Guard Abo stood respectfully in the center of the hall along with several other escort guards, reporting the day's events to the Great Elder and the other elders seated on both sides.
"…The leader of the Blue Sea group, a man named Sami, asked the shell workshop owner whether Impact Dials or Slash Dials—combat-type dials—were available for purchase."
Abo reported truthfully.
"Combat dials…"
The Great Elder lightly tapped the armrest of his chair, a knowing look passing through his eyes.
"As expected."
"They are definitely not a merchant caravan."
"Any Blue Sea merchant who comes to the White Sea for business knows that ever since the great upheaval more than three hundred years ago, the trade of combat dials has been strictly forbidden."
More than three centuries ago, a massive island known to Blue Sea people as Jaya was miraculously blasted up into the White-White Sea by a tremendous Upstream current.
At the time, the Sky Island "god" regarded it as a divine gift.
He seized the land and declared it Upper Yard, the "Island of God," driving out the original inhabitants—the Shandians.
Thus began a bloody war between the two races that would last for hundreds of years.
During those war-filled centuries, countless combat dials were deployed on the battlefield.
Their consumption reached unprecedented levels.
For the Blue Sea merchants who ventured up to Sky Islands during that era, the most profitable goods were precisely these powerful and versatile combat dials.
However, as the war dragged on—and merchants continued purchasing them in huge quantities—many types of combat dials began to disappear.
Some even went extinct due to overharvesting.
Eventually, the Sky Islands realized the danger.
Trade restrictions were introduced.
And finally, all major Sky Islands officially banned the commerce of combat dials.
For Blue Sea merchants, their most lucrative trade route vanished overnight.
Yet where enormous profit once existed, reckless people followed.
Smuggling.
Theft.
Robbery.
Some particularly vicious Blue Sea pirate crews even began attacking islands and villages that stored combat dials.
During that dark era, ships arriving from the Blue Sea became synonymous with greed, plunder, and danger in the eyes of many Sky Islanders.
Hostility toward them grew stronger and stronger.
As time passed, fewer and fewer Blue Sea visitors were willing—or able—to take the risk.
The once-thriving trade route centered around dials gradually faded into silence.
Now decades had passed.
Those Sky Islanders who personally experienced those brutal times had grown old or died.
The younger generation remembered only vague cautionary legends about Blue Sea people.
That was precisely why Sami and his group had been able to appear during this historical gap without immediately being attacked.
"Any real merchant knows that combat dials are a taboo among Sky Islands," the Great Elder continued.
"They would never recklessly ask about them."
He looked down at the guards.
"Besides this test about combat dials, did you observe anything unusual?"
Abo exchanged glances with the others and shook his head.
"Reporting to the Great Elder…"
"They seem particularly interested in rare items."
"Especially a giant man named Aldo, who led several people around searching for oddly shaped fruit."
"Oddly shaped fruit?"
"Yes."
"But aside from our Birka specialty—the Jet Dial—they did not find anything unusual."
The Great Elder nodded slowly, neither confirming nor denying anything.
At that moment, Abo stepped forward again.
"There is one more matter."
"The Blue Sea leader, Mr. Sami, asked me to request an audience with you tomorrow."
"He said he wished to thank you for today's hospitality…"
"And also consult you about trade matters between our lands."
"Tomorrow… he wishes to see me?"
"To ask about trade?"
The Great Elder's white eyebrows furrowed slightly.
He thought for a moment.
"…Very well."
"Abo, tomorrow you will go to the harbor and escort him here."
"Yes!"
After Abo and the guards withdrew, only the elders of Birka remained in the hall.
"They are definitely not merchants!"
One impatient elder spoke first.
"That talk about trade tomorrow is clearly an excuse!"
"What are they really planning?"
"Great Elder, should we arrange an ambush outside the hall tomorrow?"
"If they show any suspicious movement, we capture them immediately!"
The Great Elder slowly shook his head.
"We must not act rashly."
"Through my Mantra, I sensed that Sami—and several people around him—possess strength far beyond ordinary men."
"Even if we tried… we might not be able to keep them here."
"Not merchants… and extremely powerful…"
Another thin-faced elder murmured thoughtfully.
"Could they be pirates from the Blue Sea?"
"According to the records, the Blue Sea is full of complicated factions."
"Among them, pirates are the most dangerous."
"They plunder, destroy, and commit all kinds of evil."
"Pirates…"
The Great Elder stroked his beard and looked out at the dimming sky.
"But although their voices are filled with desire and power…"
"I do not sense cruelty within them."
At that moment, the youngest elder seated at the end of the row sighed softly.
"In truth…"
"The problem is that Birka is too weak."
"We are isolated here, cut off from the outside world."
"Our strength declines with each generation."
"At this rate… how will we ever fulfill our ancestors' wish?"
"How will we return to the Endless Earth from the legends?"
"Velandel."
The impatient elder chuckled and shook his head.
"You are already an elder yourself."
"Why are you still clinging to those fairy tales children hear?"
"The Endless Earth… is only an ancient legend."
"That is not a story."
Velandel replied seriously.
His long earlobes swayed slightly as he spoke.
"It is the origin and destiny of our people, passed down for generations."
"I believe that one day… we will return there."
"Yes."
Another elder nodded.
"Many ancient legends feel too detailed to be simple stories."
"I believe there may be truth behind them."
"Enough."
The Great Elder raised his hand, stopping the debate that had repeated countless times before.
"What matters now is these Blue Sea visitors."
He paused.
"…For now, we will not act."
"They are suspicious, but their behavior has been restrained so far."
"They have not acted aggressively."
"Tomorrow I will meet Sami alone and hear what he truly wants."
"Everyone else—dismiss for the night."
"Strengthen night patrols, but do not overreact."
"Yes, Great Elder."
The elders stood and gradually left.
Soon the great hall fell silent.
Only the Great Elder remained.
He leaned back in his chair and stared up at the ancient cloud-pattern carvings on the ceiling.
His brow remained tightly furrowed.
It was as if he were asking himself—
Or asking the silent sky.
"Not merchants…"
"Not quite ordinary pirates either…"
"Sami…"
"What did you truly come to this remote island of Birka for?"
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