"What is this?" The Sailor clearly noticed the unusual item as well; he climbed to his feet, wanting to reach out and touch it.
"Wait!"
His hand was halfway there when Luo En stopped him.
"Dangerous!"
It was then that the Sailor remembered the most important and fundamental rule from his mysticism lessons—caution.
He hurriedly retreated a few steps, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
… …
"What happened?"
"Is something wrong?"
Noisy footsteps approached, and a group of Sailors rushed over upon hearing the commotion. The deck instantly became boisterous.
"Brando, what happened here?" Danitz also hurried over with the crowd, his expression anxious.
"Nothing, just a bit unlucky." Luo En shrugged.
"Unlucky…" Hearing that word, Danitz frowned and subconsciously took two steps back.
"Boss, it's like this…" The Sailor from before came up to Danitz and recounted his recent experience in detail.
"What?!"
The surrounding gazes were drawn by the loud voice.
"Cough, cough…"
Danitz quickly lowered his voice and quietly said to the Sailor:
"You want to mess with Brando, why didn't you tell me beforehand… "
"Don't you know he's someone I brought onto the ship?"
Luo En's words in the storeroom earlier had already intimidated him; if the other party found out about this, it might be blamed on him.
Hearing this, the Sailor stammered, "Boss, I just thought he was too arrogant…"
"Could it be that you and he really are…"
Before he could finish, Danitz gave him a rap on the head.
"Bullshit!"
"How could I have a subordinate like you?"
Luo En turned his head to glance at the two, ignoring their whispers. He, like the others around him, was more interested in the object before him.
After a moment of thought, he spoke softly:
"I think it would be best to call your Captain over to handle this situation."
… …
Soon after, "Iceberg Admiral" Edwina also received the news and rushed over.
She first dispersed the curious Sailors, sending them back to their respective posts.
Then, she approached the object, which resembled a key, and examined it for a while.
A moment later, a faint blue light emanated from her hand, enveloping the surface of the key.
"No danger, and it's very old…" she murmured to herself.
An appraisal ability… Luo En, who witnessed all of this from not far away, speculated.
… …
Shortly after, Edwina found Luo En alone to understand the situation. Luo En truthfully recounted what had happened.
"That is indeed a key, and it's very ancient."
"But its origin still needs to be researched."
Edwina analyzed, "Judging from the item in the fishing net, it's highly probable that a shipwreck remnant was accidentally salvaged."
"Shipwreck…" Luo En questioned, "Shipwrecks should be at the bottom of the sea, right? At that depth, they shouldn't be caught by a fishing net."
"You are right." Edwina nodded slightly.
"The possibility of this situation is very low, but not entirely impossible," she explained, "Changes in seabed topography or ocean currents could lead to this. Before more clues emerge, this is the most reasonable speculation."
At this point, she looked at Luo En, a slight smile playing on her lips, "You are truly lucky."
Lucky, huh… A bitter taste filled Luo En's mouth. If he were truly lucky, he wouldn't have encountered such a thing, almost getting entangled in a fishing net and dragged into the sea…
Edwina emerged from her academic research state and looked at Luo En, asking:
"Regarding the ownership of that key, what are your thoughts?"
Because I salvaged it, she's asking for my opinion? Quite democratic, isn't she…
In fact, Luo En had no particular demands regarding that key; it was an accidental discovery.
Even if that key truly had something to do with some treasure, he had no money, no people, and no equipment, making exploration impossible. This item, in his hands, would only attract others' covetousness and would be practically useless in the short term.
Besides, he was on someone else's territory, so it wouldn't be good to make overly troublesome demands.
After a moment of thought, he spoke:
"It's most suitable for you, Captain, to keep that key. If any results are researched, I hope you can inform me."
"If it's to be sold, just give me a share." He paused, "The money can be temporarily kept by Danitz."
Edwina did not say much in response, readily agreeing to Luo En's request.
When she suggested signing a contract, Luo En refused.
He stated that he trusted Edwina's character and that such unnecessary procedures were not needed.
In reality, compared to the potential economic benefits of the key, Luo En valued Edwina's favor more. The favor of a knowledgeable pirate general was priceless.
This was a win-win deal.
For Edwina, she unexpectedly obtained an ancient item of great research value, which would greatly satisfy her thirst for knowledge.
For Luo En, exchanging an unexpected windfall for Edwina's favor was a worthwhile trade.
… …
It was certain that on a confined pirate ship, rumors spread much faster than imagined.
In less than an afternoon, news of the shipwreck treasure had already spread throughout the ship.
Many Sailors even planned to jump into the sea, fearing they would miss out on the treasure.
However, such dangerous behavior was explicitly forbidden by Edwina.
Due to a lack of preparation, they only recorded the coordinates of the location, intending to return later for further exploration once they were fully prepared.
… …
In the evening, after half a day of studying, Luo En went to the pirate mess hall to enjoy dinner.
Because of the treasure, some crew members' hostility towards him had weakened a little.
Some even actively approached him to drink, wanting to inquire about the key.
Of course, before he had even a few sips of alcohol, the people urging him to drink were chased away by the arriving Danitz.
Clearly, Danitz knew the phrase "loose lips sink ships" when drunk. He had drunk with Luo En before and knew that Luo En's alcohol tolerance wasn't high. If he accidentally got drunk and blurted out something he shouldn't, it would be troublesome.
"Relax, how can a Beyonder get drunk so easily?" Luo En picked up his cup and took another gulp of wine.
"You asked me to cover for you, but you ended up creating a huge stir yourself," Danitz grumbled.
"It was an accident…"
"Do you have a problem with me?!"
"No, I wouldn't dare!" Danitz replied reflexively.
"By the way, the Captain believes in the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, right?" Luo En asked casually.
"Yeah, why? Is something wrong?"
"Nothing, just wanted to learn more about the Captain." Luo En casually made up an excuse.
"Hey! You're not really thinking of pursuing…" Danitz panicked a bit when he heard Luo En's words.
Although he had questioned Luo En before, and Luo En had given some ambiguous replies, he had only taken it as Luo En's mischievousness.
But now, he was actually hearing such clearly meaningful words from Luo En.
Wait… he asked me to cover for him, could it really be for the Captain…
Danitz, realizing he might have become the other party's wingman, became anxious.
He mustered his courage and spoke:
"Bullshit! You can't…"
"Uh… what did you say?" Luo En, whose thoughts had been interrupted by Danitz, was displeased and looked at Danitz with cold eyes.
"No… nothing." Danitz lowered his head, his earlier burst of courage instantly deflating.
In fact, the gradually calming Luo En was thinking about something else: everything that happened today was a bit too coincidental.
It wasn't that he was being overly suspicious, but reality forced him to be cautious.
He had previously guessed that Edwina had some Official background. From his observations over the past few days, perhaps piracy was just her side job.
'The black glove of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, huh… Could it be…'
This world truly has gods everywhere!
Hopefully, it's just a coincidence.