Chapter 295: 70. Heidi Lin
“Hiss!”
The two fine horses in front of the carriage were panting in the cold Northern Region, rushing forward along the frosty suburban path with the heavy carriage behind them. The Healing Rot Church in the back was getting smaller in Fisher’s eyes, while the outlines of the city of Luxiangbao, with its curling smoke, were becoming more distinct.
Fisher’s clothing was thin, but he didn’t feel particularly cold. After resting for a night, his injuries from the storm had improved a lot, and he could no longer feel the sharp pain in his body.
“Zizi. Mr. Fisher, our ship is docked at the port just outside Luxiangbao. If we board now, we will probably arrive at the Nebarun Kingdom by tomorrow, so we’ll have to have our dinner on the ship.”
“Are we in such a hurry?”
“Zizi. In fact, we had the idea of tracing the Frost Parasol Tree from the Six Clans a long time ago, but it wasn’t until recently that Valentina saw a glimmer of hope after entering the Cangniao Tribe’s mausoleum in Miya. Valentina has been searching for these clues for several years, and of course, she won’t let this opportunity slip away.”
Whether it was because Fisher was Heilson’s student, Haldor beside him was fairly friendly and sincere towards him. Not only did he ask Fisher if he felt cold when they first got on the carriage, but he also talked to him about their current progress in searching for the marks, seeming to trust him as Heilson’s student.
The soundproofing of the carriage was not very good, and sitting at the front of the carriage, Fisher could occasionally hear Valentina and Ilos talking in the back.
Their conversation was mainly about more information regarding the extinction process of the Moon Rabbit Tribe. In fact, the Turan Family had received this news several years ago; at that time, they also took in many Moon Rabbit Tribe members that escaped from the Nebarun Kingdom. But even far from their homeland, they would still suddenly lose their lives at night.
The dying process was generally similar to those crew members Fisher had seen on the islands of the Southern Continent, with feathers growing all over their bodies, ultimately dying from excessive blood loss.
It was precisely because they had the previous experience of the Moon Rabbit Tribe that they seemed to understand the curse when they boarded the island.
Fisher suddenly recalled the illusory gaze he had seen surrounding the sealing of the Ultimate Ice Scroll. He always felt that the gaze was quite different from the one in the Spirit Realm, more like another kind of thing he couldn’t articulate.
After about half an hour of driving, Fisher saw the ironclad ship he had seen before, which was much smaller than the Iceberg Queen, docked at the Luxiangbao port; he had only seen its shape from a distance last time.
Now that he was closer, he noticed that there was a giant whale with a single horn on its head painted on the side of the ship, which seemed to correspond to the ice-breaking spear in front of the ship upon closer inspection.
A blue flag with blooming five-pointed snowflakes was hanging from the mast overhead, and the wind in the territory of the Sardinia Kingdom picked up, causing the flag to flutter like waves. There were no people in front of the ship, only crew members dressed in light blue service attire, each marked with the five-pointed snowflake, waiting below.
“Miss Valentina, as per your instructions, the steam engine of the Unicorn Whale is already heated and ready to leave McDowell.”
Seeing Valentina’s carriage approach from a distance, the crew respectfully leaned toward the side of the carriage and spoke.
A pale hand lifted the curtain at the back of the carriage, and a faintly fragrant response came from inside:
“Let’s board, we need to leave now.”
“Yes, Miss.”
Fisher got off the carriage first, followed closely by the two who were wary of each other but more cautious of him, Felis and Balzak. Fisher didn’t pay them any attention, and they were forced to stay near the carriage as their boss had not yet disembarked.
Meanwhile, the “pseudo-pregnant” nun Ilos, not having been on a carriage for too long, couldn’t help but reach down to touch the slightly protruding tail part of her nun robe after getting off. A bit unaccustomed, she glanced at the massive ship docked at the port and stood beside Fisher.
