Brook suddenly dropped to one knee beside them, lowering his skeletal head.
"Mr. Lin Nuo! Please help Her Highness!"
"I'll do anything!"
Startled, Lin Nuo hurriedly reached out to pull him up. "Get up, get up!" He looked at Brook, torn between laughter and exasperation. "Neither of you needs to panic."
"What Imu has left on Gunko is still only a shallow sea contract."
"Besides, he doesn't know Gunko is on our side now."
"So there's no need to worry too much for the time being."
Gunko's expression eased a little at that.
Lin Nuo thought for a moment, then said, "Let me see the contract first."
Gunko nodded and rolled up her left sleeve, exposing the concealed inside of her wrist.
Lin Nuo leaned closer.
There was a faint mark on her skin.
A simple cross enclosed in a circle, traced in pale blue-green lines.
"Shallow Sea · Single-Ring Cross Mark."
Lin Nuo nodded. "As expected, it's only a shallow sea contract."
That made things much easier.
His expression remained calm, but his mind raced.
The forty-eight-hour buff granted by Master Snatcher-Deep-Sea Aura Concealment-must have expired.
This was trouble.
Once they entered the New World, the Holy Land of Mary Geoise would be at the top of the Red Line, practically right above their heads.
If the Navy surrounded them and the contract affected Gunko again, something could go wrong.
They would either have to find a solution on Fish-Man Island or leave Gunko behind for now. Still, breaking it sooner would prevent complications later.
"The most direct way to break the contract..."
Lin Nuo looked at Gunko and slowly said, "Is physical removal."
Gunko froze. "Physical removal?"
"Yes."
Lin Nuo nodded. "As long as you remove the limb bearing the mark, the mark disappears with it, and the