Rare Beast Island

Under the helmsmanship of the shipwright Tom, the Yomi sailed into the Waterfall Cloud, with Redfield and Silvers working the sails. Shakky watched the conditions inside the white clouds from the observation room...

Brook stood at the bow, on high alert. Once they entered the Waterfall Cloud, thick clouds almost completely blocked their view. They had no idea what lay ahead and could only press on blindly.

Everyone felt a little nervous. The way ahead was completely unknown. Was this what adventure felt like? Setting life and death aside and savoring the thrill.

After five or six minutes of moving forward like blind men, they finally saw sunlight again. A lush green island appeared before them.

"So there's an island inside the Waterfall Cloud? That's incredible! I wonder if anyone lives there."

Shakky was brimming with curiosity and could hardly wait to uncover the mysterious island's secrets. The other crew members were eager to explore, too.

The island reminded Brook of a movie: Wasn't this Rare Beast Island, protected by the Qilin Lion?

"I think I've heard of this island. It's called Rare Beast Island, and there's a beast king here, the Qilin Lion. Everyone, be careful. I don't know how strong it is!"

Brook warned his crew. The Qilin Lion sounded pretty cool. He wondered if he could tame it as a mount.

"The Qilin Lion? Is it a Mythical Zoan? Either way, it must be an incredibly rare beast! Captain Brook, let's go check it out!"

Shakky exclaimed excitedly. The Memory Seahorse's eyes gleamed. A beast king? If it ate its memories, could it evolve? Could it grow a pair of wings and become a Millennium Dragon?

"Hmph. I'll see just how strong this Qilin Lion is, if it's worth Captain Brook's special warning!"

Redfield was confident in his own strength now. A mere beast king didn't impress him; he was already preparing to fight it.

Since this was a wild island with no humans, it had no harbor. The Yomi had to anchor in the shallows, and they lowered a small landing boat. Even the shipwright Tom went ashore, since there was no need to leave anyone behind on the ship.

"We've finally made it ashore. What a beautiful island, cut off from the rest of the world!"

The vegetation was lush, with dense forests so green they seemed to glisten. The grass was remarkably even, as if someone had trimmed it.

As Brook and his crew came ashore, all sorts of strange animals appeared by the water to watch them: a hairy hippopotamus, a wild boar with a horn, a green giraffe...

They were completely outside Brook's idea of beauty. They looked like a jumble of mismatched hybrids. These were rare beasts?

A horned boar spotted Brook and his crew and took off running, squealing all the way and leaving a trail of thick smoke behind it. It was like a war horn, carrying a message across the island and warning the rare beasts that strange humans had invaded.

"Captain Brook, these rare beasts are so ugly, and they're weak, too!"

Redfield blurted out, sounding a little disappointed. This wasn't the kind of fight he'd wanted.

Before Brook could answer, smoke billowed in the distance, like a vast army sweeping across the land. Countless rare beasts swarmed toward the shore.

As the group looked on in surprise, a magnificent golden lion flew down from the sky. Golden, coral-shaped horns grew from its head like a crown. It was the beast king of Rare Beast Island, the Qilin Lion!

The Qilin Lion roared, sending out a shock wave that whipped up a fierce gale and displayed its majesty to the intruders.

Redfield immediately fixed his eager gaze on the Qilin Lion. He wanted to fight it and prove his strength, to see if this beast king was really as powerful as Captain Brook had said.

"What are you humans doing here?!"

A voice suddenly reached Brook and the others. Could the Qilin Lion talk? But then a green parrot, over a meter tall, flew out from behind the beast king. It had been the one speaking.

"Wow, a parrot that can talk! What a rare find, Captain Brook."

Shakky was already staring intently at the parrot. She was determined to bring it aboard. She'd never seen a bird that could talk.

The parrot was so unnerved by the looks Shakky and the others gave it that it ducked back behind the Qilin Lion. But confident in the Qilin Lion's strength, it soon flew out again.

"Humans, state your purpose, or our king will drive you away."

As the parrot spoke, the Qilin Lion roared. Its Golden Beast Horn glowed and fired a searing beam that blasted a deep crater in the grass in front of Brook and the others, displaying its power.

"Seems pretty strong!"

Redfield had already drawn his Cane Sword. He was about to attack the Qilin Lion in the air and see just how strong it was.

"That's some impressive power, beast king. Would you and this talking parrot like to join us and sail off to explore the world?"

Brook stopped Redfield and called out to the two rare beasts hovering in the air. The Qilin Lion was simply too magnificent—golden and glittering, perfect for showing off!

"Human, our king is His Majesty the Qilin Lion. And I am his elder, Wuzhu. Remember that!"

Relying on the Qilin Lion's authority and the many rare beasts behind him, the green parrot wasn't at all afraid of Brook and his small crew.

The Qilin Lion said a few words to Wuzhu, asking him to relay its meaning. The Qilin Lion understood Brook, but it couldn't speak the human language.

"Our king says he won't leave this place. He'll protect it until the day he dies!"

Wuzhu repeated the Qilin Lion's words to Brook and his crew. Brook felt a little disappointed. What a magnificent rare beast!

"Captain Brook, do you like this rare beast? Let me catch it for you!"

Seeing his captain get rejected, Redfield was a little angry. He stepped past Brook and thrust his Cane Sword, sending a slash of sword energy straight at the Qilin Lion. Then he rushed in, hoping to fight at close range.

Brook wanted to try to stop Redfield. Perhaps the influence of his former personality meant he still retained a kind streak, unlike a real pirate.

Redfield was the kind of pirate who took what he liked. Wasn't that what a real pirate did?

As the saying went, if you weren't ruthless, you couldn't hold your ground. Now that he was a pirate, he shouldn't be thinking about playing hero. Even Shakky and Silvers were starting to consider joining the fight. Wasn't plundering basic pirate business?

At that thought, Brook gave up on stopping them and cast aside his bleeding-heart instincts. If you liked something, you took it. If you didn't even dare to steal it, how could you claim to like it?

He really did want to have the magnificent Qilin Lion as his mount. Greed began to creep into his eyes. If it wouldn't sail with them, he'd let the Memory Seahorse devour its memories. They could always work on training it afterward!

Brook had finally embraced the true pirate's code: profit above all else!