The streets of Tortuga were muddy and filthy.
The air was a complex mixture of seawater, rum, sweat, and vomit.
It was no exaggeration to say that it was enough to make any pampered modern person faint on the spot.
But for pirates who had just experienced life-and-death trials at sea, this was paradise.
Along both sides of the street were all sorts of crooked wooden houses.
Pub signs hung precariously, the crisp sound of dice and coins clashing came from the casinos, and from some houses with ambiguous red lanterns, women's wanton laughter occasionally drifted out.
Drunken pirates were everywhere.
They linked arms, sang loudly, or drew swords over trivial matters.
Fighting and revelry were the eternal themes here.
As soon as the crew of the sea serpent disembarked, they were like wild horses unleashed, instantly merging into this chaotic ocean.
"Hey, Barbossa! You old geezer, you're still alive!"
A chubby captain with a missing front tooth staggered over and gave Barbossa a bear hug.
"If you haven't died, how could I!"
Barbossa laughed and punched him.
"How was the haul this time?"
"Sigh, don't even mention it. We sailed for two months and only plundered a broken spice ship. It wasn't even enough for the brothers to drink!"
The chubby captain complained, then suddenly noticed Roger beside Barbossa.
"Huh? Where did you find such a clean-cut kid? He doesn't look like someone from your ship."
Barbossa's smile immediately became incredibly smug. He threw an arm around Roger's shoulder, as if showing off his most precious treasure, and announced loudly:
"Let me introduce you! This is my Brother Lin Ye!"
"A true navigational genius!"
He garrulously embellished and boasted about how the sea serpent narrowly escaped death in the storm and how it traversed the Devil's Triangle under Roger's command.
The surrounding pirates listened, stunned, their eyes full of suspicion.
"Traversed the Devil's Triangle? Barbossa, are you talking nonsense from too much rum?"
"Exactly! No ship that enters that place ever comes out!"
Facing the doubts, Gibbs, Billy, and the other crew members of the sea serpent immediately stepped forward, clamoring to vouch for Roger.
"It's absolutely true! We saw it with our own eyes!"
"Mister Roger is a god! He can speak to the sea!"
Seeing the fanatical adoration on the faces of the sea serpent's crew, which didn't seem feigned, the surrounding pirates eyed Roger with a mixture of belief and doubt.
Could this refined-looking young man really be that capable?
Roger didn't care about the flattery and discussions.
He just smiled, letting Barbossa boast.
He knew Barbossa was building momentum for him, enhancing his reputation among these pirates.
Reputation, in this world, was sometimes more useful than gold coins.
A person with prestige would always have crew members follow him, no matter what he did.
"Alright, alright, stop standing around here!" Barbossa waved his hand, "Let's go! To the Mermaid's Song! My treat!"
The Mermaid's Song was one of the largest and liveliest taverns in Tortuga.
When their group pushed open the creaking wooden door of the tavern, a stronger scent of alcohol and sweat mixed with noisy human voices rushed out.
The tavern was packed with people.
Pirates, merchants, vagrants.
And some scantily clad tavern girls weaved through the crowd.
A one-eyed fiddler was playing an out-of-tune melody in the corner.
But the pirates didn't care at all.
As long as there was sound!
They slapped the tables, singing crude songs loudly to the chaotic rhythm.
"Bartender! Bring out all your best rum!"
Barbossa, familiar with the place, walked to the bar and slammed a money bag onto the counter.
"All my brothers' expenses today are on me!"
A plump, still attractive proprietress looked up from behind the bar.
Seeing it was Barbossa, a smile immediately spread across her face:
"Oh, isn't it Captain Barbossa? Looks like you've struck it rich this time!"
"Naturally!"
Barbossa pointed proudly at Roger.
"I found a treasure!"
The proprietress's gaze fell on Roger, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.
She had seen at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, pirates here, all of them rough and fierce-looking. It was the first time she had seen someone as clean and refined as Roger.
The pirates of the sea serpent had already eagerly found a large table and sat down.
The tavern's waiters quickly brought out barrel after barrel of rum.
"Come! The first toast! To our savior, Brother Lin Ye!"
Gibbs was the first to raise his wooden tankard.
"To Brother Lin Ye!"
All the crew members stood up, raising their cups high.
Roger also smiled, raised his cup, clinked it heavily with theirs, and then drained it in one gulp.
The spicy liquor went down his throat, and the atmosphere was instantly ignited.
The pirates began to drink heavily and boast loudly.
Billy even jumped onto the table and began to gesticulate, acting out how they "jumped" over the rapids, drawing bursts of laughter and cheers.
Roger did not participate in their revelry.
He sat alone with his cup in a relatively quiet corner.
The surrounding clamor seemed to fade away, and all his attention was focused on the heavy bag of gold coins.
He subtly reached into his embrace, gripping the money bag tightly.
Now was the time.
He murmured to himself, sinking his consciousness into the system panel in his mind.
Name: Roger
Era: Ancient
Technology Tree: Ancient Ship Technology (0 - Inactive)
Relics: None
Gold Coins: 20
The number of gold coins on the panel had changed from 0 to 20.
Roger's heart began to pound.
He took a deep breath, focusing his thoughts on the gray line "Ancient Ship Technology (0 - Inactive)".
"Host detected to possess gold coins. Do you wish to consume 10 gold coins to activate 'Ancient Ship Technology'?"
A new line of prompt text appeared on the panel.
It really works!
Roger felt a surge of ecstasy. He unhesitatingly chose "Yes."
Gold Coins - 10
Activating 'Ancient Ship Technology'...
The number on the panel instantly changed from 20 to 10, and the text for the technology tree began to glow with a faint blue light.
Roger stared nervously at the panel, anticipating what would happen next.
Would the knowledge be directly poured into his mind?
Or would a list of skills appear for him to learn?
After the light flashed for a few seconds, a new, completely unexpected prompt box popped up.
And the content of this prompt box instantly froze the joy on Roger's face.