Chapter 646

Chapter 646: A Temporary Farewell

With a rush of air surging out of the pipes, a loud, lingering whistle rose from the upper levels of the Truth Academy Ark. The Vanished once again pulled in beside the steam-powered mechanical dock at the far end of the Ark’s shoreline. Knowledge guards and scholars in dark blue robes appeared on the gangway, ready to welcome their Pope back.

On the aft deck, Duncan saw Rune, who had just come out of the captain’s cabin.

The short, plump elf elder had been inside the cabin this whole time, talking at great length with the “creator” of his race. Duncan had no idea what he and Goathead had talked about. He only knew that when Rune stepped out of the cabin, his expression looked a little blank.

There was also a kind of calm on his face, the empty sort that came after draining one’s thoughts.

Duncan walked up to this “Pope of Truth” and greeted him several times before Rune finally snapped out of his daze and emptiness.

“Your Cathedral ship is already waiting alongside,” Duncan said as he raised his hand and pointed past the rail at the gigantic Ark outside, which looked like a small city-state. “The scholars and guards have come to take you back.”

Rune looked up, then belatedly nodded: “Oh… right, it is time to go back.”

Seeing the elf elder’s reaction, Duncan could not help feeling a little puzzled: “What did you talk about with Saslokar? You weren’t in this state when you first came aboard…”

“We talked about… a lot of things,” Rune said slowly, as if he did not even know where to begin. “A great many things.”

Duncan frowned slightly and began to understand: “So you saw what the First Mate is usually like.”

Rune jolted, as if he truly returned to himself only then. He lifted his head to look at Duncan, hesitated for a long time, and finally spoke: “…Why does He talk so much?”

“I’m more surprised that He talks so little when He’s in His Mythic Form,” Duncan laughed, and there was a trace of genuine amusement in his smile. “What you see now is how He usually behaves on my ship—in stricter terms, it’s how He acts as ‘Goathead’.”

Rune opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something but could not find where to start. After holding it in for a long time, he suddenly relaxed and laughed: “…It’s not a bad thing. He seems to really like being that way.”

The deck fell quiet for a while. No one paid any attention to the Pilgrimage Ark waiting nearby to take the Pope back. After an unknown time, Duncan finally broke the silence: “How do you plan to handle the ‘truth’ of this incident? Especially the part about Saslokar.”

“Most of it will be restricted to the upper ranks of the Four Gods Church,” Rune said. “Just like with all supernatural incidents that point toward a God, we will seal the information, handle the aftermath, and carefully assess the long-term impact of this incident on the Mortal Realm. As for elven society…”

Rune paused here, thinking. After a moment, he gently shook his head.

“The ancient days are already gone. Legends… should be allowed to keep sleeping as legends. That is also ‘His’ wish.”

“That’s good. I don’t like trouble,” Duncan nodded, then shifted the topic. “But there is something I need to remind you of—this is the third city-state.”

Rune at once understood what Duncan meant, and his expression grew solemn.

“Pland, Frostholm, Lightwind Harbor… The cause and course of each incident looked different. Each one seemed like an isolated ‘special disaster’. Every time, the biggest culprit behind it all seemed to be that group of cultists. But a bunch of cultists alone cannot pry at the very foundations of the world’s order,” Duncan said seriously. “What these incidents really show is that the world’s ‘keystone’ is starting to shake. I want to know whether the Four Gods Church has any way to deal with this, what you truly know, and what plans you have in place.”

Rune fell into a deep, dark silence. After a long time, he finally gave a small nod.

“I understand what you mean… and now I have confirmed your stance as well. At least by my own judgment, this is indeed the time to put aside suspicion and step up our cooperation.”

Duncan watched him: “But you still have to consider the reactions of the other Three Gods’ churches, don’t you?”

“It’s not just their reactions… There is also the reaction of the Gods,” Rune said calmly. “I will discuss this with the other three Popes as soon as possible. No matter what the result is, I will give you an answer—and likewise, no matter what the result is, at the very least, the Truth Academy will from now on show the Vanished Fleet the greatest possible trust and cooperation.”

Duncan nodded. He knew this was the greatest promise the other side could give him at this stage.

Just then, Rune seemed to recall something and suddenly said: “There is one more thing—I have heard about Miss Vanna’s experience in this incident. I think… at the very least, the Flamebearer side will come looking for you soon.”

“Flamebearer?” Duncan frowned, then immediately understood.

He turned his head and looked toward the other side of the deck. Vanna was leaning against a pillar by the rail, letting the sea breeze wash over her as she seemed to rest with her eyes closed. But Duncan’s attention was not on her, it was on the thing lying beside her.

It was a huge, strange Gatekeeper’s cane, as thick as a tree trunk. Its tip bulged like a giant, oddly shaped boulder, while the shaft was straight and rough. The entire Gatekeeper’s cane was covered in carved markings that looked like mysterious symbols.

