Barus

At night, after having dinner in the main dining room, we finally met the captain on the deck. He was a burly man with eyes that seemed to hold the power of a lion. His loose white captain's uniform looked tight on him, as if it might break at any moment because of his muscles.

The moment Jilan saw him, she understood that this captain possessed strength no less than that of an ordinary Pro Hero.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am Captain Barus of the Voyager. It is a pleasure to meet you all aboard. You are all my honored guests and deserve my service."

Barus... Jilan was surprised for a few seconds.

Jilan knew some of the deeds of this captain Barus, and had seen some records about him in documents that he translated for certain people.

Barus's Quirk is to transform himself into a dragon-like creature with fins on his back. He has the ability to manipulate seawater and is extremely powerful in combat. As long as he is in the ocean, he is an invincible king. As long as he has enough water in his body, even Endeavor would only be evenly matched with him.

Unfortunately, although he speaks fluent Japanese, he is actually Australian. But precisely because of this, he is not bound by the rules of an island nation and can freely use his Quirk, making him one of the most feared beings at sea.

Moreover... it is said that he has some connection with Ryukyu, the Dragoon Hero who is ranked among the top ten in the Pro Hero rankings.

Barus looked around at the crowd. "I think you're all quite curious. Survival drills are usually conducted before a cruise ship sets sail, but this time, it's on the open sea?"

Everyone nodded.

Indeed, this was quite unreasonable, but this kind of survival drill was of no use to Jilan. Besides, it was his first time on a cruise ship, so he didn't pay much attention to it, assuming that the rules were different for each ship.

What caught his attention were those people in the crowd, their eyes gleaming with madness. If Jilan wasn't mistaken, these were the people who had spent a fortune to buy tickets to the Dark Shadow new product launch.

As for why Jilan didn't guess that they were VIP members invited by Dark Shadow, just like herself... that's because how could someone who couldn't even control their own expression be a member? If that were the case, Dark Shadow's level would be far too low.

Those valued by the Dark Shadow have never been extravagant spenders, but rather individuals with specialized skills and a proven track record of long-term activity on the dark web. Examples include hackers capable of breaching the Pentagon's firewall, battle-hardened mercenaries, and professors from Miskatonic University...

Jilan's identity on the dark web is that of a scholar with extensive research on history from a century ago; many people are willing to entrust Jilan with translating and annotating the documents they find. He is notable on dark web BBS forums because several years ago he published a research report on an event that occurred a hundred years ago, and this year is 2099...

"Unlike before, I know there are many 'distinguished guests' on board this time who are not usually seen in the sunlight. I will not delve into your past, and as long as you do not do anything suspicious on this ship, you will still be our guests. However, if your actions cross the line and threaten the lives of any passenger, I would not mind letting you spend the rest of your lives on this sea."

The captain's sharp gaze swept over the restless men. His icy stare was like a bucket of cold water poured over their faces, instantly chilling them to the bone. They trembled, lowered their heads, and dared not meet his eyes.

The captain's words were somewhat incomprehensible to the ordinary passengers, and even frightened them, causing them to start discussing the matter.

"What's wrong with this guy? We're all guests, how can he talk to us in such a threatening tone?" Ueno complained.

Erina Nakiri her arms, her face calm. "Clearly, there are many 'unusual' passengers on this ship, and the captain is warning them."

Although Nakiri doesn't have a strong Quirk, she has studied various aspects of psychology and the art of rulership, making her quite adept at observing people's expressions and exceptionally sensitive to the gazes directed at her. In the cafeteria, she sensed several spying eyes on her, but these were different from the admiring and adoring looks her classmates gave her at school; instead, they carried a malice that chilled her to the bone.

Apart from a few countries like Celestial Empire and island nations, most other countries do not prohibit the use of Quirk, leading to a surge in crime and making it difficult for the police to apprehend criminals. As a result, many people escape justice after committing murder.

Nakiri noticed that although the Voyager departed from Tokyo Bay, many of the passengers were foreigners who spoke English, which made her fearful about the trip.

Nakiri didn't tell anyone how she felt. After finishing her meal as if she had no idea what was going on, she immediately returned to her room and locked herself there for the entire afternoon, refusing even Hisako invited her to go swimming.

At night, everyone had to attend the survival rescue, and she had to follow the others to the main restaurant. She quickly felt several eyes fixed on her. Although she did not show any panic at the time, and chatted and laughed as if she was unaware of everything, she was actually terrified inside and had begun to regret taking the cruise.

Hearing the captain's words, the feeling of being watched like a needle prick disappeared, and Nakiri finally felt relieved.

No one wanted to go against him at sea. With him there, nothing unexpected should happen this time... Jilan saw those people lower their heads and breathed a slight sigh of relief. It seemed the captain had deliberately held this survival drill at this time to warn these people...

With a formidable captain present during this survival exercise, no one dared to cause any trouble. Even those who had "bought tickets" behaved themselves and obediently completed the training.

"Grape, did you see that? That's our captain! He's so cool!" Kaminari clenched his fist excitedly. "If someone as strong as our captain were Pro Hero, he'd be incredibly popular!"

"Perhaps it's ranked high on the 'most enemy-like' list, like Gang Orca..."

Minoru Mineta looked dejected, squatting in a corner drawing circles. He hadn't yet recovered from what Jilan had said, and even when he was serving dishes in the main dining room, he hadn't been very focused. If it weren't for Kaminari's help, the dishes might have been broken.

"Sigh." Kaminari sighed. Jilan's words had dealt a devastating blow to Minoru Mineta, and it had been just as devastating to him. However, he hadn't had much hope for this trip to begin with, which was why he recovered so quickly.

"Wait, Grape, stand up and look!"

Suddenly, Kaminari seemed to spot something in the crowd during the drill and grabbed Minoru Mineta's arm, trying to pull him up.

"What's so interesting about that? Even if a girl dresses provocatively, I'm not interested anymore. I feel my own body is more important..."

Minoru Mineta broke free from Kaminari's grip on his arm, his face filled with sorrow. "I thought I'd definitely have a romantic encounter this time, so I didn't bring my usual power-generating materials, intending to fight to the death... I never imagined that now I'm not only dead, but I'm not even given a chance to live..."

Kaminari forcefully pulled Minoru Mineta up, pointing excitedly towards the deck, "No, look at Jilan!"

Minoru Mineta didn't want to look, but he couldn't resist his curiosity, so he turned his head to take a look, and then—blood shot out of his eyes!