thump!
The bartender fell to the ground, writhing in pain.
White Shark snorted heavily, saying nothing, Hamilton turned to walk upstairs, the wooden steps creaking under his feet.
After the excitement subsided, the drunkards dispersed, while Captain Elland and his men returned to the upper deck unaffected to continue their card game.
Taking this opportunity, Klein followed him up the stairs.
He returned to " Flying Fish and Wine " not to deal with " White Shark " for a non-existent threat, but purely to learn more from this bar owner who had connections with multiple pirate factions. After all, the hidden meaning behind his new identity, Gehrman, was to hunt blood-soaked pirates and use their spirits, flesh, and Beyonder Characteristic to replace the unreleased ones within " Creeping Hunger."
Damir Port has no gas supply, and the second-floor corridor is quite dark, with flickering, dim lights on the brass candlesticks embedded in the walls on both sides.
As Klein observed his surroundings, he wiped his face with his hand and silently transformed into one of the guards on the first floor.
As for the differences in clothing and accessories, he compensated for them with his ability to Illusion Creation.
Prepared, he walked toward Hamilton's room, the " White Shark " in his Spirituality intuition.
He first passed by the place where they were playing cards, without attracting anyone's attention.
He stopped in front of the guards blocking the passage and said in a low voice:
"Something's come up downstairs again."
" Storm is brewing, what's going on tonight?" a guard exclaimed.
"I hope those lovely girls don't get hurt," another guard said with a hint of worry.
He was referring to the prostitutes who worked in bars.
"They're alright." Klein stepped past the guards, arrived at the " White Shark " door, and cautiously raised his hand to knock.
"Who?" Hamilton asked warily.
"Boss, it's me. There's trouble downstairs again!" Klein said in a deliberately hoarse voice, recalling the address he had learned while watching the commotion.
"Damn it!" Hamilton roared, "Come in and explain what happened!"
Klein turned the handle and went inside.
As he closed the door, he dispelled the Illusion, his facial muscles twitching rapidly, revealing his previous identity—a blond-haired Blue Eyes, ordinary-looking new bar patron.
"You..." Hamilton was taken aback at first, then opened his mouth wide, trying to shout.
At the same time, illusory fish scales appeared on the back of his hand, and his already tall and fat body swelled up even more.
Suddenly, his heart pounded, and a powerful, instinctive fear gripped his throat.
At that moment, he felt that the stranger standing by the door was a Devil had been starving for many days, scrutinizing his flesh and soul with cold, thirsty eyes.
In an instant, " White Shark " Hamilton was gripped by extreme panic and unable to respond effectively.
Klein strolled over to the sofa, sat down, and politely smiled:
"Can we communicate calmly now?"
The feeling of being watched by the terrifying Monster vanished instantly, and Hamilton felt relieved. His body, like a punctured balloon, deflated considerably.
He stopped his reckless cries for help and, with sweat beading on his forehead, asked:
Who are you? What do you want?
"A Hunter," Klein replied casually. "I've heard you have connections with several pirate groups; I'd like to know more about it."
"No, I didn't..." White Shark Hamilton denied.
He immediately felt that insane, extreme hunger again, and felt as if the man opposite him had turned a dark red.
Klein considered his character in his mind and smiled politely:
You have two choices.
"The first is to answer honestly, the second is to be killed by me, and then, answer honestly."
"Murderous Spirit Channeling?" " White Shark " Hamilton, having heard similar rumors, swallowed hard and said:
Why do you want to know these things?
Klein smiled and said:
"I'm a Hunter; I chase bounties."
Hamilton suddenly sensed an inexplicable madness hidden beneath the other man's polite smile, and couldn't help but blurt out:
"Are you... are you crazy?"
"I've seen many adventurers like this, but they all perished at the bottom of the sea!"
"Hunting down a pirate alone isn't difficult, but can you guard against the subsequent retaliation? The prostitutes in the bar, the seemingly ordinary customers, might be pirate informants! Your friendly accomplices could be bribed at any time and stab you in the back! Pirates will also gather intelligence in advance and ambush your ship. Can you protect all the passengers? Can you survive the bombardment of cannons on the open sea with no escape?"
Having released all his pent-up fear, he saw the man opposite him, who called himself Hunter, once again display a refined and gentle smile:
"Kill them all, and these problems will be solved."
... A real Lunatic... " White Shark " Hamilton took a breath and said:
"I have connections with many pirates, but it's always passive. They need to sell the cash, jewelry, and goods they've plundered to exchange for spirits, food, fresh water, weapons, and women's comfort, and all of this has to go through me. But I can only wait for them here, not knowing exactly where their ships are sailing or what their nearest target is."
"Anything else?" Klein asked calmly.
His answer was mainly to scare " White Shark." As for the pirates' retaliation, he wasn't worried at all. As " Faceless," if he were so easily found, he might as well find a place to sink to the bottom of the sea.
