The dance platform used for salsa dancing had, under the forceful order of the bandits, been cobbled together from several scattered tables, and everyone sat down in solemn silence.
Liszt had not intended to comply, ready to seek an opportunity to bolt; continuing , she’d lose face.
Doing well is not easy; slipping into wrongdoing happens in a blink.
What Liszt hadn’t anticipated was that there were experts among them.
By the time you spot one cockroach, the nest is already full.
Diaz’s operations were reliable. It wasn’t just those two screw-ups who showed up at the dance hall tavern; among the dozens of Black Sail’s pirate underlings, there was a traitor.
An informant from the Thief Guild noticed Liszt’s predicament and secretly signaled to her to stay put, assuring that, worst case, they would start a fight and cover for her to retreat.
Having mingled in the Black Sail for so long and gathered lots of intelligence, even if she couldn’t keep up the act, her life was still a tremendous treasure trove of information for Diaz.
As an organization that parasitizes the power vacuums within nations, the Thief Guild isn’t made up entirely of craftspersons; not to mention the average member is already skilled, if everyone were as skilled as Swan, with extremely high overall qualities, could move mountains and extinguish lamps with a breath, could identify authentic arts with one look, could disguise and cheat like Old Beden, they’d already be the Boss of the Western Continent’s underworld.
Swan’s level placed him among the rare top-notch experts within the Thief Guild, having previously been a regional leader.
There are many who possess the craft, but very few could play it at Swan’s level.
The composition of the Thief Guild was mostly made up of mediocre thieves, and more often than not, out-and-out no-gooders who wouldn’t restrain from any crime they could commit on the roads.
With the backing of her faction, Liszt postponed her escape plan. There was no rush; she’d play along for a bit first.
The tavern owner had never seen such a grand show of force on his own turf; damn it, with such a significant force as Black Sail, why pick on his salsa dance hall for trouble?
Shadi generously tossed out a Golden Dragon, considering tonight an exclusive booking.
The tavern owner’s swift change of face was laughably transparent.
What he didn’t anticipate was a violent brawl that might wreck his establishment awaiting him.
The crowd sat in a circle, all with somber expressions.
"Wasn’t it said that we start with you?"
Shadi said to Morison, and since Morison didn’t care about his decision-making position and it didn’t bother him to be the first suspect, they started with him and continued to play along slowly.
"Of course, ask whatever questions you like,"
"There are twenty animals, chickens and rabbits, with a total of forty-four feet. How many chickens and how many rabbits are there?"
Chuan Che, also joining in the fun, asked such a question.
"Who the hell let you ask about the chicken and rabbit problem, asshole?"
Shadi felt a headache coming on. A Hall-level adventurer, Thousand-Armed Shura, turned out to have a congenitally abstract physique; no wonder, since the man worked under Celeste and had always been thought by Lostra to be a simpleminded sucker, it wouldn’t be strange if he developed mental issues.
"Where are the chickens?"
Mika hadn’t finished dealing with the situation when he was dragged in, and honestly, he wasn’t in the mood for this farce.
Liszt’s eyelid twitched as the situation developed towards a farce; it wasn’t serious enough, which was good news. Liszt was still alive and could return at any moment.
As long as she endured the present situation, once this dispersed, she could make her escape.
Even if the rightful owner returned afterward, putting aside how to continue to extort and fleece Black Sail.
The information Liszt held, saying nothing else, just by offering up Alicia, even if they didn’t capture her, just the information would be enough to have Alicia appoint the current Aran Monarch as the elector, making the Emperor the rightful heir to the Cyrus throne, giving him a reason to rage without being regarded as unjustified. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ Nov3lFɪre.ɴet
Merely with this, Liszt could swiftly rise through the ranks and even become a founding general of the nation without any problem.
"Well, asking these questions is useless; let’s do this instead, pretty simple, a talent show." Archer dug in his ear, "If Brother Sha is fake, then the Flying Knife skill will definitely be impossible to mimic."
Shadi and Mika nodded; what this drunken immortal said made a lot of sense.
Ben had long disliked Morison. Although Ben was clearly more handsome than Morison, the signboard girl of the original Black Sail Inn had a higher regard for that disfigured face, causing Ben to feel extremely frustrated.
He didn’t have to mention when he first arrived at Heaven Port, he was beaten up by Morison.
In fact, Ben didn’t accept it. If he hadn’t gotten injured by Lost’s people on the ship beforehand, he and Morison would be evenly matched.
"Darn Flying Knife skill. Who doesn’t know that? If a Netherworld Envoy infiltrated us, what couldn’t they imitate? I can do Flying Knife too."
After saying that, Ben took out a small-sized quick-release foldable knife from under his cloak, flicked it open with a whoosh, blade glinting menacingly. He pointed his finger at a glass on the bar counter that a fleeing patron had left unfinished.
The foldable knife shot out, its skill leaving onlookers in awe, piercing the glass as though it was nothing. Ben’s control of force was so refined the glass didn’t even shatter. Precision was the difference between butchery and surgery. The glass now had two holes with alcohol leaking out, and the foldable knife planted itself in the wall of the liquor cabinet, not touching any other object.
"Awesome, brother, the glass is so fragile, and you pierced it like it was paper."
Chuan Che really appreciated these craftsmen; the technique was unquestionable. As a martial artist himself, he felt an affinity for other experts.
Celeste saw Chuan Che almost completely blended with Black Sail and gave him a meaningful look.
After all, Chuan Che was Celeste’s man, officially hired by Lost, and after coughing twice, he stopped speaking. Black Sail might be thriving now, but could collapse at any moment—better to rely on the official system.
The folk of Black Sail treated Ben like a clown, completely forgetting that he was actually a first-tier combat force from the Thief Guild. Below a Netherworld Servant, I am invincible, and above that, it’s not necessarily one-for-one, let’s call it even.
Ben leaned back tactically, a gesture of what hidden weapons are all about.
Morison, expressionless, reached for a set of Flying Knives tied to his chest strap.
"Watch closely, this is how you play with Flying Knives."
The glass previously hit by Ben shattered under one of Morison’s Flying Knives, ignoring the negligible glass slivers, burst into five or six pieces.
Morison moved quickly, a flurry of Flying Knives firing in succession.
Every large glass fragment, mid-explosion, was pinned to the wall by the Flying Knives as if it were piercing paper.
Finally, the base of the glass that had burst and turned several flips in mid-air unexpectedly flew towards Ben.
Morison whipped out a dagger and drove it straight down, pinning it to the tabletop.
Saleret furrowed his brows tightly; he had fought with Morison before. A man shouldn’t be in the East Sea, or involved with the petty brawls of Triad Gang. He must be up to something significant.
Ben’s forehead was sweating a little.
"Damn," Archer also cursed, "Where is this glass from? The quality is so damn poor."
"Why does your attention always drift elsewhere, damn it!"
Shadi couldn’t help but say," In any case, Morison’s suspicion can be ruled out now."
"Not necessarily. If it were a Netherworld Envoy, maybe they could achieve it too."
Archer nodded in agreement, trusting his own logic.
Kai Deng’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. You really think too highly of me. What’s with this disfigured face? Was the stand-in that formidable? The background investigation only traced back to his time as a stand-in; what exactly had he been doing before?
"Let’s do this, if Disguise Technique can fake it, why not simply check everyone’s appearance to see who’s wearing a Human Skin Mask."
Archer pointed out the oversight.
Kai Deng’s mind raced with thoughts, considering how to respond. This was related to whether to start a fight immediately.