Krafft's Notes on Anomalies

After several days of sailing, when they returned to the sun, Captain William was already on the bow of the Iceberg talking to Kraft about the next harbor.

After getting to know each other, the two people quickly became familiar with each other, so when Coop reluctantly adapted to life on the ship and returned to Kraft with his stomach in his hands, he was surprised to find that he, the retinue, was not on this ship. The person who knows Kraft best?

Realizing this fact, the already freezing night wind became even colder. Coop rubbed his hands and walked towards the bow, preparing to perform his theoretical duties as a retinue - only in theory.

He felt that a person who could expel that kind of thing wouldn't need much protection. In addition, I was weak from seasickness for a few days, and I didn't even do any of the chores. I was getting paid but not working, and I felt uneasy.

The sea breeze whistled at night, and the wonderful passages from the captain's horror stories he had listened to for the past few days emerged. Coop shivered, tightened his clothes and quickly approached the two figures in the darkness.

The stockier figure on the right stretched out a hand and pointed directly ahead at the darkness that resembled the birth of the world before God asked for the light to appear.

"That's right, it's over there. You'll see it soon."

"Are you sure?" the young voice on the left asked, sounding unconvinced. Coop followed, and the same doubt appeared in his mind. What could be interesting to see in the middle of the night?

"I believe that the old captain's valuable experience will be seen soon. And I strongly recommend you to go there and have a look. This is a rare opportunity, and you won't regret it." He left enough suspense, and like every story, the listener can't bear it. Just imagine what's coming next.

The bow of the ship became quiet, and Coop looked into the distance in confusion, seeing nothing but darkness, while the two people in front waited in silence, showing no signs of impatience.

When he was about to give up in the endless waiting, a conspicuous light spot appeared from a very far distance, cutting through the boring black. Similar to the morning star, but much brighter, it is still slowly turning its angle, and disappears in the sky after a few breaths.

As the ship approaches, this periodic bright spot gradually rises until it hangs high in the sky and becomes brighter. The slender beam of light saw through the night sky, leaving a horizontal patch of light in the field of vision.

"Welcome to Solace Harbor!" The captain turned around and opened his arms, introducing the stops on the journey to the two passengers for the first time. It sounded like he was in a good mood, "We will stay here for a few days."

At this time, a dotted line composed of small light spots appeared behind him. If he saw it correctly, their colors were various. The bright guides hanging high in the sky just now took the lead, making people ignore their existence as they approached.

They were lights on the coastline, dreamy and charming at night. Craft never thought that he could see a neon-like effect here.

"Christen Mountain Lighthouse, isn't it beautiful? Of course, don't just look at the heights, we will be there soon." William proved his experience, put down his hand and walked to the young man, "Remember to bring money, too. Remember to watch your wallet.”

The sailors cheered on the deck, and the captain left the bow, symbolically reminding his boys not to get carried away, and drove them back to their posts, steering the ship and preparing to enter the harbor.

Far beyond the bustling scene of Wendeng Port, Kupu had never seen such colorful light outside the church in his life. The dotted line composed of light spots became richer and more coherent as it approached the coast.

It was the gorgeous and changing luster of the firelight passing through various stained glass, which illuminated the entire street along the coast in warm and psychedelic tones. Just looking at it made me feel that the cold and wet feeling was alleviated, and the warm atmosphere drove away the home. melancholy.

The smell of food and alcohol caught the nostrils of those who had just disembarked, as well as essential oils and incense-like smells that neither Kraft nor Kupp were familiar with. Some kind of scented dust heightened its sense of presence. Lose to the former.

"Hmm." Kraft pressed his nose. The irritation from the powder made him want to sneeze, and it was getting thicker and thicker, reaching behind him.

He remembered the captain's words and turned around to be on guard while holding his purse. He saw a face thickly coated with red powder on a white background approaching him, showing an artificial and unnatural smile. The strange smell he smelled was the fallen powder.

"Stay away from my friends." William appeared next to Kraft, took over Coop's work when he was absent-minded, and patted away the hand that reached for Kraft's shoulder. The woman wisely stepped away and looked for the next target customer.

"It seems like you've never been to a place like this? Do you need to introduce me to someone reliable?"

"No." Kraft refused awkwardly. He probably understood what William meant before, "I think it's better to find a tavern to hang out."

William confirmed that Kraft had really never been to such a place, laughed and patted him, "Don't be sorry, you have to know that there are some unreliable places that can make people get into trouble. disease, and my introduction is absolutely reliable.”

"Please allow me to refuse." There is nothing so-called reliable these days. I have read enough about unspeakable diseases in books, and I don't want to see them in a place where medical treatment is scarce.

