Betrayal

When pirate captain Caspar stepped onto the deck of the Windfeather, his heart swelled with satisfaction.

The captain of this merchant vessel was quite seasoned—his response speed upon discovering their pursuit had been remarkably swift. In the past, with just two ships, the Blood Shark would have needed to chase for half a day before even catching sight of this merchant ship's stern.

But with the wind mage he'd recruited at great expense, the situation was completely different. Ordinary merchant vessels before the Blood Shark at full speed were like the difference between an adult and child's running pace.

Mages rarely willingly stayed aboard ships for extended periods.

If you only needed a mage to create fresh water, that was manageable—low-level mages could handle such tasks. But if you wanted sustained wind to fill the sails, you'd need at least a Gold-rank mage.

Setting aside the harsh life at sea, for mages, advancing their magical level required a stable environment for meditation, and learning spells needed access to knowledge—none of which ships provided.

Generally speaking, among high-level mages, only those who had given up on self-improvement or were desperately short of money would choose to board ships. And the vessels they joined were all legitimate large ships—ordinary merchant vessels like the Windfeather rarely could afford to hire mages, let alone pirates.

Yet shortly after Caspar had taken command of the Blood Shark, he'd recruited a wind mage. The man had agreed to join his pirate crew because he was wanted by the authorities. Caspar felt this was heaven's favor upon him—everything indicated his luck had turned.

Boarding was risky business. He hadn't brought the mage, who wasn't familiar with rope work, but only his first mate, second mate, and over thirty subordinates. He'd already learned the Windfeather's strength through his inside man—these forces were more than sufficient.

Captain Gerhard of the Windfeather and his crew had gathered at the edge of the ship's superstructure. Though they'd raised the white flag, they hadn't lowered their cutlasses, clearly not completely surrendering and still hoping to negotiate.

Caspar wasn't in any hurry—this ship was already his for the taking.

A particularly perceptive pirate swaggered forward, walking among the sailors and grabbing that stool that looked like a barrel, hefting it in his hands—much lighter than expected.

Lin Jun & Dylan: ???

The surrounding sailors all appeared tense, many gripping their cutlasses tighter, but the pirate acted as if he couldn't see them, deliberately parading in front of the sailors before obsequiously placing the stool beneath Caspar.

After the pirate arrogantly departed, the sailors' already meager morale visibly plummeted.

Dylan reached out his hand but couldn't think of any excuse to stop the pirate, ultimately only watching in horror as Caspar sat his rear down on it.

Caspar looked approvingly at this subordinate—bold and clever, perfect for the vacant bosun position...

Though perhaps it was his imagination, this stool felt somewhat soft?

To avoid exposure, the scout Puffshrooms desperately tried to keep his body rigid.

Caspar imperceptibly shifted his buttocks, again feeling it might be his imagination.

Of course, even if this stool were made of paper, in this situation he'd have to maintain his horse stance and see it through—otherwise the intimidation effect he'd just created would be wasted.

The effect was indeed quite good.

Seeing the sailors' cowering expressions, even First Mate Garen's eyes shifty and evasive, completely failing to provide any deterrent effect, Gerhard had no choice but to steel himself and step forward.

"Men of the Blood Shark, this ship carries Breath of Forgetting for Lord Glosar. We're willing to give up a third of our cargo in exchange for safe passage!"

Glosar—one of the three great slave masters of the archipelago, and also the controller of Silver Sand Bay, Dylan's ultimate destination. Breath of Forgetting was a commonly used drug for training slaves.

Dylan looked at the captain with some surprise—he truly hadn't known this ship was also working for Glosar.

Gerhard mentioned Glosar's name because pirates in the archipelago also had their rules. Many pirate captains, when you dug deep enough, had some connection to one of the three great slave masters.

These pirates would completely pillage ships belonging to forces outside the three great slave masters, but when facing vessels of the other two slave masters, they'd only take a quarter of the cargo.

This was a method for the great slave masters to eliminate other emerging small forces in the archipelago, while also serving as a way for them to compete without completely tearing off the mask of civility.

The Windfeather's captain was willing to offer a third of the cargo because this Blood Shark crew had come with such aggressive momentum, seeming to bypass normal procedures, leaving him uncertain of their intentions. He could only sacrifice more for peace.

However, Caspar merely sneered: "A third? You think that'll satisfy me?"

"Then what do you want?" Gerhard struggled to maintain steady voice, though unable to hide his anxiety. At this point, even if Caspar demanded half, he'd accept it.

"I want everything!"

"You want to break the rules?"

Caspar bared his teeth in a grin: "I don't just want all the cargo—I want your ship, and I want all of you!"

"You... you want to start a war? Where's Wright? I demand to speak with him directly!"

Dylan and the passengers didn't know who Wright was, but the pirates aboard the Blood Shark clearly did.

They exchanged glances and suddenly burst into laughter.

Caspar said with even greater satisfaction: "That coward Wright is already feeding the fish. Now the Blood Shark answers to me, Caspar. So what if it's Glosar? I'm robbing Glosar's ship!"

"Bullshit!" Gerhard, knowing there was no peaceful resolution, raised his cutlass and shouted to his sailors, "Take up arms! If you don't want to become slaves tortured to death, then take up your weapons!"

The sailors, and even several passengers, gripped their weapons tightly—the pirates clearly had no intention of distinguishing between them.

Gerhard pointed his blade at Caspar: "Don't push me! If we fight, there won't be much cargo left on this ship!"

Gerhard was also Gold-rank. Even if outmatched, if he was determined to cause destruction, he might actually sink the ship in mutual destruction.

In this situation, this was his only remaining threat.

Caspar coldly watched the Windfeather captain's performance, then raised his right hand. Everyone's attention was drawn to it, uncertain of his meaning.

As Caspar clenched his right hand into a fist, a dagger pierced through Gerhard's chest!

"Garen?"

Garen's dagger had been aimed at the heart, but Gerhard was Gold-rank after all. At the critical moment, he'd actually managed to react and shift his body, avoiding an instant kill, though his situation wasn't much better.

Gerhard's furious counterattack after turning around was dodged by the prepared Garen, who then quickly ran to Caspar's side before others could react, bowing his head: "Lord Caspar, as you requested."

"Excellent, excellent!" Caspar patted Garen's shoulder. "Not only did you drop signal beacons along the way, you also eliminated this major trouble. This trip, you've earned the greatest merit. When we return, I'll definitely recommend you to the Lord!"

Hearing this, Garen couldn't suppress his grin.

"Garen! You bastard, you followed me for eight years!" Gerhard lay on the ground, spitting blood as he cursed.

"Don't say that, Captain. We're all just out here trying to make money. If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for not being careful enough." Garen spoke casually, showing not the slightest trace of guilt.

"You!" In his rage, Gerhard spat another mouthful of blood. With trembling hands, he pulled out a life-saving healing potion and downed it in one gulp.

The pirates naturally wouldn't wait for him to slowly recover.

Caspar waved his hand: "Take them all—AHHHHHHH—"