Chapter 326. Swann

The colossal Ronker emerged from the depths, but it was no longer just a metal construct. Ronker's metal shell riddled with cracks had been reinforced with scales and protrusions similar to flesh. Tendrils covered in a thick, white gelatinous substance were sticking out of the cracks, and every tendril was covered in moist, gray eyeballs.

Ronker's previous legs that had been destroyed by Charles had also been replaced by what looked like the walking legs of a giant crab. Ronker's smokestack was supposed to be belching out thick black smoke, but it had been replaced by tentacles with suckers, along with a liquid that looked like green pus sticking to Ronker's black furry tendrils.

Charles' attention wasn't on Ronker. His gaze was unwittingly transfixed on the colossal vertical pupil on Swann's ventral side. The vertical pupil, similar to that of a cat, was massive, spanning at least two hundred meters in height and width.

Below the eye was a mouth twice the size of the eye, and a mechanical tongue wrapped in flesh was sticking out casually from its mouth. The fact that the mouth was the other half of a missing mouth meant that the colossal construct of flesh and blood was none other than Swann.

After all, Swann had split himself into two.

Charles instantly deduced that Swann was here to avenge himself.

A shrill noise echoed as a beam of light converged on Swann's ventral side before sweeping past the entire Hope Island. The canopies on the island instantly caught fire.

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"Fuck!" Charles wanted to rush over to Swann and attack, but he held himself back. He knew that attacking Swann without any plans was suicide.

I have to calm down. I can't make a move until I come up with a way to deal with him!

Charles told himself. He couldn't do anything other than watch as Swann grabbed a ship and started tearing it apart.

"Elizabeth, does this ship have a telegraph?"

"Yes, but what do you want to do?" Elizabeth asked.

"I want you to contact the command center on Hope Island and tell them to mobilize every single ship. We have to attack that monstrosity together and stop it from getting close to the island. Otherwise, the island will get obliterated!"

Elizabeth seemed hesitant in the face of Charles' words.

"What are you staring at me for? Hurry up and go!"

"Charles, I don't think our two navies are enough to stop Ronker. It also looks like it has become more difficult to handle than the last time I saw it," Elizabeth replied.

"We have to stop it no matter what! The island is my everything! I absolutely can't let it destroy my island!" Charles roared. He felt a shiver down his spine at the thought of the brutality that would unfold once Swann got close enough to Hope Island.

Elizabeth's expression flickered in hesitation.

Finn Gunther stepped forward with a grim look and said, "Lady Elizabeth, you can order our navy to help them, but I don't think you have the right to send us to our deaths. Quite a number of my men are in our navy, after all."

Charles stared alternatingly between Finn and Elizabeth before turning around and jumping onto a nearby ship that was being helmed by District 3 .

"Pass down my orders to the command center, Aliya! As the Governor of Hope Island, I want every single ship mobilized! We have to stop this bastard from getting close to Hope Island!"

"Understood!" Aliya responded with a roar, and a telegram was quickly sent out. It didn't take long for Hope Island's entire navy to mobilize and gather toward Swann.

Elizabeth's fleet moved to the side and made room for the inevitable decisive battle between Hope Island and Swann.

Charles stared quietly at the departing Black Rose. Charles was well aware of his situation, and Elizabeth's actions of prioritizing the lives of her sailors were understandable.

They were just allies, after all. She didn't have to sacrifice her fleet for him.

"Aliya, how many people do we still have on this ship?" Charles asked while staring at the approaching Swann.

"Quite a few are dead, but there are still forty-five people, including those in the turbine chambers. I'm not sure about the total number of navy sailors on the oncoming ships, but there should be more than a hundred in total," Aliya said as she swept her gaze across the approaching ships.

"Use flag semaphore and tell them that we're going to attack that monstrous thing together. We're going to approach it and find a way to kill it," Charles said.

"All right," Aliya agreed immediately.

"Are you not afraid at all?" Charles asked.

Aliya smiled confidently and said, "I used to be a pirate on Skywater Island, and pirates are unafraid of death. However, I wouldn't have been here, Governor, if it weren't for what you've done to Skywater Island."

Charles' gaze landed on the red scorpion tattoo on her neck. "I can see that."

"Governor," Aliya said, "This mission is extremely dangerous, so I expect the reward is quite substantial, am I right?"

"Yes, you're right. As the Governor, I promise that any survivors on this mission will become heroes of Hope Island once we've defeated this thing. Each and every single one of you will share the same benefits as that of a commodore," Charles said.

Aliya was thrilled. She turned around and announced the news to the crew. The blood of every single crew member started to boil upon hearing the news, and they became even more enthusiastic.

"With treasures and gold, we pirates grow bold!"

Aliya flicked her auburn hair behind her ears and started tapping the ship with the barrel of her gun while singing a sea shanty.

"

Yo-ho! Yo-ho!

Set sail and away we go!"

The crew members picked up anything and started tapping along the rhythm; they were all smiles as they swung their heads from side to side.

"

Yo-ho! Yo-ho!

O'er waves and wind we row! Where next will our jolly ship tow?!"

"Aye, rogues and thieves, come and be afraid; we pirates are not going away!"

"Some have perished, some still aboard, but even more are sailing some more!"

The pirates' seemed as though they had no idea how to sing, so the ship was pervaded by a discordant cacophony of voices. Regardless, their singing brought a smile to Charles' lips.

Ronker was getting closer and closer to Hope Island, and the colossal monstrosity made out of flesh and blood was so terrifying that it was guaranteed to instill fear in the hearts of just about anyone. However, Charles couldn't feel even a tinge of fear in the singing voices of the crew here.

Just then, a slender hand with red, manicured nails grabbed the railings next to Charles. Elizabeth quickly climbed aboard, sporting her dark purple captain's uniform.

"I'm a Governor, so I have to take my sailors' safety into account. However, I'm the Captain of the Black Rose as well. I can go wherever I want," Elizabeth said.

Charles was moved to see Elizabeth in front of him. There was a strange air of estrangement between them, but it dispersed the instant Charles saw Elizabeth climbing aboard.

Charles wordlessly grabbed Elizabeth's hand while staring calmly at Ronker in the distance.

"Come! You'll have to kill me first before you can destroy my island!"

A certain drawer inside the Governor's Mansion of Hope Island opened by itself.

Charles' diary flipped open on its own, and when the last page was flipped open, an eyeball with a cross-shaped pupil appeared. The simple portrait had the name of the artist next to it, along with an adorable emoticon.

[Anna - don't erase it even if you've seen it.]

ヾ(????)?~”

Just then, the sketch changed ever so slowly from 2D to 3D, and a terrifying aura began to permeate the room. It floated from the balcony to the greenhouse beneath the sunlight, where it could clearly see Ronker in the distance.

It looked up and stared in confusion at the rift in the sky. Then, it cast its gaze on the sea once again, "Daddy..."

Its figure blurred, and it appeared above the docks in the blink of an eye. It became blurry once more, and it reappeared in the depths of the icy cold pitch-black sea.