By the time the two of them rushed down from the building, the wound on Silas's chest had completely healed.
"Hey! You two stop right there!"
The guards had been awakened by the gunshots and sounds of fighting. Seeing them, they shouted and surrounded them.
But before they could get close, Leonard chanted his poetry again, and the entire group of guards collapsed onto the cold ground, peacefully drifting into slumber.
Silas pulled out the bloodstained map from his jacket.
According to the markings on it, they needed to follow the direction of the Tussock River, going deep into the rear section of the company.
The abandoned shipyard was located in a river bend in the depths.
"That way!"
He pointed out the direction, and the two of them broke into a run.
"Huff! Huff!"
After running for a short while, Silas began gasping from exhaustion.
He was extremely grateful at this moment that he'd participated in combat training and improved his stamina.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to keep going at all.
Leonard ran ahead of Silas. He could actually run much faster, but to accommodate Silas, he kept his speed at a relatively low level.
The two of them ran one after the other deep into the William Transport Company.
Before long, the outline of the abandoned shipyard appeared before them.
Only half a crimson moon cast down its faint radiance, barely illuminating everything before their eyes.
The cement ground of the shipyard already had cracks, with all kinds of weeds growing wild in the gaps.
The steel-frame bridges had rusted, and many of the wooden planks extending from the bay shore were rotten.
It looked like this place had indeed been abandoned for a long time.
Yet in the deep water of that river bend, hidden among the buildings, a cargo ship of unknown origin was moored.
From the outside, this ship was perfectly blocked by the haphazardly constructed buildings.
Combined with how remote this location was, unless someone came here specifically, no one would ever discover that a cargo ship like this was hidden here!
"What the hell..."
Leonard was also astonished. Unlike the dilapidated shipyard, this ship's exterior was intact, without any signs of damage or decay. It was clearly a vessel that could operate normally.
A vague figure appeared at the bow, seemingly the very hooded person who had ambushed them.
They watched as he lightly jumped down from the bow. With a "splash" of water, he dove into the Tussock River, submerging into the riverbed and disappearing from sight.
"Don't chase him. Let's board the ship and take a look."
Leonard said in a low voice.
The ship had extended a plank toward the shore. The two of them carefully stepped across the board and came aboard.
As soon as they entered the cabin, the fresh smell of blood hit them in the face, rushing into their nostrils rich and unconcealed.
The two exchanged glances and followed the bloody scent, searching everywhere.
They discovered corpses on the deck, in the crew quarters, and even in the captain's cabin. Some bodies lay in beds, perhaps originally sleeping.
Those on the deck might have been keeping watch. There was also a group gathered in the dining hall, sailors who looked like they'd been holding a feast... And now they were all dead.
Pretty ruthless work.
Silas thought to himself as he walked into the captain's cabin. He found a person dressed as the captain collapsed over the navigation table.
The ship's log had been thrown into a brazier and burned until only the cover remained.
Just who had come to silence them, and for what purpose?
Perhaps checking what cargo they were transporting would help them understand.
They headed down to the lower cabin. Pulling open the hatch below, a wave of hot air mixed with a foul smell surged up.
The two readied their revolvers, raised the gas lamp, and stepped onto the stairs of the lower cargo hold, descending step by cautious step with extreme vigilance.
The orange-yellow glow of the gas lamp extended forward at its edges, illuminating face after face in the depths of the cabin, some terrified, some numb, some exhausted.
The cargo they were transporting was people.
"This situation is beyond our capabilities. We need to report to the captain."
After emerging from the cabin, Leonard said to Silas with a grim expression.
No one could have expected that what had started as an ordinary adultery investigation would ultimately involve human trafficking connected to Beyonders.
The people in the lower cabin clearly had the skin tones and features of those from the Southern Continent.
When questioned, they would only respond in Dutanese from the Southern Continent. There was no way to communicate at all.
"Bastard!"
Leonard looked somewhat furious and suddenly cursed the Mr. Pond he'd never met face to face. "I thought he was just having a little affair, but who knew he was actually running a human trafficking operation!"
"Many of the girls inside look like they've been violated."
Silas also nodded with understanding.
No wonder when they'd questioned that spirit world creature earlier, it had seemed so confused.
It was because Mr. Pond wasn't having an affair at all. He was using the convenience of slave trafficking to brutally assault the young women among them.
Leonard stayed angry in the cabin for a while, gradually controlling his emotions, then looked up and said, "Let's go. We'll head back and report to the captain."
Silas squeezed the small vial in his jacket pocket, which contained the hooded person's blood.
"Why don't you go alone? I'll stay here and keep watch."
He said to Leonard.
Leonard was startled. "But that's not safe..."
"That guy already ran off. Is he really going to come back and let us catch him?" Silas said.
"If I stay, I can protect the scene. Plus, if you go alone, you'll be faster without me slowing you down."
What he said did make sense. Leonard was quickly convinced. After reminding him to be careful, he left on his own first.
After watching Leonard's figure disappear into the distance, Silas clutched the small vial of fresh blood, his expression dark as he walked back into the cabin.
