Not long ago, Saltwind City was graced with a rare clear interlude.
If residents woke up early enough, they might have been able to rise with the morning light.
However, it quickly returned to its usual weather.
In the early morning, before the church bells rang, an unnatural damp mist began to permeate the narrow streets.
Everything in the world seemed to be submerged in the moist oceanic air, becoming dim once again.
"Ha—"
A cold sensation spread, and in a dark corner of Saltwind City, the young Inquisitor opened his eyes.
"Phew, I fell asleep!"
Immediately, he felt the cold and dampness on his leather uniform, and instinctively tightened his grip on the rapier and blunderbuss at his waist.
Although the Inquisitor uniform could cope with Iberia's various climates, if one had to curl up in a damp corner, even the best clothes were useless.
"Damn it, how negligent."
Slapping his thigh, the young Inquisitor immediately stood up, shook his head, and dislodged the water droplets clinging to his hair and the feathers behind his head.
Liberi hair had excellent waterproofing capabilities.
"Damn, I was supposed to be monitoring those two Aegir."
Patting his face, the Inquisitor quickly stood up, stepped through the puddles, and peered around the corner of the wall towards the house where the "outsiders" from yesterday were staying.
Some sounds still emanated from inside the house, and a few figures could vaguely be seen through the window.
"There's also a citizen child… What exactly are these Aegir planning?"
Utilizing the most professional Inquisitor techniques, hiding himself in a dark corner, allowing his black operational uniform to blend with the shadows, the young Inquisitor's gaze towards the house was full of vigilance.
Yesterday, when he saw the woman in the red dress, his momentary daze was not due to her stunning beauty; his Inquisitor training had long since made him resistant to ordinary human desires.
The Inquisitor was surprised because he discovered that the man who claimed to be a Hunter and the woman who claimed to be a wandering Skadi the Singer were both Aegir.
Of course, the means of distinguishing them weren't that complicated; ordinary people could tell the difference in Aegir.
On the continent of Terra, Liberi had feathers at their hair tips, Feline had pointed ears on their heads, Sankta had halos floating above their heads like fluorescent tubes… Those blasphemous Sarkaz Demon Race all had twisted horns and were almost naturally Infected.
Only Aegir had no obvious racial characteristics, or rather, having no characteristics was their characteristic.
After smelling a faint oceanic scent on them and observing that this man and woman had no other racial features, the Inquisitor immediately became tense.
Aegir were the beings Iberia needed to be most wary of.
Moreover, the Aegir woman in the red dress seemed to have only recently come ashore.
After The Great Silence decades ago, Iberia declined, its coastal areas slowly withered, and the once prosperous south deteriorated overnight; no matter how much effort was made, cities could only watch as they became ghost towns.
Those Aegir who migrated from the ocean to the land and multiplied there immediately became objects of suspicion.
In recent years, strange monsters had appeared along the coast without warning.
Like packs of hunting wolves, they frequently attacked the already sparse coastal townspeople; even if rescued by chance, most people became either insane or imbecilic, which was why Iberia established emergency treatment facilities.
Scientists tried to analyze these creatures, but whenever samples were captured, the monsters would rapidly degenerate into a pile of rotting flesh.
The monsters varied in strength, and some Inquisitors sacrificed their lives, leading to many different opinions within the Inquisitor ranks.
The radical faction believed that all Aegir should be immediately arrested and thoroughly investigated; they thought that the technology Aegir brought from the ocean was the culprit behind The Great Silence, and that those monsters were also summoned by Aegir.
The young Inquisitor's teacher, however, belonged to a more moderate faction; while equally wary of Aegir, they still judged based on facts and evidence, trusting only their eyes and the law.
As for the young Inquisitor himself… "Teacher, you told me to see with my own eyes, and I will."
He took on this mission as a test after several years of studying under the Grand Inquisitor, allowing him to act independently.
"Let's go, Hunter brother, let's go!"
Just then, the door opened, and a cute little girl in a black dress skipped out.
Gripping his weapon, the Inquisitor hid in the shadows.
Not all Aegir were strong; some were even weaker than children in physical fitness. Compared to the seemingly delicate and harmless woman in the red dress, the Inquisitor was more wary of the so-called "Hunter."
"If he goes out with that dangerous weapon, I'll have to follow him closely."
Just then, a seemingly slender staff extended from inside the house, appearing not so dangerous.
"Ha, this weather is really strange. There was still sun before dinner… Did you enjoy your meal, Anita?"
Complaining about the dreadful coastal weather, Goki leaned a small metal staff on the ground and reached out to ruffle Anita's somewhat dry black hair.
