The City of Marronligar

Many people mistakenly believe that this bay is named Silver Bay because there are several silver mines nearby.In fact, most of the mineral deposits around Marunliga are iron ore, and there are no silver mines.Tracing back to the source, the birth of the place name "Silver Bay" is inseparable from explorers and nautical trade: the fugitive nobles invested in the construction of docks and shipyards, and the earliest explorers used ships to bring silver produced in other areas here.

Wealth and knowledge flowed between each continent like ocean currents, and also brought fresh blood to Marunliga, creating her golden age.

——Miscellaneous Notes of Silver Bay Tower: Explorers and Their Ships

The moment he saw Samuel, Louis' first reaction was to check if his window was closed.He looked at the half-open wooden window, and shook his head helplessly: "After all these years, you still haven't changed at all. You know there is a door downstairs, right?"

Samuel jumped off the table and said with a smile: "You came back late, and I don't have your key, so I can only come in like this."

Louis sighed, sat down heavily on the edge of the bed, pulled out a long pipe from his waist, and asked while lighting it, "Tell me, Samuel, what do you want from me?"

"I heard that you went to the association today and met with those 'old subordinates'." Samuel took two steps and leaned against the wall. "Can you tell me what your meeting was about?"

Louis raised his head: "You are so direct in your question, are you not covering up?"

Obviously, Samuel did not intend to conceal his source of information, and almost directly confessed Adrian's role as "eyes and ears" to Louis.

Samuel also admitted: "My nephew said he wanted to end this 'teacher-student relationship' early, probably because of something you said or did. I think you have guessed why I sent Adrian come over."

Louis looked at Samuel firmly, and said word by word: "You are using him. Not only do you want Adrian to escape the control of the family elders, but you also intend to make him my shackles, to ensure that I will not hinder Your actions to investigate the sacred artifact."

"you can say it this way."

"You don't even want to lie to me." Louis smiled wryly.

A look of nostalgia appeared on Samuel's face.He said softly, "You'll find out sooner or later anyway. And I know you'll help me, Louis."

Louis stopped halfway up his pipe.

He knew Samuel's confidence was not without reason.They have known each other for too long, and even spent the drunken youth together, and they understand each other to the point where there is no need to say much.

It was precisely because of mutual acquaintance that Louis felt even more bitter when faced with such a predicament: "You saved my life six years ago just to plant mines for the Bounty Hunter Association today?"

Samuel was silent at first, and he was silent for a long time before answering: "No, apart from long-term plans, there are also personal emotional factors. I have always regarded you as a true friend, Louis."

Louis pretended to laugh a few times easily, and waved his hands, expressing his indifference to the past: "A normal friend would not roll on the same bed, Samuel."

Samuel didn't speak.

Louis said again: "You just asked about the movement of the association, and I will tell you now. The radicals want the catastrophe to continue. For this reason, they will stop you and Hagrid at all costs. Trud said, if I am willing to join They will be able to return to the association after the matter is completed, and they can even continue to be the real president. Of course, I did not express my opinion immediately, and they gave me 'time to consider'. This deal is so good that it looks like a scam, but for the sake of the president It's really against my style to attack you in this position."

A chill flashed in Samuel's eyes: "There are always people who don't want to see the catastrophe end, right?"

Louis slowly exhaled a cloud of smoke: "If you ask me, I will give the same answer as I did back then—"

"—'The world itself is a cataclysm.'"

Samuel said the other party's original words before Louis.

"You said that you are not interested in the sacred artifacts, and you don't think the catastrophe can be eliminated from the root. The sinister human heart is more elusive than natural disasters, and I agree with this. But in any case, it is our Torre to find the sacred artifacts and end the catastrophe. The fate of the Suo family is also the responsibility of the church. My father, Adrian's father, and Hagrid's mentor all died on the way to find the sacred artifact. We have come to this point with great difficulty, and we must not Get in the way of short-sighted speculators."

"It's fatalism again." Louis sighed.He stared at Samuel, the pair of green eyes that looked younger than his actual age were very similar to Adrian, which made Louis feel dazed for a while. "The reason why you left me at that time was probably because I had a negative attitude towards eliminating the catastrophe, and I wouldn't accompany you to find some ancient temple."

