"Sure, my ship is lacking a ship's doctor."
Silas had no objections to Councillor Ricciardo's arrangement.
The chubby pharmacist's role would probably be as an intermediary for communication between both parties, making it convenient for them to stay in touch.
Besides, although Silas himself was skilled at performing surgery, he lacked effective means for dealing with other diseases.
Sailing at sea inevitably meant encountering epidemics, so having a pharmacist was very suitable.
Thinking deeper, he might even be useful later when facing the "Vice Admiral of Ailment"...
So after considering for just a moment, he decided to accept this acquaintance.
But Darkwill didn't know that the Silas before him was an old friend from before.
No way, right?
I really have to board their ship?
Darkwill's face showed difficulty.
He had already witnessed Silas's methods some time ago.
That scene of casually waving his hand and causing masses of pirates to fall into corruption had left a deep impression on him.
Just thinking about having to spend day and night with such a terrifying existence made his legs shake.
What bullshit fate.
I encountered so many difficulties delivering useless information, made a wasted trip, and now I have to continue dealing with the "Blood Reverend"?
I don't want to!
Help!
Though this was what he thought, Darkwill didn't dare say any of these words aloud.
"Good, then it's settled."
Ricciardo didn't give Darkwill a chance to refuse. Smiling, he put away the "Revolver of Luck."
"Darkwill, follow Mr. Gascoigne and do the task I've assigned you well."
"Yes."
Darkwill could only respond with a bitter face. Raising one arm, he let the owl perched high descend.
Compared to before, he now had a silver satchel at his waist, made of tough, glossy material and decorated with many mysterious symbols.
After bidding farewell to Councillor Ricciardo, the two people and one bird left the bell ringer's cottage and headed to the port.
There, his crew had already assembled and were waiting for him.
Some of these sailors reeked of alcohol, some were drowsy, and others were bent over weakly, clearly having overexerted themselves the previous night.
"Captain."
First Mate "Sea Serpent" Walter came forward to greet him.
"How is it, is everyone here?"
Silas asked.
"Everyone's here, though there was a bit of a situation in the middle.
Uruk got tricked by a streetwalker and was kidnapped by the forces behind her."
"Kidnapped? Who's that bold?"
Silas frowned slightly.
"A small organization called the 'Celestial Sect,' whose leader is just a Sequence 8 'Lunatic.'"
Walter quickly answered.
"They seem to be running some kind of underground religion.
That guy Uruk nearly became a living sacrifice... Fortunately, after the second mate went over, he resolved them all by himself."
The Celestial Sect?
Never heard of it.
Didn't sound like any evil organization with deep roots, probably just a small group formed on the island.
"I see, then forget it."
Hearing Walter say this, Silas casually nodded.
Normally, he might have asked more questions about this sect's faith and rituals, but right now he was anxious to set sail.
Plus, since Anderson had already resolved the matter, he didn't pursue it further.
From a distance, he glanced at the sailor called Uruk and saw that the man's spirituality was stable, though his eyes were a bit red.
"Everyone, sorry to interrupt your rest."
Putting his thoughts aside, Silas stepped in front of the gathered crew.
"This is urgent. We need to head for Bayam as soon as we can. It's the capital of the Rorsted Archipelago, the most prosperous place in the whole region… and it's time for our pirate crew's name to echo there as well."
As he spoke, he wove a hint of his Spectator ability into his words.
The crew, who moments earlier had looked tired and dull, suddenly perked up with excitement.
Those chasing wealth focused on "prosperous," those harboring resentment toward Loen picked out "capital," and those craving fame fixed on "name."
"Yes!"
They shouted loudly, drawing the attention of people around the port.
"Also, there's a second matter. Our ship has gained a new crew member."
Silas pulled the chubby pharmacist before the sailors.
"Our old acquaintance Darkwill is about to become our ship's doctor. If anyone feels unwell in the future, you can find him to solve it."
"Alright, that's all. Let's set sail."
After briefly finishing, he gave the order to depart.
The sailors immediately sprang into action, though last night's pleasures had clearly had a tremendous impact on them.
Silas clearly saw several sailors whose legs were weak when boarding, nearly unable to even climb onto the ship.
Really...
Silas swore silently, then turned to look at Darkwill.
"This is your first job. Get everyone back into proper shape. If they need sobering up, sober them up. If they need their bodies taken care of, take care of them. Got it?"
"Got it, got it."
Darkwill answered with a fawning smile.
With his medicine box in one hand and the small pouch at his waist, he heaved his round body up the gangplank and onto the ship.
"Flap flap flap"
The owl flapped its wings and flew up to the mast.
"Meow..."
Luna's eyes fixed on the owl, sounds coming from her mouth.
The latter, as if noticing her predatory gaze, quickly flapped its wings again and flew up another level higher.
"That guy is a Beyonder creature like you. Don't pounce on him, understand?"
Silas rubbed the black cat's ears.
"Alright, stop staring. Come with me back to the captain's cabin. I need to prepare your potion."
---
Backlund, Jowood District, 22 Hope Road, Hat Trick Inn.
Fors walked down from the carriage with a calm demeanor, secretly using her peripheral vision to check the surroundings.
With calm steps, she entered.
After a series of counter-surveillance actions, she finally confirmed there were no followers before going to another floor of the inn to meet with her teacher.
They were originally supposed to meet at the station, but her teacher had sent her a warning through coded signals, changing their meeting place to here.
"Teacher, what happened just now?"
After Fors entered the room, she immediately asked with concern.
"I encountered an acquaintance at the station."
Her teacher, Dorian Gray of the Abraham family, closed the door and smiled bitterly. "...Now an enemy."
It turned out that person had also been his student once, who later rebelled alongside "Traveler" Botis, causing the near-total annihilation of the Abraham family's upper elite.
"What did he do?"
Fors sensed the sadness in her teacher's eyes and asked sympathetically.
Dorian was silent for a few seconds, then slowly spoke, revealing a bit of intelligence to this student who was gradually gaining his trust:
"I, Lawrence, Laubero, Aulisa all once belonged to the same organization.
This organization suffered a severe blow due to certain people's betrayal, and the one just now was one of the traitors."
"How detestable!"
Fors cursed empathetically.
The people Dorian had just mentioned had all given her some help, making her instinctively detest those people.
She even began considering using members of the Tarot Club to eliminate this traitor.
This idea grew even stronger after Dorian praised her progress and gave her a Beyonder item as a reward.
"Teacher, I want to know who that traitor is."
Fors couldn't help but ask.
"You should indeed know, at least to avoid him in advance."
Dorian sighed.
"His name is Lewis Wien. Supposedly, he's now one of the Aurora Order's twenty-two divine envoys."
Hmm? The Aurora Order?
Hearing this name, Fors's eyes couldn't help but widen.
Now she knew who to look for.