Loss of Control

On the deck of the Clover, gazing at the distant harbor pier, Joyce exclaimed excitedly, "Steam above, we're back. We've finally reached Smatt Harbor."

Standing beside him, Xifa was just as excited, though at least on the surface, he remained calm.

The journey had truly not been easy.

They had weathered storms at sea, lost their way, and overcome all manner of trials before finally reaching the harbor safely.

Seeing land now, anyone would have felt the urge to throw themselves down and kiss the ground.

After the Clover entered the harbor, before anyone could disembark, Xifa saw a squad of police rush onto the pier. They wore black uniforms with white checks, soft caps bearing badges, and tense expressions.

At once, the atmosphere aboard the ship grew tense.

The captain said steadily, "Don't make any rash moves. Stay where you are and let me speak with the officers."

Xifa stepped forward as well. "My identity might be of some use."

The captain nodded. By then, the police had already boarded the ship. Working skillfully in groups of three, they quickly began their search. Several teams came onto the deck and approached the passengers.

A black-bearded officer strode forward. "I'm Inspector Roy. What happened on this ship?"

Three silver six-pointed stars adorned his epaulets, matching his rank as an inspector.

He continued, "We received word that the Clover was attacked shortly after leaving Caesar Pier, and someone saw the symbol of the King of the Five Seas."

"But after that, there was no news from you for over a month. What happened aboard during that time?"

"Also, I noticed bloodstains that were not completely washed away, traces left by bullets and longswords, and why are there so few people left on the ship?"

One question after another struck like cannonballs, dragging everyone back into those blood-soaked memories.

Several timid men had already gone pale, their fingers trembling as they muttered, "It has nothing to do with us. Nothing to do with us."

Hearing those words, Inspector Roy's expression became even graver, almost frightening.

The captain cleared his throat. "Officer, it was like this. After we were plundered by pirates, a terrible Catastrophe occurred aboard the ship—"

He roughly recounted the mutiny and the course of the Catastrophe, making the bearded inspector's heart sink lower and lower.

The Smatt Harbor police department had received news of the Clover's attack more than half a month ago. Recently, the families of passengers who had failed to return on schedule had frequently come to the department seeking information.

Therefore, the moment they received word that the Clover had entered the harbor, the police rushed over.

As someone with extensive experience, Roy had prepared for the worst. Yet he had not expected the situation to be even worse than he had imagined.

Footsteps approached one after another as several police teams ran onto the deck and reported to Roy.

"Sir, we found a large number of corpses. There are Sailors among them, as well as passengers."

Roy nodded solemnly. His gray-blue eyes shifted toward the captain. "This is serious. Before we determine the cause of this entire matter, I hope you will cooperate."

"Now, I need to take you away. Please assist with the investigation."

"No!"

A short, bearded man charged toward the gangway. "I haven't committed any crime! I want to go home!"

The captain called anxiously, "Mr. Segra, calm down."

Before he could call the man back, two policemen had already pounced on him, striking Segra with their batons and pinning him to the ground.

"Don't do this! Please let him go." The captain hurried forward, but a baton jabbed him in the stomach, leaving him unable to finish speaking.

"Hey, what are you doing?!"

"Why are you beating people? We're not criminals!"

The passengers became agitated. Among them, Tris, the round-faced young man, stepped forward and said, "You can't treat us like this!"

But he too received a blow from a policeman's baton.

Seeing this, the others grew even more agitated and rushed forward to argue with the police.

Inspector Roy drew his pistol, pointed it at the crowd, and roared, "Stop! All of you, stop!"

The policemen also rushed in, beating the agitated passengers and Sailors with batons and forcing them onto the deck. Many were injured in the process.

"Everyone, calm down!"

"Show some restraint!"

Xifa shouted, hoping to stop them from acting impulsively, but his voice was completely drowned out.

A policeman rushed at him, reaching for his collar. Xifa instinctively slid a step backward, making the officer grab at empty air.

"Do not resist!"

The brown-eyed policeman shouted as he drew his pistol and aimed it at Xifa.

Xifa could only raise his hands. "Officer, I am—"

Before he could finish, a tall policeman tackled him. With one broad hand pressed against Xifa's head, he forced Xifa's cheek tightly against the deck.

Anger, humiliation, shock—every emotion surged through him. Xifa tried to raise his head, but his face was pinned down so firmly that only his right eye had an extremely narrow field of vision.

He restrained the fierce emotions within him, which threatened to erupt like a Volcano, and shouted, "Listen to me, officer! I am the son of Baron Baisen Disraeli!"

"Please don't hurt me or the people on this ship. We will cooperate with the investigation."

But the police ignored him completely. The large man pinning Xifa down shouted impatiently, "Shut up. You're the Baron's son? Then I'm a prince!"

"Save it for the Judge! Get up, now."

Xifa was dragged to his feet, and a wad of cloth was stuffed into his mouth. It was probably some policeman's handkerchief, and it was anything but fresh.

The riot on deck was quickly brought under control. The people were escorted away by the police, and in the end, Xifa included, they were all thrown into a temporary Prison at the Smatt Harbor police department.

In the packed cell, Xifa removed the handkerchief from his mouth and rushed to the door, shouting, "Officer! Officer! I'm Xifa Disraeli! My father is a Baron! I want to send a telegram, and I can pay!"

A policeman walked over and violently struck the cell door with his baton. "Get back! No shouting!"

Xifa quickly drew back his hand and had no choice but to retreat. Things had developed completely differently from what he had imagined. If he could not contact his family, he had no idea what would happen next.

[See? I knew these Curly-Haired Baboons wouldn't cooperate with your little performance. What are you going to do now, Li Zexi?]

[I have an idea. Make the pigs in this cell fight. As long as they start fighting, the police will come in to check. Then we grab one of them, snap his neck, take his gun, and rush out.]

[We can do it. Let's do it this way, shall we? Let's do it this way.]

[Let's do it this way!]

The corners of Xifa's mouth slowly curled upward, just slightly.