Samuel could not deny this fact.At the end of the day, he did use Adrian, but he also used Louis.

Louis waved away the smoke in front of his eyes, and said slowly: "For the sake of the past, I will still do my best to help you. The firearm you entrusted me to make is almost finished designing, and when the materials arrive, it will soon It can take shape. However, I don’t want Adrian to become a victim of your wishes. If Adrian continues to follow me, he will be targeted by the radicals of the Association sooner or later. I am more familiar with the bounty hunters than anyone else. He's young and I'd feel guilty watching him get caught up in a plot like this."

"Okay. At least before I leave Marunliga, Adrian will temporarily stay in the Flying Lions Mansion. He just needs to recuperate from his injuries. It's up to him to decide what to do after that." Samuel made a compromise. "Sooner or later you'll find it pays to keep him around."

"I doubt it very much..."

"Speaking of which, you haven't explained what you did to him." Samuel silently counted the frequency of Louis's sighs. "Adrian will not give up the mission casually, I know that very well."

"It was indeed I who prompted him to leave." Even Louis, who had a lot of emotional experience, found it difficult to speak about such things. "I kissed him."

"……what?"

Samuel's expression became very exciting for a moment, but Louis had no time to appreciate it.He held his forehead and looked helpless: "Don't ask me what happened, everyone is embarrassed. I have been self-reflecting for a day."

"That's my nephew..." Samuel looked in disbelief.

Louis lowered his head and said in a muffled voice: "Thank you for reminding me, I know it's your nephew. By the way, I never saw him as another you. It's best not to use Adrian to play the emotional card with me. You are completely no the same."

Samuel folded his arms and shook his head: "I didn't intend to. But I'm curious, what is your attitude towards Adrian? Do you hate him? This kid is very easy-going and capable. At least it won't hold you back."

"No, I don't hate him." Louis immediately denied. "On the contrary, I really like that personality."

"Besides that? Any further ideas?"

Louis was honest: "I don't know."

Samuel couldn't help laughing: "You're 'unclear'? Don't be ridiculous, Luis, I have seen you attract others. Even if you have reformed yourself and calmed down a lot now, you will never be so dull, even I don’t even realize I have feelings for anyone.”

After finishing speaking, he straightened his collar and cuffs, put on the cloak on his shoulders, and prepared to leave from the window "the way we came".

"Samuel."

The person whose name was called stopped.

"What's the matter?" Samuel turned his head, and his eyes met Louis's.

"I used to really like you," Louis said.

Samuel turned his back: "...I know."

"But that was a long time ago." The bounty hunter looked exceptionally calm. "No matter what happened in the past, you are still my friend."

"Thank you, Louis."

Samuel's voice was very soft, full of relief from the past.

In the early morning, seabirds gather in Yinwan Bay, and the raised sails are hunting in the sea breeze.The shadows of the sails on the blue sea flowed with the waves, and the huge patterns on the sails also showed novel patterns.

Soon, explorer Huta's beloved ship, the Beacon, will set sail again.

This time, the Beacon will go south along the coastline, transporting the spices, jewelry and silks that were transiting in Marenliga to other ports in the south and west of the Kuno Continent; The Land of Silence", set up an outpost for Samuel and others who are about to go to the Logmar area to find the holy artifact.

Just like when welcoming the Beacon to return, the plank road stretching out to the sea was crowded with children watching the excitement.

"When I grow up, I want to be a sailor of the letter!"

"You'd better save it! When you become a sailor, I will have my own ship. Then I will call it 'Varina'!"

"Hahaha, isn't Varina the name of your kitten?"

As the main patrons of the Beacon, the brothers and sisters of the Patriarch Torreso, as a matter of course, appeared in the harbor area to see off their reliable partner Huta.Adrian followed them too.

Before the anchor was out of the water, the captain Huta put Darren on his shoulders and trotted on the deck with him.Darren laughed and screamed, spreading his immature arms, imitating the seabirds flying overhead.Sophia, dressed in men's clothing, stood on the jetty, smiling as she watched her six-year-old son play with Huta.

She leaned closer to Samuel and whispered, "Look at Darren, he loves birds so much. He whispered to the pigeons all day in the mansion, and when he came to the pier, he wanted to get together with seabirds. It's still far from spring now." It’s far away, but yesterday he discussed with those friends about making kites.”

