The naval officer from the Kingdom of Fenneport was slightly taken aback upon hearing Odis's threat: "Captain, are you provoking the navy?"
Rupert, who was standing nearby, listened very attentively. It would be quite interesting if they really had to fight the navy.
The tavern owner, Hunter, was dumbfounded. The "Dawn Sword" pirate crew was going to attack a naval warship?
Odis shrugged: "Mr. Abel, don't be so nervous. I'm just planning to blackmail you a little."
"However, I would like you to inquire carefully about the deeds of the 'Argo'. That ship is more powerful than the 'Ghost' and sinking a large cruiser would not be difficult for it."
Moreover, if Odis wanted to, he could simply fire a "spirit wave cannon" into the naval port and then run away immediately.
However, that would likely result in being hunted down by the opposing demigod, and before Odis became a demigod, such a thing was just a thought.
Abel slammed his glass down on the bar, but only slightly, because he had heard rumors about the "Argo" and knew that Odis did indeed have the capability to attack warships.
Moreover, judging from Captain Gal's record, he already possesses the strength of a "great pirate," which is a point that cannot be ignored.
The conversation reached a stalemate, so Odis smiled and said, "You can go back and think about it before giving me an answer. If you really want it, I can offer you a discount of 3,000 pounds."
Abel looked at Odis and suddenly smiled: "Okay, I'll go back and think about it, but this price is definitely too high, we can't accept it."
Odis didn't rule out any possibility of a definitive answer, saying, "Then we'll talk about it another time."
Then, the two chatted and laughed for a few more minutes, as if the unpleasantness from before had never happened.
After finishing the drink in his glass, Abel quickly left.
Rupert saw the naval officer to the door, then returned to continue drinking with the captain. He said with some concern, "Won't the Fenneport Navy launch a surprise attack on Cruz Island?"
The Argo was unlikely to be able to provide support in the short term, and at this time, Cruz Island had no defensive capabilities whatsoever.
Odis smiled and said, "The banner of 'Elemental Dawn' is more intimidating than you imagine."
He took a deep breath: "However, we do need to deploy some defensive forces on Cruz Island as soon as possible."
Even a few "extraordinary machine guns" would be fine first.
After seeing off the Fenneport Navy personnel, Odis went directly to the "Nanmu Ballroom" using "travel" and met Mandy and the others who were already waiting in a private room on the third floor.
To Odis's surprise, there were more than a dozen people! And they were all fashionable women. Odis felt as if she was suddenly overwhelmed by the scent of perfume.
After closing the door, Mandy smiled and introduced him to everyone, "This is Mr. Gar."
A mature woman in her thirties said, "I didn't expect Mr. Gar to be so young and handsome."
The others joined in with giggles.
Odis removed his top hat and smiled, "That's right, I am Mr. Gar, but now I am Captain Gar."
As soon as he spoke, the dozen or so women immediately fell silent.
Odis emphasized again: "On the island, both accommodation and food conditions are relatively poor, so I hope you can be mentally prepared."
Mandy said, "Don't worry about that. I've already told them. The suitcases are filled with trousers and other clothes that are easy to move in."
Odis nodded: "Alright, let's get ready to move out!"
Mandy asked, "Do we need to prepare a carriage?"
"No need," Odis smiled. "I will take you on a wonderful journey."
At this moment, a woman in her twenties covered her mouth and smiled, saying, "I once received a university professor who said something similar to me."
This remark drew another round of laughter from everyone, but the laughter immediately stopped after Mandy glanced at them.
Odis smiled helplessly and said, "You can only take two people with you each time. Whoever goes first..."
Everyone picked up their suitcases, eager to leave first, but Mandy pointed out two people to prevent a dispute from arising.
Odis put his hand on their shoulders, and suddenly a phantom door appeared in front of the three of them.
The two women were stunned, and everyone else who saw the two illusory doors fell silent.
Odis instructed, "After entering this door, lower your head and don't... never mind, ordinary people will become confused after going in anyway. Just remember not to make eye contact with anyone."
Then he urged, "Let's go."
The two ladies then entered the room. As the illusory door disappeared, Mandy and the others could still hear their two colleagues exclaim in surprise.
Only then did the others gather around and ask Mandy, "Ms. Mandy, Mr. Gar... how did he do that?"
What was that door we just saw?
"..."
Mandy didn't know either. She had thought that Mr. Gard had traveled for several days by boat to come here to pick everyone up.
However, she couldn't reveal to her subordinates that she didn't know the inside story either, so she simply said, "You'll find out what's inside the door in a moment."
"But don't ask unless Mr. Gard explains."
