Chapter 413 Hospitality and Spoils

The terrain of Cliff Rock Island wasn't as steep as Xia Nan had first assumed.

Towering, jagged walls of dark brown rock dominated the northern end of the island, but the landscape gradually smoothed out as it sloped south. Near the sea, it finally opened up into a vast, natural rock terrace.

Cliff Rock Village sat right on this terrace.

A thin layer of soil, mixed from seabird guano and rotting plants, formed the surrounding farmland where salt-resistant, wind-hardy crops grew. The houses were mostly built from the island's dark brown stones. Their thick rock walls were packed with clay in the crevices, and the roofs were thatched with dried hay bales and salvaged, charred ship planks.

Toward the south of the terrace, occupying the flattest patch of land, stood dense rows of wooden racks. They were draped with drying cod and herring, filling the air with a sharp, pungent stench of fish. Further ahead lay a small, old dock where a few crude fishing boats bobbed in the waves.

By the time the Black Gull sailed around from the north of Cliff Rock Island and slowly pulled in to dock in the south, a large crowd was already waiting on the pier.

At their head stood a short, stocky man with a weather-beaten face.

Was he fifty, or in his early thirties?

Battered by the wind and sun out on the sea, his dark, coarse skin was etched with the scars of the ocean breeze. The deep hollows of his eye sockets and the heavy creases around his mouth were especially striking. Judging by his appearance alone, it was impossible to guess his actual age.

He stood barely five foot four, but his build was exceptionally broad. Beneath his skin, his muscles were tight and lean. His knuckles were much thicker than normal from years of laboring at sea, and his entire hands seemed slightly longer than those of an ordinary inland man.

As Xia Nan and his party stepped off the Black Gull, the man came forward and greeted them with a smile. "Hello. I am Steven, the village chief of Cliff Rock Village."

"I'm Gregory, captain of the Black Gull. The goods are on the ship," Gregory said, shaking his hand with a calm expression. "Find someone to take inventory, and be quick about it."

"If there are no issues, we can start unloading."

"Of course, of course." Seeming to catch the slight urgency in Gregory's tone, Village Chief Steven nodded repeatedly without asking for a reason.

He turned and nodded at the two young, entirely silent men behind him. The pair grabbed their lists and boarded the Black Gull under the boatswain's lead.

"It takes at least four or five days to sail from Barracuda Bay to our Cliff Rock Island. We've really troubled you this time."

Village Chief Steven's smile looked natural, but his eyes subconsciously darted toward the pirate ship docked next to the Black Gull—Xia Nan's spoils of war.

"It will probably take those two some time to inventory the goods. Perhaps... if you don't mind, you could come rest in the village for a bit. Once night falls, we've prepared our richest banquet for you lords."

Hearing this, a hint of hesitation appeared on Gregory's face.

He half-turned and exchanged a glance with Xia Nan and the others, who had also come down to the pier.

Seeing no obvious objections from them, he finally nodded and gestured for the village chief to lead the way.

Through the mission commission they had found on the Flying Fish Oil Barrel pirate ship, they already knew that Cliff Rock Island was currently suffering from the harassment of some unknown monster.

Gregory had discussed this with Xia Nan's group; they weren't going to stay on the island for long.

However, it was unrealistic to keep every sailor confined to the Black Gull during the entire process.

For one thing, as crew members, they needed to disembark and interact with the islanders to haul cargo, restock supplies, and perform temporary maintenance. The whole process would take a day or two, making total isolation impossible.

For another, although they were all veteran sailors who could theoretically endure going weeks without seeing another soul, that was only when they were out on the open ocean with nowhere to land.

Now that they had finally reached their destination, refusing to let the crew properly relax might cause too much stress and negatively impact the atmosphere on the entire ship.

He had already warned every sailor to be as careful as possible on the island and to avoid going out alone.

Now, with the village chief extending such warm hospitality, they were just going to stay in the village anyway, so there was no need to refuse.

Leaving some of the crew behind to help with the inventory and watch the ships, the group followed Village Chief Steven into the small village on this remote island.

The layout of the buildings in Cliff Rock Village was extremely simple.

