Chapter 45: The Petty Man

"Kid, if you don't want your head moving houses, stay still. Who sent you to kill me? Don't try to pretend you're a pirate or something; I've met plenty of pirates, and Earth Sea pirates don't rob like you do." Charles's words were frivolous, but the gaze behind his mask was cold.

"I... if I tell you, will you not kill me?" fear filled the eyes of the man threatened by Charles.

"I might consider it."

"It was... it was..."

Just as Charles thought he was about to speak, the man's neck suddenly stretched forward, and a razor-sharp blade easily decapitated him.

Scalding blood sprayed onto Charles's mask, staining the shiny white mask red.

Stunned for two seconds, Charles cursed under his breath as he stood up and turned to leave the cabin.

As the footsteps faded away, the head on the ground slowly opened its eyes.

A smug smile formed at his lips, creating an eerie atmosphere in the dark cabin.

The head wriggled its mouth and ears, rolling towards a corpse nearby.

"Whoa!" A black dagger plunged into the ground, blocking its path. The head turned in terror, only to find that the masked man had somehow returned and was now standing there, tilting his head and staring at it.

"Since I knew you were from the supernatural side, how could I not be prepared?" Charles charged forward, kicking the head away; it hit the wall hard before rolling back to his feet.

"So a severed head can survive, huh? Alright, let's have some fun then. Seeing you like this sparks many ideas in my mind! What if I threw you into a crucible to boil? Would you still live?" Charles said, stepping on the head.

"Sir, I was wrong, don't boil me. I'll tell you everything..." The right eye of the crying head suddenly bulged out and fell to the ground, and a small person curled up came crawling out from inside.

The small person, resembling an underdeveloped baby with a translucent body tinged pink and bloated, deformed limbs, looked unsettling in any light.

Its voice was as thin as a mosquito's, and trembling, it lay on the ground and shouted, "Priest Sonni ordered me to control your crew and ambush you, and he's the one who told me to kill you."

The corners of Charles's mouth rose behind his mask, revealing an exaggerated smile. "So it was that boy, fine, this grudge is noted."

"Mr. Charles! I'm also innocent! Sonni took over our island and forced me to work for him. I've told you everything, please spare me."

"Spare you? You, who tried to kill me? You wish."

The panicked small person suddenly remembered something and quickly stood up, pointing to a corner cabinet and shouting, "There's a hidden compartment in there, it contains the payment Sonni gave me, now it's all yours—"

With a "splat," Charles's boot came down, and the small person's voice stopped abruptly.

"Just said you were forced, and now there's a payment?" Charles wiped his sticky boot and walked over to the cabinet.

He pushed open the cabinet and a keyhole appeared on the floor. Charles used Black Blade to quickly slide through the hole, unlocking the hidden door.

Gold bricks, glittering and neatly arranged, filled the not-so-large space—a rough estimate was that there were at least several kilos, extremely valuable whether on Earth's surface or in Earth Sea.

"Wow, I didn't realize I was worth so much," Charles said, picking up a brick to bite into it and test its authenticity, only to be blocked by his mask.

Disgruntled, he stood up and walked towards the staircase.

As soon as he came out, Charles saw the crew members preparing to enter; the paper people who had been attacking wildly were now lying motionless on the ground, clearly controlled by the small person.

"How are the casualties?" Char removed the mask from his face.

The Second Officer, Keno, didn't answer the question. Instead, he excitedly said to Charles, "Captain, Sodoma has appeared!"

When they rushed to the deck again, the scene before them completely shocked everyone.

Small mountain peaks made of various disorganized ship bodies appeared before them, with flickering lights among the "mountains," and the figures on the "mountains" loomed in the dim environment like ghostly shadows.

The "mountain" wasn't motionless, it drifted forward slowly but resolutely—this was Earth Sea pirates' stronghold, Sodoma.

"Captain, Sodoma is here, shall we go?" the Second Officer asked Charles.

But Charles just stood there silent, and Krona, puzzled, gently patted him on the shoulder.

In that instant, it was as if he touched a certain switch. Charles's originally healing wound suddenly burst open again, splattering bright scarlet blood several meters away.

Listening as the crew's cries of shock quickly diminished, Charles's consciousness rapidly descended into darkness.

Regaining consciousness, Charles found himself no longer on the ship. He looked around; it was pitch-black.

Suddenly, light shone from below, and he saw himself, a younger version standing in a wooden boat, holding a lantern and looking around hesitantly.

It was when he had first come to this region of Earth Sea. Charles anticipated what would happen next, and his breathing grew rapid.

At this moment, the young Charles leaned over to look into the water, only to see something the size of a ping pong ball emitting a greenish glow in the dark water depths, moving slowly.

The ping pong ball suddenly stopped and rapidly shot upwards. In an instant, the object grew enormous, the entire massive sphere clinging tightly to the water surface, illuminating a large area of the sea in a ghostly glow.

If the surface's ping pong ball was a football field, then Charles was the football placed at the center of the field.

In the middle of the greenish glow appeared a black dot. That wasn't a ping pong ball; it was an eye of some creature!

Under its gaze, Charles saw his younger self begin to transform.

Writhing tentacles, trembling internal organs, a face of fear and despair, sharp nails or teeth, and various sickening organs continuously proliferated on his body.

Charles watched helplessly as his younger self turned into a detestable pile of flesh and monster.

An indescribable extreme fear enveloped Charles; he wanted to close his eyes, but he couldn't.

The eye in the water suddenly moved and looked at Charles in the air. "It sees me! It sees me!!"

"Aaaaah!!!" Charles, drenched in cold sweat, suddenly sat up.

James, who was dozing off nearby, quickly ran over, concerned, "Captain? Are you alright??"

As Charles regained his composure, he observed his surroundings. His body was lying on a dirty wooden bed, and the ground and tables around were covered with bottles and jars filled with various things. The air was filled with a mix of rotten and herbal scents.

"Where is this?" Charles pulled open his shirt and found his wound wrapped in a bandage.

"Captain, we're in Sodoma. You nearly scared us to death; we thought you really had died. Luckily, there's a doctor here." The honest, burly man poured a glass of water and handed it over.