From sailboats to star destroyers (Source: Web)

Chapter 31 Waiting for Godot

Curse progress: Undead curse (16.5%), current crew memories experienced (65/66).

After casually glancing at his mission progress, Miao Meng continued to use the materials in his backpack to create one small but terrifyingly powerful Belka Magic Bullet after another.

This was the eleventh day since he assassinated the count. After the assassination, he did not return to Xixian City in a grand manner, but instead went out to sea and found a remote island to stay on.

After all, the Black Earl would definitely not let this go, and he would surely launch a purge after returning. If I stayed in the city, I might be dragged out by the other side.

Furthermore, although he was not entirely clear about the number of assassinations that night, he knew that he was not the only one who had launched the assassinations. Given the pirates' vengeful nature, how could they possibly have acted so casually?

Therefore, after hiding on the island, Miao Meng lived a nocturnal life, only sneaking out to Xixian City at night to check on the situation, and staying there during the day to make ammunition.

The Belka Magic Bullet isn't particularly difficult to make, but it's a troublesome thing because it's a highly condensed energy body that will quickly dissipate over time if left unattended.

Normally, a magic cannon user can only condense it one day in advance. If it takes any longer, the ammunition energy will drop rapidly, resulting in insufficient power.

If we want to improve this situation, we can only add something to it, transforming it from an energy body into a metal product with a material existence.

However, this would cause the production cost to rise rapidly. The more stable the magic bullet, the higher the requirements for the materials, which means the higher the production price.

However, Miao Meng is not in a hurry, because things are developing in the direction he hopes for, and the longer it drags on, the more advantageous it will be for him.

News of the Black Earl's assassination has broken out, and due to his injury, his control over the city has rapidly declined.

Furthermore, the Black Earl began a major purge upon returning to the city, which further limited his power, and even nobles who were originally in the same camp began to outwardly comply but inwardly defy him.

After all, if you can't bring enough benefits to the nobles, they will abandon you without hesitation, especially since the Black Earl's reputation isn't very good to begin with.

The pirates from the pirate kingdom also seemed to have received this news. From the day of the assassination, they have been harassing various shipping routes and even occasionally bombing the area outside the port.

However, the only thing that surprised the major powers in the city was that the naval general did not rush to kick them while they were down, but instead raised the banner of fighting against the pirates.

He not only frequently patrolled the city walls of the port to boost the morale of the soldiers, but also occasionally sailed his ships to lead his troops in pursuit of pirates in the coastal waters.

Admittedly, this action could be considered a usurpation of the count's power, but it was also too upright, causing many minor nobles and merchant groups to fail to react in time.

These newly emerging nobles and merchants, who hastily pledged their loyalty, were immediately seized upon by the Black Earl, who slaughtered them in a bloodbath, making everyone in the city feel that they were now in grave danger.

The flying squirrel gang, originally controlled by Miao Meng, also failed to survive this turmoil. After other gangs discovered Miao Meng's identity, they wiped him out in one fell swoop.

But it was useless. To Miao Meng, it was just a tool. Even if other gangs controlled these streets, they couldn't stop his infiltration.

"Today will be the last crew member's memory. I wonder if he has any special abilities."

The current daily curse gain of 0.2-0.5% is just too fast.

If you stay here for the full three months, you'll have enough time to increase your rank by a quarter. That means you'll need at most three dungeon runs before you can successfully defeat Count Bartholomew.

With various plans in mind, Miao Meng placed the 30th Belka Magic Bullet he had made that day into the energy storage magazine, and then peacefully closed his eyes to begin meditating.

Meanwhile, in the lord's mansion in the center of West Limit City, Count Black continued to vent his anger.

"It's so hard for you to even investigate someone! It's been days and you haven't gotten a single useful piece of information!"

As he spoke of his burning rage, the Black Earl slammed his hand on the table, smashing a large piece of the heavy stone table to pieces.

The generals, who had been loudly reprimanded by the count, kept their heads down and did not respond, trembling in their seats like a flock of quails.

"Breathe! Breathe! Larsen and Mary, stay here! Everyone else, get out! How could an outsider wizard possibly leave no trace without the help of others? Keep searching, keep killing!"

After dismissing the generals who annoyed him, the Black Earl sat back in his high-backed chair, his anger gone and he appeared quite calm.

"Mary, tell me, is there really no news at all about your dancers? I've invested a lot of money in you, so I hope you won't disappoint me."

After shedding that mask of anger, the Black Count seemed to reveal the ruthlessness and charm he once possessed as a legendary pirate. He spoke with gentle elegance and affability, yet his words sent chills down one's spine.

"Reporting to you, sir, there is absolutely no trace of that foreign wizard. At first, we could only find out that he controlled a small gang, and even divination could not trace his origins."

The woman named Mary was dressed in a noblewoman's voluminous dress, with rings of iron around the hem that stretched it to its maximum, making it seem as if she could hardly move.

However, she showed no signs of being affected by it when she walked.

Although she didn't go to the Earl's side to lean on him, the tenderness in her eyes was visible to everyone else.

"A lone wolf? I don't believe it. Forget it, I'll remember this grudge. Have all the other problems that have been exposed been sorted out?"

In the conference room, Count Black had a good discussion with his two trusted confidants. After seeing them off, he rubbed his temples and, feeling a bit of a headache, went to the basement of his bedroom.

In this not-so-large secret room, a crystal shard emitting a faint blue light floats in the center, next to a weapon shaped like a rapier.

"Five years! How could it be that at the very last moment, just when the family heirloom was about to be completed, it..."

The Black Earl's face darkened, and his large, round face appeared somewhat distorted under the pale blue light.

After emerging from the basement, the Black Earl's expression had changed to a calm one, though his pale complexion betrayed his underlying weakness.

"Butler, go and bring the eldest and second young masters over. I have some things to tell them."

Upon hearing the master's order, the new butler responded and quickly brought over the young masters, who were not even two years old, and accompanied the master into the basement.

"Father? Ah!"

......

It was already November, and the moonlight was particularly cold this month. The pirates roaming the seas were finding it hard to bear the cold, so some increased the frequency of their attacks, while others chose to retreat.

However, unnoticed by everyone, a dilapidated ship quietly broke through the waves and slowly approached the ice-free port.