Carina, the Captive, Step Forward!

"What's the matter... Why did you suddenly stop talking?"

Perhaps Li Mingyuan had been lost in thought for a little too long.

Just as Li Mingyuan was still pondering, Carina, who had looked dejected a moment ago, had quietly raised her head at some point. She studied Li Mingyuan's expression and tentatively asked, "Come to think of it, are you really going to let me off? Could it be because you found out I'm a woman that you decided to go easy on me?"

"Hm?"

Li Mingyuan raised his head and looked at Carina.

"After all, I stole your money. A normal person's anger wouldn't be so easy to calm down, right? Even if there's ransom money, since the culprit has fallen into your hands, you'd at least give them a harsh beating to vent your anger."

Carina blinked and said, "Are you really not angry at all, just letting me go like this?"

Li Mingyuan looked at Carina in surprise, having no idea what she was suddenly up to.

"I didn't expect you to make that kind of request."

"Then how about I make up for it now?"

As he spoke, Li Mingyuan slowly raised his hand.

Carina shuddered at the sight and hurriedly waved both hands, shrinking back nonstop.

"No, no, no! I was just saying! It's obviously best if there isn't any of that."

Carina gave an awkward laugh and carefully said, "I'm just worried that you still have anger bottled up inside. What if you realize it afterward, feel more and more like you got the short end of the stick, and suddenly regret it? So I wanted to hear you confirm it directly. That would put me more at ease."

"Stop thinking about nonsense. Since I agreed to your offer of money in exchange for your life, I won't change my mind on a whim. Instead of wasting time overthinking, you should figure out how to row with less effort while still getting the two of us to shore."

Li Mingyuan lowered his hand and leaned back against the little boat. Calmly, he said, "Let me make this clear first. Once we land, I still have to deal with those fish-men, so I need to conserve my strength. I'll also rest for now and recover from the fatigue of fighting aboard the cargo ship."

"During that time, you'll be responsible for rowing us to shore."

"Me?"

Carina's mouth fell open as she pointed at herself.

"If you don't want to, I can call over a sailor. He can row, and you can swim."

"It's not that I don't want to..."

Carina's expression changed. She hastily grabbed the oars, forcing a smile onto her face. "It's just that I need a little time to prepare myself mentally."

"I'm rowing, I'm rowing."

With that, Carina rowed hard, steering the little boat after the other sailors.

But when Li Mingyuan yawned and curled up inside the boat, she secretly turned her face away while he wasn't looking and shot him a furious glare.

He actually made the great thief Carina do manual labor!

For today, she would endure it because he had let her off. But if he still dared order her around like this after they went ashore, she definitely wouldn't show him a pleasant face again.

"That's right, I'm only rowing because I'm grateful! It's not because I can't escape!"

"I'll let you off this once. You'd better remember that!"

Carina viciously turned her head away, thinking to herself.

Sooner or later, she would wash away this humiliation and steal Li Mingyuan's wallet.

This was only a minor setback for now. It was nothing at all.

Endure, endure!

Carina rowed with all her might, sweat pouring down her face. Perhaps because she had a goal in mind, it no longer felt so exhausting. The little boat also picked up speed, gradually catching up with the other sailors.

Yet while Carina was still gasping for breath, Li Mingyuan was already lying in the boat with his eyes closed, his hands clasped behind his head as he leaned against the side and enjoyed the sea breeze. His expression was naturally relaxed.

Time passed quickly in the brief moments when Li Mingyuan drifted off.

About fifty minutes later.

Perhaps because they had switched from the cargo ship to little boats, they arrived slightly later than the thirty minutes originally estimated.

Even so, their destination was still right before them.

When Li Mingyuan opened his eyes again, Carina had completely collapsed in the boat, without even the strength to move. Nearby, several little boats were neatly docked along the shore.

The group had arrived on the island where Arlong Park was located.

"Oh? That was pretty fast."

Li Mingyuan yawned, lazily stretched, and slowly sat up from the boat.

He casually patted the sweat-drenched Carina beside him and said, "Good work, Carina."

"Huff... huff... It's not like you were the one rowing..."

Carina barely lifted her head. She no longer had the strength to pretend to flatter him as she weakly said, "Even if you say good work, I don't feel comforted at all..."

"Heh."

Li Mingyuan chuckled softly. "Even so, thanks to you, I was able to rest comfortably."

"Once this is over, I'll consider reducing the ransom for your life a little."

"R-Really?!"

Hearing that, Carina, who had been sprawled in the boat, instantly lit up.

She struggled to crawl up, grabbed Li Mingyuan's pants, and panted, "How much exactly? How much less?"

"...How about fifty thousand Beli?"

"Only fifty thousand Beli?!"

Carina cried out and immediately collapsed back into the boat.

She had never expected that the fruits of the great thief's hard labor would amount to a mere fifty thousand Beli. If she had casually taken anything from the cargo ship today, it would have been worth more than a hundred thousand Beli.

Her spirit completely crushed, Carina now curled up in the boat like a dried eggplant, utterly listless.

Li Mingyuan found the sight rather amusing.

Still, no matter what, that nearly hour-long rest had genuinely relieved much of his fatigue.

Li Mingyuan shifted his gaze and looked at his hands. Compared to how he had felt on the cargo ship, nearly eighty percent of his stamina had recovered, and the soreness in both arms had completely vanished.

At this level, even without activating the Sharingan again, taking down the remaining fish-men would be effortless. Not to mention that in the coming battle, without the crew watching, he could use the Sharingan freely.

Carina, whom he had brought along, might see something, but considering that she was not only his captive now but might also be recruited under him in the future, that small risk could be avoided.

"Perfect."

After confirming his condition, Li Mingyuan lowered his hands, his expression composed.

Only then did Li Mingyuan turn his attention back to the surroundings.

The shore where their little boat had docked was bordered by a forest. Farther away, the outline of a village could vaguely be seen, but Arlong Park's extremely conspicuous building was nowhere in sight.