As soon as the night fell over the Kiwi Island, the tavern became the liveliest spot on the whole island.
With music playing and drinks flowing, the locals and tourists alike danced the night away.
"Shit!" The captain slammed his cup onto the table. "These fucking tax men are draining me dry!"
"It's alright, captain, we'll figure it out," the sailors said. "We don't mind delayed pay."
"No!" The captain shook his head. "Absolutely not. I will pay you guys in time, and also these fucking tax men!"
The tavern's doors opened, and the two young men stepped through after finishing touring most of the town.
There wasn't much to see in the Kiwi Island.
"Hey, let's go talk to the captain." Julian nudged Kiernan in the waist and walked over to their table. "Yo, captain."
"Oh, it's you two." The captain turned to them with a drunken look. "It looks like you guys have become friends. That's good. Friendship is important on these treacherous waters!"
"How's it going?" Kiernan asked and sat around the table with Julian.
"Shit," the captain clicked his tongue. "I asked my wife to send me some money to cover the tax expenses. How embarrassing!"
"I thought the sailoring business was very profitable," Julian said with a smile. "Especially with your fortified ship, I thought you had been making more than enough money."
"I haven't earned enough to cover the costs yet!"
The captain said angrily as he sipped on the alcohol.
"The World Seas have become more dangerous than ever before. These cowardly civilians don't dare to step onto a ship that isn't fortified and armed with cannons!
"It cost me a small fortune to upgrade my ship like that, and I haven't earned enough to cover those costs yet. Now I have to pay some shitty taxes as well, and I am sure that they're targeting me because I am not part of some large organization.
"If a ship belonging to one of those Shipping Giants came here, they would never dare to ask for tax money. Never!
"But since I am alone in this endeavor, of course they dare to bully me!"
"Sounds tough." Kiernan said. "Then there is the threat of the pirates. You can lose your ship if you encounter one of them."
"I've done fifty trips so far, and I've only seen pirates far away, luckily. I never travel too deep into the pirate territory.
"Nightingale is as far as I dare to go, so it is rather safe, but of course there are some bold pirates that are sailing through navy territory.
"I am fairly confident, though. One day, I will have an entire fleet of ships, and then I'll dare these fuckers to tax me."
"What do you know about Nightingale?" Kiernan asked out of curiosity.
"Hmm…" The captain tilted his head before answering. "It is run by the Abracadabra family. A powerful family, and they're supporters of the navy because the head of the family is…"
Before he could fully answer, the tavern's door slammed open, and it suddenly turned quiet as if everyone was holding their breath.
Through the entrance, Kornel and a couple of his bodyguards—rough-looking fellows entered the tavern, and with heads held high, went to the counter, where they started ordering drinks.
"Tch, now the mood is ruined, fuck," the captain scoffed and finished his drink. "I'll return to the ship."
His fellow sailors followed right after them, and as soon as they left, Julian turned to look at Kiernan with a smile.
"Should we go check the castle out?"
"Are you insane?" Kiernan asked. "With this amount of navy soldiers patrolling, I am not surprised if the castle is owned by some navy officer. I heard some navy officers are Martial Kings."
"We're just going to take a brief look." Julian said with a smirk. "Also, this Kornel guy is working for the big guy at the castle. That guy must be rich."
"You want to rob the guy?" Kiernan asked. "Never expected that from you."
"These assholes are bullying the weak; I hate that," Julian said. "We tried asking about the guy in the castle from the locals, but no one wanted to say a word. They're all afraid. He must be a hideous guy."
"I'm not much of a thief," Kiernan said.
"I know you're poor as hell." Julian said with a whisper so that the curious locals wouldn't hear. "I have a sort of understanding about you. I can tell you're not like the others."
"Oh, do you now?" Kiernan chuckled.
"An ordinary person wouldn't dare to rob someone. It's piracy, they say, but you didn't flinch when I mentioned it. You have a certain gleam in your eye that tells me you're cut from a different cloth."
"Sigh…" Kiernan scratched the back of his head. 'Well, I am poor as hell. I am barely seventeen years old without a job. Father gave me some money to get by, but it's not enough.'
He checked the interface.
He was storing all his money at his interface, as it was the best possible place, as he didn't need to carry a wallet or pouch with him.
Also, no one could steal his money as long as he had it inside his interface.
Karma gave him 500 gold coins, and while that could last him, he wasn't going to be lavishly spending it on anything.
'Some money wouldn't hurt. I am also curious about the store and lottery aspect of the system. Increasing my gold count could be a way to open those.
'Otherwise, it would be a worthless addition to the system.'
"Alright then." Kiernan turned to him. "I am not risking my life, though."
"Hehe, that's fine." Julian patted him on the shoulder, and then they left the tavern without ordering anything.
Amidst the darkness, they made their way towards the castle, their footsteps fading away into the night.
Instead of going through the front gate, they arrive at the side of the castle with a tall castle wall standing in their way.
"Here," Julian gave him a mask that would cover the lower half of the face.
"I see, you were prepared." Kiernan took the mask and covered his face from nose down.
"Of course." Julian lifted his mask to cover half of his face. "I saw that courtyard from the ship back then. We'll split and try to find where the money is. In thirty minutes, we'll meet at the courtyard."
"Fine by me." Kiernan went down on one knee and put his hands on top of it. "Boost?"
Julian placed his foot on top of his hands, and then Kiernan tossed him high in the air. He grabbed the ledge and pulled himself up easily, then reached out his hand towards Kiernan.
Kiernan grabbed the arm, and then Julian pulled him up.
They arrived on top of one of the bridges, between two watchtowers that were dark and silent, but they expected there to be a few guards.
"See you later…" Julian whispered, fist-bumped with Kiernan, and then the two went in different directions.
The gray moon hovered in the sky, casting a beautiful glow over the dark castle that seemed to be asleep.