Chapter 294: 69. The Soul Within the Mechanism
“The Cangniao Tribe mark, does that mean you have relevant clues?”
“What if I say I have the Cangniao Tribe mark with me?”
As soon as Fisher spoke, everyone around Valentina turned their gaze towards him, even Valentina’s eyes stirred with waves of unease, like ripples in a cold spring. A moment of contemplation flickered across her eyes before she suddenly spoke up,
“I previously mentioned to Mr. Fisher that the reason we went to that island in the Southern Ocean where the hidden scrolls were located was due to an ancient tomb of the Cangniao Tribe we discovered near the snowy mountains within the borders of Miya. In the underground palace, we found the location of that island along with buried ancient history, but soon we encountered a thief’s hole within the palace.”
“Someone got there first and took away the most valuable burial items.”
She gently touched the ring on her hand, the precious material resembling warm jade, exuding a remarkable sheen even indoors.
“The officials of Miya informed us that the stolen item was a precious piece of Zhen Ice, and some foreigners hired local bandits to carry out this act. We suspect that the Cangniao Tribe mark was stolen along with that piece of Zhen Ice, but last week, the Miya military, which retrieved the Zhen Ice, told us that they found no mark there, only the employees of the Exploration Company who were guarding the items.”
Fisher smiled and nodded, saying, “You’re correct, among the items stolen was indeed the Cangniao Tribe mark.”
“I followed Captain Alagina from the Southern Ocean into the Eastern Ocean, and during a stop for supplies at Pat Sulshen Island, I encountered my old enemy, people from Nali. You know, the name Fisher Benavides means 10 million Nali in Nali.”
“I had a conflict with the members of the overseas hidden affairs bureau there. Although I managed to escape by luck, they had long-distance communication magic to inform the authorities, which exposed my whereabouts to Saint Nali. To avoid dragging the Iceberg Queen into trouble, I left with the Cangniao Tribe mark and ventured to the Northern Region, hoping to seek protection from the Turan Family.”
Balzak, next to Valentina, curled his lips and speculated rather flippantly at Fisher, “You might be an employee of the Nali Exploration Company? They handed the Cangniao Tribe mark to you, letting you blend into our group, attempting to plunder more wealth and secrets from the Frost Parasol Tree like a bandit.”
Although Felis and Balzak weren’t exactly friendly, they surprisingly held the same sentiment on the “anti-Fisher front,” and he did not trust this handsome gentleman from Nali at all.
He clearly disliked illiterate people like Felis, yet for some reason, he felt no joy in interacting with a scholar like Fisher, who knew more than he did, as if his own spotlight was being stolen away.
Fisher shook his head but did not rebut or provide any additional explanation to Balzak’s words; he simply continued to gaze intently at Valentina.
“I’m afraid no matter how I explain, it would be futile. Let’s keep the focus on a simple transaction. Since it’s a transaction, there is naturally the risk of being deceived, but Miss Valentina can easily avoid this risk as long as you ensure you can find the Cangniao Tribe mark from other channels.”
The Cangniao Tribe mark was with Fisher, and regardless of how much Valentina searched for channels, she would ultimately return to Fisher’s side; he was not worried about her refusal.
“The Cangniao Tribe mark is with you?”
Valentina rubbed the ring on her hand, and after a second of thought, her light silver eyes slightly gleamed. Although her expression did not change much, it betrayed a clear sense of excitement, and she asked Fisher,
“I’m sorry, but before Valentina agrees to the transaction, I’d rather not disclose more information about the chips. Usually, this leads to more suspicion, doesn’t it? What I want is simple, protection from the Turan Family and the qualification to enter the Frost Parasol Tree with you all.”
Miss Valentina was still too young; such obvious eagerness is absolutely not to be shown during negotiations and transactions, for this would give the opponent a handle to grasp, widening the space for negotiation like a tug of war.
Thus, when Valentina observed the ambiguous smile on Fisher’s face, the excitement she had just felt dissipated instantly, and her small face turned unhappy.
However, that displeased expression lasted merely a second before it vanished as if buried beneath the heavy ice and snow of the Northern Region. She slightly raised her right hand to support her cheek, looking at Fisher through the gaps in her fingers.
