The Orange-Haired Thief Who Chiseled Through the Hull

Su Hang rushed onto the dock without touching the seawater.

Three maintenance ropes were tied outside the dry dock, and one of them was slowly moving along the bottom of the ship.

He stepped on the end of the rope, gripped it with both hands, and gave it a hard yank.

With a splash, a soaking-wet little girl was hauled out of the water by the rope.

Her short orange hair clung to her face, a chisel was clenched between her teeth, and a bulging money pouch hung from her waist.

The moment she saw the people on the dock, she let go and prepared to dive back into the water.

Su Hang stretched out his left arm, grabbed the back of her collar, and lifted her onto the planks.

"You chisel through my ship and think you can just leave?"

The girl spat out the chisel, her legs kicking wildly.

"Let go! I was just picking up scrap metal!"

Qi Hai came down from the ship and picked up the chisel, which was covered in fresh wood shavings.

"Scrap metal grows inside the keel?"

"That part was already damaged. I just knocked on it a few times to check."

"You needed nail-pulling pliers to check?"

The girl immediately covered the tool pouch at her waist.

"Those are mine!"

Su Hang set her down but did not step back.

"Name."

"Lili."

"Really?"

"Of course it's real."

Mia unfolded a sheet of paper she had fished out of the water.

Greenleaf Island's harbor was drawn on it, with several tide lines marked in different colors and high-tide times written beside them.

"It says Nami here."

The orange-haired girl snatched the paper back.

"That's the name of the person who drew it!"

"The handwriting matches the writing on your money pouch."

Nami flipped the pouch behind her back and held out for two breaths.

"Fine, my name is Nami. I found the chisel, I found the money, and I drew the map. You can't hand me over to the Marines over a piece of rotten wood."

Qi Hai crouched down and looked at her palms.

A ten-year-old child's hands were small, but two rows of thick calluses had formed at the base of her fingers.

Old rope-burn scars marked the web between her thumb and forefinger, while the insides of her wrists still bore abrasions from rough canvas.

"You often furl sails by yourself."

Nami quickly clenched her fists.

"I help adults with work."

"Calluses like these only appear on the hands of people who steer and handle rigging for a long time. Where is your own ship?"

"I don't have one."

"Then you've stolen quite a few ships."

Nami took half a step back.

"Don't talk nonsense. I only borrow them. I always put them back when I'm done."

Mia unfolded the tide map again and pointed to the eastern side of the harbor.

"The official nautical chart says the water here is five feet deep at low tide, but you marked it as three."

"Because they haven't surveyed it in three years. The eastern drainage channel is half silted up. If a large ship goes any farther in, its hull will definitely get stuck."

"What about this countercurrent at the western entrance?"

"It only appears twice a day, and each time lasts less than a quarter hour. Follow it out, and it's faster than using the main entrance. You also won't run into patrol ships."

Mia took out her own observation sheets and compared them.

The high-tide times on the two maps differed by only a quarter hour, and Nami had even marked the dry dock's backflow.

"Her map is more accurate than the harbor authority's chart."

Nami immediately lifted her chin.

"Did you hear that? I'm useful. Let me go, and I won't charge you for reading the map."

Su Hang pointed at the Dawnbringer.

"Tell me the three most dangerous spots on this ship, and I won't send you to the Marines."

"You'll keep your word?"

"If you get even one wrong, you stay and repair the ship."

Nami walked around the bow once, then tapped the port-side outer planking with the chisel.

The first few knocks sounded solid, but as she approached the middle of the keel, the wood gave off a hollow sound.

"There are shipworms here."

Qi Hai frowned.

"The craftsmen inspected it yesterday."

"They only looked at the cracks. They didn't follow the grain of the wood. Shipworms burrow in through old nail holes; paint on the outside won't help."

Nami used the tip of the chisel to pry up a thin layer of wood.

A small patch of powder fell away, revealing several tiny holes within.

"Take it on two more long voyages, and this piece of wood will break from the inside. Once the wind and waves get rough, the entire port side will loosen with it."

Mia immediately marked the location on the map.

"Second spot."

Nami climbed onto the deck and grabbed the spare sail mounted at the stern.

"This sail is installed backward."

One of Lorne's sailors protested.

"The canvas has markings on both sides. How could it be backward?"

Nami pulled out the reefing rings rolled onto the inner side.

"The rings should face outward. When a storm comes, you won't be able to pull them from the deck. You'll have to climb the spar to untie them. By the time someone gets up there, the mast will have already snapped."

