Quick Draw

"Click... click..."

The brass minute hand ticked forward one mark at a time. When it reached twelve, the silver hour hand followed.

The captain glanced down, flicked a finger, and snapped the gilded Pocket Watch shut.

"Click."

The sun had reached its noon position, lending a hint of heat to the gentle sea breeze. Not far away, the counting and reading of the votes was drawing to a close.

Captain Geliide narrowed her eyes at the people counting the ballots.

"Cross, cross, check—" Each time Xia Lun opened a ballot, the gunner beside him called out the mark. As the count went on, the gunner's face grew paler and his voice shriller.

The captain shook her head, slipped the Pocket Watch back into her vest pocket, and took out her Pipe.

To be honest, things were going so smoothly that she could hardly believe it.

Last night, before they went up on deck, Xia Lun had discussed the next steps with her. During that conversation, he had laid out three possible ways events might unfold.

Geliide had agreed on the surface, but deep down, she had dismissed his predictions.

Most of the desperadoes aboard a pirate ship were brooding, vicious, and cruel. Many were seriously disturbed.

Someone suddenly going mad aboard ship was nothing new. Trying to predict what would happen in such utter chaos was a fool's dream.

Yet to her astonishment, Xia Lun's three possibilities had accounted for everyone's reactions.

The dissenters who had stepped forward yesterday, the split among their opponents this morning, even the unopposed proposal to hold a vote—everything had happened exactly as Xia Lun had predicted.

Once or twice might have been coincidence. But after so many times, it could no longer be dismissed. There was something extraordinary about Xia Lun...

Those defiant pirates, each with their own schemes and muddled thoughts, were now following Xia Lun's predictions as obediently as though they were acting from a Scenario.

Most absurdly, even the people Xia Lun had identified as potential enemies were acting according to his plan.

Geliide was nearly fifty. She had spent her life traveling and weathered plenty of storms. She knew the world.

At her level, getting people to follow her lead was not difficult. Blades, gold, words, authority—any of them could do the job. But getting enemies to act as she wished was beyond her understanding...

At least, she could not do it.

The captain drew deeply on her Pipe, felt the smoke scrape down her throat and enter her lungs, then slowly exhaled her doubts along with it through her nose.

"Whew—"

White smoke rose into the sea breeze. As it dispersed, the reading of the votes came to an end.

Xia Lun glanced at the ballot box, startled.

Out of twenty-three people, only two wanted to compromise with the monster. Everyone else had voted against it!

That was far beyond what he had expected. Pirates and self-sacrifice hardly went hand in hand. Men who killed and robbed for a living should have preferred to sacrifice others to save their own skins.

He had anticipated both compromise votes: one from the gunner and the other from one of his followers.

His original plan had been to use the vote to see where everyone stood.

If most were cowards who wanted to compromise, Xia Lun could identify the brave ones, bring them together beforehand, then manipulate the vote to frame the compromisers and feed them to the monster.

If the brave outnumbered the cowards, he could execute the few cowards as an example and unite everyone at once.

Either way, Xia Lun had intended to have the gunner voted to death. But now that the gunner had proved himself a coward, there was no need to frame him.

He had hit the jackpot. He could not help blinking.

"Get on with the announcement," the old man said. "I think the result's clear enough. Only a few are willing to live like maggots."

Xia Lun nodded, then announced, "Twenty-three votes in total. Twenty-one opposed becoming Slaves, and two agreed to submit to the monster."

He paused and glanced sideways.

The gunner looked dreadful. The old man and the Priest were smiling, and most of the crowd seemed excited.

"I owe you all an apology." Xia Lun's tone changed, his voice turning grave. "I marked the ballots. From the way the paper folded along each tear, I know how everyone voted. I believe I also owe you an answer as to who the cowards are."

At that moment, the warm sea breeze suddenly picked up, and waves rippled across the water.

The old man stopped smiling. The corner of his eye twitched—he had suddenly realized Xia Lun might frame him. The Priest gripped his Holy Emblem and bowed his head in prayer.

Captain Geliide went on smoking her Pipe at an unhurried pace. Eyes narrowed, she watched the crowd with interest.

Tension returned to the crowd. At its edge, the Doctor with broken glasses still wore a fawning smile, though it now seemed tinged with a nervousness bordering on hysteria.

"The gunner," Xia Lun accused, "and that redhead. Those two are the cowards!"

Everyone instinctively looked toward the gunner and the red-haired pirate in the crowd. Then, without warning, both men moved.

"Fuck you!"

The gunner cursed and hooked a finger around the flintlock pistol at his waist. The red-haired pirate drew his axe!

The two had clearly been in league. Caught by their sudden attack, most people could not react in time!

Time seemed to slow. Eyes wide, the crowd stared at the gunner as he raised his pistol and aimed at Xia Lun across from him. A savage grin spread across his face.

But—

Bang! Bang!

The gunner had only just raised his hand when two thunderous gunshots erupted!

In a flash, the gunner's right hand, still gripping the pistol, blew apart at the wrist. He screamed and fell backward through a spray of blood. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw in astonishment that Xia Lun had somehow drawn his gun!

The other bullet pierced the red-haired pirate's throat. Crimson blood slowly spread from beneath his still-twitching corpse, staining the ballots scattered across the deck.

White smoke drifted from the Revolver's muzzle. Xia Lun flicked the cylinder, dropping two scorching shell casings into the pool of blood, then slid the gun back into his holster.

Quick Draw!

In less than half a second, one man was dead and the other wounded!

"Now the cowards have been dealt with," he said softly.

The sea breeze carried his words away. Apart from the gunner's wails, the deck was deathly silent.

Less than half a second had passed between the gunner's attack and Xia Lun's shots. Many had only just caught up with what had happened. Then they realized how absurdly fast Xia Lun had drawn.

The gunner had reached for his pistol first, but Xia Lun had beaten him to the shot!

Xia Lun looked at the captain, hoping she would step in and help him take control. Instead, Geliide shook her head.

With no choice, he spoke up himself. "Old man, put the gunner out of his misery."

This was meant to make the old man prove his loyalty. According to the plan, the captain should have been the one to say it.

The old man looked as though he had just been hauled from the sea, sweat pouring down his face. Panting, he asked, "You're not going to kill me?"

"I don't know what you mean." Xia Lun shook his head. "I fired because they were about to attack us. Besides, you voted to fight to the end."

The old man froze. After a few seconds, he pressed his lips together. "Seems I misjudged you."

"You thought too poorly of me." Xia Lun raised his eyes. "I'm a good man. Now hurry up and put him out of his misery."

The old man nodded, pulled the dagger from the table, and swiftly finished off the gunner.

"I'll carry the body," he volunteered. "Should I leave it outside the Forecastle?"

"Take it to the cargo rack." Xia Lun looked at the deathly pale Priest, his voice calm. "Priest, go with him."

The Priest noticed Xia Lun looking at him and hastily averted his gaze. He nodded, then hurried over to the gunner's body.