At the very center was a small plaza paved with smooth cobblestones, and in the middle of that plaza sat the heart of Cliff Rock Village—a cold spring that had never run dry.

A wooden shed had been erected over the well, with dozens of leather waterskins hanging from its edges. Several plainly dressed peasant women were drawing water while cautiously eyeing Xia Nan and the others, their faint whispers drifting over.

There were no functional buildings like shops, blacksmiths, or general stores. Every single house in the village was a residential dwelling.

The so-called Church was nothing more than a crude shack built from coarse rock and wood, with an interior only large enough to hold thirty or forty people. The altar was constructed from a few polished dark stones, carved with strange, complex, and primitive patterns of unknown meaning.

The village's weddings, funerals, and daily prayers before setting sail were all held here.

Truthfully, Cliff Rock Village was just the most common, ordinary remote village among the countless islands of the Southern Archipelagos.

It had no valuable local products, nor any memorable natural landscapes.

Even the local customs weren't worth mentioning.

Of course, this was probably exactly why this small island remained so impoverished and desolate, despite being a mere five-day voyage from the bustling Barracuda Bay.

It was currently early morning. There was still a whole day before the banquet Village Chief Steven had mentioned.

Perhaps hoping to take this opportunity to promote Cliff Rock Village to the Black Gull crew, the village chief enthusiastically introduced the village's various features as he led them toward the center of town.

This included, but was not limited to, the fishermen with years of experience at sea, the whales that occasionally appeared near the island in winter, and the central plaza that was soon to be renovated...

Xia Nan followed behind him.

He listened carefully to Steven's introductions, absorbing any information that might be helpful to him.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, he subconsciously turned his head.

By the door of a nearby one-story house stood a frail fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl with hair as coarse as weeds. She was staring with curious eyes at the outsiders walking toward the village center.

In her skinny hands, she was gripping something small that looked like a miniature fishing net, as if she were in the middle of weaving it.

Seeing Xia Nan look over, the girl hurriedly and shyly lowered her head. The movements of her hands abruptly sped up, and she didn't dare to look again.

Noticing Xia Nan's reaction, Steven, who was leading the group at the front, naturally took the opportunity to explain.

"Isn't the Sea Rhythm Festival coming up in just over three months? Every household in the village has already started to prepare."

"It is a grand festival that only happens once every three years, after all. Very few people are willing to miss it."

"I remember last time, a dozen or so days before the festival, two families from our Cliff Rock Village even deliberately followed a passing merchant caravan to Barracuda Bay in advance to attend the Sea Rhythm Festival celebrations there."

"I heard them say that during those few days of the festival, the air in the streets was filled with the scent of food and alcohol. Even the vagrants on the side of the road could fall asleep with full bellies. I don't know if it's true or not."

"Haha, it's not quite that exaggerated, but..." Although Gregory had a calm personality, his task was mostly completed and he felt relaxed. Flattered by the other party's words, he instantly grew talkative and picked up the conversation.

Retracting his gaze and looking at the two men chatting and laughing ahead, a hint of pressure unconsciously rose in Xia Nan's heart.

There were just over three months left until the Sea Rhythm Festival. This meant that he had to secure an opportunity to attend the Lunar Tide Banquet within the next hundred days.

Only then could he find Dodd, the "Algae Scale" who had attacked Lyle Morton, and use that as a starting point to search for clues about the [Dream Weaving Corridor] key.

The good news was that, at least so far, his plan was progressing quite smoothly.

Once this mission was over, as agreed, Hera, the owner of the Three-Legged Sea Dog Tavern, would introduce him to a channel that could get him into the Lunar Tide Banquet.

At the same time, his reputation among the adventurers of Barracuda Bay should also increase, laying a solid foundation for reaching the point where the Lunar Tide Banquet organizers would actively invite him.

With both approaches advancing simultaneously and backing each other up, it should maximize the success rate of his plan.

As he pondered this, before they knew it, the Black Gull crew had been led by Steven to their destination.

It was the only two-story building in all of Cliff Rock Village.

This was the place the village used to entertain guests. Of course, on a daily basis, it also served as the residence for the village chief's family.

Knowing that the journey from Barracuda Bay to Cliff Rock Island took about five days, they had calculated the time and prepared well in advance.

