A dim light shone on the deck of the Voice of the Dawn.
In the dining room aft, the light began to brighten, and the sound of conversation emanated from within.
Also wafting from it was an extremely tempting aroma.
This dinner was all about replenishing energy and refreshing the spirits.
Afterward, Jason conducted his first-half-night patrol.
Due to tomorrow's exploration, tonight's shift had been temporarily changed to a third shift to allow everyone adequate rest.
Alka, too, stayed awake and went to the map-making workshop of Shadaiti.
It was in a room on the third floor of the aft deck, a small room to the side of Shadaiti, accessible from both the outside and her own room.
Alka sat on a stool nearby, quietly chatting with Lucilia.
Er also sat beside them, swinging his legs and smiling at Alka.
Alka occasionally turned his head toward Sofia, blinking to check the progress of the map in front of her.
Finally, on his third glance, a rough outline of the map had been drawn, and as he blinked, a dazzling golden light appeared.
Fuck, golden light!
Alka couldn't help but curse internally, his expression changing instantly. Then he quickly calmed himself and took two rapid breaths.
"What's wrong?" Lucilia, who was chatting with him nearby, asked curiously, seeing his somewhat agitated expression.
"Nothing," Alka said calmly, having controlled her expression. "I see the map seems to have been outlined."
In addition to the golden light, Alka also saw three blue dots and two white dots.
Six treasure spots in total, all clustered in the center of the island, right where they had seen the two ships crash.
As expected, the two shipwrecks left behind a considerable amount of treasure.
Could all the people on board have died?
No, at least one person was still alive. The problem was, no one knew where that person was now.
The fact that the treasure locations still existed, including the artifact, meant they hadn't been taken over by anyone else.
What puzzled Alka was how the man had managed to survive.
The time between the two shipwrecks could be estimated, roughly ten years.
For ten years, the man hadn't left, remaining on this island, with no food to eat.
He couldn't possibly live on the supplies left on those two ships; anything would spoil in ten years.
Not to mention the fish in the surrounding waters, which were incredibly scarce. Surviving on fish was a pipe dream.
And they hadn't found any signs of human activity just yet.
Alka was already wondering if the person was still alive, perhaps a spirit who had preserved their soul and wisdom.
This possibility was extremely high. After all, even in a region with low magical power like the Home Sea, it was not uncommon for spirits to linger after death and refuse to leave.
Even in a haunted place like the Dark Realm, someone could retain their former strength and continue to exist, not even needing a body, only a soul.
On this island, in a region with high magical power, becoming a spirit after death was quite possible if one had strong willpower to control their soul and will.
Furthermore, the noise they made while exploring the island today was quite loud. If the person was able to move freely, they couldn't have missed it.
It was also unlikely that they wouldn't have contacted them.
Alka felt that the living person's condition might be strange, and they should prepare for their death.
However, having discovered a treasure on this island, Alka could no longer hide the smile on his face. Calming himself, he chatted cheerfully with Lucilia, quietly waiting for Sofia to finish the map.
There was no need to rush to check it out.
When it came to mapmaking, Alka had great respect for Sofia. He would only accept her map if she completed it to her satisfaction.
A long time passed, and the moon was already high in the sky outside.
Sofia finally stood up from his stool and stretched vigorously.
"Well... it's done. Take it and see."
Hearing this, Alka eagerly stood up from his stool and quickly walked over to remove the map from the wooden shelf.
The map had already been treated for protection; the paint had long since dried and a protective layer had been applied.
Sofia had a quick way of processing.
Looking at the map, the island looked just as they had seen it, an irregular oval.
The two ships were located in the center of the island, slightly above it.
Arka blinked, and the first thing he noticed was the dazzling golden beam of light.
The golden light was far more conspicuous than the blue and white.
Arka took the map and went to the table next to him, examining it alone.
Xadaiti took over and chatted with Lucilia and Er.
It was now Arka's working hours, and no one would disturb him.
He reached out and brushed his hand across the map, clicking on the golden beam.
[Hidden Treasure]
[Difficulty: Battle Team (Six Spirals)]
[Notability: 3659]
[Treasure Information: None]
First, the difficulty level, with the word "battle team" in the plural.
This situation indicated a large number of enemies, which also matched what they had observed during the day.
The difficulty reached six spirals, indicating that the strongest enemy would have six spirals. Fortunately, it was within their acceptable range.