"Mhm, I'm full. I haven't eaten this much in a long time, Skadi the Singer sister, are you going out too? Are you going to sing? Do you need me to take you to the tavern?"
After eating a meal paid for by Goki, Anita's trust level was easily maximized. She skipped around Goki and Skadi, showing some of the liveliness of a child.
"No, not really. If there's a chance, I'll sing."
Skadi shook her head faintly, letting Goki translate her words, while clutching the weapon case in her arms tightly.
Thanks to Skadi's mechanical sword also having simple transformation functions, barely allowing it to fit into the box, Goki was able to declare that the box contained a saxophone.
As for what an instrument called "saxophone" actually looked like, Skadi herself didn't know.
However, she didn't care about such things.
"Let's go quickly. The land-based medical equipment uses Aegir technology and can clearly show whether the examinee is contaminated by Seaborn. If your blood shows no problems in this check, I'll be relieved."
Nodding to Goki, Skadi also wanted to quickly check herself and Goki for any issues.
As the last Abyssal Hunter, she actually didn't care much about herself anymore.
However, Skadi hoped that no one else would suffer needlessly because of the Seaborn pursuing her to avenge their god.
"Goki, you haven't had any problems these past few days, so there shouldn't be anything serious. Even if there's contamination, it can be treated."
Looking at Goki with crimson eyes, Skadi said seriously and earnestly.
"As for me, the symptoms of an Abyssal Hunter being contaminated are not obvious. Once detected, I need to be cleaned up immediately."
Skadi reiterated to Goki the rules she had learned among the Abyssal Hunters.
Once an Abyssal Hunter was found to have a tendency to transform into a Seaborn, other Hunters needed to deal with their maddened comrades themselves, without waiting for the Sea Patrol Guards to arrive.
In the Abyssal Hunter team, Skadi had experienced many such incidents; former comrades turned into flesh-devouring demons, and she had personally slain several of them.
Taking a few steps towards Goki, Skadi and Goki's black eyes met, and she solemnly handed him the weapon case.
"As I said before, if something happens to me, I hope you will execute me. Use my weapon; that will ensure I am thoroughly dead."
Skadi had only known Goki for less than ten days; in her opinion, they were, at most, fellow travelers.
According to Aegir social thinking, Skadi didn't even think Goki would consider her a friend.
But, if she truly was the last Abyssal Hunter and would be contaminated by Seaborn in the future… then she hoped that the one to execute her would be Goki.
Thump!
But then, Skadi suddenly felt a sharp tap on her head.
"Ugh—what are you doing?"
Although it was so light it was almost imperceptible, it still made Skadi a little stunned.
Taking Skadi's teal pointed hat from her head, Goki bent his knuckles and gently tapped Skadi's forehead.
"Don't make execution and killing sound so simple, Skadi. Don't say we haven't found anything yet; even if there really is a problem, I couldn't bring myself to kill such a cute Hunter like you."
Smiling at Skadi, Goki turned around, leaning on the seemingly extraordinarily light staff of civilization, and walked away into the distance.
"We're already friends, Skadi. I couldn't bring myself to do it—Anita, lead the way."
"Alrighty, Hunter brother, this way."
Anita watched the two adults flirting and bickering with a laugh, then happily ran ahead.
"Ah… my hat! Give it back quickly!"
Only Skadi, after a brief moment of dazed, immediately stomped her foot lightly and hurried to catch up, snatching back her hat.
For Skadi, having nothing on her head felt very strange.
[And, he said I was cute…]
Recalling Goki's words, Skadi felt a little happy.
[Also, are we friends now? Is that how he sees me? That's nice.]
Thinking of this, Skadi's steps became much lighter.
And as they passed one of the countless dark alleyways in the narrow street not far away, Goki suddenly stopped.
"Ah, good morning, Inquisitor sir. Thank you for guarding our safety and that of the citizens all night. You've worked hard—you should hurry and warm yourself up. Rheumatism and arthritis can be very dangerous."
Taking off his black hunter's hat and bowing deeply towards the silent corner, Goki and his group continued to lean on their staffs and walk towards the other end of the city.
Skadi's crimson eyes also swept towards a corner in the darkness, devoid of joy or sorrow, whether as a warning or a disregard.
After a long while, a slightly nervous self-muttering finally came from the desolate, dark alleyway.
"He discovered me long ago—are all these Aegir monsters?!"
The Inquisitor's skills were indeed very good, perhaps capable of deceiving battle-hardened warriors and powerful but mindless Seaborn.
However, for two Hunters, two powerful Hunters who lived by hunting, he was still a bit too green.
"Teacher… can I do this?"
The young Inquisitor himself was a little unsure.
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