End of the World

Below the throne room lay a large, windowless chamber. The entire space had been illuminated by hanging, round lamps that emitted a golden light and cast reflections upon numerous shiny surfaces, gold glittered all around, from gilded frames, plates, and candlesticks to apple-sized gems, gilded books, and more.

Deeper within the treasury, a special wall featured dozens of niches, each holding velvet trays containing carefully stored objects beneath crystal lids. While some of the items appeared valuable, others seemed rather ordinary, such as an old wallet, a lady's slipper, a forgotten earring, a tabby, and various other items. These objects did not match the overall value of the treasury, yet they were given special placement.

The treasury had been completely empty, devoid of any living soul. However, if one were to listen closely, they could hear faint voices echoing through the room.

Haaaa...

Mumbling...

Uuuuu....

Hahahahahaha....

Not far from the peculiar wall, a stack of treasure began to shake, and the hushed voices immediately fell silent. The treasure pile shook once more, causing gold coins to cascade down with a clink. The shaking of the pile repeated periodically, resulting in more and more gold falling and scattering across the gleaming floor.

Eventually, the gold revealed a stone hand with rapidly spreading cracks.

The pile shook violently one last time, and the treasure pile exploded.

Booom!

The treasure pile was sent flying sideways as an invisible force struck it, producing a clinking sound that reverberated throughout the treasure room. From the pile emerged a smaller, stocky figure who carefully began plucking gold coins from his clothes.

After a brief moment of stunned silence, the shrieking of numerous voices rang out.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Noooooooooooo!

Gooo aaaaway! Goo aaaway!

The figure paused momentarily, then extracted a fifteen-centimeter-long copper rod from his short jacket and swung it violently.

"SILENCE!" he commanded in an imperious, strong voice with a slight accent.

Instantly, the voices fell fearfully silent. The figure nodded in satisfaction. Lambert Orchard stood at a mere 150 centimeters in height, with dull green skin, pointed ears adorned with golden earrings, slicked-back blood-red hair, and neatly shaped prominent eyebrows of the same hue. Lambert's prominent cheekbones and chin framed eyes as red as his hair, painted with dark shadow, and lightly painted lips. He was dressed like a cultured gentleman in ironed black trousers, a black waistcoat with a red tie tucked into it, and a light grey jacket with a gold brooch on the lapel.

Lambert picked up a copper cane, holding it in his other hand, and it began to emit smoke suddenly. Lambert placed the wand to his mouth and drew hard before exhaling a thick cloud of smoke.

"Excellent," he smacked his lips in satisfaction and looked up. "My dears, you've gone wild in my absence, haven't you? Apparently, I need to remind you who's in charge." He stepped forward toward the alcove with the stored items, raising both hands. One held a copper wand, and the other was empty as he began to move his hands slowly, like a conductor.

Aaaaaa...

Aaaahaha...

Ooooaaaaaaahh...

The invisible voices began to produce rhythmic moans and cries that sounded sing-songy despite the evident pain, in response to Lambert's hand movements. Ghostly faces, twisted with agony, began to manifest on the objects in the niches, their mouths opening in muffled screams.

As Lambert moved his hands and the painful vocalizations resounded, he squinted his eyes, and his eyelids fluttered ecstatically, as though he were experiencing something very pleasurable. The voices rose and fell in accordance with his hand movements, and when the pitch of the voices reached its peak, his movements ceased.

He lowered the hands that clutched his clothes and curled his body inwards, a slight tremor passing through him.

"How wonderful... how I've missed this..." he said, pleasure evident in his voice. Finally, he straightened up, smoothed his hair, and sighed.

"I'll be back soon, and we'll continue... hehe..." he announced before turning and walking away with slow, deliberate steps.

The mournful murmurs and cries of many voices continued to echo through the room.

---

Elsewhere near the palace...

A short distance from the main street stood a small, three-story house proudly displaying a sign featuring a picture of a potion with herbs in the background and the name "Zenobe Hex Shop."

Inside the shop, just in front of the door, there stood a statue of a sensual woman wearing a large hat, with two strange snakes with monstrous faces wrapped around her body. The statue appeared as though she were reaching for the door handle.

