Chapter 132: 68. Goodbye Crab Lady
As Fisher stepped into the classroom, he was greeted by the familiar scent of incense often used by the church. This time, however, in addition to that smell, he detected a faint floral fragrance. He looked up and saw Ms. Anna quietly sitting in the back row of the classroom.
Perhaps because she was too beautiful, the men nearby couldn’t help but blush and steal glances in her direction, even those accompanied by their wives and children. The next moment, he felt a sharp pain at his waist.
Turning his head, he caught a cold glare from his wife, who held their child, as she pointed disdainfully at him before moving a bit further away, leaving the man embarrassed to scratch his head. Yet he still couldn’t resist the urge to look back at the lady.
She was truly captivating, like a mesmerizing poppy flower.
Fisher observed Anna silently, only to find her focused intently on the blackboard. Meeting Fisher’s gaze, she blinked and then awkwardly shifted her eyes away.
“Hello everyone, I am Fisher Benavides, the volunteer teacher for today’s service at the Full Moon Church. May the Mother God bless every child who seeks the truth.”
Following tradition, he performed the Mother God’s blessing gesture, and everyone below folded their hands in unison, praising the great Mother God.
“This class is about ethics, which is a branch of philosophy that represents humanity’s considerations and reflections on morality. Of course, this class will not delve into overly sharp or tricky contradictions, and you need not treat it as a rigorous classroom; think of it as an equal exchange.”
“Today, I will introduce one of the branches of ethical theories, specifically the social contract theory first proposed by Mr. Claude Barkins.”
This lesson was different from Fisher’s usual classes; there were not many stringent requirements, nor was there a strict classroom order. He used vivid examples to explain the origins and essence of the theory while sharing his personal views on the positions and weaknesses of the theorists.
This was not his teaching style but that of Professor Amissel from the Royal Academy, which was how Fisher remembered being captivated by knowledge in the first place.
Fisher was merely recounting how he had been drawn to knowledge, ultimately leading him on the path of learning.
The classroom atmosphere was quite relaxed. Over the span of an hour, the students occasionally smiled, often shifting their thoughts alongside Fisher’s words. By the time he realized that twenty minutes had passed since the scheduled end of the class, he noticed the bishop of the Full Moon Church smiling at the door, looking like a Saint Nali University gatekeeper. Fisher suspected her first words upon entering would be, “We’re locking up now.”
“Alright, that’s all for today’s class. May the Mother God bless you all.”
“May the Mother God bless you.”
The students below smiled and performed a prayer gesture, and the bishop brought in a donation box, placing it in front of the podium.
This was not truly about collecting money but rather a custom from the traditional Nali Church. The first archbishop, in his pursuit of the original Genesis, had given away all his wealth and walked from Nali to Cardu, bringing back the first manuscript of Genesis.
Since then, the church had adopted the custom of donating after prayers, symbolizing a fervent pursuit of truth and faith by discarding money, a mundane object, to express their devotion.
Although it is impossible to live without money in reality, even the poorest workers would drop a Nali coin into the box after praying, as part of the ritual.
The listeners lined up to drop their Nali coins into the box, most contributing one or two euros, and afterwards, they would pray to the bishop.
Fisher waited on the side until the last person, that lady Anna with the faint floral fragrance, approached the donation box. She gently pulled out a stack of Nali coins that must have been around a thousand euros and placed them in the box in front of Fisher.
She bowed slightly to the bishop and Fisher, whispering, “May the Mother God bless us.”
“May the Mother God bless us.”
After returning the greeting, she left with a gentle smile.
Fisher’s gaze followed the figure of the stunning lady, and the bishop beside him noticed Fisher’s attention, saying,
“Ah, that lady often comes to our Full Moon Church to pray.”
“Often comes?”
“About two or three times a week. After every prayer, she donates so much money. I wonder which wealthy gentleman she is married to, but with her looks, I really can’t imagine whom she would choose as a partner.”
No, she isn’t the wife of a wealthy family; she is the head of the largest brothel in the Natuon Street behind your church.
But it seems Anna truly came just for the church activities; she did not realize she was the one who visited the Pink Pavilion that day.
After learning about Anna from the Pink Pavilion, he bid farewell to the bishop of the Full Moon Church, grabbed his staff and hat, had dinner, and then strolled along the Coco River walkway.
The Coco River is the largest among the rivers in Nali, with a distance of about a hundred meters separating both banks. Railings and streetlights have been set up along the riverbank, and many young people gather here to drink and enjoy themselves.
Parker Park is at the end of the Coco River. Fisher sent a letter to Carlo that he would wait for him there in the evening and then headed to Parker Park alone.
To prove Meg’s earlier claim about “exchanging little elves,” he brought the earth resin he had bought yesterday, hoping to discover the true form of the little elf. This shimmering multicolored stone should be seen as a treasure by never-seen-before little elves.
