn tone, "Give me a reason why I should answer your question."
Klein's thin body casually leaned back as he said, "You will not need to hear the same request when you have something you need to trade with me in the future."
The dark red light flickered in Nast's black eyes as he said, "I basically know all the saints active in this world, but that doesn't include you."
Klein caressed the feathered mask on his face and laughed. Without answering, he asked in return, "Have you met Zaratul?"
"I've met ‘Him' twice in Emperor Roselle's palace. I'd also interacted with quite a number of Secret Order members," Nast replied with a calm and direct but extremely domineering tone.
Quite a number of Secret Order members... You should introduce me to them when the opportunity arises... Klein couldn't help but quip.
He then smiled and said, "I've also met Zaratul."
Nast raised his hand to stroke his short black beard. His already tall figure seemed to burgeon, making the mood in the captain's cabin even gloomier and repressed.
After a few seconds, he stared at Klein from above and said, "My impression of Emperor Roselle is very simple:
"No one is more suitable than ‘Him' to be the Black Emperor."
He didn't explain what "Black Emperor" meant or pointed to, ignoring if the demigod opposite him understood or not.
Is that so... From this King of the Five Seas's words, although the emperor's diary implied that he made up his mind only in his later years to switch to the Black Emperor pathway and make preparations, he had long had such inclinations. He had unconsciously exhibited it and set up the situation ahead of time... Klein thought in enlightenment.
He believed that Nast's impression of Emperor Roselle was limited to that. After all, they had only met a few times. Hence, he switched topics.
"In the emperor's later years, did ‘He' get you or your father to do something secret?"
Nast's crown shook a little as he replied, "Someone had once asked me the same question."
Klein laughed and asked with a bold guess, "Bernadette?"
"Yes." Nast held the two sides of his black throne with his hands. "Back then, she was very young and immature to ask such a question. With Emperor Roselle's level in his later years, compared to handing something secret to me and my father, what could be kept more secret than doing it ‘Himself?"
This is implying that I'm as immature as Bernadette back then... Klein sighed and said, "To people who are concerned about this, one wouldn't abandon even the slightest sliver of hope."
This was also why he wished to meet the King of the Five Seas after concealing the liner.
He was now trying to find clues to the door of light above the gray fog in the real world. Apart from confirming who the third transmigrator was, he had to delve deep into Emperor Roselle's matters. This was a necessary decision!
The dark red glow in Nast's eyes contracted and expanded.
"What's your relationship with Emperor Roselle?"
Klein thought and said with a sigh, "We can be considered old friends."
After all, they had been above that mysterious door of light, and the cocoons they were in were neighbors with only a thin obstacle in between them. They had been hanging there for centuries or even millennia.
This was a connection that stemmed from reality, and psychologically, having read so many of the emperor's diaries, Klein had long treated the emperor as a fellow countryman. He shared the same feelings for home and sense of identity with him.
Nast stared at the thin demigod who sat by the door before he retracted his gaze and solemnly said, "Any more questions?"
Klein was already prepared. He asked in an unhurried tone, "Do you feel that there was anything abnormal about Emperor Roselle in his later years?"
The slightly wrinkled Nast remained silent for quite a while before saying, "I don't know enough about ‘Him,' so I wasn't able to notice anything abnormal.
"The only thing that made me feel odd was that when me and my father met ‘Him,' ‘He' would stand at a floor-to-ceiling window facing west. He would stare into the distance. This would happen in the morning, noon, and the evening. And that room wasn't the only one with a floor-to-ceiling window."
"West... Into the distance... the Fog Sea?" Klein seemed to mutter to himself as though seeking confirmation.
He recalled that the emperor's diary had mentioned of a mysterious primitive island, and he recalled the Abyss that hid somewhere in the Fog Sea.
Nast nodded slightly and said, "That was my guess as well."
Phew... Klein silently exhaled. After some consideration, he stood up and said, "I'm done with my questions. Please pardon me for my intrusion. "Your Lordship, I wonder if I can help you in a transaction?"
He was fulfilling his promise.
