Danitz, trembling, took the menu, haphazardly ordered two dishes, and passed it to the next person.
After he finished ordering, Alaric spoke up at just the right moment: "Danitz, why are you in Bayam?"
Danitz jolted, answering almost instinctively, "The captain ordered some study materials, and I'm here to pick them up on her behalf."
"Wait…" Danitz seemed to realize something, his voice tinged with confusion. "You know me?"
At this, Alaric chuckled, his laughter carrying a hint of amusement. He opened a book that had appeared in his hand at some point, flipping to a specific page before saying, "Danitz Dubois, bounty of 3000 pounds, first mate of the Golden Dream. Your life so far can only be called ordinary, not nearly as thrilling as the stories of others."
Danitz instinctively glanced at the book. Seeing its blank page, he froze for half a second before blurting out, "There's nothing written there. What are you looking at?"
"Your destiny." Alaric said with a smile. His hand brushed over the page, and he looked at Danitz, still smiling. "Do you still think there's nothing written there?"
Danitz looked again, and the blank page suddenly shimmered with countless images. They were blurry, but he could faintly make out a figure that looked strikingly like himself.
He also saw familiar buildings... structures from his hometown.
Beyond that, Danitz caught sight of the familiar Golden Dream and a shadowy figure that resembled his captain…
In that moment, even someone as slow as Danitz realized this was likely his destiny.
His eyes widened as he strained to see more. He saw a figure that seemed to be himself trailing behind another vague silhouette, bustling about like a servant. He saw himself standing in a world blanketed in swirling snow, seemingly praying for something. He saw himself on a ship, with a towering, giant-like figure looming behind him…
Wait, a giant-like figure?
Danitz belatedly glanced at the others around the dining table, connecting some of the shadowy figures in the book to the people seated there.
But before he could look further, Alaric closed the book, raising a hand in a stopping gesture. "That's enough." He said with a smile. "I've taken precautions, but if you keep looking, you'll pay a price. Peering into destiny is no simple matter."
This was a lie. What Alaric had shown was merely an illusion crafted from information he'd gathered about Danitz, combined with details from the original story.
It wasn't a particularly sophisticated trick, but it was more than enough to fool Danitz.
After all, Alaric had no real ability to peer into destinies.
Danitz quickly averted his gaze, then cautiously looked at Alaric again. "S-Sir." He stammered, "why did you show me my destiny?"
"It's just… amusing." Alaric said with a grin, eyeing Danitz. "Your past life was rather dull, but your future promises to be quite interesting. Most importantly…"
Alaric paused, letting Danitz's growing tension simmer before continuing, "You are fated to be connected to my Lord."
Danitz's mind went blank. He swallowed hard and asked instinctively, "Sir, which deity do you serve?"
"The Fool." Alaric said simply, glancing at Colin Iliad beside him. The latter immediately took the cue and began preaching.
A few minutes later, Danitz's expression was utterly numb. He glanced at the terrifying man with a monocle to his left, then at the imposing figure with gold-rimmed glasses to his right, and finally at the row of "giants" Seated across from him. Suddenly, he turned to Alaric and said, "Do… do I have to believe in The Fool?"
Danitz felt like he'd stumbled into a den of evil god worshippers, and not one of them looked like someone he could take in a fight.
"Of course not." Alaric said, smiling at Danitz. "Your destiny is yours to decide. I won't force you to change your beliefs."
Danitz hesitated, his words catching in his throat. He didn't dare ask: When you say my destiny is mine to decide, you don't mean you'll kill me if I don't convert, right?
"Of course not." Alaric said, as if reading his thoughts, his smile unwavering. "As I said before, I invited you here for lunch as an apology. I'm not a violent person."
Danitz shrank back but let out a small sigh of relief.
If this big shot said so, then he probably wouldn't force him to convert to The Fool, right?
Danitz's reluctance to change his faith wasn't due to any deep devotion to his current beliefs. It was simply a matter of practicality... in this era, worshipping a deity outside the Seven Gods was a dangerous path, a slide into the abyss. The Aurora Order was the perfect example.
Many Aurora Order members were fairly normal before worshipping the True Creator. But afterward, they became crazier than the last, as if their minds had been devoured by the True Creator himself.
And that was one of the better outcomes. Stories of those who worshipped evil gods and ended up dead or transformed into monsters were all too common. Danitz might fear the man before him, but he was even less eager to casually pledge himself to some unknown, mysterious entity.
Still… he wasn't being forced to convert. Did that mean this guy was actually a decent person?
Danitz stole a cautious glance at Alaric, his mind racing with guesses.
Alaric didn't mind. He hadn't planned to do anything to Danitz in the first place... just a bit of playful mischief to tease him.
As for whether Danitz would eventually come to believe in The Fool… Alaric trusted that destiny had its own way of converging.
At that moment, Waiter No. 1 Amon brought out the prepared dishes. Alaric took a few bites and found the flavor surprisingly good, though oddly familiar.
Raising an eyebrow, he took another bite to confirm the sensation wasn't a fluke. Then he looked at Amon with a smile. "Did Medici teach you how to cook?"
"When I was young, I watched Him cook for decades. Even a fool would pick it up eventually." Amon replied with a smile, not denying it.
"Fair enough." Alaric said, stroking his chin with a nod. Then, with a sudden shift in tone, he added, "So, have you ever considered calling Medici 'Father'?"
Amon's hand, holding a knife, froze. A question mark seemed to hover above his head.
"Don't look at me like that." Alaric said confidently. "A foster father is still a father, you know!"
"…At best, He's a nanny." Amon said after a few seconds of silence.
"How cold." Alaric replied, feigning disappointment. "I thought you'd at least call Him a brother. But brother works too. Combine that with foster father, and you could call him Dad-Bro, which is quite amusing."
"..."
He didn't fully understand, but the room suddenly felt a bit chillier.
***
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