The White Pearl lingered quietly at the edge of the Pink Mist, far enough to avoid drawing attention, but close enough to keep watch. Its Stealth Array was fully activated—not to make the ship invisible, but to mask it from radars, magical sensors, and even Divine Sense. In a sea crawling with threats, sotis silence and stillness were more powerful than brute force.
Inside the CIC room, Lily sat in the captain’s chair, eyes locked on the translucent projection panels floating before her. She looked calm on the outside, but her mind was a storm of calculations.
Mathilda, leaning against the console with arms crossed, raised an eyebrow. "So... are we going in again?"
Lily didn’t answer right away. Her finger tapped rhythmically against the armrest. Eventually, she shook her head. "No. Tyler said he could handle it. If things get too tricky, he assured he could escape without issue."
Mathilda tilted her head. "Then should we sail to the Level 3 Fishery like we planned? Let the slaves start working?"
Lily sighed and turned in her seat, flipping a card between her fingers—the Seven of Diamonds. "No... If my guess is right, that Twin-Headed Sea Serpent we encountered wasn’t just so random sea beast. It was his pet. That Clown."
"The one from earlier?" Mathilda frowned.
"Exactly. Rember how the serpent didn’t attack when we had this card on display? It only turned hostile after the Clown turned on us. He must’ve sensed we killed it... and now, he might be coming for revenge." Lily said as she showed the Seven of Diamonds card.
Mathilda blinked. "Huh... Wait, then shouldn’t we run?"
Lily smiled faintly, but there was no amusent in it. "True. But I don’t think we can escape him—not easily. He’s not just crazy. He’s clever."
She gestured toward one of the projection panels, zooming in on the nearby sea. What ca into view wasn’t a ship or sea monster—but a small, colorful box bobbing on the waves.
Then another.
And another.
Dozens of them began appearing, scattered like confetti over the ocean’s surface.
Mathilda narrowed her eyes. "What... the heck are those?"
The colorful boxes floated on the waves unnaturally, like they were weightless. No matter how the current shifted, they stayed clustered together. And then—click.
A crank on the side of one of the boxes began to turn.
Clink. Clink. Clink-clink-clink.
A haunting little lody began to play, soft and nostalgic, like the lullaby of a forgotten child’s toy. All across the sea, the other boxes followed, their cranks turning in eerie harmony.
Lily stood abruptly. Her face turned grim. "Oh no... That Clown’s smarter than I thought."
"What does it an?" Mathilda asked, stepping closer to the panel.
Suddenly, the music boxes burst open.
Each box revealed a spring-loaded Jack-in-the-Box. But instead of cheerful faces, each one wore a cracked porcelain mask with a painted grin and glowing red eyes. Their mouths opened wide as a chorus of mad laughter echoed across the sea.
"He found us," Lily said flatly.
"H-how? How did he—?"
"He used the Sound." Lily turned to Mathilda, her voice quick but steady. "Those boxes are more than they seem. He used sound waves to scan the area—like bats. You know how bats don’t rely on sight, right? They emit high-pitched sounds and listen for the echoes to build a ’sound image.’ It’s called echolocation."
Mathilda’s mouth fell open.
Lily continued, "He did the sa. Amplified music mixed with arrays. He scattered the boxes across the ocean, letting the sound waves bounce off ships or barriers. And our ship—hidden by stealth—would distort the sound pattern. That’s how he pinpointed us. Crazy thod... but the Clown is crazy."
As if on cue, a voice echoed across the sea, louder than the laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The sound was thunderous—distorted, insane, and oddly theatrical. The surface of the water parted slightly, pushed aside by an incoming ship. But this was no ordinary vessel.
A monstrosity of patchwork wood and tal erged from the fog, painted in chaotic streaks of red, blue, and yellow. Balloons floated from the railings. Banners flapped in the wind, each emblazoned with grotesque caricatures of smiling faces. Cannons jutted from the hull, but so were shaped like horns and confetti launchers.
At the top of the mast was their Jolly Roger—a skull with a permanent grin stretched ear to ear, topped with a clown’s hat.
Lily’s fingers tapped the table. "The Circus is here..."
Mathilda exhaled slowly, "That’s a whole damn haunted carnival on water."
The sea around the White Pearl began to shift. The Jack-in-the-boxes started to vibrate, so releasing bursts of confetti, others producing thick plus of colorful smoke. The Clown’s ship didn’t even seem to slow as it plowed through the chaos, forcing a wave to wash over the smaller toys like they were part of its grand entrance.
