Lord Ashtor, who had returned to the ship, watched the spectacle with wide eyes. "The ship...oh, the ship..." He started biting on his napkin from afar, listening to the sounds of wood breaking and men grunting.
"What is going on?" Goblin asked, seeing the ferals leaping from the mast, swinging on the ropes, and jumping around like monkeys.
"Boss is playing chess with himself," Lord Ashtor explained, his eyes teary, "They are sacrificing the ship to win now. The ship..."
"Ah," Goblin understood, not really caring for the ship, and used a rope to climb on the railing, "Go, Boss!"
He whistled, watching the ferals throwing each other around and climbing on each other's shoulders to reach Lucian, who was hanging from the mast, "I wish I could be as strong as Boss, so he can have an equal sparring buddy."
"You don't want to be his sparring buddy," Lord Ashtor shook his head, climbing up next to Goblin, "Just be happy being his loyal dog, Goblin."
"I'm not a dog," Goblin pouted, sitting on the railing, crossing his arms, "I'm a Vice!"
"A kid Vice," Lord Ashtor snorted, not taking him seriously, "You're not even taller than my waist; how could you ever be equal to Boss?"
Goblin punched the air with his right hand, then his left, joining the feral fight with imaginary moves, "If only I could awaken my beast, I would show you."
"Aren't you just afraid of becoming like them?" Lord Ashtor gestured to the ferals, "Hairy, smelly, and dumb?"
"I'm not! I really want to meet my beast! I've been training hard!" Goblin punched a few more times, "But I still can't sense it, not even a little bit."
Lord Ashtor didn't understand why his Boss would rather have this kid command the ferals instead of him. He had more experience, more knowledge, and more charm than this little Goblin.
But the Boss seemed to favor him, and that was enough reason for him to dislike the kid.
"You know," Lord Ashtor said casually, "If you don't awaken your beast, Boss might replace you with someone else. You're pretty useless as you are right now."
"..." Goblin's movements faltered.
Lord Ashtor continued, "You're not really contributing anything to the Glory. I think Boss is keeping you out of pity."
He leaned closer to Goblin's ear, his voice low, "If I were you, I'd leave before Boss gets tired of you."
Compared to others, Goblin was just a maintenance boy for the Glory's landscaping projects. He didn't have a big role like the other Vices.
Goblin tackled Lord A's from the railing, sending them both falling to the deck.
Lord Ashtor was stronger and more experienced than him, so he kicked him away easily, making the little guy fly over the deck, rolling over the ground.
Not so far away, Goblin's group of ferals felt something happen to their little Vice and made a battle cry across the compound. It was so loud that even Lucian and his gang stopped fighting to see what was going on.
Ferals began to run in from all directions to aid their little Vice.
Lord Ashtor widened his eyes in terror, forgetting about the southerners' telepathic abilities, "WAIT! WAIT! I'm also your Vice! You can't attack me! STOOOOP!"
He held his hands in the air in surrender, shouting over the stampeding ferals, who were ready to pounce on him, "I was just joking! I didn't mean it! Don't kill me!"
Goblin got up from the ground, his face red with anger, and pointed at Lord Ashtor, "Attack!"
"NOOO!" Lord Ashtor ran for his life, ferals chasing after him with bloodthirsty eyes. "BOSS! SAVE ME!"
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Lucian had to return to his son before he woke up from his nap, so he waved his hand to Goblin's ferals to let Lord A's go, "How is he going to repair the ship with a broken spine? I need him alive."
"Boo," Goblin's ferals booed at the order, reluctantly obeying.
"My Boss, you are so merciful," Lord A's panted, his hands on his knees, "I am forever in your debt, please accept my humble gratitude."
So many personalities like Lord A's could reach the higher ranks in society, because they were good at hiding their true nature behind a mask of flattery and praise. But the rot could be seen in their actions, in how they treated the weaker. The more power they gained, the more their true colors showed.
Such people were only needed as scapegoats in Lucian's opinion, to take the blame when necessary and bear the burden of the Glory's dirty work, so Lucian didn't have to.
If his people couldn't deal with a person like Lord A's, then they had no chance of entering the political arena, where a hundred of them were waiting for them. They were as common as dirt.
Lord A's quickly fled the scene, heading to the office, afraid of facing Goblin's ferals again.
Goblin still looked angry, "He deserves a beating, Boss."
Lucian walked down the ramp of the ship, having no more strength to climb or jump off of it. His body hurt all over, and he felt like he would collapse if he didn't get some rest soon.
He patted Goblin's head on the way, "You can't teach that kind a lesson. He won't change his way of thinking; he will just hide it better. Learn his ways, and use them against him."
"I don't want to bootlick him," Goblin grimaced at the idea.
"Right now, he is the only one who can get better deals and trades for Glory, especially during these dangerous times," Lucian explained.
Their northern business required someone to handle its more shady aspects, similar to how Roland handled the one in the south. Not just anyone could be a criminal.
Lucian wanted to keep Cansan's hands clean, like Fishbone's. They already had too much on their plate.
Only by infiltrating the criminal underworld could Lucian grow his power further. He needed to tap into that resource. And Lord A's was his key.
'I need to make sure there's a place for my son.'
Lucian limped on his way to his room.
'Even if it's shadows that he has to dwell in, he will have a throne there waiting for him.'