Shrouded Seascape

At the sight of his followers crowding around the spider, Kevin, Gavin's younger brother, slammed his hand on the table. His voice was tinged with anger as he roared, "Enough! Do you think we are in the fish market at the docks? Quiet!"

Despite being the youngest in the room, it seemed like Kevin clearly held the most authority. The zealots surrounding Charles quickly took a step back, but their eager yet reverent gazes remained fixated on Charles.

Observing their fervent expressions, realization finally dawned upon Charles. These people were the result of Gavin's recruitment over the years.

Though the Foundation didn't directly govern the Haikor territories, it was considered quite a significant feat for Gavin and Kevin to have been able to find so many Fhtagnists on Shattered Heart Isles. After all, the islands were still under the Foundation's influence.

The current place Charles was in was unmistakably a church—a church of Fhtagn.

Casting a glance at the coral statue of Fhtagn nearby, Charles speculated that Octett probably wasn't even aware that there was a hidden stronghold beneath the island.

"Sir, wh-what do you think of this place? Is there anything that needs to be changed? We just arranged everything based on our humble understanding. If there's anything that displeases you, please let me know, and I'll fix it immediately," Kevin said nervously as he watched the spider taking in its surroundings.

Naturally, Charles wouldn't have any real knowledge of how a Fhtagn church ought to be set up. He merely gave a vague nod of approval.

The moment Charles expressed his approval, the room erupted into smiles; they felt as though all their efforts had finally been validated.

As he watched the joyous faces in front of him, Charles couldn't help but find his situation amusing. He hadn't expected that there would come a day when he'd end up using an identity like this.

However, his identity proved to be advantageous, as it meant that he now had several useful allies in this place.

"I have something that requires everyone's assistance," Charles declared. His words sent a visible alarm through the gathered Fhtagnists. Their hands shot up into the air as they fought to volunteer their services, each one desperate that someone else might be picked over them.

"I need to board a ship that heads to the deepest part of the Sea of Mist—or even better, to hijack one. Do you have any ways? I only need a boat; I have the necessary maps."

The eager expressions immediately morphed into solemn faces. Judging from their change in attitude, Charles was certain that this was no simple task.

"What's wrong? Is it a difficult task?" Charles asked.

"It's possible," Kevin said after pondering for a moment. "The false gods of the Haikors live in the depths of the Sea of Mist. Under typical circumstances, only the clergy are allowed to send ships to the inner islands of the Sea of Mist to deliver supplies after receiving an oracle from those false gods."

"Without an oracle, any ship heading toward the inner islands of the Sea of Mist would be highly conspicuous, and it would be impossible to avoid detection. If you want to go there, you must be on an official ship—there's no sneaking in," Kevin concluded.

"The clergy, huh?" Charles was instantly reminded of those Haikors he had encountered. They were draped in colorful stripes of cloth. Stripped of their religious trappings, these individuals were essentially the Foundation’s liaisons with the outside world. Whenever something was needed from the outside, they would rely on the Haikor tribe to gather it. The issue now lied with how to infiltrate such a group. He was no longer the powerful Charles. His only strength was limited, as he was in the form of a tiny spider.

Kevin stared at the spider which remained motionless ever since his reply. His face hardened with determination as he declared, "Sir, please give us some time! This is the first task given to us by the Covenant, and we will complete it no matter what! All for the Great One! All for Fhtagn Sawito!

Charles watched Kevin's zealous expression for a few seconds before he nodded. The spider's sinister head bobbed slightly as it wrote with its silk thread. "All for God Fhtagn."

Back at the Governor's Mansion, Charles rubbed his slightly aching neck and stood up from his chair. He walked out onto the sunlit balcony and scanned the bustling, peaceful streets of Hope Island below.

After Shindy returned home with the spider eye, Charles could finally move around and relax his body a little. Sitting in one place all day controlling the spider had left his legs feeling numb.

Watching the islanders hustle about their daily lives on the distant streets, Charles felt a profound sense of detachment. He felt like he wasn't living in the same world as those people.

He slowly picked up the round glass bottle from the table beside him and took a deep swig.

Before he could take a mouthful, the brown liquid inside the bottle began to bubble and turn black.

An octopus's horizontal eye soon appeared within the bottle.

"Charles, how's the progress?" It was Octett.

"We've run into a tricky situation and am thinking of how to resolve it," Charles answered as he casually placed the bottle on the balcony railing. "Don't rush me; that's not going to help anything. If you have the ability, then take the entire Fhtagn Covenant with you into the Sea of Mist and mess with the Foundation directly."

"Remember, let me know as soon as there is any progress. We're working on another plan to deal with the Foundation. Let's see if we can coordinate."

"What plan?" Charles asked. He was genuinely curious about what plan could the Fhtagn Covenant come up with to stir trouble for the Foundation.

"That's not something you need to know now. Just focus on your task." With that, Octett's eye faded from within the bottle.

Charles merely shrugged. He picked up the bottle, tilted his head back and took a large mouthful.

He had barely swallowed when he heard a set of familiar footsteps behind him. He instantly recognized them.

"Why are you back? Didn't 134 take you back to Whereto?" Charles asked without even turning back to look. After all, the sound of Tobba's footsteps was too distinctive to mistake.

Cradling a handful of colorful mice in his arms, Tobba walked up toward Charles. He regarded Charles with the same look of curiosity as when they had met for the first time.

Charles turned toward Tobba, unsure if the latter was now prophetic or was just insane. He pondered for a moment before asking, "What do you think of our current situation? What will be our future? Will we defeat the Foundation, or will they wipe us out?"

Tobba shook his head in puzzlement. "Did you have breakfast this morning?"

"Huh?" Charles was clearly baffled by Tobba's nonsensical response.

Could this be some kind of riddle? A metaphor? Charles wondered to himself as he tried to find some meaning to the question.

However, Tobba's next words shattered all of his thoughts. "Do you have any leftovers from breakfast? I'm starving; I want to eat."

Charles let out a weary sigh. He felt that if he were to try to follow Tobba's line of thought for a prolonged period of time, he could end up as mad as Tobba himself.

"Go to the kitchen and find something to eat," Charles replied. "If you don't know where it is, ask the mice in your hands."

"Okay." Tobba turned to leave. But just as he reached the doorway, he stopped abruptly in his tracks.

Tobba's hair shimmered white under the bright electric lights. He contemplated for a moment before saying, "Yesterday, someone from outside challenged me to a game of rock-paper-scissors. Four out of three rounds to win, and I won."

"I see. Great to know. It's always better to win than to lose," Charles replied absentmindedly, swirling the liquor in his glass. He wasn't really paying attention to Tobba's words.

Tobba thought for a few more moments before he added in a matter-of-factly way, "There's one more thing—I'm going to die soon."

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