Circle of Inevitability

783 Boarding the Ship

Banamo Port, near the docks.

Jenna hid in the shadows, watching Anthony mingle with the crowd, blending in with the pirates.

She didn't deliberately track the famous pirates who arrived on the Newins when it docked. On the one hand, she feared being discovered, which would alert Admiral Deep Sea to a grand conspiracy awaiting him at Banamo Port. On the other hand, she didn't need to follow them to know the whereabouts of the Newins' first mate, second mate, and boatswain.

The pirates in Banamo Port were eagerly anticipating Admiral Deep Sea or his capable subordinates to teach the unknown adventurer a lesson.

Naturally, they kept an eye on these individuals and shared information with their companions and friends!

In other words, with so much attention on the situation, most of the pirates in Banamo Port had become unofficial reporters. Admiral Deep Sea's key subordinates couldn't go anywhere without being noticed and widely discussed.

If they used stealth abilities or invisibility, they might avoid the curious eyes spread throughout Banamo Port. However, they were currently gathering supplies, which meant they couldn't hide the large quantities of goods.

Thus, information flowed swiftly into Anthony's ears: "Great Shark is at Firth Trading Company."

"Holy Lord of Storms, those guys are meeting at Blackstone Square!"

"They're one street away from the Carnival Bar!"

"They've stopped for now, discussing something!"

"They seem to be heading to Old Dante's for large barrels of pale ale!"

"..."

Anthony sensed the commotion among the pirates, watching them leave the current street and head towards the Carnival Bar.

He stood up as well to avoid standing out.

During this, he gave Jenna's hidden shadow a look.

Jenna understood immediately, using the shadows along the street to slip through the growing crowd towards the Carnival Bar.

...

Lumian sipped the freshly poured amber-colored Lanti Proof, nodding to himself.

He then looked at the bartender behind the counter, smiling as he said, "You might want to move the valuable liquor and items out of here for now. It's probably best if no one stays inside."

The bartender froze for a few seconds before responding hastily, "Alright!"

No one wanted to alert Lumian by passing on messages that might affect the plan, but he guessed something was brewing from the pirates gathering outside the bar.

He was both excited and nervous, knowing the impending conflict would take place in the Carnival Bar, where he was.

Watching the bartender instruct the waiters to move valuable items out the back door, Lumian pulled out a blank sketchbook and an ink pen, casually sketching as he asked, "How much is your bar worth, including this two-story building?"

"Uh..." The bartender was stunned again.

What does this mean?

Is he implying the bar might get destroyed in the upcoming conflict, collapsing the whole building?

Recalling the powerful crimson-white fireballs, the bartender grew even more anxious, forcing a smile as he said, "Are you offering compensation? You decide, or let the loser pay..."

"This building is a simple structure built by locals. It's definitely cheap. Your bar caters to low-level pirates, so the furniture and décor are all the cheapest kind..." Lumian continued his assessment without looking up, still sketching in the blank book.

"Yes, that's right." The bartender nodded quickly, agreeing.

Lumian looked up, shaking his head with a smile. "Whatever I say, you agree. It's making things difficult for me."

"..." The bartender closed his mouth, unsure how to respond.

Lumian lowered his head again. "How about 2,000 verl d'or?"

"Okay." The bartender used a different word, not even trying to bargain.

Lumian didn't pause his sketching, his tone calm.

"Payment will be after assessing the damage. If the big pirates coming later want to help compensate, that works too."

"Alright." The bartender responded quickly.

He looked around, wishing he could sprout wings and fly out of the Carnival Bar.

From their conversation, he feared staying could lead to him becoming a mangled corpse.

A few minutes later, the waiters had moved the few valuable items out, leaving only the cheap goods in the bar.

The bartender left through the back door, and the other patrons, including Mason, exited to wait and watch outside.

They didn't dare stay in this anticipated battlefield.

This was the lesson of experience.

Lumian sketched for a while, then put down his pen and slowly sipped the remaining Lanti Proof.

A few minutes later, Franca sneaked into the shadows near the bar and whispered, "Admiral Deep Sea didn't come, but his first mate, Great Shark, and others are almost here. They'll be here in about two minutes."

Lumian picked up the ink pen again and continued sketching in the book.