Nast fell silent for two seconds and said, "Help me find the Card of Blasphemy that corresponds to the Black Emperor."
For an instant, Klein suspected that the Pirate King was testing him, but he immediately felt that an unknown demigod had little to do with the Black Emperor card. He said with a smile, "I'll try my best.
"However, the questions from before aren't worth a Card of Blasphemy. If I can obtain it, I'll trade you for the information inside it. Of course, I might only provide clues to that card."
Nast caressed the armrest of his iron-black throne and said in a deadpan manner, "So be it."
Klein took off his hat again, bowed, and turned to leave before returning to the deck.
Under Horror Viscount Bird Mustang and company's gaze, he raised his arms.
His body rapidly contracted as the feather mask on his face spread out. In just two or three seconds, his entire person became an ordinary red-headed sea eagle.
This sea eagle immediately flapped its wings, flying into the dark storm, vanishing from the sights of the pirates of the Black Emperor.
That's a demigod... Bird Mustang looked into midair and sighed.
Although making a further advancement at Sequence 5 increased the inclination towards madness and a loss of control, making it highly possible for Beyonders to fail their advancement, the title of being a demigod remained attractive. As long as one successfully took the step, they could attain godhood, allowing their life to undergo a fundamental change. Be it in terms of lifespan or powers, it far exceeded that of humans, allowing them to reign above all.
On the liner, Klein abandoned his control over the red-headed sea eagle, allowing it to plunge into the sea to be fish food without anyone seeing it.
And at this moment, the passengers on board felt high-strung because the Black Emperor was about to approach.
In fact, this should've happened a few minutes ago, but for some reason, the Black Emperor had ignored the liner and headed forward. Yet, the liner didn't use this opportunity to escape, and it had instead circled around the Black Emperor, maintaining a few hundred meters from it.
This bizarre situation continued for a while before it finally ended, leaving dozens of meters between the two ships.
The Black Emperor passed the liner and steered into the stormy night without returning.
The passengers and crew watched blankly and realized the reality of the situation only a few minutes later.
The Black Emperor was gone! It hadn't attempted to plunder them!
A number of passengers cheered while others had tears stream down their faces. A few collapsed to the ground and relaxed. Only a few maintained their lucidity, feeling puzzled as to everything that had happened. However, they were unable to find an answer that agreed with the situation at hand. All they could do was console themselves.
The Black Emperor must've completed a plunder already. Since this is a liner and not a cargo ship, it didn't catch its eye!
As the euphoria spread across the ship, Kleindonning the appearance of Dwayne Dantès-cast his gaze to the north.
Compared to King of the Five Seas Nast, who had only met Roselle a few times, there was another person who knew the emperor even better: Queen Mystic Bernadette!
Being an equal peer to Nast, she had recently been in Backlund!
After I return to Backlund, I'll get Admiral of Stars to contact Queen Mystic and try to meet her as soon as possible... Klein retracted his gaze, drew the curtains, and went to bed.
In the Rorsted Archipelago waters, on the Future.
Admiral of Stars Cattleya finally received a letter from Queen Mystic Bernadette.
She had no idea when the invisible messenger arrived, but this didn't stop her from effusing her joy.
Tearing open the envelope and spreading open the letter, Cattleya eagerly read the first line below the salutation:
"That's indeed Ciel's descendant..."
That Artisan is really Emperor Roselle's direct descendant... I can't allow him to mix with the believers of the Primordial Moon. I have to bring him on board the Future... As Cattleya thought, she nodded indiscernibly.
After making up her mind, she thought of Artisan Cielf's character and morals that only spelled trouble. She felt that she had the responsibility and duty to discipline him.
Amidst her deliberation, she walked to the window of the captain's cabin and cast her gaze outside.
After some searching, her gaze fell onto the shipboard where Frank Lee was munching on mushrooms.
"Frank," Cattleya shouted out with her normal tone.
Frank, who had his sleeves rolled up, snapped out of his deep thought.
"Captain, is there something?"
Cattleya said seriously, "I'll get you an assistant for your experiments."
Frank was taken aback before he revealed a pure smile.
"Alright!"
