"Inquiry from the military department..." Austin ran into his apartment, pulled out the letter that he had casually stuffed in yesterday from the bookshelf, and carefully placed it on the table.
"Mariannuo, I feel something is wrong."
"What's wrong?"
"I'm afraid that if I open it..." Austin rarely used the word "afraid", "If I open it, I might be in contact with some strange existence."
Mariano did not answer immediately, but was silent for a while before replying: "Thanks to your father, your fate is now involved with certain existences. Coupled with your own danger perception ability, I think Your fears may come true."
The corner of Austin's mouth twitched: "But I don't have a choice? After all, this is all arranged."
"That's right." Mariano's tone was still calm, "Even if you refuse now, they will find you in other ways later."
"That's it." As he said that, Austin opened the envelope and took out a thin piece of paper the size of a palm.
"What is this?" Mariano couldn't help but ask. She had never seen such paper in her knowledge.
Austin ignored her and flipped through it, finding that there was not a word written on it. He was a little suspicious. Then he seemed to suddenly remember something, folded the paper twice and put it in his mouth.
A fragrance spreads in the mouth.
"food?"
"A kind of food that Lysa brought here to share when we were little. It seemed to be imported from abroad." Austin answered vaguely, "Vanya and I liked this very much. We didn't know what it was at the time, and we kept pestering her every day. I wanted it, but later I found out it was imported and ordinary people couldn’t buy it.”
A thin piece of paper melted in his mouth, and Austin felt his consciousness gradually fading away.
Before losing consciousness, the last words he heard were Mariano's taunting: "You are really innocent, you dare to eat anything."
When Austin opened his eyes again, he felt weak all over, and it always felt like he had been beaten while sleeping.
sleep?
Austin tilted his head and found that he was lying on a piece of grass. He looked closely and saw that there were two acquaintances lying next to him.
On the left is a red-haired tomboy, his good friend Vanya.
On the right is a little girl wearing a white dress, she seems to be called Lysa?
etc.
Lysa? little girl?
Austin sat up straight and looked around.
Familiar scenery came into view - the sloping grassland by the river, the large crooked-neck tree with its branches extending into the middle of the river, and the ruins of the wall covered by bushes.
Isn't this the back of the military orphanage?
Could it be that?
Austin got up and walked to the river. In the reflection, he looked like he was seven or eight years old, with confusion on his green face.
What the hell?
What's going on?
I ate something and then traveled through time?
Shaking his head, the memory of the "previous life" did not disappear, but became clearer.
[Hey, you know what? This situation generally means that you are going to be prosperous? ] Another voice sounded in my mind.
"Are you awake?" Austin asked angrily.
[Thank you for waking me up when I came in here. Do you have any idea about where this place is? ]
"No." Austin shook his head with a wry smile and began to look around.
The environment he is in now is undoubtedly an illusion. It should be like receiving oracles and rewards from the five-eyed monster, and his soul has left his body and gone to some strange place.
If you observe carefully, you will find that everything here is still. The sun is shining brightly, but it looks lifeless. This makes Austin so scared that he does not dare to look at the other two people lying on the lawn.
"Long time no see, Austin."
Austin was about to go take a look at the ruins not far away when a crisp and childish voice sounded behind him, and a layer of cold sweat suddenly formed on his back.
"Lisa?" Austin turned around slowly. Although the danger sense was not triggered, he was inexplicably scared, as if he was secretly reading horror novels in the middle of the night as a child.
Lesa, who was still lying on the lawn before, stood up at some point and looked at Austin from more than ten meters away.
[Hey, I feel like she's interested in us. ] Doug said something that was embarrassing.
"Don't be afraid, I am indeed Lysa."
A gust of wind blew across Austin's face, and he realized that this illusion had come to life.
"Why did you go to all the trouble to bring me here? You don't want to catch up with me, do you?"
Lysa chuckled and shook her head: "There will be plenty of time after reminiscing about old times. I came to you because I have more important things to do."
"What happened? Did you lose your body too?" Austin couldn't help but make a joke.
Then the wind froze and the bright sunshine gradually began to fade.
"Huh? You? Really?" Austin opened his mouth wide.
[Hey, brother, you really know how to talk. ]
"Shut up, please."
[No, why do these people always like to have out-of-body experiences, and they don't take good care of their bodies. ]
As soon as Doug finished speaking, everything around him returned to normal in an instant.
"Hahahaha, just kidding." Lesa bent over with laughter, "I wouldn't do anything so reckless."
"Actually, I want to help you fulfill your father's last wish... Of course, it's not that I have nothing to do, but it's something that is convenient for someone to entrust me."
