"The Four Kings and Seven Admirals? Of course I know them well."
Anderson smiled.
As an adventurer at sea, if he didn't know even these basic facts, he might as well quit now. "Which aspect of them do you want to know about?"
"Spheres of influence, styles of operation, abilities... basically, tell me everything you know."
Silas gestured to the empty chair beside him.
"Let's start with the Kings, then."
Anderson readily sat down in the armchair. "Do I really need to introduce the 'Queen Mystic'? After all, you two seem pretty familiar."
"Speak."
"All right, then.
The 'Queen Mystic's' fleet mainly sails the Sea of Mist.
Although she's called a Pirate King, she never actually plunders civilian vessels," Anderson said.
"She and her fleet spend most of their time opposing the official fleets of Intis and exploring the lost islands of the Sea of Mist, as if searching for something."
Looking for her father's relics, perhaps.
Silas silently filled in the blank, nodding. "Continue."
"Then there's the most powerful Pirate King, the 'King of the Five Seas,' Nast.
He claims to be a descendant of the Fourth Epoch's Solomon Empire, of noble bloodline.
Not only is he a high-sequence powerhouse himself, but the flagship he commands is also a ghost ship left behind by the Empire, the 'Black Emperor.'"
When Anderson mentioned this King, his expression turned serious.
"This King established rules for pirate raids, requiring no killing and no sexual violence... but aside from his own fleet, it's hard to say how well other pirates follow them."
"Every so often, he organizes pirate gatherings to mediate disputes and establish order.
Nast's abilities are bizarre; he can twist the rules within a certain area. His enemies often suffer tremendous disadvantages."
A ghost ship from the Solomon Empire, huh? Technically speaking, I now own one too.
Silas thought to himself.
After that, Anderson shared information about the "King of Immortality" Agalito, repeatedly emphasizing this "betrayer's" cruelty and cunning, and the bloody madness of his methods.
He didn't mention the "King of the Black Throne" at all, naturally concluding that section and moving on to the seven Pirate Admirals:
"Admiral Hell" Ludwell, formerly under the "King of the Five Seas," now seemingly connected to the "Spirit Order";
"Admiral of Stars" Cattleya, who broke with the "Queen Mystic" and is suspected of joining the "Moses Ascetic Order";
"Admiral of Blood" Senor, suspected to be an wraith;
"Admiral Deep Sea" Howl Constantine, who possesses sea monster bloodline;
"Vice Admiral Iceberg" Edwina Edwards;
"Vice Admiral Dusk" Bulatov Ivan, and...
"And 'Vice Admiral of Ailment' Tracy.
She took control of the deceased 'Vice Admiral Hurricane' Qilangos's fleet and became the newest Pirate Admiral."
Anderson suddenly paused.
He sensed the atmosphere in the room cooling slightly.
"Meow?"
Luna, the black cat kneading the blanket on the bed, also stopped and looked toward the source of the chill.
"Disease?"
Silas asked coolly.
"...Yes. Wherever Tracy passes, disease mysteriously breaks out," Anderson answered.
"Is she beautiful?"
Silas asked, his emotions unreadable.
"Beautiful. Beautiful enough that countless pirates are willing to approach her even knowing they might die of disease."
Stunning beauty, spreading disease... absolutely no mistake!
Silas thought darkly. This so-called "Lady of Diseases" is a Demoness of Affliction!
Is she the Demoness Sect's representative at sea?
In an instant, he recalled his sacrificed followers and the countless East Borough residents who had died.
"Does she have backing?"
Silas continued to ask, the shadow at his feet seemingly beginning to writhe.
"Not clear. She only became a Vice Admiral recently; her background is still murky."
Anderson replied with difficulty, tearing his gaze away from Silas's shadow.
Silas gave a soft "Oh." "I see."
Well, now I have a short-term goal.
He hadn't yet avenged the Great Smog.
He still hadn't figured out what the damned George III and the Demoness Sect were plotting.
He might as well go find trouble with this Witch and see if he could draw out the forces behind her...
After pondering for a moment, he suddenly looked up at Anderson and asked:
"Anderson, are you interested in becoming a pirate?"
"...Huh?"
Anderson never expected Silas to say something like that. He froze on the spot.
"What did you say?"
Coming to his senses, he asked tentatively.
"I said, stop being an adventurer. Come be a pirate with me," Silas said with a smile.
"I'm planning to form a fleet, currently recruiting crew members.
If you join, I can make you first mate. With Luna, the black cat mascot, stretched out over there, and three of us working together, becoming King of the Seas is only a matter of time.
"Haha, that's... quite a joke..."
Anderson gave a pale, feeble laugh. After a moment, he asked again, "Are you serious?"
"Of course."
Silas nodded.
If he wanted to continue opposing the Loen royal family, relying on himself alone would be too thin.
He needed to build up a force at the very least, and a pirate crew was an excellent choice.
He planned to intercept official Loen fleet ships at sea, rescue those Southern Continent and island residents forcibly abducted, while also supporting resistance groups in the colonies.
In short, extremely vengeful as he was, he would make the Loen royal family miserable!
At the same time, he might be able to play his part and absorb the effects of his potion...
"Don't worry about the moral side of things. The fleet I'm putting together won't go after civilians. We'll be aiming at other pirates and Loen officials."
Silas said this to Anderson with a smile, but instead of reassuring him, it only made him more uneasy.
Honestly, after spending this much time together, he found Anderson quite useful.
Whether it was knowledge of the sea or his own abilities, both were excellent. He was also quite sharp, not missing a screw in his head like most adventurers.
Anderson's expression was deeply conflicted.
Clearly, he wanted to refuse, but he couldn't find a good reason.
"Can you give me some time to think about it?"
He gave a bitter smile. "This all came out of nowhere."
Anderson took pride in being the "Strongest Hunter." Now, being asked to suddenly become "prey" was hard to accept in every sense.
"Whatever," Silas said, sounding noncommittal. "I'm not forcing you."
He had a rough idea of what Anderson was thinking and didn't intend to push him. After all, Anderson wasn't like that gang boss Charles, he hadn't done anything wrong.
Forcibly pulling him into a life of piracy and a bad reputation wouldn't be right.
He'd let Anderson think it over first, then tempt him with the "Red Priest" card.
If he still didn't accept, then forget it. He could recruit slowly.
After all, with a demigod as captain, becoming the fifth Pirate King at sea was truly something to look forward to.