Burning the granary to cover up the fake accounts

Clang!

The bronze bell rang out.

After two short chimes and one long one, a frantic peal tore through the night.

The villagers did not rush toward the shore. Following the daytime drill, they split into three groups and first led the children and wounded into the Orange Grove.

Six fish-men leaped out of the shallows.

The leader carried a barrel of fire oil on his back and pointed toward the largest warehouse in the village.

"Light it! Brother Arlong wants them to see that anyone who dares accept outsiders' grain will have nothing but ashes to eat!"

The torches fell.

Boom!

Oil-fed flames shot up along the wooden walls, swallowing half the warehouse in an instant.

Two fish-men kicked open the side door and splashed all the remaining fire oil inside.

"Where's the grain?"

Under the firelight, a row of burlap sacks rapidly collapsed.

Their openings split apart, but what rolled out was not white rice. It was wet sand soaked through with water.

The lead fish-man's grin froze on his face.

"Fake?"

Qi Hai leaped down from the roof, smashing the sheath of his sword heavily into one man's shoulder.

"We've been waiting for you."

Three villagers pulled thick ropes at the same time.

A fishing net hidden behind a haystack suddenly sprang up, scooping two fish-men off the ground and slamming them hard against the warehouse wall.

The remaining fish-men turned and fled.

"Block the western road!"

Nami stood atop the bell tower and forcefully brought down a red flag.

The villagers overturned two old carts, blocking the narrow trail to the shallows. The fish-men could only turn toward the eastern side.

Su Hang emerged from beside the wall of fire, dragging a long soaked rope in his hand.

"You came all this way. Why rush off?"

The lead fish-man raised his short blade.

"You dare arrest Brother Arlong's men?"

"When you were burning the village, why didn't you ask whether I dared?"

Su Hang suddenly swung his arm.

The wet rope skimmed across the ground, wrapping around two fish-men's ankles before yanking them backward.

Bang! Bang!

The backs of their heads struck the ground at the same time.

The third fish-man dove into a drainage ditch, intending to use the shallow water to slip away.

Qi Hai stepped on the wooden board by the ditch a moment earlier and swept his sword sheath sideways, striking the side of the fish-man's gills.

"Take them alive!"

"I wasn't using the blade to begin with."

Qi Hai sheathed his sword and turned, his gaze sweeping over the eastern path.

One fish-man had not been stopped.

He had stuffed a cargo ledger stolen from the warehouse into his clothes. He had personally seen Dawnbringer sailors carrying sealed grain sacks toward the eastern bay, and was now fleeing along a drainage channel exposed by the falling tide.

Nami saw him.

"There's another one over there!"

"Let him go."

Su Hang did not pursue.

Nami slid down from the bell tower and anxiously grabbed his sleeve.

"He took the ledger! It says Dawnbringer transported grain at dawn, four hundred sacks in total, and even lists where the ship docked!"

"I know."

"You know, and you still let him leave?"

"Because it was written for Arlong to see."

The fire was smothered by wet sand. There was little dry wood in the warehouse, and after burning for a while, the flames began to weaken.

The villagers carried water to extinguish the remaining fire and finally saw that the so-called granary was nothing more than an empty shell.

Nami stared at Su Hang.

"When did you prepare all this?"

"This afternoon."

"Why would Arlong believe a cargo ledger someone picked up?"

"He won't trust the ledger alone."

Su Hang pointed toward the eastern bay.

Several sailors were still moving sacks. The ship's lanterns, cart tracks, and unloading signals were all clearly visible.

"The one who escaped saw Dawnbringer moving cargo with his own eyes. The ledger bears the old seal of the Morning Bell Caravan and Lorne's usual cargo codes. Ninety percent of it is real. Only the quantity of grain and the departure time are fake."

Nami caught on quickly.

"He'll send people to watch the eastern bay first."

"People will be loading ships there all night. Before dawn, we'll have an empty cargo ship leave the bay."

"What if Arlong comes himself?"

"Even better."

Nami bit her lip.

"How is that better? If he brings his main force, the village won't be able to stop them."

Qi Hai dragged the netted fish-men into the open.

"That's why the decisive battle won't be in the village. The eastern bay is bordered by reefs on both sides. At low tide, there's only one deep-water exit. If Arlong's main force goes there, Arlong Park will be half empty."

Su Hang continued.

"We're not in a hurry to attack. First, we confirm how many men he has, how many fast boats, and what else he has hidden in the sea."

