The buildings in Elecia were all extremely crude, mostly wooden structures, many already rotting, with some even having barnacle carcasses clinging to the walls.
Much of the timber had been salvaged from abandoned ships—they had no better options, and houses built from rotten wood at least avoided attracting pirate raids.
None of these doors had locks either, since the total value of everything inside likely wasn't worth as much as a single lock.
There were plenty of pirates here, virtually free from any restraint. As long as they didn't go too far, the Church wouldn't bother with them either.
After all, the God of Freedom needed their faith.
"Where are we supposed to gather information? A tavern?"
Anna had gotten her fill of killing earlier and still felt unsatisfied. There were clearly more pirates here than on the previous island, so slaughtering them would be even more satisfying.
"We'd better not kill anyone. This is an Orthodox God's territory. Even if these pirates burn, kill, and pillage, they're still believers of an Orthodox God—legal residents...
"Besides, even if something really happens, they won't know anything. We need to find the nobles."
Even as pirates, they only preyed on those weaker than themselves and never dared to touch the nobility.
Most people became pirates out of necessity—if they could live stable lives, who would want to fight for their lives on the Endless Ocean?
"Same as what happened back in Gedlan Kingdom's Royal Capital—the nobles always get the news first.
"If a disaster strikes, by the time commoners find out, the nobles have probably already fled."
The nobles' location was easy to find. Not far away stood a seaside villa, a stark contrast to the rotting wooden shacks around it that didn't even have locks.
"Let's go. Let's check it out first. I'm sure this is a noble's residence, but I'm not certain anyone's here.
"After all, nobles probably don't own just one villa."
Loren wasn't the only one heading toward the villa. A few people dressed like tourists were also walking in the same direction. Though their clothing was understated, their demeanor set them completely apart from everyone else.
At the center of the group was a middle-aged man, surrounded by mages dressed as commoners. Loren could sense their auras were far stronger than ordinary people.
"What are the Bountiful Church people doing here?"
Anna recognized their identity too and asked.
"There are no rules binding them here. They can do whatever they want—that's how they truly demonstrate their difference from commoners."
"But with their status, as long as they don't openly oppose the Church, they can basically do whatever they want anyway, right?"
Anna knew well what those nobles usually did. That was exactly why she didn't think they needed to come here.
"Maybe this is a token of allegiance."
Loren didn't explain further. He intended to let Anna and the others see for themselves.
They followed the group into the villa, saving Loren the trouble of phasing through walls.
The villa had many guards—after all, with so many pirates around, there were always a few arrogant ones who thought they could take on the nobles.
As for what happened to those pirates, there was no need to elaborate. Again, if they could get a stable position, who would choose to be a pirate?
After identity verification, the guards let the group through, and Loren and his companions took the opportunity to enter the villa ahead of them.
The interior walls were luxurious, rivaling those of Gedlan Kingdom's nobility.
Loren examined the decor, especially the luxury items. Many of their origins traced back to the God of Bountiful Harvest's territory.
These items were precious—even nobles within the God of Bountiful Harvest's domain couldn't necessarily buy them, so export was basically impossible.
Yet here, there were so many luxuries.
By now, the dining table had been fully set, waiting for the guests to arrive before the meal began.
Seated at the head of the table was a middle-aged man in his fifties. Fine wrinkles had begun to appear on his face, but his hair remained jet-black and his complexion was rosy, like a young man's.
Several others sat beside him, their eyes filled with sycophancy when they looked at the middle-aged man.
"What are they going to eat? We haven't tried the local specialties here yet..."
When she sensed they were about to start the meal, Anna's craving was triggered, and she whispered to Loren.
"Just watch."
For once, Loren didn't scold Anna, which instead gave her a bad feeling—especially given how serious his expression was.
Just before they began the meal, Loren's intuition sensed something.
"Long time no see, Lord Horn..."
When the group entered, the bodyguards automatically moved to the sides. Only a few people walked in. The leader, upon seeing the man he called "Lord Horn," immediately spread his arms and embraced Horn like a long-lost old friend.
"Horn?"
Loren remembered that surname—it belonged to a major family in Gedlan Kingdom.
"Long time no see."
Horn was also very warm toward the man before him. After the embrace, he looked at those following behind:
"And these are..."
"Oh, they're from the Rivers family. They wanted to come with me to see the world."
Loren had some impression of the Horn family, but the Rivers family left no memory. He only recalled they were believers of the God of Bountiful Harvest.
"Greetings, Lord Horn..."
The others immediately stepped forward eagerly to shake hands with Horn, who smiled and shook each of their hands in turn.
"By the way, did the Lord from the Chailros family not come?"
After the pleasantries, Horn asked about other matters. At this, the man sighed:
"The Chailros family got a new head. The new family head is very young, and he's nothing but Loren's dog. Now that Loren's fate is unknown, alive or dead, he's still desperately trying to curry favor with Loren.
"Not only that, he's tightened control over his own family members. I doubt Lord Chailros will be able to come here anymore."
By this point, Loren had already pulled out his Little Grudge Notebook and written a line:
"These nobles discussed me behind my back without using proper titles, calling me by name directly. I'm noting this grudge."
Before Loren could put away the Little Grudge Notebook, they started talking again:
"Loren's fate is unknown? That's good news. What happened exactly? Can he really die?"
"The train he was on exploded. They searched for a long time but never found him. He's probably dead."
"Then let's toast to Loren's death."
Horn raised his wine glass, and the attendant beside him immediately poured red wine for everyone.
"They're also toasting to my death. I'm noting this grudge."
Just as Loren was recording his grudges, they prepared to order. Horn whispered something to the attendant, who then left.
When the attendant returned, many children followed behind him.
They were nicely dressed, fair and clean, their faces bearing the numbness of resigned acceptance.
"Choose one as tonight's main course."