“Ah, the Turan Family, I finally see the head of their family. By the way, did I mention they have lived in a five-pointed snowflake-shaped fortress for generations and rarely show themselves outside?”
Emhart said, looking at the enormous flag flapping in the wind above, unable to restrain himself as he spoke to Fisher. When talking about the head of the Turan Family, both of their gazes unintentionally turned to the direction of the carriage, where Valentina was being carefully taken down from the carriage by Haldor, seated in her wheelchair.
It seemed that her legs were afflicted by some condition, either congenital or acquired, binding her life to the wheelchair beneath her, and her demeanor was tinged with a faintly fragile quality, especially as Fisher witnessed her being lifted off the carriage with an expressionless face.
By the way, when she was beside him earlier, the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans had displayed some incomprehensible garbled text, which either indicated that Valentina was a type of subhuman that even the Handbook couldn’t recognize, or that her situation was special, not conforming to the criteria that classified subhumans.
Fisher was skeptical that there could be a type of subhuman that the Handbook couldn’t determine, thus he believed more in the latter.
In other words, even if Valentina was not a subhuman, she had a profound connection with them.
A hint of contemplation flashed through Fisher’s gaze as he examined Valentina, but he did not express it overtly. Only Emhart on his shoulder noticed a slight hint and glanced at him silently.
The Turan Family’s ship was called the Unicorn Whale, and the boarding process was much gentler than Captain Alagina’s Iceberg Queen. At least now, Fisher and the heavily pregnant Ilos didn’t have to pull themselves up to the deck by a chain anymore, as this ship was equipped with a mechanical lift.
“Boss, now that we have the mark from the Cloud Cat Breed and have also found where the Moon Rabbit Tribe’s remnants are, should we contact the Snow Fox Tribe to seek their mark?”
On the lift, Felis leaned against the wall juggling the coins in her hand, and Balzak’s words jolted the resting Valentina awake. She cast a silent glance at Fisher, who was beside her with his arms crossed, and rubbed her temples with some headache.
Haldor behind them noticed Valentina’s movement and spoke up,
“Zizi. The Snow Fox Tribe is a very reclusive race. Although they are often seen in the Northern Region, they are not friendly to other races. According to the information in the family, the mark is still in their hands, but even communicating with them is usually very difficult, so it may be impossible to get them to hand over the mark.”
“Tsk, aren’t they just a bunch of filthy subhumans? We can even steal it if we have to…”
Balzak murmured under his breath, but the Elisis behind him suddenly clasped her coins tightly, producing a crisp sound while her lion’s ear looked fierce, which made him cut off his words abruptly.
He had almost forgotten that he was still in the company of two subhumans.
Balzak silently retracted his words, leaning against the wall with a scowl.
“I will figure out the matter of the Snow Fox Tribe’s mark later. We already have the mark from the Cloud Cat Breed, and we also have leads on the Cangniao Tribe and Moon Rabbit Tribe marks.”
Valentina suddenly spoke, and when mentioning “Cangniao Tribe” and “Moon Rabbit Tribe,” she glanced at Fisher and Ilos before continuing to say to Balzak,
“You can start looking for leads on the remaining two subhuman marks. The Troll Race has been missing for too long, so it will probably be more difficult. Let’s start with the Slime Race’s mark first.”
“. No problem, boss. I will prepare for it later.”
Valentina nodded, and the entire lift suddenly vibrated and came to a stop. With the creaking sound of mechanical parts rubbing together, the large door ahead abruptly opened, revealing the interior space of the cabin.
Inside, a spacious corridor covered with blankets was scattered with soft magical lights, and the warm air contrasted starkly with the cold temperatures of the Northern Region, feeling like a gentle breeze as if one were basking in the sun.
The warm temperature was mixed with a faint floral scent, revealing a lady in traditional Northern attire who had been waiting right at the elevator’s exit.
“Miss Valentina, good evening to all guests. The hot water and dinner are ready. Welcome back.”