If someone else had taken them away in this way, many people would certainly not want to go to the sea. However, over the past few years, Mr. Gar has provided them with sufficient protection and made them wealthy.
They all trusted Mr. Garr, so no one backed out; instead, they looked forward to the rest of the journey.
It took Odis an hour and seven trips to get them all to Bayam.
When Ms. Mandy, the last to arrive, arrived at the hotel, the first few people had already been playing cards for a while.
Once everyone had arrived, Odis felt he had used up a lot of his spiritual energy. He yawned and gathered everyone together, saying, "Let me introduce you first. This is Mr. Bazel, the first mate on my ship. You can ask him if you have any questions."
"Also, you should have heard of Bayam. There are many pirates on the streets here, and the security is not as good as Backlund. If you go out, you must go in groups no matter where you are going."
"Furthermore, I have already asked Mr. Bazel to find someone to protect your safety. You must be accompanied by the person sent to protect you before you can go out together."
Everyone laughed and thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Mr. Garr!"
Odis smiled and said, "It's getting late, let's all find a place to go out for dinner."
He paused and then said, "From tonight to tomorrow, you can wander around Bayam and take a look. All expenses are on me. Tomorrow I will have a meeting with you to assign specific tasks."
Everyone laughed and said together, "Okay, Mr. Garr!"
After saying that, they walked out laughing and talking, and Bazeir's men quickly followed.
They initially thought today's protection task would be a tough job, but they didn't expect it to be protecting such a group of beautiful ladies, which made them very enthusiastic about their work.
After everyone had left, Bazel asked, "Are they all women?"
"Yes," Odis laughed. "They are all women."
"Could it be…" Barzel suddenly didn't know what to say.
"Don't underestimate them," Odis said. "Each of them has seen the coldness and warmth of human nature in this world, and they are all quite capable."
He smiled and said, "I'm looking for them to do management work, not to join a pirate crew. They don't need to be particularly good fighters."
"Once they are in place, you can hand over all your responsibilities in Bayam to them."
Bazel breathed a sigh of relief; he and his men were indeed not very good at operational tasks in Bayam.
"However, we must find enough people to protect their safety," Odis said. "If necessary, we can hire some bodyguards."
Bazel said, "I will."
Then Odis brought up another topic: "Has the estate been bought?"
"I've got it," Bazel said. "Although it's not very big, it meets your requirements. It's close to the station and has two large warehouses."
"I didn't haggle much, and it cost me £510 in total."
"Let's get the manor running smoothly first," Odis said. "I'll set up the teleportation array tomorrow, and we'll start shipping supplies to Cruz Island the day after."
Balzer nodded: "No problem."
Odis had mentioned the teleportation array to the first and second mates beforehand, and both of them found it incredible, but they didn't really have a concrete understanding of it.
After discussing this matter, Odis patted his stomach and said, "Let's go eat first, and we can talk about the rest after we finish eating."
Odis was also a bit tired today and planned to rest on the "Argo" after dinner.
The two went to eat grilled fish again, chatting as they ate. However, in this setting, it was not appropriate to talk about the pirate crew, so they could only talk about Bayam.
Just as they were finishing their meal, Odis saw Allen, a waiter from the wizarding agency, appear outside. Upon seeing Odis and Bazel, Allen quickly came over.
"Captain, Bishop Dean has something urgent to discuss with you," Allen said as he approached the two men.
Odis was taken aback: "Where is Bishop Dean now?"
"I'll be waiting for you at the Wizard's Office," Allen said. "There's another person with Bishop Dean, a long-faced guy who looks very unhappy."
Odis nodded and finished his drink: "I'll go back first. You two can take the carriage back."
Bazel stood up and said, "Okay."
Odis hurried down a dimly lit alley, used "travel" to return to a corner of Kentland Street, and rushed to the wizard's office.
As soon as he entered, Odis saw Bishop Dean sitting in the sofa area, and the person next to him was actually an "acquaintance": "Bishop, I heard you had something urgent to discuss with me?"
The people around Bishop Dean looked over: "You're Captain Gal?"
He was dressed in a formal suit, with a somewhat long face, as if he was born with an air of unhappiness.
Odis had seen this man before, the day before they set sail. Odis and Bazel were having dinner at the Grand Hotel Roside, and this long-faced man was sitting next to them.
When Odis said he wanted to be a "pirate general" in the future, he was ridiculed by this guy.
Bishop Dean, who was slightly overweight, was also taken aback: "You two know each other?"
The long-faced man stood up and said, "I take back my previous mockery."
