Odys returned to the Argo and made further arrangements. Third mate Bevis and crewman Boris would sail the Ghost back to Chaiker Island with eight Beyonder Marionettes, escorting the captives.
At top speed, they would be back by the next morning.
Odys took the remaining crew aboard the Argo and continued toward Nohaus Island. The two ships parted ways there.
Only after the Argo had left those waters did Odys go to the dining room and pour himself a beer to celebrate the operation's success.
The moment he entered, Odys slapped his forehead. "I forgot to grab a cook."
Rupert suggested, "We could grab one on Nohaus Island."
That island was about the same size as Chaiker Island. It certainly could not withstand an attack from the Argo either.
Odys nodded. "That's a good idea."
Leonard, handsome as ever, asked, "If you don't mind my asking, do you often grab people like this?"
"Not often," Odys said. "Today was our first time. We don't have much experience."
I should have made a list. Odys had just remembered that he had forgotten to grab a carpenter too.
Fortunately, there was a carpenter in the port town on Krus Island. They could call on him when needed and pay him a wage.
Odys took another sip of beer and reflected, Being a pirate really is wonderful. I don't have to worry about how these people feel. If I need someone, I can just take them.
After all, he would pay them wages, and their food and safety would certainly be better than they had been on Chaiker Island.
On a beach on Chaiker Island, a lean woman in her thirties watched the Argo rapidly pull away from shore.
"His strength exceeds that of an ordinary Sequence 5," she judged.
She had