Roseus and Blodwen erged from the forest and onto the sandy beach where their ship was docked. Around it, the Redflower Pirates hung around, waiting.
It was still nightti. The moonlight shone through a heavy ceiling of grey clouds, hinting that it was going to rain very soon.
He was about to ask Blodwen if it would be best to wait for the rain to pass before sailing, but when he looked over at the man, he found him standing still, staring off into the distance with one eye closed. The singular eye that was open on his scarred face was slightly squinted.
At the sa ti, Roseus heard a voice call out from the deck of the ship.
"Significant danger!"
It was Silius.
Roseus wasted no ti dashing across the sands and arriving on the deck next to the navigator. Soon afterwards, everyone joined them, including Blodwen.
Silius held the compass in his hand, and they all saw that the Needle of Ruin was pointing towards the direction that they had originally co from to make it to the island.
Jackson cursed loudly.
"It’s the sa navy ship from before. It has to be," Silius spat. "But why is the compass marking them as a significant threat now?"
As the crew expressed their fears, Roseus watched Blodwen walk to the helm of the ship, staring out into the ocean.
The captain himself couldn’t see anything, as the night was too dark, and the clouds prevented the moon from providing them with much light. Yet, when Blodwen stared out into the seas, Roseus had a feeling that the man could see very well.
"There are three ships incoming. Two large ones, and one small one, close to the size of our own."
The man’s rough voice imdiately drew everyone’s attention.
Everybody rushed over to the helm, trying to see what Blodwen could see, but there was no use.
"Sir Blodwen, I can’t see anything?" Dawn said, gently rubbing at her missing eye. "Wait, maybe that makes sense..."
"No, I can’t see anything either!" Pip cried. "My mother used to say my vision was perfect!"
Blodwen shook his head as though they were all missing the point. Then, rather than explaining, he held his finger to his temple.
A single skill filled the minds of all the pirates around them. He had shared small details of his Sailor System, just enough that he was comfortable with.
- Mariner’s Third-Eye (Lv.4) → By closing one eye, the user may see ship outlines at great distances beyond their natural eyesight. The more ships within range, the harder they are to distinguish. Ships Tier-3 and above will remain unseen.
Roseus wanted to admire the skill, as it sounded more useful than any of the skills he had read so far, however, there clearly was no ti to waste.
The others seed to share those feelings.
"Is there anything you can make out about these ships?" Captain Roseus asked.
"Yeah, I’ve seen enough of ships to recognise them as navy ships. The one in the centre is a standard patrol ship, most likely the one you told about before. The other two are warships, which are the type of ships directly above the patrols. All three ships will have a Lieutenant on board, as well as their executive officers. As for the total number of navy sailors between the three? I would estimate one hundred."
Roseus felt the words strike his chest like thunder.
After his battle with the twenty or so navy soldiers of the patrol ship, even trying to comprehend fighting against one hundred was a difficult task.
Not to ntion, a single executive officer was already stronger than Roseus. Now that there were multiple, including three Lieutenants, the captain was suddenly filled with a great sense of dread.
His skin beca pale and his hands shook.
All around him, his crew mbers beca frantic, throwing question after question at Blodwen. The man didn’t even answer, as he looked over at the captain.
Blodwen had spent many years at sea with Captain Redeye, one of the world’s greatest pirates. Over that ti period, he had seen the man adapt and escape life-ending situations. It was part of being a captain.
So, instead of giving the young man a way out, he waited, giving him ti to co to a conclusion himself.
If he cracked under the pressure, then Blodwen would take it as a sign that the prophecy could not be about him.
Roseus blocked out the noise around him. Then, he thought about the situation from many angles.
Every angle he looked from, his path only led to death.
It felt like an entire minute had passed before an idea finally ca to him. It was one filled with dangers, but he truly believed that if he pulled it off correctly, they would have a chance at surviving.
Captain Roseus turned to Blodwen the Green.
"How far away are we from the entrance into the Maze Sea?"
Everyone fell silent.
Dawn, who knew Rose well, could tell that his voice held confidence.
"About a 2-3 day journey, depending on the weather. Once inside the Maze Sea, it can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months to pass over into the Second Ocean."
2-3 days’ journey.
Roseus marked the ti down.
"And roughly how far away are those ships from us?"
Blodwen closed his eye and looked out into the sea again. Afterwards, he spoke confidently.
"By the end of tomorrow. If they continue at their speed, they’ll probably arrive once the sun has risen, and then set again."
Roseus bit at a bent finger in thought, his red hair cascading over his face ssily.
It’s less ti than I would have liked, but it can still be enough. I just have to play my cards right.
A dangerous plan had entered his mind. One that put himself at risk.
It seed so suicidal that he doubted even the primitive Blodwen would be fine with it.
And yet he saw no other way.
Captain Roseus opened his mouth and began to explain the plan he had co up with.
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