And... " White Shark " Hamilton's throat bobbed, without immediately giving a positive or negative description.
He kept his mouth shut, staring at the gentleman in the half-high silk hat, meeting the other's calm and reserved eyes that seemed to be brewing madness.
The unsettling silence was like the sea before a storm, gently rippling, colliding, and fermenting.
Finally, Hamilton looked away, resting his hand on the table in front of him in frustration, and said:
"Yes, I'm still gathering information for them. If there's any urgent intelligence, I'll use the radio they gave me to alert them."
" White Shark " dared not take the risk, fearing that the other party possessed unique and extraordinary abilities that would allow them to judge whether they were telling the truth and whether they had told the whole story.
"Radio station?" Klein, who had successfully navigated the game, keenly grasped the meaning of the term.
"That's what they told me to call it, similar to telegram, but without wire." Hamilton turned and walked to the greyish-white safe, then squatted down.
Wireless telegraph? Pirates are that high-tech now? Klein vaguely guessed what kind of radio station the other party was referring to.
He had considered inventing something similar, but when he flipped through relevant magazines, he learned that wireless telegraphy had already existed, but it had not yet found its place in the commercial field. The Raging Sea that separates the Northern Continent is constantly filled with lightning and thunder, with chaotic magnetic fields and raging Storm. Only a few shipping lanes are passable, so even if wireless telegraphy were available, it would be almost useless. Similarly, the Sonia Sea and the Sonia Sea have drastic weather changes and many factors that affect electromagnetic propagation, which greatly limits the application of wireless telegraphy.
Could it be an improved version that can solve some of the problems? Klein watched as " White Shark " pried open the floor in front of the safe and, by turning a mechanism, revealed a secret door in the wall.
Behind the secret door was a hidden cabinet divided into three compartments. The top shelf contained documents and receipts, the middle shelf held weapons such as revolvers and new-style half-arm guns, and the bottom shelf was filled with complex black machinery.
Klein glanced at it and, based on his memories from his past life and the information he had gathered, determined that the mechanical object belonged to a radio station.
"This is it. They call it a radio. The messages it transmits can be received as far as something like the Rorsted Archipelago. Beyond that, it depends on the weather and luck. It's usually quite troublesome, with many limitations." Hamilton didn't understand it very well, but based on his teachings and experience using it, he gave a vague description of the situation.
It's far more advanced than the new commercially available radios... I wonder who invented it... Klein listened quietly and then asked directly:
"Who are they?"
He made himself appear like a bounty Hunter who knew nothing about technology.
" White Shark " Hamilton wiped the cold sweat from his forehead:
"The self-proclaimed ' Silver Coin Viper ' Orville, who serves the master of the Dawn,' and the intelligence officer Old Quinn, the ' Admiral of Blood,' appeared together. I cannot confirm whether they are cooperating; of course, Orville has only ever claimed otherwise."
The owner of the " Dawn," that " Mystery Queen "? Klein withdrew his gaze, a gold coin appearing in his hand at some point.
The gold coin rolled between his fingers, then leaped into the air and fell back down, leaving " White Shark " bewildered and trembling with fear.
Klein glanced down and slowly stood up.
Just then, he suddenly asked:
"Who gave you the Potion?"
"Old, Old Quinn..." Hamilton hesitated for a moment but chose to answer honestly.
Klein nodded slightly, asked no more questions, and turned to walk towards the door.
Clang! The wooden door opened and closed again, and the figure in the black wool coat disappeared into " White Shark's" room.
Hamilton held his breath, waited for more than ten seconds, and finally let out a long sigh of relief.
He quickly wiped the sweat from his face, moved the radio to the table, pulled out a codebook, and busily sent a telegram into the distance:
I'm being watched!
"A stranger!"
Beside the focused Hamilton, Klein stood quietly with his hands in his pockets, taking in the entire spectrum and the contents of the codebook.
His departure was merely a grand Illusion, more than enough to deal with White Shark, Low-Sequence user of the " Sailor " pathway.
As for whether the specific details can be remembered afterward, the " Seer " doesn't need to worry about it; a single " Dream Divination " is enough to recall everything.
" Admiral of Blood " and his men are bloodthirsty, fond of blood, and have a penchant for violence against women. Every time they plunder a passenger ship, they cause a massacre... This is common knowledge, and they are quite proud of it, never hesitating to publicize it... They are the first choice for hunting targets and adventuring subjects... Klein thought for a moment, and while Hamilton was packing up the radio, he prepared to actually leave the room.
He doesn't plan to deal with " White Shark " for the time being, for fear of disturbing the real prey. Anyway, this kind of guy is on land, has a fixed territory, and he has leverage over him. He can easily deal with it afterward with a letter of complaint.
As Klein walked silently, the door slowly opened and closed again, letting in a gentle breeze.
PS: It's the last day and a half of November, please vote with your monthly tickets!