Her mature face wore a gentle smile, and her broad chest could rival that of the Theresa nun in his memory. Her pure black long hair was tied into a bun with a shiny crown adorned with a dazzling green gem, which made her quite striking.
Fisher had seen this lady last time on the island; her name seemed to be “Heidi Lin.” However, at that time, she had not worn this crown.
“Zizi. Mr. Fisher, this is the supervisor of the ship, Miss Heidi Lin. She is usually responsible for Valentina’s daily care. Heidi Lin, this is Fisher Benavides; we met once on the island, and he will be working with us to find the marks.”
“Hello, Ms. Heidi Lin.”
“Mr. Fisher, nice to see you again. It’s great to meet you here. Ah, and this lovely Moon Rabbit Tribe nun?”
“Uh? Um… May the Mother bless, no, no, I am very pleased to meet you.”
Heidi Lin raised her hand to cup her face, greeting Fisher and Ilos, then carefully scrutinized Emhart resting on Fisher’s shoulder, seemingly fascinated by his ugliness, which made Emhart feel uncomfortable enough to nearly retreat into Fisher’s pocket.
Her green eyes were warm, as brilliant as the emerald gem embedded in her crown, and she was very hospitable, matching the warmth of the room.
“Alright, Heidi Lin, arrange a room for both of them, and take them to the dining area. I need to change my clothes.”
Valentina pushed her wheelchair out of the lift toward the depths of the corridor. Balzak and Elisis had also become regulars on the ship, and seeing Valentina in her wheelchair moving away, Felis’s smile immediately turned ominous as she looked at Balzak beside her.
“Heh, you worthless dog. You were quite the talker inside just now. Next time, you’d better pray that when you get into trouble, don’t let me, the filthy subhuman, save you; otherwise, it wouldn’t do justice to what you just said.”
Balzak curled his lips and glanced at Ilos still in the lift, as well as Fisher looking at him. Meanwhile, the smiling Heidi Lin was also looking at him.
He opened his mouth but said nothing, only letting out a cold snort at the hostile Felis.
“Heh.”
Balzak shook his red robe, just about to walk in when the depths of the corridor suddenly trembled, followed by a series of loud noises, like countless metal parts shaking and rubbing together wildly, startling him.
“Damn it, what is Selti doing now? One day, she’ll tear this ship apart. These guys are not reliable, and now there’s one more.”
Felis spat contemptuously on the carpet nearby, snickering derisively, and just as she was getting ready to leave in a showy manner, her ears suddenly began to tremble uneasily, making her reach up to touch her hair a bit awkwardly. She turned back and grinned sheepishly at the smiling Heidi Lin, saying,
“Ah, I almost forgot that I can’t spit on the ship. Haha, sorry.”
“If you could remember to go to the toilet, I might be even happier, Miss Felis.”
Heidi Lin said with a half-smile, causing the once-pugnacious Felis to feel guilty. She quietly stepped back, using her lion tail from behind to sweep the mess on the floor while discreetly beginning to move backward.
“Next time, definitely. Next time, definitely.”
Seeing that Heidi Lin had no intention of paying her any mind, Felis’s steps lightened instantly as she dashed toward the depths of the corridor toward the rooms, leaving only Fisher and the other three by the lift.
Heidi Lin let out a sigh and withdrew her gaze, turning to the contemplative Fisher and saying,
“Though these guys are quite capable at work, their private lives are really not commendable, like children. But perhaps it is precisely because of their lack of attention to detail that they can focus on what’s in front of them? Alright, Mr. Fisher, let me take you to see your rooms; dinner is about to be served, and there’s not much time to waste.”
She touched her lips, and the mature charm radiated from the corners of her naturally unpainted lips, harmonizing perfectly with the crown atop her head.
Please vote, tip, and support; it is very important to me!
Thank you very much for your support!
()
(End of chapter)
