Captain – Chapter 142 – Uninvited Guest

With a harsh creaking sound, the badly rotted wooden door opened.

Wearing a deflated tricorn hat, with graying hair and beard, Captain Diamond appeared behind the door. He looked the young woman up and down with weathered pale green eyes: “How is it that you know me?”

Snow Lion Diamond was one of the highest-ranking authorities in Yadris.

He was the second-in-command at the council hall, as well as the founder of the Black Cat Old Shop and the Captains’ Covenant. He and his warship Lion Heart were responsible for the safety and order of the waters near the island, second in importance only to Richi and the Mermaid.

Of course, he had another identity—that of Captain Ilias’s old friend.

After Roy took control of Yadris, Snow Lion moved in and became the most powerful supporter behind the Golden-Eyed Devil.

This was why Roy had previously worried about never seeing the old man again. But now it seemed that Captain Diamond, with his grip on power and strength, appeared unaffected by the bloodshed.

Seeing that Diamond didn’t recognize her, Roy opened her mouth slightly, wanting to say something.

But before she could speak, Snow Lion waved his hand impatiently and dismissed her: “No matter how you know me, just leave quickly. I’m not in the mood to consider any business lately, nor do I have the energy to deal with troubles on the island.”

As he spoke, the old captain tried to close the door, but before doing so, he specifically advised: “Although you seem quite capable in a fight and have recruited many skilled hands, I suggest you leave Yadris as soon as possible. It’s not peaceful here lately, and if you want to deal with Solomon, now is not a good time.”

Clearly, although Snow Lion had no interest in managing order on the island, he was fully aware of everything happening in Yadris, which was why he could offer such advice.

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Hearing this, the young woman was momentarily stunned, only reacting when the wooden door was almost closed. She quickly reached out to stop it: “Hey, hey, hey, you’re dismissing me before I’ve even spoken?”

Despite being over fifty, Snow Lion was still physically robust, so even with Roy using fifty percent of her strength, the wooden door wouldn’t budge inward at all.

“If you want a drink, please find somewhere else. My old shop doesn’t welcome strangers.”

Hearing the voice from behind the wooden door, Roy’s eye twitched as she began applying more force to the door while gritting her teeth: “What stranger? I’m a member of the Captains’ Covenant, you have no right to make me leave!”

“Abuse of power! Abuse of power!” the raven on the young woman’s shoulder also began to screech.

Although the Black Cat Old Shop was Snow Lion’s private property, its influence mainly came from the pirate captains who gathered there to discuss various important matters. Therefore, any captain who had been approved by the covenant’s founder and members could come to the old shop at any time to enjoy the precious wines stored there.

Hearing the protests of both human and bird, the wooden door finally opened.

Roy, who hadn’t controlled her strength, stumbled a few steps and nearly bumped her head on a pillar by the counter, while the raven, startled, flapped its wings and landed on the countertop.

Only then did the old captain notice the small visitor who had arrived with Roy. His snow-white beard trembled a few times as he extended his callused palm toward the raven: “Are you… Alfie?”

Although Diamond’s palm was rough and his stroking not particularly comfortable, the raven didn’t avoid it, but instead docilely fluffed up its feathers, narrowed its eyes, and called out softly: “Captain hello! Captain hello!”

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Hearing the raven’s familiar greeting, Snow Lion slowly turned his face to look at the thoroughly soaked young woman, a hint of bewilderment in his pale green eyes: “Then who are you?”

“Who else could I be? I’m obviously Ilias’s most excellent successor, the even greater Captain Roy.” Roy shrugged and said with a smile, looking just like a child showing off in front of an elder.

The old captain approached with a slight frown, his gaze lingering on the young woman’s face for a moment, then shifting to her chest, and back again.

“Is it really you, lad? But weren’t you…”

Suddenly remembering a scene from many years ago on the Ghost Scythe, Diamond blinked and didn’t continue his question. He quickly walked to the door, warily looked outside for a few moments, then firmly closed the wooden door.

“Follow me.”

Rain lashed against the pier, making intense pattering sounds. The sailors loading and unloading cargo had rain all over their faces and bodies, but still forced their eyes open to work.

A frail-looking sailor seemed unable to bear the weight on his shoulders and set down the heavy barrel of sugar on the side of the pier, making way for his passing comrades.

He glanced at the bosun, and seeing him busy lecturing a sailor who had damaged some cargo, the sailor finally breathed a sigh of relief. Panting heavily, he straightened up and vigorously wiped the water from his face. Taking advantage of this rare moment of idleness, he looked out toward the sea.

Under the assault of fierce wind and rain, the normally calm and embracing sea had become incredibly ferocious. The waves, like sharks that had caught the scent of blood, crashed against the ship hulls and embankments one after another, splashing white foam several men high.

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Damn weather, thought the sailor. The waves were already this big near the island—they would be even more terrifying out at sea.

The sailor silently cursed the downpour while quietly praying for clear skies before they set sail.

Noticing that the bosun had begun inspecting the work situation again, the sailor hurriedly bent down to lift the barrel and continued along the pier. But after taking just a few steps forward, something new appeared in his peripheral vision.

He instinctively looked toward the sea ahead, and then froze in shock.

On the turbulent, pitch-black surface of the sea, a dugout canoe was bobbing up and down, slowly approaching the port under the thrust of its oars. Occasionally, someone would bail rainwater out of the boat.

“What are you daydreaming about?!”

Shocked awake by the bosun’s scolding, the sailor no longer had the courage to steal another glance at the sea. Head down, he hurried forward, rejoining the line of cargo carriers.

After some time, the dugout canoe finally reached the shore, and two people stepped out, their clothes predictably soaked through.

The pirate managing the port ran over, panting heavily, and immediately launched into a stream of curses: “Don’t you know the rules? Don’t you know you’re supposed to dock at the pier and pay the docking fee?”

The man wearing a black triangular hat with white stripes and dressed like a captain held a bottle of rum half-mixed with rainwater. He exchanged glances with the burly giant beside him and smiled maliciously: “Rules? Yadris actually still has things like rules? Do you believe that, Laurent?”

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“No, Captain,” Laurent shook his head, smiling as well.

“You, you two…”

The pirate’s eyelid twitched, and an inexplicable unease welled up in his heart, as if he had seen this captain somewhere before. He unconsciously took a step back and said with false bravado: “Are you trying to challenge Captain Richi’s authority?”

“Oh, no, of course not. We’re just two law-abiding merchants. Don’t throw false accusations, good sir, otherwise…”

The captain tilted his head back for a swig of liquor, then stepped forward, pressing the brim of his hat against the pirate’s forehead and smiled: “You might disappear without a trace one day. Perhaps after a few days, perhaps a few months, people will finally discover that the beach has somehow gained a corpse with a mutilated face.”

After a deafening thunderclap, lightning split the rainy sky, bringing a brief moment of light.

In that instant, the pirate clearly saw the captain’s face. His entire body began to tremble, his breathing became extremely rapid, and all calm and reason dissolved in fear.

“Understood?”

The captain stuffed a small bag of silver coins into the pirate’s pocket, then patted it forcefully, his tone incredibly sinister.

Seeing the pirate nod in a daze, the captain and his subordinate laughed heartily, swaying as they walked away, finally disappearing into the chaotic crowd at the port.