Bonus Chapter [10] - EX - 1120 Power Stones
--x--
Rigel waited for the boy to leave, finally turning his gaze back to the floating book. Rigel had wondered why he didn't mind a book floating around behind him all the time, he even forgot it was there most of the time.
The book opened with a snap, its writing appearing rapidly.
[This is a trick of mine, when you don't need me, you just ignore me. This prevents me from annoying the writer while I'm doing my job, but other than that, Writer, you can finally see what you've received.]
[Congratulations, Writer, for breaking the Silent Mary's curse and receiving the "Curse Breaker - Silent Mary" achievement]
[Congratulations on receiving: "Black Flag (Silver)"]
[Black Flag (Silver)]
[Type: Bound Equipment - Ship (Only obeys the Writer and can only be attached to a ship.)]
[Note: The Flag image can be freely adjusted its appearance when first attached.]
[Effect 1: Deep Fear (Passive) -> While hoisted, the ship exudes a strong, invisible aura of fear towards all neutral and enemy life forms, anyone who looks at it will feel a deep and inexplicable fear.]
[Effect 2: Fight for me once more -> For all the writer's subordinates who died on board fighting for you, their souls are trapped in this flag. Once the writer calls them, they can fight for you again. (The number of subordinates is limited to 20, and it lasts for one hour, with a recharge period of one week.)]
Rigel blinked, sensing that it was good, but not great, it was merely acceptable.
Effect one could help him improve his fame, or rather, infamy.
Effect two, on the other hand, required his subordinates to die, even more so in a fight for him, so he couldn't simply grab some guys, recruit them, and kill them to gather ghosts.
The effect only lasts for an hour and has a recharge time of at least a week, it can be very useful in a naval battle.
Shrugging, Rigel still felt tired, so he drank a few more potions to help, he should have drunk them before bed, but he was too tired even for that.
Feeling a little better, he didn't leave yet, instead sitting in the hammock while thinking about the Silent Mary. Among the best Pirates of the Caribbean ships, the Pearl was the best in terms of speed, but in terms of combat, the Silent Mary and the Queen Anne's Revenge were the most powerful.
He was ready to go after Blackbeard after resting, but... the Silent Mary at the bottom of the sea... it still seemed a shame to abandon it.
Rigel became thoughtful and felt that he could return there in the future if he could find a way to restore it.
Perhaps by making a deal with Davy Jones? It worked for Jack, the previous ship, the Wicked Wench, was rescued by him and transformed into the Black Pearl.
Perhaps he could do the same for Silent Mary?
And what happens when he needs to pay the debt? Excuse me, have you ever heard of a bounced check?
In any case, Queen Anne's Revenge is still a good option.
Shaking his head, he finally stood up, feeling a little better after eating, and climbed up to the ship's deck.
//-//
The bright sun hit Rigel's face, causing him to squint and cover his face with one hand, he blinked a few times to adjust to the brightness.
-Captain! - x???
The group of subordinates shouted as soon as they saw him, Rigel simply nodded and turned to the bow, where he saw only the endless sea around him.
Looking around, confirming that Pearl really wasn't there, he turned to Will, who was standing beside him, and asked. "And Pearl?"
"He went ahead, his speed was too fast to keep up with, Jack must already be in Tortuga." Will shrugged.
Rigel didn't think twice, without using the Pirate Hat effect, the interceptor's speed is actually much lower than Pearl's.
Elizabeth wasn't far away, she approached and asked. "Captain, can you read my fortune?"
Rigel stared at her for a moment expressionlessly. Hadn't she seen Jack's bad luck? Look at all those pirates around, none of them were interested in knowing their "luck" after Pintel and Ragetti recounted what happened on the Black Pearl.
Elizabeth was the only one who was still excited about it.
Rigel wanted to deny it for a moment, he truly had no power to see destiny, at most some knowledge of Tarot, but his last reading of Jack made him realize that sometimes he didn't even need that.
If the target's destiny is strong enough, like Jack's, he might end up getting the reading right.
Rigel shrugged, he had nothing else to do in that sea anyway, so, looking into Will's worried and resigned eyes and Elizabeth's excited and expectant ones, Rigel took out his deck of cards.
Elizabeth jumped up excitedly as soon as Rigel finished shuffling and showed her the deck. She quickly grabbed three cards, turning them over just as Jack had done before.
The Lovers, The Tower and the Carriage.
Rigel blinked, that made sense, so Elizabeth's fate in this world isn't easy either.
"The combination of The Chariot, The Tower, and The Lovers in the Tarot is a powerful message about drastic, necessary, and transformative changes, especially in love or significant life choices." Rigel began to speak.
Gaining not only the attention of Elizabeth and Will, but also that of the curious pirates nearby.
"The chariot represents determination, control, rapid advancement, and the attempt to steer your life or relationship. You are focused, but may be ignoring underlying problems. " Rigel continued to ignore them. "The tower indicates a sudden rupture, deconstruction of false structures, or a shocking revelation. The Tower topples the Chariot, forcing a change of plans."
"The Lovers symbolizes a crucial choice based on deep values, harmony, or a new alliance that emerges after the dust settles." Rigel finished, picking up the cards and putting them away.
Elizabeth's eyes shifted between bright, shocked, confused, and thoughtful. Will swallowed hard, then sighed and sat down on the wooden floor, as if resigned to his fate.
His eyes met Elizabeth's with evident concern, but the look of determination that promised to get her safely back to Port Royal was gone, now his eyes held a hint of acceptance. He knew Elizabeth wasn't coming back.
Elizabeth slowly pulled her pensive gaze away, her eyes turning to Will sitting on the floor. They looked at each other, and this time Elizabeth smiled, because she saw a look of resigned acceptance in Will's eyes. Will shook his head, and finally smiled again, after all, he had pirate blood in his veins.
Elizabeth crouched down in front of him, so quickly he couldn't even react. She grabbed him by the neck and kissed him forcefully. Will was shocked for a fraction of a second before responding forcefully.
When they parted, Elizabeth smiled at Will and said. "I've made my choice."
Will stared at her for a moment, looking directly into her eyes. He brought his hand to her cheek and stroked it gently, almost reverently, saying. "And I made mine."
Rigel observed this, rolling his eyes, he felt like throwing up at all this cliché romance. Beside him, Ragetti was crying and wiping his tears with a cloth while saying. "It's so beautiful!"
Pintel looked at his emotional friend, rolled his eyes, and ignored him.
Rigel looked away from the lovers and turned to the crew, watching the unfolding events as if they were a romantic soap opera. For a moment he was confused, before his eyes widened and he shouted. "What are you doing?! Don't you have anything better to do?! Get back to work!"
This startled the pirates, causing them to run around confused, looking for something to do.
Rigel chuckled softly, he really enjoyed being captain.