In Earta Square, the Gifted were bewildered and horrified.
Possessing talents they had yet to truly realize, they could not comprehend what was happening before them. Those who had already entered the Mystical Side, however, had sweaty palms.
A Step-Entry!
Was this the might of a Step-Entry?
They watched the Medium, Arthur Credos, walk slowly forward, their eyes full of uncertainty.
That included the three Higgins brothers.
But a moment later, the three pirate brothers grinned.
Excitement!
What could be more exciting than hunting down a Step-Entry?
An injured Step-Entry, of course!
An injured Step-Entry was an exceptionally rare opportunity for the three of them. Having inherited a small portion of the Pirate King Edward's legacy and entered the Mystical Side through the [Pirate's Blood] ritual, they needed to plunder incessantly-wealth, women, power-to keep advancing [Pirate's Blood].
Over the past ten years, their plundering had already advanced the [Pirate's Blood] ritual to the limit of Arcana Level.
They needed only one more grand act of plunder to advance smoothly to Major Arcana Rank.
Why did they dare challenge a Step-Entry while still at Arcana Level, crossing an entire major rank?
Besides being at the very limit of Arcana Level, practitioners of the Mystical Side who advanced through [Pirate's Blood] could use "resonance" and "amplification."
This was the most distinctive feature of [Pirate's Blood]. It could concentrate the other two men's strength into one person, unleashing twice their original combined power.
This was also the secret behind their repeated success in plundering fleets on ocean routes that appeared stronger than they were.
Once their combined strength "resonated" within one of them, the resulting "amplification" could bring that man to the limit of Major Arcana Rank.
Against a grievously injured Step-Entry,
someone at the limit of Major Arcana Rank still had a