"Do you really trust Him?"
As they left Liveseyd, Medici couldn't help but ask, his brows furrowed tightly.
He clearly had no fondness for entities like the Primordial One, only deep wariness.
"Not at all. I wouldn't believe a single word from that old trickster without a contract," Alaric said with a chuckle, glancing at him. "But I trust He's clever, and I trust my own knowledge."
He had his own ideas and judgment regarding The Ancient Sun God's revival.
Medici studied him for two seconds, then laughed. "Fine, as long as you've got it figured out."
"Of course I do," Alaric said, smiling. He looked up at the false sky, where a false sun hung.
Gazing at it, his eyes unfocused, clearly deep in thought. After a few seconds, he said, "I've got some ideas, but truly reviving The Ancient Sun God is beyond my current abilities. I'll likely need to advance two more Sequences."
"How much of your Sequence 4 potion have you digested?" Medici asked, clearly invested in The Ancient Sun God's revival.
"Almost fully. By the new year, when the Church of the Chaos announces its existence to the world, I should be ready to advance to Sequence 3," Alaric replied candidly. Lately, his Disciple of Delight potion had been steadily digesting, likely due to his work with the church and matters involving the Will of the City of Calamity.
"Oh, right…" Alaric suddenly turned to Medici, hesitating before saying, "You know I've been collecting historical memories. Since you were around during the First Solomon Empire, I'd like to gather some memories from key moments. Uh, mainly the one where you were… cooked in a hot pot."
The supplementary material for a Memory of Time required memories spanning a thousand years, covering all significant events. Alaric had been busy collecting these from figures like Bethel and Antigonus. He'd nearly completed the memories from the War of the Four Emperors, but some critical moments were still missing.
Like the one where Lil' Red was cooked in a hot pot.
Given the sensitivity, Alaric hadn't immediately approached the involved party.
Medici shot him a glance, then scoffed. "You're so gleeful telling hell jokes, but you hesitate when it's serious business?"
"How's that the same?" Alaric retorted confidently. "Hell jokes are just that... jokes, a necessary spice for life. But poking at someone's wounds is another matter."
"You? Having such concerns?" Medici looked at him as if he were a rare creature, then laughed. "Alright, stop acting like a Demoness. I stopped caring about that ages ago!"
…
While Alaric's "main account" Handled serious matters, his "alternate account" lived a leisurely life of fishing on The Future.
Actual fishing, since idle time at sea was too good to waste.
"I get the logic, but why do you catch everything except fish?"
On the deck, Lil' Amon glanced at his bucket of fish, then at Alaric's chaotic haul... squid, octopus, sea snails... and raised a question.
"That's just how we anglers are. Anything but fish," Alaric said, completely unembarrassed and quite proud. Sensing a tug, he yanked his rod, pulling up a vibrant, multicolored sea snake.
"Well, look at that... a venomous one!" Alaric shook his head, then called to Klein. "Gehrman!"
Klein, holding a rod with an empty bucket, gave Alaric a resigned look. He turned to the sea snake, and within moments, its movements stiffened. Soon, the once-aggressive snake slithered into his bucket.
"Spiritual Threads are so handy!" Alaric gave Klein a thumbs-up, then glanced at his empty bucket. "So, why's yours empty?"
Klein's mouth twitched, but he said calmly, "Going fishless is part of fishing."
"Makes sense!" Alaric nodded, as if enlightened.
Just then, hurried footsteps approached, as if someone were chasing another.
The next second, Mobet Zoroast's voice rang out: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I swear I won't swap your coffee for hot cocoa again!"
"Mobet, if you're a man, stop running!" Siatas's voice followed.
A flash of lightning later, The Future's recurring show... "Mobet Gets Beaten"... was in full swing.
"Honestly, I'm starting to think Mobet's into it. Why else would he keep provoking Siatas daily?" Alaric commented, watching the familiar scene with amusement.
"Maybe it's their couple's dynamic? I've never dated, but books describe it like this," Lil' Amon said, also watching the electrified brawl. "Isn't this called 'bickering lovers'? Oh, right, I remember Clara's story... she and the Poetess had this dynamic."
Klein, suddenly called out. I'm not, I didn't!
Wait, what did Clara and the Poetess's story have to do with him? Klein coldly distanced himself, increasingly unwilling to check what Miss Magician had recently published.
It couldn't be anything good.
"Wait…" Klein suddenly realized something, staring at Lil' Amon in horror. "You read it too?"
"Well, yeah, what else?" Lil' Amon looked at him, puzzled but confident. "It's your fanfiction, Gehrman. Some characterizations feel too out-of-character, but I'm no purist. I can handle OOC."
Klein was momentarily speechless. Then "Jack" chimed in, eagerly adding, "I think Clara's a bit OOC too, but a lively Hunter girl is kinda fun. The naive Demoness Poetess is spot-on…"
"I'm more into the dragon noblewoman vibe. Don't you think…" Lil' Amon countered.
The two dove into a spirited discussion, leaving Klein to silently pull out earplugs after a second, expressionlessly blocking his ears.
***
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