The burning wreckage of the large ship gradually sank beneath the waves, the flames still licking the debris as the ocean consumed what remained. Joseph Joestar watched the scene with lingering dread.
"Bloody hell… That Captain actually planted explosives on the ship," he muttered, his fists clenched.
A few minutes earlier, the vessel had erupted without warning—a towering fireball swallowing the hull whole. Thankfully, Joseph and his companions had reacted quickly, launching a lifeboat just in time. Now, crammed into the small craft alongside the surviving crew, they drifted amidst the endless sea, waiting for rescue.
"I heard your plane went down somewhere near Berlin, and now you've lost a ship. Tell me, is there someone in your group who… clashes with vehicles?"
The voice came lazily from nearby—Kai Adler, seated on his small inflatable kayak, drifting beside them. He was the first to react during the explosion, effortlessly steering his modest vessel clear of the blast. Afterward, he'd even helped rescue several sailors floundering in the water.
Given their miserable situation, Kai couldn't resist the jab.
Instantly, every eye turned toward the older man at the bow.
Joseph's face soured, and he coughed, feigning innocence. "Oi, kid—you can't just go around saying things like that…"
While rescuing the stranded sailors, they'd exchanged names but little else. No one revealed the true purpose of their voyage—Kai out of disinterest, and Joseph, wary by nature.
Yet the details they'd learned still left Joseph uneasy.
His grandson Jotaro had explained how the iceberg floating in midair—the one that halted a deadly vortex—had been conjured by this young man. Kai Adler.
Two children, in the middle of the ocean, with only a flimsy kayak between them… yet possessing such power? None of it added up.
More troubling was the timing. Since their emergency landing in Berlin, they'd been targeted twice by Dio's Stand Users—and each time, Kai was present. Coincidence? Joseph didn't believe in coincidences.
And yet, the boy hadn't once attacked them. He'd merely observed during their first encounter, and in the second… he'd intervened, saving Jotaro.
Joseph could sense the mystery wrapped around Kai like a second skin—unreadable, dangerous, and entirely unpredictable.
Still, gratitude was owed.
"Kid… thanks."
Joseph's voice carried weight, his meaning clear. He wasn't just thanking Kai for pulling sailors out of the water.
Kai shrugged, disinterested. "I stepped in because your little brawl annoyed me. Has nothing to do with you."
Though his tone was flippant, Joseph's sharp eyes caught the unspoken layer beneath.
Before he could probe further, Kai's gaze shifted past them, and his brow lifted slightly.
Hermione Granger, seated beside Kai, let out a soft gasp. "That's… a big ship."
All heads turned.
A colossal silhouette loomed through the mist, towering above them. Amidst the thin veil of clouds, an enormous vessel emerged without sound or warning—its shadow stretching across the sea. Their lifeboat, bobbing below, seemed like a toy next to its monstrous hull.
Clunk.
A gangway lowered from the side of the ship with mechanical precision.
"Well, well… Rescue arrived just in time," remarked Polnareff, reverting to his usual smug French demeanor, the recent chaos seemingly forgotten.
He began organizing the group to row toward the giant ship.
Jotaro, however, glanced back at Kai and Hermione, still unmoving on their kayak.
"You two coming? That ship looks more reliable than a kayak."
"Maybe." Kai's answer was noncommittal. With a casual flick of his wand, the kayak glided effortlessly away from them, propelled by magic.
"See you around."
Hermione glanced over her shoulder, eyes narrowing at the massive ship.
"Aren't you going to warn them?" she asked, her voice low.
Kai's eyes never left the towering vessel, his magic still tuned to the presence of Stands. Beyond the faint glow of Jotaro and the others, a thick, oppressive shroud of brownish-black light radiated from the ship itself.
This wasn't a normal vessel. The ship… was a Stand.
Kai had been surprised at first, but given his own Patronus could manifest at similar scale, the shock quickly passed.
Leaning back against the kayak, he dipped his hand into the cool seawater trailing beneath them.
"I did warn them," he replied simply.
"You did?" Hermione frowned, confused.
"I didn't say it out loud… but I warned them."
Hermione blinked. "Turning around and leaving without a word is your idea of a warning?"
"Exactly." Kai began rummaging through their luggage, pulling out a small table, neatly arranged tea sets, and snacks.
"Are you hungry?" he offered.
Hermione, already familiar with his habits, slid over to his side. "You know… with your personality, how are they supposed to know you meant that as a warning? Strawberry one, please."
Kai claimed the chocolate cake for himself. "Doesn't matter. I did my part. Whether they understood or not… not my concern. We're not exactly close."
Hermione giggled, amused despite herself. "You're terrible."
Unfolding the map and their GPS, she plotted their next course.
"We're passing near Singapore… Want to stop by?"
Kai's smile returned, his expression unbothered. "Sure. We're traveling anyway. Might as well have some fun."
—
More than an hour later…
The lifeboat bobbed on the waves once again. Jotaro and the others sat in tense silence as the massive ship—the one they'd trusted moments ago—began to distort unnaturally.
"Impossible… That damned monkey is using his Stand to sail on the sea!" Avdol exclaimed, watching as the illusion of the enormous vessel collapsed.
The towering ship seemed to melt, its once-pristine form shriveling into a dilapidated fishing boat, which slowly sank beneath the waves.
"This Stand… It's terrifying," Avdol muttered. "I've never seen energy like this."
Joseph grimaced, patting Avdol's shoulder. "It's not your first time, mate."
Avdol blinked in confusion.
"Did you forget about that kid—Kai Adler? The one who froze half the bloody ocean?"
The memory of the suspended, hundred-meter ice vortex flashed through Avdol's mind. Compared to that, this Stand-ship was child's play.
Joseph exhaled heavily, rubbing his temple.
"We were completely had. If Jotaro hadn't noticed the anomaly, we'd be dead."
Jotaro lit a cigarette, the smoke curling in the salt air.
"I noticed… because of Kai."
Joseph's eyes narrowed. "Explain."
"When I invited him aboard, he refused and left. Without hesitation."
Lowering the brim of his hat, Jotaro's voice turned cold.
"He's not a Stand User, but… he sees them. He must've sensed the danger immediately."
"Then why didn't he say anything?"
Jotaro's lips curled into a faint, humorless smirk.
"Someone with a personality that twisted? He probably just wanted to watch us struggle."
Joseph stared, utterly speechless.