Alka was afraid that the difficulty would exceed their tolerance, and in that case, they would have to give up the treasure.
After all, compared to the treasure, life was more important.
To him, the treasure wasn't worth exchanging his life, or even serious injury. It wasn't worth it.
Since the difficulty was within an acceptable range, they would definitely go there tomorrow.
This level of popularity was somewhat strange.
Treasures are generally not well-known, considering that the two ships crashed only about ten years ago.
And it happened in such a place.
It was very likely the treasure carried by the people who emerged from the Ocean of Delusion ten years ago. After all, those willing to leave their home seas and journey to the Boundless Sea generally possess a treasure.
For example, their group totaled over twenty teams, and five of them were known to possess treasures.
Not to mention the lesser-known teams like theirs, who were hiding their secrets.
The rate of possessing such a treasure was already quite high.
Perhaps, like the Burning Blood Hand team, they were also well-known teams in the Sea of Illumination.
Hence their fame.
Alka clicked on the adjacent blue and white dots. The difficulty level was the same: they were all Holy Light teams, but the strongest enemies were in the five- to four-spiral range.
This meant that the six-spiral enemy only existed near the treasure and would likely disappear if they left its range.
Regardless, these difficulties were within their acceptable range.
Six treasure spots in total—their haul on this trip was definitely more than enough.
Looking at the map, Alka's expression lit up with excitement, and he couldn't wait for tomorrow.
"How's it going, Alka? Did you find any useful information?"
Sofia asked.
If an ordinary person could find some inexplicable information on a freshly drawn map, it would be considered a joke.
But Alka's nose for treasure was just right, and everyone was used to it.
After all, they were all on the same ship, and some things couldn't be kept secret. Simply hiding the most important information and packaging the information that needed to be revealed was enough.
"It's dangerous, but not fatal. I think the rewards will be quite good. Be prepared," Alka said with a smile.
"By the way, remember to prepare your Holy Light offensive tactics. After all, the zombies we encountered today are still considered undead."
After saying this, Alka waved goodbye to the others.
"You should all get some rest early. I'm going downstairs now. I'll take the map with me."
Alka waved the map at her, pushed the door open, and left.
Only the two puppet girls and Sofia remained in the room.
"A very good find, huh? I'm getting excited," Sofia said with a smile.
Lucille nodded.
For Alka, it was a very good find; it was definitely a treasure worth celebrating.
"Alka is so handsome!" Er suddenly said, his eyes still fixed on the doorway.
This sudden remark caused both Lucelia and Sofia to snap their eyes to her.
Then their eyes met. They nodded in unison. Sofia lifted Er's collar and walked into the room together.
Alka, leaving the room, informed everyone of some necessary preparations.
Then he quickly sank into his dream.
He quickly flew out of his dream bubble and circled around everyone else's, clearing out some ungrateful dream creatures.
Today, he did not enter Lusilia's dream, nor did he awaken her.
After all, Lusilia's dream bubble had not yet emerged.
Tomorrow's exploration required everyone to rest up, and he planned to quickly resolve some matters in his dream and rest.
The most important thing was to see if he could encounter the dream bubble of the person still alive on the island tonight.
He created the same cloud ring he'd used for reconnaissance the previous time, aiding his reconnaissance.
He hoped the person was still asleep.
The ripples only expanded once before immediately rebounding.
This indicated the dream bubble was very close to him. He hoped it wasn't the dream of some small animal.
They didn't seem to have seen any small animals this morning.
While thinking, Alka was already flying rapidly in the direction of the rebound. After passing through a colorful mist, he spotted a large dream bubble not far away.
It was still as dim and lusterless as he'd seen it the night before, with several cracks on its surface.
He gently flew into it.
This time, his dream had changed.
It was no longer a small island as before, but a steel ship anchored in the ocean.
This steel vessel was over 50 meters long. With its bow and stern structures removed, only the central command room and watchtower remained.
The gun deck still remained below, its muzzles ferociously large, a full circle larger than those on their ship.
However, this steel vessel still had its sails, and they were massive. Atop them was a black steel arm, its five fingers spread out, with a white cross crest in the center.
This design was likely the ship's team emblem, and a flag atop it bore the emblem of the Church of the Holy Machine.
This indicated that this was a team affiliated with a certain church, and one that was openly operating.
