Captain – Chapter 598 – Rebirth

Shortly before the girl’s “succession.”

No one knew what was happening in the captain’s quarters. Everyone was doing their own tasks—those on deck were adjusting sails and raising anchor, those in the hold were searching for the armory, familiarizing themselves with those ancient yet surprisingly advanced cannons.

Only one person was different.

That was the ship’s doctor who, after falling out with the cat, had descended to the lower decks.

He continued downward and had now returned to the deck level where the girl had first boarded, hoping to find some familiar faces to band together with in this place full of skeletons everywhere.

Like Lance or Harriet.

But before he could follow the crew’s directions to find these two important figures who were extremely busy, a familiar figure suddenly appeared not far ahead.

“Squeak, squeak…”

Hearing the slightly sharp scraping sound, watching that skeleton that seemed to endlessly mop the floor, Anderson’s eye twitched as he helplessly stepped aside.

But just when he thought this fellow would pass by him without interaction like the other “old crew members” he’d encountered earlier, the skeletal soldier’s body suddenly paused.

By sheer coincidence, it stopped right in front of him.

Then, under the ship doctor’s gaze as his facial muscles trembled slightly, the skeleton slowly stood up, twisted its head, and produced a series of crisp “crack” sounds from colliding bone joints.

Watching the skeleton that slowly turned around, though its head hung slightly without looking at him, yet was so close their noses nearly touched, Anderson couldn’t help but swallow.

“Uh, I say…”

The ship doctor’s slightly hoarse question never fully emerged.

Because moments later, he witnessed an extremely eerie scene—so eerie it left him trembling speechlessly.

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Accompanied by suddenly intensified low “cracking” sounds, the skeletal soldier trembled all over, like a pitiful soul unwilling to believe some reality, or like…

A fortunate one who saw dawn in darkness, touched hope in despair, with irrepressible joy.

Gradually, its body stabilized. The hanging head slowly lifted, and Anderson’s eyes reflected its hollow eye sockets.

And the pure white ghostly light that flickered excitedly within them.

But soon there was another change.

Staring blankly at the light points in the skeleton’s eyes, the ship doctor’s eyes grew wider and wider. The fear within them quickly receded, replaced by astonishment and concern.

Because… that ghostly light was rapidly extinguishing, as if “life” was leaving the other.

“Hey, hey, hey, are you alright?”

Out of responsibility as a physician and their relationship as fellow shipmates on the same battle line, Anderson suppressed his unease and instinctively reached out to pat the skeleton’s shoulder.

But his hand had barely extended when it was firmly grasped by the skeleton’s slightly cold bone claws.

“Oh…”

Only then did the ship doctor discover where the real change lay, and he couldn’t help but exclaim.

In the interval between Anderson’s inquiry and his reaching out, the ghostly light in the skeleton’s eyes had completely disappeared, and it had fallen silent as if truly dead.

But that was only momentary—the last darkness before dawn.

“Whoosh…”

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Whether it was an illusion or not, the ship doctor heard the sound of burning, extremely stable and gradually intensifying.

A brilliant golden spark flashed through the skeleton’s eyes, then transformed into light dust, quickly blazing forth at tremendous speed like wildfire that couldn’t be contained.

Finally, the flames stabilized.

That blazing golden, fiercely burning soul fire was not only several times more vigorous than the previous ghostly fire, but the ship doctor was also extremely surprised to see within it…

Reminiscence, relief, and many other ever-changing emotions no different from ordinary humans.

In this extremely short time, this skeleton had miraculously transformed from a walking corpse muddled for a thousand years back into that soldier of firm faith, upright and fervent.

As if reborn.

This… what exactly was happening?

Looking at the skeleton that slowly raised its head, gazing toward a certain direction as if it could see through the deck to something beyond, the ship doctor clicked his tongue in amazement, then realized he should gently struggle with his wrist.

“That… sir, could you please let go of me first?”

