Chapter 2352 Cindy <TOC> Chapter 2354 Nausica’s Purpose
Translator: SumTLMan
Mist Belt Zone, Uninhabited island.
The term “island” was somewhat of a stretch. This place more closely resembled a relatively spacious area of reefs.
Typically, these grey-black reefs, aside from occasionally hosting marine life washed ashore, remained barren of any activity.
However, at this moment, the usually deserted reef was home to several figures.
“I find myself missing the honey milk roasted meat and the fragrant leaf melon wine from the Butterfly Bar,” lamented a large man, his bulky frame stretching his loose red wizard’s robe tight, as he gazed upon the fish roasting over the campfire, a wave of nostalgia washing over him.
“Of all of us, you’re the only one whose appetite never wanes. I’m starting to wonder if you’re really an apprentice of fire magic or of gourmet arts,” retorted another apprentice, cloaked in a purple robe, sitting beside the fire.
“Who said a hearty appetite necessitates a love for cooking? I simply love to eat, not to cook.”
“If you don’t love cooking, then perhaps you should stop with the fish. The smoke is making my nose hurt.”
“Blame that on your decision to transplant a dog’s nose.”
“Fatso, I warn you again, this is not a dog’s nose, but the nose of a highland lynx! Its olfactory sensitivity is leagues beyond that of a dog’s!”
“What does it matter? My reference to a dog’s nose was purely metaphorical.”
On the other side of the fire, a female apprentice, her face half-lit by the flickering flames, supported her cheek with her hand, watching her quarreling companions with a look of resignation.
She glanced at the black-haired woman sleeping against a rock beside her. “Cindy went in there, and now there’s no one to talk to in this forsaken place. How boring.”
As she lamented, a buzzing sound emerged from the distant sea, ancient and resonant, mingling with the sound of the surging waves, evoking a sense of primordial vastness.
Yet, this evocative noise startled the group by the fire, who scrambled to extinguish their campfire and conceal their breaths and body heat, camouflaging themselves as rocks, silently waiting for the sound to pass.
However, the noise drew closer instead of fading away, becoming deafeningly loud.
“What’s happening? Why hasn’t it disappeared today, and why is it moving towards us?” the purple-robed apprentice mouthed silently, querying the others with lip movements.
The chubby apprentice pointed at the female student and then at the sleeping Cindy: “Could it be because of Cindy?”
The female apprentice shook her head: “I’ve cast a concealment field around Cindy.”
“If it’s not Cindy, then what could it be?” the purple-robed apprentice frowned, concerned. Without Lord Firo present, they would be helpless if the source of the noise reached the reef.
Suddenly, the chubby apprentice’s eyes widened in alarm, and he pointed towards a figure at the edge of the reef.
Following his gesture, everyone turned to look.
At the edge of the reef area, a translucent male soul, emitting a faint glow, sat dumbfounded on a protruding rock, staring blankly into the distance.
Even without speaking, everyone realized that this individual had attracted the source of the sound.
“We’ve forgotten about him,” they communicated silently among themselves.
“It’s strange that this didn’t happen until he showed up. Could he be a jinx?”
“Now is not the time for such talk; we need to think of a solution.”
The female apprentice pondered for a moment: “The sound is still some distance from us. I’ll sneak over and bring the soul here. We have a concealment field here; we might still make it in time.”
The purple-robed apprentice nodded: “We have no other choice now. Go quickly.”
Without wasting any more words, the female apprentice slowly stood up, crouched, and dashed towards the soul.
However, just as she was about to run with the soul, a terrifying oppressive force suddenly enveloped the area, catching the female apprentice off guard and knocking her to the ground.
“What’s happening? Why has that thing suddenly sped up? This is bad; we can’t stay here any longer. Let’s get on the vehicle and leave!” The purple-robed apprentice, sensing the oppressive force, reacted almost instantly, pulling out a scroll made of pure white feathers and spreading it on the ground, signaling the chubby apprentice to get on.
“I’ll go pull her up; you get Cindy onto the flying carpet!”
“But…”
“No buts, just do it!”
As the purple-robed apprentice struggled against the oppressive force to reach the female apprentice, intending to pull her to safety, the faintly glowing soul turned its head and asked, “What are you doing?”
