Mad Scientist's Commission

"How about we have a couple of drinks, you two?"

Pulling out a chair and sitting down, Nia sized up Rod and Nerl before her.

Compared to that useless Marine earlier, these two could be considered notable figures even in the entire North Blue. Especially that short-haired guy—he was definitely monstrously strong.

Her instincts had been making that abundantly clear, as if what sat before her was a humanoid beast.

But with them joining her, there was no need to worry about this job anymore.

Taking the glasses brought over by the bartender, Nia pushed them in front of Rod and Nerl and gestured invitingly.

"Just say what you have to say."

Rod picked up his glass and took a small sip, frowning slightly.

Beer really suited him better.

"Straightforward! I accepted a commission to deliver someone to Minion Island. They'll have people waiting to receive us there, so all we need to do is get the person there safely. The pay is five million Berry. If you join, we'll split the reward equally."

Minion Island!

It was an island right next to Flying Swallow Island. From there, it would only take half a day to reach Flying Swallow Island.

Rod thought for a moment, then raised his glass and clinked it against Nia's.

"Let's make one thing clear first. I don't do kidnapping or human trafficking."

"Don't worry. I have my principles too."

"Then here's to a happy partnership!"

"Does the client really live somewhere like this?"

Looking at the messy place before him, which resembled an abandoned warehouse, Rod turned to Nia in confusion.

Could someone living in a place like this really afford five million Berry?

"You're the ones who accepted the commission, right? My name is Grey. I'm a scientist."

A scruffy young man around thirty emerged from the warehouse. He wore a white work coat carelessly thrown on, but it was covered in stains from who knew how long it had been since it was last washed. A similarly tattered bucket hat sat on his head, dark circles hung heavily beneath his eyes, and his beard looked like it had not been trimmed in ages. He looked thoroughly worn out, and did indeed resemble something of a mad scientist.

But did this guy really have money?

Seemingly noticing the doubt in their eyes, Grey explained.

"Someone else will pay you. You just need to get me to Minion Island. They'll have people there to meet us, and they'll give you the money."

Had this guy been scammed?

Rod could not help but entertain that thought as he looked at the self-proclaimed scientist.

"You know the Felke Family, right? That underworld family that's risen to prominence in recent years. One of their top executives heard of my great name and specifically invited me to join their family."

Before Rod and the others could ask anything, Grey started rattling on by himself.

"I heard that in recent years, the Marines developed a technology that lets warships safely pass through the Calm Belt. I've been pondering how they managed it, but no matter how I conceived it, if I really wanted to make a breakthrough, I had to put it into practice.

"But as you can see, I'm broke. I simply don't have the funding for shipbuilding experiments. However, the Felke Family promised that as long as I design some new weapons for them, they'll support my shipbuilding research. I've always wanted to build an incredibly powerful warship!"

A mad scientist and a chatterbox...

"Have you heard of the legendary Ancient Weapon, [Hades]? They say it's an invincible warship, but that thing is from who knows how many centuries ago. Even if it still exists, it's probably useless by now. If you ask me, I'll build a warship even more powerful than that so-called [Hades].

"Let me tell you, I have an incredibly brilliant concept. If I can make it happen, it'll absolutely blow everyone's minds! But there just aren't any suitable materials. No matter how good my idea is, I can't make it a reality.

"Of course, maybe I just don't know about them. After all, this is only the North Blue. Seriously, why wasn't I born in the South Blue? I've heard the technology there is more advanced..."

"Huh? Do you use guns?"

Suddenly noticing the gun at Nerl's waist, Grey's eyes lit up slightly.

"Then I'll give this to you. I just made it a while ago. With the Felke Family's backing, the whole thing was forged from top-quality materials, and I built it myself. It's definitely much better than the one you're using now. Consider it extra payment for you all."

Grey ducked back into the warehouse, rummaged through a pile of things for a while, then pulled out an entirely black long gun and handed it to Nerl.

When Nerl saw the black gun Grey offered him, his eyes lit up. As an expert gunman, he could tell at a glance that it was an exceptional piece of work.

"I believe what you said now. That Felke Family really might have invited you to join them."

After handling it for a while, Nerl grew more and more satisfied. This fellow Grey had applied new technology to the gun, allowing it to load ten bullets at once. Its stability and accuracy had also been tuned exceptionally well.

He really was a talented man.

Rod nodded to himself, then looked at Grey.

"If there's nothing else you need to pack, let's leave now."

"Sure. I don't really have anything to pack. Everything left here is just waste from previous research. All the truly important stuff is in my head. Still, I'm rather reluctant to leave. I've been here for years now. If my research hadn't hit a bottleneck, I would've long since..."

The mad scientist began rambling in Rod's ear again, giving him a slight headache. He could only try to tune out Grey's voice. Fortunately, Nerl soon rescued him, dealing with Grey's chatter in an extremely perfunctory manner while slipping in plenty of questions about firearms.

"Lead the way, Nia. Where is your ship docked?"

"On the western shore. There are enough supplies of food and fresh water on board, so we can set off right away."

Nia led the group toward the west coast, but an odd feeling lingered in her heart.

Why had this guy named Rod somehow taken control of the operation without anyone noticing? It was as if they had all unconsciously started following his lead.

I was the one who invited the two of them, wasn't I?!

Amid that strange atmosphere, the group arrived at the west coast harbor.

"Let me see... a classic two-masted sailing ship. Nothing particularly special—barely passable, I suppose. If I were designing it, I'd add a ram to the front, along with a main cannon. I'd also put more gunports along both sides to increase its firepower..."

"Shut up!"

Nia slapped Grey across the head, cutting off his endless prattle. Her face had gone dark.

"This is just an ordinary passenger ship. Wait until you have money before messing around with all that yourself. Get aboard!"

"This woman actually hit her employer..."

Grey rubbed his head and muttered under his breath, then obediently followed them aboard.

"Raise the sails! Set off!"