Pirate Ship

Go!

Before the one-eyed deep one could grow suspicious, Lynch decisively stepped over the gunwale and boarded the small boat.

A gentleman's revenge shouldn't be delayed.

No, a gentleman's revenge should be taken that very night. If someone slaps you, you slap them back as soon as possible, preferably twice as hard.

This was Lynch's style, and he was willing to take a bit of a risk for it.

Even if these people knew Walker, they couldn't possibly be too close to him. As long as he was careful, his chances of deceiving them were very high.

Besides, anyone else would definitely be terrified of going out to sea and venturing deep into the enemy's lair, but Lynch possessed the Call of the Water. His mobility in the water was no less than that of a deep one, and with his lurking ability, he didn't panic at all.

...

Perhaps he was still a little panicked—actually, a lot panicked—but since he had already come this way, he couldn't just back down now.

Time to risk it all.

He discreetly tapped the telepathic conch to say a temporary goodbye to Miss Valente. Although their destination likely wasn't too far, it would probably exceed the conch's two-kilometer communication range. From now on, he was entirely on his own.

He still had six bottles of Flame Oil, which was enough to start a small to medium-sized fire, and six of each type of special bullet, so he wouldn't be helpless even if he encountered enemies immune to physical attacks. It was already past midnight on June 12th, marking the conceptual start of a new day. His phase defense necklace had successfully reset, granting him another three seconds of invincibility.

Add to that a few bottles of red potion that allegedly stopped bleeding and relieved pain when poured onto wounds, a few satiety capsules like the ones he had taken before, three soul-returning grass cigarettes, and a Torch of Light serving as a flashlight. Lynch suddenly realized that ever since a certain someone woke up, his stash of miscellaneous supplies had never run out, and there seemed to be a growing trend.

Hadn't he agreed to maintain his dignity as a man and swear never to live off a woman?

Was this really one of those things where it was either never, or countless times?

A tapping sound came from the conch, as gentle as Miss Valente's warm reminders. For some reason, Lynch suddenly felt a sense of reassurance, much like when he saw Officer Natalie standing in front of him.

Hm? Am I being a bit shameless?

【Yes, you noticed too?】

‘You really didn't have to answer, honestly.’

【Because, I am always here.】

‘I...’

Lynch was almost choked to death by his goddess. Rolling his eyes, he pulled back his thoughts. The small boat beneath him had already left the shore, sailing into the vast, dark sea.

Although it was a rowboat, it moved quite fast. The harbor receded at a visible speed, soon leaving only a patch of lights. Under the illumination of the crimson and silver-white moons, they lit up the dark night sky and the sea.

“John straightened Mother's skull, George pieced together Mother's bones, William stitched Mother's flesh, Peter stuffed Mother's organs, but only little Jack, the youngest of all, stole and ate Mother's liver~~~”

On the dark sea, the one-eyed deep one's eerie singing echoed, sounding spine-chilling over the open water. Lynch, however, ignored it completely, standing quietly on the small boat while leaning on his cane.

The more he spoke, the more mistakes he would make; he had to avoid exposure.

As he sang, the deep one suddenly let out a sinister laugh. “Walker, Walker, the slave owner Davis was very angry about what happened last time. Just you wait to be torn to shreds by him, hehehe.”

Last time? What happened?

It would definitely be brought up in a moment, so he might as well fish for some information first.

Lynch immediately put on an air and used his conversational skills, saying vaguely, “What happened last time had nothing to do with me.”

“Nothing to do with you? You guys didn't even notify us in advance of such a major operation, letting that detective run wild and almost causing Davis to die at the harbor. Afterward, your city hall got plenty of benefits from top to bottom, and now you say it has nothing to do with you? Hehehe, do you think Davis will ever trust you again?”

Hiss, you might as well just say my name directly. So, my past self created trouble for my future self?

Lynch let out a cold snort on purpose, puffing out his chest and ignoring the one-eyed deep one. The other party didn't notice anything amiss, continuing to mutter to himself and occasionally humming that eerie song.

After rowing for another fifteen minutes or so, the lights behind them grew more and more distant, while a massive shadow loomed ahead on the sea. As the small boat drew closer, Lynch realized it was a large ship.

Its pitch-black wooden hull, two to three stories high and dozens of meters long, loomed over them like a small mountain. The sails on the deck had already been lowered, leaving only a forest of masts pointing straight into the night sky.