Suddenly, the statue's grey surface began to peel away, much like old leather, and the wind carried the peeling fragments away. After a while, the snakes on the statue's body began to move slowly, and the peeling accelerated.

The statue flexed its fingers, and eventually its entire arm, reaching out to grasp the door handle.

"Aaah no!" exclaimed a surprised and urgently attractive female voice as the door opened and a woman in a hat and tight black dress fell out. The snakes on her body writhed beneath her to cushion her fall.

"What happened?" the woman wailed as she began to lean on her hands, looking back to see that her legs still bore a gray tinge and remained petrified.

Yellow-green eyes widened in surprise before she turned her head sharply toward the palace, visible from every point in the city.

"Nooo! I missed it! Buhuuuu... I wanted to be with my Liege!" Zenobe Elmcourt began to whine, tears of regret appearing in the corners of her eyes. Unhappily, she began pounding her clenched fists on the ground. "Why didn't I go sooner? Ah why!" The snakes on her body hissed in an attempt to comfort her.

After some time, Zenobe was finally able to move her legs, so she picked herself up off the ground. Zenobe had knee-length black hair that shone cyan in places. Her dress was black with golden embellishments, perfectly accentuating her sensual figure and revealing much of her lush bust. The hat on her head was also black with red padding and a large red gemstone as decoration.

"Quick, quick. We have to get to the palace," Zenobe said. Her two snakes detached from her body and intertwined with each other so she could stand on their bodies. As soon as Zenobe stood firmly on their scaled bodies, the snakes raised their heads and began to slither toward the palace at an unnaturally high speed.

"My Liege! Your Zenobe is coming~" Zenobe called out, clutching her hat on her head with her hand to prevent it from flying off. When Zenobe smiled, she revealed her sharp teeth.

---

Zenobe had to walk part of the way, after all, because many of the citizens of the End of the World had gathered around the palace. Unless she wanted to scatter them like bowling pins, she had to get off her snakes and rush forward on her own two feet.

Zenobe was excited just thinking about seeing her Liege. However, as soon as she walked through the palace doors, her excitement waned, as the steps leading to the throne room had another person walking slowly.

The person stopped and looked back when he heard her footsteps.

"Lambert. Why are you the one already awake?" The words practically spat out of her mouth as if she had tasted something disgusting.

Lambert turned to face her, looking down at her from the stairs, one hand tucked into his pants pocket as he assumed a more dignified position. A mocking smile appeared on his red lips.

"Well, well, if it isn't Zenobe, Mistress of snakes and light manners, and now known as the 'second' one," he mocked her.

Zenobe's pupils contracted into narrow slits. "I'm not second! I had a long way to come while you were living in the palace! Ha! If you woke up first, then how come you're not already with our Liege?" She pointed her red-painted fingernail at him accusingly.

Lambert smiled a little more. "I wasn't in a hurry."

Zenobe's forked tongue shot out of her mouth as she hissed angrily and stormed toward him, her loud footsteps indicating her anger. She made her way up the same stair as Lambert, her perky breasts level with his eyes, but he didn't let his gaze linger for a moment.

"Hmpf!" Zenobe snorted. "Don't think too highly of yourself. Just because you woke up first doesn't mean our Liege likes you best! Despite how much I hate you, you're still a pretty useful person."

Lambert squinted his eyes a little, letting his black makeup accentuate the red of his eyes. "I'm afraid I can't return the same flattery," he replied before turning away from her and walking up the rest of the stairs.

Zenobe puffed out her cheeks in offense and stomped her foot, but she also immediately rushed upstairs to outrun Lambert and enter the throne room.

As soon as Zenobe saw the familiar figure on the throne with fiery blue eyes, her heart leaped. She quickly arrived in front of the throne and dropped to one knee, even as the snakes around her body lowered their heads to the ground.

"My Liege! Your Zenobe is here!" she announced in a joyful voice and her cheeks flushed with excitement.

Lambert arrived beside her much more slowly but also knelt down and bowed his head. "I am also here, my Liege. Long live your eternal glory."

Caila looked down at them from her throne, speechless. She had overheard the conversation they had on the stairs, and she couldn't help but wonder what the past God had done to deserve such dedicated servants.