He chuckled and said, "Remember to prepare the 2,000 verl d'or compensation, and when we get back, return the 1,000 verl d'or bounty for summoning the messenger."

"Ah?" Franca was a bit surprised.

Lumian chuckled and said, "All of this is to help you digest Pleasure. You should cover all expenses, including consumed Beyonder items."

"No problem." Franca wasn't resisting; she was just surprised Lumian brought it up suddenly.

She watched Lumian finish his sketch on the blank page, curious as she asked, "Why not just take out the Pride Armor, disguise it as a person with a robe, and have it sit in this chair facing away from the incoming pirates?"

With Lumian present, the Pride Armor couldn't be used, so it might as well serve some purpose by being placed here.

"Do you really want this building destroyed?" Lumian chuckled. "Besides, the Pride Armor can't use Lie and can't disguise itself as me. The subordinates of Admiral Deep Sea would notice something's wrong before even entering."

As he spoke, Lumian finished the last stroke on the blank page.

It was a sketch outlined in deep blue ink, depicting Lumian himself.

The paper gradually turned translucent, and the sketch of Lumian suddenly came to life, thickening and expanding like a balloon.

In an instant, a stoic-faced Lumian appeared before the bar counter, blocked by Lumian's body.

It had the instinct to complete a few minutes of combat and possessed some of Lumian's abilities, obeying the sketcher's commands.

As the sketched Lumian sat in a chair facing away from the bar door, Lumian transformed into a shadow creature, disappearing from the bar.

Soon, Great Shark, the first mate of the Newins, arrived at the Carnival Bar with a few companions of similar strength, surrounded by a crowd of pirates.

The tall, muscular, bald Great Shark glanced at the unknown adventurer calmly sitting at the bar and gestured, leading the way through the door.

As the Beyonders from the Newins entered the bar, Lumian, disguised and watching from the window, placed his right hand on the glass.

A black mark hidden under his clothes glowed.

Bottle of Fiction!

He trapped the Carnival Bar inside the Bottle of Fiction, setting the condition for exit to be non-Beyonders.

Lumian turned, and in the chaos of the pirates losing sight of the bar's interior, he squeezed through the crowd and headed to a nearby alley, teleporting to the docks with Franca.

They met Jenna and Anthony at the designated spot, using shadows and Psychological Invisibility to remain hidden as they boarded the alchemical ship Newins.

Compared to when they arrived, there were fewer pirates on the ship, just enough to maintain basic vigilance.

Lumian wasn't worried their actions would alert Admiral Deep Sea.

According to gathered intel, Howl Constantine wasn't a Beyonder of the Devil pathway and couldn't sense malice. His abilities resembled a Sequence 5 Ocean Songster of the Storm pathway, and according to the Tarot Club, Admiral Deep Sea had no ties to the Church of Storms.

Thus, Lumian had Jenna confirm if the Black Octopus had followed the Newins to Banamo Port-the Black Octopus's captain, Bone Splitter Basil, was a Devil.

Considering the changing situation at the Carnival Bar might alert Admiral Deep Sea, Lumian and his team didn't waste time, swiftly sneaking into the ship's hold.

Within a minute, they found a lone pirate in a corridor room.

Franca checked the surrounding mechanical devices for alarms, then whispered to shadow-form Lumian, "It's show time."

Lumian immediately slipped into the room, moving behind the lone pirate and emerging, giving a harrumph.

Two flashes of white light, and the pirate fell unconscious.

Anthony entered the room quickly, beginning hypnosis.

Jenna and Franca guarded the door from the shadows, soon hearing friendly conversation inside, "Where's the Admiral?"

"In the captain's cabin."

"The Admiral must have a powerful backer to be one of the most famous pirates, right?"

"I don't know, but the Admiral is indeed mysterious."

"..."

After a brief inquiry, Anthony made the pirate forget he had such a friend on board.

They then sneaked to the upper deck, stopping outside the captain's cabin.

Lumian's eyes twitched as he gazed at the silver-white metal door.

He realized Admiral Deep Sea's possible pathway and sequence.

On an alchemical ship like this, an Ocean Songster's power might not be inferior to being in the deep sea or the air!

While Lumian pondered, two pirates pushed a food cart to the captain's cabin using a mechanical lift.

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