He glanced back at the distant sea, where the Oath of Vengeance Blades had already become a tiny black speck.
Ode, captain of the Black Tide Hunter adventurer party, could not help letting out a breath. His grip on the Whaling Harpoon, which had been clenched tight, loosened slightly. He had not deceived Xia Nan and the others.
His group really had been attacked by Pirates some time ago, and they really had lost a great deal of supplies as a result, leaving them in urgent need of replenishment.
He had even told the truth about why the Black Tide Hunter had sailed here: they really were tracking a sea-beast monster. What Ode had not mentioned was this.
Before the Oath of Vengeance Blades noticed them approaching and raised the fleet's banner, he had not recognized their identity at all. He had merely assumed they were an ordinary adventurer party they had happened upon at sea.
And the way they had originally intended to "exchange" supplies had been far less sincere and peaceful than what had just occurred.
The strong preyed upon the weak. That was the law of this sea area.
Especially for adventurers like them.
If Ode's earlier judgment had been correct, and the ship near the Black Tide Hunter had truly belonged to an adventurer party of ordinary strength and size... forget making them pay for a trade. Leaving them alive would already have counted as mercy.
Likewise, only after approaching and seeing the raised flag had he realized they were the Oath of Vengeance Blades Fleet. Facing fellow adventurers far beyond his ability to handle, Ode had been left in an impossible position and had no choice but to pay far more than the supplies were worth. Not only had he handed over Monster Materials from