Farmer inspected the runic carvings on the chest. He was surprised because although the runes themselves were simple enough, they were arranged in a highly complex pattern such as he had never seen before. The layers upon layers of markings interconnected to form a massive nine levelled sealing array the likes of which would take normal array masters years to surmount. He knew, thus, that Krieg was not the one who had fashioned this chest.
Wherever it came from, its contents would surely be world-shaking. Perhaps even catastrophe-inducing.
For a moment, he seriously considered tossing the chest into the ocean and completely forgetting about it. He didn't want the people interested in this chest to come after him and his crew; none of the potential pursuers would be simple people. However, he quickly realised that this was an unavoidable outcome. Unless he killed all the Federation's survivors, including the young girl, and worked hard to erase all traces of his presence there, someone would inevitably find out that he'd come by this place and would indubitably come in search for the chest.
Since pursuit was already a statistical certainty, he might as well take the contents of the chest for himself, he thought. But he wouldn't risk opening it in the open, thus he commanded his men to leave the ship and sail away with Alana's Regret. They were ordered to return only when he sent them a signal.
Farmer waited patiently as his ship sailed to a few miles distance. Once the anchor had been cast, he sent out his powerful spiritual sense to scour a full hundred miles radius around him. Reasonably certain that there were neither dangerous beasts nearby, nor any vessel approaching their location, he began carving the most powerful runes he knew onto the surface of Krieg's ship.
His intention was to have several arrays complimenting one another in order to ensure greater degree of protection. First, he carved a concealment array which hid Krieg's ship from both visual and arcane detection. Then he set two arrays: an energy gathering and camouflaging one. He had personally designed them to work in tandem to both gather the energy of the Heavens and Earth as well as to keep the vortexes of energy hidden. This was done in order to avoid attracting strong beasts to his location; something he had come across many times in the past. Finally, he reinforced the structure of Krieg's vessel because he didn't know what would happen once he managed to open the chest. In his mind, it was best to prepare for any eventuality.
The whole process took him several hours and, by the time he was done, the Sun was high in the sky. Wiping the thick beads of sweat from his forehead, he consumed some recuperating elixirs and sat down to meditate carefully. He felt the thick current of energy coursing through his channels and invigorating him with a pleasant smile on his face. Although setting the arrays had consumed a great portion of his strength, he could feel his power growing after the energy expenditure. This was his greatest gift, the fact that he would grow stronger every time he recuperated.
--
On the deck of Alana's Regret stood Serena observing the location of Krieg's and the Federation's ships. Although she couldn't see them anymore, she knew that they were there. Their disappearance was probably due to Farmer's doings. She was curious as to why he had taken such precautions. She suspected that he may have come across some sort of treasure.
Beside her was the little girl playing with Farmer's snow-white wolf. The girl was giggling as the wolf licked her face and gently nudged her with its head onto the wooden boards of the deck's surface. The little girl would exclaim in a coarse voice and roll over herself as the wolf jumped over her.
Serena sighed sadly.
She had spent a decent amount of time examining the girl's injuries and was heartbroken at the damage the child had sustained. Despite having the capacity to regrow the girl's tongue after a long and arduous process, her skills were far beneath what was needed to undo the damage done to her vocal chords. Unless they were able to get their hands on a class four elixir, there was no hope for the girl. However, an elixir like that would be a carefully sought-after item even amongst the most powerful of noble families.
"Oi lass, what are you doing with Wolfie?" Asked a vibrant voice from behind them
Serena turned and saw a young man she recognised as the one called Krill approaching them. His hair was trimmed short and the colour of dry wood. He had a strong figure and a long sword strapped to his hilt. On Alana's Regret, Krill was the youngest member of the crew; even younger than herself. In addition, he would have been a handsome man had he not had a horrible-looking scar disfiguring the left side of his face.
Serena had interacted with Krill only a handful of times during her stay on this ship but had already thought of him to be the friendliest person on board. He would often sing the loudest when meals were served; and would be quick to joke around with those around him. More than once she had caught him throwing bits of food to Oulong when the man was distracted. Still, there was no malice in his actions, only the need to make the atmosphere less tense between Serena's protectors and the rest of the crew.
"Wolfie?" She asked when he stopped in front of the little girl.