If she hadn't been stressed before, she certainly was now. How was she supposed to act without revealing herself? Caila only had a few pieces of information thanks to Hellcage praying to her so she could connect with his consciousness. But there were still many things she was missing. Perhaps if she let the two pray to her, she could peer into their consciousness and find out more?

Caila remembered what the two had been arguing about and then spoke.

"Hellcage was first," Caila announced quietly.

Lambert and Zenobe's faces froze.

---

Endless Sea

Claude looked up at the masked face of the tall man and sensed a smile hidden beneath the mask. His heart raced with fear because the unknown man had uttered something that only someone of Claude's own race should know. The tall man remained silent, merely gazing at him, causing Claude to avert his eyes, scanning the surroundings in panic to ensure no one had overheard their exchange.

However, the sailors, armed and watchful, had positioned themselves at a distance to have enough space to react if needed. The Abbess had already entered the hold with her party for the inquisition.

Claude breathed a sigh of relief and began to calm his racing heart. No one seemed to have heard anything. It took him a moment to regain his composure outwardly, but inside, he was still filled with fear. It was inconceivable that this man could possess such knowledge. So the only explanation was that he was abnormal. Under different circumstances, Claude would have reported it immediately, discreetly, to the Abbess. However, the man had already ensured that Claude wouldn't be able to do that.

"I understand. I'll help you conceal your identity if something happens," he promised in a low voice. "But you mustn't discuss this with anyone." He looked up at the man again, his eyes growing cold.

"Of course," the man replied gently. "But I do expect an explanation later. I think during our detention would be a good time to have a conversation over a cup of tea."

Marik, who stood nearby, listened to their brief exchange of words and acted as if nothing had happened. In reality, he understood little of what was going on. 'Who was Abraham? A Cambion race? Why do I understand the words but still not grasp what they're talking about?' He wondered helplessly.

From that moment, they did not speak anymore and simply waited for Abbess Leontine to return from her inspection. Hellcage stood still, one hand resting on Leo's head, and the other gripping Dali's small hand, probably to ensure the kids didn't do anything. After a while, they actually started to fidget and occasionally stared intently at the sailors.

After an hour, the Abbess came out from below deck, and they managed to catch a glimpse of her disappointed expression, which immediately turned into a smile, as if the disappointment had never been there. "Everything looked normal. But can you explain the altar?" Leontine asked, looking at Marik.

Marik smiled hesitantly. "We lacked spiritual support when we lost our priest. The children built it; it was good for keeping them occupied."

Leontine glanced at the two children. "So, Mr. Rabbit is supposed to be the Goddess of the Sea and Storm?" She asked them.

Marik also looked at the two children and was a little worried about what they would say. Dali winked. "Uh-uh," she muttered.

"She doesn't like talking to strangers," Leo spoke up. "And you smell weird."

The smile on Leontine's lips froze. "Ah... good. Thank you."

There was a moment of awkward silence before Marik cleared his throat. "So, now comes the third round of scrutiny? Is it enough if we just stay on the ship, and you watch us?"

Abbess Leontine quickly gathered herself and stopped thinking that maybe she should take a bath soon, turning to Captain Marik. "Yes. There will be sentries stationed on your ship, and we will note any abnormalities. You may act as you are accustomed to," she confirmed and then looked at Claude.

"We will return to our ship," she told him and motioned to the sailors who began to spread out around the ship. Claude hesitated for a moment but then followed the Abbess, feeling the tall man's gaze on his back.

Leontine and Claude returned to their boat and stood at the rail, where they could easily see the other boat.

"Did you notice anything?" Leontine asked more seriously.

Claude shook his head. "No, everything seems fine."

The Abbess rubbed her chin. "And isn't that strange? How often does it happen that someone comes out of the Border Mist untouched?" Leontine wasn't suspicious just because she was eager to find something.

Claude inwardly grew nervous. "They didn't come out untouched. The captain said he had to throw most of the crew into the sea. I wouldn't consider the loss of the crew as anything," he replied.

Leontine had to admit that Claude was right, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. Still, neither the first nor the second round of inspections showed anything unusual. Finally, she sighed. "Keep a close eye on them," she said, turning around.

"What are you going to do, Abbess?" Claude asked.