"Children are like this." Samuel laughed. "Don't you also hope to set sail someday?"

Sophia opened her arms to meet the humid wind blowing from the sea: "Yeah, I will always look forward to that day."

The hour of departure is near.Huta put Darren off his shoulders, patted Darren on the shoulder, and gently pushed him towards Sophia: "Young master, see you next time."

Darren reluctantly walked towards his mother, and the way he looked back three times made Huta feel distressed.When Darren stepped onto the long plank connecting the ship to the shore, he staggered due to the bumps of the hull. Adrian stepped forward two steps quickly and held Darren's hand to ensure safety.

Samuel jumped onto the deck, took the opportunity of hugging Huta to see him off, and whispered in his ear: "Pay attention to the situation of the crew, especially the increase of Marun Liga. I'm worried that I might sneak into the governor's mansion or get a bounty A minion of the Hunter Association."

Huta's personality was alert enough, and he immediately understood Samuel's intentions: "I see." He grinned smartly. "You and Hagrid should set off in a month's time, right? Speaking of which, I haven't seen the 'Valkyrie' of the Order for a long time. That's a good ship."

This journey is not easy, and it is always accompanied by the risk of being destroyed by people with ulterior motives, but Huta, who has seen strong winds and waves, has the confidence to face all this.He bid farewell to Samuel and everyone on the shore, and at the same time, he did not forget to wave to the group of children who were yearning for sailing, and the return was a small cheer.

"Are you ready? Have you finished your farewell? Do you want to keep you here for another ten days and a half a month, and I will take the boat out first? I think you like the Church of the Rosary, so why don't you just take root and sprout there? A cactus that watches over the roses." The first mate, who never changed his vicious tongue towards the captain, reminded Huta that it was time to set sail.

Huta slumped his shoulders and complained softly, "My God, can't you just look at the atmosphere!"

The first mate ignored him and shouted to the busy sailors under the mast: "Raise the sails!"

"Well, you are almost ready to usurp the position of my captain..." Huta took the initiative to show weakness.

But then, Huta's eyes flashed, and he leaned close to the first officer's ear and whispered something: "Come to the captain's cabin after leaving the port. We have to study the newly recruited crew members these days."

The first mate nodded knowingly, then walked to the side of the mast and pulled the heavy cable together with the sailors.The huge sails slowly opened, and the lighthouse painted with indigo dye on a beige background appeared in front of everyone.

The weather was clear, the wind was blowing just right, the crew was ready and it was a good day to sail.When the three-masted ship moved, the waves slapped the embankment, and also turned the broken grass and fallen leaves in the water to the sea surface, bringing out a series of small eddies.

Darren took Sophia's hand and watched helplessly as his favorite ship slowly left the port.Adrian rubbed Darren's head and comforted him in a low voice: "It's okay, wait a year or so, and Uncle Huta will come back with a new gadget."

"lady!"

Sophia heard the sound and looked, and saw Huta standing at the stern of the boat, with his hands forming a horn, shouting at her from a distance: "I'm waiting for the day you get on the boat!"

With the increasing distance between the boat and the shore, Huta seemed to see Sophia nodding to him.

Samuel suddenly felt a little headache.He turned around and asked Sophia, "That Huta guy, isn't he chasing you?"

Sophia smiled and said, "It's not that far yet, he's just inviting me to board the beacon."

"I want to get on the boat too!" Darren interjected.

Eddie quietly watched the beacon go away, and the conversation between Samuel and Sophia was in his ears, everything was so peaceful.But after this short period of peace, what kind of crisis will be waiting for them?The turmoil in Marenlica is treacherous, and what Adrian sees is only the tip of the iceberg, and he is not sure if he is ready.

He turned his head and turned his gaze back to the land.Among the crowd, Adrian spotted Louis.The eyes of the two stayed on each other for a moment, and then moved away almost at the same time, as if nothing happened.

Not to mention the ever-changing Maren Liga, he didn't even think about how to face Louis Cormac—Adrian lowered his head uncomfortably.

The author has something to say: Homecoming - Simon W. Autenrieth

Suggests some expensive chaos (past tense) plot