Nasir was a repairman on the ship.
He was already used to the feeling of his body swaying with the waves and not returning to the mainland for days or even months.
Ship repairs for him were simple and skillful work, and the best part was that as long as his skills remained, it didn't matter if he didn't interact with others; no one could drive him away from his position.
So this voyage was somewhat hard for Nasir—the ship was crowded with tourists, who were always keen on visiting places that normally no one would go to.
Nasir didn't understand; could those buzzing machines and monotonous pipes be more interesting than the theater above?
The parking lot did have some luxury cars, but those tourists were always running toward the cargo vehicles, which was even stranger.
But as an ordinary repairman, Nasir didn't have the authority to chase away tourists who had paid; he could only scowl, carrying ropes and a toolbox, and quickly passed by the odd tourists.
He could feel that some people were scanning him with spotlight-like gazes, which made Nasir even more uncomfortable, and reminded him of some movies he'd seen.
—For example, "Some Big Heist," "Some Horror Cruise," "Some Nicolas Ship," and so on.
Nasir instantly became alert, pretending to inspect the pipes while tapping with a small hammer, and secretly observing those suspicious tourists.
With this, Nasir instantly felt his hair stand on end!
Just seconds ago, an old man scanning him with icy eyes had vanished!
He was the target Nasir was planning to observe, but now there was no trace in his field of vision. After his heart thumped twice, Nasir found himself an explanation—
Maybe that person left! Yes, that's it!
There was really nothing interesting down here!
Nasir then glanced at the others—
A woman in a green floral dress, a middle-aged man in a suit looking like an insurance salesman, a smiling old man with graying hair, a man with dark skin and a parted hairstyle, a man with arms strong enough to punch a cow to death, and a short-haired woman with a fake smile…
There were about a dozen people in the parking lot, of course, not gathered together. Some were checking their vehicles, some were leaning by the narrow window looking at the scenery in the water, while some seemed to be wandering casually.
Individually, they seemed normal, but when such people appeared simultaneously, it was odd.
Moreover, these people seemed not to know each other, yet were warily watching each other.
Nasir lightly tapped the pipes, trying hard to discern the dialogue between two of them from their lip movements.
"You guys… also want a share…"
"These… are very precious resources, absolutely can't let you… We need to… The ship will come soon…"
"At worst, kill… Then no one can get…"
"You can't… These wizards represent enormous… Maybe we can cooperate in developing magic and alchemy… And also need to expel…"
One of the two had his back to Nasir, allowing only occasional glimpses of his moving mouth. The words of the other person left Nasir scratching his head.
What magic? Did he misunderstand… Were these people discussing filmmaking?
Magic didn't exist at all, so surely these people weren't up to anything nefarious?
Nasir's simple mind couldn't grasp what was happening and decided to observe further.
Later, he felt a surge of eeriness.
The woman in the floral dress in the corner also disappeared!
Were his eyes playing tricks?
The view was indeed a bit blurry, like a fog developing… Nasir rubbed his eyes, and upon raising his head again, it seemed there were fewer people.
Those people suddenly quarreled, some jumped up to attack each other, some drew pistols, some tried to make phone calls, and others wanted to flee…
"Bang!"
A gunshot rang out, a bullet flew out, piercing the thigh of an elderly man who was just negotiating.
Yet he didn't let out a scream, closing his eyes and collapsing, Nasir only faintly saw a red light seemingly hit the old man.
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
The sound of bodies hitting the ground was constant, the distant repairman hurriedly stepped back but suddenly went weak at the knees, overwhelming drowsiness made supporting his body impossible.
"Thud!"
The last person barely maintaining consciousness also passed out.
"What's going on?!"
Dar inside the car also noticed the abnormality outside, and the bearded man in the passenger seat was extremely surprised, feigning astonishment while secretly pondering—
"Which faction's handiwork is this?"
Thinking of the huge sum he conned, he felt vaguely uneasy, wanting to escape.
Suddenly, thin, steam-like white mist seeped through the car's air conditioning vents.
"Someone's attacking! Be careful!"
Dar immediately covered the bearded man's mouth and nose, while also holding his breath, vigorously kicked open the car door beside him, and pulled the bearded man out!
Dar felt ominous.
—To cause so many people to faint… Wizard!
It must be a Wizard chasing them!
He recalled the leader's dread of this land, and the legendary elder who twice stopped the world's most evil Dark Wizard from initiating massacres, and his unease reached its peak.
However, after all the meticulous planning, Dar was reluctant to easily give up.
—Even if he couldn't bring everyone back! But if he could bring just one, he'd be satisfied! As long as he could bring Vid Gray back, the leader would certainly be pleased!
In Dar's pocket, there was a Portkey, which would activate with a firm squeeze.
It was an escape means that the leader entrusted him alone to use only in desperate situations.
—As long as he could grab hold of someone's arm, he could bring them to the leader, offering hope to change the situation where werewolves were slaughtered, humiliated, and excluded by wizards for thousands of years!
Dar dragged the bearded man out of the car, rolled twice on the ground, dodging the attacks he anticipated, then used the bearded man as a shield, crouched low, and dashed toward the rear of the truck.
The downside of most Magic Spells… is only being able to attack one person at a time!
The bearded man hadn't realized he was a shield; in fact, when they jumped out, he acted as a buffer and sprained his foot.
While Dar dragged him rolling on the ground, his head was bumped, the bearded man couldn't help but inhale a few breaths, instantly making his head dizzy.
The instinct to sleep was strong, but considering the dangerous situation, escape seemed necessary!
The bearded man forced himself to remain rational, laboriously opening his eyes, only to see Dar with a crazed expression on his face, swiftly opening the iron door at the back of the truck.
"Creak—"
For some reason, the sound of metal friction was exceptionally piercing.
A furry, black shadow jumped out of the truck, enthusiastically hugging Dar, and snapped onto his head with a click.
"Pop!"
Dar, seemingly topped with a giant black furball, disappeared on the spot.
The bearded man stared blankly ahead…
A whole group of spiders as big as calves leaped out.
"Aaaahhhhhh—"
The heart-wrenching scream echoed throughout the ship's deck.