Nast Solomon's eyes were deep and unreadable as he gazed at the Black King, this black three-masted ship whose design closely resembled his own flagship.
A moment later, he turned his gaze to Antia.
He had likely already guessed the connection between the two.
"My thanks to you, Blood Reverend."
This king of the Five Seas spoke in a low voice, asking nothing about the ship's origins, offering only a simple word of thanks.
He swept his hand out, gesturing at the pirate ships of every shape and size around them, and at the pirates aboard still shaken from their brush with death. "Every survivor here owes you their gratitude."
If not for Silas, the Rose School of Thought's plan would very likely have succeeded, and the fiercest, most formidable pirates across the Five Seas would have been devoured whole by the Divine Abomination, Suah.
Well, judging by the outcome, ordinary travelers who had hoped to see the pirates wiped out would probably be disappointed.
"I did it mainly to save my own men, and to take revenge on the Rose School of Thought." Silas answered calmly, his face pale.
Truth be told, he cared little whether the other pirates lived or died. At most, he might have acted for the Queen's safety.
"Even so, you did save their lives, as a matter of fact."
Nast shook his head slightly.
"That's right, that's right!"
"Blood Reverend, thanks to you finishing off that whale-buggering bastard Agalito..."
"Our whole crew thanks you!"
The pirates all broke into noisy chatter, thanking Silas in a chaotic clamor. At least in this moment, their gratitude toward the Blood Reverend was genuine.
Nast raised his hand slightly, and an invisible authority radiated outward. The noisy pirates fell silent at once.
Once quiet had settled around them, he spoke to Bernadette aboard the nearby Dawn. "Queen Mystic, the matter we discussed earlier, it seems we now have an answer."
"I feel the same."
Bernadette replied.
This riddle-like exchange between the two left most of the pirates baffled, but Anderson, who had attended the meeting on Silas's behalf, quickly understood, his face lit with excitement.
Which meant...
The two sea kings turned to look at Silas at the same moment, their expressions solemn, and spoke slowly. "Alexander Gascoigne, we hereby formally recognize your title, Scarlet King."
"From this moment on, a new king is born upon the Five Seas!"
The instant the two kings' words fell, the sea fell silent for a moment, then erupted into thunderous cheers.
The pirates brandished their weapons, offering their wild, rough-edged congratulations to the birth of the new king.
Indeed, he had saved the lives of countless pirates, slain the King of Immortality, and gravely wounded the Divine Abomination, Suah.
They had all witnessed with their own eyes just how absurdly powerful the Blood Reverend was. Of course he deserved to become a king!
The pirates aboard the Doe were even more elated.
Their captain had just been personally acknowledged by the other kings, which meant they themselves had truly become men serving under a king.
This sense of glory burned in their chests and finally poured out as excited shouts from their mouths.
Amid the thunderous cheering, several pirate generals exchanged glances but said nothing. Deep within the fleet, Alger watched [Temperance] bask in this glory, gathering in the tangled feelings rising in his heart.
He bowed his head to praise Mr. Fool, and brought his secret prayer ritual to a close.
---
The Sonia Sea. Ruins of the God War.
A massive sailing ship cut through the sea beneath a fierce sun.
Its design was singular: ten white stars of equal size adorned its sails, encircling a single cold, lashless eye.
It passed through one strange sea after another, now and then relying on uncanny abilities to dodge lethal dangers, pressing ever deeper into the ruins.
The flagship of the Admiral of Stars, Cattelya: the Future!
"Phew. Good thing I made it in time this go-around."
In a cabin aboard the Future, Klein opened his eyes and murmured to himself, still a little shaken by the close call.
Silas had already lost his sister and the Lamb in quick succession; his mental state was hanging by a thread. If his crew had been lost this time too, heaven knew how far he might have spiraled into madness!
Klein didn't dare imagine that scene at all.
Still, Silas had gained no small amount of support this time; he'd actually managed to drive back a Sequence 1 Angel...
Through the prayer of [The Hanged Man] Alger, Klein had watched the entire battle unfold.
He was startled to find that Silas now had a Sequence 2 Angel at his side, and even more curious about the strange item Silas had used to restore the Red Angel Spirit's power.
"When I saw that thing, something in my spirituality seemed to stir. And it even bore a symbol representing me..."
Klein sat on the bed, thinking it over for a moment. He guessed the item might be connected to him somehow.
Perhaps it was an ability of a high Sequence within the Seer pathway, or perhaps an effect layered on by the Grey Fog. Borrowing power from history itself: an ability like that was truly formidable!
Thinking of the image of Silas bearing the weight of three Conquerors at once, Klein felt a rush of excitement too. He could hardly wait to advance in Sequence and gain that kind of power for himself.
He couldn't help but glance toward the cabin window.
The Future had been sailing through the Ruins of the God War for a while now, and would soon reach the waters where the mermaids dwelled.
Once there, he could drink the potion of the Grand Master of Secret Effigies and advance to Sequence 5.
But before that...
"Whoosh!"
Suddenly, the sea underwent a change without warning. The midday sun vanished in an instant, replaced by pitch black night.
Klein was long since used to such anomalies. He lay back down at once, closed his eyes, and tried to meditate. He soon fell asleep and slipped into the world of dreams.
Klein opened his eyes and found himself standing outside a black monastery. Not far ahead of him was a cliff, and across from the cliff stood the grand Palace of Dusk. The Admiral of Stars, Cattelya, sat on a large rock before the cliff, arms wrapped around her knees, lost in a daze.
Good, she was still here.
Klein thought to himself, and walked over to stand beside Cattelya.
"Where were we, just now?"
he asked.
"I don't know..."
Cattelya's expression was hazy and distant. Unlike Klein, she couldn't stay lucid within the dream; she could only communicate through her subconscious.
"Oh right, I remember now. We were talking about how the Queen Mystic you regarded as a mother forced you out, and you've been making your own way across the seas alone ever since."
Klein said, watching Cattelya's emotions react at once, turning sorrowful and helpless like a wronged little girl.
"But the two of you still keep in touch, still care for each other. You've even been willing to risk angering Mr. Fool to pass information to her..."
"I haven't betrayed Mr. Fool, I wouldn't dare!"
Cattelya cried out, "I only told her that someone was searching for the potion formula of Sequence 3 on the Secrets Suppliant Pathway! That's what I promised [Temperance] over the Grey Fog!"
Getting from the piece of information she'd revealed to actually deducing the connection between Mr. Fool and Silas would take several more steps; it really couldn't be said that Cattelya had deliberately betrayed him.
"But what did you truly intend, in your heart?"
Klein knew she couldn't lie within a dream, and pressed on. "When you told the Queen Mystic these things, weren't you hoping, deep down, that she'd be able to work out something about Mr. Fool?"
Cattelya fell silent.