"Take a bath," Leontine replied simply and discreetly sniffed herself.

---

When night fell, Claude went to the other ship. He slowly entered the hold and found the remaining four crew members sitting at the dining table in complete silence.

Two children sat against the back wall, playing with a stuffed rabbit. Captain Marik watched with his chin propped up, and a tall man read a book idly while holding a cup of tea. It all seemed normal and relaxed.

Everyone looked at Claude as he entered, and the children soon withdrew their gaze. Marik straightened up, and Hellcage put down his cup.

Claude glanced at the wooer who was patrolling the room. "I'll take over for a while. Go freshen up," he told him. The sailor didn't hesitate for a moment; boredom was starting to get to him as well. He saluted and left the room.

Claude walked over to the table and sat down while Hellcage stood up. "Tea?" He offered.

Claude hesitated for a moment, then nodded and watched the tall man walk away before turning to the captain. "Who is he?" he asked in a low voice.

Marik blinked. "Hellcage? He's..." Marik hesitated, not really knowing what Hellcage was. If Hellcage wasn't truly scary sometimes, he'd consider him a cultured, mild-mannered man most of the time. "He's just Hellcage. He's my senior," Marik said finally, giving the best answer he could come up with.

Claude pondered the answer. His senior? Could it be that this Hellcage was some ancient powerhouse? It probably came out of some distorted area of the Border Mist. Could he be from the old homeland, knowing the roots of his race?

Claude tapped his fingernails thoughtfully on the table as he considered the possibilities. The fact that Hellcage hadn't done anything extreme yet could mean that he wasn't an evil entity.

Hellcage returned and placed a steaming cup of tea in front of Claude. "Please," he said before sitting down again. Claude looked at the teacup; he really didn't come across as an evil being. What evil being would willingly brew tea for someone else?

Claude took the cup. "Thank you," he said and took a sip. He didn't care about any poison; he didn't think this person needed to use anything like that. "Good. What do you want to know?" he asked, looking at Hellcage.

"First and foremost, what happened to Abraham?" Hellcage wanted to know, and Marik looked up, really wondering who he was.

Claude's face twitched as Hellcage so casually pronounced the name. "Lord Abraham didn't come here with us. Our homeland broke away from the rest and was thrown into space-time, and we appeared here," he replied.

Hellcage picked up his cup of tea and took a sip. Claude blinked and looked at Hellcage's face. How does he drink when he still has a mask on his face? "You are his offspring. Something like space and time shouldn't break contact with him. Each of your bodies carries his legacy. Even if it is weakened, he should be able to create his Avatar after some time," Hellcage paused.

Claude frowned. "I'm not sure of the details. Our history is only passed down orally and only between members of our race. All I know is that Lord Abraham went silent after coming here and never appeared again. Our best assumption is that coming to this world separated us completely."

Hellcage was silent for a moment. "And given that human survival here requires the blessing of one of the recognized gods, you converted."

Claude felt a little insulted for some reason. "At least we follow this rule of Lord Abraham. Do whatever it takes to survive," he defended himself.

When there was a moment of silence, Marik cleared his throat weakly, drawing the attention of both men. "I just... who is... Abraham?" he wanted to know.

Hellcage let out an amused snort. "Abraham is the first Cambion, the ancestor of an entire race who achieved godhood. He also used to call himself the God of Thorns. Strict, but quite gentle with his people."

Marik glared at Hellcage, and so did Claude, who described another god as if he knew him. Marik swallowed and recovered first. Sure enough, he could see his own god whenever he wanted, after all. How could he not know another? "Why the God of Thorns?" Marik finally asked, and Hellcage answered again. Actually, even Claude couldn't answer because this wasn't something he knew.

His race had long since passed under other gods, and they had only received a basic education from their family in this area. Hellcage let out a deep laugh. "I'll just tell you the official versions. That's because his castle is covered in iron spikes that form an impenetrable barrier upon which he impales the bodies of his enemies and traitors who cannot die."

Claude swallowed and wondered if Lord Abraham would rate their conversion to other gods as treason? "Another thing. Where are your wings and tails?" Hellcage continued his questions.

Claude straightened and sighed. "They are removed at birth. Many arguments have arisen over them in the past when people mistook us for demons."

