The word "good" had barely left his mouth when Elias immediately regretted it.
It wasn't because he was afraid of death.
Rather, he had suddenly realized a practical problem—the distance from here to the Hastings Port pier was about two kilometers in a straight line.
Under normal circumstances, this would be a journey that cost two copper coins, involved hiring a public carriage, and took fifteen minutes at most while humming a little tune.
But now?
Elias's expression turned cold as his gaze drifted past the shattered doorframe of the tavern and onto the street outside, which had been thoroughly baptized in a storm of blood and gore.
The once-smooth cyan stone pavement was now completely soaked in large pools of dark red blood.
The dim gaslights flickered uncertainly in the cold rain and mist, their glass covers long since shattered, their erratic light stretching out the nauseating shadows of the monsters.
The only path leading to the pier was currently packed with various deep-sea monstrosities.
Heading to the pier? More like rushing to his own funeral.
"Wait."
Elias took a deep breath and called out to Sophia, who was about to turn and head back into the tavern.
His brow furrowed as a key person he had overlooked suddenly flashed through his mind.
"Where is Ophelia?"
"Crowley took her with him."
Sophia stopped in her tracks, her tone as flat as still water.
"He took her with him?!"
Elias was dumbfounded on the spot, his eyes wide. Was that Old Sea Dog's head filled with nothing but fermented seawater?
The situation outside had already turned into a scene straight out of Resident Evil!
And he was taking a powerless ordinary person to the pier, the most dangerous place of all?!
That woman was so delicate; she wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps between the teeth of a carapace husk lunging from the roadside!
She wouldn't even be able to withstand the spiritual pressure emanating from those monsters; she'd fall into total madness in minutes!
"The girl insisted on going herself."
Looking at Elias's shocked expression, Sophia elegantly straightened her shawl and spread her hands, wearing a look of helpless resignation.
"I tried to persuade her."
"..."
A deep sense of speechlessness welled up in Elias's heart.
Are you people from the Resurrection Society always this casual in how you handle things?!
That foolish woman was blinded by her feelings and insisted on going to her death, and you actually dared to take her?
Old Crowley was a powerhouse transcendent who had lived for god-knows-how-many years, wasn't he?
He didn't even think to use a simple physical hand-knife to knock her out or cast a quick spell?
The girl stubbornly insisted on following, and he just nodded and agreed?
Unbelievable. Truly unbelievable.
Elias rubbed his throbbing temples vigorously, forcing himself to refocus on the survival crisis at hand.
Now was not the time to worry about others; the key was how to save his own life.
"Did that old man leave me a back door before he left?"
He stared at Sophia with hope, trying to hear a bit of good news from this high-ranking member of the Resurrection Society.
"Like a fixed teleportation array? Or a secret underground passage that leads directly to the pier warehouse?"
"At the very least, he could have left a fast horse!"
"No."
Ms. Merskael's answer remained concise and powerful, swift and decisive.
Those two heartless words left Elias with no room for rebuttal.
You ask me to tag along and risk my life, but you take a defenseless deadweight and slip away first?
Elias really wanted to rush to the pier, grab Old Crowley by the collar, and ask him: What the hell were you thinking?!
As if she felt this level of discouragement wasn't thorough enough, Ms. Merskael's gaze swept past the ruined tavern doors and across the debris-strewn street.
With a nearly cruel rationality, she added in a haunting tone: "Besides, I expect every horse in Hastings Port is dead by now."
Following the direction of her finger, Elias clearly saw a passenger carriage not far away.
The two once-strong bay horses were currently being disemboweled by several red-eyed fish-men.
Warm entrails mixed with the cold rain, spilling all over the street, their white bones appearing exceptionally desolate under the gaslights.
This was undoubtedly a death sentence for Elias's plan to "speed" through the breakout.
"Kid."
Old Ed popped up again, his voice carrying a hint of the cheeky relief of one who had cheated death.
"I suddenly feel like being trapped in the spirit world coordinates of that broken bracelet... is actually quite nice."
"Shut up."
Why was this old man coming out to make trouble now?!
Things had already reached this point; complaining and shrinking back would do no good.
Elias gripped his cane tightly.