“Mr. Fisher Benavides, the Turan Family does not consider origins when choosing people. As long as our goals are aligned, there is a space for cooperation. This is also why I dared to invite you to join my team upon our first meeting.”
“Since it’s a transaction, and you have presented something favored by the Turan Family, we are naturally willing to fulfill what you desire first. But let me remind you not to use empty promises to deceive the Turan Family. They are determined to obtain the Frost Parasol Tree; we must reach there, and the consequences of deception will be unimaginable for you.”
Her petite body remained seated in the wheelchair, her legs seemingly paralyzed, like a dead weight, but the sickly fragile body didn’t inhibit the overwhelming pressure emanating from her, coming from the most powerful family in the Northern Region, the Turan Family.
This pressure weakened for Fisher, who was not from the Northern Region. Previously, he had only a certain understanding of this family, knowing they started in ore trade and now invested throughout the Northern Region.
“Of course, no problem. Then the transaction is considered established?”
Valentina nodded and spoke, “Tonight we will leave the Sardinia Kingdom with Sister Ilos to head to the Nebarun Kingdom. You can set off with us. We’ll talk about the transaction along the way, Mr. Fisher.”
After saying this, before Haldor behind her could push her, she self-sufficiently wheeled herself out towards the church entrance. Balzak and Felis, merely workers, had no authority to interfere with their employer’s decision, so they just shot a glance at Fisher sitting in the chair and followed Valentina out of the church.
Haldor, however, did not hurry to leave the church but turned to look at Fisher, who was still seated. Steam continuously poured out from beneath his face, but Fisher saw no place within him where coal could burn. This strange structure further convinced Fisher that Haldor before him was closely related to the Mechanism.
Valentina outside had gradually walked further away. Fisher thought that Haldor would soon possess the Mechanism and discuss some information regarding Erwind with him, but unexpectedly he suddenly said something that baffled Fisher,
“Zizizi. I never expected that the famous Fisher Benavides would end up like this, a student of Heilson. I should have thought of it earlier.”
“You know my teacher?”
On Haldor’s mechanical face, there was no recognizable expression, and even his tone seemed somewhat rigid, just like the components that constituted his body.
“Zizizi. Not exactly acquainted, just a fleeting encounter. Back then, I attended a demonstration held by the Nali Magic Association where I met him. He and another master of magic from Nali collaborated to design a brand new ring head, shocking the world of magic. This made me, who was the same age yet had achieved nothing, quite regretful, and I worked even harder to study magic.”
Gravity magic?
Heilson and that master of gravity magic should have designed gravity magic years ago when Heilson was young, but Haldor here said he was the same age as Heilson at that time?
Wait, what exactly is Haldor in front of me? Isn’t he a Mechanism created by the Mechanism?
Fisher felt somewhat surprised, but Haldor did not seem surprised by his astonishment. The steam below his face intensified, and for the first time, a hint of human-like humor appeared in his monotonous tone,
“Zizizi. It’s quite unbelievable, isn’t it? Who would have thought that the man living in this machine would actually be such an old fellow? However, even after changing bodies, I still feel like I am aging; I’ve been feeling my mind less sharp lately.”
“Zizizi. Getting off-topic, you are Heilson’s direct disciple, while Valentina is still young and has been in her family for a long time, of course, she doesn’t know much about the matters of Nali. Heilson’s disciple won’t be a bad person; she will understand this. She is just too eager for the Frost Parasol Tree, and you will understand later.”
“Zizizi. In any case, welcome to our team, Mr. Fisher Benavides. I am Haldor Turan, a member of the Turan Family and a rather unremarkable magician.”
Haldor gently extended his right hand towards Fisher, as if a lively soul had emerged from within the previously lifeless machinery. After Fisher stared blankly for a moment, he also extended his right hand to shake, and only after a brief contact did he notice a faint blue light flickering within Haldor’s mechanical arm.
And this light, Fisher had only seen on the Mechanism’s Mechanism.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Haldor.”
“Zizizi.”
Haldor nodded in acknowledgment, but the steam beneath his face seemed to uncontrollably gush out, engulfing his face in mist. After releasing Fisher’s hand, he turned to leave the church alongside Balzak and the others.