Plus, Steven had dragged things out a bit on the way from the pier to the village center, delaying them even further.

As a result, even though it was still only morning, the dining table in the living room was already laden with food and drinks.

Limited by Cliff Rock Village's economic conditions, the dishes on the table naturally couldn't compare to the luxurious meals at the Three-Legged Sea Dog Tavern that easily cost two or three silver coins. However, it was clearly everything this remote village had to offer.

Fresh roasted cod stuffed with a bit of scallion and garlic for flavor, a smoked meat platter, limpets and sea shrimp, crispy chips made from the roots of sea kale grown on the island, and even a large chunk of cured whale meat...

It was evident that the villagers had meticulously prepared this to host the Black Gull crew.

Unfortunately, they weren't professional cooks, and they lacked spices for seasoning, so the taste ultimately fell a bit short.

Besides, Xia Nan had already eaten some of the halfling Alton's homemade seafood chowder for breakfast before disembarking, so he wasn't very hungry.

He only took a few casual bites before setting down his spoon.

In contrast, the other sailors were thrilled and excited.

For them, just being able to plant their feet firmly on solid ground after a long stretch at sea was worth celebrating, and the food on the table was obviously far richer than the ship's rations.

Under the catalyst of the lively atmosphere, the actual taste of the food no longer mattered.

The sailors, along with the members of the Silver Claw Osprey squad, enjoyed this rare moment of leisure during the gaps in their mission.

Seeing the enthusiastic atmosphere, Alton even took the initiative to pull out his small, exquisite lute and play a sailor's ditty that was widely known across the Southern Archipelagos, earning a round of cheers from the crew.

Some even started twisting and dancing right there with wine glasses in hand.

As a newcomer, Xia Nan didn't share the sailors' profound feelings. His personality wasn't as outgoing as the little halfling's either, so he couldn't quite blend in.

He didn't want to spoil their fun, though, so he just wiped his mouth, quietly got up, and stepped outside.

There, Village Chief Steven was squatting by the wall, watching the figures bustling about the distant pier as they inventoried and hauled the cargo.

Seeing Xia Nan walk out of the room, the weather-beaten man froze for a moment before jumping to his feet, asking carefully, "What's wrong, sir? Is the food not to your liking? I'll immediately—"

Xia Nan waved his hand, cutting him off. "Thank you for your hospitality. The food is delicious. I just came out for some fresh air."

Hearing this, Steven visibly sighed in relief. "That's good..."

As the village chief of Cliff Rock Village, his life experience and eye for reading people were arguably the sharpest in the entire village.

Almost the very moment the Black Gull crew stepped off the ship, he had noticed this young man with short black hair.

On one hand, it was naturally because of his fully armed, veteran adventurer attire.

On the other hand, it was also because Steven had observed that, while Xia Nan seemed to lag a few steps behind Captain Gregory, his positioning subtly marked him as the core of the entire team.

Even the other few adventurers in the group, including that half-orc who was as massively built as a shark, vaguely centered themselves around him.

Steven estimated that this overly young adventurer was probably the strongest member of the entire crew; otherwise, the group wouldn't have acted this way.

This caused him to secretly raise Xia Nan's level of importance, placing him on par with, or perhaps even higher than, Gregory.

It was rare to get a chance to be alone with him.

As Steven stood by the door chatting with him, his heart pounded and his body remained tense. He subtly steered the conversation toward the single-masted sailing ship by the pier—which was visibly a few sizes smaller than the cargo ship—and probed cautiously, "I am truly sorry. Did we request too many goods this time, so one ship wasn't enough to carry it all?"

"Please rest assured, if that is the case, Cliff Rock Village will absolutely make up the transport fees for you. We won't owe you a single copper coin!"

Xia Nan's Perception was exceptionally sharp.

He didn't even need to think hard to analyze it. The moment Steven's words entered his ears, the subtle fluctuations hidden in his tone and the involuntary little twitches of his body made Xia Nan realize that the man's words meant something else.

Raising an eyebrow, Xia Nan didn't bother hiding anything. He shook his head and answered quite frankly, "That pirate ship?"

"No, it's just my spoils of war."