The most striking feature of this ship was the circular nozzle at its rear.
From this nozzle, Alka could confirm with absolute certainty that this was the wreck of the steel vessel they had seen today.
So, was the still-living person, the owner of this dream bubble, a member of this steel vessel?
Thinking of this, he floated down, onto the ship's deck, and peered towards the command room in the center.
He could already see a figure standing inside through the transparent glass.
It was the human Arka had seen yesterday, though his attire was no longer as bleak as it had been the previous day.
He wore a well-fitting gray suit, with a robe draped over his back.
The robe bore the symbol of the church.
The attire was very similar to that of a religious member, and the sleeves also had that aura.
He had many divine elements about him.
From the moment Arka met him, the information he had gathered was essentially enough to confirm that this person was a member of the Church of the Holy Machine.
Arka walked in, pulled out a bench, and sat down. Facing Alka's appearance, the man paid no attention, not even turning his head.
This is consistent with a normal dream.
After a moment's thought, Alka suddenly asked, "What's your name?"
At Alka's sudden question, he turned his head briefly to glance at Alka, then turned back again, showing no intention of answering.
Not even saying your name?
Generally speaking, in dreams, no matter the current situation, asking for a name usually yields an answer.
Of course, it's not always the case, but the probability is very high, around 75%.
Beyond this range, other questions are unlikely to be answered.
Unless the question is perfectly aligned with his dream.
Luckily, Alka had already researched this trip.
"This ship is beautiful. What's its name?"
This question successfully caught the man's attention. He turned to look at Alka, then turned back, but the voice had already reached him.
"Iron Melody."
"Iron Melody? A very fitting name."
After waiting for a moment, Alka asked again, "What happened to the ship?"
"It stopped. I don't know."
...Alka sat silently beside him, head bowed in thought.
Although the man's answer was vague and incomprehensible,
Alka might know something.
After many experiments, he found that in dreams, these people either didn't answer questions, or the answers they gave were always accurate.
It was accurate for the dreamer.
If he were still alive and able to move, he would definitely know that the ship was in ruins.
He wouldn't answer, "I don't know." He would only respond with descriptions like "broken" or "destroyed."
It had stopped, that much was certain.
In other words, his final understanding of the ship was that it had stopped. As for its current condition, he had no idea.
Under what circumstances could such a situation arise?
He was a spirit, similar to the evil spirits in the Dark Realm, unable to leave a certain area, resulting in him being trapped inside the ship, unable to see the entire ship.
He was still alive, merely in a strange state, imprisoned. This could also have caused the same effect.
And if he were alive, that would explain why he'd dreamt of gluttony, like a starving ghost.
Because he was truly hungry.
It was also quite possible that he had become a spirit and was trapped within the ship.
There were too many possibilities, but a general idea was already in place.
Alka asked a few more questions, but the figure before him wouldn't answer anything except those related to the ship.
This left Alka with very little information. He wanted to ask about treasure or the crew.
For example, if he asked how many cannons the ship had and how powerful they were, the figure before him would happily answer.
He might even expand on the information by offering some adjectives.
The dream's conditions were too simple to be used for intelligence.
After extracting almost no information, Alka slowly soared into the sky, leaving his dream bubble.
He now had one last way to obtain more intelligence, but first he needed to go back.
Returning to his dream bubble, he didn't sleep there to recover.
Instead, he woke up immediately.
He lit the lamp nearby, and the map he had just obtained appeared in his hand.
He tapped the golden dot.
The name of the treasure still didn't appear, and Alka didn't get any information about it.
Instead, a blue dot and a white dot displayed the name and information, located to one side.
The information clearly indicated that the two treasures were located on the then-destroyed steel ship.
The blue dot represented a weapon once owned by a crew member of the ship, while the white dot represented the ship's treasure vault, once used to store valuables and money.
It was foreseeable that this treasure vault would bring them a considerable amount of funds. Two other blue dots, one white dot, and one gold dot were on the other side.
‐‐This indicated the treasure's location might be inside the wooden boat.
‐‐It was something left behind by some of the crew members of the destroyed boat.
‐‐ However, Alka knew nothing about the boat or anything related to it.
‐‐After learning more information,
‐‐Alka sat in bed, stunned. Now, he had a choice.
‐‐He pointed at the crystal protruding from his chest.
‐‐For more information, should he awaken the only living person from his dream?