“You’re from the central region. How did you end up in Epea?” Ernesto asked.
“In Ethereal Realm, Epea has the most alchemists and alchemy family. Epea’s Yannopolis is home to the Epean Alchemist Guild, where the Alchemist Fair is held. Since I didn’t have a mentor, I had no choice but to secretly learn here…”
“Yannopolis is right next to the sea, so I’m very familiar with these waters. I’ve even visited Medicine God Island several times,” Sinclair explained.
Thaddeus nodded in agreement. He knew how difficult it was for someone like Sinclair, from a non-alchemist family, to become an alchemist and learn the art of alchemy.
Self-study and learning from others in secret were often the only options. Yannopolis, with its concentration of alchemists, offered the fastest way to grow and learn.
“You mentioned you had a way to take care of those people behind us. What do you mean by that?” Thaddeus asked.
“President Surrey, we shouldn’t head to Epea right now. Instead, we should turn south. In about an hour, we’ll enter a stormy sea. That area regularly experiences massive storms. The storms are said to come from giant sea creatures deep below the ocean, and they occur at set times every year…”
“If we lead those chasing us into that storm-prone sea area, the storm will take care of them for us, and they’ll end up feeding the demon beasts,” Sinclair revealed.
“Won’t we get caught in the storm and get eaten by the demon beasts too?” Ernesto asked, confused.
“Mr. Boucher, don’t worry. I know the paths the storms take. I’ll guide us away before the storm hits. Right now, this is our only option. If we continue toward Epea, they’ll catch up to us before we even reach land,” Sinclair explained.
Ernesto fell silent, unsure whether to trust Sinclair.
Meanwhile, after a moment of contemplation, Thaddeus made a quick decision. “Turn the ship! Head south!”
Thaddeus chose to trust Sinclair this time, as it seemed like the only viable option. Besides, Sinclair’s reasoning made sense. There were no other ways to ensure their survival.
The spirit ship changed course, and under the spiritual power of the alchemists aboard, it sped off into the distance, heading farther and farther from land.
When Jared and his group saw Thaddeus and his men suddenly change direction, they were baffled.
“What’s going on? Why did Thaddeus suddenly change course? Don’t they want to return to Epea?” Wyatt asked, puzzled.
“Maybe they realized that even if they made it to Epea, we wouldn’t let them off. So now they’re trying to escape to another place,” Dylan speculated.
“But where would they be escaping to? It looks like they’re heading south. That’s just open sea. There isn’t even an island out there,” Waylon said, equally confused.
Jared frowned, scanning the horizon. He had no idea what Thaddeus and his men were planning either.
“Perhaps I know what they’re trying to do.” Hartwin suddenly spoke up.
“Mr. Bellamy, you know?” Jared asked, looking at him.
“They’re heading for the storm-prone sea area. They must have someone on board who knows these waters well,” Hartwin explained.
“Storm-prone sea area?” Everyone was taken aback!
“I‘ve never heard of such a place in all these years. What kind of sea region is that?” Dylan asked.
“The storm-prone sea area doesn’t always have storms. They occur at specific times, but I don’t know exactly when. However, I’ve heard that when the storms hit, they’re terrifying. And there are incredibly fearsome demon beasts lurking in that area…”
“Thaddeus is probably trying to lure us into that storm-prone sea area, hoping that the storm will wipe us out. That’s ruthless of him,” Hartwin revealed.
