Rose Tavern

Rose Tavern was the most popular tavern in the Red Light District.

Aunt Rousi was the tavern's female boss. She stood two meters tall, with a body as thick as a water vat and a face full of stubble. Shaving her leg hair and trimming her beard were the first and second things she did every morning after getting up. Not only did she look like a burly middle-aged man, but her voice also sounded like one.

But in reality, she was a genuine woman, and in her youth, she had even been a stunning beauty who once led her own pirate crew. Her current appearance was said to be the result of accidentally stumbling into an Ancient Forbidden Zone, where she was stung by a legendary Malevolent Bee. The male hormones produced in her body daily were twenty times that of a normal man, turning her into a pure manly woman.

After that upheaval, she disbanded her pirate crew, brought a few loyal underlings who refused to leave to Hai Lan Star, and opened this tavern. The once-renowned Rose Pirate Crew had now become the Rose Tavern.

No one knew how much truth there was to this story, but Gu Ding could never see the fierce Aunt Rousi as the same person as the legendary beauty pirate with a terrifyingly high bounty.

Gu Ding's part-time job every night was working as a waiter in the tavern, serving dishes to customers. But most people came here just to drink, and few ordered food, so most of the time he was idle.

Pushing open the tavern door, it was as packed as usual.

"Gu Ding, you're late again today. The boss lady's in a bad mood..." The bartender at the counter lowered his voice and winked at Gu Ding.

"In my memory, she's never been in a good mood." Gu Ding shook his head helplessly and headed straight for the kitchen.

Passing by the restroom, he saw the door half-open and glanced inside. Aunt Rousi was lifting her skirt with one hand and shaving her leg hair with a razor in the other.

"Never seen a woman shave her leg hair?" Aunt Rousi lifted her eyelids slightly, then slammed the restroom door shut with a bang.

Although business was booming at night, it was the same as usual—few people ordered food. Gu Ding served a few dishes and then was completely free. Seeing an empty seat at the counter, he sat down. "One Mirka."

"Coming right up!" The bartender was called Batengde. He was thin and short, about the same height as fifteen-year-old Gu Ding. But his mixing skills were top-notch; at least half the reason the tavern had so many regulars was because of him.

"You like Mirka too?" At that moment, a young man to Gu Ding's right turned his head and smiled. The young man looked to be in his early twenties, and his face didn't resemble a pirate at all—more like an aristocratic young master.

In fact, Mirka was a non-alcoholic drink, a mix of dairy and juice. Even female interstellar pirates mostly looked down on drinking it. Gu Ding was allergic to alcohol; a single sip of Binks with less than 10% alcohol content could knock him out and send him into a deep sleep.

"You don't look like an interstellar pirate." Gu Ding's gaze swept over the young man's wine glass and lingered briefly on the sea-blue gemstone ring on his left middle finger. He silently mourned for the other person. In a place like the Red Light District, the first rule was not to flaunt your wealth, or you'd never know who had it out for you. Aristocratic young masters were most prone to this mistake; getting robbed was the least of it, and getting taken for their body was possible, but worse was getting killed.

"You're not the first to say that," the "aristocratic youth" said with a faint smile, lifting his glass and taking a small sip.

Several groups in the tavern had already secretly set their sights on this young master.

A pale white and purple Mirka was quickly handed over. Gu Ding took the glass and downed it in one gulp. "Another one!"

"Judging by your age, you should still be in school, right?" the "aristocratic youth" smiled and struck up a conversation.

"Yeah, at Hai Lan Star Basic Military Academy. I'm about to graduate." Gu Ding nodded. The young man in front of him didn't have the usual arrogance of nobles, which made him hesitate about whether to tell him to leave this dangerous place quickly.

"Oh, a military academy..." The "aristocratic youth" nodded with a smile, but a flicker of cold light flashed in his eyes and vanished in an instant, unnoticed by anyone. That cold glint didn't seem directed at Gu Ding, but was a natural reaction to hearing the words "military academy." He covered it up perfectly and continued, "Planning to join the army later?"

"No, I want to be an interstellar pirate." Gu Ding answered almost without thinking.

The "aristocratic youth" was taken aback, then laughed. "Being an interstellar pirate isn't easy. You'll be hunted by the Federal Army, hunted by bounty hunters, and even fight among yourselves. Joining the Federal Army means you'll never worry about food or drink for life. Isn't that good?"

"The Federal Army has too many rules. I still think being an interstellar pirate suits me better." Gu Ding shook his head.

"In that case, which pirate crew do you want to join? Our crew isn't bad. Want to consider it?" The "aristocratic youth" didn't name his pirate crew.

"Thanks for the offer, but I want to build my own crew." Gu Ding gave a decisive refusal.

"Is that so," the "aristocratic youth" didn't seem disappointed. He patted Gu Ding on the shoulder. "Then you'd better find some reliable partners. No matter how strong one person is, their power is limited."

The tavern was noisy and chaotic, but somewhere in the Red Light District, something eerie was happening.

On a silent street, a female corpse pinned to the wall by a black long staff suddenly woke up. After gasping for breath a few times, she forcefully pulled the black long staff from her chest and tossed it aside. Running a hand through her long hair, a small black object the size of a pinky finger appeared between her fingers. A relieved expression flashed across her face as she stuffed it into her ear.

Inside the tavern, the "aristocratic youth's" wristwatch suddenly flickered—a sign of an incoming call request. The aristocratic youth put an earpiece in his ear and pressed the answer button.

"Boss, the mission failed. The thing was still taken by someone. I'm not sure which faction it was. I faked my death to escape, and even my Smart Watch was taken." A female voice came clearly through the "aristocratic youth's" earpiece.

"I understand. Pull out. Hai Lan Star is no longer safe." The "aristocratic youth" didn't bother to lower his voice when he said this; his words carried clearly to everyone present.

Ending the call, the "aristocratic youth" dropped two Star Coins on the counter and turned to leave.

"Hey, I'm Gu Ding. What's your name?" Gu Ding called after him.

"Judicator Pirate Crew—Koude Bulade." The "aristocratic youth" paused and turned his head slightly. "I have a feeling we'll meet again."

The noisy tavern fell into dead silence the moment the "aristocratic youth" announced his name.