Chapter 1003: Chapter 1002: Smooth Sailing??
No one expected that, although they encountered no trouble along the way, they were stopped when entering Gray Whale Harbor.
"Issues with the document? How is that possible?"
Upon hearing the guard’s response, Katie was stunned, clutching the proof document in her hand, not even knowing what to say for a moment.
"But... but my cargo was transported through official channels, see, it’s even stamped here..."
"Sorry, we need to inspect the cargo based on this document, only after the inspection can you enter the city."
"How long will that take?"
"About a few days, I can’t really say."
"How could this be...!!"
Standing aside, listening to the conversation between Katie and the guard, Fang Zheng noticed that this young lady’s social skills were truly a negative. She spoke timidly, as if she was afraid of being bullied, lacking the confidence expected of a young lady, and she couldn’t even narrate logical matters completely.
In fact, when she was on a mission with Fang Zheng and others before, she rarely offered her own opinions. If it weren’t for her stealth skills comparable to Spirit Away level, Fang Zheng probably wouldn’t have remembered her so vividly.
"Kurumi, it’s up to you."
Fang Zheng stepped back and whispered in Kurumi’s ear, to which Kurumi smiled and nodded. She then went forward and said a few words to the guard, who then nodded and easily let them into the city.
Fang Zheng wasn’t surprised by this; Kurumi now possessed both the Chronos and Break Army Songstress Angels, and just a few words with the latter often made it hard for anyone to resist the control of the Break Army Songstress.
However... the troubles afterward were indeed beyond Fang Zheng’s expectations.
After entering the city, they first tried to transport the cargo to the docks, only to be told there was no space to unload, and again it was Kurumi who intervened to get them into the cargo space. Then they were informed there were no available hands, luckily, Fang Zheng, Kurumi, and Walnut had decent physical strength, so they temporarily took on the roles of dockworkers.
When they went to the border inspection department, they were again asked to undergo strict identity verification and checks, and even after boarding the ship, the crew stated that guests had arrived first and hoped they would take the next ship...
If not for Kurumi’s Break Army Songstress, Fang Zheng was afraid they would really be stuck in this ghostly place.
And Katie was utterly exhausted, the unexpected events along the way never ceased, and it wasn’t until the ship left the dock that she could finally breathe a sigh of relief. After checking the cargo in the hold once more, she wearily said goodbye to Fang Zheng and the others before returning to her cabin to rest.
"That poor child is really unlucky."
Watching Katie’s departing figure, Walnut couldn’t help but comment. In fact, Katie didn’t know that when the ship was leaving the dock, Fang Zheng discovered their cargo was still in the yard, not loaded onto the ship. Thankfully, with Kurumi’s shadow, they managed to get the cargo into the hold smoothly.
One could say that without their help along the way, Katie might really have been calling out to heaven and earth without any response.
"It’s almost as if she’s cursed."
Even Kurumi couldn’t help but sigh, Katie’s misfortune was beyond her expectations. However, Fang Zheng did not reply, instead, she narrowed her eyes, staring at the distant ocean. Then, Fang Zheng quietly leaned close to Kurumi.
"Kurumi, I need you to help me with something."
"What is it?"
"I need you to get something personal from Katie, some hair, a handkerchief, cosmetics, clothing, or hair, in short, something she carries closely."
"What do you need these for?"
"You mentioned it too, a curse."
Fang Zheng glanced at the cabin not far away, then retracted her gaze.
"I suspect, someone might have really cursed Katie."
As a Prophet Mage, Fang Zheng knew there were many spells capable of cursing others. Katie was just an ordinary young lady; aside from her masterful stealth skills, she didn’t have any outstanding traits. This meant her resistance to curses wouldn’t differ much from an average person.
Of course, while Katie might just be extremely unlucky, Fang Zheng recalled their last mission. This young lady didn’t exhibit such bad luck then.
This time, her misfortune was notably extraordinary. If it weren’t for Fang Zheng and others overpowering obstacles with their strong abilities, Katie might have been truly helpless.
This was obviously abnormal.
Since it was abnormal, the likelihood of her being cursed by someone naturally increased significantly.
Kurumi acted quickly, taking less than half an hour to quietly return to Fang Zheng’s side with a few strands of hair.
"The little girl is already asleep, she cried a while before, clearly very stressed."
Handing the hair to Fang Zheng, Kurumi shook her head and sighed. If placed on Earth, Katie would be about the same age as Black Cat and Asuna when they first entered the Game World, yet she was already out alone with cargo.
"Her situation is indeed somewhat unusual."
Fang Zheng nodded as he took the hair.
"I’ll head back to the cabin, you keep Walnut occupied."
"Don’t worry."
Hearing Fang Zheng’s instructions, Kurumi giggled.
"I’m going fishing with Walnut, she’s still waiting for you to make fish soup."
After saying this, Kurumi left with a smile, and Fang Zheng, ensuring no one was nearby, returned to their cabin. She then cast a "Gate Sealing Spell" to close the door. After a flash of red light, Fang Zheng restored his original male form.
"Phew... this feels much more comfortable."
Stretching his neck and limbs, Fang Zheng couldn’t help but remark. The Red Ponytail form for Fang Zheng was like playing a female character in an online game, nothing significant. However, the change wasn’t without effect; the Red Ponytail form was much shorter than Fang Zheng himself, making it inconvenient after prolonged use...
Honestly, Fang Zheng was curious about how Conan adjusts back to Shinichi with such height and visual differences.
But now, it’s time to look at the problem at hand.
With that in mind, Fang Zheng placed the hair on the table, raised his hands, and quickly, magic power gathered between his fingers. The fog of destiny began to emerge, then dissipate, with threads of fate linked to the hair extended rapidly outward.
They reached into the past, now, the future.
Together with their owner, sharing life and death.
Fang Zheng reached out a hand, gently placing a finger on one of the fragile threads, and closed his eyes.
A wave of obscurity approached, mixed with an unpleasant odor, like decay, or perhaps like...
"Hmm?"
Fang Zheng opened his eyes, the sensed aura vanished instantly, yet he didn’t stop. He furrowed his brows, examining Katie’s hair closely, and smelled it.
Within the girl’s unique scent, there was an extremely bizarre dark aura.
Fang Zheng’s suspicions were confirmed, Katie was indeed cursed.
However, the source of the curse was quite unexpected.
If his spellcasting was correct, then Katie had been cursed even before she was born.