Alka walked over to the busy Balazs, Treasure in hand.

"Alka, not going to rest a bit first?" Balazs asked with a smile, looking at Alka.

With his great vendetta finally avenged, Balazs now felt completely at ease; the relaxation showed from inside out.

Seeing Balazs like this, Alka smiled, then put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him off to the side.

He handed him the small box he was carrying.

This was the box Alka and the others had used earlier to store the Treasure, though some features on its exterior had just been worn away.

"This is?" Balazs looked at the box, a bit puzzled.

"Isn't it what you deserve? Still remember the contract we made back on Border Island?"

"You mean that? I already canceled it before, didn't I? You should've felt it."

Because of unexpected circumstances, practically all of the profit from that time ended up in Alka's hands.

And as someone who hadn't benefited, Balazs had canceled the contract himself.

"As a Saint of the Holy Mother, I can't just not fulfill things because a contract got canceled. The Holy Mother might not be happy about that."

As he spoke, he passed the box to him. "The profits from last time plus the help you gave this time—this is enough.

I still need to thank you for lending me the Treasure; the fee for borrowing it is included in there too."

"Don't refuse. This is what you're owed, and also a gift from a friend."

With that, Alka patted his shoulder and walked away.

Balazs watched Alka's back, then opened the box for a quick peek, snapped the lid shut at once, and his eyes went wide.

The thing Alka and the others had sent him was actually a Treasure. If he wasn't mistaken, it might be the very Treasure that legion commander he'd fought earlier had used.

The shock on his face slowly faded, and then he gave a helpless little smile.

"That really is quite the gift."

He had found out later that there was a Treasure among the hoard on Border Island.

But over the course of that whole affair, his contribution was minimal—could even be described as dragging them down.

Even if they'd truly split things evenly in the end, he would at most have gotten some wealth as a reward.

And this time, it had long been agreed that all the spoils would go to Alka and the others.

He himself had only played an overall coordinating role.

All that together definitely didn't add up to the value of a single Treasure.

Even so, he still took the Treasure in hand. He needed such a Treasure, and he was grateful for the gift from Alka and the others.

...

Alka and the rest returned to the Dawn Sound.

Once on board, Alka patted the mast. "Sound of Dawn, set sail."

"Huh? We're not staying a few more days?" Jason was a bit surprised by Alka's words.

"Our objective's already been achieved. What would we stay here for?" Alka turned his head and asked him.

"Uh…" Jason thought it over carefully. It did seem right—their goal was accomplished, and hanging around here really didn't serve any purpose.

"You're not going to attend the coronation?"

Lucilia sat on Alka's shoulder, speaking lazily. "Going by the normal preparatory schedule, Narminis's coronation ceremony should be held in five months."

"All right, all right." Jason said helplessly. That really was a bit too long.

"We don't know how far away our destination this time is, so we need to head out early," Alka still explained with a smile.

Hearing this, Jason finally remembered. "You mean that place Ulu Liwus mentioned?"

Alka nodded.

Right now Ulu Liwus had just performed the ritual, and the first thing she did afterward was fall into Deep Sleep.

Jason walked over and shook her awake.

"What are you doing, let me sleep a little longer, I'm exhausted!"

"We need your sense of direction!" Jason shouted loudly in her ear.

Previously they had asked Ulu Liwus if she knew the exact location, but the answer she gave was that she didn't.

She could only gain a clear sense of direction—that is, she knew what direction it lay in.

She knew the correct bearing, but where exactly it was, she would only know once they arrived.

Which meant their voyage this time could be described as aimless; who knew how long they'd be sailing.

And this was the Endless Sea, after all.

The issue was, Ulu Liwus had also claimed it was very important, so they definitely had to make the trip.

Mainly, whether it was the World Scar or Trial Island, both demanded a certain level of strength.

Alka's current strength still hadn't reached the Middle Stage; to reach Perfection in the Fourth Stage would take at least another two to three years.

And that was assuming they made some breakthroughs in their research on the Magic Gathering Stones during this period.

They had even factored in the possible breakthroughs they might achieve with the Magic Gathering Stones, then given this estimate.

So whether this voyage took one year or two, They could accept it.

After all, out on the Endless Sea, the Mouth of Devouring clearly couldn't pose any threat to Them.

Ulu Liwus stood up, shook her head to wake herself a bit, then lifted her head and gazed up at the sky.

She was sensing the bearing with greater precision.

After a short while, she finally felt something and pointed in a certain direction as she spoke.

"Over there."

As soon as the words left her mouth, the Sound of Dawn immediately shifted course and began sailing along her heading.

Seeing Ulu Liwus about to go back to sleep, Alka suddenly asked, "During that ritual just now, why did you use Positive Energy Holy Light imbued with the Power of the World?"

This was something Alka couldn't quite figure out.

Hearing this, Ulu Liwus said, "I have a hazy sense of the future. At that time there were several different powerful rituals I could have used.

I just chose the one that might be the best for the future."

"That 'best' might only mean it would bring a subtle boost compared to the other rituals in that particular situation.

It might also have a huge impact on the battle at the time. But overall, it was simply the best choice.

As for why such a choice exists, I don't know. But if I follow what my senses tell me, I never go wrong."

As she spoke, Ulu Liwus curled up drowsily and slipped back into Deep Sleep.

Alka thought it over and nodded.

Some kind of innate sense?

She couldn't actually foresee the future, but she had a dim, hazy feel for it.

Racial talent really is something remarkable.