This answer momentarily surprised Hellcage. "Hm." He took a sip of his tea. "So you remove your nature to please others. What an unfortunate existence."

Claude's hand trembled before he clenched it into a fist. "That is not unfortunate. We have been recognized, we are equal to others, we have security and status," he protested a little angrily.

Hellcage nodded in agreement. "And for that, you will cut off your wings and sever the tails that were given to you at birth. Why didn't you also remove your horns in an attempt to mimic humans? Actually, that wouldn't work, you have pointy ears. Well, at least elves," he replied.

Claude was starting to feel uncomfortable as Hellcage spoke. He didn't have an answer for this; he was beginning to feel like he wasn't qualified to talk to this old monster. Sure, he may have had some standing in the Church of the Goddess of Sea and Storm at his age, but he was still very young and inexperienced. "Do whatever it takes to survive," Claude finally repeated the rule that had never changed for their race.

Hellcage nodded again. "Abraham taught you that well."

He left the ship some time later, in a depressed mood. The whole conversation replayed in his head, and he couldn't help but begin to have doubts.

Hellcage stayed in the room with the children, Marik, and the sailor who was watching them. "Is strange," Hellcage said thoughtfully to Marik.

"What?" Marik asked him.

"Abraham. The fact that he didn't project his avatar here." Hellcage lowered his voice. "He may be a god born of a mortal being, but he's still a god. And they're not that weak. Even if only a fraction of his people showed up here, he wouldn't just abandon them."

Marik couldn't say anything to that, because his understanding of gods was on a whole other level. He watched as Hellcage finished his tea and stared thoughtfully into his empty cup. "I need to find out how much time has passed," he said finally.

---

Hellcage lay on the bed with his eyes closed, while a sailor sat in a chair in the room, gun in hand, watching the sleeping man with tired eyes.

Thanks to the darkness, he hadn't noticed how a part of Hellcage's shadow had moved unnaturally and flowed like water down to the floor inaudibly.

A shadow stain crawled across the floor toward the door, and a small piece separated from the rest and headed toward the watching sailor. While the larger portion of the shadow slipped under the door and disappeared, the smaller one moved closer to the sailor's leg and touched his shadow. There was a moment of resistance, but eventually, the blob overcame it.

The sailor straightened and looked around as he felt the movement of his holy protection, his suddenly sharp eyes fixed on the sleeping man on the bed. Despite sensing the disturbance, he didn't notice the small stain that crawled up his body and stopped under his chin.

Some time passed, and the sailor calmed down again, not seeing or feeling anything strange. At some point, the sailor yawned, and the black spot moved again, entering the sailor's mouth through his chin.

"Echm..." The sailor cleared his throat briefly and glanced at the bed to make sure he hadn't disturbed the sleeping man. Unaware that the whites of his eyes had momentarily turned black, revealing several red-tinted irises.

The next day in the afternoon.

"Everything looks normal," Abbess Leontine said as the third round of checks ended. It was already late in the afternoon, but time had passed, and no abnormal fluctuations had appeared in all that time, so she had no choice but to let the ship go.

"Thank you for your cooperation, and we apologize for the inconvenience," she said while smiling slightly.

Marik smiled a little nervously, feeling the sweat roll down his back. "No problem. As long as... everything turned out okay. I'm looking forward to going home."

"It was a real pleasure meeting you, ma'am. Claude, perhaps we will meet again," said Hellcage, who politely lifted his hat in greeting.

Claude shivered at the words. "If that is our fate, then surely," he replied and watched as they walked to their ship and prepared to set sail.

"Too bad we didn't discover anything. I wouldn't mind returning to the church with some results," Abbess Leontine said as she also watched the smaller boat pull up anchor and set sail.

"I'm sure the Border Mist will produce something interesting soon," Claude replied, but inwardly, he hoped it wouldn't. Meeting the ancient powerhouse was enough for him, even if it was friendly.

The Abbess laughed and turned to Claude, looking at him with several red eyes. "Let's hope so. You just need a few more merits to be promoted, right?"

Claude smiled weakly as his whites turned white again. "Indeed. But I'm really in no hurry. I've had a deep insight," he replied, glancing towards the receding ship. "I'm not ready yet."

