Laura and Pierce only show up at dinner time.

The two of them also went out of their way to say hello to the merchants, and then thanked the captain of the Daybreak, Balubak, and thanked the sailors who had helped them. Grad had long been familiar with the people on the ship, and at this time he was drinking with Balubak, who was three times stronger than himself, and the words in his mouth were grandiose and the topics were wild, but Balubak didn't care, but chatted with the dwarven warrior with great interest.

There were very few people around the merchant, so few that they almost became the existence of some rare species, so when Mike learned that the three bounty hunters and the merchant had a long friendship, Elijah became very interested.

Mike: "Actually, I don't know much, but I know that they went on a trip with the store manager more than a year ago, and the place they went to was a small town called Wolf Hidden Town, and I don't know the details of that trip, but the arrows on Laura's body and Pierce's weapons were all given by the store manager, and Gerak seems to have been given by the store manager, but I don't know what it is." ”

Ilya's tone was meaningful: "Hmph~ That's it." ”

It was really unexpected that the shopkeeper would even give gifts, and judging from the picture of the merchant and the hunters talking just now, the woman named Laura seemed to be very familiar with him, and as the only woman on the entire ship except herself, Ilya felt that she could start here.

Ilya came to sit down next to Laura and smiled, "Hello, my name is Ilya, and I now work in an antique shop like Mike. ”

A woman's class sometimes does not come from identity and status, it has the most direct and simple criterion for distinguishing - the difference in appearance.

In fact, from the moment she came to the cafeteria, Laura noticed that this beautiful woman sitting next to Mike, in a space full of men, her presence seemed so prominent, like an elegant lotus flower emerging from the mud.

Laura kept herself as calm as possible: "Hello, my name is Laura, and I'm a bounty hunter. ”

Laura, who used to always be extremely proud to say her identity, seemed to be a little frustrated this time, a bounty hunter who became such a good bounty hunter by virtue of her identity as an enchanter is a thing worthy of admiration by others, but in front of this beautiful woman, in front of the dignified elegance expressed by the other party, her own "bounty hunter" seems so pale and powerless, Laura even wants to ignore it.

First impressions don't represent a person's qualities, and with a little more time, Laura will soon discover that the seemingly quiet Ilya around her has nothing to do with her first impression.

Ilya: "I heard that you've known the store manager for a long time, can you tell me what he was like before?" I'm very curious, of course it's a normal curiosity, and nothing else. ”

The friendly attitude of the other party made Laura a lot more relaxed, and the pressure from her excessively beautiful appearance and excellent temperament almost made Laura want to use honorifics on this girl who was younger than herself.

Laura replied, "Oh, you're talking about Mr. Merchant, he's ...... Not really, just an ordinary antique in my opinion. ”

The other party's evaluation made Ilya skeptical: "How is that possible, that guy...... How can our store manager be 'usual', please think about it, yes, there is no need to worry, I have enough patience to wait for you to think about it, after all, it has been a year, and it is normal for the impression to be a little vague. ”

The blazing gaze of her eyes stunned Laura, and she felt that what Ilya wanted to know was not what the merchant used to be, but more like she wanted to grab the merchant's handle through her former acquaintances. However, the other party's serious inquiry did remind Laura of the original trip to Shadow Wolf Mountain, speaking of which the three of them were almost wiped out by the Triple Crowned Lizard King during that trip, as well as the night conflict with the townspeople, and the wolf spirit witch.

The image of the merchant from a year ago gradually became clear, and Laura said, "Mr. Merchant...... He is a gracious employer, he is always gentle with us and has a friendly smile on his face. ”

Ilya quickly glanced at the place where the merchant was sitting just now, and was disdainful in his heart, it turned out that the previous store manager also liked to use the most perfunctory means to deal with others, and he was the same as that nobleman.

Laura: "Mr. Merchant is definitely a smart man, especially for his control of the situation and ...... The human mind is speculating, and Mr. Merchant can always deal with any dangerous situation without being alarmed, and now that I think about it, it is only by Mr. Merchant's side that we will have that feeling of fearlessness. ”

Ilya pouted: "What, if it's all compliments, isn't there anything else?"

Laura thought it was funny, and knew that the merchant, the new clerk, had an impure purpose, and really came to find out if his boss had any black history before, but unfortunately Laura couldn't help in this matter, because the merchant really didn't do anything wrong in her impression.

The next conversation between the two did not revolve around the businessman, but began to tell their own stories, and then began to discuss the ship, complaining that the design was not cute enough, the bathing system was not perfect enough, and the personnel on the voyage ship rarely took a bath, which was a habit. The more they chatted, the more they found that the other party's views and opinions were very consistent with their own, and then the two began to talk about dressing, the placement of their rooms, the matching of clothes, and where to sell beautiful clothes.

