After looking at the strange wooden houses for a while, Zachary turned his attention deeper into the area—toward where the believers were building a temple for Luo Wei.

  That's where most people were. He crouched low and crept over quietly.

  Zachary thought this was a temple for the God of the Undead. Only when he got closer did he learn from the believers' conversations that this temple worshipped the Dark God King—the God of Death and Time.

  The God of Death and Time?

  Zachary was confused. Who was this deity? Why had he never heard of them?

  After thinking for a few seconds, it hit him. Just like those wooden houses he'd never seen before, this deity probably wasn't from the Western Continent either—they were a god of the Misty Plains!

  What would be different about a Misty Plains god?

  Curious, Zachary's figure flickered. While the believers weren't paying attention, he slipped into the unfinished temple.

  To his disappointment, the temple was empty inside. There wasn't even a statue.

  Of course the statue wasn't here yet—the temple wasn't finished. Zachary slapped his forehead. How had he forgotten that?

  After his moment of annoyance, he looked up and noticed two passages carved into the stone pedestal in the sanctuary.

  "The great God of Death and Time, Dark God King Koevikros who wields authority over human souls and the cycle of spacetime, embodies justice and order, granting rebirth to the lost;"

  "Our Lord has mercy on the world's suffering, sending divine messengers to guide souls, traveling through past and future, receiving the dead and punishing evil..."

  The more Zachary read, the more shocked he became. The God of Death and Time—a deity who wielded the authority of time!

  They could make people travel through past and future!

  Zachary's heart surged. The God of Death and Time, this great Dark God King—could they let him return to the past and save his daughter?

  But bringing the dead back to life—how difficult, how impossible was that?

  This hope was more distant than the stars in the sky. It only added to his pain.

  He had already given his faith to the Fire God. He would never betray his deity. His loyalty to the Fire God was absolute.

  Even so, Zachary pounded his aching chest, tears streaming down his face.

  "Who's there!"

  Someone outside discovered him and shouted.

  Zachary wiped away his tears. His figure flashed and he escaped from the other side.

  After leaving the temple, Zachary headed straight for the seaside.

  He didn't believe Luo Wei would let him leave so easily. He worried she had other plans—like having that undead follow him onto the mainland to monitor him. So he decided to leave now.

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  When he reached where they'd originally landed, Zachary saw a huge stone monument standing on the newly built dock, facing the sea, looking toward the mainland coastline three hundred kilometers away.

  He walked around to the front and immediately saw the large text carved on it.

  "Demon Island shelters all the witches and non-human intelligent races of the world, shelters homeless women and wandering children, shelters the red-haired people..."

  "Shelters... the red-haired people..."

  Zachary stared at those burning words, stunned.

  What he hadn't accomplished, what he hadn't dared announce—here, on an island occupied by an outsider, it had been quietly realized.

  All of the Western Continent rejected the red-haired people, but Demon Island opened its arms to them.

  If there had been such a place back then, if someone powerful had stood up and said they would shelter the red-haired people, wouldn't they have been slaughtered to near extinction?

  The moist sea breeze blew through his red hair streaked with silver. His rough red beard trembled in the wind. He choked up, his sunken eyes gradually reddening.

  This island, this island that sheltered the red-haired people, the first publicly declared sanctuary for them—it belonged to that mysterious, powerful, intelligent princess from the Misty Plains: Luo Wei.

  And he, the King of the Red-haired People, Rudolf Minos, had misunderstood this friend who held goodwill toward them.

  He thought he owed this noble princess an apology.

  ...

  The sun set faster in Siria than on Demon Island. When Luo Wei returned to Star Luo Residence, the sky outside had already darkened.

  She pushed open her bedroom door and went downstairs. The maid Chris came up to greet her.

  "Master, it's dinner time. Should I have the kitchen serve now?"

  "I'm not hungry yet. Later."

  Luo Wei looked toward the door. Roman and Rosie had left in the afternoon with the pegasus and raven, heading to Golu City. The garden was quiet, with only the rustling of wind through leaves.

  "Are you looking for Big Orange, Master?" Chris said nervously. "Big Orange has been hiding somewhere today. It hasn't come out all day."

  With Chris's reminder, Luo Wei remembered she indeed hadn't seen the kitten all afternoon. The chair cushion by the window was missing that small orange figure.

  "When did you notice it was gone?"

  "Last, last night," Chris lowered her head. "Shortly after you left last night, it disappeared."

  Afraid Luo Wei would think her irresponsible for only reporting this now, Chris added nervously, "I thought it would show up by afternoon, so I didn't tell you right away. I'm sorry, Master. I messed up. Please punish me!"

  "Don't rush to apologize. You said you thought it would show up by afternoon—has it disappeared before?" Luo Wei asked patiently.

  Chris: "Yes, yes. It often—no, it only comes out when you're here. As soon as you leave, it quickly disappears. But today, I don't know why..."

  "Maybe it went out to play and lost track of time. Don't worry, this isn't your fault," Luo Wei said gently. "Alright, have the kitchen serve dinner. Prepare Big Orange's chicken leg too. It'll come back when it's hungry."

  Chris breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Yes, Master!"

  Luo Wei's prediction was right. Just as the sky turned completely dark, a small cat came running into the courtyard on four chubby legs, rushing toward the main building's living room.

  "Oh my!" Seeing the kitten, Chris cried out happily. "Master, Big Orange really came back!"

  The kitten that hadn't entered yet immediately flattened its ears, slowed down, and guiltily raised its head to look around.

  Luo Wei appeared in the doorway, leaning against it. "You're back?"

  "Meow~"

  The kitten called out weakly, tail tucked, and slunk over.

  "Did work go smoothly today," Luo Wei said with a half-smile, "hmm? Laura?"

  The kitten on the ground widened its eyes. Its tail fur exploded like a dandelion puff. Reacting fast, it opened its mouth in a fierce series of meows: "Meow meow meow! Meow meow meow! Meow meow meow meow!"

  Rough translation: Accusing Luo Wei of mistaking it for another cat again and calling another cat's name right in front of it. It was very, very angry now!

  Luo Wei stared at it for a while, narrowing her eyes. "You're really not Laura?"

  The kitten angrily arched its back, denouncing her lack of trust: "Meow meow meow! Meow-oww!"

  Luo Wei hesitated. Laura had a soft, gentle personality. She probably wouldn't challenge her like Big Orange was doing.

  Seeing her expression change, the kitten immediately raised its head and intensified its yowling: "Meow meow meow! Meow meow meow meow meow! Meow meow meow meow meow..."

  Luo Wei: ...What's it saying? Can't understand.

  The cat language was too rapid. Even the Mermaid Pearl failed, translating everything as just meow meow meow.

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