---

Marik didn't ask, deciding he didn't want to know, so he simply pulled up the anchor and set the sails, quickly moving away from the Goddess of the Sea and Storm research ship.

It took the first few hours before he calmed down and convinced himself that it was nothing. He checked their direction several times. After finding out from the researchers where they were, he easily oriented himself and steered their course towards Peril Harbor.

He was unfortunately not as skilled at naval navigation as Klarson, but as long as he had the tools, he would eventually figure it out. "We'll reach Peril Harbor in two days," he finally announced to Hellcage.

Hellcage twirled his walking cane and nodded. "Excellent," he replied, looking out to the open sea in the distance.

Marik sighed before making sure he had the rudder properly secured one last time and walked over to Hellcage. "What's your plan, anyway? How are we going to get worshippers for our Liege?" he asked curiously. He really had no experience with this; he had never been a passionate believer and didn't know how to entice people to start believing in something.

Hellcage didn't move and considered his answer for a moment. "You said that Peril Harbor is a seedbed of sin, home to criminals and madmen, right?"

Marik scratched the back of his head and nodded. "Yes. The kind of people who don't want to live by the rules and feel chained. It's a place where being weak is the same as being a victim or dead."

"To which god is that place consecrated?" Hellcage asked next.

Marik hesitated, not entirely sure. "I believe that the Goddess of Sea and Storm, the God of Steam, the God of Wind and Freedom, and a small part of the God of Disease, Decay, and Death have the largest representation. As far as I know, due to the unique structure of Peril Harbor, each of the gods has their own territory. Which ones they are, I don't know."

Marik expected Hellcage to continue asking questions, but he didn't say or explain anything. He cleared his throat slightly. "So... well... a plan?" he tried again.

"First, we find a place to make a base. Then we need to gather information on the local situation. I still need to figure out how this place works. Getting worshippers isn't that hard then. It's enough to do small and big things, solve someone's problem, talk about the greatness of our Liege, and so on. But first, we need to stabilize our situation. The emergence of a new religion is not such an easy thing. It is an organization like any other, and others will not corroborate it," he explained.

Marik was surprised. He thought that Hellcage, as a being of immense power, would just go and... take things. This was a much more human approach than he had expected.

"I'm not going to bring unworthy things to our Liege," Hellcage continued, finally looking at Marik as if he knew what he was thinking. "If it's going to bring our Liege the strength it needs, it needs to be true believers, not those who are forced into it," he smiled.

Marik's lips twitched. "In that case, what about me?" he asked doubtfully. Wasn't he an example of being forced?

Hellcage chuckled and tapped Marik lightly on the shoulder with his cane. "Did someone force you? You were given a choice. Yet you're still not a true believer, how unfortunate. Perhaps you will soon understand how great and honorable our Liege is."

Marik blinked, not understanding. "I'm not?" he asked in confusion.

Hellcage nodded. "You believe in her existence. But you don't believe in her." With that, he turned and made his way below deck.

Marik was left alone on deck, lost in puzzlement.

The next two days passed without anything extraordinary happening. Marik occasionally saw other ships in the distance, but they never got close enough.

He tried once again to connect with the children a little more. At least he had managed to think of them as children now, and not as cursed dolls. But the two children still avoided him, and Marik had to admit that his verbal assault on them had probably left a bad impression. He would have to make peace with them somehow.

Then, before sunset, he finally saw Peril Harbor through his telescope.

"We'll be there in two hours!" he called as he lowered the telescope.

The children quickly walked over to the bow and looked out over the town, but without the telescope, they still couldn't see it, so Marik came over to them.

"Here. Try this," he offered them.

Leo and Dali both looked at Marik and didn't respond for a long time before Leo finally reached for the telescope.

"This is how you do it," Marik helped them handle the instrument, and then the two kids could take turns looking at the approaching Peril Harbor.

Marik sighed inwardly. That was the first step.

Two hours later, they were approaching the harbor and could see the city in its full glory. When it was said that the city was built from shipwrecks, it meant literally. Some parts looked normal, but many of the houses looked like ships that someone had built into a living city. The houses had bows, masts, or looked entirely like ships, but in reality, they were home to dozens of people and families.

