We agreed to set sail, so you'd become the ruler of the deep sea?

Chapter 194 The Death of the Apostle, the Treasure Trove of the Pirate Duchy (Seeking monthly votes at the end of the month!)
The hall was brightly lit.

Glass-like lamps hang down from a height.

In the center was a long dining table covered with a red cloth, and the walls around it were adorned with many exquisite paintings.

This scene doesn't resemble a pirate gathering; rather, it feels like being in a kingdom's palace.

Watching this scene, Xia En inexplicably recalled a very famous painting from his previous life on Earth—

The Last Supper

The same twelve apostles, the same wicked intentions.

At this moment, just as at that moment.

"John, Nana, you've arrived."

Before Xia En and his companion arrived, three people were already seated around the long table. The first to speak was a middle-aged man with an ordinary appearance.

This man was named Moses, and he was the eldest of the twelve apostles.

When Augustine was away, he usually took charge of the affairs of the Pirate Duchy.

If we truly consider the Pirate Principality as a country, then Moss would be its prime minister.

"Hello, big brother."

After greeting Moss, Xia En couldn't help but glance at him a couple more times.

His purpose in attending this banquet was to find the traitor among the apostles, and it would be good if he could also find a few trial participants.

However, Moss, the leader, remained unmoved and his aura was unfathomable, so Xia En could not discern the slightest clue.

Just as Xia En was secretly observing, he suddenly noticed a cold gaze coming from the side.

He turned his head and saw a thin man leaning back in his chair, silently staring at him.

His cheeks also had scales, but they were different from Nana's dragon scales; they were more like the features of a sea creature.

Xia En's heart skipped a beat. For some reason, he felt that this person's eyes were somewhat familiar, as if he had seen them somewhere before.

Could he be one of the trial participants?

Regardless of the gaunt man's hidden identity, on the surface he is the fifth of the twelve apostles, named Ansel, who has sea race blood and is extremely skilled in naval warfare.

Similarly, Ansel was also a victim of this attack.

Shaun had some doubts about Ansel's identity, but the other man only glanced at him before looking away.

Xia En had no choice but to suppress his suspicions and sit down with Nana.

Shane originally wanted to sit separately from Nana, but the half-dragon plopped down next to him and even moved his chair closer to him.

The ancient dragon aura emanating from him held considerable appeal for half-dragons with dragon bloodlines.

Nana then became very close to him.

Seeing this, the last of the three, a blonde woman, asked in surprise.

"Nana, when did you and John become so close?"

Nana said casually, "Little John is not the same as before!"

"On his way back this time, he destroyed two pirate ships!"

"I like him, so naturally we got along well."

Xia En felt a cold sweat break out on his back. It's one thing for you to open your own box, but why do you have to open mine too?
But then I thought, his change in temperament certainly wouldn't escape the notice of someone who was paying attention.

Instead of hiding it, it's better to find a reasonable explanation as soon as possible.

So, under the gaze of the other apostles, Shane spoke frankly.

"This voyage was like a brush with death, and I realized it's time to correct some of my past shortcomings."

"I see."

The blonde woman pushed up her glasses, a strange glint flashing in her beautiful eyes, and sighed.

"It seems little John has really grown up."

This bespectacled, stunning blonde beauty is named Tiffany, and she is the third among the apostles.

Her demeanor was quite different from that of a typical pirate; she resembled a doctor or a scholar, possessing an intellectual beauty.

It is said that Tiffany was once the dean of an academy on the continent, possessing extremely profound knowledge, and was in charge of scientific research in the Pirate Kingdom.

Moreover, according to some rumors, Tiffany was also Augustine's confidante.

That blonde woman left her academy to follow Augustine.

This rumor spread widely within the Pirate Kingdom.

Based on the remaining memories in Xia En's mind, this statement is most likely true!
From a certain perspective, John might even have to call Tiffany "stepmother"?

After Shane and his companion were seated, the other apostles arrived at the palace one after another.

Shaen sat silently in place, secretly observing each arriving apostle and comparing them with the information in his mind.

However, apart from Nana, who has already been exposed, and Ansel, who seems familiar, the other apostles performed normally and played their roles perfectly.

Come to think of it, most of the secret cultivators who manage to reach the fourth-tier advancement ritual are cautious and cunning old foxes.

