Pillar of Yita

”Miss Beiji, how come you’re here?”

Fang Hong asked somewhat surprised, while stepping back and instinctively placing his hand on the drawer of the workstation - inside was a handgun. Although he didn’t think a civilian girl posed much threat, it was safer to be cautious than sorry.

Beiji’s gaze appeared slightly hesitant, as if she was uneasy yet purposeful, searching for something on the workstation behind Fang Hong, finally locking onto the Earth Origin Crystal soaked in the reactor:

”... I know a place with many crystals like this.”

”What?”

Fang Hong couldn’t help but ask.

But after Beiji said this, she fell silent, simply watching him with her mouth closed, a determined look in her brown eyes.

Fang Hong couldn’t help but feel at a loss, he had never seen such a situation before, but at least he let go of the drawer as he realized she was neither a spy nor an agent. Still, he thought this girl was bold, sneaking into someone else’s alchemy workshop and then calmly uttering such inconsequential words? Had it been someone with a bad temper, they would have already called people to capture her.

He suddenly remembered noticing her observing how he used these Earth Origin Crystals recently, and linking it to her earlier cryptic word, he suddenly grasped what she intended to convey.

”Miss Beiji, are you saying you know where the Art of Conflict Guild gets these Earth Origin Crystals?”

But the girl quietly stared at him, pressing her lips, without a word. Fang Hong couldn’t quite understand her strange personality, thinking he almost ran into a female version of Xiangzi. He wasn’t skilled at riddles, but after pausing, he finally reacted:

”Miss Beiji, you mean you’ll tell us where that place is, if we rescue your father?”

But he shook his head, ”I’m afraid not, Miss Beiji. Though Earth Origin Crystals are important to me, they’re not worth the risk of returning to Orlenze. We’re sorry about your father’s situation, but there’s little we can do.”

Beiji remained silent for a while after hearing this. Just as Fang Hong thought she wouldn’t speak again and planned to find an excuse to send her away, the usually quiet girl suddenly spoke:

”I don’t want to go to Kailan Ao.”

”What did you say?”

Beiji pressed her lips again, her voice low but certain:

”I don’t want to go to Kailan Ao, I want to go to Golande.”

...

”I’ve clarified, ” Hilveld said with a smile, placing a steaming cup of black tea in front of him, ”She has a brother, an Alchemist, who left Orlenze for Golande several years ago, but they’ve kept in touch via letters. I suppose in a sudden crisis, it’s only natural to think of asking one’s brother for help first.”

Fang Hong picked up the teacup.

Bakins, the Big Cat People, and Miss Atira all gathered in the captain’s cabin, as Luo Hao closed the door from the outside and came in. They intended to keep this matter private, so Fang Hong hadn’t alerted too many people.

”How did she get into the Alchemy Laboratory?”

Bakins asked.

”Through the emergency exit from the crew corridor to the communications room. There’s a ladder piled high with clutter beneath it; heaven knows how she climbed in?” Luo Hao said while approaching, shaking his head.

The Lion Paladin was using a nail file on his claws and laughed at the story: ”An interesting young lass indeed.”

”Mr. Reed, only you can still laugh.”

”Just a small matter, relax, Luo Hao.”

”I’m not so relaxed; I find this rather suspicious.” Luo Hao shook his head. ”Even if she truly wants to go to Golande, there were better opportunities to bring it up. Surely a few hundred kilograms of Earth Origin Crystal is enough for a ticket north – enough for ten trips back and forth.”

”To say the least, surely she knows alchemy workshops are off-limits to outsiders, so subsequent excuses can be seen as covering up.”

Fang Hong listened, baffled, looking at this conspiracy theorist incredulously, thinking that this guy often acts off-kilter, and since knowing them, he has frequently preached about the massive conspiracy behind Stargate Port.

Of course, since joining the Stargate Port Guard, he hadn’t brought up the topic of endless layers of corpses.

He used to be a hardcore BBK fan but has now entirely switched allegiances, repeating conspiracy stories of Mount Holy Pact with Tianlan and Ai Xiaoxiao over and over.

Though, he wasn’t necessarily wrong about this.

”Not so exaggerated,” Fang Hong shook his head, ”She knows there are people within the Alchemy Laboratory.”

”That would mean scheming against the captain.”

”Speak ordinarily.”

”Ade, better safe than sorry.”

”Alright then, what do you suggest we do?”

”In my opinion, they should disembark immediately.”

Fang Hong rolled his eyes, ”Are you insane? I’ve already turned their ’ticket’ into a construct!”

”Then according to the covenant, send them to Kailan Ao, and have them disembark there.”

Fang Hong looked at the tubbier man with a speechless expression, feeling he was just stirring the pot unnecessarily.

He turned to look at Hilveld and Miss Atira and asked, ”What do you think?”