The atmosphere grew more and more enthusiastic, and the only two women on board quickly became good friends.

In the end, when Laura was a little tired, the two decided to talk another day, after all, what happened before, Ilya couldn't pull Laura to talk all the time, even if it was a bounty hunter, three days and three nights of wandering would still have a certain impact on the body, and more rest was needed to recover.

After saying goodbye, Laura was about to leave the cafeteria, and just half a step later, she heard Elijah say, "Hello Pierce, my name is Elijah, and I'm the new clerk of the store manager, I want to know with you what the store manager was like before, can I?"

Laura smiled wryly and shook her head, what a special and lovely clerk.

......

...

In the next voyage, there were three more guests on board, and the hunters had no other way to leave the sea than to return with the Dawnbreaker, so they could only follow everyone to the Thirteen Skulls Island, and by the way, see if there was anything that could help, so as to repay the saving grace.

The opportunity to repay came quickly.

The addition of personnel made the great writer Elijah very happy, she did not need to make any cutbacks to the script, and the princess role, which was rejected by the merchant in every way, got a perfect candidate, Lara, who was a woman.

Laura never imagined that she would have to play the princess one day, mixing with men all day long, often taking the sky as the bed and the earth as a bed, she actually had to play a princess with golden branches and jade leaves, received higher education since childhood, and behaved elegantly and movingly, and the unexpected appearance always caught people off guard.

Elijah: "Look at Laura, you're a princess, my perfect princess, you have to be confident, keep your head high, don't ...... I'm going to pick you a better looking dress in my clothes so that it matches your looks and who you are, yes, yes, walk gracefully, it's great, it's a big improvement, Laura. ”

Under Elijah's guidance, Laura is trying her best to control the functioning of her body, but she is still too stiff for Laura to fit into the princess role.

Grack was watching all this with a flask: "Look, Pierce, Laura, this woman can play the princess, cut, is there anything more ridiculous than this?

Pierce: "But Grad, when Laura put on the dress, you were obviously surprised and said, 'I didn't expect Laura to look good in the dress', why do you think Laura can't play the princess now." ”

Grak took a sip of wine to cover it up: "That's what I said casually, how can you take it seriously, but you, memorize the lines, remember that you are facing the most powerful general of the enemy country, Lord Grak, if you don't pay attention, you will be killed by me." ”

Pierce: "But...... Didn't I kill you in the script?"

Grak: "Aha, don't think like that, anything is possible, don't underestimate your opponent, Pierce. ”

The dwarven warrior put down the jug and picked up the battle axe, and with a loud shout, he played a sharp axe technique, and the action was done in one go.

After collecting the axe, he looked at the other party proudly and said, "How is it, it's amazing!"

Before Pierce could express his admiration, Elijah's voice sounded behind him: "Come here, Grad, after careful consideration, I decided to cut back a few lines, so that you can leave the stage quickly, and our princess can appear." ”

Gerak silently carried the axe and took the flask, his face full of pain. Heroes regret that no one appreciates the strength of our generation, which is sad and lamentable.

......

...

Different from the lively rehearsals on the deck, the merchant stayed alone in the cabin, with rows of identical rings in front of him, the addition of three bounty hunters has good and bad, in general, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, you only need to reconsider the distribution of the "water ring", the original number of rings is not enough, and now three more combat forces have been added, except for the three sailors who could have been assigned to the rings, one goes and one adds, it is clear whether it is good or bad.

The merchant's preparation for the Water Ring in the past few days stems from that conversation with Balubak on the deck, and the monster in Balubak's mouth is the same as the previous Calamity Spirit, something that should not exist in this world, and the Selene Banshee is a monster that inhabits the River Styx.

Once again, the unexpected happened, but this time the accident was a precious clue, whether it was the Soul of Calamity or the Banshee of Selen, they both pointed to the same place - the River Styx.

The ferryman's coin, the Holy See of the Orne Empire seems to be interested in the realm of the undead, a hint, an important hint that allows merchants to predict the other party's next move.

The three hunters had been on the Daybreak for more than ten days, and time had passed very quickly, and each day had a busy day under the frequent command of Elijah, and the stage show was beginning to come to an end, only to reach the climactic end of the last few acts.

The general Grak, who had been "killed" early and had fewer and fewer lines, had successfully dedicated his life and returned to drink behind the scenes, and Mike was also by his side, as well as Mike's "combined war horses" Ace and Mosan.

Mike: "Ilya's script is really good, right? ”

Grack hiccuped, "Yes, yes, that's good, if only I could live a few more scenes." ”

Mike said in a reasonable tone, "But if you live a few more scenes, won't I have to appear a few more scenes later?"

The dwarven warrior glanced at the people around him, my God, what happened to make Xiao Mike become this ruthless appearance now, this world is really getting more and more infiltrating, or the wine in his hand is good, it will never betray you.