Qi Hai took the sail and inspected it, his expression darkening.

"Restitch it."

Nami then walked to the freshwater hold. Without opening the hatch, she merely bent down and sniffed at the entrance.

"Third spot: the water's contaminated."

"The bulkhead was just replaced yesterday."

"The new boards are fine. The vent is the problem."

Nami crawled behind the hold and pointed at an old copper pipe that ran alongside the wastewater trough.

"When the ship lists to port, dirty water from the trough will flow back through a crack. The smell is faint right now, but let the sun bake it for two days, and one sip will give you a stomachache."

The sailors removed the copper pipe.

Sure enough, a thin crack ran along the back of the pipe, and black mud clung to its exterior.

Qi Hai tossed the pipe onto the deck.

"All three were right."

Nami immediately held out her hand.

"Then I can go."

Su Hang looked at her waist.

"Leave the money pouch for inspection."

Nami hugged the pouch tightly.

"This is my money!"

"Ship nails and copper scraps were stolen from the harbor recently. If your money was stolen, you'll get caught again somewhere else."

"I didn't steal the money from here."

"Where did you steal it from?"

Nami pressed her lips together, and her earlier smugness quickly faded.

She looked toward the dock exit, her toes already quietly turning toward the drainage channel.

Qi Hai placed the chisel in front of her.

"What are you stealing ship nails for?"

"To sell for money."

"You took old long nails. They're not worth much as scrap, but they're perfect for patching fishing boats."

Nami abruptly looked up.

Mia spotted the corner of a wooden chip sticking out of her tool pouch.

A small fishing boat's damaged areas were drawn on it, and beside a gap in the hull was a note saying that six long nails were needed.

"You're repairing a boat."

Nami snatched back the wooden chip.

"None of your business."

Su Hang crouched down, keeping an arm's length away from her.

"Which village?"

"I'm not telling."

"The village boats are damaged. Why not find a shipwright?"

"Shipwrights need to eat too! The cost of repairing one boat is enough for the whole village to pay protection money for half a month."

The words burst out of Nami's mouth, and she immediately fell silent.

Qi Hai asked, "Who collects protection money?"

"Pirates."

"What kind of pirates?"

Nami stared at the floor.

"Fish-men. They're very strong, and they can chase ships underwater. The fish the village catches, the oranges they sell, the money each household saves up—they all have to hand over a share."

Mia looked at her money pouch.

"Did you steal this money back from the fish-men?"

"Of course not. I got it with my own skills."

Nami spoke quickly, but her fingers clutched the mouth of the pouch tightly.

"Three fishing boats in Cocoyasi Village are broken. Without boats, no one can go out to sea. But if they find out we're repairing them, they'll tear off the new planks too. I only took a few of your old nails. I'll return them."

Su Hang stood up.

"How much food do you need?"

Nami froze.

"Why are you asking that?"

"The Dawnbringer needs a trial voyage. If Cocoyasi Village is along the route, we can deliver a load of grain."

"You'd give it away for free?"

"For disaster relief, we only charge cost. If the village has no money, it can pay with oranges, ship-repair labor, or future route information."

There was no joy on Nami's face. Instead, she became even more wary.

"Pirates all say that. First they claim it's cheap, then once their ships dock, they take everything valuable in the village."

Su Hang pointed upward.

"That's why the rules are hanging from the mainmast. You can read them yourself."

When Nami looked up, she happened to see the waterproof paper roll in Mia's arms.

During the sail inspection, the celestial chart rubbing had been temporarily placed on top, and the edges revealed seven layers of wind routes.

She only glanced at it once, but her breathing quickened.

"What map is that?"

Mia drew the paper roll closer to her chest.

"None of your business."

Nami suddenly pointed beneath the ship.

"It's leaking again down there!"

Mia instinctively turned around.

Nami kicked over a nearby bucket.

Water splashed across the deck. She ducked beneath Su Hang's arm, grabbed the paper roll, vaulted over the rail, and landed on the maintenance scaffolding.

"Stop!"

Qi Hai rushed to the side of the ship.

Nami had already cut the securing rope and swung into the eastern drainage channel on the falling scaffolding.

Su Hang's arm shot out several meters, but stopped above the wastewater.

The narrow channel entrance was filled with rusty iron hooks. If he tried to grab her by force, she would be injured.

Nami clutched the celestial chart rubbing and showed half her face from the channel entrance.

She was still panting, but her eyes were fixed on the Dawnbringer's cargo hold.

"If you want this map back, bring a shipload of grain to Cocoyasi Village."