Sending Leonard away wasn't for any other reason. It was purely to get revenge on that bastard who'd dared stab him!
He was going to use a ritual to curse the other party until he took their life!
***
Silas walked into the dining hall.
Many corpses lay scattered about inside, the very sailors who'd been having a feast and banquet earlier.
The grilled fish and mushroom soup on the table were still steaming, but the people meant to enjoy them were dead.
The sailors' faces were frozen in terror. Each one had been killed with a single strike, dispatched cleanly and efficiently straight to the vital point.
"Perfect. With all these people killed, I don't even need to find ritual sacrifices."
Silas sniffed the heavy scent of blood in the dining hall and said with a cold laugh.
He lit two candles on the dining table, then drew the ritual dagger from his jacket, cut his finger, and evenly smeared blood on the blade.
He didn't create a spiritual wall. Instead, he raised the dagger in the dining hall full of corpses.
"Master who created everything."
He used Hermes, calling out the True Creator's honorific name.
The surroundings quieted down. In the summer season of August or September, even the insect chirping from outside couldn't be heard.
"Ruler behind the curtain of shadow."
The cabin began to sway, and the hanging gas lamp swung, casting shadows.
Silas still only recited two lines of the honorific name, not the full title.
But a certain blasphemous, evil power had already faintly descended. The hidden existence he called upon was eager to bestow its grace upon him.
Like a generous sales manager constantly extending a customer's trial period.
But what a sales manager wanted was merely your money. What an evil god wanted was more than just your soul.
"Praise the Master. Offer sustenance to the great Master."
Silas spoke pious words in a thoroughly impious tone. "May the Master's breath always accompany me, eliminate obstacles for us..."
Phantom wind sounds arose in the dining hall, the wind carrying the shrill wails of the dying.
After the wind passed, the originally heavy scent of blood suddenly became very thin, as if swept away by the wind to somewhere unknown.
The faces of the dead became abnormally pale, transforming from the pallor of corpses to a ghastly white like that of inorganic matter.
Silas raised the ritual dagger and gently flicked it through the air. A certain evil and pure aura of corruption clung to the blade.
He twirled the dagger round and round, letting the aura adhere evenly to the blade's surface, then crouched down while gripping the dagger.
The cabin floor was made of wood. He easily carved a crude little figure on it with the dagger.
The figure's image was rough, about the size of a palm.
After Silas drew the outline of the figure, he took out the vial of fresh blood from his pocket and poured it over the stick figure.
The modest amount of blood dripped down, and driven by some unknown force, it spread flat, evenly covering the figure's outline without spilling out at all.
Silas raised the dagger, blade pointing down.
"You dared to stab me?"
He said with a cold laugh and viciously stabbed down!
"Pfft!"
The dagger pierced straight through the wooden plank. Though it clearly struck wood, Silas felt the elastic feedback of piercing flesh.
The blood on the surface of the stick figure rippled in response, as if it were screaming in extreme agony.
"Feel good?"
Silas sneered coldly, pulled out the dagger, and stabbed down at the figure again.
"Hm?"
The feedback from this strike was less, and it came with faint resistance.
Someone was blocking his curse.
"Hmph. You really think you can stop me?"
Silas laughed viciously, directly took the dagger and slashed open his palm, letting fresh blood pour freely into the figure's outline, then raised the dagger with both hands high.
"Praise the Master!"
He shouted with a savage expression and stabbed down at the figure with all his strength!
"Pfft..."
The blood on the figure's surface seemed about to boil! Blood droplets splattered and leaped, but before long, they lost all vitality, becoming like dead matter, slowly seeping down through the gap the dagger had carved.
Silas watched all this coldly. When the strange phenomenon ended, he pulled out the knife, quickly cleaned up the scene, then stood up and strode toward the exit of the cabin.
Leonard would be back soon. He needed to hurry back up to the deck and act like nothing had happened.
***
At the same time, somewhere in Tingen City.
A lavish ball was in full swing. To the sound of melodious music, more than a dozen pairs of well-dressed gentlemen and ladies danced gracefully in the ballroom.
The light from the crystal chandelier illuminated the magnificent hall and made the gems on every lady's snow-white neck reflect brilliant radiance.
Suggestive whispers arose beneath the cover of music. Happy laughter mingled with the scent of ladies' perfume, spreading through the air.
The gentlemen's gazes wandered through the crowd, searching for that most enchanting silhouette, but found nothing.
Thus, those gazes inevitably became disappointed and regretful. They sighed, wondering which lucky fellow tonight would have the privilege of her favor?
In a certain secret room on the second floor, the voluptuous and alluring Madam Sharon, with that stunningly beautiful face that had captivated countless people, now wore an icy expression as she asked, "Nighthawks?"
Beside her stood a beautiful young woman with a round face, wearing a dress.
It was precisely the girl Silas had encountered before.
"Yes, at least one Sequence 8 Midnight Poet."
Facing them was the hooded assassin. He had already removed his hood, revealing himself to be a young man. Clutching his injured arm, he answered, "But I've already silenced everyone on the ship..."
Just then, before he could finish his words, he suddenly showed an expression of extreme terror.