Mad John let out a long, drawn-out sigh, his eyes flickered around as if searching for the perfect words to convey his message. His lips parted, and he began to speak with a measured cadence, each word chosen with care.


    "Wealth has its limits.." He said, his eyes fixed on me. ".... Especially for a young ascendant with a long lifespan and no way to umte more wealth".


    Yes, I knew that he was talking about me.


    Mad John continued, his tone bing more conspiratorial. "However, now that we are rogue pirates, I think--"


    ? I cut him off immediately and picked the out word. "Rouge pirates?".


    "Yes, captain" Replied Mad John "Although, truthfully, we have been skirting that line ever since the incident with Captain ra. But now that we have destroyed some of Captain Crimson Eye''s fleet and killed off some of the Crimson ck-eye crew..." He raised his hand to his head and saluted me. "Congrattions, Captain Prince Wyatt. We are now officially rogue pirates".


    Again, I tested the words. "Rogue pirates..." I stared at Mad John with a frown etched on my lips. "Exin?".


    He nodded with a smile on his face and exined, "Just like kingdoms, pirates rule over the ocean as their territories, splitting them into various parts with different pirates and fleets taking a slice of the pie. However, at the top of the fleet, there is a pirate equal in power and position to that of a king, to whom all of them report and are under. So, if a pirate decides to forcefully split up from the group, he will be branded as a rogue pirate - a pirate who is not under a banner or held by the constraints of the pirate code".


    Well, there goes my understanding of what I believed a ''Pirate'' was.


    Regardless, I asked, "So, are wewless bandits or not?". Yeah, it might be a little toote for me to ask this question, but the sooner I get the answer to it, the better.


    He smiled, as though he could read my thoughts. "Of course, we are. Since we are not aligned with any kingdom or race, as long as it''s the sea, we are allowed to do anything we want. As such, we are either known as bandits, thieves, or pirates" He said, smiling, his earring glistening under the moonlight.


    I see!


    Although it was my fault for assuming that pirates here were the same ones back on Earth, I was still happy that they weren''t far off in meaning from each other.


    Also, it began to make more sense when I applied that logic to all the sea-rted problems that I have witnessed and experienced.


    "However, we are still limited by the pirate codes that we swore an oath on" Mad John added with a frown on his lips.


    I furrowed my brows. "Did we swear on one?"


    "No" He shook his head in denial. "Knight Camille never saw the need to make you swear one since she... you know…" He faked a cough, while I nodded in understanding.


    As I stood on the deck, the waves behind me yed a symphony of soothing notes, urging me to make a decision. Finally, I decided, "I think it''s time that we behave as the bandits that we are". Though my wealth was considerable, thest time I consulted the ''Pirate''s Dictionary,'' there was never enough treasure to satisfy a true pirate''s cravings.


    Mad John saluted again "Aye, captain!".


    "Hold on a minute, let me get something done before we head in" I said. I then turned around without waiting for his response and channelled my magical energy into the ''Temporary Storage Space.''


    A whirlpool made of invisible air appeared in the air, twisting and bending the atmosphere around it, until a loud ''Ssh'' rang out in the surroundings, and Toothless was easily sucked into it.


    Seeing that the work was done, I turned around to meet a dazed Mad John with his jaws hanging open.


    "Are you curious?" I asked, mischievously.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "No... Unfortunately, I feel like the less I know, the better I can make sense of what goes on around you".


    Both of my eyebrows rose in surprise.


    I had already taken the time to craft a suitable exnation, but I supposed I would have to save it forter.


    But, strangely, he was right in a way, because even I couldn''t exin what goes on around me sometimes.


    "Alright. Take me to where Edna is staying" I responded. Before I proceeded to do anything next, I needed to take care of her, firstly.


    Knowing that I was getting straight to business, he nodded with a serious expression on his face, turned around, and began to walk forward.


    I followed behind him, passing through the corridor until we finally arrived at a door.


    "Is she here?" I asked for rification.


    Mad John confirmed it with a response. "This is where Annabelle and I brought her. Although the fallen queen asked to be with the other woman who came in here with her, I denied her request for the sake of safety".


    The other woman was probably Vanessa. Regardless --


    "Okay" Were thest words that left my mouth before I stretched my hand and knocked on the door.


    "Knock! Knock!!"


    Silence.


    I knocked again, albeit a bit harder.


    KNOCKK!! KNOCKK!!"


    I frowned. Without hesitation, I unlocked the door and walked in--


    Empty!!


    My eyes scanned the whole room while my magical energy flowed out from my body, aiding in the search.


    Empty! Why was the room empty?


    Mad John walked into the room momentster and instantly understood what was going on. "I will go search for Annabelle immediately" His expression was deadly serious, his words resolute and hasty as he dashed out of the room and headed straight for Annabelle''s room.


    Meanwhile, beyond gritting my teeth, I chose to rationally process the information in front of me. And the response, that I coulde up with was….