Before he had finished speaking, a dazzling flare lit up the darkness. With a thunderous blast, the cabin partition shattered, tearing a huge hole in the hold.
Seawater poured through the breach beneath the deck like water through a broken dam.
In less than half a minute, the water at Rowan's feet had risen past his ankles.
"Quick, get Young Master Rowan up on deck! The hold has been blasted open!" Tobin roared.
Rowan's palms were slick with sweat, but he remained calm.
The breach had not been caused by enemy cannon fire punching through the cabin partition.
The problem was inside the hold. An infiltrator had slipped aboard and planted gunpowder against the hull in advance.
"Don't panic. We're on the first level of the hold. Even if this compartment fills with seawater, the warship won't sink. Before the water fills this level, search the entire hold. Someone got in here ahead of us." Rowan signaled for the soldiers to keep their heads. Since the Class Practitioner who had infiltrated the hold had not attacked him directly, there was still room to maneuver.
Rowan stood by the stairs, at the entrance to the second level of the hold. His gaze shifted toward the cannon deck as a plan formed in his mind.
Sure enough, a ghostly shadow was flitting through the hold.
The soldiers steadily tightened their encirclement, leaving the shadow less and less room to move until they forced her toward the breach where seawater was pouring in.
"Kill her outright!" From the shadow's silhouette, Rowan was almost certain who this Stealth User was. She was a female rogue Class Practitioner, slender and highly skilled.
But turning a beautiful villain into a member of his harem was not something Rowan did. *What do you think I am, the