Inside the Treasure House...
A tall, bald man with an extremely muscular body stood motionless before a golden stone slab. He was around two meters tall, and on his scalp was tattooed a giant shark with its jaws agape. His cloudy white eyes stared fixedly at the stone.
Suddenly, the sound of light, clear footsteps echoed behind him. A man wearing absurdly exaggerated and flashy clothes of pink and red stepped forward with theatrical flair, his long boots resembling a clown's oversized shoes.
He stopped behind the burly man, stroked the brim of his flamboyant hat with a white-gloved hand, and gave it two delicate twists. An eccentric, exaggerated smile spread across his face.
"Hey, Captain, have you seen what you're looking for yet, standing here like a statue?" His voice matched his attire, melodramatic, full of peaks and valleys, and grating enough to make a listener want to punch him.
The sturdy man did not turn his head, his gaze still on the slab. "Nivek, do you know why the Ford family declined?"
Hearing his captain's question, Nivek cocked his hip. Suddenly, his eyes widened. He extended his right index finger, looking as if he'd just had a brilliant revelation.
"Oh, now I remember! It's said a massive scandal broke out, and then they were squeezed out and liquidated."
The bald man nodded, and an evil smile appeared on his previously expressionless face. "Yes. Who could have imagined that a respectable merchant-noble family was actually a dagger in the hand of a powerful figure? When that fact was exposed, they were naturally discarded and liquidated."
Nivek tapped his temple with his index finger, a look of puzzlement on his face. "But what does this have to do with us?"
"It has everything to do with us. Among THAAD's twelve treasure troves, do you know what the most important thing he hid was?"
"Treasure?"
"No. It was the scandals of his enemies." The captain changed the subject, turning around to ask, "Is Andre's treasure-hunting team on the island now?"
"Yes, Captain. All their main members have been sighted here," Nivek, who was clearly more interested in this kind of intrigue than dusty history, replied immediately with a wicked smile.
"Annoying, uninvited bastards," The captain grunted. "Sigh. Let them leave first before we begin our operation."
"Um... Captain, logically speaking, we are the uninvited guests here," Seeing his captain's face turn cold and emotionless, Nivek made a zipper motion across his mouth and fell obediently silent.
...
"We've learned the Shark Biters have arrived. Their goal is the same as ours: THAAD's treasure trove," Andre said gravely from his seat at the head of the table.
"It is said their leader, Welter, has discovered two of THAAD's minor treasure houses already?" Jason asked, his tone laced with doubt.
Andre nodded. "Yes. He's reportedly been chasing THAAD's treasure for half his life."
"Then, judging by their reputation, our future operations won't be smooth," Elena said, stroking her chin with one hand, visibly annoyed.
Ed, who had no context for this information exchange, had no intention of interrupting to draw attention. He simply sat quietly in his chair, leaning back and absorbing the conversation while occasionally staring at the ceiling and yawning.
From Elena, he had learned about the Shark Bite Gang's modus operandi: ruthless, with no regard for rules. Robbery, murder, kidnapping, extortion, these were standard fare for them. As long as no evidence was left (or the witnesses were disposed of), they operated with impunity.
They were essentially a violent gang. However, such groups were a dime a dozen on the high seas, unremarkable compared to some of the infamous pirate lords. The only distinction was that they maintained a veneer of legitimacy; if the navy placed a bounty on their heads, their treasure-hunting business would suffer, forcing them into full-time piracy, a career path the navy derisively called "Sea Rats."
After everyone had discussed the threat for a while, Andre turned and looked at Ed with a slight frown, clearly unimpressed by his casual demeanor. He spoke in his usual measured tone, masking his irritation.
"Let me think about how to assign you, so you can do something useful instead of counting the blocks on the ceiling."
Ed's timing in joining the team was unfortunate. They had been active on the island for quite some time and had already gathered most of the necessary intelligence. Now, the work involved painstakingly sorting through that information to find the final, key clue. After that would come the tedious physical search for the treasure site. Neither task held much immediate, practical value for a newcomer.
Some missions were only suitable for core members and veteran "Touchers", a rank Ed, as a new recruit, had not yet attained.
"You have two choices," Andre continued. "First, you can follow Jason and learn how to analyze intelligence and trace clues. Or, you can choose to go into the city, or anywhere on the island that interests you to gather new information. It might not be immediately useful, but it's a good chance to gain field experience."
After considering for a few seconds, Ed rubbed his chin and replied calmly, "I'll choose the second option. I want to familiarize myself with the island first. I don't think there's a need to follow Jason yet, as his work is currently beyond my expertise."
Andre nodded thoughtfully, but before he could speak, someone else chimed in.
"You can also review the intelligence we collected yesterday. Use it as a general guide for where to look. Any interesting information is fine, just write it down. Even if it seems useless now, you never know when it might become relevant," Elena said, looking at Ed and giving him a knowing smile and a wink.
This made Andre's frown deepen slightly as he glanced between his daughter and the new recruit, he, as a father, having a bad feeling from this.
Hearing Elena's instructions and feeling he'd successfully secured a reliable ally on the team, Ed smiled cheerfully, nodded, and gave her a thumbs-up. The gesture's meaning was lost on everyone in the room, since there is no such thing in this world, but for the sake of decorum, no one questioned it.
After chatting a while longer, the group dispersed to rest, except for Jason, who remained hunched over the table, diligently sifting through piles of information.
...
"Is this my room?" Ed asked Elena, who stood beside him, wearing an embarrassed smile. She nodded, then made a lame excuse about someone calling her and darted away like a startled rabbit.
Dumbfounded, Ed could only shake his head and survey the small space. It was clearly a storage room cleaned in a hurry, and the job had been done roughly, Ed could still see cobwebs in the corners of the ceiling. The room contained only a small wooden bed with a cheap, old mattress as hard as rock, and a thin blanket. There was nothing else, not even a window.
Sigh. Why do I feel like the accident-born child, whose parents barely acknowledge and treat poorly, on the rare occasions they remember he exists? Ed thought. He tossed the sorry excuse for a bed into his inventory and pulled out his own comfortable one. After changing his clothes, he sighed helplessly at the thought of not being able to hug Raila while sleeping, and closed his eyes.