Nana, that dim-witted half-dragon girl, is the exception!
boom!
Suddenly, the hall door was kicked open.

An extremely obese man barged in, weighing more than 400 pounds, even more exaggerated than the former Duke Nova.

With each step he took, the floor of the entire palace seemed to tremble.

This mountain of flesh had lost a hand, and his right arm, wrapped in gauze, was still bleeding. He was the tenth man, Tucker, who suffered the most in this attack.

Tucker, a man with a fierce face and a volatile temper, shouted at Moss as soon as he entered the room.

"Brother, you must avenge me!"

"Those guys actually dared to target us! How can we tolerate this?!"

His appearance and personality made him the most pirate-like of the apostles.

"Tucker, calm down."

Moss said calmly, "Revenge is definitely necessary, but before that, there are more important issues to resolve."

His tone and expression were calm, but Tucker, who looked fierce, immediately became obedient upon hearing this and sat down at the long table sullenly.

Waited for another moment.

The long table was already full of dishes, but there were still two empty seats.

One of them was Augustine's seat, and the other belonged to the eleventh apostle.

Moss frowned and asked, "Where's the eleventh brother?"

One of the apostles, a shorter one, replied, “When I came, I saw Eleven, who said he had urgent business and couldn’t come.”

Moss frowned even more deeply, but they had already been delayed for too long, and they couldn't keep waiting indefinitely.

So he waved his hand, signaling the maids and servants in the hall to leave.

squeak-

With the doors closed, only the eleven apostles remained in the hall.

Although the lights overhead were still bright, a chill inexplicably rose in everyone's hearts.

Moss stood up and looked around.

This man, who was usually taciturn, now exuded a thunderous majesty.

The timid or scheming apostles dared not meet his gaze for a moment.

Shaun, however, was not afraid at all and met Moss's gaze head-on.

Whether it was Shane's imagination or not, Moss seemed to nod at him approvingly.

Perhaps it was John's past conduct that displeased this eldest apostle?

After looking around, Moss said, "Everyone should have heard about the attack on the Apostles."

"Some people are overreaching."

"However, this is not the main reason why I hosted this dinner."

What I really wanted to say was...

Moston paused, then said coldly, "Some of us have betrayed Lord Augustine!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone was shocked.

The apostles were either shocked, angry, excited, or nervous.

However, only they themselves know how many of them are genuine and how many are pretending.

Xia En was also somewhat surprised.

To his surprise, Moss actually knew about the traitor's existence and brought it up directly during this dinner. According to Shane's original plan, he should have been the one to say that.

A fleeting thought crossed his mind, and Xia En took the opportunity to observe the people around him.

Nana opened her mouth wide, her eyes wide, trying her best to look shocked.

But her acting was so bad that even Xia En could see right through it.

Ansel still maintained his aloof demeanor, it was hard to tell whether it was a facade or just his personality.

Tucker, who had a short temper, roared angrily.

"How can it be!"

He stood up, glanced at the other apostles, and looked on in disbelief.

"Lord Augustine has been so good to us, why would anyone betray him?"

"Who knows?"

Another apostle said sarcastically, "Maybe they were bribed by those four kings or the Royal Navy?"

If we were to name Augustine's possible enemies, aside from the four kings of the pirates, it would be the Royal Navy from the continent.

In this era, the kingdoms on the continent established ocean shipping companies for trade with the rest of the world.

The Royal Navy, an army that opens the doors of nations and protects caravans from invasion, is naturally opposed to pirates who live by plundering.

After Augustine established the Pirate Principality, he signed a series of treaties with the Royal Navy.

Now, with news of Augustine's serious injury, the Royal Navy seems to be getting restless.

"Brother, who betrayed Lord Augustine? I'll kill him with one punch!"

Tucker's eyes flashed with a fierce light as he looked at Ansel, whom he usually disliked the most.

"Ansel, tell me, was it you?!"

Ansel, who had been caught in this undeserved calamity, frowned and coldly retorted, "Tucker, what nonsense are you spouting?"

"You're framing someone without any evidence?"

Tucker also had his own twisted logic: "You little rascal, you look shifty and I don't know what you're up to all the time."

"In my opinion, you are the most likely traitor!"

At this moment, the blonde woman, Tiffany, shook her head: "Ansel was also attacked by the nameless pirate ship this time, it couldn't be him."

