Chapter 9: Trusting “Instinct”

"Vivian, what should we do now?"

Papanov didn't give any orders immediately. Instead, he hurriedly ran to ask Vivian for his opinion. Seeing this, Kuto, who had just been stationed in Loguetown for less than a month, was puzzled.

What's going on?

Isn't Vivian just A Petty Officer like me?

A Lieutenant taking orders from A Petty Officer?

Kuto squinted his eyes and began to think.

"Lieutenant Papanov insists on taking Vivian out to sea. Maybe there's something special about him."

Could it be that this guy, contrary to appearances, is a rare commanding talent?

He speculated.

The reason Papanov sought Vivian's opinion was because, two years ago, when Vivian had just joined the navy, he had saved Papanov's life with an astonishing "instinct."

Of course, Papanov didn't know that choices would appear in Vivian's mind.

Although he had some doubts about Vivian's so-called "instinct," over the past two years, Vivian had used his miraculous predictive ability to help the navy escape danger more than twenty times, which was undeniable.

Therefore, not only Papanov but also the veterans who had gone to sea with Vivian trusted his decisions implicitly.

At this moment, Vivian looked at the three options that appeared before him, slightly lost in thought.

"Nine-Headed Dragon Flash?"

Although he hadn't watched "Rurouni Kenshin," just hearing the name gave him a sense of its formidable power.

As for the sword techniques from "Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice"…

Having broken a controller over that game in his previous life, Vivian was well aware of their power.

"Great, very tempting skills."

But I… still choose 3!

"Drop anchor, stop the ship, and try to position the warship near the surrounding reefs. Do not act rashly!"

[You chose option 3, reward: Agility +1]

As soon as he finished speaking, Papanov echoed, "Quick, everyone follow Vivian's orders, stop the ship! And remember to turn off the power."

"Yes, Lieutenant Papanov!"

The navy soldiers quickly complied. After furling the sails and dropping the anchor, everyone turned their attention to Vivian, who was observing the situation ahead with binoculars.

"What next?" Papanov asked.

"Wait."

"Wait?"

"Yes."

Vivian nodded, "Let's see how things unfold."

"Oh… okay."

Everyone nodded, though their expressions showed they didn't fully understand what Vivian was waiting for.

Almost an hour passed, and finally, someone couldn't stand it anymore.

"What are we doing now?"

"The Giant Blade Pirates' ship has been anchored in front of that uninhabited island for so long without any movement. That means the pirates must have gone ashore. If we approach now and take their ship, won't they have nowhere to escape?"

The question came from a newly recruited Seaman, and as soon as he spoke, nearly half of the crew agreed.

"Yeah, staying here without moving might be overly cautious, don't you think?"

Although they had heard about Vivian's "heroic deeds" over the past two years from Papanov, most of those who hadn't experienced it firsthand thought Vivian was just lucky.

Take Kuto, for example.

Having witnessed Vivian's "cowardice" a few days ago, he naturally assumed that Vivian was just scared again.

"I suggest we send a ten-man advance team to scout the situation. If there's nothing unusual, we can charge in directly," Kuto proposed.

Everyone thought Kuto's plan was feasible.

However, five minutes later, before the selected ten navy soldiers could get into the small boat, a sea king suddenly emerged near the pirate ship.

With a terrifying roar, the sea king approached within a hundred meters of the ship. Suddenly, there was a deafening explosion, and a hundred-meter-high water column erupted from the sea.

Blood rained down from the sky, and in the blink of an eye, the once massive body was reduced to chunks of flesh, sinking slowly into the sea.

Seeing the sea turn slightly red from the blood, the navy soldiers' faces turned pale.

"Mines?!"

"The Giant Blade Pirates planted mines near the island?"

If Vivian hadn't told them to stay put and observe, everyone on the warship might have ended up like that sea king.

Thinking of this, everyone instinctively turned to look at Vivian.

At the same time, Vivian frowned, a half-smoked cigarette in his mouth, looking thoughtful.

Mines?

And the explosion was so powerful that it turned a sea king over fifteen meters long into a pile of meat.

No wonder the rewards for the first two options were so tempting. The problem was here all along.

If he had followed those options and had Papanov move the warship closer, they would probably be at the bottom of the sea by now.

"Um… Officer Vivian, how did you figure it out?"

Someone couldn't help but ask.

"Hmm?" Vivian was stunned for a moment, then realized they were asking about the mines near the pirate ship.

But…

How did I figure it out?

I have no idea!

Actually, the past hour of waiting had left him just as confused, and when Kuto suggested sending a ten-man team to scout, he almost raised his hand in agreement.

But instead, he said, "Of course, it's due to my keen observation."

"Ah~~~"

Blowing out a smoke ring, Vivian looked up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, feeling a bit lonely in his invincibility.

"So, should we move the ship now?" Papanov asked again.

[Option 1: Stay put and observe. (Reward: Random Cursed Sword)]

[Option 2: Fully activate the propulsion system and head to the west side of the uninhabited island. (Reward: Random Basic Attribute +1)]

"Full speed ahead, head to the west side of the island!!" Vivian commanded.

[You chose option 2, reward: Strength +1]

Under Vivian's command, the warship sped forward.

Meanwhile, the navy soldiers looked back and saw that a large group of sharks had suddenly appeared near the reef where their ship had been anchored, quickly surrounding the spot where the sea king's body had sunk.