“Snap out of it and follow us. That thing is coming,” the purple-robed apprentice said.
“Are you talking about the Mist Sea Beast?” The soul turned its head dumbly towards the distant sea: “It’s gone…”
Gone? The purple-robed apprentice was stunned for a moment, then sensed the surroundings. Indeed, the oppressive force began to weaken. Turning back, he saw the sea near the shore churning, with a huge shadow passing by underneath, brushing past the reef island and heading towards the distance.
Minutes later, everything returned to normal.
The purple-robed apprentice said in astonishment, “What happened? The apex beast of the nearby seas, why did it suddenly leave?”
Although they did not see the true form of the shadow, they had encountered it before while following Firo. It was a gigantic sea beast, over a hundred meters long, with a strong desire to attack humans. Had it not been for Firo’s guidance, they might have been severely injured.
Such a terrifying sea beast, which had approached the reef so closely that they thought they had been discovered, suddenly left, leaving them puzzled.
“Could it be that it discovered us just now?” The chubby apprentice also came over, puzzled.
The female apprentice pointed at the soul: “Even if it discovered us, this guy just sits blankly on the edge of the reef, with the aura of his soul also not concealed. He should have been noticed.”
Everyone looked at the soul, and after a moment of silence, the soul said, “I don’t know what’s going on, maybe it’s because I’m lucky?”
“I don’t believe in luck.”
“But my luck is indeed good, um… or rather, I feel like my luck has always been good.” The soul, marked with an ‘x’ and ‘1’ on his face, said earnestly.
The female apprentice said, “You mentioned before that you’ve been drifting around here since you escaped from the laboratory. Have you never encountered that misty sea beast?”
“I have encountered it, but I was lucky, it never discovered me.”
“Could it really be luck?” Everyone was puzzled.
The female apprentice shook her head: “Let it be, luck then. At least we’ve dodged this disaster. I’m going to take care of Cindy now.”
As the female apprentice muttered, “When will Lord Firo come back,” she walked towards Cindy.
The chubby apprentice followed her; his grilled fish, although prematurely taken off the fire, was cooked and could fill their stomachs somewhat.
The purple-robed apprentice, however, did not leave and quietly observed this mysterious soul: “You… never mind, I’ll just call you by your name. Cindy mentioned earlier that you’re called Reynolds, right?”
The soul was silent for a moment: “I don’t remember some memories, but the name Reynolds is very familiar to me. You can call me that.”
“Reynolds, no matter what you’re thinking, don’t play dumb with me. The only ones who can help you now are us. I don’t want any accidents to happen before Lord Firo returns, not even a scare.”
Although the purple-robed apprentice didn’t say it explicitly, his words implied that the sudden approach of the Mist Sea Beast to the reef was attributed to Reynolds.
Reynolds, having mingled in the Wizarding World, understood the other’s thoughts. After all, they all hid well, and he was the most likely to attract the Mist Sea Beast by staying unguarded by the sea.
Reynolds couldn’t refute and silently accepted it.
The purple-robed apprentice gave Reynolds a deep look and then turned back to the campfire. After walking a few steps, the purple-robed apprentice suddenly thought of something, turned his head towards Reynolds:
“What are you always sitting here looking into the distance thinking about?”
Reynolds shook his head: “I don’t know, I always feel like I’ve forgotten something important…”
In a realm shrouded in a mist of unstable energies, a purple-robed apprentice spoke to a soul adrift, “Your soul has been hovering in this zone of highly unstable energy. It’s normal to lose some memories from your life due to the influence of this field. If the memories are still etched deep within your consciousness, you’ll eventually recall them.” Without further ado, the apprentice returned to the campfire.
Reynolds, left to his solitude, gazed into the distant sea enveloped in mist, pondering, “What exactly have I forgotten? Or rather… whom have I forgotten?”
…
Elsewhere, in the Wilderness of Dreams.
When Cindy mentioned “Number 1,” Angel initially didn’t catch on. After a moment, a realization struck him.
During the Novastar Competition, there was a participant he had dubbed “the protagonist of a novel” and nicknamed —John’s Comeback—, a player whose luck seemed boundless.