Tucker muttered to himself, "Who knows if this is just a ploy on his part?"

Ansel sneered, "You fat pig, if you've got the guts, let's fight!"

Tucker, neck stiff, said menacingly, "Fine, let's fight!"

Seeing that the dinner was about to turn into a farce, Moss snorted coldly.

"enough!"

As the eldest of the twelve apostles, he possessed unparalleled prestige and immediately calmed the chaotic situation.

"I'm telling you this news not to incite infighting."

"I already have a way to find the traitor."

As he spoke, Moss handed each apostle a slip of paper one by one.

"Tonight, you will do as this note says, and you are not allowed to reveal its contents to anyone else."

Xia En took the note and saw that it contained the names of several people and a simple "X".

It seems he was ordered to kill these people.

Upon closer examination, Xia En realized that these people were all subordinates of the Four Kings of the Sea.

Could it be... that they are the masterminds behind this attack?

However, this is clearly part of the main quest issued by Moss, and you can't move on to the next stage if you don't complete it.

After writing down the name on the note, Xia En suddenly remembered something, pointed to the empty seat next to him, and asked.

"What about him?"

Moss replied, "I will go see Old Eleven myself later."

After this incident, although the banquet was still a banquet, the atmosphere was completely different from the beginning.

There was a growing sense of apprehension and suspicion among the apostles.

The only exception is Nana, the half-dragon.

Her expression was innocent and natural, and she even had an appetite as she ate heartily at the dishes on the table.

Watching her eat, Xia En suddenly remembered that she hadn't eaten for almost a day, so she decided to start enjoying the feast in front of her as well.

It's unrealistic to find the traitor based solely on this dinner.

It's better to eat a few more bites and fill your stomach.

Seeing Shane and Nana enjoying their meal, the other apostles had rather strange expressions.

A gentle emotion flashed in Moss's deep eyes as he spoke to the crowd.

"Since we're already here, let's all have a bite."

The apostles each took a bite, and only then did it begin to feel like a banquet.

Several apostles were deeply moved.

They had dined together in this hall several times before, but this time, their feelings were indescribably complicated.

But just then, the restaurant door was suddenly pushed open.

The one-eyed butler, Basil, rushed in and whispered a few words in Moss's ear.

With a clang, Moss's fork fell onto the plate, and his face suddenly turned grim.

Everyone was shocked.

In their memory, they had rarely seen this man lose his composure like this.

Moss stood up and said in a hoarse voice, "The eleventh brother is dead."

……

……

Not long after.

Many apostles came to the bodies of the eleven apostles.

It was called a "corpse," but it was really just a lump of rotten flesh, with a pool of dark green pus flowing beneath it, and the stench of decay permeated the air.

The apostles were men who had weathered many storms, and this tragic way of dying did not frighten them.

After examining the body for a while, Tiffany frowned and said.

"This method of death... seems to be the work of an alchemist?"

"Moreover, even their souls have been annihilated, making it impossible to use spirit summoning magic to find out who the murderer is."

After examining the body, Shane came out of the room, his expression somber.

The death of an apostle would definitely cause a major upheaval in the Pirate Kingdom.

What's more, there are traitors, the Four Kings, and the Royal Navy lurking in the shadows.

It's fair to say that this island has become the eye of the storm.

All it takes is a single spark to ignite all the conflicts.

At some point, Gray Cloud appeared beside Xia En and said, "The deaths of the eleven apostles may have been caused by the trial participants."

Xia En raised an eyebrow: "Why do you say that?"

Gray Cloud replied seriously, "One of my optional tasks is to kill apostles. The more apostles you kill, the higher your final evaluation will be."

"Moreover, in addition to the optional tasks shown in the information, there are actually hidden tasks as well."

"Although it's not explicitly stated, completing it will improve your rating. High-value objectives like the Twelve Apostles could be part of a hidden mission."

Xia En glanced at him: "Then why didn't you attack me back then?"

Gray Cloud honestly replied, "Well, it's because I can't beat you!"

He raised an eyebrow and continued, "I happen to know a target that can significantly improve the evaluation."

"Captain John, how about we make a bet?"

Xia En: "What's the goal?"

Gray Cloud grinned: "The treasure vault of the Pirate Kingdom!"

(End of this chapter)