Chapter 35 Chapter 35: I, March 7th, Have Always Hated Evil!
Chapter 35: I, March 7th, Have Always Hated Evil!
Upper District, Qlipoth Fort.
"To have kept our esteemed guests waiting for an entire night, I hereby, on behalf of Belobog, express my deepest apologies to you all."
It was around noon the next day when Cocolia finally summoned little Elysia and the others back to the room where they had initially discussed matters. Placing her hand gently in front of her, she expressed her apologies to everyone, then turned the conversation and asked, "I wonder if our esteemed guests rested well last night?"
From this perspective, Cocolia truly seemed like a cheerful and approachable leader. Not only was she skilled in negotiations, but her etiquette was also impeccable.
Generally speaking, people only experience a strong sense of rejection on their first day in an unfamiliar place. Once they successfully pass this period, their senses begin to subconsciously accept the location and various things.
And as time passes in the same way, even if they know the place might not be safe, people's vigilance inevitably decreases...
"Slept pretty well, actually. Just ate too much last night and got a bit stuffed. Would be even better if we could get some exercise to help digest," March 7th said, even lowering her head to seriously pat her belly as if pondering whether she'd gain weight from it.
Alright, this girl probably never had any sense of vigilance from start to finish.
Fortunately, not everyone in this team was as naive as March 7th, who would help count the money after being sold. Dan Heng promptly reached out to stop this girl who even wanted to chat about everyday life with the other party and calmly stated, "We greatly appreciate your warm hospitality. However, since you've called us here this time, you must have some leads on the Stellaron, right?"
"We are always happy to provide you with reasonable information, but the top priority is to resolve the biggest trouble on this planet first, correct?"
Logically speaking, the leader of this planet would undoubtedly want their civilization to break free from the shackles of disaster and become more prosperous. The only consideration should be the issue of trust in them.
Yet, Dan Heng's subconscious kept feeling that something wasn't quite right somewhere, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly where this bad premonition was coming from.
Therefore, resolving the final issue as quickly as possible became the optimal course of action.
"I apologize. The disaster brought by the Stellaron is Belobog's burden, yet now we require the help of outsiders like yourselves."
Seeing Dan Heng so composed, Cocolia first appropriately expressed her apology, then immediately steered the conversation to the main point: "To be honest with everyone, last night I indeed issued an order to search for the Stellaron and reviewed many ancient texts left by predecessors. Ultimately, I discovered that after the Stellaron lost its trace hundreds of years ago, the place where it most likely exists now is Belobog's Underworld."
"Underworld?" Stelle tilted her head slightly and asked, "So you're saying this city actually has a large underground fortress?"
Sounds like... it's pretty impressive?!
"Correct. Belobog's current normal operation entirely relies on an energy substance called Geomarrow, and the Underworld is precisely the mining area developed specifically for extracting Geomarrow."
At this point, Cocolia suddenly paused, then lowered her head, revealing a hint of regret: "It's just a pity that over a decade ago, due to a certain accident, we had no choice but to seal off the Underworld. As a result, the Overworld now has no understanding of the actual situation in the Underworld."
"Moreover, due to the increasingly severe erosion of the Fragmentum, the Silvermane Guards of the Overworld probably cannot leave their posts to conduct extensive searches in the Underworld. I'm afraid we cannot provide you with much practical assistance."
The information Cocolia conveyed was entirely accurate, except she subtly omitted some rather crucial parts.
One part false, nine parts true—this was truly the most difficult lie to discern.
"So, we need to go to the Underworld ourselves to search for traces of the Stellaron, right?" To confirm, Dan Heng repeated the hidden meaning in Cocolia's words.
"Theoretically, that is indeed correct. But Belobog will absolutely provide you with the greatest possible support. With a proper identity, perhaps we can even persuade the people of the Underworld to help search for the Stellaron together?"
Cocolia could certainly casually grant them some special official titles, but whether they would have a positive or negative effect when brought to the Underworld was uncertain.
"Uh... alright. Although this plan doesn't sound particularly reliable, at least we have a goal now!"
March 7th clapped her hands quite optimistically and declared with great momentum: "If the Stellaron were just placed right in front of us, I'd think this Trailblazing journey would be utterly boring."
As she spoke, March 7th nudged Stelle beside her with her elbow and asked, "How can a Trailblazing journey without problems to solve be called an adventure? Don't you think so?"
"Actually, I still think how many new friends we can make during this process is also very important," Stelle replied very seriously, cupping her hands.
"Of course, it would be even better if there were more beautiful girls~"
"Hmm..."
Hearing such a suggestion, Stelle subconsciously nodded in agreement quite readily. Only then did she seem to suddenly realize something and looked down at little Elysia by her side.
The two hit it off immediately!
"However, our investigation throughout the night certainly didn't yield only these results."
After waiting for everyone to accept this outcome, Cocolia suddenly took out a photograph from under the table. Her earnest and serious expression revealed no issues: "This is a notorious fugitive in the Overworld. After committing unforgivable crimes, he fled to the Underworld through some means. Through investigation, we suspect he may be related to the Stellaron."
"What? A fugitive? I, March 7th, usually despise these kinds of people who don't abide by laws and morals the most! Every single one of these fugitives is a bad seed!"
If someone's already a wanted fugitive on the run, how could they be a good person? If they were wrongly accused, why run?
Filled with a sense of justice, March 7th was the first to step forward and pick up that photo, carefully examining the fugitive's appearance—gray-white hair, an expression that looked utterly cold-blooded at first glance, inexplicable attire, and... a very familiar baseball bat?!
March 7th turned her head to look at Stelle. Her mind immediately conjured up Stelle's identical bat-swinging style from the photo. The strange question subconsciously blurted out:
"Your dad?!"
"...Huh?!"
The sudden bizarre ethical question that appeared in this small room instantly drew the attention of the remaining few. They stared at that clear photo that seemed taken point-blank and fell into deep thought.
"Let me see too! Let me see too!"
As a little shorty, little Elysia hopped around below for a long time before finally gaining the right to view the photo. And then... she was dumbfounded too.
"...Huh??!"
There is an accompanying image here; it can be viewed after updating to the latest version.
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