In the blood-soaked, foul-smelling brig deep in the belly of the ship, a series of somewhat noisy footsteps rang out, instantly waking Goldtooth from his snoring sleep.
He pressed his ear to the floor and distinguished four different sets of footsteps. One of them was especially heavy, like a giant striding across granite.
Goldtooth, no longer in possession of his gold teeth, let out a long breath through the gaps in his mouth.
That meant the other side had either come to bring him before the captain, or the captain had personally come to see him.
If this were an execution, there would be no need for so many people.
He immediately scrambled into the corner of the cell and deliberately put on a profound, mysterious expression, waiting for the person who had come to negotiate with him.
"My lords, this is where that pirate is being held."
The sailor guarding the brig led Gaia and the others up to the cell.
The very first thing that caught Solomon's eye was the gold teeth outside the bars, still stained with traces of blood.
He quickly stepped forward, scooped them into his palm, studied them for a moment, and then asked curiously,
"Whose are these?"
The sailor and Horne both stared at those gold teeth in surprise.
They recognized immediately whose teeth they were, but a new question rose in their minds.
Who did this?
"Cough, cough. Those are actually mine."
The pirate's voice came from inside the cage, instantly drawing Solomon's attention.
Seemingly without thinking, he slipped the teeth into his pocket and stroked his chin.
"How did your teeth fall out?"
The moment he asked that, he suddenly realized something and glanced at the sailor and Horne beside him.
Horne happened to be looking at Solomon too, and their eyes met in midair, sparking with intense unspoken understanding.
Their silent team voice chat began.
Solomon gave Horne a meaningful look.
"So that's it. You already interrogated him. Looks like he really was a hard case."
Horne blinked.
"No, no, I didn't interrogate him. Don't make things up."
A look of surprise spread through Solomon's eyes.
"So pulling teeth is a Cadian custom, is it? No wonder you don't call it interrogation."
Horne tried to explain that he had genuinely done nothing, but all he succeeded in doing was giving Solomon an increasingly strange impression of Cadian customs.
Realizing that no matter what he said he was only digging himself deeper, Horne turned helplessly toward the sailor.
"Was it you?"
The sailor's heart immediately tightened.
He definitely had not done it.
But he had accidentally dozed off for a while while guarding this place, and what had happened during that time was something he had no idea about.
In this situation, pretending to know nothing was clearly the best choice.
When Goldtooth saw the sailor innocently shaking his head, he was so angry his nose nearly twisted out of shape.
He badly wanted to curse the man as a hypocrite. After all, it was that man who had toyed with him and made that transaction.
But considering that he was currently the fish on the chopping block while the other side held the knife, he forced himself to endure it.
"I knocked them out myself."
Solomon very much wanted to ask what kind of fall could knock out only the gold teeth with such precision.
But obviously that was not the most important question right now.
"You said you have extremely important information. Is that true?"
Here it comes.
Looking at Solomon's severe expression, Goldtooth knew this was the critical moment that would decide whether he lived.
"Of course I do. But can you guarantee you'll let me go after I tell you?"
Solomon looked the pirate up and down, his eyes narrowing slightly, then nodded.
"If your information is really valuable, then I guarantee that I personally will not lay a hand on you."
"No. That's not enough. I want your guarantee that no one on your ship can harm me."
That demand made Solomon frown for a moment, then he slowly inclined his head.
"I promise you. On the honor of Captain Mordecai, if your information really has value, then no one on my ship will harm you."
Once Goldtooth heard Solomon's promise, he finally let out a long breath.
After all, captains were exactly the sort of people who cared deeply about ritual and formality.
He believed that a capable captain like Solomon, someone who had repelled three raiders by himself, would uphold his word without wavering.
Goldtooth swallowed a mouthful of blood-tinged saliva, glanced at the sailor who had hardly spoken at all since earlier, and slowly said,
"My information is this."
As he spoke, he pulled out a storage core glowing with mysterious blue lines from behind his back.
"This is..."
Solomon's pupils contracted slightly.
"This is a star chart of stable routes in this region of the Warp."
"You've provoked our Darkstar pirate crew, and those bastards absolutely won't let this go."
"This region of the Warp is extremely complicated. Without a star chart to guide you, even with a Navigator, escaping won't be easy."
At that point, Goldtooth drew the data core protectively against his chest and asked warily,
"Well? Is this information valuable enough?"
Gaia's eyes had already widened in shock.
But what shocked her was not how the man had obtained such a precious star chart.
What shocked her was where exactly he had been hiding it.
She fully believed that Horne, being the consummate professional he was, must have thoroughly searched the man.
And yet, despite that, he had somehow still managed to pull out a star chart storage core that was obviously priceless.
So where exactly had he hidden it during the search?
No, better not think about it. The moment you think about it, you can practically smell it.
Unlike Gaia's shocked disgust, Solomon's expression remained rather calm.
He looked at the chart in Goldtooth's hand and nodded slightly.
"Very good. This information is indeed extremely valuable."
To be honest, Mitchell's navigation had been quite unreliable lately.
If they could get a star chart like this, the rest of their journey would undoubtedly become much easier.
"Then next comes fulfilling my promise and granting you your freedom."
Goldtooth was instantly overjoyed, and the corners of his mouth shot upward.
But his delight did not last long.
"Throw him out of the ship."
"Oh, look at that. We won't harm you, and you really will get your freedom."
Goldtooth froze, then shouted furiously through his toothless mouth,
"You lying..."
He did not get to finish.
The sailor slammed him down before he could complete the sentence.
Solomon's playful look disappeared, replaced by a cold gaze as he watched the pirate being dragged out of sight.
...
Inside the Navigator Sanctum, Mitchell's body was trembling slightly.
For some time now, he had been navigating without pause.
But the result had remained the same as always.
A single flat, perfectly straight road, hidden beneath fog.
Mitchell growled under his breath.
Earlier, he had been able to sense that the fog was gradually thinning as the ship ventured deeper into the Warp.
But now, it had finally reached its limit.
With a shrill cry, bloody tears streamed from his third eye.
Through agony that felt as though it were tearing his soul apart, he finally saw what lay beyond the fog.
It was only a fleeting glimpse, but the malignant aura that pierced through the veil was nearly enough to shatter his mind.
Blood trickled from the corner of Mitchell's mouth as he let out a bitter laugh.
"When wanderers believe they are pursuing the road ahead, the path they tread has already been covered by blue feathers..."
"Damn it, where exactly is the true road...?"
After spitting out that final curse, Mitchell's head slowly lowered, and he collapsed unconscious in the guiding seat.
The frightened servants rushed forward to support him, only to hear an eerie knock at the great doors of the sanctum.
Knock... knock.
After nine knocks, the doors opened.
(End of Chapter)
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