"Huh... Just to be sure... Do you guys have awareness that we are under attack?" Serena appeared as projection and said.
"Yeah.. yeah... We know..." Lily just nodded.
┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉
anwhile, deep inside the eerie silence of the Circus’s fourth floor, Tyler and Mana gently closed the old leather-bound diary.
"Okay..." Tyler sat on the bed and exhaled. "That was one hell of a ride."
Mana floated in mid-air beside him, her usually bright face now shadowed with discomfort. "after that The Ring Master joined the Clown... and then they ford the Circus together. And the alchemist too." She recalled "The circus is a crazy Pirate group. But nothing is crazier than what the Clown did for his family."
Tyler reached over and gently patted her head. "Yeah. Twisted or not, he had no reasons, only madness. But at least we found one of his weaknesses." He smiled, though there was little humor behind it.
A few monts passed in thoughtful silence before Tyler rose to his feet. "Co on. Let’s continue planting Charms."
They exited the Clown’s room, stepping into the narrow corridor that led toward the lower levels. Eventually, they reached a large archway and passed through. Tyler erged into the Ga Arena—a massive chamber bathed in soft blue light. Unlike the heavily guarded third floor, the fourth was quiet and mostly unguarded when no show was scheduled.
"Let’s take another route," Tyler muttered, sensing unease in the air.
Mana nodded without hesitation.
But just as they began moving, sothing shot through the air like a blue streak of lightning.
Flash!
The blur collided directly with Tyler and Mana. It phased through Mana , But Tyler –
CRACK!
Tyler shattered into a thousand glittering shards of ice.
Mana gasped—but before she could react further, the real Tyler reappeared behind her. He had used his Ice Escape Art, creating a decoy just in ti.
They both turned to look at the blue blur, which now hovered ahead of them, growling softly.
"A lion...?" Mana whispered.
"It’s the Ring Master’s pet, That small lion he always carries." Tyler muttered.
Before he could form another strategy, a huge tail swung from the side—BOOM!
The impact sent Tyler flying into the arena’s center.
CRASH!
He hit the platform hard and shattered into ice once again.
The real Tyler reappeared near the scattered ice, brushing dust from his shoulder. "Seriously? Can I get a break, bro?"
A slow clap echoed from the shadows above.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
"Well done... applause for the Ice Trickster." A tall figure stepped into the spotlight, dressed in an extravagant ringmaster outfit of deep crimson and gold, complete with a half-mask and feathered top hat. His long coattails fluttered behind him like a cape.
"Ring Master." Tyler narrowed his eyes. "I thought there were no events scheduled in the Ga Arena today."
"Ah, yes." The Ring Master grinned as he descended the stairs toward the arena’s floor. "Normally, you’d be right. But you see... you’re the show tonight. And I’m terribly short on ti, so I thought I’d cut the trailers and skip straight to the finale."
He clapped his hands once.
CLANK!
Imdiately, thick tal walls slamd shut over the exits, sealing the arena entirely. Tyler reacted quickly, launching himself into the air—but was stopped mid-flight by an invisible ceiling.
"Of course there’s a barrier..." he muttered as he rubbed his temple.
Then the tal floor beneath him shifted, slowly pulling back like a retractable lid. A vast tank of deep water rose beneath the platform, glowing faintly with magic. And in that water... dozens of creatures swam with terrifying grace.
They looked like sharks—if sharks were fused with piranhas and had scales like steel. Each one was the size of a cart, their serrated fins cutting through the water as they circled hungrily.
The Ring Master chuckled.
"Beautiful, aren’t they? These are all wonderful creatures I found in deep sea. I call them my Screaming Snappers. They bite, spin, and shriek." He paused, licking his lips.
Tyler peered into the tank and raised an eyebrow.
The Ring Master chuckled again. "Speaking of mana... where’s your adorable little fox? That pet of yours..."
His expression darkened.
"I do hope she’s not dead. She would’ve made a lovely addition to my tad collection. I hope my captain won’t kill her too."
Tyler’s gaze sharpened, but he didn’t respond.
The Ring Master then said, "Oh, and speaking of captain, he has already gone after your crew. Such a sweet group of friends you have. Wonder how long they’ll last... HAHAHAHA!"
Tyler didn’t blink. He looked down at the water, watching the movent of the creatures. Despite the Ring Master’s taunts, his smirk widened, "Seriously? Out of all those Arenas , you chose water against ?"
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