Island Natives

After agreeing on the details, Governor Drew hurried away to begin his preparations.

Rhine Island had lost a piece of contraband, and Governor Drew, who had been fretting over how to explain the loss, realized it would serve perfectly as bait.

Indeed, there really was a piece of contraband in the vault, placed on Rhine Island by the powerful figure backing him.

By spreading the news now and luring the nearby pirates to their deaths, he could put his benefactor at ease and avoid further disappointment.

Arthur and Mickey rushed back to Blue Bay Island, instructing Mickey and Kaia to secretly contact the various pirate informants on the island to spread word of a clandestine meeting at sea.

He specifically ordered that the news be delivered to Captain Rosen of the Giant Catfish Pirate Crew and the captain of the Tuna Pirate Crew.

Returning to the Great White Shark, Arthur left two Sailors on the island to maintain contact, providing them with a carrier pigeon for emergencies.

Back in the captain's quarters, Parrot Gro immediately spoke up:

"Respected Captain, your loyal navigator welcomes your return."

"Any discoveries?"

"No such evil dreams appeared, but there were a few peculiar ones, suggesting the presence of an Extraordinary."

"Continue monitoring."

Arthur lay down on his bed, his consciousness entering White Sand Island to begin a new round of exploration.

[He descends upon White Sand Island.]

Arthur opened his eyes and scanned his surroundings, brandishing his two massive scythes to ensure there was no immediate danger.

The wings on his back vibrated violently as he leaped toward a distant leaf.

In terms of travel, a mantis is far superior to a caterpillar.

With a few bounds, he landed on a low shrub, and as the grass nearby rustled, a frog stepped out with an overbearing gait.

To think there are frogs here?

Arthur carefully crouched down to avoid being spotted, recognizing the species of the frog.

It was a Pond Frog, a special breed skilled at hiding its presence and secreting a unique toxin.

In a head-on confrontation with a Pond Frog, the mantis would surely be at a disadvantage.

Is my luck so poor that I encounter a natural predator of insects the moment I switch bodies?

He waited and waited, until Arthur was nearly lulled to sleep.

Suddenly, a sound drifted over—gibberish that did not belong to the linguistic system of the Old Continent.

Then, two hulking "people" carrying wooden clubs bound with stone shards passed through the woods.

Living people?!

Arthur's eyes widened. How could living people survive in such a peculiar zone?

"Croak! Croak!"

The overbearing Pond Frog was startled, letting out a deafening sound that drew the attention of the natives.

"Gili-gulu!"

"Gili-gulu!"

Seeing the Pond Frog on the ground, the two natives bypassed it with expressions of disgust, ignoring the creature entirely.

The Pond Frog croaked twice, watched the natives leave, and then sat motionless on the ground.

His consciousness returned from White Sand Island, and Arthur sat up on his bed. How should I deal with that Pond Frog?

The journey across White Sand Island is going to be a long and arduous one.

Arthur inspected the ship; the Great White Shark had already moved far from the coast, and the news had been spread.

Arthur, the honorable captain of the Great White Shark and a lord of the Tudor Dynasty, had left Rhine Island and returned to the sea.

The news from Rhine Island also spread out from Blue Bay Island.

Those with their ears to the ground could easily learn that the Rhine Island vault had been robbed and a rare piece of contraband was missing.

Governor Drew was furious, and the Rhine Island fleet was patrolling the nearby waters, conducting thorough inspections of passing merchant ships.

"Coincidentally," Captain Arthur sent word that he would be holding a pirate meeting to rendezvous on the open sea and discuss a "big deal."

Back in the captain's quarters, Arthur tapped on the table and asked Parrot Gro, "Do you know of a creature called a Pond Frog?"

"Oh! Respected Captain, Parrot Gro is well aware of those hideous creatures."

Parrot Gro opened the floodgates, chattering incessantly: "Pond Frogs are the spokesmen of demons; they possess vicious toxins and uncanny methods of transformation."

"The sins of the Frog Demon are beyond imagination—slimy, slippery skin, long tongues..."

Arthur tapped the table, cutting off Parrot Gro, and asked, "Is a Pond Frog an Extraordinary creature?"

"Not entirely. Ordinary frogs are not, but some frogs are demons!"

"Tell me how to deal with a Pond Frog."

"The skin mimicry of ordinary Pond Frogs is excellent, but their protective layer is thin and can be pierced with ease.

If the temperature drops too low, the moisture inside their bodies freezes, which will likewise puncture their internal organs.

These ugly creatures also fear salt, making it difficult for them to survive in seawater."

Parrot Gro's tone was foul; he seemed to harbor a deep aversion toward frogs.

Arthur read the emotion in Parrot Gro and proceeded to ask, "You have a strong aversion to frogs?"

"Respected Captain, you cannot imagine the foolish things those filthy Frog Demons are capable of!"

"Your loyal navigator, Parrot Gro, was sailing on a ghost ship when those wretched Frog Demons mutinied against us!"

"They brought the most wicked plague, one capable of invading the soul, and countless frogs covered the ghost ship."

"Then how did you escape?"

Parrot Gro seemed to shudder, saying most reluctantly, "I hid inside the mouth of a frog... the lowest, mindless kind."

"After the Frog Demons left, I fell into the sea and drifted upon the waves until I was fished out by a Sailor once more."

Arthur rubbed his chin. Parrot Gro's sailing experience was quite extensive; he was an "old sea dog" with a wealth of practical combat experience.

Tapping on the tabletop, he suddenly spoke:

"From now on, write your experiences into a logbook. I will provide the paper and ink."

"Respected Captain, your loyal navigator will obey your comman... hm?"

Parrot Gro was at a loss; as a statue without hands or feet, how was he to write a sailing log?

"True, there is no need to rush. You may dictate it instead."

This statue, possessing the ability to navigate the seas, still had latent value yet to be squeezed out.

After finishing his interrogation of Parrot Gro, Arthur first entered a "Dream" to acquire a new state, preparing to pit his wits against the Pond Frogs of White Sand Island.

Blue Bay Island, Scimitar Bar.

An enthusiastic barmaid danced on stage; the bloody sacrifice of the Black Devil had not greatly affected Blue Bay Island.

A man and a woman hid in a corner, savoring high-proof rum.

"Your haul was greater than I imagined, wasn't it?"

The woman blinked as she looked at the man, not expecting that the vault of Rhine Island would also hide a piece of contraband.

The man's expression shifted between light and shadow, his voice a low growl as he suppressed the fury in his heart, barely audible:

"Why did you have to kill James?"

"We had nearly an entire night to escape this sea area, yet you insisted on killing James and exposing our operation!"

The woman's delicate tongue licked the corner of her mouth, revealing an eerie smile: "Who told Will to be such a spineless coward?"

"James was the most ferocious of the captains! His blood is more potent than that of an ordinary man, like fresh rum!"

Massar the Flying Thief lowered the brim of his hat to obscure his face, his tone extremely impatient: "If something like this happens again, our partnership is dissolved."

"If you had accepted my invitation, wouldn't it have been much less trouble?"

Massar looked at her exquisite face, a tremor of desire rising in his heart, but the moment he thought of her Sequence, he suppressed all his urges.

"Rhine Island has gone mad; every merchant ship is being inspected. We must stay on Blue Bay Island for a time."

"Will you keep me company?"

"Enough! The Black Devil has only just finished its riot; do you know how many priests and transcendents are hiding here?!"

Massar cast a cold glance at the woman, his figure gradually vanishing into the shadows.

Before long, a drunken Sailor wrapped his arms around the woman and headed toward a secluded inn.