Of course, exchange was improbable; when that little elf wanted to take the earth resin, Fisher would pull it back using the Thread Weaver. This item was worth 1350 euros; unless he could thoroughly study it, he wouldn’t be willing to part with such a large sum.
Parker Park remained quiet at night, particularly close to the ocean. Just a short walk behind the Mother God statue in the park, one could see the wide Southern Ocean. Fisher stood by the sea, gazing far into the distance. Beneath the night sky, the ocean appeared like a massive mouth, ready to swallow the entire world.
The ocean is so mysterious that even the highly successful humans of today cannot uncover what miraculous wonders lie within.
Fisher silently returned to the center of the park in front of the Mother God statue. Besides the stone statue of the Mother God, the water pool below seemed unfathomably deep, connected to the water supply system of Saint Nali.
He placed the shimmering earth resin on the edge of the pool, but he did not chant the incantation for presenting a treasure. Instead, he quietly sat beside the thicket of books next to the water pool.
Before long, Carlo arrived. When Fisher looked over, he noticed Carlo had changed into a beautiful dress, as if he wanted to wear it one last time before not being allowed to wear such clothing at Saint Nali University tomorrow.
The two exchanged glances in the thicket, and quickly realizing what Fisher was thinking, Carlo blushed and called out, “What are you looking at? This is the last day; can’t I wear it for one more day?”
“I didn’t say anything; if you want to wear it, then wear it.”
Carlo angrily sat down beside Fisher, focusing his eyes on the earth resin sitting by the pool, pouting as he said, “So, what’s this for?”
“Fishing for little elves.”
“Fishing with earth resin? And where would the little elves come from? Even if little elves could be caught with such things, they would surely be very foolish!”
Fisher ignored him, just telling him to rest. They hid behind the thicket for several hours. Carlo complained a bit at first, but after seeing Fisher’s unamused expression, he fell silent, secretly cursing him in his heart.
Not long after, he snuck over with a small makeup mirror to the streetlight, looking at his face and striking a few poses, acting all vain.
As time went by, he eventually fell asleep right beside Fisher, instinctively leaning toward him, trying to rest his head on Fisher’s shoulder. However, Fisher, feeling disgusted, pushed him away with a slap, sending him tumbling onto the grass beside them.
“Hey! You! What time is it? Why are you making me waste my time here? I’m really tired!”
“Lie down on the ground and sleep.”
Fisher couldn’t be bothered to engage with him, comfortably closing his eyes and waiting for the little elf to bite.
Seeing Fisher ignoring him, Carlo silently elevated his dislike for Fisher to the highest level, and then, unable to endure any longer, he lay down on the grass to rest.
Time passed slowly until the moonlight gradually rose to the zenith, and the bustling summer evening turned quiet. Suddenly, a near-transparent thread on Fisher’s staff twitched slightly, and at that moment, Fisher, who was meditating, abruptly opened his eyes.
He saw a small head had appeared at the edge of the water pool, with the figure completely submerged, reaching out to poke at the shimmering earth resin. Large, watery eyes blinked, clearly attracted by the desire for Fisher’s earth resin.
Fisher furrowed his brow and observed the figure, catching sight of a little girl’s face wearing a curious smile. The more he looked, the more familiar it appeared, until a second later, he fully recognized that the one hiding in the pool was Rena!
However, compared to her previous appearance, she seemed to have undergone some changes.
He recalled a few months ago when he had just returned from the Southern Continent by ship, encountering a crab lady from the ocean, Rena. At this moment, her head emerging from the pool had fair skin, with a hint of cute baby fat. Who else could she be?
How did she come to Saint Nali?
Amidst Fisher’s swirling thoughts, his movements remained swift.
He gripped his staff and gave a slight tug, the thread of the Thread Weaver pulling the earth resin up. Rena, startled, tried to submerge back into the water, but Fisher did not give her that chance and pulled her small body out of the pool using the Thread Weaver.
“Ah, let me go, let me go!”
“Shh, look at me. Do you recognize who I am?”
That familiar, chattering strange language re-entered his ears, and Fisher couldn’t help but smile as he held the little girl tightly, gently patting her face. As she squirmed and blew bubbles at him, when Fisher tried to speak, her expression slightly changed, and she turned to look at Fisher, who was signaling her to be quiet with a finger on his lips.
So, it was the human he had encountered before!
Her eyes lit up and the wariness and panic on her face seemed to fade a bit.
Following Fisher’s gaze, Rena looked towards the ground and saw Carlo lying there.
“Let’s go to a nearby empty spot.”
Fisher set Rena down and pointed in the direction of the beach outside Parker Park, saying this.
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Thank you very much for your support!
(End of this chapter)