Sitting still, Fisher turned the metallic card in his hand. He had confirmed multiple times that the Mechanism close to him was indeed Haldor.
“It seems the Turan Family has many troubles as well.”
“What the hell, why do so many strange things happen when I’m with you? Is he human or machine?”
Just then, Emhart, who had snuggled into Fisher’s pocket during the serious conversation, finally poked his head out. He could’ve stayed on Fisher’s shoulder to listen, but for some reason, he just could not help but want to remind the women around Fisher to run away.
“Mr. Fisher, um, can you help me? I, um, have too much stuff, it’s very heavy.”
Hearing the voice, Fisher turned to look in the direction of the Mother God Statue and saw Sister Ilos, who was pregnant and struggling, using one hand to pull a large, bundled bag from behind her. The bag was bulging, and he couldn’t tell what it contained, but it probably had something to do with the clock tower upstairs. No wonder she hadn’t come down for so long.
But when observing Ilos gasping for breath while holding her abdomen, he felt a pang of guilt as if he was making his wife do dirty and tiring work after getting her pregnant, though in reality, she wasn’t pregnant.
“My goodness, are you planning to move your entire church? Also, I want to ask how you managed to bring that big bag down from upstairs.”
Emhart sitting on Fisher’s shoulder wrinkled his nose and ruthlessly commented.
“Eh? These are all the things left behind by Sister Xialuxiu, and there are some valuable items from inside the church. If we leave, they might all be stolen.”
Fisher looked speechlessly at the jars and bottles stuffed inside that bag, noting that even pickled sauerkraut and seasonings were included. It seemed her stinginess rivaled his.
“Valuable items? What exactly do you have? Let me see.”
At that moment, out of nowhere, a pair of lion ears resembling muffins appeared behind Fisher. After hearing Ilos’s previous words, the lion ears happily twitched, after which Fisher felt someone leaning closer to him, greedily eyeing the contents of Ilos’s bag.
It was Felis, the money-loving lion from Valentina’s crew.
“Tch, what is all this junk? You call this valuable? What a waste of my excitement… Oh, right, I almost forgot, the boss wants you to hurry; we still need to take the boat to leave the Sardinia Kingdom.”
After seeing what was inside the bag, Felis became quite disappointed. She disdainfully stepped back several paces from Fisher, unaware that her blunt comment instantly turned Ilos’s expression to one of pity.
“I think I will just leave these items in the church.”
Ilos’s ears drooped slightly, and she wore a forlorn expression as she tried to drag the big bag back to her room, but Fisher couldn’t bear to see her struggling to haul the items anymore. He reached out to easily pull the heavy load back to the front of the room, casually comforting her,
“Don’t worry; the land purchased by the Turan Family should be looked after by the mayor of Luhua Fortress if he isn’t a stupid pig.”
“Mm-hm.”
Ilos nodded obediently while covering her little belly. After thinking of something, her face blushed slightly for a moment as she followed Fisher out of the church.
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
She heard the church bells one last time, but the peaceful chime didn’t give her much courage; she felt somewhat insecure, especially about the journey ahead.
But since she had already decided to take this step to return and see her deceased relatives one last time, she should gather her courage.
She silently prayed in her heart, asking the Mother God above to watch over and protect her.
The carriage at the door, lacking space magic, was still spacious enough. Valentina, Balzak, and Felis sat inside the carriage, while the Mechanism, Haldor, stayed outside driving it.
“Mr. Fisher, Sister Ilos, please get in the carriage; it’s very cold outside. We are heading to the port now; we will leave the Sardinia Kingdom tonight.”
Fisher nodded and helped Sister Ilos into the carriage. Just as he was about to get in, he seemed to notice something. He turned his head slightly towards the side of the carriage and saw the curtain of the carriage window slightly lifted, revealing a pair of light silver eyes that were watching him.
When Fisher turned to look at those eyes, the curtain suddenly dropped, shielding Valentina’s gaze behind it.
“Forget it, it looks a bit cramped inside. I’ll sit outside with you.”
Fisher shook his head and said so.
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(End of this chapter)