"Coop, come here!"

After fishing out the entangled Kupu, the three of them walked into the city under the leadership of Captain William. The nightlife here was much richer than that of Wendeng Port, and they also had a preliminary concept of lanterns.

Kraft took a closer look at the lamps of different colors and found that their colors were actually richer than imagined. There were also considerable differences between the same-colored glass. A single red can be divided into light red, dark red, orange-red and other color systems.

It may be that the soulful but unskilled handicraft workshops have given them their own characteristics. In addition to different colors, the edges are irregular and there are uneven impurities inside, giving them the effects of light gradients and color points.

In terms of results, their poor quality gives them a variety of effects, even if most of them are just a piece of broken glass embedded in the lampshade, grease and other fuels are burning in the back, and there are still operating taverns and other primitive entertainment places. There are more or less decorations at the door.

People dressed as sailors walked in and out, going from house to house, spending money in their pockets before setting sail. The bright guiding beam of the lighthouse on the mountain was completely obscured by the colorful lights here, and the smell of alcohol and itchy powder numbed my nose.

The atmosphere of decadence and indulgence made Kraft somewhat uncomfortable. He had some understanding of the depression of life at sea, and understood that everyone from sailors to captains had a psychological need to release stress, but that was all.

This place that made him feel out of place was a bit like the prototype of an early commercial street, but the consumption structure was relatively simple, and it was difficult to create other industries.

Continuing to walk into the city, the colorful lights began to decrease as we left the port area, and the streets gradually became darker. Captain William never stopped, leading them along the road with a clear goal.

The number of people on the road was not sparse because they were far away from the port. Many sailors were walking with them. Figures holding lanterns and candles illuminated the road around them, and they quietly moved towards their goal.

The atmosphere tilted from enthusiasm to the other extreme, and when I came back to my senses, I was already in a state of solemnity. Kupu, who was looking around, noticed the changes and calmed down.

After walking in silence for more than ten minutes, I guessed that I was approaching the center of the city. The street turned a big bend and turned to one side at a right angle.

There was a hazy singing voice in the wind. It was not the sailors singing barcarolles in the tavern with their voices dried by the sea breeze, nor was it the melodious sound coming from the building where a suspicious woman was soliciting customers.

The ethereal, crisp voice, frozen in the pre-voice change stage, sang a cappella in unison in a wide space, and the harmonic echoes overlapped on the eulogies whose content could not be heard clearly, forming one wave after another, sacred and inviolable .

The man walking in front suddenly tensed up, and the clear hostility made him stop and press his sword. Kupp almost ran into him. In his memory, Kraft was still talking about his illness in the salt tide area.

William heard the footsteps behind him stop and looked back, "What's wrong? We'll be there soon."

"It's okay, I thought of something bad." Kraft adjusted his state and turned the corner with William.

At night, in the central square of the city, a brightly lit and brilliant building broke into their sight, as if it had collected the colored lights from half the street before and decorated it together.

There are countless stained glass windows, each of which is made of transparent polished glass to form a symmetrical geometric pattern of a flower crown, or a figure wearing a bright robe, with a yellow and white halo above the head reflecting the day-like candlelight in the building, making it seem like a blur. If angels walked on earth.

The figure-colored windows on the front of the building guard the golden ring in the center. The firelight of the large chandelier penetrates the pairs of wings made of white glass, turning the crystal and splendor of the glass into sacred majesty.

"Solace Church, the origin of the name of the port." William did not dare to point his hand directly at the image made of glass, and whispered to Kraft in the crowd, "Be quiet when you go in."

"Huh? I thought it was..."

The contrast between before and after was a bit big. Neither Kraft nor Kupp realized how they wandered from the intoxicating place of the port to the church. They both thought that the reason why it was called "Solace Harbor" was that sailors came here to obtain spiritual solace through alcohol and exercise. the meaning of.

Fortunately, he shut up in time and did not say the second part of the sentence. Several sailors nearby turned to glare at them. The content of the second half of the sentence is self-explanatory. Everyone has come from the port, so don’t you know what you are thinking?

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's my first time here and I was deceived by those daring people." Kraft quickly apologized. It was purely an unintentional remark. Don't worry about it.

It seemed that this was not the first time that the misunderstanding had occurred, and the sailors did not care about them. However, this look triggered Kraft's memory. There were at least two people here who had just come out of the door with colored lights on the other side of the port and followed them to the church.

The strong contrast suddenly became less intense. An indescribable sense of tacit understanding bridged both ends of the street. Indulgence was a comfort, and religion was also a comfort.

"Sage time, right?"

It seems that there was no need to apologize just now.