The steam engine at the stern had been shut down, but faint black smoke still drifted from the thick chimney. A heavy smell of coal smoke could be clearly detected from dozens of meters away, even more pungent than what he had smelled at Chairman Grant's factory.

On the open sea, the massive hull bore down on them like a mountain, imposing and full of pressure. Not a single light shone from the ship, and it was completely silent, as if the entire vessel had died, making it look incredibly eerie.

Silence. Only the sound of rowing echoed repeatedly in the darkness.

“Gurgle, gurgle.”

Nothing could be seen in the darkness; only a strange bubbling sound suddenly arose. Though faint, it was exceptionally distinct on the silent sea.

The sound grew from quiet to loud, drawing closer and closer, the gurgling becoming clearer and clearer.

Lynch stood tall without showing any emotion, his expression calm, though his pupils had contracted and his fingers tightly gripped his cane.

Just as his fingers tightened completely, the bubbling stopped abruptly. Even the sound of the oars hitting the water ceased. The black ship, the black sea, the black night—everything around them returned to silence.

Was it over?

Just as the thought crossed his mind, with a loud splash, several massive geysers shot into the air. Then, several pitch-black, thick tentacles covered in suckers broke through the water, dancing wildly against the night sky next to the black ship.

Holy shit. If this had been the night I first transmigrated, I probably would have cried from fear.

Actually, his legs were a bit weak right now too, and cold sweat was breaking out.

“Giggle, giggle, the Ranger commander is terrified again. You didn't wet your pants, did you? Hahaha.”

Laugh all you want, idiot. The one losing face is Walker anyway, what does it have to do with me, Lynch Levive?

Lynch let out a cold snort and turned his head away. He then watched as these tentacles climbed up the hull like vines, going right over the gunwale. Two of the tentacles, as if they had eyes, stretched all the way to the side of the small boat.

“After you, Commander Walker. The slave owner Davis is personally welcoming you.” The one-eyed deep one stopped laughing, pointing maliciously at the outstretched tentacles.

He said 'again' just now, which means I've boarded the ship before, and probably in this exact same way. Although it looks dangerous, as long as I don't expose my identity, I shouldn't be attacked.

Quickly sorting out his thoughts, Lynch gritted his teeth and stepped onto the tentacle.

The tentacle was extremely thick, no narrower than the boat they were in. It was covered with uneven suckers, and its surface was coated in translucent slime, making for quite a shocking visual.

Suppressing his disgust, Lynch held onto the tentacle to keep his balance, thinking to himself that he would throw his gloves away the moment he got home, as the tentacle lifted him onto the deck.

Stepping onto the deck, a chill ran down his spine.

On the silent deck, twenty to thirty shadowy figures stood.

These people looked like humans, dressed in tattered sailor outfits. They stood motionless on the deck, silently staring at Lynch, who had just been lifted up.

They had the same posture, the same expression, and the same emotionless gaze. Like a crowd of soulless puppets on strings, they looked incredibly eerie in the darkness.

This was likely the parasitic control that the slave owner Davis was known for.

Looking at the deck behind them, numerous tentacles had already crawled up and wound around, leaving trails of disgusting slime. On the masts a bit further away, though no flags were flying, several long-dried corpses hung. A few seabirds perched on the heads of the corpses, staring with eerie eyes at Lynch as he boarded the ship.

Such a bizarre vessel immediately made Lynch think of a pirate ship.

These people were likely the real heteromorph pirates. And the ones who were actually colluding with pirates—colluding with Davis, a fugitive wanted by the Lande government and recognized as such by the Churches of the Twelve Major Gods and the seven kingdoms—were actually one of Rhine City's official factions.

Lynch felt as if he had come into contact with a rather dark side of things, and he wondered if this world was originally this dark. But while his brain was still spinning rapidly, the puppet-like sailors suddenly moved, closing in on him.

His hand had already touched his pistol, but Lynch didn't act rashly, quietly waiting to see what the sailors would do.

Soon, they lined up in two rows on the deck, forming a pathway that revealed the hatch leading to the cabins. Every single sailor's eyes stared straight at Lynch, sending a shiver down his spine.

Just then, a low piano melody sounded from inside the cabin, reaching Lynch's ears like an invitation.