Gerak left it all behind and concentrated on the jug.

Remembering what happened to the hunters, Mike asked curiously, "Grak, you haven't told me why you're at sea, and you're still on a lonely plank. ”

Mike wanted to ask about this matter for a long time, but due to the fact that the three of them were too weak and uncomfortable at the beginning, Gluck was like that again after recovery, and then the script of Ilya was reopened, and it has been delayed until now.

Speaking of this, Grack became angry, and his voice became vicious: "Damn, it's all the old vulture's fault, you know the old vulture, it doesn't matter if you don't know him, you just need to remember how vicious he is." ”

The ears of the "combined war horse" Ace and Mo Sang moved, obviously more interested in this topic.

Ace: "So how vicious this old vulture is, I really want to know. ”

Mo Sang echoed: "That's right, that's right, you have to know what to do before you know how to take precautions." ”

Grack: "Well, it seems that I must teach you a lesson in advance, lest the old vulture suffer a great loss, and then how can I explain to Captain Barubak, who saved my life, and to Mr. Merchant, who took great care of me." ”

At this point, all three thought that Gerak was ready to start telling them about the strange things that had happened to bring the three bounty hunters to such a point. But they didn't expect that the first thing they needed to seek the truth in Gerlac's mouth was to be baptized by the wave of swearing.

Automatically isolating Grak's mouth from popping out of his mouth without repeating the swear words, Mike apologized to the other two embarrassedly: "I'm sorry, my friend he ...... Well, I can't find any more words to remedy. ”

Ace: "No, Mike, you don't need that, it's good, you get along with each other in an enviable way." ”

Ace patted Mike on the shoulder, and Mo San also poked his head out and gave Mike a thumbs up, whether it was the smile on the corner of his mouth or the emotion in his eyes, every movement showed the real envy of the two.

Mike was a little baffled. He didn't understand what was enviable about such expletiveness.

After another venting, Gerak really got to the point: "Actually, it all comes from a mission, please note, everyone, this is not a simple task, it is a task personally issued by the president of the Bounty Hunter Guild, as for the content of the task...... It doesn't really matter, the important thing is that we were named by the President himself during this mission, which is a great honor for a bounty hunter. It's just a pity that it's not just the three of us, there are other people. ”

Mike: "So the old vulture is the 'other guy', and you had an accident on the way to the mission?"

Grack scoffed, "No, no, no, how could it be an accident?! Plotting against everyone at the end of the mission, and then getting all the benefits by myself, as always, ahhhh

Ace and Moissan's interest grew, and they asked, almost simultaneously, "What did the old vulture do?"

As soon as Grak was about to open his mouth, a dark wind blew, piercing the bodies of everyone present, and everyone's movements stopped, and time was stopped at this moment.

Boom!

A door fell to the deck, and Barubak kicked the door of the captain's quarters open, and he ordered with an extremely serious expression: "Boys, give me the to return to your posts, the destination of our voyage is coming." ”

The sailors' expressions suddenly changed and dispersed, and in an instant they were in a state of shape, returning to their proper appearance.

Gerak shook off the flask, battle axe in both hands, and Pierce drew his weapon and stood beside him. Laura ripped off her long skirt, revealing her undershirt and changing into her soft armor, putting a quiver on her back and pulling the bowstring.

"Give these rings to everyone. ”

The merchant who came to the deck at some point handed Elijah a bag, she opened it and saw that the bag was full of water rings, which is a ring that gives the wearer the ability to breathe underwater, and Ilya looked closely and found that each ring was an additional layer of protection, a magic that provided consciousness protection to the wearer.

Unexpectedly, the preparation was quite sufficient, Ilya thought to herself, but after counting carefully, she found that the number of rings was not enough, and Ilya looked at the merchant suddenly, as if she wanted to confirm something on the other party.

The merchant said indifferently, "Well, the number is not enough, so I need you to bring rings to specific people and listen to the names I will read next." Mike, Gracker, Laura, Pierce, Balubak, Es, Moissan......"

Yu Yu's calm tone froze Ilya's whole body, and she interrupted the merchant, "Why?"

The merchant replied calmly: "This is a list I have drawn up based on the importance of personnel and the minimum requirements required to operate the ship when returning to sea, according to our plan, you just need to protect them......"

Ilya interrupted the merchant again: "This is not included in our plans, and besides, this is not what I asked. ”

"Everything always comes with sacrifice, and ......"

The merchant stopped talking, the pain on Ilya's face made it impossible for him to keep his narrative flat, and the merchant sighed and said, "I'm sorry Ilya, this is the maximum number of water rings I can make, and there is nothing else I can do. ”

Ilya approached the merchant and said in a categorical voice: "I will protect them all." ”

The merchant staggered his gaze: "Maybe, if you can do it." ”

Ilya is like a sharp knife pointed at the merchant, and the atmosphere between the two is quite inappropriate.