From up high, all of Peril Harbor looked like a randomly assembled kit, with parts simply added where there was room. To keep the whole of Peril Harbor from being a free-floating city on the water, it was secured with scaffolding, hundreds and maybe thousands of anchors that kept the entire huge floating city in a permanent place.

Even from a distance, you could see that the harbor itself was a very lively place, with smaller ships moored there and dock workers moving to and fro like industrious ants.

Marik headed for a vacant spot to anchor his Fast Wave, while Hellcage and the children watched the wooden monster in front of them.

He could see that it was connected by many catwalks and bridges between different sections of the city, and many iron chains were suspended in the air, along which transport rigs moved back and forth.

"Fascinating," Hellcage said as he watched. "I was expecting a more backward and dirty place, since you said it was a city of criminals," he said.

Marik concentrated on the helm but answered anyway. "Even criminals like to live in luxury. It's a city like any other; there are some pretty dirty places. But the local rulers do a lot to run the city, and they don't want to be knee-deep in shit."

"Rulers? You mean those underworld bosses you were talking about? Are they considered the official rulers?" Hellcage wondered.

Marik shrugged. "They're not official rulers, but that's how everyone thinks of them." He hastened to throw out the anchor as he successfully managed to anchor himself in the suction cup and could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

A plain-looking little man was waiting for them on the pier, smiling at them. "Welcome to Peril Harbor. Please pay the harbor fee," he said.

Marik looked at the small man. "Harbor fee?"

The little man nodded. "Yes. Unless you want your ship to disappear in an hour and then perhaps see it as someone's house in a few years. The harbor fee guarantees that nothing will happen to your boat."

Marik sighed and started pulling out his wallet.

"How likely is that to happen if we didn't pay?" Hellcage asked with slight amusement in his voice.

The small man nodded his head. "One hundred percent chance. If I don't signal to those men back there, they'll jump on your ship like hungry eagles."

Marik looked in the direction the little man was pointing and frowned. So it wasn't really a harbor fee, but a payment for protection! They are damned thieves after all!

Marik preferred to pay the fee and not pursue the matter further. Then, he grabbed a bag with a few things he didn't want to leave on the boat, and they headed out of the harbor. Marik looked around nervously as long as his Fast Wave was in sight and then sighed heavily. He could only hope that the gang he paid to protect his ship was strong enough not to lose to another gang anytime soon.

Hellcage walked in front, the kids behind him, and then Marik, watching the three of them look around like tourists. Marik was already experienced, so he noticed the looks of people paying more attention to the newcomers than was polite.

Naturally, they were all criminals, considering how much easy prey Hellcage and the kids would be. Marik had it easier because he had not only a sword at his waist but a firearm as well, so they were more careful with him. In contrast, even though Hellcage was very tall, his lack of highly visible weapons could cause problems.

Marik considered pointing this out to Hellcage. While he knew that Hellcage definitely didn't need protection, it would avoid unnecessary trouble.

Suddenly, a scantily clad lady leaned out of a dark corner, the contents of her chest threatening to spill out.

"Hello, handsome. Been out to sea long? Would you like to have some fun?" The light woman addressed Hellcage, who turned his head towards her. Even his face covered by the black mask didn't deter the whore.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but my hands are rather full. Maybe next time," Hellcage replied politely but without interest, and the corners of Marik's mouth twitched. As if this powerful monster could be interested in such activities!

"Too bad," the whore said and then winked at Leo, who was looking at her, smiling slightly.

"Come see me when you're old enough, little cabbage," she winked at him.

Marik didn't like the woman's behavior at all and was about to take the kids away when he heard the boy's reply.

"I won't. You'll be dead by that time." Marik laughed softly while the whore had a look of shock on her face.

"Let's go," Marik said to Leo and Dali, and they walked past the shocked and probably offended light woman.

Leo looked back after a moment and saw that the woman was looking after them with a calm expression on her face. He looked at her chest, and then his eyes slid down to her stomach.

He looked away again, vaguely aware that humans shouldn't have two hearts located in their stomachs. He thought for a moment, but instead of saying anything, he glanced at his sister, whom he then took by the hand and docilely followed Mr. Hellcage.