Following this description, the Redflower Pirates finished their meals before creating a small group that would head out for the hut where Zaliah was supposedly located.

This group consisted of Roseus, Blodwen, Silius, and Petyr. The reasoning for this was that there were three powerful fighters on the team, alongside Silius, who might awaken navigation skills while traversing the land.

As for the others, they would wait by the ship temporarily to keep an eye on it. If the others hadn’t returned from the mountain by nightfall, then those at the ship were to return to the tavern to hide from the dangerous nights.

During the daytime, the dockyard town was slightly more active, as the islanders travelled to and from their houses and various markets to do their daily shopping. Still, they all had hurried footsteps and seemed to walk even faster when spotting pirates.

As for other crews, the Redflowers didn’t see many. What was more common were adventurers and merchants who clearly traversed the seas, but wanted no business with an unknown pirate crew, as they didn’t know the risks involved.

Roseus guessed that any pirates were likely located in the deeper parts of the island, where the mountain ranges were. This was the location they were currently entering.

From the town, there was a main path leading into the nearest mountain. This path was easy to traverse, with stairs carved into the mountain face to help them. However, there were clearly other routes that were less travelled and more dangerous, eventually leading to separate parts of the mountain, or even different mountains entirely.

The small Redflower group traversed the main path, as they could see a small hut in the distance along it. The further they travelled, the stronger the winds became.

It didn’t take an hour before they came to a small hut made from wood. The wooden hut was only large enough to house one person, and outside of it was a small lake that carried with it a dark presence.

"This must be it," Roseus announced.

The others nodded their heads in agreement.

After knocking on the door, Roseus didn’t hear any footsteps from inside. Yet still, the door swung open silently.

He found himself standing face to face with the woman from his father’s memories.

Her hair was white, long, messy, and filled with numerous charms and gems. She seemed to be in her late thirties, yet her face remained unwrinkled except for the smile lines by her cheeks. The woman wore black robes that reached her ankles, with numerous bracelets around her wrists and rings on her fingers. After getting a closer look, it could be seen that she also wore a nose ring, several earrings, and when she spoke, her tongue was clearly pierced too.

The woman looked straight at Roseus, then looked him up and down.

"You look just like him. Even the outfit’s the same. He never did like letting his hair grow out though," she said. "I don’t know how I feel about it. Might get caught up during combat, no?"

Roseus remained silent at first, stunned by the woman in front of him. Not just because of her brashness, but also her appearance.

She wasn’t ugly by any means; it was just so different from the beauty standards of the Halo Continent. It seemed that the further out you travelled, the more varied the islanders started to look.

The woman then looked past Roseus and spotted Blodwen standing behind him.

"Ah, Blodwen. Time has treated you well. Why are you wearing a shark on your shoulder?"

Blodwen cleared his throat, perhaps showing a slight bit of nerves that didn’t suit him.

"It’s a treasure. Why are you wearing so much jewellery?"

Along the way up the mountain, Blodwen had explained that he had not known this woman well at all during their time on the ship. She had been shy and reserved, often spending most of her time secluded below deck or helping out the main shipwright. In truth, he had no idea why she had been left alone, despite being only an assistant shipwright.

"For ceremony, of course. Ah, you left our crew before that event happened, didn’t you? You’re probably wondering why I’m the one who was left behind, and not someone more important. Hehe, come inside, boys, and have some tea."

Without waiting for a response, the woman turned around and entered the darkness of her hut.

The members of the Redflower crew waited a few seconds, looking at each other sceptically.

"That is Zaliah?" Petyr scratched his purple hair. "She is... peculiar."

Silius rubbed his chin and nodded his head.

"Very peculiar, but there must be a reason behind Redeye’s decision to leave her behind."

"Aye," Blodwen grunted, and Roseus found himself agreeing too.

It was clear that Blodwen had been left behind due to his general knowledge of the First and Second Seas, as well as his proficiency in combat. He was incredibly useful in battle, as well as with primitive survival methods.

With Zaliah... they would just have to find out.

The group entered the hut.

Inside, there was only one room, which seemed to hold everything that the woman needed.

There was a bed, a fireplace with a stove atop it, a chest, a few stacked shelves, and a desk covered with numerous symbols and items.

Zaliah sat herself down at the centre of the room, where a pot was boiling atop the fire. The pot gave off the scent of boiled herbs. Using a ladle, she spooned some of the boiling liquid into her mouth and slurped it down.

"Delicious!" Her eyes went wide.

Roseus and the others found themselves looking around the room. The more they looked, the more they noticed that every part of the floor, ceiling, and walls was covered in numerous symbols that meant nothing to them.

"What are all of these etchings?" Roseus couldn’t help but ask.

Zaliah looked up from her seat as she continued enjoying her tea.

"You mean the symbols? Yes, that’s the reason why I was left behind. I should probably explain. But first, if you didn’t know, my name is Zaliah the Ceremonialist, worshipper of Sea God Yazu. I am the one who is in charge of protecting the dockyard city, using the powers of ceremony gifted to me by my god. But of course, I have been waiting for you so that I might use my powers to help strengthen your ship."