Because he knew very well that Captain Gal already possessed the strength of a "pirate general," having cleanly and decisively eliminated three large pirate groups. If he were willing to call himself a general, he would soon gain the unanimous recognition of the pirates.
However, doing so would definitely result in a bounty being placed on one's head.
Odis simply didn't bring up the topic of their previous meeting at the hotel, but just smiled and said, "We met once, but I don't know you."
Since he was brought by Bishop Dean, he must be related to the official extraordinary individuals. Even if it's just for Bishop Dean's sake, there's no need to hold a grudge against him.
Besides, Odis wasn't that petty.
Bishop Dean said "Oh," and probably realized that there might have been some unpleasantness earlier, so he introduced, "This is Mr. Tim, a senior colonel in the Navy."
Odis was taken aback; he had initially guessed the man was a pirate. "Please sit down."
He asked the waiter to bring him a drink and to close the door: "What brings you here, Colonel?"
"We heard you captured the 'Ghost,' the flagship of the 'Deep Blue' pirate crew?" Tim asked bluntly. "Do you know anything about that pirate crew?"
Odis wondered to himself: Was the Rune navy planning some kind of operation with this ship? If so, the price wouldn't be 20,000 pounds.
He said, "I didn't know at first, but I heard later that the 'Deep Blue' pirate crew is backed by the Fenneport Navy."
"That's right," Tim said seriously. "They might redeem the 'Ghost' in the next few days."
In fact, the Rune Navy had received accurate intelligence that the Feneport Navy planned to buy back the ghost ship.
"They spoke with me this afternoon," Odis said with a smile. "However, we still need to discuss the specific transaction price."
Tim's expression grew increasingly serious: "Don't make a deal with them."
"Why?" Odis asked. "That's a deal worth 50,000 pounds!"
Upon hearing the price, Bishop Dean glanced at Odis, as if to say: This price is a bit too high.
Odis, however, seemed oblivious to the bishop's gaze and looked at Tim with a smile: "I think this is a good deal."
"But if this ship returns to the Kingdom of Fenneport, they will send it to the Rothschild Islands to plunder merchant ships and kill our compatriots," Tim said earnestly.
"That's your navy's business," Odis said. "You can either sink that ship with your warships or capture it, and that would solve the problem perfectly."
Tim reminded him, "You're also a Rune."
Odis shrugged: "I have never done anything to harm Rune. On the contrary, under the guidance of the goddess, I have destroyed three notorious pirate crews and have never harmed ordinary people."
Bishop Dean nodded slowly, indicating his support for Odis's actions.
Tim looked disappointed: "It wasn't just about not doing anything detrimental to Rune..."
Odis simply crossed his legs and leaned back in his chair: "Then what do you need me for? I've never taken a salary from the navy."
Tim smiled, realizing that Odis was a "pragmatist" who didn't buy into the idea of national righteousness: "So how do you plan to solve this problem?"
"Either the navy buys the ship, or you stop interfering with my deal," Odis said. "But since you were recommended by Bishop Dean, I can give you a bottom line: 28,000 pounds."
Tim pondered for a moment before saying, "We can cooperate in another way. The ship will still belong to you, and you can use it to plunder merchant ships on the central route."
"The Navy will give you ample support, and may even grant you and your subordinates military ranks!"
Odis thought to himself: Your plan is quite good. You've achieved your goal while also causing trouble for Feneport.
He asked, "Colonel, aren't you missing a crucial question? What benefits would I get from giving up a £50,000 deal?"
Odis smiled and said, "It can't be that we can only get enemy cannonballs, can it?"
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
Tim thought to himself: These pirates are getting harder and harder to fool these days, or rather, this pirate in front of him is not easy to fool.
Generally speaking, naval ranks are very attractive to most pirates.
After all, they went to sea to make money, and they wanted to live a good life. Very few people became pirates just for the sake of being pirates.
Becoming a naval officer would guarantee job security.
"You can get the full amount when you redeem the bounty from the Navy," Tim said. "In addition, we will pay you 6,000 pounds to compensate for your loss."
"How about it? Is this a good deal? You get 6,000 pounds, and the ship is still yours."
Odis shook his head: "Mr. Colonel, you may not understand. I've been talking to you for so long because you have Bishop Dean's introduction."
"If you're not sincere, I think we can end this pointless conversation."
Tim took a deep breath: "You name your terms."
However, he added, "As long as it's not too excessive."
"Colonel, first you need to understand one thing: my cooperation with Bishop Dean has always been very pleasant," Odis said. "That's because Bishop Dean has been very sincere in his cooperation with me."
"Although I am a pirate, I am willing to help the authorities and have never done anything out of line..."
