A middle-aged man stood at the rail of the Death Announcer.
He wore a perfectly fitted Loen-style tailcoat, and his hair had been combed with meticulous care. He was not particularly handsome, but his face had a warm, approachable quality.
"Mr. Lester."
The moment Bird Mustang saw him, his expression cooled slightly, though he still greeted him politely.
"It's been a while, Lord Byrd."
The man in the tailcoat chuckled. He looked nothing like a pirate. If anything, he resembled a gentleman who had taken a wrong turn on his way to a ball and somehow ended up aboard a pirate ship.
Yet the instant Bird Mustang laid eyes on him, unmistakable caution appeared on his face.
This man was none other than the first mate of the Death Announcer, the pirate with an 11,000-pound bounty on his head: Lester Sein, the Tormentor.
His title alone made it clear how dangerous he was. Beneath that mild, gentlemanly exterior was a man who had subjected countless innocent people to unimaginable cruelty. His infamy had long since spread across all five seas.
His favorite pastime was to release his captives with a friendly smile, only to seize them again the moment hope returned to their eyes and plunge them back into terror.
"Mr. Lester, please speak with the King of Immortality and ask him to put an end to that sound," Bird Mustang said.
"Of course. Just a moment, please."
Lester answered pleasantly, then walked over to Agalito and murmured something in a low voice.
The pale, deeply unsettling man finally moved. He lifted one finger, and the black, single-sided sail rippled in response. At last, the horrible, curse-like laughter fell silent.
Everyone aboard Bird Mustang's ship breathed a sigh of relief.
"My apologies. Our flagship needed to let off a little steam. You know how it is. It's already restraining itself quite a bit. If it truly unleashed its full power, every pirate on this island would have lost their mind by now."
Lester Sein returned to the rail. Bat wings sprouted from his back, and he leaped down, drifting slowly onto Bird Mustang's ship.
He first turned and gave the King of Immortality Agalito a courteous bow of farewell. Then he faced Bird Mustang.
The corner of the Viscount of Fear's mouth twitched, but he said nothing.
"Also, our captain finds the scenery around Black Lake Island rather pleasant. He'd like to take everyone on a little tour. That won't be a problem, will it?" Lester asked with a smile.
What a ridiculous excuse. The King of Immortality and his demonic crew wanted to go sightseeing for fun? Did they really think he was that stupid?
Bird Mustang kept those thoughts to himself, revealing nothing on his face.
He simply nodded. "Of course. Make yourselves at home. For everyone's sake, though, I'll send a few men along to 'protect' you. I'm sure you understand."
Lester smiled without objecting.
Bird Mustang then ordered his sailors to turn the ship around and return to shore. He personally escorted Lester Sein toward the gathering grounds.
"Send more men and keep a close eye on the Death Announcer. Wherever it goes, I want it watched every step of the way," Bird Mustang quietly instructed his crew before leaving with his men. "Report to me the second anything seems unusual."
"Yes, sir!"
The sailors acknowledged the order in unison.
Before long, the pirates gathered on Black Lake Island witnessed a peculiar scene.
In the waters surrounding the island, the enormous black sailing ship Death Announcer moved slowly forward. Three to five ships belonging to the Kings of the Five Seas followed close behind and flanked it on both sides.
Their sailors openly monitored every movement aboard the Death Announcer, afraid they might overlook some crucial detail.
When the pirates aboard the Death Announcer noticed, they responded with jeers and taunts, mocking and provoking their escorts at every opportunity.
Their targets were none other than the crews of the Kings of the Five Seas, sailors who considered themselves members of the most powerful pirate fleets on the ocean.
Naturally, they had no intention of taking the insults quietly and immediately shouted back.
Soon, colorful insults in every language and accent echoed across the water.
Most pirates had very few relatives left to speak of, but through these heartfelt exchanges, they graciously showed one another just how deeply they cared about each other's families.
The uproar near the shore naturally attracted the attention of the entire island. Every pirate gathered there had the privilege of witnessing this rare spectacle.
Once the pirate assembly ended and everyone returned to their respective territories, what they had seen that day was certain to become the hottest topic on the seas.
However, while most of the island's attention remained fixed on the commotion, someone else was quietly working in the shadows.
Beneath the island's soil, a wavering figure passed effortlessly through the solid earth and stopped at a predetermined location. It took something out and buried it securely in the ground.
It was a strange doll.
Its shape was crude, and its eyes and mouth had been sewn shut. Yet its surface looked exactly like genuine human skin. A half-withered flower was pinned to its chest, still a vivid red, as though it had soaked up enough blood from a corpse to satisfy itself.
The translucent figure placing the doll had dark brown skin covered in deep wrinkles, sparse white hair, and an aged face.
It was Shanks, a demigod of the Rose School of Thought!
"Praise the Mother Tree..."
Fanatical light flickered in his eyes.
After burying the first doll, he did not stop. He moved to another patch of ground and buried an equally disturbing doll beneath the soil.
Every pirate on the island was focused on the Death Announcer.
No one noticed, nor would it have been easy for anyone to notice, the seeds of disaster taking root only a few yards beneath their feet.
---
The Fog Sea, in the aftermath of the battle.
"It's a shame that archbishop escaped with the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact."
Standing aboard the ruined steamship, Silas spoke with a trace of regret.
During the early stages of the battle, the ship had been protected by Bishop Pierre's abilities and spared from the miniature sun's scorching power. Later, however, Pierre had been unable to devote any more attention to it.
The vessel had eventually caught fire as well and was now reduced to little more than half its original size.
The sailors' and priests' bodies had long since been reduced to ash. Only their Beyonder characteristics remained, indestructible by nature.
"Four portions of Sequence 6 characteristics from the Sun Pathway, along with several lower-Sequence characteristics from the same pathway.
"One Sequence 5 characteristic from the Hunter Pathway... Hmm. None of this is particularly useful to me. I'll store it for now. I could sell the Sun characteristics to the Sun. He's already a Sequence 7 Solar High Priest, so he'll definitely need them."
Silas considered this as he searched the scorched and shattered deck.
"Hmm?"
He bent down and picked up a dagger lying beside the Sequence 5 characteristic.
The dagger had retained its general shape, but its blade had become impossibly brittle, as though it had spent decades drying beneath the sun.
Crack!
It shattered with a crisp sound.
Countless strange points of light spilled out from within. They gradually gathered together and formed a short black sword. It was hard and heavy, with flames coiling across its surface.
"The Beyonder characteristic crystallized... Could this be a Sequence 4 characteristic from the Hunter Pathway?"
Silas examined it briefly and quickly confirmed what it was.