That was what the giant named “Tarrigan” had left to Vanna—even after the Nameless One’s dream completely scattered, this Gatekeeper’s cane still remained. Along with that strange “miniature Sun”, it had followed the Vanished back to the Mortal Realm.

“Everburning Ember, Tarrigan, the Flamebearers’ God,” Rune said quietly. “The ‘giant’ Miss Vanna met in the Nameless One’s dream should have been an echo left behind in Atlantis’s memory during the collision of two worlds, a phantom in the form of ‘resonance’. Yet even if it was only a phantom, it was still a phantom of an Elder God. What He left behind has now crossed the boundary between dream and the Mortal Realm.

“That Gatekeeper’s cane… if I’m not mistaken, it should be the ‘Chronicle Pillar’ that the Flamebearers worship. On Frem’s Pilgrimage Ark, there is a device that looks almost exactly the same, and it is regarded as the heart of the Ark. Its size is much larger than that ‘Gatekeeper’s cane’, though. I have seen it. It looks more like a gigantic monument…

“And that ‘Chronicle Pillar’ built on the Flamebearers’ Ark is actually a ‘replica’ made according to the descriptions in the Sacred Tome. For a very long time, the true ‘Chronicle Pillar’ existed only in legend.”

Duncan thought for a moment: “So you mean the Gatekeeper’s cane Vanna brought back is the ‘genuine article’ described in the Sacred Tome.”

“I can only say it is the closest thing to the ‘genuine article’ that we currently know of,” Rune said very carefully. “It is possible that there is no true ‘genuine article’ left in this world at all. The Great Annihilation ended everything. As we trace things back from the age of the Deep Sea, the farthest we can go is only infinitely close to that so-called ‘genuine article’.”

“Either way, it looks like that ‘Gatekeeper’s cane’ holds extraordinary meaning for the Flamebearers,” Duncan nodded lightly. “You think they will want to take it, is that it?”

“I’m not sure. Frem is a broad-minded, fair person. He never forces others and never seizes what does not belong to him. But… you know, that is still the ‘Chronicle Pillar’ left behind by Everburning Ember. Whether for the Flamebearer sect or for Senkin, its meaning is far too special.”

Duncan said nothing. He simply watched the “Gatekeeper’s cane” lying beside Vanna with a quiet gaze and thought in silence.

For some reason, he found himself thinking of that longsword that had once been thrown toward the sky.

He had given that sword to the research institute in Lightwind Harbor, because for him the only important thing about it was the “information” it carried about another world. As for supernatural objects themselves, he was no professional researcher.

In the same way, the Gatekeeper’s cane actually had little meaning to him, even though it had once been held in the hand of Everburning Ember, Tarrigan. Duncan only cared about the “truth” and “knowledge” of the Great Annihilation. Once he had gained that part of the information, he did not care much about anything else.

There were countless supernatural objects in this world, but for Duncan, most of them were worthless—not worth taking up even a single spot aboard the Vanished.

The problem this time, however, was that this Gatekeeper’s cane had been left to Vanna by Tarrigan.

He had to respect his crew member.

“Personally, I don’t mind handing the Gatekeeper’s cane over to the Flamebearers. After all, just like the ‘Horo-Dazzo Epic Poem’ in your hands is of great importance to the elves, the ‘Chronicle Pillar’ is indeed a relic of Senkin’s civilization,” he said openly. “But I have to consider what Vanna thinks. Since you already know about Vanna’s experience, you should know she treasures that Gatekeeper’s cane.”

He paused, then spoke very seriously to Rune: “That is her friend’s keepsake. I am not as broad-minded and fair as this Frem you talk about. I am protective of my own.”

“…I understand your stance,” Rune said, nodding with a solemn expression. “I will pass your words on to Frem and ask him to think very carefully about this matter—to avoid both sides being put in an awkward position.”

Duncan dipped his head slightly: “That would be best.”

The loud, melodious whistle sounded again, and great clouds of steam rose like billows in the sky above the Academy Ark.

Rune took his leave from everyone aboard the Vanished. Then, under the watchful eyes of Duncan and the others, the elf elder stepped onto the gangway that led back to the Ark.

Driven by a massive steam engine, the mechanical gangway slowly retracted. Then, amid a series of heavy mechanical noises, the entire transforming dock structure folded back into the “shoreline structure” along the Ark’s side. The vast Cathedral-ship, a city-state in its own right, let out a low rumble as it gradually pulled away from the Vanished.

But Duncan knew that this Ark would not return to the border right away. Rune had told him of his plans: the Pilgrimage Ark would remain in Lightwind Harbor for a while to help this “city-state just waking from a long dream” handle a series of aftermath matters.

That, however, no longer had anything to do with the Vanished.

Now, Duncan needed to deal with another matter that required “aftercare”.

He walked to the door of the captain’s cabin at the stern and pushed it open.