"That's debatable," Tim said with a smile. "As far as I know, your full name is Odis Garr, right?"
"This poses no threat to me." Odis smiled even more frankly: "I killed an MI9 officer in Backlund, but saved tens of thousands of lives."
"It was from that time that I received the goddess's favor."
The reason he spoke so frankly and even mentioned the "Goddess of the Night" was actually a form of intimidation. He was telling Tim that he wasn't afraid of the Navy investigating those matters, and that the Church of the Goddess of the Night would cover for him.
Bishop Dean drew a full moon and stars beside him: "Praise be to the goddess."
In fact, he had noticed before that Odis could not sense his presence at all once she was out of his sight, which clearly showed that she was a favorite of a goddess.
It was only today that he learned that Odis's escape from Backlund had actually earned her the favor of the goddess.
"You can also notify MI9 to arrest me," Odis said, having lost all fear of MI9 after setting sail: "I will still not be afraid of these executioners."
Tim had no idea that Odis had received the goddess's favor in the matter of Backlund.
He thought about it and realized it made sense. Otherwise, it had only been a little over a month since that incident, and Odis, with her background in "Elemental Dawn," couldn't have established such a close connection with the Church of the Goddess of Night so quickly.
If Odis is "the favored one of the goddess of night", then if the other party's conditions are not too harsh, then try to reach a cooperation agreement.
So Tim politely said, "Please continue."
Odis said, "If I understand correctly, the Navy has two objectives. First, they don't want me to sell the 'Ghost' to Fenneport, and second, they hope I can harass Fenneport's merchant ships on the central route."
Tim nodded, indicating that this was indeed their demand.
"You see, things aren't that complicated," Odis said. "If you don't want me to sell the ship to Fenneport, just offer more than they do."
"As for whether I will harass Fenneport's merchant ships on the central route in the future, I can't guarantee it right now. However, if I don't sell the 'Ghost' to Fenneport, I will definitely have some conflict with their navy, and you will have achieved your goal."
"We will provide some assistance then," Tim said. "But £28,000 is too high for me. How about £12,000?"
He smiled and said, "You know, that ship is still yours."
"How about this," Odis said simply, "22,000 pounds, and the ship is yours."
Tim smiled without saying a word.
Odis took a sip of tea and said, "If I were a high-ranking officer in the Rune Navy, I certainly wouldn't want this ship. As long as this ship is with 'Captain Gar,' all of Feneport's anger will be directed at 'Captain Gar.'"
"But if the ship is bought by the Rune Navy, their anger will be directed at the Rune Navy, and they will need to find a special captain to operate that ghost ship, and they will also have to be wary of the other party turning into real pirates."
Odis looked at Tim: "Don't say that the ship is still mine. I took your money, so I have to risk my life for the navy!"
"I don't lack money now. If I only had £22,000, I wouldn't feel much motivation to work hard."
Tim fell silent, because Odis had laid out the navy's plans completely, giving him the illusion that Odis knew everything about him.
After a silence of more than ten seconds, Tim finally said, "15,000 pounds, that's the highest I can go."
Odis replied, "20,000 pounds is the lowest I can go. You know, Fenneport's navy has boasted that they are prepared to use four main fleets to deal with me."
"We can offer assistance."
Odis shook his head: "I'm sorry, I have no confidence in your help."
"If a conflict really breaks out, the main battlefield should be on Cruz Island. Even if the warships docked in Bayam sail at full speed, it will take about a week to arrive."
"By the time you arrive, I'll probably have been hanged by them for several days already."
Generally, captured pirates are sentenced to death by hanging.
Tim took a deep breath. £20,000 was far too high for the navy, but after learning that Odis was the "favored one of the goddess of night," the price seemed to be within an acceptable range.
However, this price was no longer within his authority.
Odis smiled and continued, "You can think about it another way. If things get ugly between us in Fenneport, they will at least send two fleets to fight me."
"I may not be able to wipe them all out, but sinking a few warships is no problem. The Navy's £20,000 is essentially a commission for me to destroy Fenneport's warships, and you'll break even very quickly."
Tim's eyes lit up: "I'll get back to you as soon as possible."
"No problem," Odis said. "However, you have limited time. If Feneport responds first, I will feel that they are more sincere."
"I'll give you an answer tomorrow night," Tim said immediately. "Still here."
"But not at this time," Odis said. "I have something to do tomorrow, let's talk after 10 p.m.."
Tim had already stood up: "No problem."
"There are two more conditions you need to understand," Odis said. "First, either I or my first mate will receive the full bounty in the future."
