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After seeing Gehrman Sparrow off, Admiral of Stars Cattleya rubbed her temples, feeling that her nerves, kept taut by the Gods’ War Ruins and this "companion," could finally relax.
Frank Lee was busy. Anderson had spoken highly of the roast chicken apples, which delighted him and made him eager to plunge straight back into his research.
After they left the Gods’ War Ruins, another unremarkable little sailboat slowly followed them out. Most of those aboard wore plain cloth robes and faded shawls, and went barefoot. They looked like ascetics, but their boat bore no emblem of any Orthodox Church. Cattleya had noticed it long ago and remained wary, but fortunately, they never approached, and both vessels left without incident.
Bloodless Heath Doyle stood in the shadows, silently watching the little sailboat until it vanished from his sight.
A count revealed that the Future had lost roughly a quarter of its people. Most had been slaughtered during their encounter with the King of Immortality before entering the Gods’ War Ruins, while a smaller number had fallen victim to the residual divine power within those waters.
Whatever the case, the Star Pirate Group needed to recruit more hands.
Whether she recruited ordinary people or low-sequence Beyonders with experience in sailing and Beyonder incidents from the Moses Ascetic Order, or sailors with legitimate purposes through her familiar channels, this was hardly Cattleya's first adventure at sea. She drew up a plan that very night.
Night fell, and the pirates, having completed an adventure, drank and made merry on deck. Cattleya had no intention of joining them, but she did plan to go over, say a few token words, and drink a few glasses of light beer.
"Thank you all for your hard work."
Frank poured her a beer. Cattleya said to Nina,