"It's a minor issue Ilya, let me do it. ”

Ace held out her hand to Elijah, but she couldn't hand over the ring easily, wasn't that a kind of sentence for the others?

Ace turned slightly to the side, just to block the view of Mike, who was standing at the back, and said, "We have known for a long time that Mr. Merchant specifically told us a few days ago, and our entire crew has no objection to this. ”

Ilya looked at Ace, who was still smiling at the corners of her mouth like a monster, and she refused, "No, I don't allow it." ”

Ace approached to take the ring from the other's hand: "Ilya, thank you very much, thank you very much, don't worry about us, forgot?" We are half-breeds, and our physical fitness is better than your average, and Mr. Merchant is not discriminating against us, and certainly not because of our origins, he made this arrangement very clear to us, and asked us for our opinions, we are all grateful, you just need to protect the people who should be protected according to Mr. Merchant's plan, so that Mr. Merchant can leave the ship with peace of mind to deal with the enemies who need to be destroyed. Elijah, you should know that the ring is not enough, so that's fine, come on, take your ring and Mike...... Give it to him, and I'll send it to the other sailors. ”

Ilya was speechless, she wanted to refute, but she couldn't find the words, the other party accepted it as it should, and the merchant disposed of it with a blank face.

In the end, she had to let go.

"I'll give him Mike's ring, and I'...... I don't need to, I'm a magician, I can protect myself, and I can protect you. ”

The last stubbornness.

Illia didn't give time for Ace to retort, picked up a ring and walked over to Mike.

Ace took the ring, nodded to the merchant, and began to hand out the water ring.

......

...

The fence cracked under Barubak's excessive force, his blood was boiling, his heart was beating like a drum, and Barubak could only hear his own heart whispering its excitement.

The current was raging, the ship was heading upstream, and in the direction of the Daybreak, there seemed to be a presence capable of devouring the light at the destination in front of it, and the light of the sun was being left behind by everyone.

The rocking of the ship's hull became more and more intense, and everyone had to hold on to what was around them to keep their balance. As the Dawnbreak progressed, everyone felt as if they were in a different world, the light gradually dimmed, the temperature plummeted, and by the time the sailors reacted, a mist had formed around the ship.

After a while, the hull of the ship began to settle down, the water below the ship seemed to be still, the wind stopped, the sails dried up, but the ship kept moving, and the predators hiding in the depths were luring the prey closer little by little.

Mo Sang licked his lips, the silence around him was so panicked that he couldn't even hear the slightest sound of water, this excessive weirdness made Mo Sang a little nervous, he hoped to say a word to someone to prove that he was not alone, and at the same time worried that his actions would break the ship's readiness.

Everyone's expressions were intimidatingly focused.

It is a kind of concentration that cannot be disturbed by others.

Suddenly felt a sinking on his shoulders, Mo Sang turned around, it was Ace who put his hand on himself, and a simple action made Mo Sang calm down instantly.

Yes, that's right, Ace has always been the eldest brother of all of them, from himself at the beginning, to Tigra, Kendi, Mogoth, etc., Ace found them one by one, found them on the continent ruled by humans, and since then Ace has been their eldest brother, has always taken care of them, and has always led them.

This time was no exception.

Moissan's form is back in shape, and as long as Ace is around, everything will be solved.

In Mike's eyes, everyone seemed to be standing still. Pierce is like a statue, you can't even see the ups and downs of his body's breathing, Grack is like a bomb that stays in the moment before it explodes, ready to explode but still at any moment, and Laura, Mike doesn't know how long she's been in the position of pulling the bowstring, and that arm that doesn't look thick has such amazing staying power, which Mike didn't expect.

Even Elijah, who usually giggles, was as quiet as a different person in this situation, and Mike could still feel the nervousness in her, a tension that was ready at any moment.

The sailors who liked to joke were all grim-faced, every nerve was tense, and one of them, Mike, could feel the pressure like a mountain without looking back, and Captain Balubuck was watching the audience condescendingly outside the captain's room.

The only one who made Mike feel like normal was probably the store manager, although the store manager also felt more serious than usual, but Mike didn't feel a trace of nervousness from the other party, this kind of calmness similar to everything under control made Mike feel at ease, otherwise he probably wouldn't have the courage to continue standing on the deck.

Suddenly, a graceful singing voice sounded, the tone was as gentle as a faint spring water, the deep and ethereal feeling occupied the heart, and it was like a pair of warm hands hugging you tightly, a comfortable and reassuring feeling wrapped around the whole body, and you were already deep in it before you knew it.

The merchant's eyes froze.

It's finally here.