Hearing this, the skeleton withdrew its gaze and looked at the young man. Though it couldn’t understand the language of later generations, it could still discern his meaning from his expression and posture.

It nodded slightly and was about to let go, but the motion had barely begun when it suddenly stopped.

The flames in the skeleton’s eye sockets trembled violently, then immediately stabilized, as if receiving orders from afar, thus changing its previous intention.

It pulled the ship doctor’s hand down and turned it over, then placed the wet cloth in its hand onto his.

After doing this, the skeletal soldier released his hand, stepped back, performed an ancient military salute to him, then strode toward the gangway.

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“This is telling me to mop the floor?”

Looking at the skeleton’s departing back as it walked away with head held high, then at the still-dripping wet cloth in his hand, the ship doctor couldn’t help but mutter to himself. After coming to his senses, his eye twitched violently.

The strange incidents on this broken ship really came one after another.

Just as the young master’s annoyed inner thoughts suggested, such “strange incidents” weren’t limited to this one case, but were happening throughout the giant ship, to every “old crew member.”

They all awakened from their stupor, put down their work, formed ranks and headed to the armory. Some took weapons and went to the deck, others carried cannonballs inscribed with strange patterns to the corresponding gun decks, each taking their cannon positions.

All this happened far too quickly and suddenly.

The crew members originally from the Mermaid and Ghost Scythe couldn’t react in time, falling into brief shock and panic. If not for Lance and others restraining them, they might have already drawn their blades uncontrollably.

It wasn’t until people discovered that the skeletons bore no ill will and were only meticulously executing some kind of order that this chaotic situation finally settled.

Led by Harriet, the fighting squad members with faces full of absurdity accepted the ancient firearms handed to them by the skeletons, then were swept along by the “human” flow toward various locations.

When a young gunner was sweating profusely because he didn’t know how to open the muzzle plug of this type of cannon he’d never seen before and couldn’t find the ignition point, a skeleton came to his side and pressed a certain oddly-shaped protrusion.

Accompanied by metallic collision and friction sounds, the muzzle plug slowly separated in four directions along the patterns drawn on it, quickly clearing the loading channel.

When the young gunner recovered from his dumbstruck state and looked toward the skeleton, he found it had completed the operation and was extending both hands toward him.

He hurriedly picked up a cannonball from his feet and carefully handed it over, watching it smoothly complete the loading. The gunner licked his somewhat dry lips, forced a slightly unnatural smile, and thanked it in a low voice.

“Th… thank you.”

The skeleton was stepping back from beside the cannon mouth. Hearing these words, its form paused. After observing the gunner’s expression and understanding his meaning, it gently nodded.

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It even casually waved its hand, telling him not to mind, just like facing a comrade-in-arms.

On the deck of the Goddess Hestia.

That powerful heartbeat drew ever closer. The pirates could even see the sea swells and surges that scattered the sea fog, approaching with heavy shadows.

After exchanging glances with Wyatt, the bosun took a deep breath, knowing they couldn’t wait any longer. He wanted to move toward that dark superstructure to notify the captain.

But he had just turned around when his motion froze.

Because the wooden door not far away quietly opened, and loud, orderly footsteps came from below. Within a few breaths, a large number of figures surged onto the deck.

“Good God…”

Using the faint daylight to discover that those figures were not the crew members following Roy, the bosun drew in a sharp breath of cold air, exclaiming almost like a moan.

Because those who surged onto the deck and quickly occupied all combat positions were…

Countless armed and fully equipped skeletons!

And besides those taking positions, another group of “old crew members” approached carrying “fire” weapons and ammunition from the Old Calendar, distributing them to the people on deck.

After finishing distribution, they didn’t disperse but stood in two straight lines. Several officers with different clothing and obviously higher status approached from the distance.

They positioned themselves before the important figures, nodded slightly, then also moved to the sides. Only then did Ben and his group see that at the end of that solemn formation…

A figure was slowly approaching, footsteps silent yet clearly audible throughout the deck.

That was the warship’s new master.