Pirate: I, Ace, am the King of Eclipse!

Ace remained seated on the sofa, without getting up.

"The sound of your footsteps betrayed your intentions."

Karina paused.

Ace looked at her, his tone calm.

"Show your value."

"If all you can do is play the victim and lie, then don't waste your time."

Karina's smile froze, and a layer of cold sweat appeared on her forehead.

She knew that the man in front of her was serious.

"Wait...wait a minute!"

Karina gritted her teeth and completely dropped her feigned pitiful act.

She stood up straight, her mind racing faster than ever before.

"I'm not just a thief."

“I know how to sell stolen goods, how to launder money, and I also know most of the underground black market transaction channels in Donghai.”

"Give me time, and I can infiltrate nobles, merchant guilds, and even pirate crews to extract information."

Karina quickly promoted herself, her voice regaining its composure.

“Your ship looks very valuable, but you don’t even have a professional to guard the vault.”

"You need someone to help you manage your wealth and gather intelligence, right?"

Hearing Karina's self-recommendation, Ace did not speak immediately.

Even in a life-or-death situation, one can quickly remain calm, identify the other party's needs and pain points, and offer their own bargaining chips.

This mental fortitude and professional competence truly make them worthy of the Eclipse.

"A decent bargaining chip."

Ace slowly stood up and walked to Karina.

The imposing height made Karina instinctively take a half step back.

"but--"

Ace looked down at her.

Why should I trust a thief who's all lies and only cares about money?

Karina's back slammed against the door.

She bit her lower lip hard, her mind racing, trying to find a reason to prove her loyalty.

Seeing the purple-haired girl racking her brains, Ace didn't urge her.

He knew, of course, that Karina was no ordinary thief.

In the future he knew, this woman appeared greedy and cunning, but in times of real danger, she would put herself in the most dangerous position for the sake of her companions.

This kind of person doesn't easily open up to others.

But once you truly gain her approval, you'll be more reliable than most people who only pay lip service to loyalty.

However, Ace did not point these things out.

On this vast ocean, sympathy cannot buy true loyalty.

For a wildcat like Karina, who lacks security and only believes in money and profit, sweet words are useless.

Strength, resources, and a sufficiently secure protection are what would make her stop.

Just as Karina took a deep breath, preparing to swear an oath—

"boom!"

A dull thud, as if a heavy object had fallen, suddenly came from the deck of the Eclipse.

Immediately afterwards, a cacophony of footsteps and shouts shattered the tranquility of the harbor at night.

"Search!"

"That little purple-haired bitch is definitely hiding on this ship!"

"How dare she steal money from our Blood Axe Gang! We'll skin her alive today!"

Karina's face turned pale instantly.

That's the largest underground gang in Port Royana.

She had just robbed their underground casino the night before, but she never expected that these mad dogs would follow the clues to the dock so quickly.

We're still stuck on this ship.

She suddenly regretted her decision to greedily climb onto the ship.

"Captain."

Karina panicked completely.

She instinctively looked at the tall man in front of her, and her voice finally carried a genuine plea.

"Please, just help me get rid of them, and I won't take a single penny of the money in this bag, it's all yours!"

In her past experience, pirates and wealthy businessmen would never hesitate to hand her over as a trade tool when they encountered this kind of gang trouble.

On this vast ocean, almost nothing can protect her except money.

Ace glanced down at her.

He didn't answer, but simply reached out and pushed open the living room door.

on the deck.

Dozens of gang members armed with axes and muskets had completely surrounded the Eclipse.

Bucky was snoring.

But as soon as he stepped onto the deck, his red nose twitched, as if he had sensed something.

Before he could even open his eyes, the bald, burly man leading the group had already kicked him.

"Ouch!"

Bucky sat up, clutching his head, furious.

"Who dares to kick me?!"

"Red Nose, shut up!"

The bald, burly man, brandishing an axe, roared viciously:

"Have you seen a woman with purple hair?"

Before he could finish speaking, his voice suddenly lowered.

Because the living room door was pushed open.

Ace came out from inside.

Moonlight fell on his dark red trench coat.

He simply stood in front of the cabin door, and the originally noisy shouting and cursing subsided without him even realizing it.

The bald, burly man swallowed hard.

He instinctively sensed a hint of danger.

But relying on his superior numbers, he still gritted his teeth and shouted:

"Hey! Big guy!"

"We are the Blood Axe Gang of Royana Port!"

"A female thief has hidden in your boat. Hand her over right now, or we'll smash your boat to pieces!"

Karina, hiding behind the hatch, bit her lip hard, her heart pounding in her throat.

However, on the deck.

Ace didn't even look directly at the bald, muscular man.

"Bucky."

His voice rang out in the night wind.

"Yes, Captain!"

Bucky jolted awake and immediately scrambled to his feet, standing ramrod straight.

"Someone stepped on the deck you just cleaned and dirtied."

Ace said calmly:

"If there are any other people standing on the deck besides us within thirty seconds, I'll throw you into the sea to wash you sober up."

"Wh...what?!"

The bald, burly man was completely enraged.

"How dare you look down on the Blood Axe Gang?!"

"Shoot him dead!"

"boom!"

The gunfire had barely begun when Pakistan was blown up.

"How dare you dirty the deck that I spent all day cleaning!"

"You bunch of trash, go to hell!"

The anger of being woken up, coupled with the fear of Ace's punishment, caused Buggy to instantly go berserk.

"Fragmentation Blade!"

Bucky roared.