"Secondly, the price of £20,000 is only enough to pay me for not selling the 'Ghost' to Fenneport, but don't expect me to work for you or take orders from the Navy."
He shrugged: "There's nothing we can do about it. Who told you to be so stingy when it comes to getting people to risk their lives for you?"
"I know." Tim seemed not to have heard Odis's last sarcastic remark. He greeted Bishop Dean and immediately walked out.
The remaining Bishop Dean exchanged a glance with Odis, and Bishop Dean once again drew a full moon and stars on his chest: "Praise be to the goddess."
Odis smiled and replied, "Praise the goddess."
After Bishop Dean left, Bazel and Allen returned.
After closing the door again, Odis recounted the conversation to Bazel.
Bazel never expected that the annihilation of the "Deep Blue" pirate crew would alarm the navies of both countries.
Moreover, the ghost ship, which is currently of little use to the "Sword of Dawn," has already been asked for 20,000 pounds by the captain.
"Captain, you seem to be leaning towards the Rune Navy?" Bazel asked.
"I know what you're going to say," Odis said. "Actually, the most pirate-like thing to do is to swing between the two, use their contradictions to deter each other, and profit from both sides."
He laughed and said, "You have this idea because you haven't been paying attention to the international situation."
"Feneport's navy is too weak. If the opponent were Intis or Fussac, I would have to think twice, but there's no need to consider Feneport."
Odis stretched and said, "Sometimes, you don't get the most benefits by trying to please both sides, but by treating one side as an enemy."
"Of course, we can't beat Feneport too badly, just enough to give them a headache, and try to prevent them from sending out demigods."
Bazel opened his mouth before saying, "Do pirates also need to pay attention to international affairs?"
"Otherwise?" Odis said, "Only by predicting the future course of events can we seize the greatest benefits."
Bazel took a deep breath: "You will surely become the king of the sea!"
He had always considered himself a seasoned pirate, at least on the Argo, but today he realized that his skills were far inferior to the captain's.
Odis chatted with Bazel and Allen for a few more minutes, then used the "trip" to return to the "Argo" to rest.
Today was truly exhausting, and I also suffered a significant mental shock. Odis didn't continue working in the studio and went back to bed, falling asleep almost immediately.
Odis slept until after eight o'clock the next day before getting up and starting his busy day.
The crew of the Argo had gotten used to the captain's busy schedule, and they were also a little uneasy. The captain was so busy, and the first mate and second mate also had tasks, but they were playing cards and resting.
However, he also knew that it wasn't that the captain wasn't giving them tasks, but rather that they couldn't help them right now.
Thinking about it this way, I didn't feel guilty at all when playing cards.
Odis first went to Bayam, and then took Bazel with him, using "travel" to reach the manor they had just bought.
This place is not far from Bayam; it is the second stop on the train that departs from Bayam and enters the interior.
The manor is only about a ten-minute drive from the station.
Led by Bazel, Odis looked around the estate. In his opinion, the estate was quite large, with dozens of tenant farmers, mostly locals, living there, almost like a small village.
The tenant farmers in the fields already knew that the estate had changed hands, and they all sent their greetings to Barzel.
Just as Bazel was about to explain that "Captain Gar" was the true owner of the manor, he saw the captain quietly wave his hand, so Bazel didn't introduce him.
Odis mainly observed the crops grown in the fields, which he considered rather monotonous, consisting only of agricultural crops and no cash crops.
After wandering around for a while, the two finally arrived at a warehouse.
Not far from the road, there is a small villa, as well as two large warehouses and a small warehouse.
The small warehouse has been emptied to make way for Odis to build a magic circle.
Odis planned to build the secondary array of the "teleportation array" here, so that all the goods purchased from Bayam would be transported here first, and then transferred to Crus Island by the teleportation array.
The reason it's here, and not in Bayam, is because Bayam is too densely populated. If a warehouse only takes in goods and doesn't leave, it will quickly attract attention.
If it were a warehouse in a manor, it wouldn't attract much attention. The surrounding area would be inhabited by tenant farmers, and even if someone sensed something was wrong, it would be easy to control and bribe them.
Of course, the most crucial point is that no one will pay attention to what a manor owner buys, nor will they pay attention to where he uses those things.
Odis looked around and thought it was a nice place, so he said to Bazel, "Wait here for a while."
So he used "travel" to return to Cruise Island and arrived at the requisitioned warehouse.
Rupert was already waiting here, and this morning he had sent everyone living here to the newly built thatched hut on Lighthouse Hill.
Due to limited tools, they only managed to build some thatched huts these past two days, but at least they can keep out the rain while sleeping at night.
After closing the warehouse door, Odis began drawing a magic circle.