Is this really what we get for our meal? It's disgusting.

The oarsmen lined up to fill their bowls with questionable goop. Each oarsman at the front of the line took more than their share as they loaded as much as possible into their bowls. They would spit in the pot for the people behind them, similar to how the guards had after taking their meal earlier.

The order was different every day, with the only exception being the boy was always at the end of the line. The guards would never wait for Noah to deliver the goop before they took their portion. Those at the end of the line received less of the goop from the pot than they did saliva.

After taking their meal, spitting inside the pot was an act of petty revenge against the people ahead of them from previous days. The ritual had begun before Noah was taken onboard.

Noah leaned against the reinforced metal railing to survey the ocean under the fiery-sky in the brief period of peace as everyone ate. He noticed birds flying away in haste from a pair of islands overcome by vegetation like they were fleeing from something hidden among the trees. Noah believed he saw the trees move, but they were still too far away for him to see clearly.

He continued to think about the things that happened to bring him here, as well as the connections he'd made. Noah kept finding his thoughts drawn back to Rachel as she danced through the hordes of soulless to rescue the nameless hero's baby. Noah still had the heroic man's glowing red and gold ability origin crystal safely stored inside his [Zero-Space Dimension Ring]. People mistook the ring for an unusual wedding band which is worthless after the arrival of the Pylons.

I wonder how long it will be before I lose my ring too. I haven't been able to access the pocket dimension or my System Interface since Ronan withered my body. It's the only thing I have remaining from when this all began. If I can access the ring, it still holds a handful of grade two black origin crystals I could use to recover along with my axe. If I can retrieve either of them, I won't have to fear those guards anymore.

"If you are thinking of escaping to those islands, they are more dangerous than the sea in the middle of a storm. See the island with the jagged rocks surrounding it? Jormungand resides there. He is still young now, but he has been growing stronger," the bearded ebony-skinned ability-user interrupted Noah's thoughts as he pointed at one of the pair of islands in the distance the birds had fled from.

The tree-covered island was surrounded by a ring of jagged broken rocks protruding from the ocean, forming a bay where a ship could weigh anchor sheltered from the ocean waves amid stormy weather.

The second island held a dormant volcano that had been reclaimed by vegetation growing rampant after the arrival, along with the world's animals. No rocks were bordering the second island as if they feared getting too close.

"What's Jormungand? Is it dangerous?" Noah asked the gap-toothed man.

"It is said that Jormungand is the world-serpent. It is said that he grew so large that he encircled the world to bite his own tail. Once his tail is released, the apocalypse would begin. The myths are wrong. Jormungand was born only after the apocalypse began," the ebony-skinned man cryptically informed him.

"The one who told me these things was a man not of my people. But one who had to hide from his tribe. The boss took pity on him as he always does, gave him work, gave him a chance despite his past. English was also not the man's first language, but one he needed to learn to hide from the people hunting him. He would tell me stories from his homeland when we waited on the boat while the boss went ashore."

"He was a good man despite what he may have done, better than me. But I am still here. We will meet again in another life. It was on that island he died, he gave Jormungand his name. Jormungand swallowed him whole as we swam to the other island. Jormungand no longer pursued us through the ocean once the dark night sky was lit by the fire of the dormant volcano, it spoke to us. Jormungand fled the volcano's wrath," the black man continued to narrate his story.

"Why are you telling me this?" Noah asked.

"There is something about you that I do not understand. You remind me of the volcano which chased away Jormungand, dormant but still dangerous," the gap-toothed explained.

"Perhaps it was the god's judgment that brought us to that island. It is said that the gods have returned, all of them. I have yet to see them, but some of the men here have witnessed their power first-hand. Now tell me, why do you hide your power?" The black man suddenly turned serious as he stared deeply into Noah's eyes. There was a subtle blue glow deep in his dark eyes.

"I… I don't know what you're talking about," Noah lied.

"Yes, you do. Basil can smell it" The ebony-skinned man pulled the mouse from his shirt as a subtle blue-light moved under his skin.

The ebony-skinned man gently held the mouse up in front of Noah. The mouse's iris glowed purple as its whiskers twitched to sniff in Noah's direction, looking towards his ring as Noah quickly hid it inside his pocket.

"Basil can find hidden things. Things with power. All you have is that copper ring. Show it to me."

Noah reluctantly held his hand out while gritting his teeth. He prepared to fight if need be, despite how feeble he is now. The ring was all he had left. As the mouse's nose brushed the ring, it caused the patterns to flare on the surface. The mouse's eyes echoed the flare with a purple flash. It suddenly held a grade two black origin crystal in between its minuscule paws, gnawing at it.

Noah's heart stopped beating in his chest as he watched the mouse gnawing on the black origin crystal. He could only be grateful that the mouse didn't take the heroic crystal, but it was likely about to belong to the black man standing in front of him. Noah didn't have the strength to resist the man, even without using his [Air Manipulation] ability. The man ignored the mouse as it absorbed the grade two black origin crystal. He continued to intently stare into Noah's eyes.

"I will ask you once more, why do you hide your power?" the man asked with an unwavering gaze.

"I'm not hiding it. It's gone," Noah answered bitterly.

"Hmm, how did that happen?" the black man nodded as he asked another question.

"I was almost killed. Saved by a twist of fate as I fell into the ocean. Until you fished me out of the water."

"Maybe it was the god's judgment that brought you to us," The ebony-skinned man nodded thoughtfully as he put his pet mouse back into his shirt.

"These men will turn on us if we show them a moment of weakness. Do not let them see that you have power and have become weak. They will try to eat you alive to try to steal your power," The gap-toothed man cautioned a disbelieving Noah.

"You do not believe me. It is not only monsters and demons that you need to fear. Most of all, it is men. They are lost to their desires. See how they treat each other here. What is your name, Fishbait?"

"Noah," Noah cautiously answered.

"I am called Roger. One day this ship will not be filled with cowards and criminals. It will be filled with men of courage and honour. Warriors like the ancestors of my friend who died in the stomach of Jormungand," Roger introduced himself while pointing toward the pair of islands.

"We are about to near the island of Jormungand. Watch."