——”Number 1″ Reynolds!
“Are you talking about Reynolds? The Reynolds from the Novastar Competition?” Angel asked, urgency lacing his voice, sparking curiosity in Nisi and Iron Armor Granny. What connection did Angel have with Reynolds that his reaction was so fervent?
Cindy nodded, “Yes, that’s Reynolds. He may not remember his own name, but he recalls ‘Number 1’ and has vague memories of some scenes from the Novastar Competition.”
With Cindy’s confirmation, a rush of memories flooded Angel’s mind——
During the Novastar Competition, at the Bliss Pavilion.
“Come with me,” said Coral, pulling Angel by the hand to the outside of Nausica’s room, peeking in through the window.
The silhouettes of two figures were barely discernible inside. One was Nausica, and the other was Reynolds.
“Reynolds went to see Nausica as soon as he arrived today, and I sensed something unusual in his emotions,” Coral whispered with a giggle. “Don’t you think there’s a subtle atmosphere between them? I think Reynolds might have feelings for Nausica. Maybe he’s about to confess his feelings to her right now.”
Angel knew Nausica’s personality well; if there was a confession, she would surely reject Reynolds. Moreover, Angel felt that the atmosphere inside wasn’t just subtly romantic but rather heavy. Curious, Angel perked up his ears to eavesdrop on their conversation.
Wanting only to confirm whether Reynolds was confessing to Nausica, Angel listened in for a moment before withdrawing.
The overheard sentence didn’t sound like a confession at all but was a bizarre declarative statement.
Reynolds, with a tone that seemed casual on the surface but carried an underlying sadness, said to Nausica, “Aren’t you curious why I chose ‘Number 1’ as my nickname in the Novastar Competition? The reason is quite simple, actually. It was my designation in the laboratory, I was Number 1.”
After a fleeting memory of the Bliss Pavilion, another memory surfaced in Angel’s mind.
It was his conversation with Nausica——
Leaning against the window sill, Nausica cradled a smoke pipe, exhaling a puff of smoke that carried the scent of flowers.
After a long silence, Nausica spoke, “There’s something that’s making me hesitate.”
“Is it about Reynolds?” Angel inquired.
Nausica nodded, “Yes, it involves him. He… invited me to do something, and I’m pondering whether or not to go through with it.”
“Is it dangerous?” asked Angel.
“In the Wizarding World, everything comes with its risks. It’s just a matter of whether you can bear them or not.”
“Can you bear it? Or rather, if you pay the price, what could you gain?”
“I don’t know because it’s a forbidden zone filled with the unknown. The risks might be enormous, or they might be **. Reynolds escaped from that place, and his goal is to destroy it. My goal, however, lies with something inside it.”
The memory continued to unfold, eventually reaching the end of the Novastar Competition——
In front of the teleportation hall of Sky Mechanical City.
Angel looked at Nausica, “So, you’ve decided to follow Reynolds after all.”
Nausica nodded, “Yes, there’s something I need there, and I must go.”
“Is it important to you?”
“Yes, very important. It’s the first step towards achieving my ultimate dream.”
Angel tried to dissuade Nausica but respected her decision, “Then I wish you, to get what you’re seeking soon.”
…
“Angel, Angel?” Nisi nudged Angel, who was lost in thought.
Angel slowly came back to reality, “Huh?”
“I’ve been calling you for a while, and you didn’t respond.” Nisi squinted, “Don’t tell me you and this Reynolds have some kind of secret relationship?”
Angel shook his head gently, “I know this Reynolds. My brother Leon learned a lot of fighting techniques from him.”
Angel wasn’t lying. During the Novastar Competition, Reynolds often visited the Bliss Pavilion. He was very generous and open, teaching Leon many fighting techniques before he went to climb Sky Tower. Thus, Angel actually had a quite favorable impression of Reynolds.
“Is that all?”
“Yes.”
Nisi and Iron Armor Granny exchanged glances, clearly skeptical, but since Angel wasn’t forthcoming, they didn’t press further.
Angel then turned to Cindy, “You said Reynolds doesn’t remember his own name, what’s that about?”