"Aye, Wolfie." Laughed Krill. It was as if he had just told the most amusing of anecdotes. "The captain may be a genius and an intellectual, but his skill at naming things is absolutely the worst! He used to call her 'Wolf'. Wolf! Can you believe that?!" He protested exaggeratedly.
"Actually, I can." Smiled Serena. It was refreshing to find out that Farmer wasn't completely perfect. It made him more human in her eyes.
"Yes, well, even though she's been with the captain for the longest, the crew and I thought it was simply too cruel to call this magnificent creature 'Wolf'." Krill walked closer to Wolfie and began petting her head; a fact that the wolf enjoyed immensely. The little girl observed this and began to imitate Krill, which made him grin widely. Somehow, that made his face look even more hideous.
"A few years ago, a short while after I joined up, we begged the captain to change her name. At least change it to Snow-White, you know? Naosh take us in innocence, he almost blasted us into the sea, he got so furious. Then a name struck me, just like lightning, so I turned to Wolfie and asked her, to her face, whether she would like to be called 'Wolfie' instead of 'Wolf'. I jest you not, she nodded happily and smiled to me. Everyone witnessed it! The captain could only sigh and proclaim to the four winds that this wolf would henceforth be known as Wolfie! Isn't that right, girl?"
Wolfie nodded her head twice and then proceeded to rub her torso against his thigh. Krill was evidently pleased at this as he immediately began stroking her fur. Serena couldn't help but smile. It was hard to believe that this young man was a pirate. The way he spoke and narrated events indicated he had the gift of story-telling. Perhaps, in another life, he'd been one and he'd inherited that gift in this life.
The little girl was still feeling a bit shy and was hesitant to approach Wolfie whilst she was rubbing herself against Krill. Krill noticed this and pushed the wolf back to the little girl. As if it knew the young man's meaning, Wolfie got closer to the little girl and gently placed her head on the girl's shoulder. In glee, the girl hugged Wolfie and buried her face into the snowy-white fur on Wolfie's neck.
"So, what's your name, lass?" Asked Krill as he kneeled on the floor.
This question startled the girl in question and she began shaking her head nervously. Serena sighed and hesitated about whether explaining the girl's situation would be appropriate or not. However, just as she was about to brush the subject away, the girl opened her mouth and pointed into it. Immediately, Krill could tell what the problem was.
"Oh, so you're like me." He said, pointing to his own scar. "But yours is nicer, at least you don't scare people away. You should have seen Lampa's face when he first saw me. The poor man almost jumped over the rails because he thought I was a ghost!" Joked Krill imitating a terrified expression. "Tell you what. How about we give you a new name. Not a permanent new one; just a name to call you by until we can get your voice back. How does that sound?"
The little girl looked wary and cast her gaze towards where Farmer was supposed to be. Krill and Serena both understood the meaning behind her wandering eyes and they both laughed.
"Little one, weren't you listening to my tale, earlier? If the captain is the one who gives you a new name, he will probably call you 'Girl' or something dull like that." Sighed Krill. "That would be such a pity. You're so beautiful that the Heavens demand you be given an appropriate name!" He said as if his words were a righteous edict made by Naosh herself. "Look at your hair. It's the colour of a raven's wing. Absolutely spectacular. A name like Raven would be far more fitting for you."
To this, the girl stared at him with wide eyes. It was evident that she liked being complimented in such a manner. She began grinning and nodding emphatically and even hugged Wolfie even harder. Thus, the little girl was baptised as Raven by Krill. Enjoying himself, Krill pulled Raven up onto his shoulders and began giving her a tour of every nook and cranny of Alana's Regret. He vowed to show her every secret of the ship before the day changed to night and together, they both departed with Wolfie hot on their heels.
Serena smiled heartily at Raven having been welcomed warmly by Farmer's crew. Only now did she truly understand what Lampa had meant when he explained that almost everyone here had been rescued at one point or another. They all treated each other like a true family; perhaps they had no one else but each other...
Turning back to lean on the balustrade, Serena fixed her gaze towards where Farmer was hidden and let her thoughts drift to peculiar places.