Austin's expression suddenly became serious, staring closely at Lesa's face without speaking.
[Let’s start making up a story. ]
"Benjamin's matter had nothing to do with me before, but three years ago, I accidentally encountered a new ghost ship, and then I became involved with him."
As she spoke, Lysa patted her hands, and a brown-covered notebook appeared in her hands.
"Benjamin's voyage diary?" Austin asked in surprise, "You have this too?"
"This is different from the one in your hand. The one in your hand is a projection transformed by the power of the gods, and it can be regarded as an artifact. The book in my hand is a real thing, a relic of Benjamin back then."
"Where did you get it?" Austin took a few steps forward and asked.
"That new ghost ship was given to me. He said his name was Ansha, Ansha Stuart." The phantom in Lysa's hand quietly transformed into a ship in a bottle. "When Benjamin set out for the Maelstrom, he He was also in the fleet, and finally sank into the maelstrom together with Benjamin."
Lysa dispelled the phantom, folded her hands in front of her, and recalled: "At that time, I yearned for free exploration, so I went to explore the maelstrom with a friend, and encountered this ghost ship on the way."
"Relying on him and the diary, we contacted the real Poseidon." Lysa's eyes flashed with enthusiasm. "Benjamin followed his oracle and joined the Royal Navy to help the Poseidon Church in the fight against anomalies."
The sense of danger was still silent, but Austin took a half step back involuntarily.
"The real... Poseidon?" he asked tentatively.
"That's right!"
Austin pricked up his ears, ready to listen to the announcement from the five-eyed monster in front of him... not to the believers of the "True Poseidon".
"I know that you have been targeted by an evil being. He is very powerful and is trying to use the oracle to let you complete the advent ceremony and help him revive. At the same time, he has also created a series of illusions to make you believe that he is the real one. Poseidon.”
"Huh?" Austin was confused. After working together for a long time, am I still the pure cult?
"Your father Benjamin was also bewitched and used by the evil god just like you. Later, he tried every means to get rid of control, but in the end he failed. He didn't want his descendants to make the same mistake again."
"So you were guided by my father?" Austin was dumbfounded.
"That's right." Lysa nodded, "There are fragments of Benjamin's soul on the Ansha Prince."
Austin's eyes widened and he slowly clenched his fists: "It means..."
[Hey, brother, you don’t really believe it, do you? ]
"It means your father is still alive, although he can only live on that ghost ship."
"Benjamin gave me his voyage diary and established a soul space in the captain's cabin of the Ansa Prince, which is connected to my soul, which is this illusion."
Austin looked around, and to be honest, he didn't feel there was anything unique here.
Seemingly seeing through Austin's doubts, Lysa explained: "Here, the power of the evil god cannot penetrate, and it is absolutely safe."
No wonder Danger Sense cannot be triggered at all.
"Where are you now? What do you need me to do?"
"According to the prompts in the voyage diary, I am on my way to Gargoyle Atoll. I need you to meet me at Gargoyle Atoll."
[Come together and discuss the big plan? ]
"After finding the legacy that Benjamin left there, we went to the Kingdom of Dofrera to find and eliminate the traitors within the Poseidon Church."
traitor?
Austin thought of the priests who officiated on the island of Bahar.
"So, were you also on Bahar Island at that time?"
"I'm not here, but the Ansa Prince is right next to it."
"So, you took so much trouble to bring me here just to tell me this?"
"Not entirely, there is this." After saying that, Lysa stretched out her right hand, and an anchor-shaped brooch emerged from it. "This is the anchor point of this illusion. Wearing it, you can come here at any time."
"Does Vanya have one too?" Austin pointed to the tomboy lying on the lawn.
"Yes, I just looked for her last month."
Austin nodded, stepped forward, picked up the brooch, and held it up to his eyes to observe carefully.
"Well, goodbye, we will meet again in reality soon."
As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding scene rippled in circles, and soon Austin's consciousness was shattered along with it.
"How is it? I sense that part of your soul has gone to a very far place." Mariano's voice sounded in the darkness.
"Well, I went to meet an old friend." Austin opened his eyes and opened his right hand. Sure enough, there was a brooch lying in his palm.
"It seems that the meeting was quite pleasant." Mariano joked.
"Uh-huh." Austin recalled everything Lysa said in the fantasy, and his heart couldn't calm down for a long time.
"The pseudo-artifact with the breath of Poseidon should be used for the soul." Mariano seemed to notice the extra things on Austin, "But I won't use it, so you can keep it."
Austin rolled his eyes, he didn't want to give it.
