Those incredible tales and strange stories circulating in the streets weren't entirely false. It's just that most people were fortunate enough to live far from that bloodshed and gloom, living their lives in this world.
But a small number of people, they had stepped into the forbidden zones.
Derek swallowed hard, instinctively lowering his voice to a near reverent whisper. "So, what would you like to know?"
Dulmi stared at Derek in surprise.
This tone was quite familiar to him—last night, this Mr. Fish-head had used a similar tone when dealing with those white-robed people. Yet today, just because he could see this fellow's fish head, the other party suddenly became so respectful?
He suddenly found it amusing—it had always been him who was anxious and frustrated because of the Outer zone's existence, but now someone else was feeling fearful because of him.
Unable to control this emotion, he burst into laughter.
Derek watched him suspiciously for a while, thinking, this must really be a madman?
After a moment, Dulmi calmed down and asked, "Where are those white-robed people going?"
Derek hesitated for a moment, but between a distant danger and an immediate one, he chose to submit. Besides, this question wasn't particularly difficult to answer.
He replied: "Porpune."
Porpune was a port city on the western coast of Fogland. It was also the first city that Sheran people encountered in Fogland. Back then it was still Fogland territory, but now it belonged to Sheran.
Politically, this city belonged to a large country to the north of Sheran, but due to its commercial nature, it was open to almost everyone, and was the first stop for most people traveling from Sheran to Fogland.
Dulmi nodded, then asked thoughtfully: "Does this happen often?"
"What?"
"Those people." Dulmi gestured distantly toward the white-robed group, "Do people like them often travel to Fogland?"
"Not often. Very few choose to depart from Nightingale. They're followers of the Void Moon, and larger cities probably wouldn't welcome them, but Nightingale can't refuse."
"Void Moon?" Dulmi echoed, intrigued.
This was the first time Dulmi had heard of the Void Moon.
In his normal daytime life, he rarely encountered deities outside of the well-known Seven True Gods, and in his nighttime world, was even murkier.
For instance, he could see this fish-headed fellow and knew he was a member of the Shenlo Association, represented the Sea Mirror's power.
But this was just one possibility.
In the Outer zone, Derek could become anything else—a corpse, a harpoon, a pile of ashes, a book, a wooden comb... anything was possible. Humans themselves were already rare things in the Outer zone.
Dulmi had witnessed restaurant waiters transform into a broom, a napkin, a spoon, a piece of meat in the Outer zone. He later enthusiastically ate dinner at that restaurant several times in a row, just to see what else that waiter might become.
Sometimes, the restaurant would simply disappear completely.
Dulmi didn't really understand the principle behind it, or as they would say in his daytime classes, the "pattern." Perhaps there was no pattern at all.
But in any case, his nights were filled with these chaotic things. He couldn't help it.
Thinking about this, Dulmi let out a sigh.
Derek didn't understand why he suddenly sighed. He sensed a subtle madness in this young man, or rather, a neurotic quality.
This young man seemed to live in his own world, completely immersed in his own thoughts. No one could understand what he was thinking, what he actually saw.
The world seemed to him like countless fragments of a mirror, he could see one piece, but the person in the mirror could never see him.
They approached the port.
Finally getting closer to his colleagues, Derek felt slightly more at ease.
But for Dulmi, what he saw was one fish-headed person approaching a group of other fish-headed people.
He couldn't help but look at these fish-headed people's heads with a loving gaze: "They are quite ugly indeed." He mumbled, "But you get used to it after a while, I've seen uglier ones, like that one beside them, and that one I met in the sea last time."
Derek: "..."
He felt he should stay away from this deranged young man.
Besides, the one beside them?
Was he referring to those followers of the Void Moon?
Derek didn't understand what this young man actually saw, but he knew this world had many secrets, and he reminded himself not to dig too deep, not to be curious.
Suppressing his unease, he said solemnly: "You can call me Derek. Then, how should I address you?"
Dulmi was slightly stunned. Before this, he hadn't considered this question. Was the daytime Dulmi Knight the same as the nighttime Dulmi Knight?
Derek saw a very complicated expression appear on the young man's face.
After a while, he said: "Then call me... Daydream."
"Mr. Daydream?" Derek added tentatively.
"That works too," Dulmi shrugged. "When daylight comes, you'll forget about me."
Derek froze there.
The ship's whistle sounded, and Dulmi kindly reminded him: "You should board now."
He looked into the distance, seeing the deep purple, viscous seawater under the hazy moonlight, where faint mist was rising.
He said: "Perhaps, we'll meet again in Fogland."