Since his teammates couldn't be relied upon, he would have to recruit some help on the spot.
his cunning mind began to race at high speed.
Then he suddenly turned his head.
"Miss Dainfield."
Elias's tone shifted instantly, becoming incredibly serious and formal.
"Since the Seventh Agency came here to establish an intelligence channel..."
He reached out and pointed to the street outside, which looked like a living hell filled with danger.
"Then right now, a perfect opportunity for practice has presented itself."
Xia'an was slightly taken aback. She blinked her clear, large eyes.
"Go on."
The girl's voice was crisp, carrying a hint of professional caution and wariness.
"Escort me to the pier," Elias requested without a hint of politeness.
"..."
Xia'an looked at the street scene and remained silent for a moment.
"Mr. Rockland."
A standard professional smile formed on her face.
"Do you have some kind of misunderstanding regarding the term 'intelligence channel'?"
We're here to recruit an informant, not to be your private bodyguards!
"No misunderstanding at all."
Elias didn't even blink, his skin currently as thick as armored plating.
"A channel is, of course, two-way. I provide you with core intelligence, and you provide me with military support."
His tone was unwavering.
"This isn't a misunderstanding; it's deep cooperation."
Xia'an was so annoyed she laughed.
"You call this deep cooperation?" she retorted, her tone laced with undisguised mockery.
"What else?" Elias spread his hands.
"I'd call it kidnapping," the girl said, pointing out the essence of the matter with piercing accuracy.
This was blatant moral coercion coupled with leveraging interests!
"No, no, no, Miss Dainfield, you're overlooking a fundamental logical premise."
Elias wagged a finger. He turned and pointed again to the only street leading to the pier, and the dense crowd of deep-sea monsters radiating terrifying malice.
"The premise of kidnapping is that you have a choice."
He turned back and looked directly into Xia'an's eyes.
"Facing this situation, do you think you still have any room for choice?"
"If I die on this street tonight, what intelligence will be left for your Seventh Agency to collect?"
This was an absolute open scheme. Elias knew it full well.
For the Seventh Agency, which was desperate for internal information on Wayland, a living informant who knew the inside story was far more valuable than a corpse picked clean to the bone.
To increase his bargaining chips, Elias lowered his voice.
"But I can guarantee you one thing: as long as you get me to the pier alive, I will give you a piece of intelligence that is absolutely meaningful."
It was a deal.
Xia'an didn't immediately state her position after hearing this. She tilted her head slightly, glancing once more at the storm-tossed street outside the tavern.
At this moment, the situation had undergone a subtle change visible to the naked eye.
One of the largest mutated carapace husks, its shell a deep, dark color, was the first to stop tearing at a corpse. It suddenly turned around, its body covered in heavy grayish-white armor reflecting a nauseating sheen under the gaslights.
"Hiss—!"
The carapace husk let out a sharp, ear-piercing insectile cry, waving its massive chelicerae and stepping out with its thick, reverse-jointed long legs.
Bringing with it a gust of foul-smelling wind, it began to charge frantically toward the tavern entrance!
Danger was imminent!
Xia'an withdrew her gaze. Her beautiful eyes showed no trace of ordinary fear; instead, they flashed with the intense interest of a battle-maniac.
She looked at Elias, the corners of her mouth curling up into a confident smile.
"Oh? You said it!"
The girl no longer hesitated and nodded decisively.
"Deal."
As an investigator, protecting an important informant in the midst of chaos was part of her duty anyway.
Furthermore, she was indeed filled with intense curiosity about this man before her, who was shrouded in mystery and actually dared to bargain with the Seventh Agency.
The moment the agreement was reached, Dabu had already silently pulled a monstrously sized, heavy brass firearm from his toolkit.
The air was instantly filled with the solemn and anxious tension of an impending battle.
Just then, Ms. Merskael, who had been acting like an outsider, suddenly spoke in a haunting voice.
"Bloodsong."
Sophia's voice remained soft, yet it carried the undeniable authority of a high-ranking member of the Resurrection Society.
"You go as well."
Bloodsong, who had been planning to stay out of the trouble, suddenly froze in his tracks.
"?"
"Me... Me?"
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