Nami looked at the burned warehouse.

"You even accounted for what would be burned."

Su Hang kicked aside a fire oil barrel at his feet.

"The warehouse had been leaking rain for ages. There was only wet sand and old grain husks inside. Not a sack of real grain was lost. What they burned tonight was merely evidence they couldn't keep hidden."

Qi Hai crouched down to inspect the bottom of a barrel.

A military bronze token was nailed to the charred wooden board.

Half its serial number had been ground away, but the remaining format still matched the fire oil numbering of the 16th Branch.

He scraped away the sealing wax with the tip of his sword.

"Military-grade waterproof barrels. Even the fire oil formula is military issue. It doesn't disperse in water and can burn ship planks. Ordinary pirates couldn't get this much."

The lead fish-man spat out blood.

"Found it!"

Nami's voice turned icy.

"You found six barrels of fire oil together? Why didn't you bring the whole Marine warehouse back while you were at it?"

The fish-man clamped his mouth shut.

Qi Hai seized his right hand.

Black oily sludge remained between his fingers, while a hemp rope stamped with a two-headed fish mark was wrapped around his wrist.

"This isn't the mark of the Arlong Pirates."

The expression of another captured fish-man changed slightly.

Su Hang caught that reaction.

"Who supplied the fire oil?"

"No one supplied it."

"Which ship did that rope come from?"

The fish-man turned his head away.

Su Hang tossed the bronze token between the two of them.

"Military fire oil went missing, so the Marines will investigate. Arlong took the goods but failed to burn the grain, so he'll investigate too. If the seller wants to silence witnesses, you two will be the first to die."

The lead fish-man's face twisted with anger.

"Quit trying to scare us! Mr. Brand has been doing business for over ten years. He never reveals his buyers!"

The moment the words left his mouth, he abruptly fell silent.

Nami looked at Su Hang.

"Brand?"

"At least we know his name now."

Qi Hai continued examining the hemp rope and found a flattened lead plate inside the knot.

It bore a shipping route number and delivery date.

"Offshore from White Reef. Two-Headed Fish Warehouse Ship. Delivered two days ago."

Su Hang picked up the lead plate, and a system panel appeared before him.

[Detected an item connected to a low-tier opportunity.]

[Military fire oil has changed hands repeatedly through underground shipping routes.]

[Connection: East Blue black-market nautical chart, Sky Island relic, unknown intermediary.]

[The target is moving and cannot be locked.]

Nami noticed him staring into empty space.

"Did you find something else?"

"This batch of fire oil isn't connected only to the Marines."

Su Hang turned toward the captives.

"What Sky Island relics has Brand sold?"

The lead fish-man no longer spoke.

But the other one could not help blurting out.

"We only heard him mention to Brother Arlong that one item could find a city in the sky. Brother Arlong said that kind of junk couldn't be eaten or traded for protection money, so he didn't take it."

"What item was it?"

"I didn't see it."

"Where was it delivered?"

"The warehouse ship changes locations every three days. Only someone carrying a Two-Headed Fish Lead Token can receive the guiding signal."

Nami lowered her gaze to the lead plate.

"There are too many reefs off White Reef. A pursuing ship could easily run aground. Without an accurate nautical chart, no one could find the warehouse ship at night."

"Can you find it?"

"Give me one night. I'll first fill in the nearby tide patterns."

Su Hang handed her the lead token.

"Lorne will return before dawn. Have him prepare an inconspicuous small cargo ship without flying Dawnbringer's flag."

Qi Hai asked,

"What about the eastern bay?"

"Keep acting it out. Let Arlong think we're preparing to move the grain."

"You're going to meet Brand?"

"Military fire oil, black-market charts, Sky Island relics—they're all in his hands. This man knows better than Arlong who is hidden behind these shipping routes."

The flames finally died out.

Three cellars reported safety at the same time.

Once the villagers confirmed that the grain was unharmed, the fear that had weighed on them all night finally began to fade.

No one cheered. They simply hung the alarm rope back on the bell tower in silence.

Nami spread out a nautical chart and began marking the direction of White Reef.

One of the captive fish-men suddenly spoke.

"Having the lead token won't help you. Mr. Brand only recognizes money. Yesterday, he said someone had already made an offer for that Sky Island item."

Su Hang stopped in his tracks.

"Who?"

The fish-man licked the blood from the corner of his mouth and looked up at him.

"The man selling the fire oil said he also had a complete nautical chart leading to the sky."