--
Back on Krieg's ship, Farmer had no idea that his precious pet wolf that had accompanied him for the better part of a decade was acting so chummy with the little girl he'd just rescued that very morning. If he knew, he might have spat a mouthful of blood, because it had taken him no small amount of effort to get on Wolfie's good graces when they first met and he was quite jealous when it came to her. Whatever the case, he had just, at this very moment, recuperated his strength and was preparing to break through the chest's defences.
Placing the chest in the middle of the arrays he had set, he took a moment to make a final inspection of his runes to make sure that they were perfect. Satisfied with the result, he sat down cross-legged in front of the chest and placed each of his hands on either side of it. Using every ounce of his concentration, he began drawing each of the chest's runes in his mind. This was a key step in dissolving an array that wasn't your own.
Initially, he believed this step would be easy but was surprised by the unfathomable profundity of the runes themselves. Although simple, whoever had carved them was surely a true array expert. This expert had poured every iota of their knowledge and experience into these runes and had accomplished the nigh-impossible step of compressing complexity into simplicity. In addition, every rune was intricately interconnected with the others in a manner that if any rune was damaged, it would instantly be repaired by the ones surrounding it.
Farmer marvelled at the wonder before him. If he managed to study this array and pry the methods of carving it, his abilities would step into a whole new level! Hence, he gave up on forcing his way through it and began studying intensely. He began picturing every individual stroke of runic carving one by one. Each stroke he visualised as part of his own consciousness; each carving, a scar on his body. Without realising it, he started drawing these runes in the air with his hands.
Like that, an unknown amount of time passed and he had mentally carved each rune at least a hundred times. Every time he completed a rune, he could distinctly feel that there was something missing. Some critical piece of the puzzle that evaded him whenever he thought it was in his grasp. It was as if he was staring at the surface of some murky waters and, as soon as the answer threatened to break the surface, it would rapidly sink back in; far away from him, and forcing to start again.
As such, he gave up on studying the runes individually and examined the array on the chest as a whole. It was then that he noticed that the entirety of the array itself perfectly complimented any given single rune. Then it hit him! The runes and the array weren't separate concepts, but part of a whole! One could not exist without the other! This was an insight that opened up a whole new path of array carving for him!
Smiling to himself, he began drawing runes in the air one after the other with the mental image of the complete array in his mind. Eventually, he was able to perfectly fuse the simple runes with the complex array itself and carve out a wonderful array. He was finally able to compress complexity into simplicity! Farmer was ecstatic!
Having successfully imitated the first layer of the sealing array covering the chest, Farmer knew that his abilities had stepped into the next level. Although he was far from being able to carve out the nine layers of superposed arrays that protected the chest, it was only a matter of time and practice until he was capable of doing so. As matters stood, he was certain he would be able to easily tear down the chest's protection.
With renewed confidence, he set out to break apart the sealing array on the chest. The first layer was rapidly dissolved under his efforts. The second layer fell shortly afterwards, followed closely by the third and fourth ones. The fifth one took him slightly longer but he was eventually able to break through it. The sixth was more complicated and it took a greater deal of concentration, time, and energy to dissolve. The seventh and eight layers, similar to the sixth, demanded a strong expenditure of his energy before he was able to pry them apart. By this point, he had completely lost track of time.
Finally, all that remained was the ninth layer. This one was by far the most cumbersome hurdle Farmer had had to face up to this point. It was at least twice as strong as the eighth layer and demanded at least thrice the effort to break through. Employing every ounce of energy and concentration he could muster, Farmer began tearing the final layer apart slowly, but steadily. Time passed and with a final groan of exhaustion, the ninth layer was finally destroyed under Farmer's efforts.
Completely void of energy, Farmer collapsed on himself and took heavy breaths. Despite his tiredness, he couldn't help but to grin like a madman. He had done it! He had surmounted the array! Now all he had to do was open the chest and take its contents for himself! In addition, he had truly experienced what it meant to learn from an absent expert. Whatever was inside the chest, he had already reaped immense benefits from his efforts.
Taking half a dozen recovering elixirs, Farmer gathered the energy of the Heavens of the Earth into his body. Just like every time he exhausted himself, he could feel his channels growing wider and his body becoming stronger with every circulation of energy. Eventually, he had recuperated to the point that he wasn't worried about any danger hidden within the chest and, unable to contain himself, he pulled the top of the chest apart with a single motion and cast his gaze inside it.