Schiller and Batman climbed to the third deck, which was far larger than the two below. More importantly, the Captain's Cabin and the captain's private storeroom were both on this level.
The moment they arrived, Batman spotted a trail of footprints. The intruder who had entered with them had evidently come straight for this deck.
They had barely stepped off the stairs when they heard a disturbance ahead. Someone was fighting.
Batman and Schiller made the same move at the same time: they lowered their bodies, softened their steps, quickly reached the bend in the corridor, and peeked around the corner.
A Black man was fighting a Deep One.
Batman pulled his head back and looked at Schiller. "He's with the church. Your colleague."
Wearing Night Vision Goggles, Schiller could see more clearly. The Black man wore clothes similar to his own and was obviously from the Court of Arbitration, but the patterns on his outfit were not as dense as Schiller's. He was probably not a member of the Imperial Guard.
"What do you think?" Batman asked Schiller.
"I'll figure something out," Schiller said. "A direct confrontation isn't a good choice. He clearly knows what he's doing."
Schiller was not talking nonsense. Through the Night Vision Goggles, he could see clearly that the man also wore a cross necklace around his neck. The Deep One seemed somewhat afraid of it; otherwise, it would not have been trading blows with a human under six feet tall.
And the "Bible" in the man's hand was no ordinary object either. The Deep One did not dare touch it. Whenever the man extended the hand holding the "Bible," disgust practically overflowed from that ugly fish face.
This guy had definitely come prepared.
Unfortunately for him, a Deep One suddenly charged out from behind